Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Fall Festive Vendors!


Meet Lindsey Ahrens from Lindsey Ahrens Jewelry...
Hello!  My name is Lindsey Ahrens and this is my second time participating in the Avant-Garde show. I’ve been making jewelry off and on since I was in high school, selling things to friends. I was reintroduced to beading after spending hours with my daughter at a bead store while on vacation in Florida.
I get my inspiration from seeing other jewelry and the types of things my friends wear. My seven-year-old daughter also helps me, as she has a great eye for designs. I enjoy putting together different beads and materials to create various designs to construct unique pieces. While I’ve made and sold jewelry to family and friends in the past, I only recently started selling in retail stores, craft shows and online.   
As a past customer at the Avant-Garde shows, I’m honored to be a part the show this year. You can also view more of my work at my Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/lindseyahrensjewelry.

Meet Barbara Gorman from Driftwood Designs...
I have been retired since 2007, after working as a clinical dietitian for Cuyahoga County for almost 30 years.  Unfortunately, my retirement wasn’t by choice, but the result of an accident.  I had a fall and suffered a traumatic brain injury.  Amongst many losses, I lost my ability to speak coherently and wasn’t able to return to work.  A portion of my therapy involved stringing beads to encourage my brain to be more focused. 
So, my therapy was actually the beginning of my fascination with making jewelry.  A couple of classes later in soldering and I was off and running. I started doing shows rather slowly.  I remember that first church basement show.  I only sold a couple of pieces, but I loved doing the show.  Today, shows are my primary venue for selling my jewelry.

I have always been artistic.  As a young kid, I remember, on vacation, scrounging through last night’s bonfire for a few half-burned sticks of charcoal to draw with.  Working as a scientist all my adult life, I always had the feel that there was an inner artist in me, just “trying to get out”. 
I am inspired by numerous things in my environment.  I use the natural materials that exist near where I live: beach glass, beach rocks, driftwood and any other debris that washes ashore on the beaches of Lake Erie. I see jewelry designs in architecture; in fashion and certain aspects of nature (I love flowers and leaves).  I am also inspired by the “cluttered workbench” process. I leave most of the random parts & pieces leftover from a project out.  Very often I will see some new combination that will inspire me.

There is no overall theme to my jewelry, but many customers describe my work as having “simple lines, with a Zen-like quality”.  Sounds good to me.
My husband is my biggest supporter.  He’s retired also and lugs the giant tent and tables to all of my shows.  


Meet Ellen and Sandy Dublo from Vintage Lites...
Sandy is semi-retired from Miceli Dairy Products as a production supervisor. Ellen is employed by Cleveland Clinic Home Care as an Admissions Coordinator Nurse. We are married, living in Strongsville. We have been making lamps for about 5 years, but have been selling them only since last fall.This will be our first Avant Garde Craft Show.

Ellen has always has a creative side. I sew, knit, paint, do tile and workworking- always open to new ideas. Sandy is the golfer. Together we enjoy music and sing in our church choir.

We enjoy tasting wines and saw many examples of wine bottle made into lamps. However we decided to put our own twist on this process with adding a shade, stacking the glass grapes to create dimension, and adding the cork. We try to stay true to the style of the bottle. The glass grapes should enhance the shape and color of the bottle.
How we got started.. We gave a lamp to friend who owns a wine store for his birthday. Later he told us several people wanted to buy his lamp, but he did not want to part with it. So we stocked a few in his store, and the rest is history.
We enjoy doing this as a couple. Sandy cleans the bottles, drills them, and strings the lights. Ellen takes it from there. We derive satisfaction with recycling materials in a pleasing way. We have also  done work for people who have a special bottle that is meaningful to them and want to preserve it into a lamp.
The message behind our work is that we LOVE wine! And we love sharing the gracefulness of the lamps with others who appreciate wine as well. Just FYI, we do NOT empty all those bottle ourselves - we have lots of friends who "help" us!

Meet April Hardin...
I’m happily married (12 years) and we have a son named Kanyon (he’s 4).  Marie, my sister, has been married for 26 years and she has 3 children (Anna, Sean and Ian) and an adorable grandson named Mason. :)
I’ve been crocheting for about 12 years, but only started making and selling hats and accessories this year. Marie has been crocheting for as long as I can remember! This will be the first Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show for my sister and I!

