Rocky River Show Sneak Peek!

Meet George Janca from Heirlooms to Be...

Lifelong Ohio resident, retired July, 2015.  Masters in Finance and that is pretty much the work that I did for 35 years.  Creating with my hands appeals to me, as I’m able to share the beauty of things one is able to see and feel as opposed the concepts surrounding abstract numbers, which was my work.

I have my Mom and Dad to thank for stimulating an interest in wood burning, wood carving, and basket weaving using Florida pine needles and raffia from Afghanistan and teenie pine cones from Australia.  My folks wintered in Florida for many years and I always looked forward to those ‘leave the snow behind’ visits to them.  We spent hours learning about making things, shelling, collecting fossilized shark teeth and…playing bingo!

The creative pursuits began about 30 years ago and, before retirement, were sporadic at best.  The dolphins and birds, baskets and ornaments crafted were gifted to family and friends.  I will continue to learn and carve and wood burn in the future.  Through time, working with wood surfaced as my preference and, combined with a love for Christmas, resulted in focusing on ornaments.  Wood carving and wood burning and painting…this has become my favorite ‘making things art’ and I will continue to experiment, exhibit and expand in the future.

My Dad taught me basket weaving and I still have a video of him demonstrating the craft.  The baskets here will be the final editions for me…the weaving requires time, patience and really good eyesight and well…. you understand, I am sure.

I have my oldest daughter to thank for inspiring any painting that I have done (she teaches art at a local high school, is very talented and practiced in the arts.  She is a grand teacher).

The message behind the work is simple…to enjoy the beauty of God’s gifts from nature through the transformation of a branch or block of wood into an object that provides joy and peace visually and tangibly.

Meet Judy and Steve Brackenrich from Judy's Jewelry Basket...

My wife, Judy, and I have been at this a few years now. She has been collecting and repurposing vintage jewelry since the seventies. I have been working in silver smithing and the art of creating for about six years now, prior to that my creativity was devoted to painting.

We have both been retired for about 5 years now, so we enjoy our time collecting, creating, and doing the craft show circuit. In particular the Advant-Garde shows.  I don't know the exact amount of Advant-Garde shows we have attended, but it's close to 10. 

We have several categories where we primarily concentrate our creative thought processes. They are repurposing vintage jewelry, broken china jewelry, sterling silver jewelry, and steampunk.  A lot of our creations are a collaborative process. I'll start a design and Judy will add more defining features and vice versa. We truly enjoy what we do and are having tons of fun in the process.

Meet Cindy Hudson from Grandma's House

I was in the third grade, drawing on a piece of scrap cardboard, when my great aunt (an accomplished artist) exclaimed “She’s an artist!”  From that day forward I felt creatively validated .  Additionally, in the rural Amish community where I spent my childhood, girls were expected to learn to sew.  Thanks to my patient mother, it’s a gift for which I’m ever grateful.

Today, working for American Greetings, I am surrounded by tremendous art and creative gifts which feed my soul daily.  I continue to write, draw, sew, craft, and any other pursuit that stimulates my creative muse.  In fact, I’ve been teased that I am incapable of sitting still – my hands must be moving at all times!

I currently live on the west side of Cleveland, work full time for American Greetings and enjoy my sweetheart, my Mom, sisters, sons, their families and my grandsons. Warning – do not ask me about them – I will pull out an abundance of photos!

I am also a freelance writer working through an author brokerage. My artwork has been featured on the Today Show and displayed in juried art shows.  I have created various custom commissioned pieces of art and am happy to discuss any personal art requests.

This is my first show and I hope everyone enjoys my work so I can meet everyone again at future Avant-Garde events!

Meet Theresa Solt from SweetTee Creations

My name is Theresa Solt, I live in North Olmsted. I started crafting at a young age. I like doing anything from crocheting, jewelry making, scrap booking, card making. 

Now that I found vinyl I can't stop! Everything from Iron-ons , glass etching, ornaments, water bottles to GLASS BLOCKS!! 

