Health Fair Auction

Tommy's class put on a Health Fair at their school.  It was from 6:00 - 8:00 on a Friday night during the second week of December.  Really?  Oh, but it was so fun!  I was swamped with parent conferences, report cards, and teaching, but I carved out some time to make and buy a few things to donate to the the silent auction.

 I made this crocheted bag and attached a wool felt flower and lined it with a thrifted vintage sheet of pale yellow and red flowers.  It cost about $3.50 to make, and it sold for $25.  It was a HUGE hit with the 6th grade girls, who were begging their parents to put in bid after bid.  So cute!

 I made a set of re-usable grocery bags (hey!  same fabric as the lining!) and included a set of Tumbler produce bags.  I spent $12 and the set went for $15.

 

The theme was, of course, healthy eating.  Tommy did his whole presentation on how bad fast food is for you.  (And can I just say, with a sigh, how equally wonderful and horrible it is for a young boy to get a little bit of knowledge?  We don't eat fast food often at all....maybe once a month?  And it's usually because we are out after a long of school/work and straight to ____ practice ~ go ahead and fill in the blank ~ and I'm telling you that, under those circumstances, I don't need the scolding from a ten year old when I pull into the drive-through.   Just saying.  Also, I could deal with the righteous indignation if it weren't also accompanied by the descent into emotional chaos, complete with anxiety attacks, he now suffers whenever a cheeseburger, plain is ordered.)

Anyway, it was a 'healthy food' theme, so I picked up a crockpot on sale and a cookbook to go with it ($40.00 total) because I know my crockpot has saved us from a dinner of take out more than a few times per month.  It went for $32.00.

 Finally, I picked up a yoga mat and set of yoga dvds (did I mention the HEALTHY?) and that was $35 for both.  It sold for $26.00. 

 Here's Tommy giving his presentation to the Lower Elementary kids, with a monkey on his back.

So.  Brisk clap.  What have we learned here today?  The bag, net-net, was by far the best auction item!  It cost almost nothing (except my time) to make, it was universally loved, and it sold for a nice profit to benefit the school.  I don't regret buying the other items, however.  It was a donation, to raise money for their classroom projects, and I'm glad that the families who ended up with the items were able to get them at a discount.  Things are tough all over, and I know the families involved were excited to get something for less than it would have cost them at the store. 

So that's what I donated to the auction; you may be wondering what did I win?  I won a shoebox diorama of an organic farm made by a 5th grade student.  My bid was $6.00.  Total bargain, and I love it!  Scotty was quite smitten also, because he kept asking where his "game" had gone to.  haha!  I bought it to show to my own students, so they could understand what a "diorama" is, in case they wanted to do a project themselves. 


There's another silent auction (for the school, instead of the class) coming up in the spring.  I tell myself, after the holidays, I'll get going on a stable of crocheted and lined bags.  But, I think we all know that's a long shot.  "procrastinate" is my middle name!