barefoot contessa window displays

Sometimes random ideas pop into my head and I say "Hey, Robert! What are your thoughts on ...?" and his response is usually one of "those" looks. So when I decided that we should contact a local retailer to host a handmade window display showcasing Got Craft? goodies, I had to contact my friend Barefoot Contessa to pitch her the idea. Thank goodness that she loved it! With me in London and numerous emails and phone calls back and forth, I am happy to announce that I am beyond smitten of how they turned out! Aren't they gorgeous? Love! Love! Love!

Thank you to Eva and the team at Barefoot Contessa, Kris for listening to all my demands :), Miranda for the vinyl lettering x 2 and to the Got Craft? vendors that participated in the window displays. Photo credits go to Kris Brownlee and Jennifer Conway. If you are in the Vancouver area, please pop on by to Barefoot Contessa and check out the goodies in person at 3715 Main Street or at their second location at 1928 Commercial Drive. 

LHR :: things to do :: pennants + foxes + boogaloo

 

found on pinterest by Eli

Meant to post this yesterday, but there is still time to make it to Craft Guerrilla's DIY bunting workshop tonight! Learn how to make your own punk rock paper bunting to celebrate the upcoming Royal Wedding. Go and make, drink and be crafty!

event: Craft Guerilla's DIY craft night
date: Thursday, April 14th, 2011
time: 8:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.
location: Ye Olde Rose and Crown Theatre Pub, 53 Hoe Street, London E17 4SA

For more details, follow Craft Guerrilla on facebook here.

The Crafty Fox Pop Up Market returns this Saturday, April 16th to the Dogstar in Brixton. There will be tea rooms with a letter lounge; plenty of workshops including cupcake decorating, brooch making, cross stitch and cocktails and photography; 40 stalls of handmade crafts and DJ's spinning all day! 

event: Crafty Fox Pop Up Market

date: Saturday, April 16th, 2011

time: 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

location: The Dogstar, 389 Coldharbour Lane, Brixton SW9 8LQ

Visit their website here for a full list of activities, directions and more information.

The Wonder Hill High Market promises to be an afternoon filled with wonderful indie arts and crafts, vintage clothing, accessories, sustainable items and apparently, the best cake in town! You had me at cake... 

event: The Wonder Hill High Market

date: Saturday, April 16, 2011

time: Noon to 5:30 p.m.

location: The Boogaloo, 312 Archway Road, London N6 5AT

Interested in selling? A few stalls are available. Click here for more details.

YVR :: things to do :: i heart + make it

photo credit: tiddlywinker

I Heart Crafts Bazaar returns this Saturday at the Artbank Gallery on Powell Street in Vancouver. After a brief hiatus, the ladies (and gents!) are back with crafts, music and tasty treats. As a past vendor and loyal attendee, this is an amazing event with a huge community following and an amazing new venue (bank turned art gallery).

event: I Heart Crafts Bazaar
date: Saturday, April 16th and Sunday, April 17th, 2011
time: 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
location: Artbank Gallery - 1897 Powell Street, Vancouver
cost: $2.00 

For more details, check out their facebook event here.

******************

The self proclaimed "the mullet of craft fairs" - craft fair in the front and party in the back, Make it features over 90 artists, crafters and designers showcasing a wide selection of goods. Make it fuses handmade shopping, a licensed bar, music spun by DJ Brodevious and a silent auction to benefit the Union Gospel Mission into a 3 day craft extravaganza. 

event: Make it!

date: Friday, April 15th to Sunday, April 17th, 2011

time: Friday - 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday - 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

location: Croatian Cultural Center - 3250 Commercial Drive, Vancouver

cost: $5.00 (kids 12 and under are free)

For more information and a discount voucher, visit their website here or facebook event here.

Bubbly Shnooks - feature #49

Name: Michelle Clement from Bubbly Shnooks
Website links: Etsy | Blog | Twitter | Flickr

What do you make?
I make cute illustrated paper goods for my shop, Bubbly Shnooks, and am currently expanding my line to include crocheted goodies, soft dolls, and accessories. I also design a line of scrapbook paper for Sassafras Lass, as well as work in the local Vancouver animation industry as my ‘day job’, as well as making a lot of crafts just for fun: I love to scrapbook, embroider, sew, cross-stitch, and am currently addicted to crocheting!

