All you need to do to be entered to win such a basket is get your hands on a GWI event postcard and bring it to GWI on Saturday March 10 at WEbster University. Here is what to look for:

Be on the look out for these little gems because not only do they provide you with details about this fantastic event, but they are also a raffle ticket for the handmade gift baskets to be awarded at GWI!!  Over fifty of our gracious GWI vendors have volunteered to donate a handmade item to the gift baskets, so you know that the baskets will be AMAZING!  To see who is donating items to the gift baskets, click on the “2012 Vendor Tab” at the official Green with Indie Craft Show Website.  Vendors with a rotating star beside their name are participating!!  Woohoo.

Now, we are sure you are asking yourself “Where can I find GWI postcards?”  Our GWI Vendors will be handing out and posting event postcards all about the St. Louis area.  You can also find GWI postcards at many of our sponsors’ local shops, so be sure to stop by and tell them we sent you!   (Postcards are currently available at The Upcycle Exchange, The Foundrie, Home Eco, and Verde Kids.  Please see the right side of this page for a complete list of our GWI Sponsors.)

Green with Indie Craft Show

When:  Saturday – March 10, 2012 from 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Where:  Webster University’s Grant Gym located in the lower level of the University Center at 175 Edgar Road, Webster Groves, MO 63119
What:  What is Green with Indie? It’s an eco-friendly indie art & craft show organized by the St. Louis Craft Mafia.  It is free to attend!  This is one of the few eco-friendly indie craft fairs in the STL area – we will feature many local artists, vintage treasures, awesome make-and-take projects, and more. Everything is earth-friendly, salvaged, upcycled, recycled, home grown, home made, revamped, refurbished, and 100% unique.

I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Screaming Mimi!

Just in Time for Valentine’s Day, Screaming Mimi arrives on the scene.

Place your custom floral order this week for valentines day.

Screaming Mimi is a project by Kate Valleroy (STL Craft Mafia Member) and Allyson Bailey Wilmowski that combines fresh florist, wedding accessory shop and handmade boutique. The plan is to offer a fun mix of ever-changing gifts for any recipient as well as being able to cater to the non-conventional bride/shopper with items like jewelry, hair accessories, flowers, custom attire etc.

Look for the duo to be hosting classes as well as having a space that can be booked for handmade parties and groups looking for some fun craft time.

Screaming Mimi’s sells for a select group of artisans-both local and regional.

*         Fresh Flowers and Gifts for Every Occasion

*         Wedding Accessories

*         Custom Bridesmaid Attire

*         Handmade Crafts and Gifts

Visit Screaming Mimi at 2718 Sutton, Maplewood MO 63143.  Find out more about Screaming Mimi by visiting the official website or by becoming a fan on Facebookk.

Find St. Louis Craft Mafia made goods at these local events this holiday season:

Rock n Roll Craft Show                                              Nov. 25 – 27    

Artropy                                                                       Dec. 3                

Contemporary Art Museum Etsy Sale                  Dec. 8   

And in other crafty holiday fun news, we would like to invite all St. Louis CRAFTERS & MAKERS to the first ever community Craftogether on Friday Dec. 16 from 5:30pm to 9:00pm at the Regional Arts Commissions.  It’s an evening of crafting with our fellow local makers while raising some money for a worthy cause, Tenth Life Stray Cat Rescue. Find additional information by visiting Craftogether. 

We wish you a warm, bright, and safe holiday season!

The St. Louis Craft Mafia

The dust has settled, the votes have been cast, and we finally know the results of the 2011 St. Louis Craft Mafia Membership Drive.  We would like to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who applied to join our membership this year. We had the largest number of applicants in the history of the organization, which made for some really tough choices for the few openings we had available. We were really very impressed by the quality of the many talented people interested in joining our group.   We wish we could accept everyone.

We would like to formally welcome eight SUPER AWESOME and talented crafters into our St. Louis Craft Mafia family!

Ansell Arts

Belle Journée

Bubble Lab 

bunnyXproductions 

Cristin Rae Knitwear & Paper Goods

Ghost Cat Studios

Scarlett and Maria

Zenbot Design

Thank you again to everyone who applied and we look forward to seeing all of you around the St. Louis Handmade Scene!

Where did your brand name come from?
I love puns and word play, and of course it’s always fun to substitute “Kat” in any word with “cat” in it – Katastrophe, Kataclysm, etc. “Katatomic” is the opposite of “catatonic” – there’s no way my stuff will put anyone in a stupor. It’s my aesthetic, with an energy pop.

What prompted you to craft professionally?
I’d just discovered needlefelting, and I felt like I’d found my “thing.” It took some serious encouragement from my BFF to go “next level,” but I decided to enter the craft scene with a focus on making felt stuff, because I really didn’t see too much of it out there. I wanted a challenge, and wanted to see if I could make a name for myself making really cute stuff. I had no idea how seriously I would take it. I still don’t know, actually, but let’s face it: It’s all about the Benjamins. Or in my case, the Washingtons and Lincolns.

