Craftstravaganza 2012: Celebrity Sightings!

Our vendors are the stars of the show, but sometimes we see other famous faces in attendance, especially from the Twin Cities arts scene. At least those are the ones I recognize (e.g. Scott Seekins, circa 2007). Here are a few local luminaries who showed up this year:

 

Project Runway's Christopher Straub

 

Comic Artist Britt Hammerberg

 

Writer/Actor Sam Landman 

 

i like you Owner Sarah Sweet

Father's Day gift ideas

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Craftstravaganza 2012: SWAG

Craftstravaganza is in the bag. Full post coming, after I've had some time to process the experience and choose suitable photos. But first: the loot! These are all the items we acquired at the Craftstravaganza this year. One of them is cleverly obscured because it's a wedding gift for my bro.

The raincoat and bib are for the girls and the Dalai Lama is now hanging in my office. It is an original stencil work with spray paint on canvas by Taylor Lindgren. He was one of my favorite new artists this year. His mom did the framed print of Minnehaha Falls which I gave to my mom for Mother's Day. Jenna's gift was the little necklace from PickleBerries. They both were the lucky recipients of Zeichen Press cards.

Natalie loves pretending to be a kangaroo so we bought her the little pocket monster from LolaMade. We're saving the Tiny Hands lollipop necklace for her Candy Land-themed birthday party. Last of all I got some bath products to cleanse myself after the show ended but I haven't quite got around to using them yet.

Daddy Drinks: Craft'zapolitan

Sugatrain Cocktails 3 18122010 - Version 2, originally uploaded by Dave Mulder
There's no after-party for the Craftstravaganza--when we close our doors, artists scatter to the four winds and us old folks just want to go home and rest--but if there was one, this would be the official party drink. Anyway, it's what I'm having tonight!

Want to enjoy a Craft'zapolitan with me? Here's how to make one:

1. Pour vodka into a jar with some strawberries a few weeks ago and put it into the fridge. 
2. Forget about the jar. 
3. Find it and decide to make a cocktail! 
4. In a shaker with ice, add: 
1. 2 oz strawberry-infused vodka 
2. 1 oz Cointreau 
3. 1/2 oz lime juice 
5. Shake and strain into a chilled martini glass. 
6. Enjoy your hand-made drink, ideally while soaking in a nice hot bath.

See you at the Craft'za!

Animal Planters at the Scuttlebug booth

 I don't always make a craft for the show, but when I do, it's brightly-colored planters made of hollow animal toys! I call them "plantimals." You can pick up your favorite at the Craftstravaganza this weekend in the Scuttlebug booth.

This project was a collaboration with Jenna. I got the animals, cut out cavities on top, and drilled holes at the bottoms for drainage. She spray-painted them and put in the plantings. I think they turned out really nice!

I will also be selling Bob the Golfer comics that were left over from Springcon. Stop by and say hi! I will be running around like a madman all day, so super-friends can just call my cell if we don't see each other.

Handy GMAT Tip!

This is going to save me so much time on the test!

But seriously folks, I was encouraged when I read this, because it proves that my studying is paying off: I took one look at that triangle and recognized immediately that the answer was "5." It's a Pythagorean triple! BOOM. In your face, geometry!!

Craft Manifesto

I submitted a proposal to talk at a local conference. It wasn't selected but since I'd already spent far more time editing it than I do for most blog posts, I decided to share it here. It has been edited from a pitch to a "manifesto" and you can read the whole thing here.

Keep in mind, I'm not a professional artist. I work with them, they're "my people," but I can't speak on their behalf. My professional background is in business and I'm addressing the issue as I see it from an entrepreneurial point of view.

I'm hoping that artists and people who buy crafts will share their opinions too! I closed comments on this post. If you have feedback, please leave it on the Manifesto page so we can have a continuing conversation.

Read More >>

Free Comic Book Day

I don't get into the city as much as I used to, so I try to maximize every trip. Today Natalie and I drove to Minneapolis. First we stopped in at the Ballentine VFW for the HandmadeMN Spring Market. I handed out the last of our posters and flyers to Craftstravaganza vendors. Some are new this year, and we had never met in real life, so I got to see their art for the first time.

Next, I wanted to take Natalie to Rusty Quarters, but the posted hours said that they didn't open until noon on Saturday. So we went next door to Jackson's Coffee and Gelato for a healthy lunch of... coffee and gelato. Natalie got a kid's cone with black chocolate and I had the tiramisu flavor (we also shared a blueberry muffin). Then it was 12:15 but the arcade was still locked up! Sad face.

Luckily we were not disappointed by our visit to Big Brain Comics. We grabbed a bunch of free books and Natalie read them in the car. I could tell she was having fun downtown because she kept saying, "I love you daddy," but on the way home she was so enraptured by her new comics that she was totally quiet for the entire drive. Imagine how much more she'll enjoy books once she actually learns to read!

Cadbury Egg Ice Creme

Fond o' fondant, originally uploaded by Heather Leah Kennedy

The ice cream flavor for April was Cadbury Creme Egg Vanilla. Nice and simple, this one. Just my standby French Vanilla base mixed with squished-up bits of mini eggs (I used the carton of one dozen).

The chocolate stays chunky but the fondant goop stirs in with the ice cream and complements the flavor nicely. It's quite sweet. No surprise there! Would make again as an Easter treat.