Free Recycled Fabric Flower Workshop – Registration Open!

We will be holding another BEST-led workshop on Tuesday, June 7th!

In this workshop, Koleen Kilduff of Design by Night will be demonstrating how to repurpose old bridesmaid and prom dresses into fabulous flower brooches and headbands. She'll be showing 2-3 different style techniques in the demo.

Most woman fulfill the duty of bridesmaids approximately three times in her lifetime, two thirds have been in three to five. According to statistics, over 80% of bridesmaid dresses are worn only once. So what do you do with these hidden poofy organza, satin, chiffon monsters in your closet? Turn them into stylish accessories of course!

Attendees should bring:

• Fabric Scissors

• Millinery Sewing Needles

• Glue Gun and glue sticks

• 1-Plain Headband (can be fabric, plastic or metal)

• Straight Pins

• OPTIONAL: Old bridesmaid, prom or formal dress made from a combination of satin, organza or chiffon

Recycled dresses, as well as other materials will be provided by the instructor. Each participant will leave with two finished projects, a headband and a brooch.

A little bit about Koleen: Design by Night is a one woman and two dog crafting machine that creates feather and flower hair accessories and brooches for women. Her tutorials have been featured in a National Magazine. When she is not crafting, you can find her combing through thrift stores and yard sales looking for old bridesmaid dresses, retro jewelry and other eclectic items to repurpose into handmade flowers pins, headbands, hats and other fashion accessories.

You can view more of her tutorials : http://designbynight.blogspot.com/

The workshop will be held at the MICA Fox Building, room 218. There are only 20 spaces available, so reserve your spot now!

Free Wordpress Workshop – Registration Open!

We will be holding another BEST-led workshop on Tuesday, May 10, from 7-9!

In this workshop, Anne Madison of Atelier Adornments will be walking attendees through the steps to set up their own Wordpress Blog presence.

We all know the benefits of maintaining a blog. Having one on your own commercial website can return big dividends in terms of flexibility, independence, and prestige. You don't have to be a programmer to install a commercial blog, and you don't have to be a graphic designer to make it your own. During this session, we're going to look at Wordpress. We'll install and configure a Wordpress blog, select and install one of the many Wordpress themes, and make it our own with some simple graphics. We'll cover some easy, yet bulletproof, security tricks. And we'll end by covering what you need to know to care for, and feed, your brand new Wordpress blog so that it remains healthy and hacker-free. Bring some jotting stuff, your own laptop (if you like), and all your questions. You'll go home with a CD covering what we've discussed during our session.

A little bit about Anne: She has spent the past 10 years making and selling stuff. She also develops and hosts websites for selected clients. Before that, she was a computer systems engineer specializing in networks. She holds certifications from Novell and CompTIA. The workshop will be held at the MICA Bunting Center, Room 432. There are only 25 spaces available, so reserve your spot now!

Free Quilting Workshop – Registration Open!

We will be holding another BEST-led workshop on Tuesday, April 5th!

In this workshop, Insung Kim of Namoo will be discussing and demonstrating contemporary quilting design and traditional quilting techniques.

Attendees should bring their own fabric scraps, basic sewing supplies, and a pair of scissors if they would like to participate. Or just bring yourself if you are just interested in seeing the demo for a contemporary quilt and Japanese patchwork workshop!

A little bit about Insung: She is a contemporary quilter. Many of her quilts feature fresh and bold modern designer fabrics and Japanese import. She enjoys quilting in her sewing room or walking with dogs in the park.

The workshop will be held at the MICA Fox Building, room 218. There are only 20 spaces available, so reserve your spot now!

**Please note the room location has changed from our previous workshop.

Free Polymer Clay Workshop – Registration Open!

We will be holding our first BEST-led workshop on

Tuesday, March 8th. In this workshop, Jen Wilfong of Yummy & Company will be discussing the use of color, shape, texture and form to build a collection/line. She will also share techniques in polymer clay that she employs in her work to create a cohesive, interesting body of work

A little bit about Jen: She creates one of a kind pieces of jewelry from polymer clay and recycled copper in her Baltimore studio. Most of her designs are inspired by nature, texture, and architecture.

