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Auckland Art & Craft Fair

Yesterday was the second Auckland Art & Craft Fair, which if you follow my blog you know I was supposed to be partaking in but had to pull out of (sulk).  Anyway, I put my big girl panties on and hopped on the bus to go check out what I was missing.

I ran into a friend there and got so wrapped up in things that I of course forgot to take photos.  I did however swipe a business card from everyone that I admired.

You also probably know how broke I am, so it was somewhat torturous, although I did lay down a whole $3 for this bookmark from Honey Design:

Some of the other wonderful vendors were:

 Erupt Prints

Miss Ellie May

 Hunter Gatherer

Bird In A Bunny Suit

Dear Colleen

 I also got to meet the lovely Jessica from Foxes, at whose table I was ogling the wonderful work of Devon Smith:

It was a nice big space, plenty of room for everyone, vendors and customers alike.  I was very impressed with the quality of goods for sale!  I'll definitely be hanging onto those business cards for when I start receiving a paycheck. 

I hope it was a very successful day for everyone involved, I heard that the next fair is planned for May 2011, so maybe I will have quit sulking and figured out how to source supplies and wrangled with my other artistic crises in time for that one...

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Updated Blog Roll And Links

I just spent some time updating my favorite links to other blogs and crafty inspiration sites in the sidebar.  I added a new list for "Creative Biz Links" (blogs or sites full of inspiration for those in creative business), removed a few dead or less relevant links, and added some of my new favorites.

New additions:

Blossom Wedding Flowers -- new blog!

I have the pleasure of now working part-time with Emily of Blossom Wedding Flowers.  As I wrote about in this post, Emily and I have known each other for going on 12 years.  Emily is an incredibly talented floral designer here in Auckland (as evidenced by how busy she is this wedding season!).  She has just started a blog for Blossom Wedding Flowers and I highly recommend you take a peek at her beautiful bouquets and the other wedding and floral inspiration she is posting over there.

Craft Gawker

Craft eye candy.  Craft p0rn.  Call it what you want, it's heaven.

Creativity Is Happiness

You all know by now how much I heart Jenny Lee Wentworth by now, right?  Not only is she one of my favorite customers, I really think this girl is the sweetest thing on the planet.  Read her blog, she's adorable.

Erin Carver

Erin is a fellow Kiwi and self-taught mixed-media artist.  I love her work and her writing.  I am going to treat myself to something from her Etsy store as soon as I get a paycheck!

Indie Handmade

More eye candy, giveaways, craft book reviews, and general yumminess...

Pipi La La

Goodness me how I love Michele from Pipi La La.  Michele is another Kiwi artist-in-bloom and she is so lovely and authentic on her blog.  I adore her work and am the proud owner of one of her pieces.  I also have my eye on another piece in her Etsy store and I check it daily to make sure it hasn't sold yet ;)

I think that's it for the new additions to my links, I hope you take and look and enjoy them as much as I do!

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Etsy Favorite Finds: Baby Animals!

It's springtime here in New Zealand and it's a lovely time to live in the countryside - baby animals abound!  Here is a collection of Etsy finds inspired by the season :)

  
Top row, L-R:
Duckling Glass Tile Pendant by thelittlefox
Vintage Inspired Bird Nest Eggs Gift Tags by bljgraves
Mommy And Chicks Print by joojoo 

Bottom row, L-R:
Belle And Her Little Lamb Blank Greetings Card by belleandboo
Tiny Pig Print by acageybee
Ball Bunny Print by Thalitadol 

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Home Is Where The Art Is

So, currently, (and for the foreseeable future) I am back living at my parents' house.  I get huge pangs of missing my adorable little house in L.A.  I moved into that place when my marriage broke up, and it really was my sanctuary for two years.  It was all mine, just Kenzo and I, and although the rent is probably the reason why I have come back to NZ with basically nothing to show for four years of a decent-paying job, it was worth every penny.

This is not the house I grew up in either, so I doubly have that sense of not feeling at home.  I've been pondering how to rectify this (on a part-time budget).  I think some New Zealand art might be a good place to start - here is what I am eyeing:

Erin Carver

Sleep And Her Sisters

Pipi La La

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A Beautiful Video -- PS22 sings Phoenix

I've lost count of how many times I've watched this video, but it still brings happy tears to my eyes:

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Tranquil Inspiration

 Me, Kimberly Wilson, and social media strategist Katy Tafoya

On Friday evening I had the pleasure and privilege of meeting Kimberly Wilson and hearing her talk on infusing a little tranquility into every day and her latest book, Tranquilista.  Kimberly supplied Sprinkles cupcakes and wine, mais oui!

Kimberly is an entrepreneurial spirit of many talents.  As I have mentioned in a previous post, I discovered her podcasts in 2007 (originally named Hip Tranquil Chick, now Tranquility du Jour) and have been a huge fan of her work ever since.  Kimberly founded Tranquil Space yoga studio in Washington DC (and now also Arlington, Virginia), which was named among the top 25 yoga studios in the world by Travel + Leisure, has her own line of organic bamboo clothing named TranquilitT, and founded a nonprofit, Tranquil Space Foundation.  In addition to the free podcasts, Kimberly blogs and has written two books, Tranquilista as mentioned above, and her first book, Hip Tranquil Chick.  Phew!  Not bad for a woman who has no formal business training!  My favorite thing about Kimberly is that she describes herself as an introvert at heart, which I do too, so that gives me encouragement that big things are still possible even without being a natural social butterfly.


After the talk and Q&A portion, Kimberly spent time talking to individuals, and gave me a ton of encouragement and even a new idea for my pendants.  It was such a delight to meet her and I'm so glad I had the opportunity before I leave L.A.  I highly recommend all her products (I wish I could have made it to DC to visit Tranquil Space, but alas, I don't think that's going to happen), including the lovely bamboo clothing, as modeled by yours truly below.  Best thing about bamboo -- gentle machine wash and no ironing!

The book signing was held at a wonderful store in L.A. called Happy.  I hadn't visited Happy before but it's a wonderful store full of unique gifts.  The owner gave 10% off anything in store after the event was over, and I was delighted to find this:

Photo from the Happy website

My wallet has been broken for a while so I could justify the purchase.  I am absolutely in love with it, it's so perfect I feel like someone designed it just for me.

The whole evening was absolutely inspiring and fuelled the rest of my weekend.  I spent a lot of time this weekend working on my creative biz and am looking forward to stretching all of this energy into the coming week.  If you're in need of a little inspiration of your own, I suggest you hop over to Kimberly's website, download some Tranquility du Jour podcasts on iTunes, and check out her books!

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Etsy Favorite Finds

On Etsy, you can "heart" particular sellers and items.  These are kept in separate lists for you so you can revisit them (and purchase, if you so desire), and it lets the seller know that someone likes their store or that particular item.  Here are a few of my favorite items that I have hearted recently:

Donut Soaps from Especially 4 U By E and T

Carried Away Print by DwellDeep

Linen Top from Colorada

Looking for Love Print from Irene Suchocki

I am a Thriving Artist Print from Creative Thursday

Who do you heart?

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