What or who inspires you?
I’m really inspired by artists, crafters, and illustrators who have made their own little thriving indie businesses! Artists like Elsie Flannigan of Red Velvet Art, Susie Ghahremani of BoyGirlParty, and Emily Martin of The Black Apple, for example – those who make their own unique and adorable goodies and have remarkable branding & a smart sense for all things indie bizz. Chasing dreams really inspires me!

I’ve also always been really into the mix of aged vintage & bright colors, so thrift shops inspire me, as does the magazine aisle at a big book store. Scrapbook galleries, numerous crafty blogs, children’s book illustrations, and artists like Mary Blair, Dr. Suess, and Edward Gorey have my heart. Calgary’s own amazing ‘Uppercase Magazine’ is also an amazing resource! I find inspiration everywhere, really. The world around me inspires!



How did you get started?
I started scrapbooking when I was 12 at a beginner’s class with my mom, and everything’s kind of stemmed from there! (I’ve been sewing and drawing and journaling for as long as I can remember, too, of course). I got really into scrapbook products and goodies about 4-5 years back, and my love of drawing led me to doodle my own scrapbook paper tags, which then led to also making cards and art prints, and it’s grown out from there. The collage-inspired way I scrapbook has now also led me to designing lines of paper – where I use every crafty technique in my arsenal, from embroidery to dying paper to drawing to sewing. It all started with paper and has grown into a creative outlet that comes out in a wealth of forms!

What are your favourite materials to work with?
I love to work with heavy cardstock and walnut ink (a natural brown dye that ages paper in a lovely way). I’m also partial to my trusty HB pencil and plain old white paper for drawings, and Photoshop is vital for everything! Fabric is also a favorite – especially neutrals that I can dye and scrunch and make my own.



What is the hardest and your most favourite part of crafting?
The hardest part, for me, about crafting is following a project through from beginning to end without being distracted by a new idea/project – lol. I like to start them, but it takes me a long time to finish one thing, sometimes! My favorite part is that as well, though – it’s so inspiring and there are so many possibilities in and of itself, there’s always something new & fun to be made!



List 5 of your favourite links and why you like them
A Beautiful Mess: I love Elsie’s blog because it’s full of crafty/vintage/fashion/indie business goodness, always!

I Just Might Explode:
Kara is a thoughtful, inspiring, crafty girl who just moved to New York to go to art school – her adventures and wonderings always make me smile!

Vivienne McMaster:
Not only are Viv’s photos amazing, but her thoughts are so insightful & lovely to read.

Candi Mandi: Mandi’s adventures in fashion, thrifting, and home décor always inspire!

Danielle Thompson: Danielle’s design sense & love of vintage kitsch – not to mention her amazing photography, rocks!



Do you have any advice for those in the biz?
I would say that the most important thing when you’re creating anything or opening a shop is to make what you want to make and stay true to yourself, not to make something because it’s popular right now or that it’s what everybody else is doing. It can be discouraging at first, sometimes, feeling like you’re a black sheep of sorts, but once you spread the word and find your niche, you’ll be glad you stuck with something unique that you love to do. You’ll find that other people will love that about it, to!

Do you consider yourself an artist or a crafter?
Oh, this is a toughie. I’ve bantered over it with art school folk a few times, because it’s such a blurred line, now. I would like to say I’m a ‘maker’ – lol - aka, a crafter & artist all rolled into one. I think today that craft & art have joined forces – crafts are just as beautiful and inspiring during this handmade movement as art, is, to me.

(photo images courtesy of Bubbly Shnooks)

If you are interested in being featured, please send us an email at info(at)gotcraft(dot)com.

Check out our past features...
Yummy Yarn - feature #48
Cutesypoo Toys - feature #47
Locomotive Clothing - feature #46
Hand & Shadow - feature #45
Kove Handmade - feature #44
Sam Bradd - feature #43
Katrinshine - feature #42
Penelope Brown - feature #41
Laura Bucci Handmade - feature #40
Track and Field Designs - feature #39
Irit Sorokin Designs - feature #38
Clockwork Fantastica - feature #37
Divesin - feature #36
Flight Path Designs - feature #35
Plantscapes - feature #34
Olive - feature #33
Uncle Phil / Flipside - feature #32
Kim Werker - feature #31
Haiiku - feature #30
Smidgebox Designs - feature #29
heyday design - feature #28
Smeeta - feature #27
ACageyBee - feature #26
Maked - feature #25
Firefly Notes - feature #24
Florence Ann - feature #23
Him Creations - feature #22
Jenny Hart - feature #21
district thirty - feature #20
tinywarbler designs - feature #19
telly designs - feature #18
Cabin + Cub - feature #17
Rachel Hobson - feature #16
Green Couch Designs - feature #15
Tanis Alexis - feature #14
Sweetie Pie Press - feature #13
Fibre Manipulator - feature #12
Sam Made - feature #11
All Things Paper - feature #10
Owl + Pussycat - feature #9
Bliss in a teacup - feature #8
It's Your Life - feature #7
Faythe Levine - feature #6
Coco Cake Cupcakes - feature #5
pomomama design - feature #4
GroovyGlassGirl - feature #3
Bueno Style - feature #2
The Beautiful Project - feature #1

Yummy Yarn - feature #48

Name: Yummy Yarn by Kirsten Zerbinis
Website links: Etsy Shop

What do you make?
I make hand dyed fibre for spinning and felting, and handspun yarn. They're one of a kind, beautiful supplies for artisans and crafters.

What or who inspires you?
I'm inspired by the materials. I've been knitting for so long, and I continue to be amazed and inspired by the combinations and possibilities of what seem like small variations - stitch, material, type of yarn, technique. And lately, I've been on a project to support biodiversity. So many fiberistas seem to be stuck on mainly just one sort of sheep, the Merino. It's not that merino isn't a perfectly lovely fibre, but it's like being able to buy only one sort of tomato in the grocery store, or one type of bread. What has inspired me lately has been the project to stretch myself as a spinner and learn how to bring out the best in a lot of different types of fibre, and then bring a range of interesting and wonderful materials to crafters, something they really can't get in a lot of yarn stores. (Not to underrate yarn stores! Several local ones carry my yarn!)

How did you get started?
I got started as a pro because I had moved to a new city with a new baby, and my previous career - college English teacher - was largely closed to me unless I wanted to put my baby in daycare. I didn't. I started the business as just a little thing, just a little attempt at doing something I'd always loved but never thought could be a 'real' job. Three years later, here I am running a profitable business that lets me still be a mostly stay at home parent to my two girls.

It's been so interesting to see how one thing has led to another. I opened an online store for the handspun yarn, and then I did the Farmer's Market that summer. The Farmer's Market let me meet a lot of local crafters, and I was asked to do a demo at an arts centre. That demo led to me teaching there. Teaching there led to me teaching all over the place, and through that I keep getting inspired to make new things, develop my skills still further, see what else I can set my hand to.

photo credit: Kim Werker

What are your favourite materials to work with?
Wool. Actually, even more specifically, wool with personality, wool with body. Can I go ahead and say that I just don't really like merino? I find it kind of lifeless and boring. I love the pillowy bounce of Falkland, the shape and structure of Shetland, the silky hand of BFL. I get cold, man, and I want to knit stuff that has substance.


List 5 of your favourite links and why you like them
Ravelry: It's the spinning knitter's best friend. I love that I can just plug a bunch of constraints into their search engine -- yardage, gauge, preferred project type -- and it will spit out dozens of projects that fit. No more sitting there with a skein of yarn trying to pull an idea out of your own head, now you can plug into the hive mind!

Etsy: It's Etsy, dude. It's like regular, but without the sore feet and the greasy, uneasy feeling that your'e contributing to evil just by being there (or is that just me?). I love love love seeing what thousands of crafters accomplish when they all put their stuff up together.

Living Crafts: There aren't many crafts magazines I read, but I love this one. It's full of ideas for crafts to do for the home and with kids, but it's very wool based. There is almost no plastic lacing or glitter involved, but instead there's a focus on natural materials, simple and elegant ideas.

Um, I'm kind of out of links. I actually don't spend a ton of time online. I don't blog; I don't read blogs. Sorry, I am rarely the source of linky goodness.


Do you have any advice for those in the biz?
There's nothing wrong with being in the biz for the biz aspect. I think sometimes there's a stigma about talking about money, profit margins, and return on investment. I've heard people say that they don't really expect to make a profit, that they're just doing this 'for fun,' and it always makes me sad that they think handcrafts is somehow not important. Making stuff is important - important enough that a talented, hardworking artisan should be willing and able to
make a living doing it.


Do you consider yourself an artist or a crafter?
I call myself an artisan. For me, an artist is someone with some sort of semiotic content in their work - something they're trying to say. My work says "isn't this a lovely combination of reds?" There's no message. And yet, to say "crafter", there's been a bit of an abuse of the term going on. People still think about gluing bits of synthetic lace to lampshades, painting snowmen onto ornaments. Artisan, for me, captures the idea that what I'm doing is one of a kind, unique to my technique and my ideas. That what I'm doing is small scale, and not reproducible by mass production.

(photo images courtesy of Yummy Yarn)

If you are interested in being featured, please send us an email at info(at)gotcraft(dot)com.

Check out our past features...
Cutesypoo Toys - feature #47
Locomotive Clothing - feature #46
Hand & Shadow - feature #45
Kove Handmade - feature #44
Sam Bradd - feature #43
Katrinshine - feature #42
Penelope Brown - feature #41
Laura Bucci Handmade - feature #40
Track and Field Designs - feature #39
Irit Sorokin Designs - feature #38
Clockwork Fantastica - feature #37
Divesin - feature #36
Flight Path Designs - feature #35
Plantscapes - feature #34
Olive - feature #33
Uncle Phil / Flipside - feature #32
Kim Werker - feature #31
Haiiku - feature #30
Smidgebox Designs - feature #29
heyday design - feature #28
Smeeta - feature #27
ACageyBee - feature #26
Maked - feature #25
Firefly Notes - feature #24
Florence Ann - feature #23
Him Creations - feature #22
Jenny Hart - feature #21
district thirty - feature #20
tinywarbler designs - feature #19
telly designs - feature #18
Cabin + Cub - feature #17
Rachel Hobson - feature #16
Green Couch Designs - feature #15
Tanis Alexis - feature #14
Sweetie Pie Press - feature #13
Fibre Manipulator - feature #12
Sam Made - feature #11
All Things Paper - feature #10
Owl + Pussycat - feature #9
Bliss in a teacup - feature #8
It's Your Life - feature #7
Faythe Levine - feature #6
Coco Cake Cupcakes - feature #5
pomomama design - feature #4
GroovyGlassGirl - feature #3
Bueno Style - feature #2
The Beautiful Project - feature #1

school's in session!

Having attended a similar session, I am so happy to announce that registration for Schoolhouse Craft has opened! In 2010, the Conference of Creative Entrepreneurs was hosted in Seattle, WA and the Seattle based organizers decided to continue hosting a conference for small business owners and creatives. They branched off and started Schoolhouse Craft to help small business owners and those in the crafty realm to express their creativity, take product photos, sell at brick and mortar shops, legalities of business, the world of craft fairs and more. 

Early bird registration runs until August 31st, so make sure to book your tickets here! 

event: Schoolhouse Craft

date: September 23rd to 25th, 2011

time: 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

location: Phinney Neighborhood Center - 6532 Phinney Avenue N, Seattle

For those closer to San Francisco, make sure to check out the Conference of Creative Entrepreneurs West and if you are near Baltimore in October, check out the Summit of Awesome for extreme awesomeness!

hear ye :: call for makers!

photo credit: maker faire

If you have been following our past posts here and here, then you already have your calendars marked for mini Maker Faire Vancouver on June 25th and 26th, 2011 at the Great Northern Way campus. Are you a maker? If so, they want you! Maker Faire Vancouver is looking for lots and lots of crafts and crafters! Deadline for applications is March 17th, so follow this link to read the full details.

