RNEST's Etsy Craft Party! (June 2014)

Here are some pictures from the RNEST Etsy Craft Party!

We didn't have a huge turnout...June 6th was the first Friday of the month, and "First Friday" is a big thing in the art community in Rochester.  There are lots of different events going on around town, and many of our RNEST members had committed to being at First Friday events. But the people that showed up to the Craft Party had a lot of fun getting creative with old pictures!

 We colorized black and white photos with watercolors (this works best if the photo is printed on cardstock.  The watercolors don't take too well to regular photo paper)

We also used embroidery floss and stitched on the photos (which was a "suggested project" for the party on the Etsy blog)

I  went a step further  and added buttons to my project that I did at home.

And there was also the "fairy nest jar" project...

We used one of the large classrooms at our local Joann Fabric & Craft stores. (Did you know you can reserve a classroom for free as long as there's not a class scheduled?)

Here's a look at some of the finished projects!

 

Easy Vintage Spool Photo Holders

Vintage wooden spool picture holders. These are great for displaying vintage photos. 

All you need is an old wooden thread spool and a paperclip that fits snugly into the hole! Then use the paperclip to hold your picture up. I like this style better than the style I've seen online where you actually saw a groove into the spool. With this style, the spool is left intact in case you want to use it for something else.

I'll be using these to decorate the tables at RNEST's Etsy Craft Party this upcoming Friday (June 6th).

RNEST & Etsy Present: CRAFTMAS!

Hello! You regular blog-readers know that I am a part of the Rochester NY Etsy Street Team (aka: RNEST), a group of Etsy sellers in the Rochester area (and surrounding areas *wink!*).

A while back, RNEST applied for (and was awarded) a grant from Etsy in order to organize a series of crafty events at the Hungerford Building on East Main Street in Rochester. We originally planned to have Halloween-themed events in October, but scheduling conflicts arose with the location and those plans fell through. But, not being an easily discouraged bunch, we switched gears and decided to do some holiday events in December instead. And for the past month and a half have been scheming, planning a series of handmade holiday events which we have dubbed "Craftmas"!

I'm organizing a Clothing Swap!...

"It’s time to clean out that closet!

Bring in your unwanted clothing and take home some new-to-you pieces for your wardrobe...all for free! RNEST artists will also be available to teach demos with techniques for altering and upcycling your clothes into fun, new items!

*Any clothing left over at the end of the night will be donated. Nothing will go to waste!"

(click here to RSVP to the Craftmas Clothing Swap Facebook Event!)

I used to regularly organize clothing swaps (or "swap meets" as I used to call them) at my old church. They were always a hit! If I didn't keep on top of it and do one every few months, I'd start getting regular inquiries from people about when the next one would be!

Be sure to check out the other Craftmas events! (the links will take you to the Facebook Event):

• Craftmas: Etsy Style! First Friday Holiday Craft Sale (Friday, December 2nd 5pm-9pm &Saturday, December 3rd noon-4pm)
  A Handmade Holiday hits the Hungerford Building! Come shop from a selection of quality items made by local artists. Give the gift of handmade this holiday season!
  *(I will have a table there on Friday!)*
  
  
• Creative Play Session (Saturday, December 10th 7pm-8:30pm)
  Creativity boosting activities and exercises to spark your artistic inspiration and get out of a rut. Come with an open mind and leave with ideas for new projects! (For ages teen and up)

• Open Craft Night: Etsy Style! (Thursday, December 15th 6pm-9pm)
  Demos: glass pendant soldering, knitting, bead weaving and MORE! Everyone is invited for a handmade, fun-filled evening of simple planned projects and unstructured time with RNEST artists. Bring your crafty works-in-progress, share our supplies, experiment with our tools, and ask us about tips and techniques. A small sampling of our works will also be available for sale.

I hope you can make it to at least one of these events! They should be a lot of fun!

Etsy Craft Party...

I hope some of you are able to attend or host an Etsy Craft Party today!

I'd love to have done one today, but my anniversary is a little more important! And just because I didn't have one today on the "official", "global" party day doesn't mean I can't have one on another day! Right?

If you hosted/attended a craft party today, and blogged about it, or took pictures, be sure to leave me a comment with a link to your post! I'd love to see what people did!