Attendees should bring any color/s of polymer clay that they prefer, and any sort of implement/tool that can be pressed into clay!

The workshop will be held at the 15/15 Building of MICA. There are only 20 spaces available, so reserve your spot now!

MICA Workshop tonight!

I Heart Art: Baltimore is offering the second workshop in the Etsy-sponsored series of free workshops. Tune in tonight, Tuesday, Feb 22, from 7–9 p.m. It’s on a first come, first serve basis. Etsy will post the live workshop link on the Etsy Community Blog at 6:30 p.m.

I Heart Art: Baltimore - Meetup this Friday!

The American Craft Council show is a gathering of more than 700 of the country’s top contemporary jewelry, clothing, furniture and home décor artists from across the country. Please stop by and meet members of Etsy, BEST, and MICA, for our second I Heart Art: Baltimore meetup. Get hands-on experience doing bookmaking with Julie from Etsy, building polymer clay with Jen Wilfong of YummyandCompany, and even make your own buttons! The event begins at 6PM, and admission after 6 is only $6 (normally $16)! For more information, visit the ACC’s website here.


In addition, don't forget to check out demos by BEST members Megan Van Wagoner and Janice Fowler. Megan will be leading Printing on Porcelain at 4pm, and Janice Fowler will be leading Metal Castings at 5pm. See you there!

I Heart Art: Baltimore - workshop lists!

MICA is hosting a series of five free two-hour workshops as part of the I Heart Art: Baltimore collaboration between Etsy, BEST and the Maryland Institute College of Art’s Master of Professional Studies in the Business of Art & Design.

Each workshop will emphasize important aspects of running a small business for creative professionals. All workshops will be both in-person on the art school’s campus as well as webcast online. Each workshop will be archived and available for anyone to view. To view archives, please visit www.mica.edu/spcs.

The first workshop, Realities of Running an Indie Biz will meet online on Tuesday, January 25th. It is open to the first 100 Etsy members to attend by visiting a link *they will update here at 6:30 p.m. ET on the 25th.* Bookmark this page and remember to pop in early so you get a spot! The link will not be live until 6:30 p.m. ET on the 25th, with the presentation starting at 7:00 p.m. ET. Attendance online is limited, so participation will be on a first-come-first-served basis.

Realities of Running an Indie Biz
Tuesday, January 25th, 7-9 p.m. ET

Your own business: will it be a dream come true — or a nightmare? This two-hour workshop is designed to give you a running start in the right direction. It combines a few key insights on “The Biggest Challenge” (selling your stuff) with useful tips and tricks. The last half-hour of the workshop will be used for questions and answers from the live audience and the online community.

The workshop leader, Greg Conderacci, brings 40 years of marketing and communication experience as a Wall Street Journal reporter, head of marketing for major companies, a sales coach, a business school faculty member, and as head of his own independent business, Good Ground Consulting.

Upcoming workshops include:
Tuesday, 2/22 Finding Your Market
Tuesday, 3/29 Tax Time
Tuesday, 4/12 Web Marketing
Tuesday, 5/3 Growing Your Arts Business

We're really excited about this collaboration, and will be announcing our own monthly workshops in the next few weeks, so make sure you keep an eye here for all the news!

I Heart Art: Baltimore - This Friday!

Don't forget about the meet-n-greet party on MICA campus this Friday, November 19, from 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. ET. Food, drink, music and a craft activity will be included in the festivities taking place in Brown Center’s Leidy Atrium, 1301. W. Mount Royal Ave.

Come meet Vanessa and Morgan from Etsy and members of the Baltimore Etsy Street Team. There will be a raffle full of goodies from BEST artists, MICA, and Etsy, so get there early! And don't forget to bring your business cards!

Please RSVP by calling 410-225-2219 or e-mailing spcs@mica.edu. We can’t wait to see you at the party! For directions, please visit: www.mica.edu