The rain from Friday night may have left behind some gray clouds over Mule Camp Market on Saturday morning, but the weather wasn’t going to get festival lovers down.

"As far as I understand, there was a big storm that blew through Friday night, and my tent was catawampous," said Pam Keene who was at Mule Camp early Saturday morning displaying her photography.

Keene said that one of her pictures "ended up way down at the 4-H booth" because of the storm but suffered only minor damage.

"I feel very blessed that we didn’t have more damage," Keene said.

One thing that many Mule Camp booth owners have in common is that they’ve been coming to the event for years.

Cathy Greer has been a festival vendor for 23 years. The Flowery Branch resident is known as the "Hair Bow Lady of Northeast Georgia."

She arrived in the Gainesville square at 5 a.m. Friday morning to prepare her booth of hair accessories.

"I always make sure I get my same spot so mamas know where to find me," Greer said.

Greer said that the preparation for Mule Camp takes patience, but the booth owners are good at helping each other out.

She came up with the idea for her company when her now 25-year-old twin daughters, Carol Ann and Jody Lynn, were little girls. The idea came after Greer went to a store with her twins and bought two hair bows for $24.

"I got in the car and said ‘your daddy is going to kill me,’" Greer said.

Greer went home that day and decided that she would figure out how to make unique hair bows on her own. Since then, she has had a booth at Mule Camp every year.

Greer’s hair bows are sewn by hand; she even has the bruises to prove her hard work.

But despite that, Greer loves being able to participate in Mule Camp, which she
believes is a good hometown, family-oriented show.

Greer remembers the good years of Mule Camp, but she also remembers a time when the event went through a rough patch.

"About six years ago, we were down to about 25 booths," Greer said. "It was pitiful."

During this time, Greer called every crafter she knew and told them about the festival and asked them to give it a try.

"We built it back up," Greer said proudly. Mule Camp offers 200 booths this year.

Another aspect of Mule Camp is the camaraderie that the artisans share.

"If I don’t have a product, and I know someone who may have it, I will send them to that booth," Greer said.

Elizabeth Allison, an 86-year-old Gainesville resident and a friend of Greer’s, has her own booth at Mule Camp offering handmade sock dolls, monkeys and quilts.

Greer actually bought things from Allison when her twins were young. Both Allison and Greer agree that the Gainesville Jaycees work hard to make the festival possible.

"They treat everyone fair," Greer said. "They are easy to work with, and they try to please every crafter."

"I think they do a great job for Gainesville," Allison said.

The Jaycees work hard to make Mule Camp stick out from other fall festivals.

"Mule Camp is unique because not only do you have real high quality arts and crafts but you have Gainesville and Hall County charitable organizations that have participated in Mule Camp for years and years and they do fundraisers through Mule Camp," said Ben Hawkins, the festival director.

"When you come to Mule Camp, you’re not just supporting the arts and crafts vendors across North Georgia, but you’re supporting our local Hall County organizations."

Hawkins has memories as a boy of going to the Corn Tassel Festival, the predecessor to Mule Camp Market.

"This is a part of your childhood if you live in Gainesville," Hawkins said.

Sandi Forschee, a Gainesville resident, has been coming to Mule Camp for 10 years and likes the "local flavor."

"The artisans are very personable, and they let you look and are not pushy," Forschee said.