Sneak Peek #7

 {Brandon & Tabitha Todd ~ ToddAh}

At the beginning of 2012 Brandon & Tabitha Todd decided to open ToddAh out of their home in Kansas City, Mo. Their goal when opening the store was to “Make Joy Appear”. Wanting to be more than just an online shop, they keep that in mind with everything they do, from donating 20% of proceeds to charity, to creating designs for their products, and even when starting a blog to connect with, and give something back their visitors. The Todds do this because the more people they impact and meet, the more passionate they are about creating great products. Their wish is for people to seek joy in giving, just as much as in getting.

 {Sue Tague ~ Adornaments}

Sue Tague is a creative soul who recently retired from a 47-year-career at Hallmark. She spent the past 18 years as a master artist/sculptor in the Keepsakes Ornaments department. Earlier in her career she specialized in creating both 2D and 3D whimsical and cute characters for almost every product line Hallmark makes. Previously, Sue was a design professor at Syracuse University, where she earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts  degree, had a passion for toys, and often gave her students assignments to design marionettes and paper-mechanical products. That was when Sue created her first marionette. The passion to make characters move and "come to life" has been with her ever since. To accomplish this she uses a mixture of sculpting, fashion design and jewelry-making techniques, as well as a vast collection of "junk" (her husband's term) and beads collected here and there. "Adornaments by Sue Tague" are meant to add a bit of fun and happy to your life!

{Tracy McVay ~ 2 Werks Design}

After a 28-year career as a greeting card illustrator/designer for Hallmark Cards, Tracy McVay retired to take a second creative path. A passion for textiles and "beadie ornamentia," her mother's sewing room, and a burgeoning collection of bits, beads, and pieces has inspired her new journey making handcrafted jewelry and small accessories. Materials for her collection of necklaces and bracelets include antique beads, buttons, stones, felted bits, and crystals.  Each piece possesses an eclectic light, color and cross-cultural resonance of whimsey and nostalgia.  

Sneak Peek #6

{Gretchen Finch}

Gretchen Finch is one of the founding chicks and one of the organizers of the show. Her love of vintage buttons inspires her artwork so don’t be surprised to find a button somewhere in each piece. The theme of nature and birds also is a thread that is interwoven throughout her work.

Gretchen will be offering various vintage button collages, sterling silver button bookmarks, and button bracelets. This will be her 11th year to create a paper clay sculpted folk art creation. Holiday Hedgehog and his Red Bird friend capture the spirit of the holiday. Miniature Treasure Boxes could be the perfect gift for anyone on your “nice list” this year. Each small, metal, embellished box is one of a kind and comes with a sweet charm inside and an inspiring quote. 

{Maria Plubell ~ Ria Mar Designs}

Ria Mar Designs are unique - fun - affordable one-of-a-kind jewelry designs for the trendy chick in all of us.  Maria Plubell started doing this as a hobby alongside her full time job about 5 years ago. All handcrafted & assembled right here in the Metro Kansas City Area!

Some of the materials used are 100% genuine deerskin leather braided with rhinestone cup chain to create a wrap bracelet. Add a collegiate licensed charm to make it a special gift for someone!  Other items include rhinestone cross stretch bracelets designed using various unique beads, leather cord bracelets, earrings and more!  We love BLING!!

Contact Maria for wholesale pricing, customization, fundraising, girls night out parties and more! Treat yourself or they make a great gift to thank or surprise the fashion conscious lady!  I hope you enjoy my designs as much as I enjoy creating them!  

Make sure you visit the Ria Mar Designs Face Book page for updated designs and stop by my booth for some fun-affordable shopping!  Website coming soon!

Sneak Peek #5

 {Lorraine Colbert Elmore ~ Altelier}

In the Altelier booth you will find Christmas decorations made of paper and decoupaged glass, and bottle-cap  jewelry. Lorraine Elmore designs with  metal, paper, glass, semi-precious stones and one-of-a-kind vintage buttons. Her designs pair a Parisian sensibility with up-cycled chic. 

