Posts tagged ‘arts’

After our Book Swap on Saturday, my family went to Art on the Square with Colleen and her family. There were quite a few craft vendors there, some food vendors (we had yummy wasabi sliders from somewhere, but I forgot the name. Sorry!) and live music on mulitple stages.

We were walking down the street, enjoying the weather, when I saw one of my favorite local Makers: Toony Jewelry. I keep running into Barbara and her wares ever since my first time vending at Oddmall where she was my booth neighbor. I have picked up, put down, and picked up and put down, etc. her jewelry a thousand times but had never been able to make a choice. But this time I was looking out for something craft-related and that made it so much simpler to decide. This necklace came home with me, and I must say, it love it.

I hope you’re planning to come to Musica tomorrow for the Mini Mart. I’ve got my both all set up in my living room to make sure that I fit into the allotted space, and it’s getting me all excited seeing everything all together.

Sculpture by Brittany Dell'Aglio-Mitchell

If you’re heading downtown already, please don’t forget to stop over in the Northside District to check out the Red Light Galleries which are open for the Akron Art Walk. My baby sister (OK fine, she’s graduating college with her BFA next weekend. I guess she can be a grown up now.) Brittany Dell’Aglio-Mitchell has an installment exhibiting in two rooms and you will love it, especially if you’re into fabric and fibers.  Then you can head over to Musica for Mini Mart, which is down stairs from WE Gallery, also participating in the Art Walk.

Seeing two sisters’ art in one weekend sounds like a great idea to me. Make sure you tell us “hi” if you see us!

Do you remember Crafty Mart? I do. It was by far the most fun craft fair I attended last year. The energy was high, the vendors were super talented, and the music was fun to bop to while we talked to the crowd. The other bonus… it was held at Musica downtown, and you could get a drink or two while you shopped.

Well I am so excited to be attending Mini Mart on May 1st, brought to you by the awesome J and J duo who put on Crafty Mart. Why is it called Mini Mart? Well, in order to offer a broader range of talent the booth space is half the size. That means you will get to see twice as many vendors in the same space.

I will be vending as Templeton Goods, and will bring along a pretty good stock of children’s shirt-dresses and rompers, aprons, baby shoes, and wool plushies. I can’t wait to see you there!

TED-Technology, Entertainment, and Design-is a yearly conference where the world’s leading thinkers & doers speak on ideas that are shaping our future.  I’ve seen many of the talks online (most are absolutely insightful & amazing!), and just learned about the independently run TED event in Cleveland.  I already ordered my ticket.  But if you’re not in the Ohio area, here’s a list of TEDx events around the world.

Here are the TEDxCLE details:

Who:
Creators, catalysts, entrepreneurs, artists, technologists, designers, scientists, thinkers and doers.

What:
At TEDxCLE, TEDTalks video and live speakers spanning topics such as health care, urban revitalization, art, and product development will combine to spark deep discussion and connection amongst speakers and attendees alike.

Where:
The Capitol Theatre
1390 West 65th Street
Cleveland, OH 44102

When:
Friday, February 26, 2010 9 a.m.-1 p.m.

Why:
Share Cleveland innovation, development and positive change with the world.

How:
Tickets for TEDxCLE can be purchased for $20 at The Capitol Theatre ticket booth or online.

I’ve got a date to teach my Journal Class coming up in the next couple of weeks. I’ve had a quite a few people interested in taking it so I want to make sure you all get the memo.

We’ll be at Craft Akron working on our handbinding skills on Thursday, February 18th, from 2pm to 4pm.

You can even sign up for the class online here. Isn’t that convenient? I’m really looking forward to the class, hope to see you there. Oh, and bring a friend!

Lots of great items were brought to our first swap!

Clever Nesting is hosting our second Art Supplies Swap in February.  Bring your art & craft supplies, books/magazines, plus anything else that may be repurposed or reused creatively. This is an opportunity to clear out unused supplies & get some new ones, plus network with other creatives. Extra supplies will be donated to local nonprofits.

Immediately following the swap, you’re welcome to participate in a handmade gift exchange.  You’ll share your creative work & take home a gift as well. All you need to do is bring an original handmade item with your contact info included.

Event Info:  Saturday February 20 1-2:30pm at Craft Akron.  Cost is $5 which covers refreshments & room rental.

Considering my baby girl’s due in early April, we’re looking for a couple guest bloggers to write posts and/or tutorials for a few weeks while I’m adjusting to life with two kids.  It’s an opportunity for you to gain blogging experience, exposure for your work, and to reach new readers.  Plus, it’d be a privilege for me & Devona to get to work with you as well!  If you’re interested, let me know a little about yourself and what you’d like to write about and email me at Colleen@clevernesting.com.

If you care about good design in what you create and what you purchase, you must see the film Objectified.  It’s part of the design trilogy that began with Helvetica, and is specifically about manufactured items and the processes of making good design decisions.  It teaches us to think about the objects we use each day.  Why do we use them?  Do they add value to our lives?  What were the designers thinking when they created them?  Do they care only about money or will they think long & hard about the users’ needs?  And, are they thinking sustainably?

No only does this film push me think critically about the design, value, and sustainability of what I buy, but also about the items I create.  I don’t want my life cluttered with wasteful junk and short-lived objects destined for the landfills.  I think it’s great to spend our time, money, and resources on things that are of greatest value.

Today I browsed the new releases & best sellers books in Amazon’s Crafts & Hobbies section.  I want to stay on top of what’s new and continue building my personal library.

For my next purchase, I’m considering Photojojo, 100 Flowers to Knit & Crochet, or Chain Style.   What artsy/crafty books do you recommend?  What new or old books are must-have’s for your bookshelf?

images from Amazon.com

I really enjoyed shopping at Oddmall this past Saturday.  I went to support Devona & Jenn, plus to connect with other talented local artists/sellers.  The event was really charged & had a fun, quirky vibe.  It was well-attended.  And I loved the variety & uniqueness of the handmade items…no grandma crafts and lots of adventurous art.    I’ll definitely go to Oddmall next time around (sometime in May).  Here are some of my fav’s:

Eve of Rats Live On No Evil Star made gorgeous velvet butterfly & flower pins which are hand-sewn & beaded.  They’d be perfect on a sweater, coat, purse, or scarf.

Sarah of SpaceDog Studios sold hand-bound notebooks where each page is a different recycled paper (some coloring book pages, graph paper, maps, math equations, and various scrapbook papers).  My husband bought one for his creative musings.  He thinks blank pages are daunting and liked the idea of working around the uniqueness of each page.

The husband-wife team, Melissa & Lew, of Whimsical Wonders turned old kitchenware & utensils into wind chimes.  Lew hammers the utensils flat, and Melissa drills & assembles the chimes…recycling, art, and gentle metallic sounds for the neighborhood!  (Their website isn’t working today, but perhaps it’ll be up soon.)

Plus I really liked Devona’s wild yo-yo headbands, and Jenn’s crazy monster buttons, which were perfectly appropriate!  Sorry, I didn’t get any photos to share…perhaps you’ll find these items in their Etsy stores soon though.