We've Found the Perfect Handmade Valentine's Day Gifts

With St. Valentine's Day fast approaching, I know many of you still have your shopping to do. This year, show your valentine(s) how much you really care and skip the shrink wrapped chocolate boxes and the mass produced stuffed animals. Instead check out some of these fabulous handmade valentines in our Etsy Treasury. These gifts have all the charm, and your loved ones will have something truly unique.

For another collection of handmade Valentine's goodness, check out the Art and Light Blog. They've got a wonderful selection of local artists' goods.

Buy Handmade — Cupid would be so proud!

An Indie Craft Christmas

We had fun doing a little virtual Christmas shopping for this post! Many of our 2011 Indie Craft Parade artists have Etsy shops, so we love to use tools like Etsy Treasuries to make pretty collections of their work. We wanted to make an Indie Craft Parade Christmas treasury to remind us of all the great things we saw back in September. In  this treasury, we chose items for decorating as well as gift ideas for friends, family members and even your pets! Click on the image to view the treasury, and don't forget that we link to our 2011 artists' online shops at our Participants page! We want to make it easy to support our artists throughout the Christmas season and the coming year!

Live from Brooklyn, Live in Greenville: Printmaking Show this weekend

This Friday evening, there's a great indie printmaking show in Greenville that you won't want to miss. Dapper Ink (as you may remember from our Indie Craft Parade/Etsy Craft Night) is hosting a show by former Greenville artist Dailey Crafton, the creator of the Live from Bklyn studio. This show called "Live from Brooklyn, Live in Greenville" will feature unframed linocut and silkscreen prints as well as printed home goods and letterpress items.

The event begins at 7PM on Friday, October 14. If you can't make it to the opening, the show will be hanging for the following week. Dapper Ink is open weekdays from 9:00 to 4:30. Or you could contact the folks at Dapper Ink for evening and weekend hours.

Check out the Live From Bklyn Etsy Shop for a preview of the home goods.

Handprinted flour sack towels

Handprinted greeting card

Featured Vendor: Concrete Lace

I don't think you can help loving letterpress goods. They're beautiful, timeless, and so much more accessible than a few years ago. We're going to have a couple of letterpress artists at Indie Craft Parade this year--all of whom are fabulous. But I just can't get over the colors and designs of Concrete Lace. They have a variety of letterpress greeting cards for all occasions, and you're definitely going to want to stock up. Unfortunately, there's a good chance none of your friends will receive the cards you buy. They're just too gorgeous to give up.

Concrete Lace has a well stocked etsy shop. They also do custom orders.

Featured Artist: Wingo Designs

We're going to have some really great metalwork jewelry this year at Indie Craft Parade, but I'm particularly excited about the pieces coming from Wingo Designs. This husband and wife team primarily work in landscape design where they transform outdoor spaces into memorable niches. A lot of their designs include metal furniture which they design and create.

Making metal jewelry became a natural outflow of their furniture craft. Their jewelry has such a great organic quality about it that looks like sculptures you'd find in a garden. I am quite anxious to see what gems they'll bring to the event.

To see more of their portfolio or to learn about their outdoor designs, check out their website.

Featured Artist: Softspoken

With the hope of fall around the corner (and fall fashion in full swing), I think it is going to take great self control on my part not to get all my autumn accessories from Softspoken. I could buy out the booth. These crochet goodies are some of the cutest I've ever seen. They have it all: hats, scarves, sweaters, even crochet jewelry. With the funky designs and colors, Softspoken truly embodies the idea of indie craft--taking a traditional form and revamping it in a hip, new way. Can't wait to see this booth!

Check out more of the shop here.

Featured Artist: Marco Suarez

Marco is primarily a graphic designer and branding specialist, but he has a phenomenal series of fine art collages and  photography. He is returning to Indie Craft Parade this year with another round of pieces inspired by nature and travel. Both trendy and timeless, Marco's work would be a perfect addition to anyone's collection.Besides the passion which is so evident in his art, I love the many layers and textures. I'm drawn in every time--discovering new elements each time I see one of his pieces.

To get just a glimpse of his many talents, check out more of his work on his website. He also has an etsy shop where you can see his fine art pieces for sale.

Featured Artist: Rachel Feece

Rachel Feece's slogan is "creating clay conversation pieces," and you can see why. This is pottery you won't see anywhere else! I absolutely love the brilliant colors and carving technique of Rachel's pottery. Her inspiration comes largely from the beauty of the Blue Ridge Mountains, where she has worked as potter for a number of years. Besides selling her pieces individually, Rachel also does commission work. If you want to view more of her pieces, check out her website!

Looking forward to seeing this at the event in just over a month!!

Featured Artist: Lightnest

Anybody on the hunt for the perfect tote bag? I know I always am--which makes me doubly excited that Paige Maitland of Lightnest is going to be at Indie Craft Parade. Her pieces are streamlined, modern, and express chic simplicity. And I love her fabric choices and use of jute for carry straps. Can't wait to see this booth! Want to see more of her gorgeous handbags? Check out the Lightnest Etsy Shop.

Featured Artist: Tilson Sister Terrariums

Today's featured artists are two sisters who create these beautiful little terrariums. I was so thrilled when I saw this entry come through. I LOVE terrariums! And these mossy little woodlands are absolutely adorable.

When making the terrariums, they make sure that each piece is unique. They collect the moss, find the perfect container for each terrarium, and then craft and paint each figurine by hand. Although they started out by giving terrariums as gifts to friends and family members, they're now sharing these little gems with everyone else.

I particularly love how they show off the strata of the terrariums by using the apothecary jars to display their work. I think they're like perfect parfaits of earth and moss. And I can't wait to meet these girls at Indie Craft Parade!

Featured Artist: Sara Lee Parker Textiles

I'm so so excited because today is the first of our featured vendor posts for Indie Craft Parade. We've got such a talented lot, and I know you're going to love browsing the goods they have to offer. So without further ado, meet Sara Lee Parker Textiles. She's a textile printer and designer living just outside of Thomson, GA. She hand prints adorable designs onto sustainable fabrics which she makes into a variety of home goods such as aprons, napkins, and tea towels. (I am such a sucker for those.)

Sara Lee Parker also offers her fabric as yardage and in fat quarter form for sewing, quilting and other DIY projects. If you want to see more, check out her etsy shop. You might not be able to wait till September to purchase from her!

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Dinner Napkins

Fabric Samples

Tea Towels

Half Size Apron