Monday Mosaic: Summer Vacation

Curated by Kerry Hawkins of KHawkinsphotography

1. Yummy Candyland Felt Art by Hibou Designs
2. Merry-Go-Round, France by KHawkins Photography
3. Carpet Bag Purse by Stray Notions
4. Leash  6ft. Red Hots by Cody's Creations
5. Bus Trip Postcard by Cricicis Design
6. Gravity Print by Fraske Design

New at the Marketplace: Handmade Raffle

There's a first time for everything, and 2012 is the year that we provide the opportunity for you, yes, YOU, to enter to win an amazing assortment of handmade goodness at the Boston Handmade Marketplace on June 30th from 3-7pm in our first ever Handmade Raffle.

All you have to do to enter is bring the postcard you got in the mail, or picked up at your local cafe, to the Marketplace and give it to the lovely volunteer at the Boston Handmade booth with your name and a way to contact you. At the end of the Marketplace we will be drawing one very, very lucky name out of a handmade ceramic vessel to be the winner of a BIG basket of handmade love.

Don't have a Marketplace postcard? Don't worry! You can also go to our website and print out the raffle image you see there and bring that to the Marketplace on June 30th.

Much gratitude goes out to the talented folks who contributed items:
City by the Sea Ceramics
Cody's Creations
Cozy Cottage Creations
Cricicis Design
Elephunk's Trunk
Gilded Days
Jessica Burko
K. Hawkins Photography
k.o'brien jewelry
Lady Dye Fiber Arts & Design
Lucie Wicker Photography
MaJenta Designs
Monkey Chow
Nancy MacCallum
SepiaLepus Illustrations
Stray Notions
The Grownup Noise
Toil and Trouble
Toiluxe

See images from all these artists, craftspeople and performers on our website: http://bostonhandmade.org/2012MarketplaceRaffle.htm

Rebounding from Rejection

by Liz Stewart of Lush Beads

This year I decided to try some new art and craft shows.  I was looking to expand my customer base, and try some new venues to see how my work sold there.  I researched a variety of shows, picked the ones that I thought would be a good fit, filled out my applications, prepped my images, and sent in my jurying fees.  Then, I waited.

I applied to approximately 8-10 shows.  I was rejected from all of them.  Every single one.  Each time I received a rejection, my kind friends comforted me:  "Jewelry is very competitive," "It wasn't the show for you," "Your work is fabulous and it is their loss," etc.  After the first few, though, I began to wonder what I was doing wrong.  Did I really pick all the wrong shows?  Was my work just not that interesting?  Were my photos actually total crap?  The final straw was when I was rejected from a show that I have done for 3 years that has been a huge moneymaker for me.  I was floored to receive that rejection letter.

After the initial panic of losing that expected income, I tried picking myself up off the floor. First thing I realized is that I needed to give myself some time to mope and be cranky about all of it.  Being rejected that many times stings a lot, and I needed to deal with those feelings.  Then I started brainstorming ways to replace that lost income.  I'd been considering a total revamp of my existing jewelry anyway, and this just made me kick that into gear sooner rather than later.  I'm going to ask some honest folks about my product photos and take their advice to heart.  I'm going to work harder on my Etsy shop, and on promoting it.  And I am going to look harder at consignment shops to see about putting my work there.  A friend suggested that I look into creating non-jewelry beaded items - I will consider that as well.

I also just released a new line of badge holders, a project I am doing in conjunction with the Northeast chapter of FEW.  Every week there will be a new "Badge Holder of the Week", along with the regular offerings.  I'm hoping it really takes off.

Sometimes you need a serious kick in the pants to step back and look at your business with a critical eye.  That is what I am taking away from this experience.  What about you?  How do you think you would react?

Marketplace Preview: Handmade Accessories

Are you looking for that final touch for a special outfit? Searching for a perfect little gift for the friend who has everything? We've got you covered at the 5th annual Boston Handmade Marketplace in Union Square, Somerville in just 9 short days, on Saturday, June 30th (rain date Sunday, July 1st) from 3-7pm.

The finest accessories, the freshest designs, straight from your back yard to you created by local artists...

Returning to the marketplace after a few years hiatus, 83West brings clutch bags, wristlets, handbags, and sunglass cases made from sweet and sassy fabrics with solid and print designs.

New to the 2012 Boston Handmade Marketplace is Red Thread Belting, maker of durable sequin and reflector belts. If you wear pants, you need one of these.

Member of Boston Handmade and return Marketplace exhibitor, MaJenta Designs creates Asian inspired gifts and party favors. Tiny mirrors, purse holders, sweet tins. You can't have too many.

It's all there for you at the Boston Handmade Marketplace on June 30th!

Union Made is coming!

by AC Regan from Hibou Designs

With the beautiful weather coming back I've been in a mood for salads lately....

Here is a new felt scene I have been working on, it is called "I'll Eat You Up!"

A table everybody!

You will find this "feltscape" and many more felt creations made by HibouDesigns at the Boston Bazaar Bizarre Union Made show on June 24th in Somerville MA.

Marketplace Preview: Handmade Housewares

Grab your reusable shopping bags and floppy sun hats, it's almost time for the 5th Annual Boston Handmade Marketplace in Union Square, Somerville! The event is coming up on Saturday, June 30th (rain date Sunday July 1st) from 3-7pm.

Thinking of sprucing up your home with new decor? Check out these handmade housewares designed and created by local Boston area artists...

Got wood? We do! For the first time at the Boston Handmade Marketplace we have wood represented by sculptor and wood turner Ken Lindgren of Walk Softly Wood Art. No live trees are used to create his work; all Lindgren's vessels and sculptures are carved from fallen and found limbs. A sculptor and a gentleman.

Returning favorite Tanner Glass will be exhibiting this year with her sparkling glass magnets, paperweights, key and jewelry hooks, bud vases, bottle stoppers and other objects to beautify your space. Don't stop at one bud vase - - collect them all!

As their motto says, "Your neighbors don't have this." Toiluxe touches your fanny and tickles your funny bone with their wild, retro, outrageous, and always original toilet seats. Toiluxe "could possibly be the best thing to hit your bathroom since two-ply toilet paper."

City by the Sea Ceramics is a fixture at craft shows all over New England and we are delighted to have her functional and decorative works at the Marketplace again this year. Of her work, potter Karen Mahoney says, "I want my work to be picked up and admired between uses, for someone to put it right in their face to see the beautiful and subtle variations in the glaze, to run their hand around it because it feels comfortable, and to always grab for their favorite piece when choosing from the cabinet." Marketplace favorite: Mahoney's Raku and sawdust pots.

Hankering for housewares? Be there on June 30th in Union Square, Somerville.

Monday Mosaic: Deep Tones

Curated by Kerry Hawkins

1. Encaustic Collage "Boom Boom" by Reclaimed to you
2. Marian's Window Necklace by Parrish Relics
3. Yarn Bowl by City by the Sea Ceramics
4. Vintage through the window photo print by Kerry Hawkins Photo