Opportunity for Metalsmith Jewelry Designers

I received an email from Rod at Dragon Herder Entertainment a couple of days ago letting me know he’s looking to connect with a Jewelry Designer who works with metal to collaborate on some custom jewelry designs. He describes the look he’s after as Old West meets Gothic with a touch of Steampunk. It sounds like he’s open to suggestions and it could be a great creative partnership for someone! If you’re interested in more information or getting in touch with Rod you can check out Dragon Herder’s website  or email Rod at rod@dragonherder.com

Wandering Winter Craft Show Vendor Calls

This year’s Wandering Winter Craft Show has posted the vendor call!

They will have two dates in two locations. The First is November 26th at the Church of Holy Trinity (Near the Eaton Centre) and the second is December 10th in the Ballroom of the Gladstone Hotel.

The deadline for Applications is September 10th. For more information and to download the application you can check out Shop Cats website here.

Also for those of you who are fellow Toronto Etsy Street Team members Shop Cats is also organizing a fall show for the team. It’s the TESTy Crafternoon Tea and Tiny Trunk Show being held on October 15th. For more information you can check out the flyer here or read the team discussion thread here for more details. Remember you have to be a member of the TESTy team for this show!

For the full listing of vendors calls and upcoming shows check out the “Calls for Vendors” page of my blog. And don’t forget about the new Artisan Support Network Forum that is available to connect with others who are interested in carpooling for shows, sharing tables or chatting about creative business related topics! Someone has posted offering to carpool for the Made By Hand show if anyone is having difficulty getting transportation there! Join in the conversation here.

Movies and Makers is Back!

I’ve been watching for the vendor call for the Christmas Movies and Makers show and it’s out! Movies and Makers will be held Saturday, December 17th and will once again partner with the Fox Theatre in The Beaches! This was such a fun show when I participated in the spring and a great mix of vendors! Applications are due by September 15th. You can find more information here.

Also, I posted awhile ago about the Made by Hand show but some of you may have missed it. The official deadline has passed but if you didn’t get your application in you’re not too late. They have 130 vendors currently for their November 5th show but still have room for a few more in certain categories. If you’re interested check out their site here.

As always don’t forget you can check out the entire list of vendor calls and upcoming shows on the “Calls for Vendors” page!

Workshops for Creative Entrepreneurs at Wise Daughters

Wise Daughters Craft Market is hosting two great workshops in September that are aimed towards Handmakers and Creative Entrepreneurs.

At the first workshop “The Art of Selling” on September 21st, Mary Breen (of Wise Daughters) will discuss how to pitch your products, pricing your items and how to identify your market.

At the second workshop on September 28th, Erin Calhoun-Mangat (of Socialiize Me) will host “The Art of Marketing via Social Media”. She will discuss how to take advantage of all the social media tools that are available to you without spend a dime.

Each workshop is just $25 or $40 if you choose to attend both. For more details about these workshops, or other creative workshops they offer visit their website.

Just Launched…Artisan Support Network Forum

Let me start out by reminding everyone why I love to blog. I enjoy sharing helpful information with others, specifically with other handmade sellers. I love how helpful the community of Artisans can be and I think that’s a great thing to encourage!

I’ve been posting vendor calls for quite a while now. I know many people visit this page of my blog on a regular basis but sometimes it’s hard to get feedback from readers. My last post was letting everyone know that I had updated the “Calls for Vendors” page with several new shows and the addition of shows not only in Toronto but throughout Ontario and even some across Canada. I received a great response of positive feedback via Facebook and emails. It was so great to hear that what I spend time doing really is helping! Really everyone who took the time to say thank you made my day!

Okay enough mushy stuff…

One email I received was from a handmade business owner telling me how helpful it was to have these vendor calls posted but that she is very limited to what shows she can get to, because like many of us living in Toronto, she doesn’t have access to a car. This got me thinking. This is a barrier I’ve had but I assumed it was mostly because I’m new to the city and am just starting to build a group a network here. Then today at the market I was participating in I heard the same thing from a couple of the vendors throughout the day. I decided to try to do something about this barrier.

New Vendor Calls Added

It’s sadly nearing the end of summer and time to start planning for Christmas. As sellers of handmade goods we know that we have to always be ahead of our customers so we find ourselves listing items for the Fall now and very soon for Christmas. Also it’s time (or past in some cases!) to plan for the Christmas Season of Craft Shows.

