Strawberryluna

Crafts’n’At Craft Fair in Pittsburgh!

Go check this craft fair out!

Go check this craft fair out!

September is a lovely month, isn’t it? So many changes and new things going on, it’s no surprise that this September is loaded with awessome craft shows too.

Although I won’t be a part of this show, as I will be in Seattle for another Flatstock poster show during the Bumbershoot Music Festival, I think that you fine folks who will be in Pittsburgh should check out the awesometacular Crafts’n’At Craft Fair at the Union Project over Labor Day weekend, put on by the Pittsburgh Craft Collective (PCC).

The Who, What, Where, When, & Whys:

WHO: Crafts N’At is brought to you by the Pittsburgh Craft Collective. We are a group of 51+ members working to create a strong and vibrant craft community through social and resource networking, education and workshops, and information sharing.

WHAT: Crafts N’At is an opportunity for independent crafters to show and sell their wares, establish their business, and to celebrate creativity. It features over 50 vendors, make & take crafts for children and adults, craft demonstrations, live performances, a Chinese auction and raffle, and an outdoor BBQ.

If you are interested in becoming a vendor, click here for more information. If vending isn’t your thing, but you still want to help out please send us an email at pghcraftcollective@gmail.com. If you are looking for promotional items for the show {including banners, buttons, and flyers}, click here.

WHERE: The Union Project at 801 North Negley Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15206

WHEN: Saturday, September 5, 2009 {Labor Day Weekend} Open to the Public: 10am to 6pm

WHY: The PCC will work each year to raise money for a charity in conjunction with this event. This year’s show will benefit [ gravity + grace ] and the Parkinson Foundation of Western Pennsylvania (PFWPA).

[ gravity + grace ], a contemporary opera written by Frank Ferraro, reveals his struggles with Parkinson’s Disease and will premier Sept 25th at the Hillman Center for Performing Arts.  All net proceeds of [ gravity + grace ] will be used to support the PFWPA programs and services for people with Parkinson disease, their families and caregivers.

Renegade Craft Fair in Brooklyn, this weekend!

So go darn it!! RCF is in McCarren Park (but not in the pool this year) in lovely Brooklyn, NY.

Sadly, I won’t be attending or vending this year 🙁 due to other travel plans in June. And I’m so bummed because this year’s Renegade Craft Fair is the biggest and best looking offering of amazing handmade crafts, art to date. The offering of incredible work from the DIY and Handmade culture is just fantastic, and the Renegade Craft Fairs are the premiere shows loaded with international talent.

Seriously. I feel like a ghost and watching all of my crafty, arty friends are hanging out together. BooooOOOOoooo :rattleschanins:

So, since I can’t go, you go for me! Say hello to my friends below and spread the word. See you next year Brooklyn!

Some of my favorite artists and crafters whom you should check out & totally say HI! to for me:

Berkely Illustration – amazing animal and other illustrations.

Bossa Nova Baby – super fun hand screenprinted skirts, sewn embellishment and retro-cool accessories. (And one of the funniest people I know.)

Giant Dwarf – beautiful embellishments for your head, hair and heart.

Hero Design Studio – these guys are my stone cold BFFs. Amazing every which way, including loose.

Isle of Printing – quite possibly the best that there is out there. Ever.

Mat Daly – amazing printmaker and poster artist

Mogo – modern goods from scratch, and two of the coolest chicks ever.

Nina Dinoff – fantastic fresh modern jewelry

Orangyporangy – maker of the cutest skirts EVER.

Ragtrader Vintage – retro-awesome jewelry, and a Pittsburgher! This is her 2nd show ever, so be NICE damnit. 🙂

Seattle Show Posters – great prints and posters

Seibei – super fun shirts and a hoot of fella.

Tugboat – Huzzaah! Another fantastic Pittsburgh printshop. We’re loaded with ’em.

Twigs & Heather – incredible solid silver cast natural work. Unreal.

We Are Campfire – great dudes who make great threads.

The Who, What, Wheres:

This year’s event is taking place June 6 + 7 from 11am – 7pm, at McCarren Park. The full Artist list is up, so check it out and get a sneak peak at who will be there!

