a small trade show

Some 4th year OCAD students asked me to participate in a small trade show as alumni around the beginning of the month. it was a nice experience, and i met a lot of great craft enthusiasts as i usually do.

the trade show was designed to emulate the One of a Kind Show on a small scale - complete with demonstrations. Carol-Lynn Beaumont, a fellow classmate, was doing demos on the throwing wheel.

i love love love her pottery.

especially this cup.

other vendors

so last weekend was my first time at Cabbagetown as both an exhibitor and a patron, so it was a new experience all around.

a big difference from the Outdoor Show is all the food vendors. there were so many places to  taste relishes, dips, and desserts. Christy's Crunch had these to-die-for white chocolate/cranberry/cookie/toffee/almond bars that i can't stop thinking about. thankfully they'll be exhibiting at the One of a Kind Show in December, but unfortunately i was too slow and they were all sold out before i could grab a bag.

another exhibitor that i was really fond of was Rebecca Caulford of honeybea designhive. she had a booth full of wonderful handmade purses made from repurposed materials and lovely accents such as small wooden plates/bowls/tree slices that made very unique overlarge buttons.

her braided strap market totes really stuck out to me because they reminded me of my fan necklaces.

i think i'll grab a purse from her at the One of a Kind Show...:)

a blog post

a fellow jeweller, Alexis Kostuk, was kind enough to visit my booth at the Outdoor Show last weekend and then write up a little post about her visit on the Jewel Envy blog.

it's nice to see other jewellers at your booth, they tend to have insightful perspectives. and of course, they know what you're going through. 

here is one of her pieces that i particularly like, it's very whimsical and includes turquoise, flocking (a technique i want to try), resin, pearls, and sterling silver.

a little publication

i recently found out that one of my pieces was included in the Ontario Craft Council's Annual General Report. it's just a little photo of my labyrinth bun cage "sometimes goodbye's the only way," but it's there.

above it is a piece by the very talented miss julie moon. i was fortunate enough to see her MFA thesis work at the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition last weekend and it was ah-mazing.

i especially love this piece and want it in my home:

enthusiasts

i hadn't initially meant to sell some of my more sculptural pieces at the Outdoor Show but i had some very enthusiastic patrons who convinced me that they needed to have my work in their life.

because i didn't expect to sell those pieces, i didn't even bother to price them or even consider a price in my mind.

but i'm very happy to have met these admirers of my work. they have been so sweet and they remind me of why i'm in this field - of why it's worthwhile to do what you love.

this fertility charm is a sculptural pendant that was made in my casting class during my first year of jewellery at OCAD. i had painstakingly carved out the form in wax, cast it in bronze, cleaned it up for a week for my critique, and then two days before it was due had it stolen :(

i quickly had to make a new piece, and this time i had to do it in brass. though, when i had it at the Outdoor Show, i had taken off the dark patina (colouring) and left it a nice satin finish where you could see the shine of the brass.

this piece now has a new home with a very lovely lady.

the aftermath

TOAE is over and i had planned to take a rest. but i just can't bring myself to do it. i've been in the studio every day, hard at work on some commissions and building up stock for Cabbagetown, but i do find myself very sleepy on my train rides now. i don't even pack a book anymore (the train rides are my coveted times for reading) because i know i'm just gonna fall asleep.

the six weeks right before the Outdoor Show left me constantly multi tasking. i couldn't watch a movie unless i was sanding a piece or sewing a flower pin together. i'm getting used to being very busy.

but tonight i'm going out to a beach BBQ with some jeweller friends. i'm excited, it's so hard for us to get together because there always seems to be a need to polish a piece or meet a deadline.

TOAE is over!

thanks so much to everyone who came to my booth at the Outdoor Show. it was amazing to hear all the positive feedback and everyone's plans to colour co-ordinate their outfits to my jewellery :p

a special thanks to Jon, Jay, Warren, Yoon, Sherif, Joyce, Maha, and my parents for being so helpful, patient, and hardworking. i couldn't have done it without you guys.

it was a really great (though exhausting) experience and i'm looking forward to participating again in the future. one of the good things about the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition is how much it can lead to other things in your career. for some it means commissions, or getting picked up by galleries or being asked to participate in shows.

i did get a few commissions that i've already started working on now. but i've also been pre-approved to participate in some upcoming shows such as the Cabbagetown Arts and Crafts Sale which is happening in September. i'm going to keep trying to make new designs and play with more colours in my enamel work - so get ready to see more of me and my jewellery soon. i told myself i'd have at least have two days to rest...but then i found myself in the studio the day after anyway! i just can't stay away!

i was really fortunate to have had my booth moved to underneath the bridge area in City Hall. because of this i was able to get a nice corner space as well as a good mix of shade and sunlight. it also sheltered me from the insane rainfall that plagued us during set up. i basically set up my booth looking like a wet cat.

but it was done with much help and i'm happy with the results.

here's my three cases...colour coordinated of course! i had more red enameled pieces but they sold out so quickly.

this show was so busy that i barely had time to see any other booths. i had limited myself to the top 15 i wanted to check out, but i'm pretty sure i only saw 5, and only because they were on the way to the restrooms.

for some reason all my set up pictures were taken with my dad's camera...so you can't see us looking all frazzled and rushed. but here's one of my friend Nini, hurriedly setting up her own booth which was only two down from mine.

thanks again to everyone who came by, it was lovely meeting you all.

one of a kind show - one day left!

you have one day left to check out the one of a kind show! i didn't have a lot of time to walk around today since i had to man the booth but i did get to try some yummy treats (smoked salmon pate for one :D) and see some great handmade pieces.

thanks to everyone who's come out already!
 
here's some pics from our booth:

one of a kind spring show

so you may have already read that i'll have some work in the one of a kind spring show this year (march 31st - april 4th). this is a reminder to come and visit!

i cannot stress how great this show is. my fingers constantly twitch for my wallet as i peruse the endless aisles. the colourful pieces in the top left of the photo are from my friend and harbourfront resident shu-yu lu. i don't think she can make work that's not cute. it's just not possible.

this year OCAD is less focused on selling work and more focused on representing quality and innovative craftsmanship. if that interests you at all, i hope to see you there! our booth is E-20 and i'll personally be there on saturday april 3rd from 10 am - 3 pm.

today i'm helping set up the booth that only came together from a A LOT of hard work. we've been putting it together non stop since two saturday's ago to create a very gallery like set up. i'm excited...you should be too!

check out my news page for more info on the show.