Where we get our creativity from.. The girls in our family have always had knack for arts and crafts. It just seems to be something natural for us.
How we got into our hobby… Our great grandmother taught my sister how to crochet and then when I was old enough, my sister taught me. It’s something we both truly enjoy. We love being able to make something that someone can wear or give as a gift. It’s a good feeling.

What made us want to start our own business? It’s a great way to make some extra money and it’s enjoyable. My goal is to have this as a nice side job once we decided to add on to our family. That way I can work from home and spend as much time with my children as possible.
How would we describe our creative process? Both of us use the crochet skills that we have and incorporate creative ideas from many resources such as books and on-line sites. We are always open to suggestions and requests. By being open to requests, we can make the products people want, the way they want them.

We really enjoy about our work is seeing the smile on people’s faces when they find something they fall in love with. Plus, having something handmade and unique makes you stand out from the crowd and that’s kind of fun! 

The message behind our work is that all of our items are made with love and care and we want to extend that to the people who decide to purchase one (or two) of our items. :)

Check out these featured vendors at the 2012 West Side Fall Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show. This eclectic show will feature up to 200 of the most talented artisans and crafters. A portion of the show's proceeds will be donated to Drink Local. Drink Tap. a local non-profit that works in communities to educate people about our local water sources and also helps orphans in Uganda gain access to clean drinking water.


2012 West Side Fall Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show
Sunday, October 14, 2012, 11:00am-6:00pm
Lacentre
25777 Detroit Rd.
Westlake, OH 44145
For more information, contact Becki Cooper, Event Coordinator at info@avantgardeshows.com
Visit us on:

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

A Craft Through Inspiration and Practice!


Meet Nikki Maffei from Bakked by Nikki...
I am currently employed as a Registered Dietitian with the Summit County WIC program in Akron, Ohio. I have been a dietitian for four years. I have one son, Cameron, who is 14 and entering high school this year. He is very active in baseball, which keeps us very busy in the summer and throughout the year. I love being Cameron's mom. I consider it a privilege to be to see the world through his eyes every day! This will be my first Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show!

I have been decorating cookies since about November of last year. I stumbled upon a blog post (The Adventures of Sweet Sugarbelle) that had some amazing cookies on it for Day of the Dead; skull shaped cookies with bright colors. The more I looked through the blog, the more intrigued and interested I became. I had to try it! I have always enjoyed painting and drawing and this was a great way to combine my love of baking with art.  
I get my inspiration from other bakers such as Sweet Sugarbelle, Bake at 350, Hayley's Cakes and Cookies, Sweetopia and many more. I also get inspiration from patterns or if someone asks me to make cookies for a specific event, I try to match the theme of that event.
How I got started decorating... The more pictures and blogs of cookie decorators I looked at the more and more interested I became. I just thought "I can do that!"  So I gave it a try and have been hooked ever since.
How I got started selling... My friends and family have been a huge influence on me. They have all encouraged me to sell and get my name out there. I started posting pictures on Facebook and receiving a few orders.
My creative process starts with some research on the web. I love looking at what other cookies decorators are doing. I then trace the cutters I'm going to use on plain paper and then use colored pencils to design the cookies.
 
Decorating cookies just makes me happy! I also love the feedback I get from customers. The message behind my work is eat beautiful cookies and be happy!!

Meet Sara Syed from Misty Gardens...
My name is Sara Syed. I have a Bachelors degree in middle-childhood math and science education, a license in Practical Nursing, and I’m also a level II Reiki therapist.  Currently I’m a stay at home mom with my beautiful three year old daughter.

I started making handmade soaps in 1999. My cousin who was staying with me at the time had a bar of handmade soap that her friend made and gave to her.  I was so intrigued by this that I started to research how to make handmade soaps. I had also researched about the bad side effects of all the chemicals used in commercial products and decided to make my soaps all-natural and chemical free. 

Over time, I became better at making the soaps and started giving them as gifts to friends and family. Everyone liked the soaps so much they suggested I should sell them. Of course, hobbies have to be on the back burner when life gets in the way. But I finally have a website at www.misty-gardens.com and have ventured to participate in my first Avant-Garde Arts and Craft Show this fall. 

You can view photos of my work at: http://www.misty-gardens.com/

Check out these featured vendors at the 2012 West Side Fall Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show. This eclectic show will feature up to 200 of the most talented artisans and crafters. A portion of the show's proceeds will be donated to Drink Local. Drink Tap. a local non-profit that works in communities to educate people about our local water sources and also helps orphans in Uganda gain access to clean drinking water.


2012 West Side Fall Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show
Sunday, October 14, 2012, 11:00am-6:00pm
Lacentre
25777 Detroit Rd.
Westlake, OH 44145
For more information, contact Becki Cooper, Event Coordinator at info@avantgardeshows.com
Visit us on:



Sunday, September 2, 2012

The Perfect Accessory!

Meet Suzanne Weaver from Zi DeZynes Jewelry...
I was born and raised near Canton, OH. After high school, I moved to Athens, OH for college at Ohio University. In 1995, I graduated from OU and moved to the Cleveland area for my first teaching job. I’ve been a teacher for 17 years in a NE Ohio public school system. During that time, I completed my Master’s degree from Kent State and later meet Ted, the love of my life and partner for the last 12 years!
I’m a fairly new jewelry designer! I took a class on simple beading in June of 2010 at Imagine Gallery in Bemus Point, New York which began my love of creating beautiful things. Since then, I’ve taken a few other classes at various locations, even some on-line classes, to learn more and develop my skills.

I love to surround myself with raw materials, beads, wires, cords, chains, glass, stone, etc. and let me imagination flow. Sometimes I can immediately see in my mind’s eye what the materials want to become!

When I’ve finished a piece, I like to think about the pile of raw materials that I started with and look at what I’ve made it into! I also love when a client tells a story of being approached about their jewelry choice and telling whomever that they have a one of a kind piece created just for them!


Ever since I was a little girl, I was focused on color and style. My family loves to tell stories that I needed to “match” no matter what I was doing that day! As an adult, I look for inspiration in images I see around me and the beauty I find in the materials I’m working with. I also enjoy creating custom work for women! For these pieces I take my inspiration from the personality and personal style of the client.
I’ve always been a “crafty” person. When I was younger, I learned to crochet from my grandmother and sew from my mother and 4-H leader. Since then, I’ve tried my hand at cross stitch and embroidery during my teen and early adult years. Jewelry was something I’d always admired but couldn’t afford! When I finally sat down to take a beading class, I learned that I could create my own jewelry for less and have all the styles I wanted!
At some point, your desire to create overtakes your own personal need for jewelry. Once my friends and family started asking for something like what I was wearing or a gift for a friend, I realized the potential I had before me. 

The message behind my work is that every woman is beautiful and unique! Your personal style should celebrate that. Wear jewelry that is different and as unique as you are!

Meet Francine Ruth from Jewelry by Francine...
By day I am a process consultant for a large insurance company and by night I design and create jewelry. I started metalsmithing as a stress reliever from the corporate world.

I have been making jewelry in one form or another since I was about 5 years old but I started selling my jewelry about 5 years ago. This will be my third Avant-Garde show I've participated in.

Growing up, I have alway been artistic - I was one of those kids who always made my parents cards and decorated the holiday tree.  I think I was given my creative genes from my Grandmother, Frances. 

It's funny, I never really set out to sell my jewelry, it was happened quite by accident.  A friend of mine suggested that I create the jewelry for her wedding party. I did and after that I began getting inquiries about selling the pieces I created and the rest is history.
My creative process... I am ALWAYS thinking of jewely.  When I am sitting in a meeting at work I am always doodling, when I am watching TV, I am constantly looking at ways to create my next cool piece.  I always carry a sketch book with me so that I can capture my ideas,

I think that the best thing about creating my jewelry is that people think highly enough of my artistic ability to spend money to purchase it. I also love getting e-mails from my customers telling me how much they enjoy their purchases.

When it comes to my work, I just want people to enjoy wearing it and feel good wearing it. 

Check out these featured vendors at the 2012 West Side Fall Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show. This eclectic show will feature up to 200 of the most talented artisans and crafters. A portion of the show's proceeds will be donated to Drink Local. Drink Tap. a local non-profit that works in communities to educate people about our local water sources and also helps orphans in Uganda gain access to clean drinking water.


2012 West Side Fall Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show
Sunday, October 14, 2012, 11:00am-6:00pm
Lacentre
25777 Detroit Rd.
Westlake, OH 44145
For more information, contact Becki Cooper, Event Coordinator at info@avantgardeshows.com
Visit us on: