Product Photography Class!

Although a cliche expression, when it comes to product photography, a picture is truly worth a thousand words. Whether you're trying to stand out on Etsy, pitch your product to a wholesaler, or simply apply for a craft show (hint hint), most often your work is only as good as your photographs. If people can only see your work...they can't touch, try on, or experience how great your stuff is...they WILL make judgments only on what they see. Perfect example, for the jurying of Indie Craft Parade participants, everything is anonymous. The jury can only see the photographs of artists work. No names, no extra information.

So obviously, we think this issue of product photography is a big deal. Therefore in the month of May we will be addressing it as we help people prepare for Indie Craft Parade applications and beyond. Expect guest bloggers, example works, and other tips to make your application the best possible.

To start off with we've had a great offer from local photographers Michelle and TJ Getz. Michelle knows the value of good product photography, and she came up with the idea of hosting/teaching a product photography class while attending The Makers Summit. On Saturday May 18 Getzcreative Photography will be hosting a limited attendance class to help people get the most out of their product photography. They have a keen eye for details, and for all of the skills you could develop from the class, the price really is a steal.

See the details from Michelle below:

Product Photography Class

Attention Crafters! Let us teach you how to take good product photos on your own! Learn how to use background, props, and available light. Avoid the common photography mistakes. Bring your own product, bring your camera (yes, even iPhones will work), and we will help you use what you have to showcase your particular product.

When: Saturday May 18; 10 am to 12 noon Where: Getzcreative Photography Who: Open to anyone, but there only 10 spaces available How Much: $45

Email shootme@getzcreative.com or call 864-354-2548 to reserve your spot today!

School Scholarship: Artists Day

It's been a while since we've given updates about our school scholarship program, but today, I'm really excited to share some photos from this past Monday when three Indie Craft Parade participants shared their skills with the students of Gateway Elementary in Traveler's Rest. This post is also a really good opportunity for us to say THANK YOU to everyone who financially supports Indie Craft Parade. These are the kinds of projects that we can do because people and companies sponsor us. We're working really hard to make sure your investments are worth it, and we think that immersing kids in the arts is one of the best things we can do.

I spent the better part of the day with the artists and students, and I really had a great time. There's nothing like seeing kids discover something new. I loved hearing the questions they had for the artists. And I especially enjoyed watching the kids learn that art is a much broader field than they may have thought.

We coordinated 3 local artists to demonstrate their craft/trade throughout the day: Cory Godbey showed 4th graders and kindergarteners his work as a professional illustrator. Deb Potter brought her spinning wheel and felting supplies to 1st and 2nd grade. And Matt Moreau let 3rd and 5th graders try their hand at letterpress printing.

Cory shows the 4th grade class how he paints digitally. They were completely mesmerized by his work...particularly with this video that he designed and animated. They couldn't get enough of it.

Cory's presentation to the kindergarteners, however, quickly turned into a game of pictionary. "Draw a snake!" "Draw a dog!"

Deb taught the kids how she spins the wool that her husband shears into yarn. One girl told us it was "the best art class she ever had."

They particularly loved touching some of the dyed wool.

Muscling the Kelsey letterpress. The kids did a great job!

Numbering and signing their prints.

Thank you again to the art teacher, Joanne, for helping us coordinate the day. She's doing a great job with her students!

New Giveaway! Paper Wreath Kit

You know we love to get people crafting, so why don't you spend part of your weekend working on an awesome project like this paper wreath we're featuring today. You can either make your own from scratch using our instructions, or you could be the lucky person who wins a craft kit all your very own. All you have to do is comment at the end of the post. You'll be automatically entered in a drawing for the craft kit. Here's another project from The Best Craft Party Ever: Paper Wreaths. The coolest thing about this project is it's inspired by crafty maven Mollie Green. This is one of the wreaths she included in her awesome book, Sweet Paper Crafts, published by Chronicle books, releasing in June 2013 (available for pre-order now).

Supplies: · various papers · pencil · scissors · templates · glue stick · glitter (optional) · glue dots · wreath form

The following instructions are specific to the butterfly cutout, but the same instructions apply to any of the templates.

1. Trace templates onto paper.

2. Stack two papers together and cut out the butterflies, keeping each butterfly pair together. Depending on the size of your templates, you will need anywhere from 12-20 butterfly pairs.

3. (Optional step) When you’ve cut out your pairs, apply glitter to the wings of one of the butterflies in the pair.

Pour the included glitter onto one of your large scrap pieces of paper.

Using a glue stick, rub a small amount of glue around the perimeter of the wings.

Gently press the glued portion of the wing into the glitter and tap off the excess. Repeat this step for as many or as few of the butterfly pairs as you like.