The event takes place over two days, but there is no need to commit to the entire weekend. You can apply either to simply show off your stuff and chat with people about how you do it (science-fair style) or you can apply for a commercial booth where you can sell your wares (craft-fair style).

In the words of Kim Werker from the planning committee...

Maker Faire began a few years ago outside of San Francisco, put on by the folks behind Make and Craft magazines of O'Reilly Media. It's a MASSIVE event drawing 20,000 people. Makers demo their hacks, robots and other nifty creations, and there's always been a strong crafts component, too. We're doing a community-organized Faire.

Check out the website to purchase tickets, register as a maker and for more information!

Locomotive Clothing - feature #46

photo credit: Ophelia Photography

Name: Locomotive Clothing Co. (Jay and Aaron Matte)

Website links: Locomotive Clothing | Etsy | Twitter

What do you make?

We make sweet and unique streetwear, adorned with screen print, applique and spray paint. Everything from historically inspired t shirts with a touch of whimsy, to edgy spray painted hoodies to super cute toddler train and tractor items.

What or who inspires you?

Right now we are pretty inspired by everything Canadiana, hearts, pop culture references, circus imagery, history, science and always, trains.

How did you get started?

Jay started spray painting vintage items in a seedy East Vancouver back alley years ago and sold it in local boutiques. When we met in 2007, we decided to partner up in life and in craft and began screen printing and started our Etsy shop.

What are your favourite materials to work with?

We love it all, canvas and felt appliqué, screen printing, the computer (we create some of our graphics digitally). Jay also loves to experiment using spray paint on clothing. It takes a lot of technique and time but the look is really sharp and it washes surprisingly well.

What is the hardest and your most favourite part of crafting?

We just love creating, but there are too many ideas and not enough time! We keep plugging away though. Our most amazing moments have been walking down the street in Vancouver and meeting people who are wearing our clothes. This one guy we met during Car Free Day on Commercial Drive was wearing our Traveler T-shirt. He bought it at the Spring Got Craft and his girlfriend said we "wears it, like, every day." That was great to hear. Selling items all over the world through our Etsy shop is amazing as well. Our hoodies and t shirts are in Japan, Norway, Italy, Australia. So cool.

List 5 of your favourite links and why you like them

We love www.booooooom.com: It is local and global at the same time. He has an incredible eye for style and for what is current. Poppytalk is another obsession of ours. She is another example of a spot-on eye for style. For informative (and super accessible) local arts and culture, we can't forget about Vancouver is Awesome.

Jay has been skateboarding his whole life and we have to include Color Magazine for style, great skate coverage and an all around excellent website.

Bikeexif.com is also Jay's pick, he is a huge motorcycle aficionado and it is a fantastic blog, mostly catering to the Cafe Racer and Bobber community.

Do you have any advice for those in the biz?

Yes!

1. Make what you love.
2. Never underestimate the power of the amazing community of crafters out there. We have met the most incredible, generous and helpful people in the crafty community in Vancouver. Don't be afraid to help or to share information. We have put ourselves out there and have been given so much incredible advice and support.
3. Customer service is KEY. It is so important to be timely, organized and courteous.

Do you consider yourself an artist or a crafter?

Both I think. We don't think about it too much. We are makers of things.

(photo images courtesy of Locomotive Clothing)

If you are interested in being featured, please send us an email at info(at)gotcraft(dot)com.

Check out our past features...

