The Rebel Rabbit Craft Fair is making its move to monthly, with events every fourth Sunday beginning in May (April’s edition goes down this coming Sunday, the 20th), at Hipbone Studio (1847 E Burnside). Look for all manor of creative crafts, like this oddly compelling “garden sphere” from Tah-Dah made from a bowling ball and marbles.

Bolt Fabric Boutique is having a store-wide sale this weekend. ALL fabric in stock is 10-50% off. Selected patterns, books, and notions will be marked down as well. The sale starts today, and runs through Sunday, April 13.

Bolt Fabric Boutique, 2136 NE Alberta, 287-2658. Get your sale shopping on: Fri 10 am - 6pm, Sat 10 am - 5 pm, and Sun 11 am - 4 pm.

Bead Simple is the new book by Portland crafter and writer Susan Beal (also the wife of Andrew Dickson, incidentally), and to kick off its release, she is having a jewelry making event tonight at the downtown Powell’s at 7:30 pm. The book itself is a well wrought tome featuring 50 jewelry patterns that can be easily adapted to your own tastes, and include variations on each, so that in effect the book provides 150 patterns. Tonight Beal will do a reading and show samples of the book’s projects, and all who come will be invited to make a pair of simple earrings to take home.

Handmade NW joins the craft force in Portland.

A CALL OUT FOR ARTISANS!

Our focus is grounded in Cooperative concepts. For the ARTIST, by the ARTIST! We are a community of artisan’s that focus on promoting local NW handmade goods! HMNW will highlight artisan’s as well organizers. We will pay attention to local stores that feature items from local handmade artists. Additionally, the website will have online vendor registration and event management tools available to folks who want to host events.

If you would like to join HMNW you can create your profile and register for HMNW events at our home page!
Please check out the site!
www.handmadenw.com

HMNW has a few scheduled events! So far we have April 7th and 8th at Montgomery Park and May 1st and 2nd at OHSU (information will be available about the OHSU event soon)!

WE ARE NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR THE APRIL EVENT!
You can do this now ONLINE!

HMNW is very excited about this venture. We would love any input, suggestions or comments about HMNW! Please direct those messages to handmadenw@gmail.com

It’s been nearly two years of massive craft sales for Crafty Wonderland, the monthly event that brings us crafted items from area designers and artists. Give ‘em some love on April 13, when they’ll be celebrating the two-year mark with, in addition to 40 vendors, a free cupcake decorating (and eating) DIY table, plus more surprises.

The 18th annual Buckman Art Show & Sell is just around the corner (April 11th, 5-9 pm and April 12th, 10 am-5 pm). The huge fundraiser benefits Buckman Arts Elementary School, and features over 120 arists, designers, and craftspeople displaying and showing everything from dishware and jewelry to objets, toys, accessories, textiles, and more. Even better, the night of April 11th, 7 pm at the Jupiter Hotel is the Buckman Bash, a night of auctions, food, drinks, and performances from The Shins’ James Mercer and Stephen Malkmus, with openers the Well-Swung Gypsies. Plus, Andrew Dickson emcees, and the auctioned art includes work from Storm Tharpe, Jenene Nagy, Scott Wayne Indiana, and more.

(The “Perfect Trench” by participating designer Emily Katz.

UPDATE: I just got a message from Emily and she will be re-launching her Bonnie Heart Clyde line at the Buckman event, as well as selling her encaustic paintings, embedded with gemstones:

She also won’t be at the event herself until Saturday, because she along with Stewart + Brown and Toggles, will be showing the Emily Katz line in New York on the 10th at an eco-media party in conjunction with spa week. Speaking of which, make your appointments! $50 spa treatment specials from spas and salons all over town, April 14-20!

Don’t forget there is another installment of Crafty Wonderland this Sunday, March 9th from 11am - 4pm at the Doug Fir Lounge. Hit the sale on your way to the Craft Magazine event at Twisted and make it craftacular day!

This Sunday, March 9, Craft Magazine will be celebrating the release of Issue 06 here in Portland. Here are the details, thanks to the ladies at Twisted:

Diane, from DIY Alert, Crafty Pod, and the Church of Craft, and Susan, from West Coast Crafty, and author of the new book Bead Simple, are co-hosting the Portland bash here at Twisted (2310 NE Broadway), from 1-4pm.