4. Adhere the butterfly pairs to the provided wire wreath form: Take a pair of butterflies and apply 3 or 4 glue dots to the body (not the wings) of one butterfly and place it under the wire form, pressing to adhere.

Take the other butterfly body and attach it to the wire directly above the first butterfly, lining up the bodies and the wings.

**NOTE: The glue dots have a double sided adhesive, so the easiest way to transfer them to the butterfly is to take a single dot (with the backing still on) and press the exposed sticky side into the paper. Once secure, peel the backing away, and the glue dot should remain on the butterfly.

5. Continue gluing butterflies to your wreath until you are satisfied with the arrangement. You can go for a full look, or an open, airy feel.

6. Once you’ve finished, bend open the wings of each butterfly for a fuller, more fluttery wreath.

PFor the templates to Mollie's wreaths, check these out: Paper Wreath Templates.

And don't forget to comment below for a chance to win a kit!

Craft Kit tutorial and Giveaway, Part 2

Happy Valentine's Day Everyone! Hope it's a very special day. To celebrate, we're giving away our 2nd of 4 craft kits that were featured at the recent Greatest Craft Party Ever---Today, Handmade Beeswax candles. This craft is quite fun and rather easy. Here are the steps. Don't forget, if you would like to win your very own kit, simply leave a comment below.

Supplies: · 4 8x8 sheets of beeswax · 3 yards of candle wick · scissors –provided by Dritz · small knife · cardboard cutting mat · velvet ribbon · muslin bag

Notes: The instructions are for making a set of 8 taper candles, but feel free to experiment. You can make a large pillar candle, a set of small birthday candles, or any assortment of sizes you like!

1. Take one sheet of 8x8 beeswax, and place it on the cutting mat. Cut it in half, so you have two 4x8 pieces (or cut into any size you’d like for custom candles).

2. Lay the cut piece of beeswax onto your table surface. Unroll a length of wick, and cut a section 1 inch longer than your candle height. (lay it on top of the beeswax to measure, you want it hanging off the top about an inch but flush with the botton edge).

3. With your wick lined up along the 8 inch side of beewax, begin rolling it up. Try to keep it rolled as tight as you can, especially the center with the wick. Roll it into a cylinder form gently. If the wax starts to crack just push it back together and keep rolling.

3. (continued) At the end, gently push and pinch the seam into the candle to seal. If the bottom of the candle is uneven, trim it on the cutting mat.

4. Repeat until you have finished making all your candles!

5. To package up pretty, place candles into a bundle and tie up with velvet ribbon. Slip the bundle into the muslin bag, perfect for safekeeping or gift giving.

6. Before burning, trim the wick. The wax is a little sticky so you can use a glass dish as a candle holder by pressing the candle into the bottom dish and making in stick in place.

S0 simple, so fun! Leave a comment below and win your own kit!

PLEASE NOTE! The craft boxes are available to people within driving distance of Greenville, South Carolina who are willing to pick them up in person. The craft kits are NOT available for shipping.

Craft Box Terrarium Giveaway Winner!

Congratulations to commenter #4, Christina! You've won your very own terrarium kit! We'll be in touch shortly about how to pick up your box.

Thank you again to everyone for participating.

Relive the Makers Summit

We're so excited to be releasing this beautiful video that shows all of the fun from this past weekend. Shot and produced by the talented Carlton Riffel, this condensed version of our day shows that gathering of awesome people who made the day possible. Enjoy!

http://vimeo.com/59165227

Craft Kit tutorial and Giveaway, Part 1

We hope you've been checking out all of the pictures of The Makers Summit and The Best Craft Party Ever on various blogs, Facebook, and particularly Instagram under the tag #makerssummit. They're really awesome. If you have been looking, I'm sure you've noticed all of the crafty goodness that took place at the party. Over 100 people spent the evening trying their luck with a new handmade skill. And now...YOU CAN TOO!

Photo courtesy of Paige Maitland

For the next four Tuesdays, we will be sharing tutorials for the crafts made at The Best Craft Party Ever, and one lucky person will actually win a complete craft kit. With the kits, you can make either a terrarium, a leather notebook, a paper wreath, or beeswax candles from start to finish---no need to buy supplies. At the bottom of the post, simply leave a comment, and on Friday we'll choose a winner at random from the selection.

PLEASE NOTE! The craft boxes are available to people within driving distance of Greenville, South Carolina who are willing to pick them up in person. The craft kits are NOT available for shipping.

Today, we'll be sharing the tutorial for our most popular craft kit from the party, the moss terrarium--complete with little houses from Crave Studio.

