holiday show schedule 2011 + swag peek

every weekend from now until the middle of december you'll find me setting up camp at a vancouver area craft show. i'll be at:

sunday november 20: BLIM community market

chinese cultural centre

west pender @ carrall streets

12:00 - 5:00

thursday november 24 - sunday november 27: MAKE IT

croatian cultural centre

3250 commercial drive @ east 16th

thursday 4:00 - 9:00

friday 11:00 - 8:00

saturday 11:00 - 6:00

sunday 11:00 - 5:00

sunday december 4 - GOT CRAFT?

royal canadian legion 

2205 commercial drive @ east 6th, vancouver

10:00 - 5:00

saturday december 10 - sunday december 11 - GOT CRAFT at river market

810 quayside drive, new westminster

saturday 9:00 - 6:00
sunday 11:00 -6:00

friday december 16 & saturday december 17 - NICE BALLS xmas market

little mountain gallery

160 east 26th street @ main

friday 5:00 - 10:00

saturday 11:00 - 5:00

and a sneak peek, while we're at it:

the first 45 people in the door at the got craft show on december 4th will score free swag bag of awesome goodies from each vendor! my contribution this year is a hand-stamped hudsonny button and a mini aromatherapy mist from my new line, feest. you've got to get there early to get one of these much coveted bags, but you not only get the goodies - also, bragging rights (and a tote to carry home your handmade finds!).

more on feest soon! had better pack the car - leaving to set up for blim in a couple of hours!

got craft awesomeness

thank you to everyone who dropped by the fantastic got craft event on sunday!  it was my first time as a vendor at the holiday show and man, it did not disappoint. some events are more fun on the shopping side of the table but not the case on sunday. from the long line of folks who started queuing at 6am to get a much-coveted swag bag to the round of closing applause from the other vendors, it was a blast.

 

 

i managed to finally start my christmas shopping there too, so bonus! i have never thought of myself as a terribly last-minute shopper but for the past few weeks i seem to have run into every person in the lower mainland who is comfortably reclining on their satisfied laurels on top of a heap of gifts. having started, i now feel a little more like a functional adult! of course my finds are still a secret...

and for myself, since i can't resist, i got a swell caboose tee from locomotive clothing and traded the lovely valerie of cabin + cub for a beautiful woodburned birdie panel. have wanted to add a piece from her collection to my den wall forever. trades rock! so does winning - free morrocan mint lipgloss from the awesome folks at olive bath & body for completing a scavenger hunt they tossed up on twitter. 

and thank you to a few wonderful craft-loving folks who mentioned hudsonny in their got craft reviews. check out these lovely blogs by other talented local folks. many thanks to carli of the terrific blog stitch rabbit, shalyn of ars gratia artis and yukirat of vancouver portraits who did an adorable sketch of me at the table - so cute!

and in case you missed it, here's a great time-lapse video taken at the spring show. it shows the entire day's set-up, craft event and tear-down in two minutes!  

Got Craft from blueolive on Vimeo.

covet, covet, covet

i stopped for a peek today at the local blim craft market and spotted many lovely locals who will also be at next week's got craft? event. one of my many favourites?

loved, coveted, drooled over the beautiful ceramics and jewelery by claire madill of hey day - particularly the awesome vintage jar series. i love them all! there's something about the contrast - the essential usefulness and practicality of the jars against the clean, modern finish. they're porcelain, slipcast using molds taken from the original vintage glass jars. lined with a shiny clear glaze, they're functional as well! especially love the beaver jars!

smile factory

it's looking like an assembly-line of creatures in here: row upon row of organic flannel bunny faces with features painted freehand using non-toxic paint.

i've moved from using wool felt for my bunny faces to organic flannel. it's so much softer and cuddlier, and it makes sense because i make my tooth fairy pillows from the same fabric. i buy my flannel as leftover trimmings from a local organic mattress and bedding manufacturer. i love knowing that i'm using something that would otherwise be going to waste. the pieces i get are just the right size to cut a row of tooth pillows and a row of bunny faces, so what i'm throwing out at the end is basically just bitty little corners.

they're all eerily staring at me now from the table where they sit, drying, waiting to be sewn to bodies.

sneak swag peek

lately it's been work, work, work around here - building up my stock of tooth fairy pillows, gnomes, bunnies, pincushions and pins for a very good reason. i'll be at the upcoming got craft? spring show!

i'm so stoked to be a vendor at this event - it's vancouver's best indie craft market and it's my first time doing one of their big shows. one of the best things about this event is the swag bag - it's becoming a much sought-after score. the first 30 folks in get a bag containing goodies from each vendor.

i hemmed and hawed about what to put in. i have been meaning to try out an order of custom 1" buttons for an age, and finally this moved me to take a crack at it. i'd heard great things about a local shop, six cent press (they ship everywhere!). ordering was easy, they provide a template to help you set-up your files and the turnaround was amazing. i'm so, so happy about the results:

bunny faces! woodgrain! cuteness! love them. they turned out so perfectly and i keep looking at the little bags full of buttons and smiling. i'm pairing up one of each button on a little card, and i'll have a few extras for sale. check out some of the other recent designs on the six cent press blog.

photo: six cent press

upcoming: got craft? holiday edition

sadly we will be away and missing the upcoming got craft? holiday show, but i must remind everyone to go - it's gonna be good! and the first 30 people who get in get a nifty goodie bag of swag!

lovely mondays: got craft? favourites

i fell in love with so many of the creations at yesterday's got craft? event, and i figured my four top favourites from folks who also sell on etsy would make a perfect collection for this week's lovely monday post... clockwise, from top left:

i loved the unique cards from thebeautifulproject. combining 'original illustrations, cheeky sentiments and a bit of whimsy', they're the perfect answer for anyone asking "why don't they make better cards?" you can buy them from her etsy shop (some designs are even on sale now - scoop them up while you can!) or at local shops like dandelion and paper-ya.

i'm always drawn to things made using old maps. i think it's the timelessness of travel, particularly to places with history... kohana jewellery (etsy's ktwigs81) was selling lovely handmade jewelery featuring vintage maps and glass. i especially love the londres (london) pendant. the 1" pendant comes with a 16" silverplated ball chain.

i should have bought some soap from olive, maker of delicious natural bath & body products. funny: i overheard a couple walking away from the show. the woman wanted to buy some soap and the guy was muttering "we already have lots of soap". girl, you should have bought the soap. ;-) i love this high tea soap bar - made of luscious palm, olive and coconut oil and including bergamot and spruce essential oils, a touch of sweet orange and exfoliating black tea leaves.

there's just something about the colours in this print - grayhounds by elseetee. 3 x 4 x 1.5" block featuring a print from one of her original drawings. the sides of the block are decoupaged using premium, silkscreened japanese chiyogami paper. also available in larger sizes if you're looking for something to fill a bigger space on your wall.