New Etsy Team Pages

Have you seen the new Etsy Teams pages? here's a great way to see what Idaho Indie Works Team members are up to.

Check it out here!

Welcome Our New Members

Please join us in welcoming a whole slew of talented new members that have joined our team in the past few months:

Alice Kiick of Wise Wild Women
Teri French of Teribears
Athena Barkdull of spooners delight
Kath Harris Bronson of Kaths Handmade
Kim Nguyen of JKarma3
Amber Shing of Amber Shing Collection
Krista French of French Elegant Jewelry
Rachel Teannalach of Tiny Expanse
Dustin & Shanda of Natural One
Maureen Gibson of Quilt Petaler
Terry Krasen of Betty Beader

Please check out their Etsy shops!

July Give Away

It's another month and that means that it's time for another give away. This month's featured artist is Reni from Knit Girl in Idaho and this is what one lucky winner will receive:

Your choice of personalized

stitch markers or wine charms

About the artist:

Hi, my name is Reni LeBard and I have an Etsy shop called Knit Girl in Idaho. I have been married for 23 years and my husband and I have two teenage boys, ages 17 and 13. Our family moved to Idaho from Seattle five years ago this month, but having been born and raised in Alaska, Idaho is much more like home to me than Washington ever was!

I learned how to knit when I was a little girl, but didn't pick up the craft again until my kids were in school. I started out knitting only garter stitch scarves and other novice patterns, however, it didn't take long until I was bored with those projects. Now my all-time favorite project to knit is socks. They are portable, challenging and you can make a pair of socks with one skein of yarn. There are so many free patterns available that I don't think I can ever tire of knitting socks.

In October 2009, I started Knit Girl in Idaho out of necessity because I wanted to make and use my own stitch markers when knitting my socks. Stitch markers are used while knitting socks, mittens, hats, shawls or other patterns that require you to keep track of your stitches. Some people use scraps of yarn, but stitch markers are a fun way to adorn any knitting project, but also make great gifts! I belong to an online knitting and crochet social network, called Ravelry and the gals on Ravelry saw my stitch markers and started requesting sets for themselves! After a few short weeks, these same women encouraged me to open an Etsy shop, which I did. It wasn't long before my non-knitting family and friends wanted to support me, which is why I also sell wine charms in my shop!

Knit Girl in Idaho is where you can find unique, handmade stitch markers and wine charms! My one-of-a-kind, keepsake items are created using virtually any picture, personal design, personal logo, and even some short sayings. My wine charms make the perfect keepsake wedding favor or a treasured gift for the bride and groom, as well as an inexpensive hostess gift for bbq's, showers and cocktail parties! All of my items are sold in sets of 2, 4 or 6, plus I have wholesale & bulk pricing available.

Why are you a member of IIW?

One of my first goals when I opened my Etsy shop was to connect with other creative people in my community, so I joined the Idaho Indie Works team! It's wonderful to have a group of experienced, local Etsy sellers to chat with and glean invaluable insight from, but I'm more interested in cultivating new friendships with the men and women who are members of the IIW team.

About the prize:

For this blog give away, I am donating a set of 6 Personalized Wine Charms or 6 Personalized Stitch Markers, winners choice!

Here are a few simple rules for entering the give away:

1. Please visit Knit Girl in Idaho's Etsy shop and have a look around then leave us a comment on which of Reni's items you like the best and why. Please make sure to include your E-mail or Etsy shop name so we know how to get in touch with you.

2. The give-away will end July 17th and the winner announced shortly after.

3. Only one entry per person, please.

Blog Drawing Winner

I'm happy to announce that Sandra is the winner of this month's give away featuring Boise Beanie Co. Congratulations!

Etsy Craft Party 2010

This past Friday Etsy turned 5 years old. To celebrate, they threw a world wide craft party. Groups all over the world participated in crafting together and promoting handmade. Our group in Boise made it on to Etsy's Top 50 list for the most people who signed up to come so Etsy sent us a very nice package of goodies for the party.