Moxie will be on hand, too, demonstrating how she makes the adorable monsters on the cover of CRAFT 06. We’ll also have a hands-on craft table, where you can learn to make Pantyhose Flowers from the magazine. And we’ll have free snacks and door prizes!

DIY Alert, creators of the local craft calender and weekly DIY news e-mails, is looking for some imput.

What’s Your Favorite Thrift Store?
In our quest to create the best darn crafty Google Map of Portland ever, we’re getting ready to add thrift stores. (Because we all know they’re amazing sources of crafty raw materials.)
Which ones are your favorites? Drop us a line and let us know. And we’ll let you know when the map’s ready.

Contact Sister Diane here to add your favorite thrifting place to the map.

Last week, Marjorie made a post about the launch of a new website called Shop Vintage Portland. I talked with the creator, Anne Weiland, about her new website, as well as her other vintage clothing blog LuLu’s Vintage, and the Artist Trading Card Swaps she and her husband, Chris Weiland, organize every month here in Portland. You can check out my interview with Miss Weiland after the jump.

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, Crafty Wonderland returns this Sunday (Feb. 10) after a well-deserved break in January. The sale runs from 11am-4pm at the Doug Fir.

Hey designers/business owners, did you know that you can place a free classified ad on portlandmercury.com advertising your goods? See here what Ity-bity Bags did for her business under the “piece of craft” section and she doesn’t even live in Portland!

You can’t beat free advertising! I’m going to get my own ad together now.

Despite the questionable name, I’m quite excited about the opening of a new yarn store on SE Division (right by my house!!). At Yarnia you can design a custom blend of yarn—pick the fiber (mohair and wool), color (blue), thickness (two-ply), and amount (two pounds—yep, you pay by the mothereffin’ pound). Then proprietress Lindsey Ross busts out her steam-punk yarn machine, winds your fancy cone of yarn, and you walk out happier than stuffing your face with Turkish Delight.

Inspired by a DIY yarn shop in Montreal, Ross recounts the experience that was the inspiration for her store.

As you can probably guess, this place blew my mind. Cottons, acrylics, wools, boucle… even silk and mohair and metallics—boxes of these fibers lined the walls, filled with innumerable colors wound in uneven amounts on cones… These single filaments, I realized, piled nearly to the ceiling in boxes of like colors, were single-ply strands of yarn, waiting to be wound into what we everyday hand-knitters recognize as worsted weight commercial yarn.

Yarnia
4183 SE Division
488-0022
Grand opening on Saturday, Feb. 2

Yarnia’s Aslan. (Illustration by Brandon Reese)

Don’t let that sewing machine intimate you any longer! Dust it off and go to Cool Cottons (2417 SE Hawthorne) tonight from 6:30-8:30 for their “Get to Know your Sewing Machine” workshop. No pre-registration required, just show up! Learn the basics on how to handle your machine and you just might have the chance to become The Mercury’s Next Top Designer.

The Independent Publishing Resource Center is hosting a Gocco Printing Basics Class tonight (details below). The introductory course will teach you how to create great prints like these by Bossa Nova Baby.

Thursday Dec. 13 7-9pm Print Gocco Basics (at IPRC)
Cost: $20 members/$35 non-members
The Print Gocco is a small, easy-to-use, self-contained printing machine that uses a screenprinting-like method for producing prints on paper or fabric. This basic course covers original preparation, screen exposure and printing. You can make amazing, mass-produced, professional-looking postcards and more! Once trained you can use the IPRC’s Print Goccos anytime.
Instructor: Gretchin Lair

Granny Panties Craft Bazaar is now accepting vendor applications for their Valentine’s event. It’s all going down at the Aalto Lounge on February 9 from 11 am to 4 pm. If you’re interested in selling your wares, be sure to get your application in soon, as the deadline is January 22 (and they’ve already filled some of the spaces). More info, including vendor application, can be found right here.

As a photographer in this digital age, I am finding that many of the pictures that I take just end up as files on my computer. The art of the photo album seems to be lost, even though it’s much nicer flipping through a book rather than scanning through your photos on iPhoto. I recently stumbled upon Blurb, an on-line site that helps you publish your own books at a really reasonable price. The site allows you to create photo books, text books, cookbooks, children’s books, or whatever type of book you wish to make.

