Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Collaboration
Monday, December 5, 2011
Urban Craft Uprising: promo from Behrens Films on Vimeo.
This past weekend I traveled up to Seattle, Washington for the Urban Craft Uprising holiday show. Wow, what a show!
It was quite the marathon of a weekend. My good friend Aimee came along and helped out. First we stopped by the Laika Studio for a quick holiday show on Friday afternoon. Literally it lasted 1 hour, it was the quickest craft show ever! Then we drove up to Seattle and started setting up my booth display again (twice in one day - whew!). A late night sushi dinner was all we could muster after this long day. Saturday we woke up early and finished setting up for Urban Craft Uprising and then the doors opened at 11. Over the weekend 10,000 people came into this show. It was awesome as usual. So many appreciative customers. So many mobiles will be shared throughout the Seattle surrounding area this holiday season. I felt the love. I am grateful.
Here's what my crafty display looked like
Saturday, October 22, 2011
New Website!
I have always made my own websites for years, and they aren't so spectacular. But I am a DIY kinda girl and lacking a budget to pay a website designer to do it right. I just let it slide for way too long.
One day while looking at some statistics for my Etsy, an advertisement caught my eye. I clicked on it, basically it was a listing on Etsy for 1 page of website design. This got me thinking... I started a bit of an Etsy search and found a local Portland woman and contacted her, asked her for a quote on making me a new site.
I like the idea of working with another creative entrepreneur, not necessarily an established website design business, but another person like myself that lives in Portland and is following her passion. The concept is so much more about mutually beneficial business than just services rendered.
And wow - it worked! I have a site that I love and it promotes my work in focus.
Martha J Baker is the name of the woman, and she is a great website architect. Thank you Martha!
Sunday, September 18, 2011
My Experience at the HelloEtsy Conference
Human scale Economies:a place where prosperity is measured not in dollars but in happiness and durability.
Want to hear about my experience? Here we go.
I am not selling a product. I am selling a part of a journey, a ticket to the game.
Rogue Ales has never made any attempt to grow bigger, they have just worked to get better.
A client of hers, Amy McAuley of Occulus Fine Carpentry, came to Jackie one day for a meeting and told her she had decided to get rid of all her power tools. This seemed shocking, for a struggling professional woodworker to ditch all of her power tools, but she explained to Jackie that she had decided to focus her business on historic window restoration and learning the traditional techniques to do so. In focusing her work on windows created before the introduction of power tools, Amy McAuley had found a incredibly deep and specific niche for her business. This niche was so deep and specific, that within the next few years she became a renowned and sought after historic preservationist and now her business is thriving.
"Community is the key to physical survival in our environmental predicament, and also to human satisfaction."
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Easels
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Variables in the Experiments
from left to right:
1700 degrees F
1600 degrees F
1500 degress F
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Auction at the Museum of Glass
The event was a wild and luxurious. The glass artwork on display was awe-inspiring. So many of my favorite artists had work in the auction and so many of the patrons of the museum came dressed in tuxes and gowns. I hope it was a successful night for the museum, as I know they raise a good deal of their annual budget at this particular event. But regardless it was pretty amazing. I felt under-dressed. I had somehow missed the memo that I should show up in my most fancy attire. Luckily I did dress up, and I clean up pretty well, but I felt embarrassed non-the-less. Although honestly many of the artists were not dressed in their finest. In fact it made it sorta easy to assume who was an artist and who was there to shop. :) My first thought when I saw all the formal evening wear was that I had missed my chance to really dress up.
While I wanted to take pictures of the people and their formal outfits, instead I was snapping shots of the amazing glass.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Slumped Melted Glass
This bowl was made from scrap, melted thru a screen, cooked into a good looking circle and then slumped into a mold. Voila. My new bowl.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Draped Melted Glass
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Smile
Friday, July 8, 2011
Pictures from the Glass School
its a slideshow - press play
Aquila Glass School
1628 N Columbia Blvd, Unit A - Portland, OR 97217
This is where I teach torchworking classes - look how much fun people are having! I love this place.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Melting Scrap Glass into Art
The idea is simple: melt glass thru the screen and the right balance of clear and color will create chaotic patterns in the finished puddle of glass. I have hundreds of pounds of scrap glass accumulating and this screen melt system could be a way of transforming it into beautiful art.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
the View from the Shop
- the train (I love the colors and shapes of the graffiti and train cars)
- the smell of cookies (there is a Kraft (used to be Nabisco) plant a few blocks from the shop)
- the view of Mt Hood
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Inspiration: Plant Starts
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Kiln Glass Resource Centers
Monday, June 13, 2011
Pendleton Woolen Mill Party
Monday, June 6, 2011
This Friday is THE Craft Party!