Here are some of the highlights from Friday's crafting goodness.

Wooo! Party!

The welcome table with some of the fun stuff that Etsy sent us, including these...

button buttons,

a tote bag,

and a make your own crafting fortune teller.

As you can see, we had a good turn out and everyone had fun visiting the different craft stations like ...

the mini bunting table

and the glass painting station.

There was also a screen printing table, a scrabble tile bookmark table, a paper craft area, a raffle for t-shirts, and a supply swap. If you missed the Etsy birthday party, stay tuned to see what we have planned for First Thursday!

A special thanks to Aimee Nord who helped take some of these photos.

June Give Away

It's time for another Idaho Indie Works blog give away. This month's featured artist is Sara from Boise Beanie Company. This is the lovely prize that Sara is giving to one lucky person:

Artist's bio: Sara was raised in a covered wagon by her artistic, sheepherding father and her very industrious, craft goddess mother. She enjoys eating, drinking, sleeping, breathing, musicating, babbling and most definitely crocheting.

Her love of all things fiber began in a past life. But she only recently discovered her hidden talent that is crochet when she took a class to make a hat for her daughter, Fiona. She hasn’t put the hook down since.

She currently resides in the beautiful city of Boise, Idaho where she is the owner/designer for Boise Beanie Co., a fun line of handmade hats and modern crocheted accessories.

Description of item: Reminiscent of the 1920's cloche style hat but with an updated flair. Fun colors and crocheted flowers make these beanies great for girls of every age.

Handmade with 100% cotton yarn in a soft, baby pink color accented with a bright white flower and finished with a scalloped edging.

The Rules of the Give-Away:

1. Please visit Boise Beanie Company's Etsy shop and have a look around then leave us a comment on which of Sara's items you like the best and why. Please make sure to include your E-mail or Etsy shop name so we know how to get in touch with you.

2. The give-away will end June 23rd and the winner announced shortly after.

3. Only one entry per person, please.

Think Boise First

Idaho Indie Works is now a proud member of Think Boise First, a group of business owners and individuals working together to promote the local economy. According to their website, here are the top ten reason to shop locally:

BUY LOCAL, SUPPORT YOURSELF

Several studies have shown that when you buy from an independent, locally owned business, a significantly greater portion of your money is used to make purchases from other local businesses, service providers and farms - continuing to strengthen the economic base of the community.

SUPPORT COMMUNITY GROUPS

Non-profit organizations receive an average 250% more support from local business owners than they do from large businesses.

KEEP OUR COMMUNITY UNIQUE

Where we shop, where we eat and have fun - all of it makes our community home and one-of-a -kind businesses are an integral part of the distinctive character of Boise.

REDUCE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

Locally owned businesses can make more local purchases requiring less transportation and generally set up shop in city centers as opposed to developing on the fringe contributing to less sprawl, congestion, habitat loss and pollution.

CREATE GOOD JOBS

Small local businesses are collectively the largest employer nationally and therefore provide the most jobs to residents in communities.

GET BETTER SERVICE

Local businesses often hire people with a better understanding of the products they are selling and take more time to get to know customers.

INVEST IN COMMUNITY

Local businesses are owned by people who live in this community, are less likely to leave, are more invested in the community's future.

PUT YOUR TAXES TO GOOD USE

Local businesses in community centers require comparatively little infrastructure investment and make more efficient use of public services.

BUY WHAT YOU WANT (NOT WHAT SOMEONE ELSE WANTS YOU TO BUY)

A marketplace of tens of thousands of small businesses is the best way to ensure innovation and low prices over the long term.

ENCOURAGE LOCAL PROSPERITY

A growing body of economic research shows that in an increasingly homogenized world, entrepreneurs and skilled workers are more likely to invest and settle in communities that preserve their one-of-a-kind businesses and distinctive character.

So, the next time you need to find a unique gift or want to eat out, think of visiting locally owned businesses.