The final product looks fantastic and professional. There is even a 10% discount if you order 10 or more, if you think that Powell’s might take a few on consignment.

Did anyone hit Crafty Wonderland’s Super Colossal Holiday Sale on Sunday? I know a lot of you did, because when I tried to go, I turned right back around and headed back home at the sight of a huge line stretching down the block. Reports from people who actually made it in confirmed that it was shoulder to shoulder. I’m happy for the Wonderland folks and participating vendors for having such a successful event, but if I wanted to shop while fighting my way through a crowd, I’d go back to Paris for les soldes.

Luckily, there is another opportunity to shop local, handcrafted goods right around the corner: PDX Etsy is having their holiday/solstice sale at the very spacious Smith Center at PSU this Saturday: About 65 vendors are participating, all of whom are pre-screened for professionalism by virtue of the fact that they have their sh*t together enough to run their own Etsy store, meaning you won’t have to wade through a bunch of junk you might have made during arts ‘n’ crafts at summer camp. Instead you’ll find well made wallets, bath and body products, jewelry, handbags, kids’ clothing, hats, pottery, accessories, and much much more.

They will also be screening a film, at 11 am, 2 pm, and 4 pm, called Secondhand (Pepe) about used clothing’s journey from the Salvation Army to Haiti. from the web site:

Secondhand (Pepe) is a 24min tri-lingual documentary about the role of used clothing in diaspora cultures. Filmmakers Shell & Bertozzi weave two narratives into a visual and sonic journey. The historical memoir of a Jewish immigrant rag picker intertwines with the present-day story of “pepe” – secondhand clothing that flows from the United States to Haiti. Secondhand (Pepe) animates the materiality of recycled clothes: their secret afterlives and the unspoken connections among people in an era of globalization.

Also, don’t forget to stop by the farmers’ market in the neighboring South Park Blocks for fabulous food gift ideas and dinner supplies. Sale runs from 8 am to 4 pm this Saturday!

(Urbana pottery)

Check out these woodsy picks from vendors appearing at Crafty Wonderland this weekend.

Left to right:
1. Winter Branch Necklace by Fernworks
2. Woodland Magnets from Robot Candy
3. Wooden Bird Earrings by Frozen Peas Accessories

Haven’t finished your Xmas shopping yet? Have no fear. This Sunday you can finish all your holiday shopping needs at the ultimate mother lode of local holiday art & craft sales—Crafty Wonderland’s Super Colossal Holiday Sale. There will be over 100 independent artists selling their goods under one roof, plus many other cool perks like a full bar, goodie bags, and a wrapping paper table.

All the juicy details on the sale, including an interview with the Cathy Pitters and Torie Nguyen, the lovely ladies behind Crafty Wonderland, is behind the jump.

Diana Rupp, the genius behind NYC’s Make Workshop, will be at Bolt Fabric Boutique tonight for a little demonstration and Q&A session:

Join Diana Rupp, author of S.E.W: Sew Everything Workshop and the owner of the much acclaimed Make Workshop in New York City, for hot apple cider and a festive demonstration of simply sewn holiday projects. Diana will demonstrate how to use fabric scraps to make one-of-a-kind holiday cards and gift tags. Also, she will showcase a sampling of projects from S.E.W., some of which (like the Lucky Scrap Scarf and Tokyo Tie Bag) can be whipped up in a few hours or less, making them ideal last-minute gift solutions. If you love to sew and/or if you have questions on how to start designing your own projects, as Diana has done for S.E.W., you wont want to miss this fun, informative get together.

The event is FREE, and will run from 7 pm to 8:30 pm at Bolt Fabric Boutique, 2136 NE Alberta.

Today at 4 pm sharp, local artist Kristen Yount of Urbana will be giving an on-line video tutorial on how to make a stash book. A stash book is a great way to hide your precious treasures without getting an ugly safe.

The tutorial is part of Etsy’s Virtual Labs. So go grab these supplies and get in front of the computer at 4.

* One old book
* White glue
* Utility knife and extra blades
* Gesso, black or white
* Collage ideas

Need something to keep your kids or even yourself busy during this upcoming holiday break? Well, check out the Star Wars crafts and projects archive for some ideas. Thanks to Susan at West Coast Crafty, I found this amazing archive full of projects ranging from making an R2 Droidel Dreidel to building your own Dagobah Terrarium. WOW!

For the more experienced geek, I mean craftster, you can try this fantastic pattern by Bleu Arts. If i can get my mom to make this for me, I am so going as Leia next Halloween!

This Saturday (Dec. 8), Scrap is having its 6th annual Holiday Bazaar and Bake Sale! If you do not know already, SCRAP stands for The School and Community Reuse Action Project and is a non-profit whose “mission is to promote creative reuse and environmentally sustainable behavior by providing educational programs and affordable materials to the community.”

All items available for sale are made from a minimum of 75% reused materials, including these great necklaces by Dead Dino created from old scratched records.

The sale is from 11am-6pm at 3901-A N Williams (Williams & Failing). Don’t forget to bring your wallet and an empty stomach.

There will be great gifts for all at this weekend’s Urban Craft Uprising holiday sale in Seattle. Check out some my favorite items.

Clockwise from top:
1. Bird claw necklaces by Jessie Taylor.
2. Adorable little “Pita” by Perfect Children
3. Alice in Wonderland doll by Devout Dolls.
4. Skull embroidery from Mud Flap Grrrl Designs.

(Photo courtesy of Mike Estes)

Recently, I’ve really been into embroidering. It’s a super simple way to customize handbags, towels, clothing, or anything else that’s made of fabric. You can easily design your own patterns, transferring said patterns to fabric is a breeze, and it’s something to keep your hands busy while you watch TV at home on these dark, wet, late autumn nights. If you think you might want to try it out, watch this embroidery lesson with the super awesome Jenny Hart from Sublime Stitching during the first half of this recent episode of Threadbanger.

I know it’s only Sunday night, but this upcoming weekend calls for a craft fair road trip! I’m giving you a little extra prep time just incase any hotel reservations need to be made.

Start your weekend off with a nice drive to Seattle for Urban Craft Uprising’s 3rd annual holiday craft fair at the Seattle Center Exposition Hall (Sat & Sun 11am-5pm). Urban Craft Uprising is one of the best craft fairs in the Northwest and is definitely worth the trip, but don’t forget to get there early because they give great swag bags away to the first 100 visitors.

After checking out the 120 vendors at UCU, remember to save some $$$ for I Heart Indie Holidays back in good old Portland at the Wonder Ballroom (128 NE Russell) on Sunday from 12-5pm.

Forget Black Friday, these are the sales not to miss!!

Keeping on top of all the craft sales, classes, knitting circles, and new artists in this town is quite a task. Now thanks to DIY Alert!, all you need to do is check out their website and handy calendar to be up to date on the latest happenings. You can also subscribe to receive weekly newsletters full of news, profiles, and projects.

Know about a craft sale or event that they are missing? Suggestions are welcome, just shoot them an e-mail.

The holiday shopping season is upon us, and if you took the handmade pledge, this weekend’s holiday sale at Trillium Artisans will provide you with an array of not just handmade products but green and fair trade products as well to choose from. Products from Vladmaster, Eye Pop Art, and PenFelt will be available along with many others, all at a 10% discount!





The sale is Saturday, November 10 from 1 pm - 6 pm at 9119 SE Foster Road.
They will also be hosting a wine and snack reception and a chance to meet the artisans. Don’t miss this great opportunity to get your shopping done early!

Pledge to buy handmade for the holidays by adding your name to the list of over 4100 shoppers at www.buyhandmade.org. With all of the artisans, designers, and craftsters in this town and a craft sale almost every weekend around the northwest, there is no excuse not to support your friends, colleagues, and the local economy by buying handmade.

The DIY Lounge used to be appended to the old location of Frock, and now it’s moving back into the neighborhood: Arts n’ craft store and workshop space collage (1639 NE Alberta) is teaming up with the DIY Lounge, and they’re celebrating the merger on Nov 14, 6-9 pm with refreshments, 20 percent off in the store, DJ Richard Rockstar, and more. Peep the schedule of classes here.

If you’re going to be out and about the pearl district tomorrow night for First Thursday, be sure to stop by the Museum of Contemporary Craft. The peeps at Crafty Wonderland will be there selling handmade wares, and there will also be a Dia de los Muertos themed DIY table where you can create a little something-something to take home with you. More details here.