I was gently nudged by a friend to sell my glass blocks at craft shows. This is my first season for selling and I am very excited to start. I am hoping to increase my sales so I can work less at my daytime job. I feel like I was created to create! It makes me happy to make things and I hope my creations make others happy too!

2017 Rocky River Fall Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show

Sat. Nov. 18 (10am-5pm) & Sun. Nov 19 (11am-5pm)

Rocky River Memorial Hall (Next to Rec)

21016 Hilliard Blvd.

Rocky River, OH 44116

For more information, contact Becki Silverstein, Event Coordinator at Becki@ag-shows.com

Visit us on:

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These Artists Add a Little Spice to Life!

Meet Lauren from The Blonde Italian...

My name is Lauren, mother of two daughters that have been my inspiration for creating recipes and tasty enhancements. We Cook. We are kitchen people!! Two of my 8 products are named after my daughters: Giavanna's GARDEN GARLIC Seasoning & Sister Mia's SAVORY SALSA

I am self-taught. I make everything myself and hold a Commercial Food Manufacturing License from The Ohio Department of Agriculture. All of my sauces are my original recipes.There are no fillers or other sauces within my sauces. No gluten, msg, trans fats, meats, or animal stock (a couple sauces have dairy/ cheese).

 I felt I had talents I was not using. Raising my daughters was my only focus.. Now they are nearly grown up and all of this just came pouring out of me. The first 1-2 years was teaching myself how. Now, I have been selling my sauces for 13 months. I started with designing a website / blog showing step by step demos with pictures of how to cook with my products. It has evolved into more and will continue to change.  You can purchase/ship via paypal right from my website. There is also a list of stores that carry my foods. It will be a full blown online store with more items added in 2014. I am also a self- taught seamstress. My kitchen related, sewn designs will be featured on my website next year, right after I clone myself.

Meet Tris Mihalik from IndoDesigns...

My name is Tris Mihalik, I worked as SAS computer programmer in IT (Information Technology) company for over ten years. Although I loved my job, I have always dreamed of having a small home based business selling the  handmade goods, I love to create. So the timing was right to pursue my dream when I resigned from my position and moved to Ohio to get married. I do love working from home, helping my husband with his small business and just spending good creative quality time with my husband and 17 month old daughter. I grew up with a mom who is a professional seamstress. My mom and I even made my BEAUTIFUL wedding dress, which I was so proud to wear on my big day! She has taught me so much about sewing, but most importantly she taught me the importance of using good quality materials, taking pride in my work and that paying attention to the details is the most important thing in the end. I am grateful that I can do what I enjoy. I have been doing this since January 2011 and this will be my first Avant-Garde Show!

I was looking for something I could do from home and so I started asking my friends for ideas of things to create. I (with my husband help) came up with my first idea of making "The Complete Handmade coupon Organizer with a detailed shopping list".
Then I joined the Etsy website, to try selling them and was so surprised how many people loved my coupon organizer and how quickly they were selling. This got me so excited and motivated, so I kept thinking what else could I create to help people and make life easier? Then I came up with "The Complete Handmade Cash Budget Organizer with detailed Cash Expenses List" and "The Complete Handmade Bill Organizer with Calendar and Bill detailed List". It is just so fun to make handmade things and get the great positive feedback from my customers about how they love my crafts. That makes me want to create more. That's why I keep trying to make other new unique crafts to add to my IndoDesigns shop collection on Etsy. 

I have always enjoyed making handmade things since I was a little, everyone in my family was "handy" and would try making the things we needed. It was also nice to make things to give to family or friends. I just feel great when I am doing crafts and creating things. It's so challenging in the creating and developing stages and then so rewarding in the end when you have a finished product that you created. I admire people who are so creative and come up with great ideas making so many cool crafts. I have always loved to give something unique or different as birthday/holiday gift to my family and friends, so I'm always thinking of what they need and then try to make it.

