2013 Crafty Chicks Show & Sale

Hello. I thought you might enjoy seeing some photos from last Saturday's Crafty Chicks Show & Sale. There were a wide variety of talented artists on hand and lots of great ideas for Christmas shoppers. It was a fun, festive day and I enjoyed meeting everyone and seeing their work.

Here are just a few of the artists at the show. Click on each photo to visit the artists' website or shop (if available), and do some Christmas shopping yourself. Enjoy. :)

Amy Estelle Metalworks (me) and my handmade sterling silver and gemstone jewelry

Amy Estelle Metalworks

Amy Estelle Metalworks

Cheryl Izzo and Gretchen Finch are two of the original chicks and organizers of the show. Cheryl creates elegant 'Letter' painted canvases, one of a kind frames, vintage button collages and journals. Gretchen makes beautiful vintage button inspired creations—button collages, sterling silver button bookmarks, and button bracelets.

Gretchen Finch

Cheryl Izzo

Cheryl Holtman, of Holtman Haus Studios, makes bright, modern, functional pottery
as well as raku fired decorative pieces

Cheryl Holtman, of Holtman Haus Studios

Michelle Darter, of Hue & I Design, creates one-of-a-kind lampshade artwork

Clara Porter, of Clara's Paperclip Jewelry, makes fun, fashionable jewelry from paperclips and beads

Karen Kawallek, of Lake Providence Lodge, custom blends her own amazing scented wax melts

Karen Kawallek, of Lake Providence Lodge

Cheryl Jaeger sews fun, colorful gifts—including patchwork clutches, doll quilts and writing kits

Cheryl Jaeger

Amy Cecil, of Apple Scraps, makes hand-soldered pendants with a fun, earthy vibe
from natural and recycled materials

Amy Cecil, of Apple Scraps

Karla Taylor makes beautifully charming 2D & 3D needle felting work

Flora Chang offers a wide variety of handmade wares, all incorporating her sweet, imaginative style

Flora Chang

Tag Team Tompkins is a mother/daughter collaborative, making art that honors literary wit and wisdom, including letterpress prints and original mixed media art

Tag Team Tompkins

Daniel Shanks, of Shankalonian Labs, upcycles old computers and dead electronic equipment into amazing sculptures and creations

Daniel Shanks, of Shankalonian Labs

Daniel Shanks, of Shankalonian Labs

Lorraine Elmore creates Christmas decorations made of paper and decoupaged glass
with a lovely Parisian feel. Kim Mallory makes charming paper mache shoes with a vintage touch. 

Lorraine Elmore

Kim Mallory

Julie Reed creates beautiful, unique crocheted items, such as scarves and felted, embellished brooches

Julie Reed

Thank you so much for visiting. Happy shopping everyone!

Amy Estelle

Save the Date—November 30th!

The 14th Annual Crafty Chicks Show and Sale is coming up soon—Saturday, Nov. 30!  Make sure to mark your calendars and plan on attending if you can. It's a great place to get some holiday shopping done!  

This will be my first year as a Crafty Chick. I'm looking forward to seeing all of the wonderful handmade work and getting to meet all the makers too! I hope to see you there! :)

Thanks for visiting!

Amy Estelle

2013 Hallmarket Art Fair

Hello. This blog post is way over-due. I thought you all might like to see some photos from the recent 2013 Hallmarket Art Fair. There were over 100 Hallmark artists displaying and selling their personal artwork to the public. You could find everything from ceramics, paintings, fiber art, woodwork, photography, and of course jewelry of all kinds. And despite raining most of the day, we actually had a decent turn out and even a few sales. :)

My booth display.

My booth display.

My booth display -- some simple, little necklaces. 

My booth display.

Some folks braved the rain. :)

The rain finally stopped for good around 3:00 pm. Then, we had a few sales. YAY! :)

Thanks for visiting!

Amy Estelle

My First Art Fair!

October 1, 2011 marked a great milestone for me -- my very first art fair -- 2011 Hallmarket! This is an annual art fair sponsored by Hallmark for it's artists to display and sell their personal artwork to the public.

This was so exciting and so daunting at the same time! I started metalsmithing and making jewelry back in 1992 in college, and I'd always just sold to individuals and later online. I'd never done an art fair and kind of cringed at the thought of being 'on display.' EEK!

So the WORK began! And boy oh boy, it was ALOT of work! First and foremost, I needed to build up my inventory! Then there was the matter of how to display the pieces and what my booth display would look like.

RESEARCH + PLAN + SKETCH + BUILD + MAKE + SOLDER + HAMMER + TWIST HAIR + REPEAT

Production line!

Now, after all of that work, I'm thrilled to share a few photos of my very first art fair. I was scared to death, but I DID IT!!! And I couldn't have been happier with the way everything turned out! The booth display went together just as planned, the weather was beyond perfect, we had a huge crowd, my sweet Hubby helped me man my booth and I made 11 sales! What a perfect day! 

Couldn't have asked for better weather!

Welcome to Amy Estelle Metalworks!

I was really happy with the way the booth display came together!

I displayed  a small photo album containing both finished work and process shots.
I was thrilled to see people actually looked through it! Some even asked questions!

Homemade necklace displays. Fabric stretched over cork board and put into fancy frames.

Showing off my signature handmade clasps.

Contrasting necklace busts highlight the different silver finishes.

Custom logo stamped earring cards.

Overall, it was the perfect day, a great learning experience, good exposure for my shop and a whole lot of FUN!!! I saw inspiring artwork, met amazing people and spent a wonderful day with my Hubby! Thank you, Hallmark, for this wonderful opportunity! I look forward to next year's Hallmarket Art Fair! :)