What are you working on? Art and Craft in Greenville.

You know how we love to share what's going on in the art sphere of our creative little city. We try our best to keep you updated on the professional events, but we've also recently become interested in sharing what individuals do around Greenville (and surrounding areas) to exercise their creativity. We started this post series a couple weeks ago, and I'm happy to share some new projects with you today.

Chalkboard Kitchen Wall.

The ever talented Elizabeth Ramos kindly shared her new kitchen wall with us--which she and her husband painted with chalkboard paint.

From her blog: Around Christmas time, Andrew and I were discussing how (in spite of us both being designers) our everyday lives don’t seem to allow for much creativity. One small way we decided to combat this is by adding a small chalkboard wall to our kitchen. We’re hoping that this will give us a good place to make art that’s intentionally temporary and help us remember to have fun creating things.

Not only did Elizabeth share the pictures, her post includes a great tutorial for doing this yourself

Greenville is getting a letterpress shop!

Our friends over at Dapper Ink have exciting news. They're the screen print shop that makes our tee shirts each year, and they've just expanded their printing capabilities to include letterpress printing. The vintage Chandler and Price letterpress still needs a lot of care to get it up and running, but they expect by summer time to be fully set up and taking orders.

Celebrating the press arrival to the Dapper Ink lot.

Located in the shop window, the press is ready to be cleaned and tuned up for action.

Don't forget--we want to see what you're working on. Please email photos and stories to jen@indiecraftparade.com.

MailChimp Hat Winners

And the winners of the MailChimp hat giveaway  (as chosen by random.org) are:

Commenter #24: Marcus Wickes

Commenter #9: Michael

Commenter #4: Roman

Commenter #18: Jeff

Commenter #12: Stan

Winners, we'll email you with instructions on how to claim your prize, and thanks everyone for sharing where you buy your favorite handmade goods!

MailChimp Hat Giveaway!

If you follow us on Facebook, you may have already seen the fun monkey hats we received from our favorite email newsletter makers, MailChimp. Today, we're giving away five of these fun crocheted hats to our blog readers!

To enter, leave a comment below answering this question:

Where do you buy your favorite handmade goods? (e.g. from Etsy, a local shop, a festival, the artist, etc.)

Please, only one entry per person. Random winners will be chosen next Monday, March 26th (at midnight) and announced here on the blog on Tuesday! Also, for shipping reasons, only US Residents are eligible to win.

DIY Garden Projects (and more) Round Up

It's been a while since we've done a crafty DIY round up on our blog, so I'm pretty excited to have one all about gardening. I'm hoping the clear forecast tomorrow holds, because I want to spend the entire day outside! Ok, maybe you don't have a green thumb and hate working in the yard. Don't tune me out yet. I've got more than just a post about garden projects. Check out these beauties below.

I love terrariums, especially this one from In Words and Pictures. And these little Tillandsia (air plants) are so easy to take care of. They hardly need any attention.

No yard? Have a porch or patio that needs a little plant love? Apartment Therapy's tutorial for recycling pallets into vertical gardens is pure genius. This would be perfect for growing small flowers, or my personal favorite, fresh herbs.

Ok, maybe you don't have a green thumb, but who doesn't love fresh flowers in the house? Especially when they're displayed in this faux mercury glass vase from Pepper Design.

Or maybe hanging plants are your thing? I love how you can give some distinction to plain ol' terra cotta with this tutorial from More Design Please.

And finally, have any friends who are nuts about gardening? This is a super cute favor or hostess gift for those who have that green thumb. Template found on Ruffled Blog.

Happy Weekend!

Pecha Kucha Night in Greenville

In my opinion, Pecha Kucha Night is one of the most fascinating concepts I've ever come across. "What are you talking about!"...you might be wondering right now. "What on earth is Pecha Kucha?" Well, Pecha Kucha (pronounced pe-CHALK-cha; from the Japanese phrase meaning "chit chat") is a forum that believes that everybody has something interesting to say and should have the opportunity to share it with others. So, four times a year, the Warehouse Theatre in Greenville hosts an evening where people from the community present a topic and a slideshow to the Pecha Kucha audience. Now, to keep the lectures from getting out of hand, Pecha Kucha has a few ground rules. From their website: Each presenter is allowed 20 images, each shown for 20 seconds each – giving 6 minutes 40 seconds of fame before the next presenter is up. This keeps presentations concise, the interest level up, and gives more people the chance to show.

So within just a few short minutes, you can be educated on a variety of fun topics and have a great time in the process. Those topics can be anything ranging from "Why Bruce Wayne would have made a good architect" to a brief history lesson on "Hipsters." (See Pecha Kucha website for other past topics). Quirky? Absolutely! But this is a great way to know more about the people in your community. And you just need to dive in to enjoy the fun.

Now that you have a general idea of what Pecha Kucha night is, let's get to the details about the event.

Where: Warehouse Theatre When: March 27, 2012, presentations begin at 8:20 Cost: $5 at the door What: Come learn about anything and everything — 6 minutes and 40 seconds at a time. Learn more: http://www.pkngreenville.com/

So you might be wondering what our fascination with Pecha Kucha has to do with Indie Craft Parade. Well, Indie Craft Parade's very own Elizabeth Ramos, co-host of the event, has been heavily involved with Pecha Kucha for the past few years. She's been a presenter before (see presentation below), and this year Indie Craft Parade is actually one of the partners supporting Pecha Kucha night. We believe this event is fun, informative, and a great way to spend a night in Greenville. It's totally worth getting tickets, and who knows what you'll learn by the evening's end!

http://vimeo.com/13962353

Indie Craft Parade Scholarship: Update on Brook Glenn Elementary School

I have a super fun update today. Remember this post when we announced that Brook Glenn Elementary School won our 2011 scholarship? Well, Laura, the school's art teacher, has shared with us some of the work the students were able to do because of the scholarship funds.

From Laura: I just wanted to send you guys a note and say THANKS for choosing us for your scholarship.  We have been furiously making all sorts of ceramic projects since I was able to purchase massive amounts of clay and glaze (hooray!).  I wanted to send a few pictures.  Two of the pictures are of clay animals third graders have been working on (the most awesome zebra I've ever seen!) and one photo is of a stocked kiln room-- something that makes this art teacher very happy.

We're so glad we were able to help out the kids from Brook Glenn. Looks like these students have an art future for sure!

Etsy Handmade Portraits

Needing some crafty inspiration? Head over to the Etsy TV page on Vimeo. They have a high quality collection of short films that feature artists and crafters throughout the States and even around the world. Here's one from a textile artist that I've admired for quite a while. She's Heather Moore of Skinny LaMinx in South Africa. Her designs are beautiful, and I think you'll enjoy this as much as I did.

Handmade Portraits: Skinny laMinx from Etsy on Vimeo.

What are you working on? Arts and Crafts in Greenville and surrounding areas.

Thank you so much to everyone who has sent us pictures of your current creative work in response to last week's post! I have a couple of good ones to show you today, and there will be plenty more to come. We really want to see what our friends are working on. So whether you're a longtime follower, participant, or attendee of Indie Craft Parade or if you're just joining us, please shoot us a photo of the creative projects you're working on (or have worked on). Just email jen@indiecraftparade.com and include a brief description of your project as well as photos that do not exceed 500 pixels wide. Here we go! First a creative headboard by mixed media artist Kristen Solecki.

From Kristen: My fiancee and I recently moved into our new apartment. We wanted something over our bed but did not want a headboard. We are both obsessed with Instagram (who isn't?) and I printed a bunch of our photos from it but wasn't sure what to do with them, there were too many to frame!  I designed this great way to display them using two pieces of found lumber and bull dog clips. This works perfect because it is functional art and the photos can be changed and updated with our current favorites. 

If you're interested in learning how to do this project yourself, Kristen has kindly offered to share the tutorial. Visit her website to get in touch.

Second Cory Godbey has kindly shared a sneak preview into his 2012 sketchbook Menagerie. I'm so glad he sent this over, because it reminded me to tell you all we're interested in a lot more than just crafty/DIY projects (as awesome as they are). If you're a fine artist, we'd love to see your work too.

From Cory: I'm in the midst of producing my yearly sketchbook of all new work titled Menagerie. The 40+ page book will feature drawings and sketches of animals and dragons in sometimes dramatic, sometimes operatic situations. Currently I'm doing study drawings of all the pieces. This is basically me working out all of the tigers and bears and creatures that will populate this new book. 

The final drawing of the sketch above.

Another look at the Tiger King.

Menagerie will be released this May. You can find out more about the project at Cory's blog.

And finally I too wanted to show off a project I did with my little sister this past weekend. We tried making the geometric pendants from the DIY round up featured a little while ago. I think they turned out quite well.

There's always room for more! Let us know what you're working on!

