Crafty Bastards!

This past Sunday, I attended Crafty Bastards! in Adams Morgan / DC for the second year in a row. The weather was great, and when I was there, it was packed full of shoppers. My vendor friends tell me this was very good for them, so I'm hoping sales were good for everyone across the board.

I saw many of the same vendors as last year, along with some new ones. It's getting very competitive to secure a spot as a vendor at this arts & crafts fair because it's known as one of the best around. I'll name a few vendors that caught my attention!

1. Sean Hennessey - Sculpture and mixed media: Sean is a friend from ArtDC.org, and this is his first time showing at Crafty Bastards. But I always love seeing his work in person. He's recently begun casting glass in addition to concrete, so it makes for some interesting pieces.



2. goshdarnknit - Rania Hassan: Rania was at last year's fair, and I mentioned her on the blog back then. But the work is still an interesting look at the blend between craft and fine art, while still being something that could be displayed in a gallery. I especially like the "Knit" series.



3. Woolarina - Fibers and knitting: There was a lot of this type of work at the fair, but I found theirs to be the most appealing. Lots of great colors and textures in a wide variety of products from hats, scarves, and other knitted wares, plus yarns for those who like to knit themselves. Check out their hand-painted yarns and fibers!



4. Alita's Jewelry - These guys had the coolest jewelry made out of hardware like gears, wrenches, forks, bolts and a bunch of other metal items. They don't seem to have a web site outside of their Crafty Bastards listing, but perhaps I was not looking hard enough? In any case, here's a photo:



5. Saint Bob and the Happy Little Trees - This display wins the award for the tent that freaked me out the most. All items featured famed PBS painter Bob Ross. Yeah. Freaky.



6. Rebound Designs - Caitlin Phillips was at last year's show as well, and I noted then that these bags made of old books certainly are crafty. Just a very cool idea and execution.




7. Damned Dollies - Again, another vendor I mentioned last year. There were a lot of t-shirt vendors at this fair, but these were the ones I would want to buy. No, I didn't buy one then and there (again!), but plan to shop on the web site at some point soon to find my size in the style and color I want. The downside of the fairs is that if you get there too late, you risk not finding what you want in your size. :-(



8. Rob Ullman - Rob was at last year's festival as well, as he is an illustrator for the City Paper. I relayed the story last year on the blog of how we went to Kent State University and I was a huge fan of his comic in the Daily Kent Stater - but that I had never met him while we were there. Well, after I met Rob for the first time last year, I acquired some of his newer work, as well as an anthology of his comic strips from the Daily Kent Stater! So cool! I stopped by the City Paper booth to say hi to him again this year, and I still think his work is incredible.

One of Rob's City Paper cover Illustrations:



So that is my rundown of this year's fair. I hope everyone had a good time, and if you missed it this year, definitely plan to go next year!