Supplies: · glass jar with lid · dirt · stones · preserved moss · lichen and twigs · ceramic houses (handmade at Crave Studio) but you could make your own out of polymer clay · plastic gloves for keeping clean · wooden stick to help move & position

Note: The instructions here are just suggestions. Feel free to experiment and create your terrarium any way you’d like!

1. If you’d like to keep your hands clean, put on the plastic gloves.

2. Begin by layering rocks and dirt in the glass jar. You can tilt it sideways to layer at an angle, or build it flat. Mound up some little hills of dirt to create an interesting landscape.

3. Cover the surface with mounds of moss. Try varying sizes and textures. Don’t build your terrarium too high, it’ll look better with some headroom. 1/2 - 2/3 full should be just right.

4. Add in twigs and bits of lichen. You can use the wooden stick to help adjust and position.

5. When you’re satisfied with your terrarium world, add in the ceramic houses (made by Crave Studio), pressing the wire legs into the moss to secure. Put the lid in place, and you’re all done!

Caring for your terrarium: Because your terrarium is made with preserved moss, it needs virtually no care! It doesn’t need water or sunlight, just love.

Now, how easy was that? Just a few supplies, and you'll have a beautiful creation. But, go ahead and take a chance on the giveaway. For just a comment, this could all be yours.

See you soon with the winner!

The Makers Summit was awesome!

Yes, it was so awesome. A huge THANK YOU to all our Makers Summit attendees, speakers, and sponsors! We'll be sharing some photos and video soon, but in the meantime here's a little sneak peak courtesy of Maidae (see more photos over at their lovely blog).

There's tons more amazing photos on Instagram, under the tag #makerssummit. Here's a few favorites from @eringodbey and @beautifulhelloblog.

We'll be back soon with more!

Sneak Peek of The Makers Summit!

Just days away from the very first Indie Craft Parade Makers Summit--we can hardly contain ourselves. Attendees, get ready! This is going to be an awesome day of learning and making. So today is just a teaser of a few things that will be present at either The Makers Summit or The Best Craft Party Ever!

Oodles of monkey hats provided by MailChimp.

A custom printed photo backdrop and table runners from Spoonflower!

We LOVE our sponsors!

A single edition tee shirt, designed by the artist at Parachute Clothing!

Can't wait to see the rest? We can't wait to show you. See everyone on Saturday!

Sponsor Feature: Pink Olive

With The Makers Summit just over a week away, we're busy putting the final touches on what's going to be an amazing event. We can't wait to bring our attendees, speakers, experts, and sponsors together. One sponsor/speaker we're particularly eager to meet is Grace Kang of Pink Olive. She is one talented lady who will be sharing her wealth of insight into the world of retail.

From the Pink Olive website: Grace’s success is the culmination of over 10 years as a retail buyer and consultant in the fashion industry. After graduating from Cornell University, Grace quickly moved up the corporate ladder and became a successful buyer at Bloomingdale’s where she was awarded "Buyer of the Year." Her accomplishments continued on to Saks.com and Barney's New York which allowed her to excel and think outside the box in both the business and creative sense of the word. 

With success in hand, it was time for her to launch PinkOlive.com, an online emporium with a peculiar name inspired by her niece’s favorite things—the color pink and olives....Grace opened her first brick and mortar store in East Village, Manhattan in May 2007 followed by her second location in Park Slope, Brooklyn in March 2008. Aside from running her two boutiques and website, Grace Kang consults with fashion designers, small business owners and startups entering the retail world.

In addition to the Pink Olive stores, Grace also curates Olive Box, a monthly subscription service for paper lovers. Olive Box members will receive a specially picked and packaged collection of paper goods from around the craftisphere. Additionally, she regularly coaches budding small businesses through her service Retail Recipes. She answers important questions like: Do you have a great product, but you’re not sure how to get it into retail stores? or: Do you ever wonder what the store buyers are looking for and how you can make your products more appealing to them?

At The Makers Summit Grace will be an invaluable asset to our attendees looking to push their products way beyond their own front doors.

Guest Tutorial by Shop-Keep (part 2)

Welcome back to the upholstery tutorial from our friends at Shop-Keep!  Last time Mandy Blankenship shared the beginning of her long but rewarding journey to recovering her lovely chevron chair. If you missed part one of the story, please check it out here.

Now to continue...

7) Sewing and Stapling

All your hard work laying out fabric, thinking about which direction the motif should run, and planning how the seams will meet pays off when you begin sewing the pattern pieces together. I began by sewing the decking to the lip fabric, an odd rectangle piece of chevron that has mitered corners. Decking fabric is usually not the same as your pattern fabric but of a similar weight, so choose wisely. Once I joined the grey decking fabric to the lip, I returned to my chair frame to staple them in place. Staple the bottom of the lip to the front bottom of the chair, starting in the center and evenly distributing your fabric over the batting to the right and left, a little bit at a time. Staples should be a couple inches apart–not super close, but not really far apart. When stapling fabric, don't stretch it too tightly, or it will weaken and possibly tear. Finesse it, be gentle but firm. The fabric will go where you tell it to, but don't be harsh with it.

After stapling the fabric to the bottom of the lip, pull the top of the decking fabric underneath the chair back and staple to the chair base, starting at the middle and working your way to either side. Next reach the sides of decking fabric underneath arms and staple them to sides of the chair base. You may need to cut slits near the base of chair arms so that the fabric stays smooth and doesn't fold awkwardly. Use a curved needle and upholstery thread to anchor the decking to the springs below, near where decking fabric is sewn to patterned fabric.

Now it's time to sew the welting. Join 1 1/2 inch wide strips to one another to form one really long strip of fabric the same way you would make bias tape (but ignoring all the double-folding). Then wrap the strip of fabric evenly around cording, place under cording foot on the sewing machine, and sew in place. The cording foot on the industrial machine is so dreamy to use.

To make the arm covers for the Chevron Chair, I placed the welting on top of the center top strip of arm fabric with all the raw edges facing the same direction, then pinned it in place. After pinning, I basted the welting in place to keep it from moving around during sewing. If you omit basting, you MUST remove each needle before it goes under the sewing machine foot. I have broken way too many sewing machine needles by not doing this. Basting the welting in place is really the best method, looks the most tailored, and is how all the couturiers make garments of old. Sew welting to arm top fabric, then sandwich the welting in between the right side of the next piece of arm fabric to be attached, pin and baste; then sew from the side you haven't sewn on yet (this ensures the welting will be evenly placed between layers). Fit arm fabric over chair arms, remembering to smooth the batting. Staple inside arm fabric on top of where you placed the sides of the decking fabric. Before I stapled the outside arms in place, I made sure to place dust cover fabric over the outside arms in order to have a surface on which to place outside arm batting. Staple both in place, fluff batting, then cover with outside arm fabric.

I used cardboard tacking strip to give a nice, sharp edge to the welting and arm fabric that reaches down the side of the chair frame past where the arm ends. Sneak cardboard tacking strip underneath the arm fabric, and carefully staple in place. Staple outside arm fabric underneath chair frame at the sides. Lastly, staple the back of the arm covers to the back of the chair frame.

8) Reuse Old or Cut New Foam

For several decades now foam has replaced traditional stuffing like horsehair in making chairs cushy to sit on. I'm really not a fan of petroleum based products (one of the many reasons I hate polyester), but it's increasingly unavoidable. You can purchase soy foam, but it's only about 20% soy-based with the rest of the mix produced like polyfoam. The healthiest, least toxic chemical-laden option is to use natural latex rubber foam made from the rubber tree. But in terms of cost-effectiveness, reusing your chair's old foam is the winner. Again, if your chair came from a smoker's house or has cat pee on it, look into buying new foam; otherwise reusing the original stuff is the cheapest and greenest option.

I reused all my old foam and batting for the Chevron Chair cushion, arms, and inside back. If you purchase new foam, cut it into the same shapes as the old, using an electric turkey carver. Sounds crazy, but it works. Staple it in place, and cover with batting.

9) Sewing the Deck Cushion

Sewing the deck cushion is just like making the arm covers. Pin and baste welting to the top and bottom pieces first, then sew in place. Reuse your old zipper, if possible, for the middle piece of the cushion cover. Sew the zipper to the middle piece, then pin and baste the middle piece to the top and bottom of cover. Remember to sandwich the welting between right sides of the cushion cover, this time sewing from the side you haven't done yet. With the cushion foam wrapped in batting, stuff it into the new cushion cover and zip closed. You can sew a simple muslin cover to go over the foam and batting first, and then put that inside the upholstery fabric cover, but that is an extra step you may not want to take. I didn't.

10) The Inside Back

Completing the inside back of the chair is one of the easiest parts to do because it requires no sewing. Place chevron fabric right side up (because you marked which direction that was) over inside back foam and batting, making sure the batting looks smooth. Staple in place at top and bottom first (on the backside of the frame), working from the center to the right and left. Distribute taut fabric evenly. Then draw the fabric through the left side and right side and staple the same way. This was when I noticed where all the change from your pockets disappears to over the years. You can reach your hand pretty far back between the decking fabric and inside back fabric.

11) The Outside Back

You're almost done! Staple dust cover fabric over the outside back of the chair frame, the same way you did for the outside arms, and place batting over it. Staple the batting in place and fluff it over the staples. Next, take the remaining welting and staple it, raw edges facing inward, around the outside back of the chair. I stapled welting on the top and sides but not the bottom of the chair back because I wanted the bottom of the chair to look the same on all four sides.

How do you staple the outside back cover of the chair, you ask? You don't. This is where you employ flexible metal tacking strip. It's tricky to use and will definitely bite you, but magically works. Staple the metal tacking strip inside the welting, with claws poking outward at you, but in the center of the chair. You're going to bend these claws toward the welting, grabbing the outside back of the upholstery fabric and enclosing the back of the chair. Bend the claws toward welting with your fingers, then pound completely closed with a rubber mallet.

After finagling the flexible metal tacking strip, the only part of chevron left to staple is the bottom. Work from the center to either side of the bottom of the chair frame like you have before.

12) The Dust Cover

¡Finalmente! You're really almost finished! Carefully turning your chair upside down on a clean surface (you don't want to get the fabric dirty), place dust cover fabric over the bottom of the chair. Tuck raw edges in and staple in place to keep critters out.

13) Reattach Chair Legs

Lastly, importantly, reattach your chair legs by screwing them in place through the dust cover fabric. Dust cover fabric is not super strong and easily tears. But that's ok, because you need to have chair legs go through it. Once the legs are secure, turn your chair over, and sit in it. Revel in a job well done.

You can use these instructions as a supplement to a book about upholstery, such as Furniture Upholstery by Sunset Books. I also HIGHLY recommend taking an upholstery class at your local community college. Hands on experience with a teacher at an affordable price + whatever you spend on fabric and tools you'll keep. Happy upholstering!

Guest Tutorial by Shop-Keep (part 1)

We love living in such a creative community (as we've said a million times). We learn so much from the makers around us...and sometimes we even get to share their talents and experience with you, our followers. Today, I'm pleased to share with you the talents of Joshua and Mandy Blankenship, creators of Shop-Keep. Shop-Keep is a wonderful jack-of-all-trades in the creative scene. The Blankenships both source and craft all manner of creative goods. Whether it's handmade paper cards or refinished vintage furniture, Shop-Keep is your one stop shop for something unique and wonderful.

Mandy has a particular knack for upholstery projects, and she has graciously shared with us the story of how she turned a frumpy old chair into an updated, reupholstered beauty. This is a long story/tutorial, but Mandy has done a great job simply explaining the involved steps of the reupholstering journey. I've always been fascinated with this process, so it's great to have a detailed step-by-step.

So take it away, Mandy!

If you don't like details, maybe reupholstery is not for you. This is not the blog post to tell you how to hot-glue fabric to your dining chairs. I am not that girl. I dream of making things--all kinds of things--and doing it the proper way, the way the professionals do.

When my husband and I starting collecting vintage furniture, we collected more than our fair share of chairs. Often wooden dining chairs, or aluminum Goodform and Steel Case office types; but we couldn't turn down the occasional comfy side chair–envisioning a graphic, modern fabric in place of that dingy corduroy or yucky tweed. Around 30 chairs into our collection, Joshua and I decided it was finally time to sign up for the upholstery class at the local community college. It would cost more than $170 per chair to hire someone to redo them, so we figured it was money well spent even if we decided we hated the process.

The 8 week class turned into 18 weeks, attending extra classes once or twice a week to finish our little preciouses (caveat: we could have finished the chairs in MUCH less than 8 weeks if classes had met more often). Joshua became increasingly frustrated with the detailed parts of the process, but he discovered he's exceptionally adept at tear-down (a tight grip comes in handy). I enjoyed it all but needed some extra help with staple-removing and de-nailing things. We're a good match.

What follows is a rough overview of The Making of The Chevron Chair. Once upon a time it was The Comfortable But Aesthetically Needy Corduroy Chair. To create the Chevron Chair, I made some design decisions like removing the skirt to expose those lovely turned legs. You need basic sewing skills to reupholster furniture. An industrial walking-foot machine and upholstery staple gun with air-compressor are also really necessary. I'm not saying you can't do this on a home sewing machine or with a manual staple gun, but your wits will be tested and your hands will be bruised if you go that route.

SUPPLIES

Claw tool: a forked-end tool used to remove tacks and staples Hammer Pliers Masking tape Rubber mallet (white is best, but you can cover a black one with fabric)/ Curved upholstery needles Straight pins Sewing needle (for basting) Seam ripper Flexible tape measure Yardstick / straightedge Spring twine: also called laidcord, a waxed jute twine used to tie springs together Burlap Fabric shears: sharp scissors used for cutting fabric only Flexible metal tacking strip Cardboard tacking strip Tailor's chalk Dust mask Goggles Leather work gloves Upholstery fabric (common yardage for different chairs) *Foam *Batting Dust cover fabric Cording *Zipper Upholstery weight thread

*Can be reused from old chair upholstery

1) Studying the Chair

This is an essential first step to reupholstering any piece of furniture. Most upholstered chairs have an inside back, an outside back, inside arms, outside arms, deck, lip, and some have wings, welting, and cushions. If you can't identify where all these pieces are, you will not end up with a fully reupholstered chair, and that will be sad. Make a simple diagram of your chair labeling each part. Place masking tape on each section of your chair and label appropriately: inside left arm, outside left arm, inside right arm, outside right arm, etc. Label your chair, left and right, as you face it, not as if you were sitting in it. Do not skip this step, or you will be confused later on.

2) Tear-Down

Remove chair legs, and place your chair on a sturdy surface for the duration of the reupholstery project. Our chair stands were about 2 feet high and large enough to hold each person's piece with a few inches to spare on each side. Deconstruct your chair with care and gusto, wearing a mask, goggles, and work gloves. Old dust, splinters, and pet hair fly during this phase. Remove staples and decorative nails completely, but do not rip or cut the old fabric. You need all the old fabric to use as a pattern for the new. Also save the batting and foam under the old fabric if possible. Throw away damaged, bug-infested, or smelly chair innards. A smoker's chair stuffing will always smell like the smoker who nestled in it. Rip all the seams of the old fabric and separate the various pieces. Double-check to make sure each piece is labeled before you rip the seams. Consider using the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nasal_irrigation">neti pot</a> after a tear-down session.

3) Repair Springs, Webbing, and Frame

Some springs are zig-zaggy and others are classically coiled. Every coil is joined by spring twine to create a firm, bouncy base on which to rest your tush. The BEST chairs, we learned, have eight-way hand-tied coils. Our teacher could not say enough good things about eight-way hand-ties. If there is an upholstery hall-of-fame, I wonder if people reminisce about Sir So-And-So's eight-way hand-ties like legends about Helen of Troy's beauty or the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. I hope so.

Make sure your coils are properly tied together with spring twine, that frayed webbing is replaced with new, and that any defects on the wood frame of your chair have been dealt with. Now is the time to completely remove stubborn staples or hammer in broken ones, yank out unnecessary nails or pound ones that are loosely holding the frame together. Make the frame of your chair completely stable and ready to carry the weight of the most robust visiting relative. Once you've repaired all the essentials, lay burlap over bottom and back springs, tuck raw edges under, and staple in place.

4) DO NOT WASH YOUR NEW UPHOLSTERY FABRIC

Learn from my mistakes. I'm used to sewing quilts and garments, and pre-shrinking fabric is a must when you expect to launder anything regularly. Upholstery fabric, however, comes with a sort of protective coat on top, a sheen to repel moisture or food spills. You can, of course, choose a fabric that's not strictly for upholstery, but even those come off the bolt with a finished look. Just remember, you are not going to launder your chair. You will spot-clean it. If you desperately want to pre-shrink the fabric, for goodness sake check the washing instructions for what you bought. Luckily washing the chevron fabric was no big deal, though completely unnecessary. Washing the turquoise fabric for Joshua's chair was a big mistake, as you can see. Fabric.com has wonderful customer service and sent me new fabric at no cost.

5) The Old Upholstery Fabric Is Your Map

Lay out the old fabric on top of the new and use it as a pattern, tracing its shape onto the new fabric with chalk. Make sure that each peace of new fabric you cut faces the same direction, as light will reflect differently on upside-down fabric grain vs. right-side up fabric grain. Decide whether to "railroad" your fabric or leave it vertical, where the straight-of-grain runs vertical (parallel to selvedge edges) and the cross-grain is perpendicular to the straight of grain. Railroading fabric is turning the bolt sideways so that it runs left to right and will shift the motif completely. This works for some patterns and definitely not for others. If you're reupholstering two chairs to match, make note of whether or not you railroad the fabric. You don't want to end up with one vertical plaid and another horizontal plaid. Label each new fabric piece with masking tape to show which direction is up.

