a p p a r e n t l y

When the fair was in the pool

One of the interesting quirks of the fair having moved to McCarren Park is that the booths are now arranged in one enormous circle around the perimeter of a track and field. A handful of booths have been relegated to a small park across the street; I felt a bit badly for these vendors until I recognized several of them in exact same corner spots from last year, so perhaps they didn’t mind. But what this layout does is to make it nearly impossible to see an item one might purchase and say with any honesty, “I’ll think about it and come back to this booth.” Taking someone’s card might remind you of the seller, but between the distance and the heat (obviously a variable), the odds of actually making another loop around the track to hunt down that booth are slim. And you can’t take a short cut across the field, because there’s a soccer game in progress.

In the past there’s been a little booklet of all the vendors and their locations so you could make notes, but I didn’t see one this year.

All of this is to say: if you see something that you like, even if it’s made in multiples, your best bet is to make a quick decision. This isn’t optimal for me; I prefer to look at everything and then go back to make my purchases. (This is also how I approach the farmers’ market.) I also tend not to buy from the first few booths, because what if I spend my whole budget and then see something I must have? But between the circular layout, the noonday sun and a desire to keep my very pregnant companion comfortable,* I tried to be more impulsive than usual.

*She actually did far better in the heat than I did.

Exactly What I Wanted

Purple Vines Shirt by Umsteigen

I made three purchases at this year’s fair, each of which represents a slightly different experience. Only a few booths from where we started I discovered Umsteigen, which you might think I would steer clear from as it’s a silkscreened clothing purveyor. But their designs were beautiful, they print on a bamboo/cotton blend, and this one shade of purple attracted me in a way I am rarely drawn to clothes. Done. I wish buying clothes was always this easy.

Won Over by Kindness (and Price)

Not until we were halfway around the track did I make my second purchase, from the one-woman sewing operation run by the talented Christine Haynes. Most of her offerings were dresses and reversible cotton skirts, but I was drawn to a beautiful green floral circle skirt with a complicated fastening system of ties and snaps. I wish I could show you a photo, but Christine said it was one of a kind. The shockingly low price suggested it may have been a prototype or an “oops,” but the craftsmanship was sound and it fit perfectly. Add to that how lovely Christine was in helping me try it on, plus she won me over with her Peter Pan collar and by pointing out that we have the exact same taste in handbags. Sold! And my purchase came in a simple silkscreened reusable tote bag. You can visit Christine’s blog for photos of her work. And she teaches sewing classes in L.A., too.

imagine this spiral-bound

Nostalgia Sells

My last purchase was an impulse buy from Overdue Industries, which recycles old books into new journals, jewelry and other charming whatnot. While I was taken with the wire-and-book-cover necklaces featuring images from vintage knitting books, I couldn’t resist a journal made from an old hardbound copy of Little Bear, one of my favorite childhood stories and one which I read often to Apparently Jr. I love that the journal even has a few stray pen marks, and some of the original pages are mixed in with the plain sheets. (How clever is it to create a product where something like stray pen marks add to its charm?)

I was quite pleased with my purchases, but I should also note that my budget for the day was less than what I spent. I was hoping to buy some gifts for Father’s Day and upcoming birthdays, but it can be tricky to buy handmade goods as gifts for others.

I should also note that the two food vendors, Urban Rustic and Lefty’s Silver Cart were quite busy, and the farmers’ market nearby only added to the overall delightful feel of an afternoon spent among those who sell their own wares.

Next: Sponsorship Done Right

Part Two: Those Who Made Me Look Twice

When browsing a craft fair, booths can be divided into three, or possibly four, categories: those which don’t even catch your eye or which you scan but skip right past, those which draw you in but you realize quickly that there’s nothing there for you and leave, and those where you stay and browse, perhaps (and hopefully!) even making a purchase. This post features a few vendors in that last category: those who caught my eye and deserve some attention.

A Different Octopus by Aya Rosen

LoucheLab offered a sweet little freebie: Aya Rosen’s Little Coloring Book of Interesting Things. Her octopus promotional postcards were also compelling and I must confess, perhaps suitable for framing. One may go on Apparently Jr.’s wall of oceanic art, nearly all of which was purchased at the RCF in 2008. I also loved that she had a table on her booth where you could paint on glass. As I was browsing, a friendly woman (Aya herself?) approached me to say that while all the seats were currently full, one would open up shortly. While I wasn’t planning to stay, I certainly appreciated the invitation.

I couldn’t figure out why the dotted baby dress at Enfant Terrible‘s shop was so appealing; I learned later that Salt Chunk Mary‘s daughter has one, so perhaps I have seen it in action at some point.

Jar of Wonder offered the only felt food that I saw at the fair. As a felt food aficionado and craftsperson, I was compelled to look, but I’m afraid they weren’t quite ready for prime time. And I’m not sure why they removed the entire play kitchen from their already sparse booth (unless someone purchased it, in which case, you go, Jar of Wonder!). I do applaud them for their effort and good packaging. People were definitely taking their packaging up a notch this year, which I found appealing from a buyer’s perspective.

