Showing posts with label Maker Faire. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Maker Faire. Show all posts

Thursday, October 23, 2008

Ok, lesson learned


If you go too long without blogging there is just no real way to catch up on all the goings on that life has to offer. I've been a negligent blogger because I was crazy busy preparing for Maker Faire! I churned out a few new t-shirt designs, made more hoodies for the fall & winter seasons, got some tote bags printed up (!!!), & made TONS of jewelry! Almost 200 pieces of hand crafted accessories made by yours truly ;)
Not all of them are up in the shop, but they will be soon. Cross my heart and all that jazz. My Mom came into town for the faire (see above ^ ) - she was my helper, Thanks Mom! We butted heads a few times like moms & daughters do, but mostly we just had fun. Maker was really inspiring! What made my favorite list? Well, definitely Bazaar Bizarre - so many crafty people in a small space! Then there was the Austin Bike Zoo! Talk about a bike gang! They had bikes outfitted to look like rattle snakes, butterfly's, & boats! There were a lot of cool tandem bikes & SUPER tall bikes that looked a bit scary to me, but fun none the less! The art cars were effing rad too! I saw the Yarn Car, but didn't get to ask him how you wash it... next time I guess. There were so many things, and I didn't get to see enough of it due to working my booth. The sacrifices you have to make for craft. I did get to snap a few shots of the things that were in close proximity to my booth & did a little hula hooping next to the Mouse Trap (I think Austin got a little video of me - I'll see if I can post it)! SO Fun! The fair was really inspiring & the people watching was amazing! Below are some pics of shoppers & a few of my favorite booths in the Bazaar Bizarre. I had intended to do most of my x-mas shopping here. BUT on Saturday night after the faire Mom & I went to get some grub from Whole Foods & then a beer @ The Tiniest Bar in Texas to get our relax on... We got our food to go & ate in the parking lot outside the bar. While we were eating I heard a lot of honking towards the intersection. I look over & there is a blind homeless man trying to cross the street! People are honking & swerving around him! I jump out of the car & get him out of the street. Long story short he was lost & no one would tell him where he was! I got him a cab back to the ARCH & gave him some money for food. Once I was back to the car I was so distraught & heart broken that I failed to see the "do not park" sign in the parking lot... So I got towed, with ALL of my merchandise in the back of my car! As if this wasn't bad enough, it cost $200 to get my car out of tow!
So - my shopping plans were ruined. I did collect a lot of cards from the bazaar for future online shopping though... AND I was able to help a man who is truly at society's mercy. Getting the car out of tow was very Adventure in Baby Sitting, minus the Mighty Thor. We got super lost in the middle of nowhere, there were drunk dudes starting fights, an angry mob, you know - all the things you don't want to deal with after a 13 hour day. Despite this unfortunate incident it was a really fun & inspiring weekend! Thanks Maker Faire!

above: two happy customers wearing their pink cupcake earrings/ Bossa Nova Baby's booth / awesome MC shopper with rad mohawk!/ crocheted plastic bag purses by Belle and Burger's booth/ Naughty Secretary Club's Booth/ my awesome Baz Biz neighbors Nerd Bomber!

*oh and BIG hugs to my Mom for helping out & buying me a BIG green hula hoop (seen above) as an early birthday gift! Also, High 5's to Austin & Todd for helping us load in & out of the faire! You guys ROCK*

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Time to meet your MAKER

Not too long ago I learned that Stitch will not be happening this November which broke my little crafty heart as I have been a vendor for the past 3 years. It is the one craft fair that I was sure to participate in every year. It hasn't been canceled, just postponed. Still sad news. So, I started thinking "crap, where am will I be getting my craft fair fix this year? ACL is too expensive... dang."
Luckily I had a little meet & drink with Katie from CRAFT a few weeks ago & she informed me that Bazaar Bizarre will be a part of MAKER Faire this year! I had heard of
this Bazaar Bizarre, but never attended one since it usually resides on the west coast. So that night I put in my application, crossed my fingers & voila! Model Citizen was accepted!

What you need to know:
MAKER Faire is
Saturday, October 18th: 10am-10pm
&
Sunday, October 19th: 10am-6pm

@ The Travis County Event Center & Fairground

What will you find there other than Bazaar Bizarre?
There is no telling! Robots, maybe some segway polo, a larger than life Mouse Trap, not to mention art, crafts, techy goodness, music (!), & all things wired, soldered, & electronically brought to life that you can imagine! In other words, it's NOT to be missed!

As I mentioned above, I do not participate in too many craft fairs.. I have a day job & one million things to do outside of it! So I am asking for your help:
Do you have any awesome crafty idea's for displaying jewelry? Keep in mind that we are talking about a 6 x 6 foot space. I will not be setting up a big table because I will need room for the clothing racks (which will be full of new hoodies, dresses, & T's!).
So lay it on me! I believe in your crafty / organizational powers!