 |
| Make a bracelet with Melissa |
When: June 1st, 1-4 pm
Where: Better Than Jam, #16 Nolan Park, Governors Island
May 31, 2013
Free Jewelry Making Workshop 6/1
When: June 1st, 1-4 pm
Where: Better Than Jam, #16 Nolan Park, Governors Island
May 30, 2013
Crafts in Chelsea Preview
As posted yesterday, the Fifth Annual Spring Crafts in Chelsea is this Saturday, June 1st. From 10 AM until 5 PM, 21st Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenue will be filled with one-of-a-kind wares for everyone on your gift list (including yourself!). Following is a sample
from participating local artisans. Enjoy!
from participating local artisans. Enjoy!
Stuffed animals by SweaterToys
Alphabet Studs and other jewelry by SaruStar
Super-heroes Rubiks Cube and other handcrafted gifts by DaintyCreations
Hope to see you on Saturday!
Until next time --
Linda
May 29, 2013
DanceAfrica 2013
DanceAfrica is an annual celebration at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) which celebrates the culture of Africa and its diaspora through dance, art, and film. The event also features an outdoor bazaar which showcases the creativity and artwork from over 200 different vendors.
Created in 1977, to heighten awareness of African culture, the festival has evolved into a wonderful celebration that brings the entire community together. DanceAfrica is BAM's longest running program and one of America's largest and most vibrant celebrations of African dance, music, and culture. The celebration is a week-long affair with special performances and shows inside BAM. The outdoor bazaar takes place over Memorial Day weekend (sat-mon.) Unfortunately, this year, The first day was plagued by rain, but that did not stop the throngs of people showing up for the next two days.
I have a real fondness for DanceAfrica because it was the first craft show I did...way back in 2007! After a brief break, I returned in 2010, and have been back every year since selling my soaps and other goodies. Below are just a sampling of the fantastic art that was on display all weekend at BAM's outdoor bazaar.
I walked by this painting, and had to stop and talk to the artist. This is just one of the many beautiful paintings displayed by Abul Badi. All of the art on display were stunning, and would make a dramatic statement in any home.
Stuart McClean creates these gorgeous paintings by using acrylic paint on fabric. He had many different paintings on display, but I was drawn to these beautiful pieces featuring African masks.
This artwork came in the form of shower curtains and hooks featuring Adinkra Symbols. These symbols are often seen in many different types of art from West Africa. Konjo Andenger incorporated this artwork into various home good items, including pillowcases, and the shower curtain pictured above.
I absolutely love these cute little dolls! Brenda Jackson, owner and creator of Bashful Babies. Such a creative concept, I was immediately drawn to this booth. I only wish that I had come across these years ago when my nieces were little. But, they are perfect for any doll collector or the young and heart!
Necheesa Morgan took her love of t-shirts and paired that with revolutionary and iconic men in history. Her wonderful company T-Revolutionary.com features true heroes like Martin Luther King Jr, Steve Biko, and Nelson Mandela. 10% of sales are donated to one of 5 causes near and dear to Necheesa's heart.
DanceAfrica is over for this year, but make sure you stop by in 2014. Remember, it always takes place the weekend of Memorial Day, so mark your calendars! Many of the same artists return every year, so you will have your chance to purchase some wonderful art, and of course support local artisans!
Until next time....happy crafting!
Nordea
nordeasoaperie
Created in 1977, to heighten awareness of African culture, the festival has evolved into a wonderful celebration that brings the entire community together. DanceAfrica is BAM's longest running program and one of America's largest and most vibrant celebrations of African dance, music, and culture. The celebration is a week-long affair with special performances and shows inside BAM. The outdoor bazaar takes place over Memorial Day weekend (sat-mon.) Unfortunately, this year, The first day was plagued by rain, but that did not stop the throngs of people showing up for the next two days.
I have a real fondness for DanceAfrica because it was the first craft show I did...way back in 2007! After a brief break, I returned in 2010, and have been back every year since selling my soaps and other goodies. Below are just a sampling of the fantastic art that was on display all weekend at BAM's outdoor bazaar.
Nordea
nordeasoaperie
May 28, 2013
The Easiest Way to Calculate and Pay Your Quarterly Estimated Taxes
This post is brought to you by Outright, the
easiest way to manage your business finances
online for a more empowering selling experience!
Entrepreneurs
who have been in business for longer than a day know just how big a role taxes
play in your business life. Whether you’re calculating sales tax or filing
annual taxes in April, government agencies have their hands out waiting for
your payment. It can get to a point where all you do is punch numbers into a
calculator!
