Craft Off!

Don't forget, the deadline is September 6th! Check out the Indie Fixx blog for complete details.

Craft Off!

In honor of Indie Fixx’s 2nd Anniversary the Indie Fixx blog is having yet another contest!

This contest requires you to craft in order to win! In order to win the Indie Fixx Craft-Off, you must create a crafty item of some sort and that craft must incorporate the number two in some way.

For complete rules and details, see here.

Happy Anniversary, Indie Fixx!

It's 12:50

Do you know where BEST is? You will soon!!

Photo of Housewerks

It's Monday, Hon.

So, it's Monday, and I'm already thinking about the weekend. And this weekend, I'm thinking about HonFest. The two-day event features a host of food and merchandise vendors, live music, a lip-sync contest, and of course, the Miss Hon and Little Miss Hon contests.

It's always a blast, so I'll see you there, Hon! Only four days to go...

Photograph by Miscelena

Find Your Leaf

The Urban Forest Project is a nationwide project bringing together graphic designers and environmentalists alike to promote sustainable, greener living with large city-wide outdoor banner exhibitions. Our local event will be held in Carroll Park on June 8th, from 12 -4pm, part of Baltimore: The Urban Forest Project. Sample free food from Chipotle, view the Craft Mafia's indie craft sale booth, view the Urban Forest Banner Installation, hear music, make friends and help design one of 8 community leaves. Meet new people, listen to live music, be green and be outdoors!

Make your own leaf, but a warning - it's addictive!

Earth Alley in Hampden

I met Eva and her husband at Pile of Craft last year. They were busily preparing for the opening of Earth Alley, their new store in Hamden dedicated to supporting international crafters and local artisans that incorporate sustainable practices or just have a love for the earth. Since then, Eva has opened her store and it has grown into quite a little environmentally-friendly destination. She is a wonderful outlet for local artists and even hosts First Friday events where you can meet some of the artists she showcases. If you are in the area, please stop buy and say hello to Eva and see some wonderful environmentally-conscious & fair-trade items including jewelry from our own Allison Fomich of TigerLillyShop and me, TheBrokenPlate! To keep up with Earth Alley, you can check in with their blog, Eva is just getting started!

craft around town

Hello! My name is Annie. You may know me as imogene, imogeneAndannie, or a member of the Charm City Craft Mafia. Thank you so much, BEST, for inviting me to guest blog today on the topic of craft and Baltimore. I thought this would be a great opportunity to share some of my favorite Baltimore craft resources and inspirations. Let’s dive right in!

For my jewelry-making tools and materials I frequent:

Made in Metal: This shop is run by Jo Ann Aiken. Alongside raw materials and tools, you will find beautiful bench and studio space available for rent, workshops, and most likely an exhibition in the gallery space.

Terra Firma: Stop in and say hi! to Bill! He has everything you could possibly imagine in the way of metalworking tools and materials. Additionally, he has just expanded his shop to include a dazzling bead and findings section.

International Gem and Jewelry Show: This comes into town several times a year. If you like beads, you absolutely cannot miss this. ‘Nuff said!

Books. I can never have too many books, be them old, new, pricey or free!

Normal’s: THE place for used books and records. I could be in the art and zine section all day. I have found some beautiful out-of-print hardbacks here!

The Book Thing: THE place for free books! I have a small collection of old hardbacks. I love to pick up anything that has a mid-century modern cover, anything French, and anything with botanical drawings. Really. . . I will grab anything that will work beautifully as a photo prop.

Atomic Pop: I just love the book AND toy selection here. All at once, you can pick up knitting patterns, a comic book, a gorgeous Taschen book, a BUST magazine, a plush toy from My Paper Crane and a Hello Kitty keychain. Does it get any better?

Places I love to go:

Visionary Museum: Okay. This is a given. I know. But I had to mention it. I always walk away feeling reinvigorated and ready to MAKE. A plus: I also always walk away with wonderful trinkets from the gift shop.

Tulip Garden: One of my most beloved Baltimore outdoor spaces. Make sure you go when the tulips are in bloom. I don’t think this is even called the “Tulip Garden”, but I can’t help but refer to it as that. It’s just breathtaking.

See you around town!

xoxo!!

guest blog by annie

Charm City Roller Girls

Not only is Baltimore home to such unique icons as Frank Zappa, John Waters and Divine, or great athletic teams as the Orioles and Ravens (ok, these may be questionable), we also play host to a sports team that has both of these traits... the Charm City Roller Girls. These ladies are as strong and tough as they are beautiful and unique... and they mean serious business. How could they not mean business with names like Joy Collision, Rosie the Rioter and Coach Ballbricker. They aren’t 15th in the nation for nothing and climbing higher to number one.

Much like our own newly formed B.E.S.T., the CCRG started out as a small group of girls meeting two nights a week and soon found themselves in an organized league of over 80 women. We all remember the down and dirty roller girl teams that gained popularity in the 70’s, these women are actually just like the rest of us. They are artist, mothers, teachers, activist and so much more. They work hard, play hard and hit pretty hard too.


So come on ladies, pull on those fishnets, hot pants and roller skates, come up with your roller girl name and head on down to the Fifth Regiment Armory this Saturday night (March 15th) at 6:00pm to support the amazing women of the Charm City Roller Girls.

For more information on the teams, rules of the game, pictures and upcoming bouts, check out the Charm City Roller Girls site at www.charmcityrollergirls.com.

Written by: Jill Popowich (aka- Wicked Witch of Westminster)

Pic by GlobalGlenn from the CCRG flickr site

Rainy Day Project I: Homemade Playdoh

Another rainy Sunday in Baltimore. I can't even tell you how desperate I am for spring. Although I am a crafter by trade, I sometimes have a really hard time coming up with rainy day craft projects to kill a couple of hours with the kidlets. Why can't I let my 10 year old break plates solder?

When I can't think of anything else, my go to project is homemade playdoh! Not only is the act of making the playdoh a project, but you are in fact making a craft supply. Two birds, one stone and a lot of fun! This is all you need:

1 c. flour

1 c. boiling water

2 tbsp. cream of tartar

1/2 c. salt

1 tbsp. oil

Food coloring (optional)
Mix and knead together. That's it! This playdoh is not sticky and does not dry out.

The images above are stills from a fantastic Sony Bravia commercial where they created a 60 second commercial using stop frame animation of playdoh bunnies running through New York City. You can read about it and see the commercial here. Happy Kneading!