WRITTEN ON January 19th, 2010 BY Eric Scout AND STORED IN Pacific Northwest
Oh the Tacoma Dome…
The Pacific Northwest is no stranger to the DIY spirit, and Tacoma Is For Lovers is holding it down! They’ll be hosting their first-ever Craft Night at the awesome Kings Books in Tacoma, WA February 11th at 7pm. Every month will feature a different theme, and what better way to start of Craft Nights in the winter than with a night on warm fuzzy needle felting?
$15 gets you a felting needle, warm fuzzy wool, and the ever important foam pad to stop you from stabbing yourself repeatedly as you birth cuteness from raw wool! More information on their blog, and you can follow them on Facebook as well!
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WRITTEN ON January 19th, 2010 BY Eric Scout AND STORED IN East Coast
I think the award for “Craft Show With the Most Punk-Rock Name” definitely goes to Central Mass Roller Derby’s Stitches, Needles ‘n’ Guns Alternative Craft Fair – and they’re looking for vendors!
The slim vendor fee of $20 will land you a 5 foot table at what promises to be a very fun show on February 6th, 10am to 3pm at the David Publishing Building in Worcester, MA. Check out the website for more info, and let us know if you’ll be showing there!
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WRITTEN ON January 14th, 2010 BY Eric Scout AND STORED IN Country Reports
Tags: Europe, Sweden
Sweden is no stranger when it comes to handcraft and design, and it should come as no surprise that the crafty DIY spirit is alive and well in the Nordic nation!
Light & Space
Textile designers light & space, based in Göteborg, Sweden, offer up definitely Scandanavian cards.
Lilla Jizo
Self-proclaimed hermit and artist Lilla Jizo shares images from her mysterious corner of the world with these amazing little paintings on pottery fragments found on the Western coast of Sweden.
Cristina Pires
Seamstress Cristina Pires creates swoon-worthy handmade dresses from vintage fabrics, with a smashing selection of color and pattern.
The craft scene in Sweden definitely seems to be bustling these days! The amount of crafters that have popped up online from this lovely country has increased dramatically since last year, so we’re going to be paying special attention for any hidden gems that may pop up this year! Have a favorite Swedish crafter you’d like to share? Leave us a note in the comments!
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WRITTEN ON November 18th, 2009 BY Eric Scout AND STORED IN Events, Los Angeles
Hey everyone! Sorry for the gigantic lapse in posting… we’re working on restructuring things a little bit for the new year to make Crafty Scout more useful than ever! The holiday season is also tremendously busy for crafters and craftees alike, so here’s a little video from the Handmade Brigade OC Holiday Show at The Camp in Costa Mesa, CA.
Some of the crafters in this video include Polly Danger, Oh Hello Friend, Paper Pastries, Tiny Whales and more!
Do you have a video to share from any holiday craft shows this season? Post a link in the comments! Happy crafting!!
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WRITTEN ON October 9th, 2009 BY Eric Scout AND STORED IN Southern California
Tags: Southern California
There’s just about a week left to apply for one of the earliest holiday shows of 2009 in Orange County! The Handmade Brigade, who puts on an awesome show in our opinion, is looking for applicants for the 2009 Holiday Show, to be held Sunday, November 1st at The Camp in Costa Mesa.
Applications can be found here, and the website says more details coming soon, but in our experience, the Handmade Brigade always has a fantastic selection, ranging from art, clothing, upcycling, vintage and more. Keep an eye out on their website for more information!
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WRITTEN ON October 9th, 2009 BY Eric Scout AND STORED IN New York
There’s just a few weeks left to apply for what promises to be an awesome holiday show in New York City. After the amazing success of the BUST London Summer Craftacular, they’re looking to do it all over again this December on our side of the pond!
200 vendors, DJs, goodie bags and more with an admission price of a mere $2. The West Coast is jealous!
Vendor fees are $250 and the application deadline is November 2nd, 2009. If you’re not sure which holiday show would be best for you to do this season, take a look at their website and apply here!
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WRITTEN ON October 9th, 2009 BY Eric Scout AND STORED IN General
Tags: Southwest
Arizona State University’s Herberger Institute for Design and The Arts will be hosting Indie Chic @ 10th Street this holiday season, and they want YOU to be a vendor! Organizer Lekha Hileman Waitoller is looking to bring the community in to support the crafty revolution urging them to shop handmade.
Indie Chic will be held December 5th, 2009 at the Arizona State University Art Museum. Booth fee is $35, and applications are available here!
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WRITTEN ON September 9th, 2009 BY Eric Scout AND STORED IN Country Reports
Ahhh Argentina! The country that dominates the lower half of South America (and had the world’s first female president, as well as one now!) has a rich craft culture, which can be seen in it’s many fairs and markets (or ferias in the local tongue) around the country.
Feria de San Telmo, held on Sundays in one of Buenos Aires’ oldest neighborhoods, has an impressive mix of artisanal crafts as well as flea market goodies, and a great write up on it can be found here.
And of course, a country with beautiful architecture and a good mix of cultural influences can only mean one thing:wonderful crafters! Here’s just a few of the magical things being made all the way down south.
Maria Lunate
Mmmmmmm-mmm! We are big fans of papercraft, and marialunate sells an adorable variety of things to buy, such as this “Little Red” paper house set! She’s also got super cute prinatbles, perfect for scrapbooking and gift adornment. Check out her shop here!
Ensamble Carro
Though there aren’t too many items in the shop right now, the upcycled/recycled bags of Ensamble Carro are hot hot hot. Fashioned from vintage suits and ties, these things are muy sexitanté!
Capricho Urbano
Awesome vintage-fabric purses and plushies from Argentinean designer Soledad Marteletti, available on Etsy! Goodies of all kinds can be seen on her Flickr photostream as well.
Cynthia Del Giudice
Beautiful handmade minimalist jewelry with a delightfully organic feel, available from Cynthia Del Giudice.
Yet another country on our list of places to see, Argentina no doubt has a wealth of creativity and inspiration, obvious through the goods of it’s fine crafters! Did we miss anyone on your list of favorites? Leave a note in the comments, because, after all, sharing is caring!
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WRITTEN ON September 1st, 2009 BY Eric Scout AND STORED IN General
Hey there readers! Sorry for the slow down in posts, but the LA wildfires have effected our headquarters a bit, what with the impending doom and unbreathable air and all. We intend to resume your regularly scheduled program as soon as they get a handle on Mother Nature doing it’s thing. Thank you for your patience!
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WRITTEN ON August 26th, 2009 BY Eric Scout AND STORED IN London
We recently had the pleasure of chatting with Louise of Craft-Sale, a family-run craft event in Northern London which looks to support both crafters as well as lovers of crafty goods!
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Crafty Scout:
Thank you for taking the time to chat with us about Craft-Sale. Would you mind telling our readers how long Craft-Sale has been going on?
Louise of Craft-Sale:
Well the Craft-Sales have been running for about 6 months now and we’re really starting to find our feet. We’ve been trying to meet new people, build up relationships and so on. I must say that so far everyone (including your good self) we’ve been talking to has been tremendously helpful, friendly and interesting … I guess it must say quite a lot about the crafting community in general.
Crafty Scout:
I think a lot of crafters today would agree that the new craft movement is all about crating community. How did you get started in the crafty universe?
Louise:
As well as a being a passionate hobby of mine, I have been involved in teaching craft for about 13 years now. The classes I run give me the luxury of talking to people about craft, and give me a chance to listen to what people are getting excited about, what’s new and what’s going on. On top of this a few years ago my son, Jon (a designer who worked in R&D) decided that enough was enough and I should embrace the internet rather than hide from my “techno fear”.
Subsequently, I got set up with a laptop and wireless connection and never looked back. I discovered much more than I had ever imagined. Sites like Etsy & Folksy were making it possible for people to sell the things their creations. Craft & Make magazines started in the US, and I noticed that “handmade” was becoming a political statement of intent.
I had started to feel that I wanted to do more than teach once a week, I wasn’t sure how but I felt it was the right time. I wanted to bring some of the knowhow and passion I’d seen growing on the internet to our little bit of the world in North London. Ever since I’ve been starting the slow process of setting up a small business based around craft. The main focus of the business so far has been the Craft-Sales, it’s been a steep learning curve but ultimately rewarding.
Crafty Scout:
Independent craft shows have been popping up all over the place in the US. Is something similar happening in the UK as well?
Louise:While there are many other craft sales all over the UK, some of which are excellent I might add, we’d noticed that locally we didn’t have too many options. So we decided to run a regular series of Craft-Sales that operate ethically, don’t rip off the stall holders, have a warm friendly atmosphere, and don’t leave our stall holders feeling unimportant or unvalued. Let me give you and example we come across all the time.
I’m not even sure if it happens anywhere else in the world, but in the UK we have lots of ‘Car boot sales’ – they’re like a collection of yard sales all at the same time where people pay to sell their junk from a car boot (trunk). These are often used by crafters in the UK as an entry point to selling, as they don’t cost the earth to have a table. However, they can be something of a false economy. Those attending are often there just looking for something cheap, and don’t appreciate the effort or love that goes into making things.
So we’re trying to build friendships and relationships with the people who come along to our sales as well as the stall holders. We’re learning as we go and we’re trying to DO things rather than just talk. So rather than spend our time quoting statistics about numbers of visitors to the website, or increased projected sales we’d rather concentrate of building bridges and relationships with other crafters, craft groups and clubs and local businesses.
We want the people who come along both as stall holders and as general public to feel welcome, appreciated and to leave inspired.
Crafty Scout:
Car boot sales are definitely new to me! In the US though, we do have a lot of flea markets, big and small, that new crafters are tending to start out at, and I think they come across the same thing… people looking for cheap things, not really handmade goods. How would you say Craft-Sale supports the crafter, or tries to draw in people who do appreciate making things?
Louise:
As I touched on before we’re really keen on helping getting people’s work noticed… we’re having to do it ourselves and learn the lessons as we go, and we’re interested in taking like minded people with us. We offer a free advert on our website that links directly to our stall holder’s web-shop. We realize it’s not the front page of the New York Times, but sometimes all it takes is one person to see and fall in love with what you’ve made to really get you going. Recently one of our crafters had their entire stock on Etsy bought by up by a shop having seen an advert on our site.
Crafty Scout:
That’s fantastic to hear. Connecting crafters to the people who love craft is a very important, noble mission in this new crafty revolution, and you seem well ready to take up that charge! We’d really like to thank you for sharing all this with us, and we’re sad we can’t make it out to see Craft-Sale in person (this time!). Do you have any last words for our readers?
Louise:
I’d just like to say to all your readers you are very much invited to come along, but if you find it’s a bit too far or you have and ocean in your way, please come see the website as some of our stall holders are really good. Or get in touch as we love to collaborate in craft projects and the wider community in general.
Thanks so much for your time, and the opportunity to talk about work.
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And thank YOU Louise, for the great interview! If you’re going to be in London Saturday, September 12th, head up to Southgate, check out Craft-Sale, and support handmade!
Craft-Sale
Saturday September 12th, 2009
10am – 3pm
St. Andrew’s Church, Chase Side
Southgate N14 6BE