One of the
most frequent taxes you’ll deal with as a business owner is the Quarterly
Estimated Tax, or QET. These tax payments come every quarter and can quickly
spiral out of control if you don’t have a handle on your finances. It doesn’t
help that many entrepreneurs don’t even know what QETs are in the first place!
Let’s take a
look at what these taxes are and how you can take care of them in no time flat.
What are Quarterly Estimated Taxes?
When you
work at a salary or wage job you regularly have money come out of your
paychecks. This money goes to taxes your employer sends in to various
government agencies in a lump sum from all employees. It’s simple for you since
the only thing you had to do was fill out an initial form for how much to take
out each paycheck.
Now, though,
things are nowhere near that simple for you. There’s no employer to take care
of this for you since you’re now your own boss. Plus, sending in taxes as an
entrepreneur or freelancer is much more complicated than filling out a form.
For one,
there’s no monthly, weekly, or bi-weekly paychecks coming to you. You get paid
when your clients or customers send you money. So there had to be some sort of
designated periods to send in taxes, and that’s where QETs come in. Every
quarter you calculate how much you owe to the IRS and send in a payment. This
is why every few months you can see every small business owner and freelancer
tearing their hair out.
What should you do about QETs?
Figuring out
your QET payments is no simple manner…if you don’t have your finances in order.
If you’ve already got a good system going, you probably won’t have as hard a
time. So before you do anything, get all your papers in order and entered into
Outright - receipts, invoices, every penny of income and expense associated
with your business. Not only will this help with QETs it can also streamline
your business as a whole.
After making
sure everything is entered into Outright or another accounting system, you must
calculate how much money you made over the taxable year. Outright Plus will do this for you automatically
on the “Quarterly Estimated Taxes” tab.
If you do these
calculations manually,
remember these are quarterly payments so you have to divide by four. This
number will be the first payment you send in. Keep in mind it may not be 100%
accurate (that’s why they’re “estimated”). In April, you may end up owing a
little more, or even receiving a refund if you estimated your tax debt too
high.
As for
sending in your federal payments, one of the easiest ways to do it is by
signing up for the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System, or EFTPS. After you sign up you can log on
and pay directly to the IRS so there’s no chance of anything getting lost in
the mail. If your state requires QETs they may have a similar system in place –
check their tax website to find out.
If you have
more questions about Quarterly Estimated Taxes, check out Outright’s Online Seller’s Tax
Guide for the lowdown on the various taxes online sellers have to deal
with.
5th Annual Crafts in Chelsea is June 1
You can find a complete list of vendors at www.TwoFairLadies.com.
May 23, 2013
Hello Etsy: An Introduction to The Third Industrial Revolution and the Urgency of Jeremy Rifkin
Dear Readers,
Remember, how I promised to cover every session at Hello Etsy? Well, this month I'm going to share the opening Keynote presentation by Jeremy Rifkin, a man of many hats. He is an adviser to the European Union and to heads around the world, a senior lecturer at the Wharton School's Executive Education Program at the University of Pennsylvania, President of the Foundation on Economic Trends in Washington, D.C., and author of The New York Times best selling book, The Third Industrial Revolution, How Lateral Power is Transforming Energy, the Economy, and the World.
Friday night, March 22nd, the Main Hall at Pratt Institute was a buzz. Everyone in attendance was focused on the Keynote presentations opening this year's Hello Etsy. Beginning with a warm welcome from the organizing Etsy Values and Impact Team, Etsy CEO Chad Dickerson, offered an inspiring presentation that included comments on his decision to take five weeks of paternity leave after bringing home his son. I could spend more time on Chad's presentation including his mention of the 1936 film "Modern Times" by Charlie Chaplin (video clip is below) and the following quote by Mahatma Gandhi, "Production by the masses, not mass production," but I will not. Instead, I will focus on Jeremy Rifkin, who came on after, and who Chad did a great job of setting the stage for what was to come that weekend.
Mr. Rifkin from the beginning was a breath of honest air. Many, those who don't believe in climate change, that our government needs a shake up, or who believe that our economy is on the mend, would disagree with what he would go on to say, but I sat glued to my seat and experienced a range of feelings- troubled, scared, agreement, and hope. Over all, I felt a hope that the two hundred people sitting in that room would feel the urgency of Mr. Rifkin's message and turn that into inspiration to do more.