Mini skirts and dresses are all hot this fall, but finding one at the thrift or vintage store may not be so easy. When treasure hunting at these stores, keep an open mind and always remember that you (or a really nice friend) can shorten these often “Mom” type items to cute little skirts and dresses.

Drab to Fab:

Materials needed:
“Mom” skirt or dress
Sewing Machine
Thread
Scissors

Instructions:
1. Try on skirt or dress
2. Measure to desired length and use a pin, your memory, or tailors chalk to mark that length
3. Add on 1/2” to that length and cut
4. Fold in the bottom of the skirt 1/2” and pin all the way around
5. Using your *best* straight stitch, stitch around the bottom of the skirt, creating a nice clean hem
6. Trim any excess fabric
7. Wear with a pair of tights or boots and get ready for the compliments to flood in

Enjoy!

Diane Gilleland of DIY Alert and CraftyPod put together a google map of crafty Portland. You can click the different points on the map, and it will bring up not only the business name and address, but what you can find in the store as well. So far, the map is filled with supply stores, boutiques that sell local handmade goods, and places that offer classes, with plans to add thrift stores and galleries in the future.

Link.

Ok, so it’s not raining right now, but it’s coming and we can’t deny it. Here’s a fun, easy, and cheap project to try while you are sitting at home this weekend adjusting to what the next 9 months have in store for us.

Guitar Strap Revamp:

Materials needed:
A solid color nylon guitar strap (under $5 at Guitar Center)
2” wide lace in any color (check out the outdoor sale at Fabric Depot)

Instructions:
1. Lengthen the strap as far out as it will go
2. Measure the lace to that length and add 1”, CUT
3. Fold in the ends of the lace (1/2” at each end) and pin the lace to the strap
4. Using your *best* straight stitch, stitch around all edges of the lace attaching it to the strap.
5. Adjust strap to your length and attach to your guitar or bass
6. Perform Dolly Parton songs for your friends and family

That’s it!!

It’s a little bit country and a little bit rock and roll.
Check out detail shots after the jump.

Tonight’s Etsy marketing event at Trillium Artisans is now sold out.

The event will include a seminar by Ryan McAbery of Littleput Books, (“How to Promote Yourself on Etsy - Tips, Tricks, and Secrets from a Successful Etsy Seller”), as well as a chance to mingle with other local sellers, artisans, and members of the PDXEtsy Street Team.

Trillium Artisans may host this seminar again due to the popular demand. If you are interested, please contact Christine at christine@trilliumartisans.org.

The lovely ladies at Crafty Wonderland sent out an email last night, outlining the hip holiday craft fairs happening around town (and some cities up North) in December that have rapidly approaching application deadlines. If you’re interested in selling your homemade wares this holiday season, check these out:

The people behind Seattle’s I Heart Rummage have launched I Heart Indie Holidays, a craft fair with three NW venues!
November 24th, Seattle

December 2nd, Portland

December 9th, Bellingham

Vendors who apply for all three shows get a break in the booth fee prices. Applications are due Friday, August 31st, so hurry!! For more information, please visit their website.

Urban Craft Uprising is celebrating it’s third holiday season on December 1st and 2nd in Seattle with over 100 vendors! This year, they’re accepting applications for a fine art gallery section too. Applications are due September 7th. Please visit their website for more information.

Portland’s own Handmade Bazaar always puts on a great holiday show as well. They haven’t announced the date(s) yet, but if you sign up on their mailing list, you’ll be the first to hear when applications are being accepted.

And don’t forget to apply for Crafty Wonderland’s Super Colossal Holiday Sale on December 16th if you haven’t already! Information and applications are here.

Check out this awesome article about people using old-timey cassette tapes to make new, fashionistic clothing and accessories (including Transformer toys). Here’s a sneaky peek…

The Cassette Belt

The Cassette Dress (made from the tape inside the cassette)

And of course, the Cassette Wallet

HEY!! DID YOU STEAL THAT MADONNA CASSETTE OUT OF MY TOYOTA COROLLA??

Calling all PDX designers! I know you’re all “DIY” and all… but invent something as good as this Necktie Fan (that can be plugged into the USB port on your computer), and you’ll have the world at your feet! (Or at chest level. Because it’s cooler there.)

Thanks to Plastic Bamboo!