Hand & Shadow - feature #45

Kove Handmade - feature #44

Sam Bradd - feature #43

Katrinshine - feature #42

Penelope Brown - feature #41

Laura Bucci Handmade - feature #40

Track and Field Designs - feature #39

Irit Sorokin Designs - feature #38

Clockwork Fantastica - feature #37

Divesin - feature #36

Flight Path Designs - feature #35

Plantscapes - feature #34

Olive - feature #33

Uncle Phil / Flipside - feature #32

Kim Werker - feature #31

Haiiku - feature #30

Smidgebox Designs - feature #29

heyday design - feature #28

Smeeta - feature #27

ACageyBee - feature #26

Maked - feature #25

Firefly Notes - feature #24

Florence Ann - feature #23

Him Creations - feature #22

Jenny Hart - feature #21

district thirty - feature #20

tinywarbler designs - feature #19

telly designs - feature #18

Cabin + Cub - feature #17

Rachel Hobson - feature #16

Green Couch Designs - feature #15

Tanis Alexis - feature #14

Sweetie Pie Press - feature #13

Fibre Manipulator - feature #12

Sam Made - feature #11

All Things Paper - feature #10

Owl + Pussycat - feature #9

Bliss in a teacup - feature #8

It's Your Life - feature #7

Faythe Levine - feature #6

Coco Cake Cupcakes - feature #5

pomomama design - feature #4

GroovyGlassGirl - feature #3

Bueno Style - feature #2

The Beautiful Project - feature #1

day trip :: love-a-fayre

We ventured out to Bethnal Green station last Saturday for the Valentine's love-a-fayre craft fair. The Working Men's Club reminded me of the Royal Canadian Legion back in Vancouver, but I wish we had this...

Giant light up heart stage with gold fringe!? I wish we had this! Late crafters arriving.. crafters who didn't have their float ready... ah, I have found my people. Saw some fantastic, locally handmade goodies and some that seemed to be priced really low. Not knowing the community yet, I'm not sure what the market will hold, but there was some very well made goods for £5 or less which is low compared to what I have seen in Vancouver and some US craft fairs. By the way, they love their moustaches over here too. Bought this (below) super cute felt pin from Be♥Bop♥A♥Lula.

We never made it to the Ephemera event, but hope to catch the next one on April 7th. Instead, we met up with some friends and had our first Sunday roast lunch at the local pub which is super popular here. By the time we ordered at 2pm, the roast turkey was already sold out and on our last visit to Cambridge, all the roast was sold out by 3pm!

things to do :: dressew

Dressew is the mother of all craft supply stores. I have never seen anything quite like it in Vancouver, maybe even in the world. Aisles and aisles of fabric, needles, zippers, ribbon, felt... and the list goes on. Plus, it's cheap too! $2 for a ball of wool yarn?

After the busy holiday crafting season, it's time to stock up your supply levels. Dressew is having a 50th anniversay sale and everything in store is 50% off * insert fireworks here *.

Sale starts Tuesday, February 1st and ends Saturday, February 5th, 2011 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. Dressew is located at 337 West Hastings in Vancouver.

I have a flight to catch on February 1st, but fingers crossed, that my bags don't weigh too much and I can catch the beginning of the sale before my boarding time. Now that's called commitment (or crazy?). If you have never been to Dressew, check out this post from wee life. Happy shopping!

check it :: maker faire vancouver

Well, it's official! Mini Maker Faire Vancouver will be taking place Saturday, June 25th and Sunday, June 26th, 2011. Check out their website for more information about the people that brought the event to Vancouver, what Maker Faire is all about and calls for volunteers and makers.

Hand & Shadow - feature #45

Name: Georgie Russell / Hand & Shadow

Website links: Hand & Shadow | Etsy | Blog | Facebook

What do you make?

Screen-printed t-shirts and scarves

What or who inspires you?

I can find inspiration anywhere, but it is much harder when I’m looking. I read a good deal, fiction and non-fiction, look online, spend time with other makers of things… I try to be open to seeing things in the world. I also spend a good deal of time letting my mind wander until an idea forms itself.

How did you get started?

I went to Emily Carr and worked with printmaking. After school I worked as a screen-printer, which taught me some useful skills and showed me the way I didn’t want to do things. I was part of the Seamrippers Craft collective which was very influential for me. I was able to have a hand in the set up of the screen-printing area and taught some workshops. It was also a concentration of so many skills and personalities that it was impossible to walk away unchanged. I left the collective to begin screen-printing for myself, it just seemed the best fit for me at the time. It’s been hard at times, but I think that shows in the work I make.