Look at the pattern motif of the new fabric, and plan where the pattern repeats will meet at the seams before you trace with chalk. Seam allowances are included in the old fabric piece after you rip out the seams. Notice if that allowance is 1/4 or 1/2 inch and take that into account when deciding where to place seams. My chevron fabric is made of a series of Vs, and I had to think about how those Vs flowed from section to section (from the lip of the chair to the front boxing of deck cushion to the top of deck cushion, etc.). If they can't match perfectly, at least make it look purposeful. I chose to center the chevrons on the lip of the chair first and planned my way up the chair from that point. The top of the chair arms don't match the inside back perfectly but are positioned in a pleasing way. The sides and back just continue the chevron pattern in a way that makes sense. Cut new fabric along traced chalk lines.

Welting, sometimes called piping on garments or smaller projects, is fabric sewn around a cord and used as decorative edging. The Chevron Chair has welting on the deck cushion, down the arms, and around the back of the chair. Fabric used for welting is often cut on the bias, but for my chair I cut 1 1/2 inch strips vertically down the chevron motif so the welting would look kind of like a candy cane. Measure the length of welting on the old fabric to decide how much you need for the new upholstery, or just measure parts on the frame where you think it would look good. Be generous in your measurements. I used less welting with the new fabric than the chair previously had, but I still needed some extra to sew it all together. Use chalk to trace 1 1/2 inch strips as long as you can on the new fabric, and cut along traced lines.

6) Batting Isn't Just for Quilting

Batting is commonly thought of as the fluffy, scrumptious layer between the top and bottom of a quilt, but it's a must for upholstery too. Every place your chair will be covered with fabric, it needs to be covered in foam and/or batting. Any upholstery fabric that rubs agains raw wood will tear over time and ruin all your hard work, plus it's not comfy to sit on. Before fitting sewn fabric over top of chair arms, place batting over arm foam and raw edges of wood, staple it in place, and fluff batting over staples. Fluffing the batting makes sure that you won't see any divots in the fabric after you place it on top of the batting. If your batting is smooth, your fabric will lay smoothly; if your batting is lumpy, your fabric will look lumpy.

To be continued...

Announcing the winner to the best craft party ever

Thank you so much to everyone who participated in our Best Craft Party Ever Giveaway. We're so glad you're all supportive of the event. It's going to be a great night---an ultra-cool setting, dinner catered by Larkins, and meeting new friends while making awesomeness! Unfortunately, however, we only have two tickets to giveaway this time.

So without much ado, we're happy to announce that the winner of our giveaway is commenter #24, Candice! We'll be in touch shortly on how to redeem your tickets.

Thanks again to everyone else! We'd still love to see you at The Best Craft Party Ever, so please reserve your ticket today!

Sponsor Feature: Spoonflower Fabric

We're so thankful to have incredible sponsors that make our work possible. So today I want to tell you all about Spoonflower fabric. Founded in 2008 Spoonflower fabric is the world's first internet based print-your-own fabric company. If you can imagine a fabric, then you can print it! Oh the possibilities! We in the craft world have been going nuts with it ever since.

Not only do we love Spoonflower for the amazing service they provide and the community of crafters they've built up, but also for their support of The Maker's Summit this year! Spoonflower's very own co-founder, Stephen Fraser, will be opening our conference as a keynote speaker. In many ways, he is the entrepreneur's dream come true. Using his background in the tech industry (consulting for Internet start-ups and serving as marketing director for Lulu.com), Stephen created this custom fabric company and has been inspiring small businesses ever since.

At The Makers Summit you'll see plenty of evidence of Spoonflower goodness including giveaways and tons of custom details that will make our conference even more unique. So don't miss out on everything there is to gain from Spoonflower! Check out their website for amazing fabric and projects, or come to The Makers Summit and get inspired to create your own success story!

Giveaway to The Best Craft Party Ever!

We're so excited about the upcoming Makers Summit and even more so for The Best Craft Party Ever that we're giving away 2 tickets to the evening event!

The party begins at 7:00 PM on February 2, and you don't have to attend the conference to participate. The Craft Party is a separate event designed simply to celebrate the fun of making and meeting other makers. You also don't have to be naturally crafty or artistically inclined to join us. We've designed the party so everyone---professional and newbie alike---can try their hand at something new.

So here's what to expect:

Enjoy a full dinner and open bar provided by a local chef; Choose one of four crafty kits to work on while you create and mingle with experts and peers alike.

You'll have the opportunity to learn to make one of the following: Glass terrarium Beeswax candles Hand stitched leather journal Paper wreath

And believe it or not we're giving away two ticketsto one lucky winner! This amazing evening can be all yours! Simply leave a comment below telling us who you would bring to The Best Craft Party Ever and why. One winner of two tickets will be chosen at random and announced next Thursday, January 17. Commenting will be open until then.

If you'd rather not take your chances, you can reserve your spot here.

Details for the Best Craft Party Ever!