 {Michelle Darter ~ Hue & I Design}

Michelle Darter's lampshades are original works of art carefully stitched on her vintage Necchi sewing machine given to her in high school.  Each one is unique and one of a kind, carefully crafted from recycled sweaters and vintage, or new wire frames sourced locally.  They reflect Michelle's formal training in graphic design as well as a love of nature, repurposing and most importantly color, as the name of her company Hue & I Design reflects.

After purchasing a large vintage lamp several years ago, Michelle was unable to find a cool lampshade to accompany it. She went to her own closet and began cutting, sewing and sculpting her sweaters into these lovely creations.

At her table you'll find many styles of sweater shades from Frenchy feminine to funky retro to nature inspired.  Stop by and pick up a card if you would like to order a custom lampshade from her later.

Michelle hopes you can enjoy her lampshades as much as she enjoys making them.  The shades may also be purchased at Nook & Cranny in the West Bottoms area of Kansas City during the First Friday Sales events along with antiques and more home decor.  If you are like Michelle, you'll want one in every room of your home!

 {Mindi Ogden ~ Wonderfully Made}

This is Mindi Ogden's fifth year participating in Crafty Chicks. Mindi is a production designer at Hallmark who loves to design handcrafted beads and make them into wearable artwork creations. Mindi's small business "Wonderfully Made," is taken from the bible verse: I am fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). Mindi makes every design perfect for any girl ~ each piece has a little whimsy ~ they are colorful, funky, unique, totally you and Wonderfully Made!

Sneak Peek #4

{Kim Pjecha ~ Linkaa}

After days of happily rearranging pixels as a surface designer, Kim Pjecha loves to come home and make something real.  Two years ago she made a pair of little red slippers for her niece from a felted wool sweater, and Linkaa, her etsy shop was born- it's filled with felted slippers, hats, mittens and purses.  Everything is fun, useful and earth-friendly, and features products made from upcycled wool, freshly felted and ready for a new life ~ make sure to visit to see additional designs!

Stop by Kim's table at Crafty Chicks to see her beautiful accessories and admire her craftsmanship in person ~ great gifts for the holiday and colder weather!

{Karen Kawallek}

Karen Kawallek began Lake Providence Lodge scented wax melts as a result of her love for a cozy smelling home and a desire for longer lasting scented wax melts than she was able to find. The company name came from a sign she painted a number of years ago and the name fits perfectly as her home, garden and workspace each are filled with rustic cabin and lodge décor.

Karen's dye-free, flame-free melts made with phthalate-free fragrance oils offer a safe way to beautifully scent your home or office. Her melts are designed to be placed in wax warmers and you can blend chunks of melts together to create new scents to enjoy. 

This is Karen's first year at Crafty Chicks and she is eager to have you stop by her table and find melts for you or gifts for family and friends.

 {Karla Taylor}

Karla Taylor has been Needle Felting for over 10 years and is finally starting to bring her work to the craft show world.

Her two dimensional framed pieces are a combination of wool textiles, needle felting, and embellished with beads.

Three dimensional needle felted dogs are a favorite subject matter being the dog lover that she is.

Sneak Peek #3

 {Em Byerly ~ MCC Studio}

Em Byerly is a 3D gifts designer for Hallmark by day, and a die-hard crafter after hours. She enjoys the beauty of a well made product. Em spends her time outside of work making a range of pretty things, from make-up bags, plush elephants, and other sewing projects to soaps, jewelry, and more. WIth Christmas around the corner she's made a lot of great small gifts perfect for co-workers, friends, and stocking stuffers. Make sure to stop by her table and say hello!

 {Clara Porter ~ Clara's Paperclip Jewelry}

Clara Porter has designed and made paperclip jewelry ever since she was thirteen years old. She started her business as a way to express her creativity and to offer fun and inexpensive jewelry. Each piece is hand crafted and made 100% out of paperclips and beads. The jewelry is fun, fashionable, and light weight. Any of Clara's designs are available in silver or gold, an array of bead colors, and in multiple shapes. Bracelets are $8.00, earrings are $4.00, and a set is $10.00. For more information visit her website. 

{Julie Day ~ Happy Days} 

This is Julie Day's third year creating goodies for Crafty Chicks.  She spends "happy days" crafting wool felt flowers, upcycling household treasures, making decorative ribbon for packaging, and using her collection of old books and papers to transform boxes, hangers and countless other items.  Julie's love for all things vintage (and cute!) expresses itself through her creations.  Come visit with a friend and find a reason to smile.

Sneak Peek #2

Here are several other artists who will be participating in this year's Crafty Chicks Show & Sale ~ take a look and make sure to mark your calendar for November 30th!

 {Amy Estelle ~ Amy Estelle Metalworks}

Amy Estelle is a Web Production Designer by day, and a metalsmith on nights and weekends. Amy uses both traditional and modern metalsmithing techniques to personally fabricate each piece by hand. She specializes in sterling and fine silver creations, using raw material such as sterling sheet and wire. Amy torch solders, saws, files, sands, forms the metal and sets the stones by hand with great love and care.

This is Amy's first year as a Crafty Chick. Come check out her table and finds lots of great gifts for your family and friends, and don't forget to treat yourself! She'll have lot of sterling silver earrings, necklaces and bracelets, with a wide range of prices, so you're sure to find something perfect!

To do some pre-show (or post-show) shopping, visit Amy's website and "Like" her Facebook page to get all of her latest shop updates and see her latest work.

 {Cheryl Jaeger}

In her first year as a Crafty Chick, Cheryl Jaeger will feature writing kits and doll quilts for the kiddos. Cheryl loves to sew and create fun and useful gifts for friends and the little ones. You will also find pouches and Patchwork Clutches; one of her favorite things to make because she gets to play with strips and bits of her favorite modern and vintage fabrics.  Visit her etsy store to see more examples of her work.

{Daniel Shanks ~ Shankalonian Labs}

Dan Shanks started his shop in 2010 for fun as an avenue to sell his art prints. Later that year, he was given a few dead computers from a colleague at work to tinker with and tear apart.  Behold, he found art within the circuit boards.  A few months later, Shankalonian Labs was formed!  He is now in the business of "upcycling" old computers and various dead electronics equipment into all sorts of sculptures and creations. Check out Dan's etsy store or his Pinterest board for a closer look at his work.

Sneak Peek #1

Introducing several of the 2013 Crafty Chicks Show and Sale artists! In the next couple of weeks, please check back often as work from other participating artists will be featured. Make sure to plan on coming to the show where you will be able to see a full selection of work from each artist and get some holiday shopping done!

{Amy Cecil ~ Apple Scraps}

Amy Cecil makes hand-soldered pendants with a fun, earthy vibe. Most are made with found, natural and recycled materials from game pieces to peacock feathers.

{Allison Shaw-Thompson ~ Shaw Girl Studio}

Allison Shaw-Thompson is a mixed media artist who enjoys collage, paint, paper and ephemera.  She uses a variety of materials and mediums to create whimsical one-of-a-kind pieces.  She sells locally at the Red Apron and Peyton's Closet, and also enjoys creating commissioned work.  This is her second year exhibiting at Crafty Chicks!

{Cheryl Holtman ~ Holtman Haus Studios}

Meet Cheryl Holtman ~ she loves clay and the many forms it takes in her hands. Cheryl uses earthenware, stoneware and porcelain clays. She began by handbuilding pieces over thirty years ago, then progressed to wheel-throwing ~ sitting at the wheel creating pieces of pottery is like meditation for her ~ calming, soothing and totally relaxing.

Pottery ranges in size from spoon rests to serving trays with patterns, textures and designs making each unique.  Cheryl's pieces are either functional in nature in bright, modern colors or raku fired decorative pieces. Raku firing is a traditional Japanese process, but is not used in this country for pieces intended for use with foods. Raku firing is also the technique used with horse hair pottery ~ pieces with little glazing, but with carbonized designs made with horse hair.

Additional designs can be viewed on instagram as Rakupotterkc13. Contact Cheryl with any questions or inquiries at rakupotterkc@gmail.com

Save the Date! November 30th!

The 14th Annual Crafty Chicks Show and Sale is coming up soon!  Make sure to mark your calendars and plan on attending - a great place to get some holiday shopping done!  

Check back here in the next two weeks for sneak peeks of the participating artists' work - or visit the participating artists websites at right if you can't wait. Like us on Facebook to get the updates.