Pop-up at Rickshaw Bags

Catnip filled voodoo dolls

Bay Area locals, this posts for you!

There's a pop-up shop happening this Saturday at Rickshaw Bags in the Dog Patch. I'll be participating selling my Kitty Confetti goods along with five other vendors + Ritual Coffee.

The details:
Saturday May 2nd, 11am-3pm @ Rickshaw Bags. 904 22nd st. 
6 vendors + Ritual Coffee

After you shop the pop-up stay in the hood. The dog patch has lots to keep you amused. All within walking distance of Rickshaw is my favorite art supply store Arch, yummy treats at Mr. and Mrs. Miscellaneous (ice cream!), and for your visual senses The Museum of Craft and Design. 

You're guaranteed to leave the neighborhood with the perfect Mothers Day gift. 

One hundred days of Day Break Play: Start

Day 1 image from Instagram. Using my go to practice list.

Have you heard of The 100 Day Project? The quick synopsis is to choose 1 action and do it for 100 days while documenting it on Instagram. Background info on the whole project can be found here.

As I write this we're in the first week of the project so I thought I'd outline my project in greater detail than I have on Instagram. 

Day 2 image from Instagram. Various handwritings using various writing implements.

I had first come across The 100 Day Project a couple months ago and in that first encounter had decided not to do it. I didn't want another thing to add to my to-do list. But in the meantime I'd started to create some new routines for myself and have been working on getting up earlier in the morning to feel a little more personally productive before I go to my day job. 

Ten days before the project start I had the opportunity to see Elle Luna speak at a Creative Mornings event (currently no video but I imagine there will be one up soon). Seeing her speak sealed the deal and I knew I'd be participating in the project. 

Day 3 image from Instagram. Some days I might feel like playing with something random like legos.

My little piece of the 100 day project is 100 days of waking up and playing creatively pretty much first thing when I pop out of bed. (#100daysOfDayBreakPlay) I went back and forth for a bit on if I'd stick with using just one medium but then I realized this project is about doing the same action everyday. The important action for me is to get up and make. While I am very motivated to make, and do so often, I don't always do it everyday. I've found making things with my hands to be very meditative so I'm looking for this project to solidify that as a daily routine for myself.

While I won't be having any specific rule for myself on what I'll be creating, you will see lots of calligraphy and other hand lettering experiments. That's a medium I'm always exploring so it will ground my project by being my go-to on days that I'm not driven to play with something else. 

As for how many minutes I'll be making... I'd like it to be a minimum of 15 with a general goal of 45 mins. I'm not sure yet what will feel right so you'll notice on my daily Instagrams that I'm going to keep track of how much play time I got in to help me keep track. And because this is about play you will be seeing lots of in process photos. Some things will never turn into anything else but that days play.

I hope you follow along!

Holiday 2014 sneak peeks

A new letterpress holiday card.

I know, I know, it's not even Thanksgiving yet, but the Holidays are on their way! I'll be at a couple upcoming San Francisco craft fairs over the next couple weekends and I thought I'd share a few sneak peaks of projects I've been working on.

The Fairs I'll be attending are:

The San Francisco Center for the Book Holiday Fair
Saturday, November 22nd, 11am – 6pm

You can expect to see lots of hand printed goods at this fair since most sellers are printers of some sort.

Etsy Indie Holiday Emporium @ Pier 35
Saturday/Sunday, November 29th/30th, 11 am – 5pm

This fair will feature a wide variety of Etsy sellers. 

Both are FREE to attend and both should have ample PARKING near by. Come say hello and get a jump start on holiday shopping. And if you're making gifts this year I always think going to craft fairs can provide great inspiration. 

New hand painted ornament design.

Reusable gift sacks for easy wrapping. 

Stamp motif notecards in christmas colors.

First batch of catnip filled voodoo dolls.

I'll be sharing more about some of these projects in the coming weeks. If you're not local check out my two shops for goodies. I'll be adding new stock through the beginning of December. Stationary/Wrap items can be found here and gifts for cat lovers can be found here. 

Show and Tell: Summer Renegade SF 2014

A couple Sundays ago all of San Francisco was drenched in fog. A little winter like made it perfect for going inside to the summer edition of the Renegade Craft Fair. Held at Fort Mason it's also a good reason to walk by the bay and hear the clickety clang of all the sail boats in their berths. Renegade is one of my favorite fairs and there was so much good stuff this time around. One of the stand outs was all the variety of ceramics. Each vendor had their own twist on the medium. I could have done a whole post on that. 

If you missed the fair or don't live near one of the host cities it's worth checking out the vendor list. Especially if you're in the market for some handmade goodies. If you want even more handmade to look at I wrote about summer Renegade last year also.

Below are some of my favorites and unique finds. I've been pretty wordy lately in my posts so I'll keep things brief and fill this one with pics.

Jo Boyer

At first glance I thought these were crazy shells I hadn't seen before. Nope just porcelain with lots of details. 

Nikki Montoya

I had recently bought some earrings by Nikki at a local shop called Gather which features hand made goods here in SF. I've been getting lots of compliments on them so I was excited to stumble upon her booth.

Trelabela

Of course I found some adorable cat goodies.

Reclamation Etchworks

These would make a very unique gift. And bonus they're made from recycled liquor bottles.

Kiriki Press

These kits are adorable. A great way to learn about embroidery.

Salt and Pipper

Great modern rustic pieces. Is modern rustic a thing?

Madeline Trait

I loved Madeline's cake display! Also I know Madeline but I didn't know she was going to be there so it was a fun surprise to run into her booth.

Miwak Junior, Ceramic Connectors

I'll let you figure these out. They are really beautiful on their own as an object. I was told they could also be used for incense.

The Weekend Press

I'm friends of the Weekend Press and knew they've been diligently printing goods for the last couple months. So proud to see it all together!

Letter Writing Alliance

For an easy five bucks I got my membership (complete with membership card) to the Letter Writing Alliance. Check it out and get yourself a pen pal!

Here's the cumulative list and links to all these fabulous makers.

Jo Boyer 
Nikki Montoya 
Trelabela 
Reclamation Etchworks 
Kiriki Press 
Salt and Pipper 
Miwak Junior, Ceramic Connectors 
The Weekend Press 
Letter Writing Alliance

Now I'm getting excited for all the Christmas fairs!

Tenugui gift wrapping

This past weekend Heath Ceramics in San Francisco had a lovely exhibit; Akio Nukaga and friends which included several events. One of the friends events I saw on the calendar was a Japanese gift wrapping demo. So you know I had to be there!

As part of the festivities the Japanese textile company Kamawanu brought their beautiful Tenugui cloths. What is Tenugui? As it says on their promotional materials:

"Tenugui, a piece of dyed cotton cloth, has always been an essential tool for the Japanese. Not only was it used as a wiping tool such as a towel or handkerchief, it was also used as a bandage and a headwear in the old days. On the other hand, since it was possible to dye various graphic designs on the Tenugui, it also came to be used in the place of a greeting card or a business card."

Gift wrapping is a newer use that Kamawanu is promoting for the Tenugui. You may have seen Japanese gift wrapping with cloth before. The other variety is Furoshiki which uses a square cloth for gift wrapping but it is an entirely different tradition. Wrapping with Tenugui employs similar concepts but is different because the cloth is a long rectangular shape.

Megumi Inouye was the demonstrator and came up with many ways to show us how to wrap with the Tenegui. I'll admit with all my wrapping love I have been a little hesitant to dive into wrapping with cloth. Megumi made it look approachable. Watching her manipulate the cloth you can easily see the benefits of wrapping with Tenegui.

With just a few concepts in mind you can wrap many things.

— Laying your object at an angle to the cloth allows you to cover your object completely. 
— Alternatively if you have a larger object don't stress about covering it completely. Partially wrapping it with the cloth will still make it special.
— Round objects can be rolled at an angle in the cloth.
— And while you're at it use that same idea with boxes. Throw out the western idea of positioning objects at 90 degree angles.
— Twist the cloth to wrap around a wine bottle neck. Or twist the cloth to hold an object inside.
— Knot the cloth. Optionally tuck the exposed ends of your cloth into the knot for a different look.
— Work with the shape of your object not against it. 
— It's ok to get an assist from a simple modern tool like the rubber band! But for this lets definitely say no to tape.

An example of not needing to hide the wrapped object. The ends of the knot are tucked inside the knot to create the clean look.

Examples of twisting. There are 3 apples wrapped in the left with a twist between each one. Reminds me of how a balloon animal is created.

Magumi took inspiration from the shape of the candle holder by tucking the fabric into it's cavity and creating a flower with the ends. This is a great example of letting the object dictate how the fabric forms around it. Maybe this will work for wrapping a small cup too!

The wrapping on the far right uses a rubber band as an aid. Instead of twisting the excess fabric a rubber band is secured around it and the fabric is tucked under.

The top view of the rubber band aided wrap.

Megumi and I actually have an interesting connection even though we've just met. In different years we've both participated in the Scotch most gifted wrapper contest. Megumi was runner up the year she participated. So this was a treat to connect with her and chat about wrap.

One of the important things she emphasized is that the Tenegui can elevate simple items for gift giving. This technique doesn't need to be reserved for wrapping only precious ceramics. That's one of the principals I think is so important about gift wrapping whichever kind you do. The act of taking the time to wrap something imposes a significant to the act of gifting however big or small either physically or monetarily the item is.

Impromptu wrapping using twisting and knotting. This might be sturdy enough to carry a smaller object. Perhaps a special way to present a garden clipping.

During Q&A someone asked how Magumi would wrap a plant. She took the challenge and quickly came up with the above idea. I think for a moment she felt like she was back in the wrapping contest.

The twisting method would be a perfect way to wrap eggs. And how perfect to wrap them in this egg patterned Tenegui. If I had chickens I would definitely be using Tenegui to deliver the eggs as gifts to friends.

Some other facts about Tenegui.

Tenegui comes in many patterns which are often chosen by the gift giver to fit the interests of the receiver. The patterns are made by creating paper templates that the dye is pushed through. The Tenegui cloth is cut from a continuous roll so each individual cloth has two cut edges and two salvage edges. (I'm not sure if there is a different terminology for salvage when it comes to this particular cloth). To dye the cloth it is starched. Brand new Tenegui cloths have a crisp feel to them. As they're used and washed they become soft.

You can read about the history of Tenegui on Kamawanu's website. 

I know that there isn't a full demo here but I encourage you to get any bit of fabric that is not very thick and just play around with melding it to the form of objects. The wonderful thing about fabric is you can re-wrap as many times as needed without damaging your material. That's much harder to do with crisp paper. Megumi has a couple Furoshiki classes up on Creativebug that could give you a start.

If you're in San Francisco head over to the Heath Ceramics tile factory to snap up some of the remaining Tenegui still in the store. I'm not sure if it will be a regular item that they'll retail but I hope so.

If you have any additional info to share about wrapping with Tenegui or cloth please share in the comments!

In case it's not obvious all wrappings are done by Megumi Inouye.