We've had so much fun over the past few months planning The Makers Summit, and today we're giving you a sneak peek into our after-party. Sponsored by MailChimp, we guarantee it will be The Best Craft Party Ever.

The party begins at 7:00 PM on February 2, and you don't have to attend the conference to participate. The Craft Party is a separate event designed simply to celebrate the fun of making and meeting other makers. You also don't have to be naturally crafty or artistically inclined to join us. We've designed the party so everyone---professional and newbie alike---can try their hand at something new.

So here's what to expect:

Enjoy a full dinner and open bar provided by a local chef; Choose one of four crafty kits to work on while you create and mingle with experts and peers alike.

You'll have the opportunity to learn to make one of the following: Glass terrarium Beeswax candles Hand stitched leather journal Paper wreath

As mentioned before, you don't have to craft professionally to join the party. The kits include everything you need to take home a completed project. So this is a perfect time to either learn something new or simply try your hand at a craft you've always wanted to make.

Even though you can simply come to meet other creatives, we think this will make an ideal night out for couples or just a group of friends.

On top of all the crafting and eating, we'll have screen print and letterpress stations set up where you can learn to print your own tee shirt and letterpress posters.

So please put The Best Craft Party Ever on your calendar. Tickets are $50 per person (separate from the conference)  and include a complete dinner, a craft kit, access to letterpress and screen printing,  plus the chance to make new friends who also love handmade.

Reserve your spot today!

Welcome back, everyone

We're happy to be starting off 2013 on an exciting note. We're less than a month away from The Makers Summit! We can't even say how excited we are to meet everyone and listen to our various experts. Stay tuned over the next few days! We're especially excited to give some sneak peaks about The Best Craft Party Ever. It's going to be epic!

Merry Christmas from Indie Craft Parade! See you in 2013!

We've had such an amazing year with Indie Craft Parade. We met amazing new artists at the September festival, topped our goal of attendees, added a Holiday Fair, and are in the midst of planning a new small business conference. We'll be taking off the next week or so to get some much needed rest and time to start scheming for everything to come in 2013!

We'll be back bright and early in the New Year full of new details about The Makers Summit.

See you then!

Presenting The Makers Summit sponsors: MailChimp

The closer we get to the The Makers Summit, the more we want to tell you about the people who make the meet-up possible. We have worked with and used the services of MailChimp since the beginning of Indie Craft Parade, and they have proved time and again to be an indispensable resource.

MailChimp describes themselves as a way to help you: design email newletters, share them on social networks, integrate with services you already use, and track your results. In short, they call themselves “your own personal publishing platform.” Besides keeping you and your followers organized, MailChimp provides beautiful design templates, loads of free advice and tutorials, and even ways to manage all of your features on the go. Best of all, you can get most of the MailChimp services for FREE! Their no-nonsence approach to mass communication combined with their fun personality and great design make MailChimp a great tool for anybody.

For The Makers Summit, not only has MailChimp shared their monetary support, but also they're sharing their staff. We are so, so excited to have Amy Ellis, the Head of Integrations and Partnerships at MailChimp, as one of our panelists. She is truly a girl after our own hearts. Besides helping people do awesome things with their businesses everyday, Amy is a regular speaker for crafty conferences, a foster parent for her neighborhood dogs, and an ardent fan of yarn bombing (so fun!).

For The Makers Summit, Amy will be sharing her wealth of knowledge about email marketing. She understands how overwhelming it can be to step away from the hands-on projects to promote yourself, so we can't wait to hear loads of tips and practical advice from her at the conference. For a sneak peek of her genius, check out this interview as part of Unbounce's Conversation Heroes.

Thank you again, MailChimp. We love working with you and so greatly appreciate everything you do for the making community.

The gift of the Makers Summit, A perfect Christmas present

Christmas is right around the corner, and we've got an awesome idea to help you finish off your shopping list. Why not give the gift of the Makers Summit? We're gearing up to create the best one day conference in the Southeast,  and this is an amazing gift for creatives and small businesses alike. Help jumpstart or further the career of an artist, crafter, or creator by giving them the opportunity to connect with fellow creatives while learning how to start or grow his or her creative business.

But guess what!The Makers Summit isn't just for full or part time makers. We're ending the conference with an after party that's open to anyone who loves great food, crafting, and hanging out with other creative types. This will be the perfect evening for friends, couples, or anyone who just wants to learn more about the creative world.

So we have 3 gifting options:

An all-access pass for both the conference and after party for $150. The conference day pass for $100. The Greatest Craft Party Ever evening pass for $50.

So surprise someone special with this amazing gift. With your ticket purchase, we will send your recipient a specially printed invitation to the Makers Summit with all of the details for their registration.

Purchase tickets now.