Show Calendar

I've got all my spring and summer shows loaded up in my Google calendar, it's going to be an exciting season!  You can find the calendar in the left side bar of the blog.  (You might have to click 'look for more' a few times to see the summer dates).

I was also going to post to my snazzy new facebook calendar, but I saw that the new profile for fan pages got rid of my tab (so hard to get set up) and put a link to the calendar in the sidebar.  Well, that took the wind out of my sails, so I'll fix up the FB side of things tomorrow.

Where have I been

So I noticed when I posted my Illustration Friday post last week that it had been well over a month since my last post, when I had intended to only take a brief holiday rush break.


What have I been up to?

Working on the Craft 365 project - the original deadline to finish was 12/31/2010 and that did not happen, but I am really close, and I've been doing much better about crafting a little everyday.  See the complete project on Flickr here:  Craft 365 Set  I'm at day 354 now - so close!

Reading other blogs - I've been reflecting on what I'm doing over here and whether I want to go on a set posting schedule.  Some of my favorites:
Bakingdom
Color me katie
Etsy Trashion Blog
Unclutterer

Cooking up some new ideas - I may be moving away from candy wrappers in 2011, this is a big change for Candy Calamity that I've been thinking about a lot, things should be really interesting

Signing up for shows - I've been planning out the 2011 spring/summer season, there are some great shows coming up, I'll be updating my official calendar soon.

Two shows this week!

You can find Candy Calamity goods at two great shows this week!

First off tomorrow night 5-9 I'll be at at SqWires for Artropy -Thursday Evening December 2nd, 2010 

but if that's not a good night for you, you can also find me at the Missouri History museum on Saturday, December 4th 12-4  for the Third Annual Green Living Expo

I've got some freshly made christmas ornaments and pasticcio resin earrings.  With any luck I'll have some new book thongs done too!

One Year Ago Today

I wanted to publish this at 10:10 pm on 10/10/10, but I missed my deadline by a little bit.


One year ago today, Candy Calamity was gearing up for it's second holiday season much better prepared then I was the year before.  I wrote this blog post http://candycalamity.blogspot.com/2009/10/craft-show-rules.html about my 8 craft show rules, and I'm still using those 'rules' today - they're keepers!


I had just invented the octagonal prism shaped recycled christmas card ornaments and was making those full steam ahead (they will be making a reappearance in my etsy store soon - I can't believe it's already that time of year)

I discovered Illustration Friday.  It took me a few weeks to get my feet wet and I posted my first drawing 'blur' on November 6th (Can't believe I drew it on an envelope back - I'm such a dork sometimes)

Two years ago today, I was getting ready to have a craft show table to myself for the first time.  Those were the days that six feet seemed like a lot of space to fill, now I can never get everything to fit!

Around the same time I was interviewing for a new day job and got it, I've been a clinical dietitian at my current hospital ever since.

Three years ago today, I was just starting to hear about a great shopping site called 'Etsy' and Candy Calamity was just a twinkle in my eye.


So what were you doing one year ago today?

Eco friendly fall shows

I've got 3 great eco-friendly themed craft shows coming up.  This fall you can find Candy Calamity at:

1.  Green Homes Show - September 25th 10 am to 6 pm - This outdoor festival in the Grandel Square showcase exhibits and workshops about living green in St. Louis.  I'll be under the 'Made from Scratch' green marketplace tent. http://www.greenhomesstl.org/

2.  Green Craft Show - November 13th and 14th from 10 am -5 pm - Hosted by the Missouri Botanical Garden in the Ridgeway Center (main entrance to the garden).  Come shop from some great local green crafters, and possibly stay to enjoy the beauty of the garden in the fall.  It really does look great year round. http://www.mobot.org/

3.  Green Living Expo - December 4th 12 pm to 4 pm - at the Missouri History Museum, featuring more than 30 local merchants offering locally produced, organic, and environmentally conscious products and services. http://www.mohistory.org/

Green with Indie

This Saturday I'll be at Green with Indie an all handmade, all eco friendly, awesomefest!

If you can't tell:  I'm a little excited! Hope to see you there.

Earth Day Recap

Yesterday was my first time trying out being a vendor at Earth Day St. Louis since starting Candy Calamity.  I love Earth Day and the festival in Forest Park is one of my favorite free events in St. Louis, it's awesome in a way that's really hard to describe.  Here's a quick recap.

