Shop Local, Shop 1st Thursday!

Idaho Indie Works brings the handmade revolution to First Thursday!

We will be in Old Boise at the Pioneer Tent Building, 6th & Main, Downtown Boise. Come shop with over 20 local artists & crafters.

Hill's Craft Show

Yesterday several crafters and I set up our wares at Hill's Valu-Rite for a fun day of selling and camaraderie. This was the first Idaho Indie Works event that I have participated in so I got a chance to meet the people behind the shops. I had heard of most of them through the Google group, but putting a face to a name was a huge bonus for me. And let me say, what a great group of people they are. Not only are they fun to be around, but they are all extremely talented. Just being around all those creative people kept me buzzing all day. We shared stories and brainstormed on new ideas. It was so much fun and I can't wait to get together with everyone again.

Here is a look at some of the creative forces who participated in yesterday's show.

Laurie and Susan from TLG Crafts

Elizabeth from Something More in Clay

Michelle from Dragonfly Stitches

Vila from Warped and Wonderful

Vicki from Backyard Bakery

Kathy from Lazy Kate

Kelli from daisy k design

On the left is Marilyn from Twiglets and Friends and on the right is Julie from Scraps

Claire from Red 4 Short

And this is me, Robyn, from Polka Dot Dreams

I apologize for those of you who I missed, like Megan from Star Motif and Ray from ConefineMenT.

A special thank you goes out to Marcia Hale who organized this for us and to the owners of Hill's Valu-Rite (1221 Broadway, on the corner of Broadway and Beacon next to Albertson's) for allowing us to share their store.

Trend Spotting---Wing-Wing

Spring is in the air in Idaho, and wings are everywhere!

Etsy Buy Handmade IdahoIndieWorks

Finding Inspiration

Have you ever thought about the things that inspire you and where they come from? There are the obvious places like the mass media. I like to see what the new trends are out there and fashion magazines and soap operas will often give me ideas to work with. Sometimes just having that bit of quiet time in the shower will get my mind thinking about things.

But then there are the simplest of things that get my head spinning with new inspiration. I read a book this fall and the author mentioned one piece of jewelry that has now wanting me to create a whole new line based around that one item. And yesterday I went to Joann’s Fabrics to see if there was anything left worth getting before the store closed for good. I was looking through the small selection of leftover ribbon and trim when I saw one spool in particular that caught my eye. There was a rubber band around the ribbon holding it to the spool and the way the ribbon was all crinkled gave me a great idea for a new project. If it hadn’t been for that rubber band, I would have passed the ribbon by without thinking twice.

Have you ever had inspiration hit like that? What kinds of things do you like to do that help get the creative juices flowing? Please post a comment and share your story with us.

Thinking, Thinking, Thinking

I’ve had a lot on my mind lately, thinking about the state of the economy, the new president, job security. It’s a very scary thing when politicians and economists start throwing the “R” word around. Suddenly everyone panics and purse pockets are locked tight.  Someone was quoted in the Idaho Statesman not long ago that 2009 was going to be a “bloodbath” of dying retail shops. What a lot of people don’t realize that it’s not just the US who is suffering – this recession has far reaching effects, touching the entire globe. In speaking with my family and friends all over the world, I can see how it is affecting them as well.  The world is getting smaller and countries are no longer isolated. What hurts us, hurts us all.

People and countries alike are all looking to newly elected President Barak Obama to help fix our woes. But should we really be putting so much faith into one man? Is he going to be able to turn things around now before things get any worse? Personally, I can’t see it happening. He is just a human, after all, with no super hero powers to speak of. Should we put so much faith into an ordinary man with an extraordinary title?

That got me thinking some more. I wanted to know if there was something that I could do. But what could that be? Should I only be interested in looking out for myself and my family? Should I act like there is no recession and keep on doing what I’m doing? Then I thought that maybe I could use my shopping decisions to make a difference. Maybe if I tried harder to buy more handmade items, especially if they are local, I could not only fulfill my needs, but also help out other people in the community in which I live and the handcrafting community in general. It helps put money into the pockets of people like you and me; people like stay-at-home moms and those with natural creative gifts. That makes much more sense than giving it to large, cookie-cutter department stores with their cookie-cutter wares. Not that they don’t have their place in our community, but there is so much more out there.

I know that I’m only one person, but I think that I still can make a small difference, even if it’s only for me and a handful of others.  I can help to influence my children to make wise choices. And maybe those that I have touched will go on to touch others, to spread the word on buying local and handmade.  More and more people are starting to turn to handmade to supplement their incomes. They are looking to the rest of us for support. When the world crumbles down around us, we only have each other. 

January Sale in Progress!

The holidays are behind us and we're starting a fresh new year. To help give our etsy shops a fresh new look we're having a sale! Please visit etsy and enter the search "iiw team" for Idaho Indie Works items. We've included an etsy mini to show you a few of the wonderful items available at a discounted price this month. Happy New Year, and happy shopping!

Think Pink

Because this month is Breast Cancer Awareness month, we're featuring pink items from Idaho Indie Works shops on Etsy! Want to see more Idaho Indie Works items? Just search "iiw team" on Etsy.com.