My Time at the American Craft Council Show - Photos and Websites to Share

Yesterday was the last day of this year's American Craft Council Show, and we were there by 10:30 am, waiting for the doors to open at 11:00 am. Chickie and ChickieMama also came, although we only saw and chatted with them while we were all waiting entry. After the doors opened, I never saw them again - they probably were working opposite directions than I was, and I wasn't lingering. DH stayed with me for the first aisle, then broke off to keep his own faster pace. He found me later and told me he'd find a place to sit and wait for me and for me to take my time. I was finished shortly after noon and we headed home to watch football. 

I really liked the idea of recycling stained glass into 
various jewelry pieces. These earrings are by Linda 
Banning - a local artist from Minneapolis. If you are 
interested in seeing more of her work, go to her website 
www.LBOriginalsStainedGlass.com and click on any 
of the larger photos to get into the sales area for that 
product. 

As always, there were many lovely things to look at - items I enjoyed, or simply admired. I hope all of those exhibiting were happy with the sales for their long weekend, but it's always difficult to say that for sure. There certainly were some very talented artists and craftspeople showing their wares. 

I mis-spoke when I said I had only collected the cards 
of jewelry makers. I also collected a card from Grant Kaihoi, 
a wonderful craftsperson from Illinois. I loved his use of 
negative space. Look carefully at the photo above. Although 
there is a crack in each bench, that crack is carefully filled with 
perfectly symmetrical, darker wooden rods "stitching" the 
wood together. His use of negative space for positive 
impact really entranced me. It has so many applications 
in other crafts as well. If you would like to see more 
of his work, check out his website at www.grantkaihoi.com .

I rarely buy at these shows, but have been known to place orders, or to simply go onto websites afterward and buy that way. I've also been known to watch artists for several years before deciding on a piece. Instead of buying, I collect business cards from those artists I want to examine more carefully with more time. To my surprise, after I came home and looked through the small amount of cards I had collected, at least two were local. That's good news because they might also sell their work at a couple of stores that feature collective work from local craftspeople. 

Sam Woehrmann creates fine jewelry with 
precious stones out of gold, but he has 
a sense of whimsical design that bring his 
designs out of the staid and boring and 
into the playful and charismatic. I didn't 
care for a lot of his work - too predictable, 
but there were pieces like this that caught 
my imagination. I'd be entitling this one 
"Orbit" - the orbit of the earth in the 
solar system, the orbit of the moon around 
the earth. Does he call it that? Probably 
not. It may not even have a name, but 
it's lovely, isn't it? Want to see more? 
You can see his work on www.iamthatsam.com .

At least one of the craftspeople has an Etsy sales platform, although she doesn't have much selection on it. I wasn't in a buying mood - general expenses have been too high lately - but I did sit down at my computer and look at each of the websites or sales platforms from their business cards. I might buy later on, or simply mark down that I want to check their work out again next year. 

I loved the work of David Alvarado who 
sells under the name Irthly. He uses 
the heart of palm to mimic ivory or 
bone, making something precious from 
a sustainable source. He has a wonderful 
design aesthetic, which was rewarded by his 
being a finalist for the prestigious Saul Bell 
Award in 2018. His work is FINE jewelry 
and VERY expensive, but absolutely 
captivating and beautifully crafted. You 
can see his work at shop.irthly.com and it's 
well worth a look. 

The number of vendors was down at least 1/3, maybe a bit more, from pre-Covid years. That's great for new vendors who are being encouraged to try selling by virtue of reduced booth fees and other assistance from the ACC. In past, there had been several "shared" spaces for new vendors - crowding 3-4 vendors into the space normally reserved for a single person. This time, each vendor, new or established, had their own space, and it was a generous space. The "new vendors" could really showcase their products, and some did their displays beautifully. Others ... not so much. 

I wouldn't normally bother with a beadworker - 
after all, it's a media I have worked in for more 
than half a century. But I liked the vision of 
Barb Benjamin and her pieces were well 
constructed and well designed. She sells 
on Facebook under Singing Bear Creations and 
also has an Etsy store. She's local, so she also 
has some of her items at "Antiques on Main" 
in Hopkins, Minnesota. She's easiest to find by 
just doing a search on Singing Bear Creations 
if you want to see more of her work. 

So, looking at the cards I took, it seems I concentrated on jewelry items this time. Of course, that's practical. I have no wall space for artwork, and no real room for furniture or larger glass works (although there were some very wonderful pieces available). I stuck to the small - things that I would wear. I'm sharing some photos with you because the best things are shared between friends. Have an excellent Monday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini.