Have a Weekend? Sew Great Stuff!

Win Weekend Sewing, the new how-to book from from Fabric Designer Heather Ross!


The contest is being held through the Charm City Craft Mafia. Read their interview with Heather and leave a comment on the original blog post about the project you’d like to make using Heather’s fabric, or the part of the interview that you enjoyed the most. A winner will be drawn at random this Monday, March 23rd.

Meet Heather in person and get your cool new book signed:

March 21
Silver Spring, MD
Demo and signing at Honfleur Home – 1pm
More info: here

March 29
BALTIMORE, MD
Demo and signing at Atomic Books in Hampden 3pm-5pm
More info: here

Craft and Film at the Patterson!

The Charm City Craft Mafia along with the Baltimore Women's Film Festival, is hosting a crafty film fest and craft supplies swap this weekend!

Don't miss this fascinating fall collection of films created by women! Feature documentary Fresh Women follows the lives of six female artists in San Francisco struggling to balance work life, art life, and family life. The shorts Knitting Lesson, Grandma Goth, and Bella Bella round out the bill with portraits of spirited, crafty women. The event includes Q&A with filmmaker Mary Dalton (Knitting Lesson) and the Charm City Craft Mafia's special craft supplies swap: Trade your leftover materials, pick up some new craft supplies, and network with other crafty folks.


Knitting Lesson

The event will take place on Sunday, September 14th from 12:00 to 3:30 at the Creative Alliance at the Patterson (3134 Eastern Ave, Baltimore, MD 21224). Admission is $10, $8 for members, students, and those who bring craft supplies for the swap.

You can get your tickets at the door, by calling 410-276-1651, or by clicking here.

Holiday Heap - Apply now!

The Charm City Craft Mafia just announced that applications for this years Holiday Heap- November 15th, 2008 are available online and ready for you to fill out! Applications are due October 5th at midnight. APPLY HERE!

Saturday! Saturday! Saturday!

Crafty Bastards is this weekend! If you happen to know a crafty bastard personally, you probably haven't seen her for a while because she's barrocaded herself in the studio, or possibly handcuffed herself to the sewing machine on the dining room table (there will be no eating here).

But have no fear! Some of the craftiest bastards from near and far will come out of hiding this Saturday at Pyramid Atlantic in Silver Spring, MD.

I am really looking forward to seeing these Owly Shadow Puppets


and perhaps purchasing a Mean Card or two from Julianna Holowka...


There will also be BEST and Charm City Craft Mafia members in attendance along with many other Baltimore artists and crafters, so be sure to stop by and say hi!

This Saturday, June 28 from 10am-5pm
Pyramid Atlantic Art Center
8230 Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring, MD

Traveling?

This weekend, BEST members are getting out and about and we're going north.




Find Jewelery from Beth Pohlman and Dandelion Blu, and children's clothes from Sweet Pepita at Art Star Craft Bazaar in Philly. This event is held this Saturday, May 31st and Sunday, June 1st. That's two days of delicious craft! And be sure to visit our friends from The Charm City Craft Mafia and the guys from Squidfire, too!


Drive just a little bit farther up I95 on Saturday to fabulous New York City and see Green Star Studios at Vida's Market, a handmade gift show totally dedicated to babies, kids and moms.

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

sit down with the mafia, part one

Hello there crafty Baltimoreans, it's Christalena Hughmanick from the Charm City Craft Mafia. Our Baltimore-based group formed as a chapter of the Austin Craft Mafia a little over a year ago and functions as a true collective. We are a group of local crafters committed to strengthening our community by way of craft shows, workshops and other related events. At these events I showcase knitwear from my business, It Knits.

I've always enjoyed taking breaks from my tedious fine art projects by knitting a pair of gloves or ear warmers and eventually sought out a market to sell my creations and began It Knits. As I explored this market through craft shows, I found more artists and art supporters here in Baltimore than I ever imagined existed! This town is hungry for hand made goods and the shopping experience that comes with them. I've heard so many Holiday Heap show patrons say how pleased they are to have a mall-free shopping season. And who can blame them?

With all the craft activity happening here, I feel strongly that we are on our way to making Baltimore a craft destination. I love to see more groups form and more shows scheduled. It creates a buzz around our community and reminds the public that they have a multitude of amazing artists right here in their own town to buy from and support! I've experienced the successes of working collaboratively within the Craft Mafia and can only imagine what could be done if the local craft groups worked together. It's a great time to be crafting in Baltimore, so pick up that project you've been neglecting and get to work!

Applications for the Charm City Craft Mafia's 2^nd Annual 'Pile of Craft' show on June 21 are now available at http://craftmafia.wufoo.com/forms/step-1-pile-of-craft-application. Also, don't miss the first ever 'DIY at Artscape,' at this year's Artscape festival July 18,19 & 20. Applications for these discounted booths can be found at http://www.artscape.org.

pile of craft!!!

Charm City Craft Mafia has announced the date for their fabulous spring show. It'll be June the 21st, same time, same place - or, for those of you who haven't been... it's at St. John’s Church, located at 2640 St. Paul St, Baltimore, MD 21218, from 10:00 AM until 5:00 PM.

It's a really cool venue, and lots of great craft, so make sure you come out and support the mafia!