Perfecting your Art: Interview with Cory Godbey

The world of arts and craft is competitive, and it takes a great deal of time and effort to make your work stand out. That progression can be long and difficult, sometimes fraught with criticism and even rejection. But for the people willing to stick it out, the end is rewarding. We've brought you an interview with Cory Godbey, a Greenville artist who's spent a number of years making a name for himself in the illustration community. Having experienced both the ups and downs of perfecting his art, Cory understands the dedication and perseverance required of a professional artist. Still on the journey (but having come a long way) he has shared some advice and encouragement for artists who are continually striving to improve their work.

Indie Craft Parade: As a professional artist, you've worked for a number of years on perfecting your techniques and personal style. What do you think was the most important thing to focus on during those growing years?

Cory: For me it's always been a matter of working hard. Working hard and wanting it. It's also competing with yourself, I believe. Of course you can get discouraged looking at all the awesome things everyone else on the internet is doing. But remember to keep your head down, be professional, and work at it like nothing else matters. I'm still growing, I'm able to do things now that I know I couldn't a year ago. Same for last year and the year before. I don't think any true professional "arrives." They're constantly pushing themselves; they don't sit back and coast.

Indie Craft Parade: Your work seems very popular and well-received. Have you always enjoyed that success? Can you describe some of your experiences before your work was accepted at the level you wanted?

Cory: Well I don't know about that! That's very kind of you to say. With my personal work I can never gauge what will be popular. For example with my prints or with a show, I can never tell which will be the best received or most popular. I just do the work I like. I'm my only guideline, if that makes sense.

One of my biggest hurdles was being declined to a certain annual of illustration. I had already made it into more "prestigious" books, but that didn't matter to me as much as being accepted into this particular book. I applied for the last 4 or 5 years, rejected each time until this past year. You know what? Each time the rejection only made me better. I did my best to keep myself professional, focused, and I just worked even harder for next year. I give this example because I want people to know if they're rejected from something, they should use that frustration to improve. Just take it and work harder. Let it motivate, not frustrate.

Indie Craft Parade: What advice would you give to artists and crafters who are struggling with moving their work to the next level?

Cory: The advice I give to anyone who asks me that is basically the same advice I've been given by friends and mentors; just keep doing it. It takes time, effort, and heart to be a professional--to work at a level that you're proud of. I'm still working towards that level. Just decide what it is you want and fire towards that with abandon.

Featured Sponsor: Comfort Inn of Downtown Greenville

For those of you coming to Indie Craft Parade from out of town and needing a place to stay, we want to tell you about our preferred hotel. Comfort Inn of Downtown Greenville has donated generously to our event this year and are welcoming vendors and attendees alike to stay with them. Besides their close proximity to our event--just a few minutes by car--their accommodations are comfortable, their staff is friendly, and their rates are affordable. Take the stress out of finding lodging and give them a call! For more information or to book a room with Comfort Inn Downtown, call (864) 283-0370.

Advice for our Vendors: Taking Online Payments

Although the world of craft fairs is largely run on cash, there are a few great ways for vendors to accept electronic payments from customers who just can't live without plastic. I want to share one of those with you today: Square App. I've personally used this method at art shows, and I can undoubtably say it's made made my experiences much easier. The Square App is simple, beautiful, and so easy to use. I really don't even need to say much about it. A portable credit card reader fits into the earphone jack of your smart phone or tablet, you swipe the customer's card for the amount of their goods, and you're paid the next day.

All of Square's vital information is located on their website, but that's about all there is to it. Payments are secure. You can even send email or text message receipts to your customers. And the best part about it, it's absolutely free to get started. Square charges a small fee per transaction made, but honestly, it's worth it to have the ability to take cards at your booth. Check it out!

Announcing the VIP Gala

On Monday August 1 you'll have a chance to snatch up a ticket for our highly anticipated VIP Gala. On Friday night, September 9, we're kicking off Indie Craft Parade with an exclusive evening of relaxed shopping, live music, and complimentary food and drink. At this event, ticket holders will get a preview of all the crafty goodness available this year--no crowded aisles, no waiting in line, and first dibs on artist work. If these perks weren't enough, Friday night is when we're hosting the Indie Craft Parade giveaway. Last year, our artists were very generous in contributing to our giveaway baskets--each worth over $75. Attendees will also have the opportunity to talk with the artists personally and watch live demonstrations by some of our crafters.

Tickets for this event are only $25, and they go on sale August 1! Check out the VIP page of our website for the rest of the details. We expect these tickets to go extremely fast, so be sure to stop by our website on Monday.

Hope to see you there!

Finding Inspiration: Interview with Annie Koelle

We want the Indie Craft Parade Blog to be a helpful resource for everyone in the arts and craft community. So we've decided to include a series of posts that will help both developing and seasoned artists with a variety of topics. We want to discuss things like creating a winning booth, effectively selling goods in person, establishing an online presence and the like. To share this information effectively, we're going to the people who do these things the best. We'll be interviewing (mostly) local artists to get their tips for making your products, branding, or general presence in the art world even better. Today, we're starting with Annie Koelle. She's a painter who presents gorgeous scenes from the natural world. In the 7 years or so I've known Annie, her work has never ceased to amaze me. Everything about her work is inspiring, so I asked her to share some thoughts on the topic of finding inspiration. Sometimes artists burn out or get discouraged when trying to develop new ideas or styles. Annie is continually producing new pieces, and she has graciously shared with us her approach for keeping her work fresh.

To see more pictures of her work, check out this post from 17 Dove Street that features one of Annie's recent shows, hosted in a garden.

Indie Craft Parade:

Frequently artists and crafters are at a loss for new inspiration--either new artists don't know how to branch out or seasoned crafters get burned out. You're always working on show material, how do you keep your work new and fresh?

Annie:

I'm always viewing the world as an artist, always on the look out for inspiring things--which is why my work is a reflection of everyday things I appreciate. I'm constantly searching for ideas to run with. I look in decorating magazines, the living breathing growing world, fashion catalogs and magazines (I have several binders of clippings), blogs, artists past and present, poetry, music, and antique stores. And a million other things I'm sure. I also make little composition sketches to remember a painting layout. Usually I will come back to them and decide they are silly. Most of the time I don't use them, but it ends up leading on to other great ideas. I have no regrets ever in recording fleeting ideas. Take an idea and run with it in all possible directions. Don't worry about playing it safe. Always be harvesting ideas!

PIndie CraftParade: Although you do a wide variety art/craft genres and styles, every piece you do is decidedly "Annie." Can you share any tips for artists trying to show their personality or put consistency in their work?

Annie:

I think that's something that develops over time, so have patience. I had a little bit of a head start, having been given art lessons as a youth, long before college. I can't say that a few years ago I was as consistent, but now I am confident in the mediums I'm working with, so I know how to successfully experiment with them. Also, it may be the subject matter, everything I work into a painting has a very personal connection to my life, past and present. Little things I appreciate such as the birds in my yard, the fig tree I pick from, or perhaps something associated with my childhood.  Here is a good tip: whatever sort of art it is, it must be an absolute overflow of yourself, that you present in a skillful, creative way. It has to be what you truly like, and it has to be good enough that you would hand over money for it --as if someone else had made it. Any sort of handmade thing, it had better be something you'd buy yourself and put in your house, wear out to a party, or hang on your wall. Strive for that! Think about it while you are planning and creating. I think that's the key, I'm finally sure (after years of trying) of what I really like, and I am beginning to figure out how to make art I would actually love to hang on my wall. But not always--can't knock it outta the park all the time. Sometimes its just about getting something out of your brain and into your hands.

Indie Craft Parade:

 Can you suggest any resources for artists looking for new inspiration?

Annie: Like I said, I find resources in a million places, but here are a few of my favorites.

Decorator magazines: I don't really read art magazines. The decor ones actually show you what people hang on their walls.

Pinterest: Follow my art inspiration board.

Poppytalk Blog

Dear Ada: I love the book list she has on the side.

FFFFound Image Bookmarking

Simply Lovely Blog

Where the Lovely Things Are: New Fave!

Call for Musicians

Last year Indie Craft Parade had the pleasure of hosting a number of local bands to entertain guests as they shopped at our festival. This was a such a successful part of the event, and we know we absolutely must have it again! As we did last time, we're opening up this opportunity to musicians who would like to join the fun of the indie art scene. Good music helps complete the atmosphere of Indie Craft Parade, and we're on the hunt to find some new performers.

If you think your musical group would be a good fit for Indie Craft Parade (or if you know of a good band or solo artist), please contact us at info@indiecraftparade, or leave a comment on this post.  Tell us a little about yourself and attach a link to a clip of your music. We're interested to see what you have to offer! Spaces are limited, and will be allocated at the discretion of our directors.

Check out last year's awesome musicians in this post from 17 Dove Street.

It's Official! 2011 Participants Announced

Now that all of our accepted exhibitors are confirmed, we're so excited that we can finally share who's going to be participating in Indie Craft Parade this September! Our 2011 participants are a fantastic group with such varied goods, everything from letter-pressed paper goods to hand-spun yarn. Click here to see the exhibitor list and start exploring their individual websites. Stay tuned! Throughout the summer we'll be featuring a handful of these artists on the blog. You'll see a sampling of their work and hear a little more about them...just enough to get you excited about buying out their booths.

Thanks again to our jury for choosing such a fabulous lot!

Featured Sponsor: Oh Snap!

Another reason to come to Indie Craft Parade this year--to join in on the fun provided by Oh Snap! Photobooth. They're another of our fabulous sponsors for the event, and we're so happy to have them back. Last year people loved using props and gathering friends to create the silliest and most creative pictures that captured the spirit of Indie Craft Parade.  We can't wait for all the fun pictures that will come out this year. The people from Oh Snap! were so great to work with. If you have an event such as a wedding or other party coming up, you should totally check them out here. You'll be so glad you did.

A couple shots from the 2010 Indie Craft Parade.

Indie Craft Parade Participants Chosen!!

The wait is over! The participants for Indie Craft Parade have been chosen! This past Saturday our jury reviewed nearly 350 applications for Indie Craft Parade. After many hours of careful discussion, they finalized the list of vendors accepted to represent their work this September. Our jury is a group of 5 professional artists with expertise in many genres, and we're very happy to hand over this difficult task to them. They juried each category separately and judged individual applications on how well they matched the vision of Indie Craft Parade, as well as their  originality, quality, uniqueness, and innovation. All applications were reviewed anonymously to avoid any bias. Each jury member viewed an applicant's description of their work, along with the 4 photos they submitted. They briefly discussed the merits of the application, and then voted whether or not it should be accepted. The jurying is a tedious process, but this thoroughness is essential for selecting just the right mix of exhibitors.

So what happens next? Today we're sending out email notifications to all of our applicants. If you haven't received yours yet, please be patient. We're writing individual emails, not a mass mailing, so it takes several hours. When applicable, we're including comments from the jury as to why a work was not accepted or how to refine work that was. The official list of accepted exhibitors will be posted on our website once they've all confirmed their reservations.

To be honest, this day is the hardest for us at Indie Craft Parade. We hate writing rejection letters! But we only have room for 70-80 vendors, and with nearly 350 applicants, there simply is not room for everyone. Many of our applicants showed great skill in their work, but they were not the best fit for our festival or we just had too many similar entries in some categories. Indie Craft Parade represents all the genres of art and craft--so we can't limit ourselves to showing just fine art or just jewelry, etc. So please, if you were not accepted for this year's event, don't let that discourage you from entering again. Keep working to make your goods better and more original, and we'd love to see your entry next year!

One other change to expect this year: Most of our applicants requested full-sized booths. Unfortunately, we can't accommodate that many full booths without significantly reducing the number of exhibitors represented. So, several applicants were asked to downsize their booths in an effort to fit all of the accepted artists--something we didn't have to do last year.

Thank you again to everyone who applied! Your work is vital to the Greenville and greater Southeast art community, and we're so grateful that you chose to share it with us.

Indie Craft Parade Deadline

Please don't forget!!

The application deadline for Indie Craft Parade is tomorrow night at midnight! You're running out of time to show us your fabulous art or crafts. We've made the application process super easy, so please don't delay any longer.

Late applications will not be accepted. Also, unfinished applications will not be accepted, so if you have yet to finish your application or upload your photos, please do so immediately!

2010 Overview

In case you're looking for a quick overview of last year's event, this will help! Using Daytum, a beautiful data collection tool, we created a few (only somewhat nerdy) graphs to help us visualize several statistics from last year.

At a glance, you can see how people heard about our 2010 event, and the number of applications we received in each category. My personal favorite graph shows how much experience our vendors had before participating in Indie Craft Parade. You can visit our Daytum page here to see that one and more!

Worth a Thousand Words: Impressive Product Photography with Very Few Tools (Part 2)

In part one of this photo tip series, we discussed the importance of lighting and staging your products. To wrap things up, we're going to go over some simple principles concerning using your camera and editing your photos.

