Giveaway Clarification

Please forgive me I made an error in the last post!! Please leave your comments for the Fresh Squeezed fabric on Randi's Blog!!

Just in case the link above doesn't work cut and paste this into your browser:

http://ihavetosay.typepad.com/randi/2008/06/fresh-squeezed.html

Sorry guys!

Fresh Squeezed Fabrics Giveaway

Today marks the Grand Opening of the Fresh Squeezed Fabric shop on Etsy and to celebrate Randi is having an awesome fabric giveaway on her blog. Here is what she says about the exciting opening and giveaway. I hope you stop by and enjoy the wonderful offerings she has!


Today is the official grand-opening of my shop, Fresh-Squeezed Fabrics! Thank you so much for stopping by!

The idea of operating a fabric store has always been a dream for me, mostly because I absolutely love fabric and the thought of being surrounded by it seems so right. I didn't figure on it ever happening due to the money needed to start one. Hundreds of bolts of fabric, store rent, insurance, etc., etc., etc., cost too much for me to even consider it. I had never considered opening a shop online.

I did have a situation come up recently where I needed to research how to buy fabric wholesale and it turned out to be pretty simple. My mind started working overtime as I hatched a plan to start a store online. Then I happened to find that fabric can be sold on Etsy and things started to fall into place from there. My husband was surprisingly enthusiastic, so I decided to go for it.

Let me say that this decision has been laced with insecurity and indecision the whole way. For some reason, every time I receive a shipment of fabric I feel entirely overwhelmed for about 24 hours, but then that passes and all is well.

So far, so good for my little store, and today I want to celebrate! Plus I am in the mood to give something away. A drawing for some fabric is in order!

There are three ways to win:

1--One person will pick three 1/2 yards cuts of any fabric (totaling 1-1/2 yards). Anything you choose in my store will do.

2--One person will win this fat-quarter set. All I can say about this fabric is that it is beautiful! The colors and designs are amazing!

3--One person will win this fabric bundle. This fabric is so bright and cheery and just screams of a summer day!

If you would like to take part, simply leave a comment in this post to put your name into the drawing. If you link my grand-opening and my store on your blog, you may leave two extra comments (a total of 3 comments), which of course will up your chances of winning. I will close comments on this post on Thursday, June 26th at 6:00 PM and I will announce the winners on Friday, June 27th. Please be sure to leave an email address in your comment so that I can contact the winners!

***Due to the cost of shipping, US and Canadian addresses only please.

***I am leaving it up to individuals to decide whether to leave 1 or 3 comments since I know we are all trustworthy. ;)

Thank you so much for celebrating with me today and best of luck!

For a Good Cause

Sunday, June 29th a Liana of Mixed Plate is hosting along with her family a fundraiser to help with rising medical costs of treating her young cousin's lymphoma. One of our members, Crescent Maille has donated her beautiful Daisy Chain necklace to the silent auction happening that night.

If you would like to learn more information about the event and how you can help see Liana's entry over on her blog Mixed Plate. Thanks for donating such a beautiful piece, Crescent Maille!

I got this email from the people putting together the Strange Folk Festival and thought I'd pass it on!



Applications for the 3rd annual Strange Folk Festival are being accepted at strangefolkfestival.com now thru July 6th! Our 2008 show will be September 27th and 28th, Saturday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

This event is juried, and we will be choosing 120 vendors. There is no fee to apply. The vendor fee will be $65, and they have the option of renting a table or bringing their own tent. Last year, we hosted 100 indie artists and crafters from across the country in a one day event that attracted over 5,000 attendees from the St. Louis area.

Attached is our utterly adorable blog graphic, should you decide to post about it.

If you have any questions, or would like more information, feel free to e-mail me at strangefolkfestival@yahoo.com

Thanks for your support of the indie craft community!

Autumn Wiggins
Strange Girl in Charge

---

Strange Folk
A festival of social significance. A craft happening in psychedelic color.

September 27th and 28th, 2008
Saturday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Sunday 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Community Park
O'Fallon, IL

www.strangefolkfestival.com
Once upon a time, a strange gnome stumbled upon some twittering birds that told him how do find a magical book of faces. Watching the sunset flickr through the trees, he decided it was too late in the day for adventures. Instead, he went home to his mushroom and exclaimed, "This is my space, and I'm not leaving!"

Looking for some weekend fun?

You could make a bowling alley in your kitchen...


or you could make your own play dough...


or create a family of super heroes...


or enter a funny food contest...


or make your own hacky sack...



All of these would be great activities for kids to do with their dads this weekend. Hope all you dads have a great Father's Day! Keep the Summer Camp activities coming guys! They are great!

Handmade Parade Founding Member - Shannon Weary

Shannon of Cassowary Jewlery tells us a little bit about herself. Be sure to check out her creations at Handmade Parade!

I'm a Memphis born jewelry designer who started collecting rocks when I was small. I mostly am inspired by my supplies, and I'd like to be a counselor when I'm older.

I'm a nondescript person who likes comics, video games, and reading. I have a soft spot for small children, and nearly 500 movies on my netflix queue.


To see more of Shannon's work please go to her flickr page!

Monster Mash

Why didn't anyone tell me that making your own monster was so freakin' easy?? All we did was sketch monster bodies onto flannel, sew, stuff and embellish away. Two custom freakies for my two babes in under an hour. Amazing. Even more amazing was how long my monsters played with these critters. There might have to be an adventures of the Bone Monsters story in the works for this summer...

Crescent Maille

Our next designer we want you to meet is Crescent Maille. She describes her business and what inspired her to start her line below:

I've drawn and painted, collaged and sculpted, sewn and photographed all my life. Early last summer I was in the middle of my "circle" phase in painting and drawing, when I was craving something more tactile, a real craft. I somehow stumbled upon photographs of chain maille jewelry on the internet and was immediately intrigued. Circles — and shiny circles to boot. I ordered some beginning bracelet kits online, and as soon as I started making my first bracelet I was totally hooked.

I taught myself traditional weaves one by one. I kept reducing the size of the rings I was using, trying to make pieces with the smallest rings I could manage. There is something really wonderful about the intricacy of a small-gauge weave and how delicate it can be. I work primarily with sterling silver rings — they're pliable but durable, luxurious, with such brilliance; it's metal, but it feels soft to the touch. When crafted to perfection, a sterling silver chain maille bracelet is an amazing thing, mesmerizing as it bends and moves and molds itself to your wrist. It almost feels alive.

As I grew more skilled, I began designing my own pieces, and my own weaves, using the traditional weaves as a starting point — for example, using the Japanese style of weave as a basis for patterns that look like lace; now there are four original patterns in the "Crescent Lace" line. Other original designs include pendants and necklaces, such as the Daisy Chain necklace, which is the Handmade Parade exclusive this month.

Chain maille is a passion and a joy. I think many people have a preconceived notion about chain maille, associating it only with knights in armor and renaissance faires. There's such potential to create jewelry that is totally modern, contemporary — different than any other metalworking technique out there. I hope to help bring about more awareness of the unique beauty of chain maille, and I strive to make jewelry that is as much a pleasure to wear as it is to behold.

Net of Area Thrifty One

Hopefully you have had a chance to head over to the new HP site and peruse the cool that is over there. As promised last week I have our first artists to introduce to you - Net of Area Thrifty One. I love her quirky little stuffies and love love love the clever name of her shop.


Hello, my name is Net. I live in the Channel Islands in the UK. I love scraps of fabric and odd buttons and making them into objects that are beautiful and useful. I am a stay at home mum to my 4 year old boy. When I'm not sewing, I'm tending to my tiny plot of homegrown vegetables, baking bread, or playing hide-and-seek. It's important to me to teach my son that you can achieve a lot with your own two hands, that not everything comes from the high street, wrapped up in plastic.

Area Thrifty One has been simmering in my heart for most of my life, but only recently found a place in the real world. After graduating from art college in London in 2000, with a degree in Fine Art I had various day jobs, including prop maker, scenery painter and florist. I painted in the evenings and exhibited and sold my work for a few years. I slowly stopped painting and started sewing, making quilts and toys for my newly born son. Soon, there was too much stuff cluttering up my home and I started offering a few things for sale, and so Area Thrifty One became a reality.
At the core of my working practice is a belief in not wasting things, in making use of the smallest scraps. I use a lot of patchwork and applique in my plush animals and strive to keep them original and quirky. Each piece is one-of-a-kind, with its own unique combination of fabric patterns and colours, yet with a design simple enough to inspire the imaginings of its new owner. I take extra care over the dolls and plush that are intended as toys for children, I believe that toys should be lovable, squeezable and washable.

It's here!

Handmade Parade has it's very own website for you to buy really awesome handmade goods from all over the world. Here is some info from the site itself:

"Handmade Parade began as a craft show in Sacramento, California, organized by Claire Bone. While the craft fairs were fun, family demands and difficulty finding large enough venues in the area drove Claire to seek other avenues for getting awesome handmade crafts to the masses. Etsy and Ebay are great places to find handmade goods, but their sheer size make it difficult to navigate and Claire knew she wanted to do something on a much smaller scale.

After working for several months on the Glitter and Grunge artists co-op, Claire decided to branch out and introduce Handmade Parade as a similar group, offering a more modern interpretation of vintage crafts, while also providing a place for members to sell kits and patterns along with their finished pieces. "

You can check out all the crafty goodness being offered at www.handmade-parade.com! There will be new artists added all the time, so check back often!