Craftcation Contacts

One of the many great things about Craftcation was all the super awesome people I got to meet. Everywhere I turned there was a new friend, someone interested in learning about what I make and willing to share their own story. My notebook pockets were jam-packed with business cards and I thought I'd share some with you. 

I had the pleasure of having dinner with Lauren and Susan of Creative Outlet Studios one night. They are an awesome mother-daughter team with a new studio and workshop facility in Orange County. I can't wait for a good excuse to head down there and see the space (and maybe even teach a workshop or two!)

Trudy of The Quilters Studio was one of my eager students and she even let me test one of the Bernina sewing machines for it's paper sewing abilities (I later bought one!). Tiffany Han is an amazing life coach. If you're a crafter and in need direction/motivation, she's the person for you!

Matthew William was the photographer extraordinaire for the conference. Check out all his great shots of the event at matthewwilliamphotography.com. Marlo, of I Make Cute Stuff, was fun and knows her stuff when it comes to business planning and Etsy.

These lovely ladies were all involved in my first workshop. Annelies works at Attune Foods, my sponsor and an event sponsor. She is also a darn good food poet. Dawn of Thrilly Frills and Michelle E. Black ended up being folks I hung out with throughout the entire event. They're talented and I hope we stay in touch!

Kaitlin, or Stunningly Strange, stuck with me through many a panel discussion and the 80s Dance Party. She makes mixed media pieces and gorgeous dolls. She and her husband also recently opened a gallery in Edmonds, Washington. Anne of Crafty Diversions is super fun and even formed an impromptu knitting club with me a few other ladies one night. 

A lady with 2 business cards, now that's my kinda gal! These are from none other than Steph Cortes, of NerdJerk. Making geeks cool one by one, she's also got great ideas to help your Etsy shop flourish.

And now for these two charming folks! Julie, over at Rotten Cupcakes, is an enthusiastic and energetic graphic designer and knitter of brightly colored 'floppy berets'. Maggie Hannon is a fun, bookish person into crafting and many other things.

This collection of business cards is just a sampling of what I came home with and the folks I met. I'm sorry if you didn't make it into the post, I still love you, and feel free to contact me so I can include you in a future post. 

Craftcation: Networking and Notebooks

It's hard to believe that Craftcation was a week ago but, alas, it's true. It was an amazing conference and I had a great time teaching, taking classes, meeting friends, and rocking out at the 80s Dance Party. 
There was something to do all the time, but one of the most important things for me was that I had the pleasure of kicking off the event by teaching a course called Networking and Notebooks on Wednesday evening and then again on Thursday morning. 

I was lucky enough to have my class sponsored by Attune Foods, a San Francisco based company that makes delicious organic and non GMO cereals. With this in mind, we made books using cereal boxes for the covers, which meant I cut up about 100 boxes in preparation for the classes!

The course took place in one of the Ventura Beach Crowne Plaza's banquet rooms. I admit, at first I wasn't sure if the round tables would allow folks to see my demos but, this table set-up allowed students to more easily chat with their peers and I was able to walk the entire room and more easily assist students as needed.

There were a few eager early birds to my Wednesday evening class. I ended up hanging out with these lovely ladies for the rest of the conference!

Everyone loved their notebooks, we even made pockets in the covers to hold business cards. I had a great time and can't wait to teach more bookmaking classes at Craftcation 2014!

Business Cards

Last week I designed and printed my first ever custom business card job. I usually only make things for myself, so it was a bit challenging and nerve racking, but also oh-so-fun! 

The cards were for friend and photographer, Josh Smith.

Polymer plate, all locked up and ready to go

All packaged and ready to go