DIY Soda- Week of Crafty Videos

Totally gonna try this!  Thanks Becky!

Lost at Sea Opening Reception

It was finally the day to party down.  The opening of Lost at Sea was finally here and I couldn't have been happier with the turn out!  I met so many people I have talked with online for a long time now and saw some old friends.  It was excellent!

Such as the wonderful, Jennifer Strunge of Cotton Monster fame (left)!

And Jessica Marquez

And Becky Stern again!

And I got to meet the nicest ladies from Etsy including Danielle who will be making her way out to Seattle in August for the Conference of Creative Entrepreneurs!

Here are a few pics of the people and the show as well.  You can now check out all the work online and even make a purchase if you like :)  Visit it all here. To those that made it out, Thank You!

Setting up and hanging out

Day two of set up was a lot better.  I felt a little bit more rested than I had the day before and was excited to see it all coming together.  Gabe from Gallery Hanahou is a genius and I learned a lot from him about hanging art work.  He is so detail oriented and thinks of things that would never occur to me.  I think I will stick to curating and hope that someone, like Gabe, is always there to help hang!  Here he is doing his thing. 

We had some visitors as well including Sayuri who came to hang her work. 

And Jenny Harada came to hang her cute and colorful Planktons.

Soon after, Anna came by to meet us for a hang out date.

Once we were done hanging Jenny, Anna and myself left to go get some dinner and beer.  I was excited to sit down and relax after a long day!  Anna showed us her advance copy of her new book that hits bookstores in June!  More to come about that closer to the date but until then, here is Anna and her book!

Becky Stern met us after her class was done and fun was had by all.  Now all I had to do was sit back and relax and wait for the opening!

And the winners are...

Opening Ceremonies:

GOLD: Cutesy but not Cutesy

Silver: Bebe Babies

Bronze: AbbyDid

Figure Skating:

GOLD: Love and a Sandwich

Silver: Scrumptious Delight

Bronze: Shannah O'Meara

Skiing:

GOLD: Felt Mistress

Silver: Plants and Animals

Bronze: Annette Morrison

Made Up Sport:

GOLD: Knot by Gran'ma

Silver: Ellen Ault

Bronze: Vera

Bobsleigh:

GOLD: Herbert and Friends

Silver: Hannah Rames

Bronze:Danae West

If you are a winner please send me your address to kristen(at)schmancytoys(dot)com so we can send out your medal.  I would like to give a big thanks to all the judges: Leeanna Butcher, Robert Mahar, Christen Olivarez and Becky Stern.  I would like to give a HUGE thanks to Jennifer for not only MAKING the medals but also volunteering to send them!  You have made my life so much easier! xoxo

Meet Our Judges

Photo by Bre Pettis

Judge #4 is Becky Stern an *LED magician and of Craft Zine fame.  Here are her stats

please state your name and occupation:  Becky Stern, Associate Editor for CRAFT and Make: Online

Your favorite sport?  Figure skating

 

Your least favorite sport?  Ice hockey

 

Why do you love plush?  I love the way shapes come to life in 3D with plush, in a way that's

not possible otherwise. I'm excited see what interesting and charismatic figures people come up with!

Fiber Arctic- Becky Stern

Speaking of the Maker Faire, I am also very much looking forward to seeing Becky Stern whom also happens to be our next interview up for our Fiber Arctic show. I love Becky's work. It is always unique, with a bit of irony and a lot of surprise. I honestly cannot believe that this amazing iceberg (see below) will be in my store!



S- You are a woman with many many talents. What are some of your favorites?

BS- I really love combining multiple skills/media together, like MRIs and embroidery, fabric and electronics, or metalwork, woodwork, and fibers as you see in the piece I made for this show. Most of all I love sharing what I've made online through photos, writing, and video. Without those, my projects would never reach the right audience.



S- I love what you have created for Fiber Arctic. Can you explain how it came together and what reaction you hope to receive?

BS- I made a form out of cardboard, then used yarn to knotless net the planes of the iceberg. Then I stiffened it with fabric stiffener, and very carefully removed the cardboard form. I then painted it and made the base out of MDF and the tiny drain by sawing out and sanding a small piece of sterling silver. The ice bear is made from a 5-part silicone mold from a plastic figurine I got at the craft store. I hope
people can glean from the piece a delicate relationship between humans and nature, and hopefully get a small chuckle from the poetic juxtaposition of the plumbing drain, ice polar bear, and netted "cage" of an iceberg around them.



S- As an artist and a writer, what do you do to foster your creativity when you might be feeling less than motivated?

BS- When I'm feeling creatively drained, I try to learn a new skill. I had never knotless netted before beginning work on this piece, and learning the technique really inspired the piece. I try to always spend a little time each day doing something with my hands, even if I don't have a project I'm super psyched about at the time. When I'm
feeling very creative, I make lists of ideas for projects. These lists really come in handy when I'm feeling uninspired!

Fiber Arctic

Here is another amazing piece for this June's show, Fiber Arctic at Schmancy. By Becky Stern. I AM SO EXCITED!