Lowlights:

• the wind
• the rain
• getting there at 7:30 (waaay too early for this procrastinator)

Mostly I would say yucky weather this year was the only drawback for me (Dear Earth, it's easier to love you when it is warm and sunny)

Highlights:

• all the people who came to hang out at earth day and stopped by my booth despite the bad weather, you rock!
• getting to meet some new friends in the eco-artists village
• the all species parade led by Joia world percussion!  I love the earth day parade with no set route and no set participants - and this year a piece of the parade wound its way through my booth - so exciting

and finally the highest high of all:

I got to meet Captain Planet!!!!!

Earth Day St. Louis

The 21st Earth Day St. Louis is coming up this Sunday!  This is the first year I'll be a vendor there as Candy Calamity, you can find me in the eco-arts village.  Here's how to find me:

The eco-arts village is represented by a brown paintbrush on this map.  It's just northeast of the Muni covered walkway:
http://stlouisearthday.org/images/stories/2010Fest/stl%20earthdayprogram2010.pdf
Specifically my booth will be right on that little circle walkway you see in that area.

And here's some great info on how to get there/ find parking:  http://stlouisearthday.org/content/view/159/234/

Including lots of info on how to get there by bike or metro which is great if you are going for the earth day challenge:  If you bring your own shopping bag, reusable water bottle, or take alternate transportation (2 out of 3) you win a prize at the info center.

Artropy is coming up this Saturday!

Artropy is a unique art & craft show that features a number of artists with diverse talents in many areas including: jewelry design, painting, textile arts, photography, mixed-media, glass work, eco-fashion and illustration.

Saturday, April 17, 2010
Time: 10:00am - 3:30pm
Sqwires ~ The Annex
1415 South 18th Street



I'm putting the final touches on everything today and tomorrow, then I'm ready to go! I can't wait, hope to see you there!

How to make a jewelry display from old shutters

I spent a long time looking for a great way to display my earrings at craft shows and couldn't find anything I really liked, so I made my own display instead. It wasn't very hard and relatively inexpensive, so I decided to post a tutorial so everyone could see how it's done.

Supplies: two shutters, sand paper, cleaning rag, spray paint, a tarp or other paint protection layer, small hinges, drill, screwdriver, and a pencil.

1. Find some old shutters. You need the kind with actual slats and not just shaped plastic. I found mine on craigslist, but you might already have some at home, or can find them at a flea market or junk shop.

2. Take off all the old hardware. If the shutters have any large or unsightly holes fill them with putty. I left mine as they were because I think it adds character.

3. Use a little sand paper to sand down any rough spots or chipping paint, then wipe clean with a damp rag.

4. Spray paint the shutters, be sure to spray from different angles to get all around the slats, plan on doing a few coats. I picked a flat black color because it will show off my bright jewelry best.

5. Attach the hinges. I did this by closing the shutters right sides together and laying them flat on a table (make sure the slats tilt the same way on both sides) That made it easy to just hold the hinge where I wanted it and pencil mark where I would need to drill to put the screws.

6. Stand your shutters up and open them at a 60 degree angle. Congrats you are finished! You can place hook style earrings straight on the slats of the shutters or use earring cards. Hang the earrings from the front of the card and stick the back through the slat.

A day spent in planning

This post inspired by Jessica Rose at Vol. 25. I stumbled upon her post about doing her first craft show last fall, her booth turned out super cute, as was the pre-show diagram she made to plan it all out.

As I am in the process of overhauling my display anyway I thought I'd make a mash up of how I think it will turn out.

Voila!

Here is my old set up for reference: http://www.flickr.com/photos/candycalamity/3373828681/

So my top 5 to-dos for craft show domination:
1. raise up the magnet stand to make it closer to eye level, and give me a good place to hide things like snacks and pens

2. after a few scouting trips to home depot I've decided to make my new main display from chicken wire and pvc pipes - it's going to be awesome and will also give me a spot for

3. a banner and

4. clip on lights

5. with the new hanging system my eventual goal will be to have uniform tags on everything with my name, logo, and the price (maybe even inventory numbers).


I'm super pumped about the new plan, but with shows fast approaching in April, I have no idea how I'm going to pull it off. I guess we'll see.


p.s. Just so you know I'm not planning on selling poorly scribbled flowers and circles in the future - I just hit the limit on my photo editing skills on this one.

It's going to be a crafty weekend in St. Louis

I can't wait for this Saturday because I got my tax refund back just in time for two fantastic craft shows coming to St. Louis.

The first is the Every Artist Market at the Masonic Temple, 12 E. Lockwood in Webster Groves. They have an art market on the second Saturday each month from 9-3.

