Craftivism in Action!

I know that most of you who read my blog are pretty crafty folks. So did you know that there is a whole movement to combine your craft with activism? Autumn Wiggins who also founded the Strange Folk Festival is a major proponent of the Upcycle and green crafting movement. She is the head writer for the website CraftingAGreenWorld.com and has written several very informative articles for Etsy's Storque called Earth Tones: Make Like a Tree, Part 1 and Part 2.

These articles explore our use of mass produced supplies as crafters and the effect our handmade items have on the environment. She also discusses ways that we as makers can reclaim what others see as worthless trash that would end up in a landfill and turn them into treasures and even useful everyday items.

She is putting her talk into action this year with a new program called the Upcycle Exchange. It's trial run was at this Spring's Big Ass Indie Show and Strange Folk is next. I've signed up to participate and I'm very excited about the concept. Here is description from the website:

"The Upcycle Exchange is an pilot program aimed at initiating a cradle-to-cradle inspired production concept for the indie craft community. The basic premise is that customers can receive incentives, such as discounts on merchandise or other perks, when they collect and donate materials that crafters use to create handmade merchandise."

So I've signed up and put in my requests for what supplies I would be interested in receiving and I also plan on going through my craft room to find things I'm not using to donate to other crafters. I also am giving a coupon to be used on-line to anyone who donates to the Exchange at Strange Folk for free shipping and 10% discount for any on-line purchase.

I am going to have a give away of a $40 gift certificate open to anyone who donates and I think I will also open it up to anyone who purchases from me that weekend as well. This way I can hopefully get my customers e-mails more easily for my mailing list which was another goal for this year's craft show season.

Spring Knitting

I know that we are in the dead of winter but my mind is turning to the Spring and what I want to do about Spring inventory. I got an e-mail about a craft mafia show in March called Green with Indie. My first thought was no way, I'm not doing any Spring shows. Then I read about it and it actually sounds really cool. It is going to be at Webster University and the focus will be on using sustainable supplies and green crafting. The booth fee is reasonable and it will give me something to work towards and look forward to through Jan. and Feb. I tend to go into a pretty deep funk this time of year and it's crucial for me to have things that I'm looking forward to and excited about. So I think I'm going to apply and see what happens. It's juried and they are very concerned about what materials you'll be using. I've got some bamboo and hemp yarn that I can make some skinny scarves/belts with. I'm also thinking about using hemp cord to knit some jewelry with different fun beads. I've done headbands and barrettes in the past and I think they would go over better at Spring shows than in the Fall.

I'm starting a new poll about what I should focus on for the Spring. Please take a second to let me know what you think will be my biggest Spring seller. If you have other suggestions for Spring merchandise please let me know.

The results of my fringe poll clarified a few things for me. I now know that most people don't give much thought to fringe on a regular basis, imagine that. And the others are pretty evenly split between liking fringe and not liking it. So I'm going to continue to mix it up and continue to add options for everyone. Thanks to all who replied!