Working with Your Camera

Regardless of the model of camera you have, you can take good quality photos. Key to achieving this is simply getting to know how your camera works. Read the manual and play with the settings. Also, if you have a popular type of camera, there's a good chance you can find an online forum (such as this one) for trouble shooting.

Here are a couple of good principles to follow regardless the type of camera you shoot with:

1) Check your white balance settings. White balance refers to the neutral colors (such as whites or grays) in your photograph. You want to keep those colors true to real life, creating the most pleasing photos. The white balance is affected by the type of external lighting you have. If the white balance is not adjusted, the picture can appear discolored. See example below.

Adjusting the white balance is simple. Go into your camera's white balance settings and adjust the light setting to match the conditions you're shooting in.

2) Use a tripod. I don't care how steady you think you're hands are. Any movement in the camera will result in a lesser quality photo.

3) Keep the ISO on your camera low.  A lower ISO will slow down your shutter speed, but the image will be less grainy. Most digital cameras have an ISO adjustment. If yours does, keep it as low as possible for the kind of light you're shooting in.

Editing Your Photos

Before you upload your product photos right out of the camera, consider these suggestions to put the finishing touches on your photos.

1) Crop your photos. There's usually not a need for a lot of background or white space around your object. Make clear what's being sold, and keep the attention away from what's surrounding your product. Depending on the item you're shooting, it might be a good idea to keep the focus of the picture away from the direct center. Try to crop it on the 2/3 line for a pleasing effect.

2) Sharpen and brighten your images as necessary. If your photo turns out a little darker or less clear than you like, these are good ways to achieve the pleasing effects you want. I know that can sound a little daunting if you have no photo editing experience. So I highly recommend checking out Picnik. It's a free online photo editing program that will do most of the work for you. You can either play with your photos settings yourself or use the auto-fix feature that does a really good job. The program is easy to follow and quite fun when you see the end result.

Just a final word of advice, keep practicing and playing with your product photos. You'll soon find the exact look you want, and the process will become faster and easier as you go.

Don't Forget! Craft Party Tomorrow Night!

Crafty Gathering Found on 100 Layer Cake

Friends of Etsy and Indie Craft Parade are gathering at Dapper Ink tomorrow night for an evening of making crafty goodies. Please join us --even if you don't have a craft to work on. We're bringing some inspirational craft books as well as some card making/collaging supplies to share. RSVP here!

Hope to see you there!

7-10 PM; 207 Wade Hampton Blvd., Greenville, SC 29609; 864-551-3115

Join us for the Etsy Global Craft Party!!

Indie Craft Parade is co-hosting the Greenville branch of Etsy's second global craft party. This Friday, June 10, people all over the world will gather for a evening of spontaneous creating. If you live in the Greenville area, please join us for the party. We'll be meeting from 7:00 to 10:00 at Dapper Ink, located at 207 Wade Hampton Blvd, Greenville, SC 29609. Bring a your own craft to work on and a snack or drink to share. Please RSVP at the Indie Craft Parade Facebook Page.

Check out the stats from last year. This is from the etsy blog:

It's time to celebrate! Last year's first-ever global Craft Party was so much fun, we've decided to orchestrate it again this year on Friday, June 10, 2011. No matter where you live or what you love to make, you are invited to participate. Musicians, painters, sculptors, photographers, farmers, hackers, gardeners, designers, jewelers, bookbinders, printmakers, teachers, makers and doers of all stripes, as well as art enthusiasts, curators, vintage lovers and supporters of the independently made, we're calling on you! We challenge you to meet your neighbors and come together to make something surprising.

Last year, over 5,000 people participated in over 500 meetups from Dallas to Romania, and this year our goal is for over 15,000 people to share in the spirit of Craft Party.

Advertise with Us!

One of Indie Craft Parade's goals is to serve our greater community. We want to help you tell the world about your business, and we can do that by offering advertising space on our blog. Since its beginning last year, the Indie Craft Parade website has had over 20,000 visitors, and we expect that number to sharply increase during our second year. We're offering competitive pricing and great exposure for your company--so click on the image below to get more information and see how advantageous this opportunity can be!  

icp_blog_advertising

Now Accepting Applications!

We are now accepting applications for this year's Indie Craft Parade! All regional artists and crafters are encouraged to submit their work for consideration. Applications must be submitted before midnight EST on June 19, 2011. Our application process is completely online this year, and is much more streamlined and user-friendly.  A huge thank you to Duo Interactive, a local web design team that donated this wonderful feature. Click here to apply!