Then I'll head over to the Craft Mafia's Indie Craft Revolution. They'll be at Oak Knoll Park Saturday and Sunday. http://revolutioncraftshow.com/

Exciting News All Around!

Today, I'm just bursting with good news (I'm sure I have a fortune cookie fortune somewhere that told me about this).

First - tentative no more- I finally got confirmation that I will be at the Edwardsville High School Craft show. This is by far the biggest show I've done (270 crafters each year), I'll be in Gym A, booth AF5 if you're looking for me.

Second - A new show has been added to my schedule. I'll be participating in Ladies Night at the Town and Country Melting Pot October 28th. They offer a four course fondue meal, drink specials, and door prizes. It will be great fun for a group of friends, hope to see you there. See my events calendar for details.

Finally - My pasticcio resin earrings were featured today on stlhandmade.com! Check it out: here

Craft show rules

The first craft show I ever participated in as Candy Calamity was almost a year and a half ago and I can tell you now, I did not know what I was getting myself into! But I'm glad I took the plunge and signed up because now, more than a dozen shows later, I can say that I have learned something at each show I've done. Here are my 8 craft show rules that I've made up for myself to make sure things go smoothly:

1. Bring food! More then you think you'll need. Keep it neat so you can safely eat at your booth, but nothing brings down a show more then a rumbly tummy.

2. Make friends with the sellers around you. You're going to be spending a lot of time together, so you might as well be booth buddies (this goes double for a two day show)

3. Keep smiling! They say that smiling even if you don't feel like it will make you happier, I'm hoping it will also make for happier customers.

4. Print out an up-to-date inventory and take notes on it during the show - track what sells, note what you'll need more of and most importantly: know what needs to be taken off etsy when you get home! There's nothing worse than trying to play a matching game with what's online and what's at home.

5. Don't wear a watch or keep your cell phone clock in easy reach. For me clock watching when things are slow can slow time down abysmally. Also, I have never once accidentally missed that a show was over because I didn't know what time it was.

6. Wear layers, most shows are either too hot or too cold and you won't know which until its too late.

7. Do consumer research. People watch to see what types are at that show, who comes up to your booth, and who sails past without stopping. Which pieces get picked up the most? If a customer seems happy to chat ask how they heard about the show, what they are looking for, and what they like best. If you are super organized take notes for next year.

8. Have fun! I always say 'If I was in it for the money I'd be an actuarial scientist' Yes, I am running a business, but I also want to have fun doing what I do; craft shows can be a blast, as long as I follow my rules.

Fall is in the Air

Although we have been blessed with remarkably cool weather here is St. Louis this summer, when I stepped outside today I noticed a change in the air. It was a bit crisper and fresh - I also noticed that the neighborhood seemed to have acquired a full coating of crunchy brown leaves overnight. Yep, fall is here, which means its time to get busy for the fall and winter craft show season.

From the candy calamity blog you will see a new show calendar I added to the sidebar. I'll be keeping that up to date so its a good place to check and see where to find me locally.

I've got seven shows planned this season, which is quite a bit more then I did last year, and I'm pretty excited to get going. Here they are:

Sept 19th: Grovefest
Sept 26th: Green Homes Festival
October 3rd and 24th: Towergrove Farmers Market
November 7th: Eureka High School Craft Show
November 14th and 15th: Edwardsville High School Band Craft Fair (tentative)
December 5th: Artropy by Showme Etsy

and the first show is this up coming Saturday, which means its time to get busy!!!

Artropy is April 25th!

Only 6 more days until Artropy, the Show Me Etsy spring show in St. Louis. If you live in the area you should definitely come check it out, Saturday April 25th from 9-3:30 at Sqwires restaurant. You wont find a better selection of handmade goodies anywhere else in town.

Green with Indie

Now that St. Patrick's Day is over its time for another green occasion: The Green with Indie craft show! This coming Saturday and Sunday, March 21st and 22nd, artists from the St. Louis area will be getting together to show off the earthfriendly portion of their crafty sides. I'll be there with my candy wrapper bracelets and I can't wait to see all the goods that the other artists will have.

The most exciting part of the show is the upcycle exchange. Visitors are encouraged to bring craft supplies from home like fabric, buttons, and paper as well as non-traditional supplies such as potato chip bags, pop tops, and candy wrappers. The otherwise unloved supplies will be put to good use by the artists and in turn the donators will get a discount at participating vendors.

For more info on Green with Indie go here: http://www.greenwithindiecraftshow.com/

And go here for the upcycle exchange: http://lucoop.com/pilot/