I’m just always looking and thinking about where there is a need for something to be created from scratch or how to make something just a little bit better or more useful. After getting an idea then it’s challenging to get the creative wheels spinning and figure out how to make it. There’s trial and error for sure but then sticking with it until I figure it out. In the end all the time and effort is usually worth it. I would like to keep being creative, design new things that are useful and practical for people. Maybe, hopefully not only selling my crafts online, but I would like to have a little craft store. I also hope to do more craft shows and meet other artisans and people who appreciate handmade things. 

The message behind my work is that buying and having handmade items is just so much more rewarding then buying things off a shelf at a store. Having a "one of a kind" or unique item just makes you feel better (you’re also helping an independent artist.) I hope more and more people will find that my handmade things are not just beautiful but also useful, unique, practical and really well made. And that they will appreciate all the effort, patience, time and love that I invest in making crafts. 

Meet Barb and John from JB Wood 'n Craft...

JB Wood ‘n Craft is a small company creating hand-crafted wooden items for garden and home.  We design and make all of our products ourselves, using locally rescued/re-purposed wood for our products whenever possible; including vintage barn wood, recycled cedar fencing, rescued hardwoods and wooden pallets. 

We offer a wide range of items for gardeners (trellises, tuteurs, planters, etc.) and bird enthusiasts (bird houses and feeders) as well as culinary products for smoking/grilling, preparing and serving food (wood chips and planks, herb sets, cutting boards, serving trays, etc.) We take great pride in the originality and uniqueness of our products as well as in their design and the quality of their construction. 

2013 West Side Fall Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show

Saturday & Sunday, November 16th and 17th, 2013, 10:00am-5:00pm

Rocky River Memorial Hall

21016 Hilliard Blvd.

Rocky River, OH 44116

For more information, contact Becki Cooper, Event Coordinator at info@avantgardeshows.com

Visit us on:

FACEBOOK

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Mixed Mediums- A Unique Take on Woodworking

Tell us a bit about yourself..

I’m a local artist currently living in the Tremont neighborhood of Cleveland with my lovely girlfriend. I grew up in Parma until I moved to Akron where I got my bachelors degree in engineering.  Shortly after leaving Akron I attended the Cleveland Institute of Art.  My work has ranged from paintings to glass to wood craft.

Apart from creating things, what do you do?

I work full time as a mechanical engineer.  I also “volunteer” a lot of my time to my girlfriend’s business – Horrible Adorables.

Where do you get your creativity from?

I have no idea.  I think it just comes from my head.  :-)

What got you into the craft hobby?

I was traveling and doing a lot of work for my girlfriend when she began selling her pieces at indie craft fairs.  Since I was there anyway it seemed like a natural step to bring some of my own work to display.  After selling a few items in her booth it quickly led to us applying to shows together and splitting tents at fairs around the country.

How would you describe your creative process?

For the last few years I’ve focused on the most basic parts of a composition that are made up of lines and shapes.  I start sketching very simple line structures until I find one I like.  Then I add color and images to create a layered design.

What is your most favorite item that you have ever produced? 

I think I’m still working to make my most favorite item . . .

How did you get your business off the ground?

Indie craft fairs, Etsy (http://www.woodencoasters.etsy.com), and my girlfriend’s help and encouragement have been the main ways I’ve been able to get my work out there.

What are your goals with your business?

Right now my business is more of a part-time hobby, but my ultimate goal is to grow it enough to be self sufficient.

What do you do in your free time?

I don’t have much free time, but when I do I spend it traveling, playing tennis, gardening, checking out new restaurants and bars, and going to galleries and shows.

What's the message behind your work?

Visually Interesting

Quality Design

Craftsmanship

Check out Christopher Lee's work this fall at the Avant-Garde Fall Art & Craft Show. This eclectic show will feature 67 of the areas most talented artisans and crafters. A portion of the show's proceeds will be donated to the North East Ohio Make-a-Wish Foundation.

Avant-Garde Fall Art & Craft Show

Sunday, October 23, 2011, 10:00am-5:00pm

Holy Spirit Byzantine Catholic Church 

5500 West 54th St. 

Parma, OH 44129. 

For more information, contact Becki Cooper, at info@avantgardeshows.com.