Category Archives: Other People’s Work

Art Star Craft Bazaar 2012

Posted on by
Reply

Gorgeous!!!

That was the weather this weekend at Art Star Craft Bazaar in Philadelphia, where I spent the weekend with my sweet, generous Mom. She helped me lug my block printed fabrics and home goods and display up the hill at Penns Landing, set the booth up with me, and even manned the iPad while I did way too much shopping at the other vendors’ booths.

Thanks, Mom!!

One of the things that was so exciting about Art Star, besides being my first two-day show and my first show in Philadelphia, was that it was the first opportunity to set up my booth that Dan and I have been working hard on for the past month! I wanted to have a space that was inviting and home-like, while also taming the visual clutter that can result from the many varied patterns and colors in my products.

I think we pulled it off! We started with a small table in the middle of the booth that breaks down for easy transport. We added two chairs on the side and a drum pendant above to create a little breakfast table area. I used coffee mugs as holders for my business cards, and added a simple pot of flowers- they looked pretty and also kept our table runner from blowing away.

On the left is a door that we found at a local flea market. We painted it green, added Bjarnum hooks from Ikea and hung our kitchen towels from doll clothes hangers. To continue our “Home Sweet Home” theme, we found two old windows from a different flea market, which Dan stained grey and finished, and to which I applied my fabric to the back side. Several people asked if we sold finished pieces like this, which surprised me, but definitely gives me something to think about!

I added a gallery on Flickr where you can see more pictures of the booth display, if you’re interested.

We definitely had a good time at the show! I loved so many of the vendors and their goods. I had more time to walk around and talk to people than I usually have at shows, and it was really wonderful. I got to catch up with talented folks that I’d met before, like Rachel of Red Prairie Press and Sara Lee Parker. I got to meet new folks too, like my new block printing kindred spirit (and new Philadelphia resident) Chanee of {me}longings studio, and Noelle from Xenotees.

There’s a funny story there. I’ve been wanting this one damn shirt from Xenotees for a while. Like a year or two. My husband, being a good man, looks on my Etsy favorites list to buy me Christmas and birthday presents. He has bought me at least two shirts from Xenotees, which are well on their way to being worn out, but not the one I had in mind. So… Happy Mother’s Day to me! The shirt is finally mine! I also got awesome shirts for the boys (will share photos before they manage to ruin them) and mother’s day presents for my lovely helper.

There were other things that I saw that I did manage to abstain from, at least for now. I loved this rocking horse from Sawyer Bee for our youngest, who is already a thrill seeker at 18 months old. There was jewelry from Interstellar Love Craft, and someone who was in the booth across from me, who I can’t remember right now, but I’ll make sure to look up and share.

So we had a great time, and loved our Philadelphia weekend at Art Star. Time to take a few days to rest, and then get back to work to get ready for the Delaware By Hand Members Show on May 26th!

 

Ears to Hear

Posted on by
Reply

Ears to Hear Ministries is a missions effort to establish a Christian radio station to a new place where none exists in Barahona, the Dominican Republic. Two members of the small missions team involved there are our good friends, Shawn and Jen.

I remember talking to Jen a few years ago about Ears to Hear. She would talk about their shorter missions trips to the Dominican Republic and how they felt like they were being led to a longer service there. She would show me field radios that looked like they had come straight from the Vietnam War and describe with enthusiasm how they were solar powered and indestructible. About two years ago, Shawn and Jen and their five kids moved to Barahona, to work on Ears to Hear and other projects- building and teaching at a school, a drinking well, a garden and general “mission-ing”. Being a mission in the Dominican Republic, as you might imagine, is not exactly an extended vacation. They have experienced many challenges in the past two years that would have chased me back to the US a long time ago, but still they persist.

When I received their most recent update, I felt a burden on my heart to share their story. I have to confess that sometimes think they’re a little nuts- they do too much, it’s unsafe there, and that I would gladly (umm, somehow) pay for their plane tickets back to the States. But here’s the thing: their faith tells them that Barahona is where they are meant to be. They are making progress.

Now perhaps you, like me, are kind of squeamish about the idea of missions and missionaries. “Us”, traveling around the world, trying to pursuade people away from their local culture and so on. This is a view that is easier to hold if you are not acquainted with actual missionaries. My friends, living among the DR locals, through their daily interactions are presenting their neighbors with a choice to follow Christ or to not follow him, but it’s a choice that they would not be so conscious of if it were not for Shawn and Jen and the team that they work with.

In the past (and on a continuing basis), God has used my friends to change my own stubborn, smartass heart. If he can do that with me, then this DR mission will surely bear fruit! Please pray for them. Pray for their health and safety. Pray that God would provide the resources that they need to set up the radio station and get it running sustainably. Pray that He would be glorified through their work there.

Thanks!

Aren’t they lovely though?

Posted on by
1

Yesterday, my good friends Dustin and Stef dropped these off for the shop. Two points if you can guess what they might be!

They’re wood bases for our new lamps. Dustin’s family owns a shop where they manufacture very nice windows and doors. In the manufacturing process, they often have pieces of wood left over- remnants, if you will- and Dustin graciously agreed to make some of these pieces into lamp bases for me.

I love them. They’re so warm and textured and naturally beautiful. I don’t just want to keep them, I want to name them… is that strange?

Eventually, they’ll be turned into these:

The bases are another step in the ever ongoing evolution of our products, and I’m really excited about this addition to our line.

Another one of our lighting products is about to receive a great new upgrade too! Our drum pendants are soon to be fitted at the bottom with round acrylic light diffusers, so that they’ll cast a softer light on the surface beneath them. It feels like I’ve been looking for ages for such a product, or trying to figure out how to make it myself… as it turns out, there’s a local manufacturer who not only carries the translucent acrylic, but will cut it into perfect circles for me.

I am consistently amazed at how many services and products I need are available to me right here. (Even in my tiny town of Greenwood, there’s one of the last fabric dying mills left in the USA. I’m plotting how, one day, I might take advantage of that local resource too!)