Friday, June 10
Open Craft Activities: 11 am–6 pm
Regular Museum admission ($3 adults)Craft Party at the Pendleton Woolen Mill: 2 pm–5:30 pm
Etsy sellers bring your business cards!Craft Party: 7 pm–10 pm
Sliding Scale Donation ($5–$25; Age 21+ only)Museum of Contemporary Craft
724 NW Davis Street
Portland, OR 97209Benefitting Quilts for Quake Survivors and Mercy Corps' Japan Relief Fund
Etsy's at it again! I Heart Art: Portland and Museum of Contemporary Craft host an all-day celebration and an evening party in Portland as part of Etsy's Worldwide Craft Party. We've teamed up with the Quilts for Quake Survivors project and Mercy Corps' Japan Relief Fund to reach out beyond our community and raise money to help those in dire need through our own crafty ways.
Daytime
Drop by the Museum during regular hours, 11 am to 6 pm, and craft in the Lab all day long (regular admission applies). Help sew quilts for the Quilts for Quake Survivors project or choose from three different crafting stations: embroidery, Japanese-style papercutting or a Mighty Ugly project.
See the I Heart Art: Portland blog post for details on the daytime schedule.
If you'd like to participate during the day, please RSVP on the Meetup.com page. The tickets available for purchase through this page are for the evening party only.
Visit the Pendleton Woolen Mill from 2-5:30pm and get a tour, play with the woolen craft products, view some pieces from the archives and network with other craft artists.
Evening
At 7:00 pm, the doors will open back up to the Museum and the real party will start! We're taking over the entire space with complete with food, beer and wine, a DJ, and even more crafting stations. Your door donation will get you an entry into the drawing for a whole slew of crafty prizes (books, gift certificates, handmade goods and more!), some food and beverage tickets, and a lot of crafty fun!
Throughout the evening you can rotate through hand-felting, origami, hand-weaving, and make your own crafty artist trading cards. The quilts made for the project will be on display, and Modern Domestic will have them available for sale and sell raffle tickets.
Is your head spinning yet?! This is going to be the biggest, craftiest and most awesome craft party Etsy has ever seen! Plus all proceeds will go to Mercy Corps' Japan Relief Fund, so you can get your craft on and feel good about giving back to those in dire need of help.
Learn more about the QfQ Project and Mercy Corps' Japan Relief Fund.
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Farmers Market Trip
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Speed Dating for Artists Round II: Visual Artists and Galleries
This event is really incredible: a free opportunity for established gallery curators to interview artists - a free opportunity for these artists to introduce themselves to the curators.
Its a "speed dating" event - replace single people looking for a hot date with artists looking for exposure.
I felt this nurturing energy around the crowd; everyone wanting to encourage each other and network with one-another. The picture above is a couple of the artists waiting to get interviewed and talking with each other about their portfolios.
There was a seminar recently (also organized by IHeartArt) on how artists should approach galleries and shops. Attending artists learned about what a curator might be looking for in a presentation, and then for this event there was a set of requirements for what the artists should bring with them. It was a well organized and smooth running event. Over 40 artists interviewed with 16 curators.
The artists seemed exhausted but exhilarated by the end of the event, and had many possible avenues to follow up with. And all the curators I spoke with afterwards were very enthusiastic about wanting to work with the artists they had met.
All the curators seemed to have a common sentiment that it was outstanding to meet so many artists they had never heard of. And they each had a handful of names that stuck out of artists that really made a great first impression.
Speed dating for artists - Portland Oregon style!
I really adore this concept and I appreciate all the hard work and care that goes into these events. IHeartArt is all about advocating for artists, educating the local community and providing the networking opportunities that make our passions grow into lucrative adventures.
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Snaily Snail
Friday, May 13, 2011
Sheer Potential
You can put anything inside the jars in this mobile - that is why I called this piece "Sheer Potential" - the content is all yours. You could put little words written on paper, love notes and inspiration. Or small feathers or flowers you picked up on a walk. The glass washes out easily, its made of Pyrex glass, so it is not a problem to wash it out (although it is attached to a mobile). Here are some more ideas: plants, snails, moss, feathers, small toys, fake flowers, shells, plastic animals, sparkly things, jewelry, small candles (you could pour wax in there and put little wicks and make them candles!), LED lights, used computer chips, sewing notions, bobbins, buttons... oh my. I'm getting carried away. I had a lot of fun taking pictures of different objects in the jars, today I am going to the pet store in search of a snail to put in a jar :)