Describe your design philosophy in three words:
Squee-inducing cuteness.

What is the one tool you would buy if you had an unlimited budget?
A fancy Bernina sewing machine, although I’d probably be too intimidated by it to take it out of the box. Le sigh.

What is your favorite motif or theme currently?
The quatrefoil! I love it so much it hurts me at my core. So classic, yet modern and fresh. Pretty much the opposite of what I make, so it’s a nice change of pace.

What do you think sets crafting apart from other forms of artistic or professional endeavors?
I think about this often, actually. I really dislike the perceived notion that crafters are the junior cousins of artists, like our work isn’t as important or relevant. Crafting just is what it is – it’s not necessarily open to interpretation, like fine art can be, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t fantastic design elements or craftsmanship involved. I don’t necessarily feel like crafters are trying to make a statement, per se – here’s a wallet, here’s a plush animal, here’s a hair accessory. But so many things that crafters make – at least the crafters I know – are beautiful, clever, well-designed pieces that just happen to have, perhaps, a more practical place in the world (of course, in arguing with myself as I am wont to do, I’d argue that fine art has a practical place in the world. This is where I just sorta give up the explanations and definitions and labels, and pick up a needle and thread, because I am really not sure that I actually answered this question.)

Oddest injury you’ve ever received while crafting?
Like a lot of people who sew, I have a habit of putting pins and needles in my mouth to hold while I’m doing something else. On more than one occasion, I’ve managed to thread a taste bud through the head of a needle and get it stuck there. I don’t know how many angels can dance on the head of a pin, but I can tell you that a taste bud threaded through the eye of a needle is an angry taste bud. Ow.

And finally, what advice do you have for anyone just starting out?
Ask questions, seek help when you need it, trust your gut, and just freakin’ go for it. Make something because you love to make it, and you’ll be happy.

Interview by: Beqi Brinkhorst

Hand made holiday decor can welcome guests with a warm greeting. Cutting your own stencil allows you to quickly make more than one, choose your own font, or look like a pro even though your lettering skills are questionable. Carrie Hawkins of Souvenirs From Wonderland shares her inside secrets here:

Items needed:
- permanent marker with thin tip
- piece of glass, edges taped with duct tape
- stencil blank
- stencil cutter (sometimes called stencil burner, Plaid makes one)
- exacto knife
- tape
- stencil brush
- acrylic paint
- cloth or rag

1. draw or print design (if the letters are too thin, you can draw around them with a marker to plump them up)

2. trace design onto stencil material with marker

3. for letters or designs with a shape within a shape such as letter “A”, make a bridge in one part of the letter, you can fill it in with paint later if you want

4. heat stencil cutter

5. place stencil on glass and use cutter tip to “cut” out your design, the burner tip melts the plastic and you drag the tip as the material melts, pulling toward your body is easier, turn the stencil as you go

6. use the exacto knife to cut away any melted plastic that sticks to the edges of your cuts

7. when stencil is cut, practice on scrap paper first

8. dab the stencil brush into paint and remove some on a cloth or piece of paper to avoid too much paint that will bleed under your stencil, pounce with stencil brush to paint your letters

9. for added depth, apply a second darker color in select spots over the first, then blend with a soft brush

10. remove stencil immediately and wipe away any bleeds

11. fill in gaps from stencil bridges, if desired

Where did your brand name come from?
I was knitting at a family picnic, and my great-uncle walked over and said to me, “Stick to your knittin’ kitten. That’s what we used to tell the ladies.” He meant that they said it to women when they wanted them to mind their own business and stick to “womanly” things. I thought the saying itself was cute (ignoring the connotations), and I liked turning it into something empowering by using it as the name of a woman-owned business.

What prompted you to craft professionally?
I’ve always made things, and my grandma sold things she made at craft shows for many years, so I was somewhat familiar with that. When I started knitting I became a bit obsessed and started making so many things that I had no idea what I was going to do with all of them. So I decided to start selling what I made.

Describe your design philosophy in 3 words.
Function, form, color

What is the one tool you would buy if you had an unlimited budget?
A Fricke S-160-DT double treadle spinning wheel

What is your favorite motif or theme currently?
I don’t currently have a specific favorite theme, but I have been making a lot of things from my own self-striping handspun yarn, so lots of my recent items have been striped.

What do you think sets crafting apart from other forms of artistic or professional endeavors?
I think that crafting is a way to make something that is both functional and artistic. I also think that the craft community is very supportive.

Oddest injury you’ve ever received while crafting?
Amazingly, considering how clumsy I can be, I can’t think of any odd crafting injuries I’ve received. I’ve had the typical glue gun burns and sewing needle stabbings. But luckily I’ve never stabbed myself with a knitting needle!

And finally, What advice do you have for anyone just starting out?
Do research on shows. If you can, go to a show before vending in it or talk to other crafters to get the scoop on the show. That helps you avoid doing shows that aren’t really right for your products or that don’t have good attendance.

• Felted Wool Scraps (old sweaters)
• Fabric Glue
• Scissors
• Safety Pin or Pin back
• Needle/Thread