Mabel’s on SE Division, and Lint at NW 17th and Marshall are both closing this August. Lint’s been having a liquidation sale for the past few weeks (everything’s at least 50% off at this point - stay tuned to their blog for updates), and Mabel’s sale kicks off this Sunday at 10 am.

Starting this Sunday - August 12th - we will be having a storewide liquidation. All inventory will be 30% off, and we expect things to move quickly. We will open from 10AM - 6PM for the first two days, and will close at 4PM for the remaining 4 or 5 days.

Is knitting over? Nope, but customers have tons of yarn shops in Portland to choose from, plus cheap online places to buy yarn (and Mabel’s will reopen as a coffee-only shop called the Tandem Coffeehouse).

Mabel’s Cait explains:

This transition comes at a time when the Portland crafting community has an embarrassment of riches: over 20 yarn shops in the greater metro area, in addition to fabric, paper, and other crafting stores. At the same time, we at Mabel’s have felt the sad shift toward internet sources and away from shopping locally. Both because yarn purchases have been dropping over the last year and because the prospect of turning the space into a full coffee shop is more exciting, we are saying goodbye to three great years of Mabel’s and saying hello to what we hope will be many great years of Tandem Coffehouse.

I used to live around the corner from Mabel’s. It was a sweet little shop, but I almost always left empty handed (unless I just needed something basic, like needles). They had a lot of gorgeous yarn, but I was usually on the hunt for something super specific that I wanted ASAP. Luckily, Yard Garden on Hawthorne wasn’t far—and has at least five times as much inventory.

Lint is less specific about why they’re closing (though the owner had a baby last year, so it might just be time for a change).

Since the fall of 2003 Lint has been a dream come true, but fate has a way of altering dreams, throwing curveballs and guiding us to new directions.

Now it’s time to say goodbye to this lovely place and close up shop forever.
My heart is heavy, but filled with love for all of the great people I’ve met and all of the lessons I have learned along the way. Thanks you all for your continued patronage.

Foundation Garments (2712 NE Alberta) is teaming up with the Portland Sweatfree Campaign (which is working to ensure that all city government purchases are sweatshop-free products) for Cement Mixer: Some of the boutique’s favorite designers (Leanimal, Erhart, Paper Doll, Mizu Desierto, Layers Squared, and Mine Clothing) are each designing an exlusive solitary piece interpreting “foundation garments” however they wish. Then, on Friday August 24, 6-9 pm, the pieces will be displayed and sold, with 50% of the profits going to the campaign, plus 15% of storewide sales during the event. Add to that free New Deal Vodka cocktails, and that’s what we call a real good time.

(Leanimal)

This sounds like a fun class, at collage on NE Alberta.

Rock the Stencil

Learn to transfer cool images onto fabric. No country craft stencils here! It looks like silk screening, but it’s stenciling, which non-toxic and inexpensive.

In this class students will learn to create stencils on their own t-shirt or fabric. Students are welcome to bring images to create a stencil with but it isn’t necessary, as well as Jennifer, the teacher of this class, will bring various images for student use. Jennifer will also demonstrate how to render stencils on the computer. Each student will walk away with their own customized t-shirt or piece of fabric!

Check out the example:

And stick around for the Recycled Clothing class—this skirt, pieced together from two boring old polo shirts, looks pretty cool.

You all know Etsy, I’m sure: the international online collective of crafty, handmade goods based out of Brooklyn? If you haven’t already, take an hour or three to get lost browsing the micro-production level of goods that Etsy is a portal to: everything from cell phone cozies to pottery to jewelry to stuffed critters. And, if you prefer your craft fair browsing to happen in real time, and in close proximity, the Etsy craft fair that was scheduled earlier this summer has been rescheduled due to the heavy rains that washed out the original date. So, this Saturday, from 8 am to 4 pm, check out a major Etsy presence at the already-kick ass Saturday Farmers’ Market on the South Park Blocks. And if you can’t make that, check out the site anyhow—lots of cute gift ideas.

(Fosterweld mirror)

I accidentally ended up at Goldrush Coffee Bar (2601 NE MLK Blvd) yesterday afternoon—when I was supposed to be at a coffee shop in SE Portland for a meeting, oops!—but I’m glad I screwed up.

Lining the brick walls of the shop were amazing aprons by Siva. More art than craft, the aprons are a little on the dark side—you’re not going to catch Martha Stewart donning one of these in her kitchen anytime soon, but I would shell out the $70 (as one was listed). Though I think I’d rather hang it in the kitchen than wear it while baking.

My photos didn’t turn out well, so I nabbed this one off of Siva’s MySpace. The aprons are up throughout July.

Jennifer over at Dishy Duds blogs about her time at the Mississippi Street Fair this past weekend, and adds this tidbit of news:

I was totally inspired to revive DIY Portland. Originally, this idea came about over 2 years ago, when Andrea and I wanted to form a Portland collective, open to anyone and everyone who owned and operated a small artsy/crafty business in PDX. So now, I’m moving forward with this because I think it is so darned important for the art/craft community to have a real support network. We can share the cost associated with ad space, share booths at shows/events, blog about our happenin’s, and tell the world that we each exist and all about what we do and believe in. So that’s that. Today I wrote out most of the details and I am very excited.

Stay tuned!

I just added the 8th Annual Summer Handmade Bazaar to my calendar for July 29, and noticed something odd—it’s on the same day, and at nearly the same time, as the Rebel Rabbit Craft Fair. Are Portland’s craftsters splitting into opposing camps? Or are Portland’s craft fans just really lucky that we get two big Bazaar-Fairs to check out in one day?

I’ll head to both that day to find out if there’s anything dubious going on, but in the meantime, here’s a link to each.

Rebel Rabbit
Hipbone Studio
1847 E Burnside
11 am to 4 pm

Handmade Bazaar
Audio Cinema
226 SE Madison
noon to 5 pm

This year’s Junk to Funk “trashion show” is scheduled to take place on November 17, and they are open to accept your submissions now! Says the press release:

Professional artists, fashion and apparel designers along with members of the general creative public will not want to miss this truly unique opportunity to compete for prizes up to $500 in the upcoming Junk to Funk Recycled Fashion Show Contest. The pieces of wearable art and fashion that are being sought should be made out of found objects, recycled materials and things you normally might find in the trash.

Check out the Junk to Funk web site for submission details.

The goal: a complete summer outfit on a tiny budget of $20 (+ creativity and some DIY.)
The place: Value Village in NE, one hour before closing time.

A silk coral skirt transforms into a swingy trapeze dress with the snipping of some armholes. And the ensemble is complete with shoes and accessories all for a grand total of $16.64! I have a brand new summer outfit with a variety of styling options and enough change left over for a beer!

More details after the jump.

If you’re more inclined to seek out the micro-lines of clothing and sundry accoutrements that can usually be found at craft fairs, there are three occurrances this weekend that you need to be aware of:

• First, tomorrow is the Etsy Art and Craft Summer Sale! You know Etsy. You love Etsy. In conjunction with PSU’s Women’s Studies Department and concurrent with the farmer’s market, you’ll find over 40 Etsy vendors here, a craft paradise. But you gotta get up early with the farmers to get first dibs: 7 am to 5 pm, South Park Blocks.

• It’s a double whammy on Sunday, with another round of Crafty Wonderland taking place at the Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside, 11 am-4 pm. But also, head over to the Wonder Ballroom for Fabricate, a showcase of indie designers of clothing and jewelry with a lot of fresh names, the most recognizable of which is Sameunderneath. Others include Claire Baby, which produces one-of-a-kind baby burp cloths and bibs(!), Mi Mo handbags, and aprons from Rose and Rhubarb. The trunk show-style event will also feature a runway, plus food and music. And check out this pretty bracelet from another exhibitor, Vassa P—only 60 bucks! That’s a lot of posh look for an affordable price:

They don’t officially open until tomorrow (check out their First Thursday shindig from 6-10 tomorrow), but Chas and I just got to poke around the new Tender Loving Empire (1720 NW Lovejoy, Ste 109) store/small press/screen printing facility with proprietors Jared and Brianne Mees. It reminded both of us of the early retail days of Motel, with lots of indie goodies from journals to jewelry, to wallets to t-shirts. There’s also some crossover with the micro-press focus of Reading Frenzy—a mix that seems right up the Portland indy/DIY scene alley but a little different for the neighborhood they’re in. They’ll also be hosting art shows every month, and the first is by Sam Guererro, whose Be Afraid shows his cute/effed up artistic renderings of junior high and high school kids’ fears, from sticking a Q-Tip too far in your ear to being the victim of botched plastic surgery. Check the photos: