April 21, 2010
To say that I am merely inspired by the illustrations of Lotta Nieminen would be such a huge understatement. I stumbled upon her portfolio yesterday via Print Magazine and it is no surprise to me that this Helsinki artist was selected as one of Print Magazine’s 20 best graphic artists under the age of 30.
~Posted by: Amy
April 20, 2010
Spring has sprung. I just love the fresh scent in the air and all the blooming flowers, and what’s almost as wonderful? Spring shopping! I think it’s time to get outside and visit Gastown for their bi-annual Shop Hop, this Thursday, April 22nd from 5pm-9pm. What makes it even more fun? Complimentary beverages. Drinking, socializing and shopping locally – sign me up!
Click here to see the flyer at full size.
Here are some of my favorite Gastown shops featuring local designers:
1). 212 – Check out their Spring 2010 Collection here
2). Obakki – Modern, wearable separates made locally in their Vancouver atelier. Check out my post on their Spring 2010 collection here.
3). The Block – A great shop to scoop up all the latest from local line, dace
~Posted by: Amy
April 20, 2010
Etsy’s latest feature is Treasury East! What’s pretty special about Etsy’s homepage is that it’s actually curated by both Etsy staff as well as Etsy’s users. Currently it’s all about the timing if you want to be the lucky one to curate one of these lists. Recently, Etsy has launched a new feature that they envision will replace the new system. One of it’s best features – anyone can create a treasury at any time, be they a buyer or seller on Etsy. The thought is that this new feature will eventually replace their current treasury system. If you’d like to create your own list of Etsy favorites for Treasury East – click here
To see my first Treasury East – which includes the finds pictured above and many more – Click here
April 19, 2010
Lackluster Vintage Co.
I hope everyone had a great weekend! I wanted to post about a new vintage shop I discovered and then I’ve got to get to work (am a bit behind already today!) – do check back throughout the week though, I have lots of great things ready to be shared…
I think you’ll agree with me, Lackluster Vintage Co. is anything but lackluster – click here to visit this wonderful vintage shop! So many pieces I’d like to have in my home. This same talented curator also has a gorgeous jewelry shop here.
~Posted by: Amy
April 16, 2010
Rachel Bone of Red Prairie Press launched her own line of screenprinted t-shirts over 3 years ago and hasn’t looked back! Leaving behind an unfulfilling job, a crummy boss, and the relative comfort of a steady paycheck was a leap of faith – but it’s clear Rachel made the right choice. Her line is now carried in dozens of shops and has been featured on countless blogs – she’s living the dream life of a handmade artist. Which involves lots of hard work I’m sure – but also enables her to set her own hours, develop artistically and collaborate with her husband (he designs all the kids tees)!
I’m a big fan of her Spring 2010 collection and was really happy when Rachel emailed me to share it – it’s available online here.
~Posted by: Amy
April 16, 2010
Did you see my guest post yesterday on Indie Fixx? I think it’s a good one to take you into the weekend! You can take a peek at the entire post here.
~Posted by: Amy
April 15, 2010
Click here to visit these shops
Evie Shaffer’s Beautiful Idea
I had one of those moments the other day – I think you know the kind of moment that I’m talking about. When you learn about someone’s idea and you can envision the potential it has – and you say – That. Is. Wonderful. Evie Shaffer’s new project, A Beautiful Idea gave me just that feeling. The kind of feeling that reminds me why I blog, and more specifically why I blog about Handmade.
Evie asks us to imagine one simple thing:
- “What if just 1% of Etsy.com’s 200,000 sellers donated the profits of one $20 item a month?”
- “That’s $40,000 a month.”
The point she’s making is not lost on me. There is enormous potential in the Etsy community to do good. It’s through collective efforts like this that we can help others in a very impactful way. I think when we join together to give – great things happen!
A Beautiful Idea has a simple model that you can read all about here – in short, artists and crafters donate an item, and pledge to donate the money to the chosen charity once this item is sold – the current charity is World Vision.
Do bookmark the shop and sign up for updates via either Facebook or Twitter – I know in time there will be a huge variety of items to choose from.
I wanted to learn more about Evie, her idea, and to find out more about getting involved – I’ve shared her answers below:
Q. (Amy) – A Beautiful Idea is off to a great start, but it must take a lot of your time and energy to maintain and promote it. How do you stay positive and motivated?
A. (Evie) – It is taking a lot of time to get the momentum going, but I can honestly say that is the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done! My heart to see artists collaborate and make a difference in the world is what drives me. The results have been very fulfilling, and I look forward to it growing more and more so we can make an even bigger impact!
Q. (Amy) -There are a lot of great charities out there, what is one that is particularly important to you and why is it important to you?
A. (Evie) – Compassion International. It’s amazing what they are doing not only with child sponsorship, but in training children and families, equipping them to break out of the cycle of poverty. My husband and I sponsor two kids, a girl in India and a little boy in Kenya. My husband recently traveled to Kenya to learn more about Compassion and he also got to meet our sponsored child. It was life-changing to see the difference this program is making in their lives (more here).
Q. (Amy) You have quite a variety of products in your etsy shop. How did you learn how to crochet and craft?
A. (Evie) I love all types of arts/crafts. The difficult thing for me is focusing on one because they all are so fun and interesting! My grandmother taught me to crochet when I was very young. My grandfather painted and also taught us how to paint, and he also had a loom where we created our very own rugs! My mother is also very crafty and taught me to sew and really gave me a love for thrifty/DIY projects! I have her to thank for introducing me to my artistic self. All these people contributed to my love for crafting.
Q. (Amy) You’re a designer, crafter, artist, and mother. What do you do to cope with stress and re-energize yourself?
A. (Evie) Haha! I had to laugh at this one. I think the way I re-energize myself is something different every time. Sometimes it’s with a good book, an art project, time with my husband, even working! Most of all, I rely on my faith and my love for God which drives almost everything I do. Anytime I feel like I’m drowning in responsibility and I feel like I’m not getting enough done, I just have to pause and give myself some perspective. I’m only one person, I can’t do it all. I try to be a good steward of my time and do what’s most important in the time I’ve been given. For me, the most important things are God, my family, and my purpose. Everything else (including a clean house) is up for negotiation!
Q). (Amy) What can our readers to do support A Beautiful Idea?
A). (Evie) If you are an artist, you can join the network. If you love to shop, you can purchase products and know that 100% of your money is going to help someone in need, not to mention getting a great product! Since we are brand new, any and all publicity helps us out so we can keep the momentum going and keep building awareness. That means blogging, tweeting, and sharing ABI with your friends. You can also add a badge to your blog, become a fan on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter.
I hope you’ll join me in supporting A Beautiful Idea! I stumbled upon it via Kyla’s blog (you can read all about her line Kove here, which I blogged about earlier this year).
~Posted by: Amy
April 14, 2010
On Friday night I was lucky enough to attend the Fall 2010 Lav & Kush show at Vancouver Fashion Week. From my front row seat I saw that Vancouver’s fashion crowd was out in force to preview the beautiful new collection from designer Angela Saxena. Flirty fashion with an eco twist, her designs are made locally and feature eco-friendly fabrics. And if you thought fashion was all about superficiality – Lav & Kush proves you wrong – they donate a percentage of their revenue to non-profits.
The Fall 2010 collection is lush, with lots of beautifully draped jersey fabrics and floral print silks. Everything is wearable, and can be dressed down for the office or spiced up for a dinner date – I loved the soft and smoky colour palette of greys, blues and neutral tones.
~Posted by: Christine
All photos courtesy of Wayne Ma
April 13, 2010
I found these romantic photos from Kristy Bee recently on Etsy. Do you ever look at an artists work and want to be part of the world they’ve created? It happens to me a lot.
It only takes a minute and I’m daydreaming about the future or remembering favorite moments from the past. Kristy has loved photography for many years and with each of her photos she looks to find beauty in ordinary life – I think she’s done a wonderful job of achieving this.
On a side note – how’s your week going so far? My computer “challenges” from last week actually gave me some insight – made me realize some negative thinking that had creeped into my life without me even realizing it. When you’re a web designer deadlines pop up here and there – really very unexpectedly. I’ve gotten used to this over the years. But I realized at some point I gave up on the possibility of actually getting ahead of schedule with my work. Sure it’s not possible all the time but I think with the right outlook it’s more possible than I previously thought. And that is pushing me forward this week!
To see many more photos from Kristy’s beautiful shop – Click here.
~Posted by: Amy