What are your favourite materials to work with?

Discharge ink. It’s a bleach based ink and I love the variation of results that I can get. It prints clear, which can be tricky, and can be unpredictable, but I think I’ve reached a point of working with it where I can make its changeability work in my favour. I print almost exclusively on cotton, as the ink only works on natural fibres. I have been experimenting with wool and silk as well, but nothing concrete so far.

What is the hardest and your most favourite part of crafting?

I have trouble keeping focused. I work a full time job and there often isn’t time to go to the studio. It can also be hard to create new designs while constantly playing catch-up with the old designs. But I love the small successes, and that magical sensation when an idea starts to solidify in my thoughts and the moment when I finish a print and it is exactly how I pictured it in my mind.

List 5 of your favourite links and why you like them

Where the lovely things are and TeenAngster: Mallory and Allison seem to have endless channels from which to find inspiration. Both have impeccable taste in aesthetics, I have found wonderful things on their blogs and I’m always amazed by the sheer volume of information that they must have to read and sort and then post.

Braided Stream: this is sort of naughty, because I write this blog. But it means that I get to research everything so even though it takes away from time that I should be spending in the studio, it forces me to get out there and be inspired and keep looking at things. Many of the subjects I write on are also ideas that inform my visual work. Plus this little adventure is new so I am very much in the honeymoon stages of blogging.

Taste Spotting: I love food. This website is the ultimate for looking at beautiful and inspiring edibles and as a reference point for making them.

Wikipedia: I’m an obsessive collector of information. I also like to be right, and I often turn to wikipedia to gloat in my rightness. But it is the most amazing source of information, and while I understand that it is not always correct, it is a wonderful reference point for ideas. Sometimes I follow a topic through as many links as possible and see what sort of obscure topic I can end up on.

Do you have any advice for those in the biz?

Celebrate small victories. Except for the very lucky and very few of us, it will be a long hard uphill climb. And it is an amazing journey, but every mention on someone’s blog, every delighted repeat customer and every bit of positive feedback helps. It’s hard work and one has to stay motivated somehow. So hold on to those good moments, hopefully the victories get bigger.

Do you consider yourself an artist or a crafter?

Both and neither. I consider myself a crafter, but not entirely as I still associate craft with a specific aesthetic that I’m not sure I belong to. I consider myself an artist, but I have an art practice outside the clothing that I make. So sort a midway point between both, and perhaps something else entirely.

(photo images courtesy of Hand & Shadow)

If you are interested in being featured, please send us an email at info(at)gotcraft(dot)com.

Check out our past features...

Kove Handmade - feature #44

Sam Bradd - feature #43

Katrinshine - feature #42

Penelope Brown - feature #41

Laura Bucci Handmade - feature #40

Track and Field Designs - feature #39

Irit Sorokin Designs - feature #38

Clockwork Fantastica - feature #37

Divesin - feature #36

Flight Path Designs - feature #35

Plantscapes - feature #34

Olive - feature #33

Uncle Phil / Flipside - feature #32

Kim Werker - feature #31

Haiiku - feature #30

Smidgebox Designs - feature #29

heyday design - feature #28

Smeeta - feature #27

ACageyBee - feature #26

Maked - feature #25

Firefly Notes - feature #24

Florence Ann - feature #23

Him Creations - feature #22

Jenny Hart - feature #21

district thirty - feature #20

tinywarbler designs - feature #19

telly designs - feature #18

Cabin + Cub - feature #17

Rachel Hobson - feature #16

Green Couch Designs - feature #15

Tanis Alexis - feature #14

Sweetie Pie Press - feature #13

Fibre Manipulator - feature #12

Sam Made - feature #11

All Things Paper - feature #10

Owl + Pussycat - feature #9

Bliss in a teacup - feature #8

It's Your Life - feature #7

Faythe Levine - feature #6

Coco Cake Cupcakes - feature #5

pomomama design - feature #4

GroovyGlassGirl - feature #3

Bueno Style - feature #2

The Beautiful Project - feature #1