Pinterest as a marketing tool

Do you use Pinterest? It seems like most of the creative types I know do. Pinterest is a fabulous resource for collecting inspiration and finding new resources. It has a simple but lovely interface, and best of all it stores everything in one place. But did you know that some people are using it for much more than just a creative morgue? Pinterest is quickly becoming an effective marketing tool for big and small businesses alike. This creative infographic from MGD Advertising gives a lot of insight into just how powerful Pinterest can be in driving people to you. Granted, the examples given below are for huge corporations. Nonetheless, the information might inspire you to harness the potential of a social media site that you already use and love .

For a better look at this graphic click here.

Just a final note: whether you're new to Pinterest or have been using for some while, please make sure that your usage is professional and above board. And mostly--give credit where credit is due. Pinterest has a good explanation of pin etiquette that is a helpful guide.

Happy National Craft Month! Show us your crafts!

It's March 1st--which kicks off the celebration of National Craft Month. Crafting blogs everywhere are gearing up to help people get their craft on this month, and Indie Craft Parade is no different. During the month of March we'll be bringing you crafting tips, exploring new DIY projects, and featuring people's crafts from right here in Greenville. That's right! We want to see what crafts you're working on! Image courtesy of Martha Stewart.

So please, let us know what projects you're tackling throughout the month of March. Recovering salvaged chairs with new, mod fabric? Decorating a room with handmade accents? Working on a new jewelry set? Trying one of our featured DIY projects? It's so easy to share! Just email jen@indiecraftparade.com, and include a brief description of your project and picture that is no bigger than 500 pixels wide. We can't guarantee that every project submitted will be featured, but we'll do our best to show as many as possible.

Alright Greenville crafters, you have your assignment. Let us see just how creative you are!

Craft Bar Happy Weekend: Applications Open

We've got another festival to tell you about--this time from Columbia, SC! Every month, the Columbia Museum of Art hosts craft . bar . happy . hour, where crafters participate in a "bring your own craft" night. It's a great way to expand your knowledge about crafting and meet new friends.

Well, they've decided to expand the event into a full weekend festival on June 1 and 2. It's going to be a juried art market located in the museum, and registration is currently open.

From craft . bar . happy . weekend:

Craft Bar Happy Weekend is the inaugural daylong event inspired by the Columbia Museum of Art’s monthly program, Craft Bar Happy Hour. Craft Bar Happy Weekend is a public market that brings together artists and their handmade goods from across the Southeast. You'll enjoy quality crafts, local food, DJs and the opportunity to make friends and connections with the artists themselves. The Museum’s team will offer workshops, demonstrations and activities that adults, and even the littlest crafters, can enjoy.

All crafters and artisans are encouraged to submit their work for consideration.

If you're interested in participating, head over to their website, read all of the details. Applications are open until March 23.

Moveable Type Truck Recap

Thank you to everyone who came out to the library last week to support Kyle and her Moveable Type Truck. We had over 150 people signed up to attend, and it was an awesome event! Participants crowded into the truck to learn more about the art of letterpress, and they even got to try the process themselves, taking home a souvenir poster. The great turnout and enthusiastic attitude shown by everyone just makes us so happy that we're part of this community. We're looking forward to many more events in the future!

So many people came! The line was 50 people long at times.

Crowding into Kyle's truck to get a better look at the process.

Inking the type before printing.

Kyle explaining the process.

The final product! A poster just for Greenville.

Indie Craft Parade fans showing off their hand printed goods!

Want to see more pictures? Check out our Facebook page!

Downtown Library and Indie Craft Parade Host Moveable Type Tomorrow!

We're so excited to meet Kyle Durrie and her type truck tomorrow. Letterpress cards, bookmarks, and posters, here we come! If you're just now hearing about Moveable Type, or if you've just put off signing up, don't wait any longer. Call the Downtown Library (864-527-9293) to sign up for the FREE event. You won't want to miss it.

Speaking of the library, did you know that the Main Branch downtown is a great crafting resource? Almost every Saturday they host a knitting and crocheting class, and on weekdays there are fun crafts for kids! Check out their schedule of events to see what all is available.

One Week Till Moveable Type Arrives!

Just a reminder that you only have to wait one more week until Moveable Type arrives in Greenville. Next Thursday, February 16, Kyle Durrie is rolling into town in her mobile letterpress studio. Her demonstration will give you a chance to learn more about and experiment with letterpress printing. Don't forget to call the Hughes Library Downtown at 527-9293 to sign up for visiting the Moveable Type Truck.

This is a free event and definitely something you don't want to miss! Check out all of the details at our previous post.

For a preview of Kyle's work and how Moveable Type works, visit her website and watch this video.

http://vimeo.com/27138467

Handmade Valentines Round Up

Valentine's Day is just a week away, which means you still have plenty of time to whip out the scissors, glue, and glitter to make your own hand made valentines! Just in case you're feeling dry for inspiration, we've included a few ideas that might get you started--complete with templates and tutorials. Happy Crafting!