Photo Courtsey of Pinterest

I’ve been searching the web to update the “Calls for Vendors” page with some upcoming shows. This summer I visited a few shows outside of Toronto and at each one I recognized vendors from Toronto. I realized that many people travel throughout Ontario and even Canada to attend shows that are well attended. Also I’ve noticed many of my followers are from cities across Canada so I’ve decided to start including some vendor calls from throughout Ontario and across the country. Obviously I can’t get every little show from coast to coast but I will be sure to post any that I come across or that anyone contacts me with information about. I hope this helps even more people with finding some great shows to attend!

I updated with way too many shows to list them all in my post today so if you’re looking for new shows to apply for please take a minute to visit the “Calls for Vendors” page and see if any are right for you!

As always if you are organizing a show or know of one I can include on the list please be sure to contact me! ♥

Returning to 99 Market this Sunday!

I was a vendor at the new and fabulous 99 Market on August 7th and I had such a fun day I will be returning this Sunday!

If you haven’t had a chance to check it out plan on stopping by. There was a great mixture of vendors selling anything from streetwear, artwork, honey, food, coffee, textiles, local honey products, dog walking services, dance lessons, organic vegetable home delivery services,  jewelry (Of course!) and the list goes on. It was a fun and friendly atmosphere and the vendors were having as much fun as those who stopped by to check out the market.

99 Market is this Sunday, August 21st from 11am to 5pm. It’s located at 99 Sudbury. The market is kid friendly and dog friendly so bring the whole family!

100 Ideas to Market your Handmade Business

Just wanted to take a quick minute today to share a link to an interesting article I found on Creative Boom online Magazine.

The article is 100 Inspiring Ideas to Market Your Business.  They mention everything from simple things you’re probably already doing like being involved with social media such as twitter and facebook, to hosting giveaways, to joining forces with other businesses to writing your own ebooks.

There are some great ideas that are easy to do and some more difficult, but I’m sure in the list of 100 you’ll find atleast a few that you’re not yet doing that could work for you! I would love to hear what ideas you think you’ll try or already are trying and how they are working for you! ♥

Tomatoes are In Season…Try this Fresh Tomato Lasagna

I love tomatoes and I’m so excited that they are in season here in Southern Ontario and at their peak of flavor right now. This is one of the best recipes I can think of to enjoy the freshness of Ontario Field tomatoes at their best. My aunt makes this for family dinners at our cottage and it’s one of my favorites! Enjoy! ♥

Fresh Tomato Lasagna

3 lbs (1.5 kg) ripe tomatoes
1 lb (500 g) ricotta cheese, drained
3/4 cups (175 mL) grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg, beaten
1/2 tsp (2 mL) (approx) salt
Pinch each black pepper and nutmeg
1/3 cup (75 mL) (approx) extra-virgin olive oil
9 or 12 oven-ready lasagna noodles
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup (125 mL) coarsely chopped fresh basil
1/2 cup (125 mL) shredded mozzarella cheese
2 tbsp (30 mL) white wine, or 2 tbsp/30 mL water and 1 tsp/5 mL lemon juice

Slice off and discard ends of tomatoes; cut tomatoes into 1/2-inch/1 cm thick slices.

Stir together ricotta and Parmesan cheeses, egg, pinch of the salt, and pepper and nutmeg.

Spread about one-quarter of the oil on bottom of 13- x 9-inch/3 L baking dish. Lay 3 or 4 noodles in single layer, covering bottom; top with single layer of the tomato slices. Sprinkle with generous pinch of the salt, half of the garlic and half of the basil; drizzle with about one-third of the remaining oil and spread half of the ricotta mixture on top.

Repeat once with noodles, tomato slices, salt, garlic, basil, oil and ricotta mixture. Top with remaining noodles, tomato slices and oil; sprinkle with pepper to taste and mozzarella cheese, then drizzle wine over top. Cover with foil pierced with several vents.

Bake in 400F/200C oven until tomatoes are roasted and noodles are tender, about 1 hour. If there is more than about 1/4 cup/60 mL liquid in pan, uncover and bake until liquid is reduced to about 1/4 cup/60 mL, about 5 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Makes 8 servings. 383 Calories Per Serving.

Source Homemakers Magazine September 2008

Who Needs A Newsletter?

This is something I’ve asked myself over and over again wondering if I need a newsletter. I had come to the conclusion that yes I do need a newsletter but I didn’t know what I would have to offer that would make people want to subscribe to my newsletter.

Just as I was yet again contemplating this I read a great blog post from Mayi Carles on Heartmade Blog. Not only did she reassure me that I’m not the first person to question whether I needed a newsletter but she went on to give some fabulous advice and suggestions that made me realize YES! I do have something to offer readers of a newsletter. Be sure to check out her post and video here.