I have a 10x20 Trimline canopy top for sale. Purchased in 2007 by the original owner who only did indoor shows and never used the canopy. I only do 10x10 size booth so do not need the 10x20 top. I have photos showing the perfect, never used condition, will send by request. Including the Trimline giant drawstring storage bag with purchase.
Asking $450, local pickup in 53590. Will ship anywhere if you pay shipping charges.
I entered the Art Fair Pledge Drive a little late, never thinking I would win anything. Somehow my mind always works in the "early bird gets the worm" channel. But I donated and entered anyway, and when to my surprise my name was selected quite far down the list I figured I didn't have much of a chance for the prize I really wanted since I was number 20 on the list. But I had nothing to lose, either, so I listed the mesh panels from Flourish as the number one choice out of 4 possibilities.
Five years ago I splurged on a 10' x 10' Trimline canopy from Flourish, and because I'm a big fan of outdoor canopy stability I also splurged on the StaBar set to keep things from shifting around unnecessarily (had a bad experience with a flimsier canopy which shall remain nameless). The only downside was that I had no money left over for the finishing touch--the mesh panels that would make the display of my paintings neat as a pin.
So-o-o-o...imagine my surprise when I saw that I had actually won those very panels! I wasn't sure at first that I had won--it seemed such a remote possibility--and I thought maybe it was just a list of everybody's first choices. After a reassuring email back from Connie I permitted myself to rejoice!
Flourish makes such a great product that I knew even five years later that the panels would still be the perfect ones for my canopy. I got contact information for them today, emailed them, and they have already scheduled shipping and I shall have my treasure soon. Their customer service is just as outstanding as their products and I will be forever grateful that they decided to support the pledge drive in such a generous way!
I'm upgrading from a decent EZ-up and I've been pouring over people's opinions and advice about this brand and that of higher end display canopies throughout the discussions here but I'm still teetering between two major brands. I do my set-up solo - am of a 'certain age', who wants set up and tear down to be a breeze. You know, I want the world - in a display tent!
Must Haves:
Considerations:
I'm attracted to the lightweight portability of the aluminum frame components of the Show off but love the guys at Flourish who make the Trimline that has taken over and improved on the Crafthut experience.
My research here through the forums and posts has found that there are enthusiastic supporters of every brand out there. I decided to compare apples with apples to get a handle on how things stack up! All prices shown are from the websites of each individual company as of today August 28, 2012. At first I thought there were wild ($300ish) price differences but then I looked into the add-ons and found they all come in very close to each other price-wise.
Comparing with: upper vents, 4 sidewalls, skylight, front awning)
CraftHut = TrimLine (were bought out)
Suggested additional Upgrade: get a center zipper in each sidewall so solo roll-up is do-able without a special tool
Another Thoughtful Recap
An artist/blogger by the name of Ron Frazier went through this process a couple of years ago and recapped his thinking here: http://ronfrazier.blogspot.com/2007/08/upgrading-to-better-canopy-p...
Be sure to read the comments. They're making me lean towards The Finale as of this writing.
Add YOUR opinions below if you like:
What I Chose:
I went with the SHOWOFF. Here's WHY:
I didn't ask for nor did I receive any % off from the seller for announcing this choice.
All three main companies make excellent tents that work great for folks with slightly different needs.
If your needs are similar to mine and this post helped you decide to also go with the SHOWOFF please mention me (Marti McGinnis) as your referral when you buy yours. They'll give me a little rebate. Then when you tell people about your purchase you'll get one too!
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Comment from Discussion (that I closed and moved here)
Permalink Reply by Brandee Ross 14 hours ago
I bought a Light-Dome earlier this year and set it up exactly once: one time was enough to make me realize it was NOT a one-person operation (not this one person anyway).
I really like the ease of a popup tent so I started researching what the food and sponsor guys were using at shows. I found out about TentCraft (tentcraft.com) but at ~$1,000 it was more than I wanted to spend. Then I came across a knockoff by Eurmax: http://www.eurmax.com/ProCanopyPackage10x10.html. I LOVE this tent. My favorite features:
Eurmax PRO 10'x10' Package
I can't think of any improvements. I don't use an awning but I did buy side rails to add stability, and in the future I might use them to display graphics in my tent.
Good luck!
And God said, I will smite your tent down with wind and rain and hail.
And Lo, the security guard will raise you from your slumber and lead you to your crushed and sagging tent. He will provide you with light and encouragement in your hour of need.
But beware the False-prophet who will stop and with forked tongue declare your type of tent is banned from many-a-fair, or at least Columbus. He will try to distract you from your work but he will offer no assistance.
And you will lose all hope as you attempt to rid the canopy of the gallons of water that have crushed it. You will void your tent of its water with a pocket knife by puncturing it 9 times. And you will have to break many supports to get underneath it.
The bent and twisted tent will rest on top of your pedestals on your center table. As you raise it up you will discover your ceramics knocked to the ground and jostled to the side, and you will be Sore Afraid. But you will discover that nary a piece is broken, cracked or chipped. And you will be amazed. Other artists will not be so lucky and you will know you have been chosen.
And you will take this as a sign. Your first born son, hearing your wailing and gnashing of teeth, will declare: Father, should we give up, pack and go home? But you will not despair, only wail and gnash some more, then go out in very very early Sabbath morn , and I will provide for you. You will scavenge bricks block, wood and Bar, and you will resurrect your tent from the soggy ashes (and you will remember to seek out the vendors who 'contributed' to your resurrection in the morning's light to explain your thefts).
You will then take inspiration offered from your offspring, remove all the artwork, rearrange your pedestals and tables so as to hide the destruction and the center pole. And you will be grateful that I sent your first born on this expedition to assist you as you cannot do this on your own.
And lo on Sunday morn, the sun will shine, the ravenous crowds will come forth in great hoardes, and they will wonder at your artwork. Any your son will rise at noon.
Man and woman alike will place money and credit cards on your table and you will make many sales, though not as many as the bearded Prophet with the Double wide Skylight kitty-corner to you.
You will be wise, take the money I have provided you in the face of disaster, and you will seek out a new, worthier canopy. You will turn a deaf ear to the vendor across the way who admonishes you for having an unworthy tent from Cosco instead of the superior Walmart pop-up, and you will know it could have been any of the other 20 or more Ez-Ups that escaped my wrath THIS TIME. You will remember the other 4 destroyed Ez-Ups at the fair, and you will know that no foam-swimming-noodle could have altered my wrath. And you will see the light.
You will have a vision of your Sta-Bar you used to support your demolished tent, and you will seek a tent made of that very same mettle and know that it is special, although a bit heavy. And you will purchase a Flourish Trimline with Sta-Bar and you will not look back, lest you be turned to stone. You will know the added weight and time for setup will lead to comfort in trying times and you will be glad you paid through the nose for this tent. You will give me thanks as you carry the Old One to the dumpster as even the zippers will work on your new canopy which always bothered you with the Pop-up. You will be joyful because the Trimline walls will even fit in their carry bag, which the Pop-up never did. You will consider it more than a long overdue investment for the future, it is a gift .
You will be thankful for the three years the Pop-up lasted and know you are meant to upgrade. And Lo, from this day forward light will shine brightly through your own Double Wide Skylight on your artwork. Your Ceramics will be much admired by the descending hoards and will find safe harbor from the fury of the summer storms to come.
And you will go forth and preach the good news to all Art Fair creation and make disciples of your new canopy and break the cycle of the Eternal Occurrence of the Same.
Amen
What size sign (banner) would you use for the front outside of a 10' x 10' canopy?
It will hang above the entrance.
Currently I'm looking at 8 x 2.5 feet. Wondering if I should go with 8 x 2 feet.
First off I am a lover of Trimline and will always be. You will see why I say so further in this post.
So it all started 1 week ago when on a sunny yet windy day I got out my trimline to wash it. Go through the steps of setting it up - never had an issue with this as I can pretty much do it in about 15 - 20 mins. on my own. I did not rush doing this - in my backyard - as I wasn't setting up for a show. With the roof on and fairly firmly attached I raised the legs and started to attach the sides to then spray with suds then hose them down. Just as I got the sides up and about to attach them to the legs a big gust of wind came through. That time I was able to get it to not fly off. But just as I was going to try and anchor it, it fell backwards shearing off the joint where the leg and the corner of the roof beams attach. The one bar did bend as well as the other joint - you should be able to see in the picture - faintly circled in red. So all in all through this crazy experience the only damage were the two joints and one pole - no legs, no sides, nothing else was damaged. Lucky.
This led me to really thank my lucky stars that this didn't happen at a show. I have insurance - that wouldn't be an issue, but the horror of seeing this happen effecting possibly every neighbor beside me and behind me is something I cannot shake. I have never had this happen - a flying canopy. I have seen it at nearly every show I have done. I am fully aware of the importance of anchoring a canopy and do so, but all it takes is a split second.
Having said this - it is my fault that I did this - not Trimline. So many times people quickly blame the canopy or some other thing/place. And am thankful this was with a trimline as with any other canopies I have used you would most likely have to replace it - parts can be expensive and they might not be in (as such was the case with an EZ-UP I had two years ago). The two joints are only $20 each and the one bar that got bent was about $30. Also, if the same thing were to happen to any other canopy it wouldn't have been a lot more damage - legs broken, fabric torn, etc.
So, today I am thanking my lucky stars that I did not set up my booth with in the toppled over canopy, this didn't happen at a fair, and the show I was going to do was a rain or shine event when the tornadoes hit and chose to not go forfeiting my booth fee. Still have no idea if the show actually happened. The show, funny enough was infront of a courthouse. The best thing ever was this happened in my own back yard and with a Trimline. Now if you want to do the same thing as me:
1. Set up your canopy when it is windy without any help - any other weather conditions it is easily doable.
2. As soon as the legs are on, do not anchor it - it can be done later. (yes there is sarcasm hidden in here)
3. Do not properly secure the top - I did the corners and the "seat buckle" straps as instructed, but didn't do the ones on the sides where you would normally attach the sides.
4. Put the sides on only having used the zippers on the top to create a wind-tunnel to help give the canopy lift.
5. Sit back and watch the kite fly.
In all seriousness - if you are to take anything from this lesson, anchor your canopies and if for some reason you find you can't do it in time, always alway always make sure you have insurance. The good news, the customer service with trimline is impeccable and got my parts Monday - I am good to go for this Saturday show - on pavement - with anchors already packed.
- Michelle, By the Bay Botanicals