No better way than to start your valentine's day than with a custom cup of coffee. I think I might fill my valentine's cup with this Nutty Mocha Latte. Find the free printable coffee sleeve at Eat Drink Chic.

Have treats that need a package? Love this fabric envelope tutorial from Sew, Mama, Sew! (Love their fabric selection too!)

Play cupid with these handmade wooden arrows from Design*Sponge.

This pirate printable from mer mag is adorable. So easy to add the felt and stitching--and a perfect card to make for (or with) your kids!

Fold out cards from Martha Stewart might require a little more precision and time, but your valentine will be so delighted with the attention to detail.

Finally, if Valentine's Day decoration is more you style, this awesome compilation featured on Design*Sponge is just the thing for you.

XOXOXO

Mark Your Crafty Calendars!

We've mentioned CoCraft before. It's an open-invitation indie crafting group that has met periodically to teach new crafting skills. They describe themselves as "a gathering of like-minded people to make stuff & make friends." What sounds more fun than that? Well, we're excited to announce that they've begun regular meetings and that you're invited to attend. From here on out, CoCraft is meeting on the first Friday of every month from 7-10 PM.

All of the details you need are on the CoCraft Facebook page. This month they're meeting on February 3 to make handmade Valentines. Now, I know that's just a few days away, but if you're free this weekend, all you need to do is RSVP in be a part of the crafting goodness.

If you can't make it in February, they will be crafting again in the first of March. Join in the fun!

We've Found the Perfect Handmade Valentine's Day Gifts

With St. Valentine's Day fast approaching, I know many of you still have your shopping to do. This year, show your valentine(s) how much you really care and skip the shrink wrapped chocolate boxes and the mass produced stuffed animals. Instead check out some of these fabulous handmade valentines in our Etsy Treasury. These gifts have all the charm, and your loved ones will have something truly unique.

For another collection of handmade Valentine's goodness, check out the Art and Light Blog. They've got a wonderful selection of local artists' goods.

Buy Handmade — Cupid would be so proud!

DIY Geometric Accessories Round Up

I really have a design crush on all of the geometric designs that are popular right now. They're clean and fresh--and facets just make me smile. For instance, I would buy the hand built ceramic hanging planter (pictured above) from Pigeon Toe Ceramics in a heartbeat.

But since we don't all have ceramic studios where we can just make (or buy) faceted creations like this, I've pulled together some very feasible geometric accessory projects.

Let's start with this diamond shaped leather necklace from Oh the Lovely Things.

And then the lovely catch-all pouch from Dismount Creative.

You really should check out this template/tutorial for geometric garland featured on Urban Outfitters.

And finally, another tutorial from Dismount Creative (she has a lot of good ones!) I love this pendant and will be making it soon!

Happy Weekend!

Open Applications for Regional Craft Shows

Dear Indie Craft Parade participants and fellow crafters,Spring is just around the corner here in the South, and it's time to start thinking about 2012 craft shows. Right now applications are open for two regional events, and you'll want to know about them. Whether you want to apply to participate or simply attend these events, you're bound to be surrounded by fabulous crafts and all the fun that goes with these festivals. Check them out!

Chatty Crafty held in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The dates for the festival are April 21 + 22, 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM daily. Applications are open until February 19.

Crafty Feast, in association with Indie Grits held in Columbia, South Carolina. The date for the festival is April 28. Applications are open until January 31--CLOSING SOON!

We hope you can take advantage of these crafting opportunities!

Last Chance to Bookmark Artists from the 2011 Indie Craft Parade

The 2nd Annual Indie Craft Parade had amazing vendors. Besides the fact that they are a group of talented artists with fabulous products, they're just great people. So we want to give you one last reminder to support them before we close the links to their websites. We're well under way in planning the 2012 Indie Craft Parade, and it's time to make room for a new lot of artists and crafters. The links on our Participants page will be live through this weekend. We will close them on Monday, January 23. Now is the time to bookmark or pin your favorite artists from the 2011 show.

Here's a little recap of our vendors work.

Letterpress card from Racing Snail Press.

Custom paper dolls from Jordan Grace Owens.

Eco-friendly bears by Pogo Shop.

Sculpture by CME Studios.

Pet clothes and accessories by Tree Parlor.

Pendants by Cameoko.

Thanks again to all of the 2nd Annual Indie Craft Parade participants. We loved having you, and we hope to see you in the future!