I spent some time pondering a purchase of bgreendesign‘s silkscreened trees. Perhaps a little more attention from the people manning the booth might have sold me on it. I know it’s not always easy to chat with potential customers all day, but you do have to interact with the people who visit your booth. And seriously, people: either put prices on your items or display a price list. You lose dozens of sales every day to introverts…or people who just don’t like asking for prices. I am one of those.

My favorite topiary by life {with tigers}

(Also, when someone does ask for a price, please don’t say “I could let it go for $x.” It’s a craft fair, not a yard sale.)

My favorite item that I didn’t purchase, and the winner of my imaginary “most unique” award, goes to a charming, oddly named shop called life {with tigers}, which makes (among other things), the most darling little fabric topiaries. On an equal-but-opposite note, they also make catnip toys that look like severed legs.

A late addition to this post: the pretty fabric-flower hairpins at WREN Handmade. All of her items were so prettily arranged and packaged. I didn’t pick up her card but I thought of her items a few days after the fair, so they must have made an impression!

Up Next: What I Purchased, A Word on Their Sponsors, and One Strategist’s Analysis (or, How to Succeed In Crafty Commerce And Retain Your Sanity).

Part One: Overview

Those of you who have been reading Apparently for some time may recall that the 2009 Renegade Craft Fair sent me into a vitriolic fit. But I’m getting ahead of myself…let me present some context.

In 2008, the first second Renegade Craft Fair was held in Brooklyn. (The RCF itself began on 2003, in Chicago.) Mr. Apparently, Apparently Jr. and I braved the heat and sun of McCarren Park Pool, a defunct pool now used as an event venue, to wander up and down the many rows of crafty goodness. I was stunned and delighted to find so much creativity and talent. Plus they had some excellent cookies for sale, as well as real root beer in glass bottles.

Last year, the fair moved to nearby McCarren Park, and was set up around the circumference of a soccer pitch and running track. Again the day was sweltering, and my compatriots were not quite so pleased. But my excitement and enthusiasm was quickly squelched as I encountered booth after booth of silkscreened t-shirts, onesies and tote bags. I’m not a total crankpot; some of the actual silkscreened images were just lovely. But something about all that screen printing just rubbed me the wrong way. While there’s definitely artistic skill involved, it seemed like a cheap way out, and it left me disappointed.

This year Mr. Apparently wisely sent me off to wander the fair at my leisure, and in the company of an extremely pregnant SuperFastReader, I set a critical, vaguely skeptical eye upon the crafty offerings. And I was pleased with what I saw. Yes, about half of the booths (a loose guesstimate) had silkscreened goods, but the quality of those goods seemed to have improved: organic cottons, bamboo tees, and attractive designs.

The following is an off-the-cuff list of stuff that stuck with me from the fair. In the next post, I’ll feature a couple of my favorite vendors, and in future posts I’ll show off my purchases/acquisitions and offer a few thoughts on what I’ve come to think of as the Craft Fair Dilemma. But for now, What Stood Out This Year:

- Upcycling. Many booths featured clothing made from other clothes. While the pieces were one of a kind, each designer’s booth often had a sort of cohesiveness – for example, a rack of tank dresses in the same silhouette, but made from different colors of jersey knit. Or polyester a-line skirts.

- Hand-sewn handbags. I saw quite a few vendors of these this year, notable also for a small number of patterns executed in a large number of fabrics.

- Not much jewelry, and what I did see was fairly unique: silver rings inlaid with cement, recycled bakelite pieces, artistic metal pendants.

- Expensive dresses that were dry clean only.

- Lots of pretty nature-inspired silkscreening, most of it on t-shirts and some of it on wood. Less hipster-ironic screen printing. This is a good thing.

- BUTTONS. Everyone seemed to have some sort of button for sale. Some of the booths gave away self-promotional pin-back buttons as freebies, while others charged a buck or two for artsy designs. A strangely large percentage of the booths where fabric was used as a raw material also had fabric-covered buttons for sale at relatively exorbitant prices (more on this in my final post). Do people actually pay $10 for three buttons? Really?

Up Next:

Part Two: Favorites and Really Unique Vendors

Part Three: My Purchases

Part Four: Actually Cool Sponsors

and finally Part Five: An Analysis from the Perspective of a Small-Time Artisan, in Which You Might Be Surprised at What I Have to Say. Stay tuned!

I like this baby cloche so much I’m going to use the same fabric in an adult size. Thanks to those who suggested larger hats!

Having a little boy is fantastic in nearly every way, yet anyone who sews will tell you that the crafty opportunities just aren’t as exciting for the male of the species.

I do have the occasional urge to get girly with the colors and patterns. These two sweet hats are a custom order for twins in my neighborhood. Their mother sat them in front of the computer with an image of all my fabrics, and each chose her own colors.

From an ease-of-sewing perspective, I’m currently grooving on the reversible cloche pattern. Those patchwork hats are a lot of work! The cloche is considerably more simple, although it does require some fiddly attention where the six seams meet at the top. The only way to improve is practice, and so I just keep making more hats.

I climbed up onto my sewing desk today and strung a line from the curtain rod to a hook on the wall so I can store/display stock hats where they’re both visible and out of the way. I love walking into the room and seeing them hanging high above the machine. It’s not quite as charming as the “Caps for Sale” -style stack I had going before, but it’s much more practical.

I’m in the midst of several custom orders, and so I’ve made quite a few sunhats this week. I’m in love with the white one and am considering enlarging the pattern to make one for myself. But oh, the trickiness of resizing a pattern. One can’t just blow it up in Photoshop; all sorts of subtle changes are required. Perhaps there will be prototypes in my Etsy shop soon!

I love this project – both the “pouf” itself and the tutorial, but let’s be real – it’s an enormous pincushion that you can display on your sofa.

Not that there’s anything wrong with that – apparently I have a thing for pincushions. Check out this adorable pincushion shop I came across during Giveaway Day. Is it wrong that I’m thinking of buying one even though I have about four different pincushion patterns tucked away?

Design*Sponge » Blog Archive » sewing 101: making a pouf.

Hello, readers of Sew, Mama, Sew! It’s Giveaway Day in the blogosphere, which means that you’ll find a long list of crafty people who are giving away handmade items and/or craft supplies on Monday, May 17 on Sew, Mama, Sew’s blog. This is a great opportunity to find new crafty blogs to follow, as well as online shops that feature lovely handcrafted goods from edibles and wearables to maps and ephemera.

Apparently will be giving away a handmade jar pincushion filled with notions (vintage buttons, bias tape, pom poms) along with one yard of the sweet vintage fabric shown in the photo. The fabric is dotted with elephants, zebras and giraffes dancing with little red stars on a light brown background. I love these pincushions, and I have one in nearly every room of my home (plus a few others).

Recently I’ve started to give my Etsy shop, Petite Legume, some dedicated attention. Right now the shop is stocked with felt food, sunhats and toddler pants, but I’d like to add to my repertoire. So for my giveaway, please take a look at Petite Legume and answer the following question in the comments on this post: what would you like to see (or see more of) in my shop?

Please leave your comment by 6pm EST on Thursday, May 20 to enter the giveaway. Be sure to include your email address so I can contact you if you are the winner! A winner will be chosen by the Random Number Generator and will have 48 hours to reply to my email with a snail mail address before a new winner is chosen. US entries only, please; if you have ever visited my local post office, you’d understand.

Update: We have a winner, and it’s Megan, who said, “I love the felt food – more of that would definitely be cute. I like the idea of a previous commenter — make your own pizzas or burgers. Things with movable parts. Thanks for the giveaway!” Congrats, Megan!

Thanks to all of you for your thoughtful comments. People suggested more felt food, which is definitely in the works – I even have a new shipment of 100% wool felt ready for this project! The other popular suggestion was more sun hats – particularly girly ones and in adult sizes. I have a bunch of custom orders to do this week, but then I’ll be creating more hats. If you would like to request a custom hat, just email me. You can see some of my new fabrics in the next post…

I knew we were taking a risk by venturing out at 5pm on a Saturday. I’d been tracking my shipment of new fabric and it was on a truck “out for delivery” today. But for the sake of family harmony (not to mention a fine meal), I crossed my fingers and hoped for an 8pm delivery. That’s not uncommon around here.

When we turned the corner by our building, an empty FedEx truck was parked across the street. “Go!” insisted Mr Apparently, and I rushed to our door in the hopes of thwarting one of those nasty little door tags that means “package undelivered.” And like some sort of FedEx groupie, I loitered by the truck for a good ten minutes until the delivery man returned from an adjacent block with a hand truck bearing one yellow parcel. “I think you may have something for me…” I suggested, my tone hopefully conveying the proper mix of “oh, I’m so ridiculous” and “I’m not leaving this truck without my eight pounds of yardage.”

The yellow parcel was indeed mine, and here’s a quick iPhone shot of what it contained:

As is often the case, I am totally surprised and delighted by some of what I expected to be “rounding out the stash” fabric, and a tiny bit disappointed in the couple of yards I may have earmarked just for me. But that’s good news for everyone else, as it means they’ll go into the pool of available patterns. The botanical reproduction prints are particularly lovely, and really every yard in the lot has excellent potential. I’m very pleased with this order.

This superlight flannel sun hat was just posted to my Etsy shop last night, and I can’t quite explain how adorable the print is: giraffes on wheels, zebras on scooters, elephants on skateboards, hippos on roller skates and wind-up turtles all frolicking on a light blue background. The stripes match perfectly, because the hat was constructed from two coordinating (and never-used) receiving blankets.

I’m a big fan of finding obvious-yet-unconsidered sources for fabrics. Last year I purchased a gorgeous tablecloth at Crate & Barrel and am still making lovely things from all that yardage. Sewists, where do you find your fabrics?