The Third Annual Vancouver Fan Expo 2014

The Olympic Cauldron outside the Vancouver Convention Centre

Olympic Cauldron outside Vancouver Convention Centre

Vancouver Fan Expo was an exciting blur of a long Easter weekend with working and playing.

My BC Crafty Geeks group booked a table to sell our crafts. We had an early move-in on Friday morning. We totally lucked out and had an extra table. Since there were five of us, we could spread out. We had a variety of items on our table to tempt buyers. Crocheted dolls, hats, bags and cat toys. Handmade cross-stitched pins from Doctor Who to Space Invaders. Laser etched glasses and pendants and logos. Doctor Who Dalek and TARDIS soaps, ornaments, Steampunk pins and magnets, Harry Potter miniatures, plastic canvas crafts, stickers and collector's cards.

Cross-stitched pins for sale

Doctor Who merchandise

With five people, we always had the table staffed with one or two people. We had plenty of time to shop and run around looking at the displays from Lego, to the huge Walking Dead poster, to R2D2 and Mutt (Steampunk K9) driving around.

Bruce Boxleitner

I had the chance to go to four Q&A panels. Bruce Boxleitner was entertaining, sounds like a "to the rules" sort of guy, much like Captain Sheridan. Bruce Campbell was just the opposite, making the audience be the panel, instead of him. Very outgoing, quite the showman. Charisma Carpenter was charming. Just think Cordelia but without the snobbery. The Tom Felton Q&A had to be the best panel I attended. He was delightful and charming.

I only partook of one autograph, as they were so pricey. I lined up early Sunday morning for Tom Felton, right before his Q&A panel. Being the Slytherin that he was, he was an hour late to his session. But that's all right, I was nearly one of the first in the lineup. I had him sign my Chamber of Secrets DVD and also got a free photo, which I promptly lost. Fortunately, a friend found it for me later.

Tom Felton's Autograph

At the autograph session, can you see me?

Mel Dawn in the TARDIS

I was a bit disappointed at the lack of handmade goods at Fan Expo, not including drawings or paintings. There were about 20 different spots to buy Doctor Who merch but none of it handmade and I already owned all that stuff anyway.

The new convention venue was so much better than the location last year, at the old convention centre. Vancouver Fan Expo ran smoothly this year with plenty of space to spread out into. The food concessions were good and reasonably priced. Plenty of washrooms. More than enough graphic novel/comic book vendors, plenty of paintings, drawings and t-shirts to buy, though the t-shirts were all over-priced.

All in all I was pleasantly pleased with this year's Vancouver Fan Expo and look forward to the guest list announcement for Easter long weekend next year.