Handmade Nation movie screenings & release

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DIY art and culture lives, thrives and has been gaining a massive resurgence in the past decade. The growth of hand crafted work, arts and crafts that could easily have been made by machines and digital media, but wasn’t, by choice of the artists, is astonishing and rad.

One artist, director, craft show creator (Art vs. Craft), retail craft store co-owner (Paper Boat) and all around superwoman of DIY, Faythe Levine also undertook the writing of a book and making an extraordinary documentary film about this movement beginning in 2006. The film is called Handmade Nation and is just beginning to screen all around the country, and the newly released book is called Handmade Nation The Rise of DIY, Art, Craft, and Design. Both authors Faythe Levine and Cortney Heimerl are touring the US and abroad with their film screenings and talking to folks about the passions and work of folks who make art and crafts with their hands. Both the film & the book have been highly anticpated for 2 years and counting. I can’t wait to see the film and have the book in my wishlist, ready to come home any minute now.

For screenings, or to book a screening (they welcome the inquiries) check out the Handmade Nation website and/or the Handmade Nation blog. The Handmade Nation book is available here, and for more photos, visit the Handmade Nation flickr page. 

Awesome Blossom!
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Free Holiday Shipping in my Etsy shop & website!

 

Free Holiday Shipping

Yup! That’s right. As a holiday thanks to everyone, I’m offering free shipping on all US & Canadian bound orders until midnight /11:59 pm EST on December 15th, 2008 on all purchases made through my Etsy shop. and via my website too!*

* For US & Canadian bound purchases made through my website, please enter the code: “freeship08” and I will refund your shipping as soon as I see your order. It’s that’s simple!

Stock up on goodies for friends, family, and hey if you find something for you I won’t tell. This offer is good for purchases made through my Etsy shop & my website (with use of the above shipping code) on anything that you see there like my hand screenprinted rock posters, or my fresh crop of art prints, women’s and men’s (or unisex) tshirts, and alphabet prints. All made by hand the old fashioned way. There’s even a new sale section in my Etsy shop (only) where I’ll be rotating the stock through with weekly specials. All shipped right to your door, for free to all US & Canadian destinations!

Drop by, see what’s new and don’t forget to support the DIY arts & crafts movement and shop handmade this season. Cheers! 

Happy Holidays!

Thank you Handmade Arcade!

Handmade Arcade at the Hunt Armory  Handmade Arcade at the Hunt Armory

That thanks goes for the organizers AND the awesome attendees. We had the BEST time all weekend. The Handmade Arcade (with 8,000+ people attending, it’s Pittsburgh’s largest indie/DIY craft show) just seems to get better every year. Everyone that we got to talk with was so nice and open; lots of fun conversations. What can I say? I love to talk shop. And happily, as it turns out, people love to talk craft and art too.

Chatting with a print & design friend

Chatting with a print & design friend

Plus, the new location was the BOMB. No foolin’! Handmade Arcade moved to the Hunt Armory, one of the largest National Guard Armory buildings around. It’s a really cool space with tons of natural light, room for crowds and vendors to breathe and of course, heavy vehicles. Turned out to be a very interesting mix. 

heavy vehicles make way for crafty crafters

heavy vehicles make way for crafty crafters

 

crowds at the Handmade Arcade

People looking at crafts at the Handmade Arcade.

Lots more photos over at Flickr too. Thanks bunches all! See you next year!

Spoonflower, just what we’ve been waiting for.

Thanks to a Twitter mention by smartie artie Meg Hunt, we recently found a great problem solver! Love textiel design, but perhaps don’t have the space, materials and expertise to print your own design? Spoonflower is fix.

For a textile, pattern and design nerd like me, this is straight heaven. Spoonflower, based in an former sock Mill in Mebane, North Carolina in the US, is technically still in it’s Beta stage. However, just this week they made the big move from an invite-only site to a fully public interactive website. Upload patterns & designs, peruse and follow the works of other designers around the world, order custom printed swatches based on your designs, or just read through the extensive blog for ideas, tutorials and tips of the trade.

Basically? Spoonflower is pretty much amazing. Look for my work there soon! Can’t wait to go play. Eeeeeeee.