Join us for a special film screening!

UPDATE:Thanks so much to everyone who came out to the Handmade Nation screening! We thoroughly enjoyed the discussion after the film, and it was wonderful to meet some new friends.

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Hopefully by now you've seen the posters around town or heard the news on our Facebook page, but in case you missed the announcement, we are very excited to be hosting a special screening of the independent documentary, Handmade Nation! The showing is TONIGHT, so please reserve your tickets now! After the film, there will be a short discussion and we'll share what's new this year for Indie Craft Parade.

Handmade Nationdocuments the new wave of art, craft and design that is capturing the attention of the nation. It is the feature film debut of director, author, artist and curator Faythe Levine. Levine traveled to 15 cities and covered more than 19,000 miles to interview artists, crafters, makers, curators and community members.

Director Faythe Levine captured the tightly knit community that exists through websites, blogs, and online stores that connect to the greater public through independent boutiques, galleries and craft fairs. Interviews were conducted on-location in artist studios, homes, boutiques, offices and craft fairs, giving the public an exclusive and rarely seen look into the lives of these creative individuals. This screening is hosted by Indie Craft Parade in collaboration with Greenville Forward and The Warehouse Theater. Join us on Tuesday, May 31 at 6:30 pm; admission is $10 and space is limited! Reserve your tickets online here, or by calling 864-233-8443.

Our vision for Greenville

Last year people kept telling us how happy they were an event like this had come to Greenville, SC. And we were a little puzzled when many of them asked us when Indie Craft Parade would be back in Greenville--as if it had originated somewhere else. Now, their questions were certainly valid. Frequently craft fairs will move from location to location on a rotating basis, and if you're lucky enough to be close by, you can attend. But we want to make it very clear that Indie Craft Parade is different. We created and maintain this event as something unique to our city. We love Greenville and want to encourage growth in the local and regional art scene from right here in our hometown. Although we love the fact that we're contributing to the national movement of emerging artists, independent crafters, and small business owners, we've decided to put our best efforts here at home. And we hope to make a lasting impression in our special city.

What we've been up to

Even before we packed up our goods from the first Indie Craft Parade last September, we began planning the second event. A party this big takes a lot of prep and coordination, and we've been working on a few tricks to make this year's event even better than the first.Let me share a little of what we've been scheming:

1) We've applied to become an official 501(c)3 non-profit organization. This not only opens us to a broader range of sponsorships, but also (and more importantly) it will help us give back to our own arts community. As Indie Craft Parade grows, we want to use our proceeds to benefit the art programs of local schools. We want kids to continue the rich tradition of arts and crafts that has flourished over the past few years, and Indie Craft Parade can really help encourage that end. If you want to assist us giving back, please review our sponsorship opportunities.

2) We've expanded our organizational team into an official board of directors and assembled a new jury for this year's event. We called on the help of long standing friends, art professionals, and members of Greenville's art community to assist with the planning and selection process for the Second Annual Indie Craft Parade. These individuals have all influenced Greenville's art scene and have graciously partnered with us to find the Southeast's best artists for our event. Don't worry...we'll introduce them and their fabulous work in later posts.

3) We keep crafting. In the months since Indie Craft Parade, we have yet to put our tools down. We don't just organize this event, we actually participate in and attend similar festivals around the Southeast. We've had so much fun connecting with vendors at regional fairs such as The Big Crafty,Indie Craft Experience, and Crafty Feast, and we hope to see lots of the friends we've made take part in our event as well.

Thanks for joining us!

Welcome to the official blog of Indie Craft Parade! It's hard to believe that in a few short months our second annual event will be in full swing. We're in the midst of all the planning, and have created a blog for sharing all the wonderful details along the way.

We'll introduce you to the amazing people such as our jury, organizers, and sponsors who make this event possible. You'll also have a chance to preview a lot of the work that will be on display at Indie Craft Parade through our artist spotlights. (You'll have a shopping list ready by September for sure!) Plus, we're developing a whole section of tips and tidbits for emerging crafters. We'lll share secrets of the trade from veteran crafters and small business owners and discuss topics like creating a successful booth display and how to better sell your work. Also, expect some fun posts about crafting trends, upcoming events, and a few DIY projects for when you need a little inspiration.

Thanks for coming along for the ride!