The first thing Mr. Rifkin said to the Hall was, "Everything in our current civilization is reliant on petrochemical (fossil fuels)." Not surprising to me given the time I've spent working with a large corporation on business interested heavily linked to petrochemicals, but for many others this may be a surprise. According to data he shared, crude oil production peaked in 1979 and 2006. We had the most oil per capita in those two years. However, with the Great Recession of 2008, things are different. According to Mr. Rifkin, two moments proving that the world we rely on fossil fuel is ending:
1. July 2008, when the prices of everything increased
2. The Great Sichuan Earthquake which resulted in the fall of the Stock Market
Not only are these statistics important to his presentation, but I think they give another perspective to those of you following current issues being battled by environmental groups in the US, Canada and even Europe - tar sands and fracking.
As he went on, he touched on climate change and what he considers the most terrifying piece of the topic-the water cycle. According to research, every one degree rise in temperature creates more moisture in the air. This leads to more destructive hurricanes and natural disasters (last year's Hurricane Sandy l, or this week's Oklahoma tornado, anyone?) that impact us all on a global scale.
After sharing these terrifying statistics and with full-on urgency in his voice, Mr. Rifkin turned to us and said, "what we need is a new economic plan for this world. It needs to move quickly to off-set carbon in 30 years, if we want hope."
He then went into discussing the Third Industrial Revolution (TIR) - a lateral power shift -favoring small business and the World. In discussing how we need a lateral power shift to really create change, he used examples underway in the European Union currently. The EU is undergoing what they call the "disruptive revolution" focusing on the use of distributive energies such as wind, heat, sun, and waves. Where instead of relying on fossil fuels, we look to these new energies as a way of producing what we need, but also being able to store and share these energies with others on a more global scale.
He did mention how Etsy is allowing us small business owners to be part of this lateral power shift. Rather than selling through middlemen and relying on traditional business methods and practices, the use of the internet and sites like Etsy, have allowed us to directly target our market and share our products (that are often times not as energy dependent as goods created in a large scale factory) with those who want and value them. Even greater, is that we're not just limited to goods, we're using this power to educate, and we're winning what might seem like a small battle, but is actually a much larger concern.
In line with this topic of a lateral power shift, Mr. Rifkin stated the following, "In the next 20 years, failure will have everything to do with energy costs, not labor costs." We need to focus on renewable energies in order to move the TIR forward. While there are parties actively creating and looking to the disruptive energies listed above, there aren't enough. Not to mention the EU can not be the only government entity looking to move ahead with these ideas.
I'm not sure that any of us Etsy sellers will be creating renewable energies, but we are part of the class of entrepreneurs in this new revolution, and if we are going to help create a shift in consciousness within the next 25 years, as Mr. Rifkin asked us to, then we need to start thinking about this and our role in how to bring more change and responsibility into our businesses. Then use that as a means to change the political spectrum. We can use our muscle to demand sustainable practices and better energy systems the same way that large corporations and their lobbyists demand and promote unfair and bad business practices.
These same large corporations now, they are all eagerly publishing catalogs on the "socially good" programs they are creating and money they donate philanthropically, but we need to see more change. Unlike those large companies, we small businesses can make these goals part of our mission statements and part of our every day habits and really mean them. I'm not criticizing these large corporations too much. I know I've helped keep them going, but as a small business owner and an environmentalist who cares about my impact on the World, I need to be aware and make necessary steps to keep my business aligned with my beliefs.
As for Mr. Rifkin, I don't know if he'll come across this posting, but if he does, Thank you Mr. Rifkin for your overwhelming and educational presentation. I am still thinking about it!
More on Hello Etsy to come!
//Sara
S2 Stationery and Design
Remember, how I promised to cover every session at Hello Etsy? Well, this month I'm going to share the opening Keynote presentation by Jeremy Rifkin, a man of many hats. He is an adviser to the European Union and to heads around the world, a senior lecturer at the Wharton School's Executive Education Program at the University of Pennsylvania, President of the Foundation on Economic Trends in Washington, D.C., and author of The New York Times best selling book, The Third Industrial Revolution, How Lateral Power is Transforming Energy, the Economy, and the World.
Friday night, March 22nd, the Main Hall at Pratt Institute was a buzz. Everyone in attendance was focused on the Keynote presentations opening this year's Hello Etsy. Beginning with a warm welcome from the organizing Etsy Values and Impact Team, Etsy CEO Chad Dickerson, offered an inspiring presentation that included comments on his decision to take five weeks of paternity leave after bringing home his son. I could spend more time on Chad's presentation including his mention of the 1936 film "Modern Times" by Charlie Chaplin (video clip is below) and the following quote by Mahatma Gandhi, "Production by the masses, not mass production," but I will not. Instead, I will focus on Jeremy Rifkin, who came on after, and who Chad did a great job of setting the stage for what was to come that weekend.
Mr. Rifkin from the beginning was a breath of honest air. Many, those who don't believe in climate change, that our government needs a shake up, or who believe that our economy is on the mend, would disagree with what he would go on to say, but I sat glued to my seat and experienced a range of feelings- troubled, scared, agreement, and hope. Over all, I felt a hope that the two hundred people sitting in that room would feel the urgency of Mr. Rifkin's message and turn that into inspiration to do more.
The first thing Mr. Rifkin said to the Hall was, "Everything in our current civilization is reliant on petrochemical (fossil fuels)." Not surprising to me given the time I've spent working with a large corporation on business interested heavily linked to petrochemicals, but for many others this may be a surprise. According to data he shared, crude oil production peaked in 1979 and 2006. We had the most oil per capita in those two years. However, with the Great Recession of 2008, things are different. According to Mr. Rifkin, two moments proving that the world we rely on fossil fuel is ending:
1. July 2008, when the prices of everything increased
2. The Great Sichuan Earthquake which resulted in the fall of the Stock Market
Not only are these statistics important to his presentation, but I think they give another perspective to those of you following current issues being battled by environmental groups in the US, Canada and even Europe - tar sands and fracking.
As he went on, he touched on climate change and what he considers the most terrifying piece of the topic-the water cycle. According to research, every one degree rise in temperature creates more moisture in the air. This leads to more destructive hurricanes and natural disasters (last year's Hurricane Sandy l, or this week's Oklahoma tornado, anyone?) that impact us all on a global scale.
After sharing these terrifying statistics and with full-on urgency in his voice, Mr. Rifkin turned to us and said, "what we need is a new economic plan for this world. It needs to move quickly to off-set carbon in 30 years, if we want hope."
He then went into discussing the Third Industrial Revolution (TIR) - a lateral power shift -favoring small business and the World. In discussing how we need a lateral power shift to really create change, he used examples underway in the European Union currently. The EU is undergoing what they call the "disruptive revolution" focusing on the use of distributive energies such as wind, heat, sun, and waves. Where instead of relying on fossil fuels, we look to these new energies as a way of producing what we need, but also being able to store and share these energies with others on a more global scale.
He did mention how Etsy is allowing us small business owners to be part of this lateral power shift. Rather than selling through middlemen and relying on traditional business methods and practices, the use of the internet and sites like Etsy, have allowed us to directly target our market and share our products (that are often times not as energy dependent as goods created in a large scale factory) with those who want and value them. Even greater, is that we're not just limited to goods, we're using this power to educate, and we're winning what might seem like a small battle, but is actually a much larger concern.
In line with this topic of a lateral power shift, Mr. Rifkin stated the following, "In the next 20 years, failure will have everything to do with energy costs, not labor costs." We need to focus on renewable energies in order to move the TIR forward. While there are parties actively creating and looking to the disruptive energies listed above, there aren't enough. Not to mention the EU can not be the only government entity looking to move ahead with these ideas.
I'm not sure that any of us Etsy sellers will be creating renewable energies, but we are part of the class of entrepreneurs in this new revolution, and if we are going to help create a shift in consciousness within the next 25 years, as Mr. Rifkin asked us to, then we need to start thinking about this and our role in how to bring more change and responsibility into our businesses. Then use that as a means to change the political spectrum. We can use our muscle to demand sustainable practices and better energy systems the same way that large corporations and their lobbyists demand and promote unfair and bad business practices.
These same large corporations now, they are all eagerly publishing catalogs on the "socially good" programs they are creating and money they donate philanthropically, but we need to see more change. Unlike those large companies, we small businesses can make these goals part of our mission statements and part of our every day habits and really mean them. I'm not criticizing these large corporations too much. I know I've helped keep them going, but as a small business owner and an environmentalist who cares about my impact on the World, I need to be aware and make necessary steps to keep my business aligned with my beliefs.
I could spend pages on his presentation, but I am limited here and I don't want to overwhelm you with too much more. Before Hello Etsy, we received an email that included an article by Mr. Rifkin in the World Financial Review on March 20, 2012, titled, "The Third Industrial Revolution: How the Internet, Green Electricity, and 3-D Printing are Ushering in a Sustainable Era of Distributed Capitalism." It is heavy on economic terms and he discusses 3-D printers, which I didn't even touch upon, but I think it's a great way to learn more about Mr. Rifkin and what he believes needs to happen if we are to shift consciously and save the planet.
What do YOU think, readers? Do you think we can help shift the global conscious? Is there something you can do to help move the TIR? Or better yet, just change one thing in your business to help? Let me know below in the comments. I'm always interested in the what I can learn from all of you.
As for Mr. Rifkin, I don't know if he'll come across this posting, but if he does, Thank you Mr. Rifkin for your overwhelming and educational presentation. I am still thinking about it!
More on Hello Etsy to come!
//Sara
S2 Stationery and Design
Face Painting with Etsy NY on Governors Island
 |
| Chinaman Ditsy Dish by Take Me Homeware |
Throughout the summer Etsy NY members will teach free workshops on Saturdays from 1-4 at Better than Jam on Governors Island in Nolan Park. The first workshop will be on June 1st taught by our very own blogger Melissa of Prairiefunk.
 |
| Cowgirl Necklace by Prairiefunk |
See you on the island,
Simonegroundsel.etsy.com
May 21, 2013
Sewing Tutorial: Father's Day Pocket Square
Father's Day is coming up, June 16th, and I wanted to share a special and easy gift you can make for the dad in your life. And this doesn't have to be just for dads, my friend Kayte loves these pocket squares for herself. She uses them all the time especially in the New York City humid summers. If you are a beginning sewer this is a great project for you.
The key ingredient for this pocket square is you want very soft cotton. I used Liberty of London which is called a Lawn Fabric. The count is high, which means there are a lot of very fine threads per inch making it softer (think of high count bedding sheets). Robert Kaufman, a popular fabric manufacturer, also makes a lawn fabric in solid colors.
Materials:
1/2 yard of fabric ( you will be using a 12" square but stores usually require you buy a minimum)
matching cotton machine thread
size 8 needle
fine pins
Step 1:
Cut out a 12" square and iron. Fold over 1/4" twice on 2 opposite ends. I pin down, iron, then secure the pins into the fabric.
Step 5: when you reach a corner, sew to the end and back stitch to the beginning of the fold. Leave the needle in, pick presser foot up and pivot. Sew down the next seam. Repeat on all corners.
Step 6 all finished, iron and steam and gift!
The fabric I used is the Liberty of London Margaret Annie in color purple green. And remember to pre-wash your fabric.
Enjoy!
Tracey Toole
www.traceytoole.etsy.com
http://traceytoole.blogspot.com/
The key ingredient for this pocket square is you want very soft cotton. I used Liberty of London which is called a Lawn Fabric. The count is high, which means there are a lot of very fine threads per inch making it softer (think of high count bedding sheets). Robert Kaufman, a popular fabric manufacturer, also makes a lawn fabric in solid colors.
Materials:
1/2 yard of fabric ( you will be using a 12" square but stores usually require you buy a minimum)
matching cotton machine thread
size 8 needle
fine pins
Step 1:
Cut out a 12" square and iron. Fold over 1/4" twice on 2 opposite ends. I pin down, iron, then secure the pins into the fabric.
Step 2: where the raw edge meets the now folded edged, fold in the corner at an angle, this way your corners will be nice and neat and have no fabric overhang. Repeat step one, fold over 1/4" seam allowance twice.
 |
| step 2 - fold corner at angle |
Step 3: all fabric is pinned down. Because this is such a skinny seam allowance I do pin it parallel to the seam. Normally in the classes I teach I tell my students pins should be perpendicular so the pins can be pulled out while you sew or the needle can jump the pins.
 |
| step 3 - pinned down on all 4 sides. |
Step 4: Sew on the inside fold. This ends up being about 1/4" seam allowance. If you are using the Liberty of London or the Robert Kaufman Lawn fabrics use a size 8 needle since it is finer. Start your sewing somewhere in the middle, not on a corner. This reduces the risk of the fabric getting bunched up on a corner or pushed down into the machine.
 |
| step 4 sewing |
 |
| step 5 turn the corners |
 |
| step 6 finished |
Step 6 all finished, iron and steam and gift!
 |
Enjoy!
Tracey Toole
www.traceytoole.etsy.com
http://traceytoole.blogspot.com/
May 15, 2013
From A Jezebel: Why Are Women DIY Entrepreneurs Called 'Hobbyists'?
Hey, Everybody! This was too interesting not to present in its entirety. It is pretty much a woman-centric article, so let me just give a shout out to all the NY Etsy menfolk - I know it's not easy all the way around!
That said, I encourage everyone, if they have time, to check out the back and forth commentary regarding this article on Jezebel.com, which in turn is a response to an original article from Newsweek (link at end of article). Below is the link to Jezebel and/or the commentary:
http://jezebel.com/why-are-women-diy-entrepreneurs-called-hobbyists-494363393
Take care all you entrepreneurs!
Melissa
Prairiefunk
JENNA SAUERS
Why Are Women DIY Entrepreneurs Called 'Hobbyists'?
Much has been written about the so-called "new domesticity," the surge in interest in things like canning, pickling, cooking, bread-baking, sewing, knitting, and gardening, which — at least if one were to judge by the pages of Etsy.com, the "crafts" category on Pinterest, or the stalls of your local hipster market — comprise the modern culture of DIY. Can DIY be political? Ought it be of concern to feminists that this incarnation of DIY is largely female-coded and domestic? Are DIY-ers with their perfect-looking projects just obnoxiously raising standards for all of us? What about women who found DIY-based businesses?
"Inasmuch as this new domesticity represents a desire to live more sustainably and authentically, it’s wholly laudable, if also a bit precious," goes the latest DIY trend piece in Newsweek. "But a return to home and hearth also has a way of reinforcing traditional gender roles, even if everyone involved says she’s only following her heart."
Firstly: these concerns are nothing new. In the late 1960s, when eating whole, "natural," and/or organic food was actually somewhat new and trendy, Joan Didion wryly noted in her reporting on the hippie movement that the burdens of cooking, cleaning, and child care fell disproportionately on the movement's women. Though the domestic life fostered in the San Francisco communes she reported on looked very different to that favored by the nuclear-family mainstream, each was powered by the same gendered division of labor. As Didion wrote in her seminal essay, "Slouching Towards Bethlehem":
Barbara is on what is called the woman's trip to the exclusion of almost everything else. When she and Tom and Max and Sharon need money, Barbara will take a part-time job, modeling or teaching kindergarten, but she dislikes earning more than ten or twenty dollars a week. Most of the time she keeps house and bakes. "Doing something that shows your love that way," she says, "is just about the most beautiful thing I know." Whenever I hear about the woman's trip, which is often, I think a lot about nothin'-says-lovin'-like-something-from-the-oven and the Feminine Mystique and how it is possible for people to be the unconscious instruments of values they would strenuously reject on a conscious level, but I do not mention this to Barbara.
It is possible to be the unconscious instrument of values one would strenuously reject on a conscious level. That's why it's important to bring values, conscious and unconscious, into conversations about things like DIY. And it is worth raising this concern when new cultural movements come along to replicate old power structures. Attachment mothering — which just happens to be inconsistent with a woman holding almost any kind of job outside the home — may be one such movement. It's not unreasonable to examine social phenomena — even ones seemingly the product of independent personal choices — through a political lens.
The DIY movement, of which I must recognize myself as a bread-baking, herb-gardening, home-sewing, thing-making,column-writing member, is not without a political element. For me, making things is very much about autonomy, about understanding and mastering the means of production and challenging the notion that "crafts" are humble and relegated to the domestic, female space. Making the kind of bread that costs $4 a loaf at an artisanal bakery or the kind of fresh pasta that costs God-knows-what at Fairway for pennies at home, or the kinds of purses and dresses that would be hundreds even at a sample sale for just the cost of fabric and thread, also saves me money. My last project was a leather belt, and the materials set me back $23. DIY is a way to acquire and hone skills that exist in an intellectual tradition that is too often denigrated, and simultaneously to surround myself with things I couldn't otherwise afford.
But DIY — and its current wave of popularity — also has a relationship to the wider economy, one with implications for gender norms and feminism, as one new book argues. That book is Homeward Bound: Why Women Are Embracing the New Domesticity, by author Emily Matchar:
“The various pieces—the urban chickens, the domestic-porn blogs, the retro cookery, the attachment parenting—are beginning to come together to reveal a larger whole,” writes Matchar. “To say that these phenomena are ‘just trends’ or to snark on them as the whims of privileged hipsters is to ignore this emerging bigger picture. Fashion is fashion, but our current collective nostalgia and domesticity-mania speak to deep cultural longings and a profound shift in the way Americans view life.” And not only well-off Americans with liberal-arts degrees. Matchar began her book expecting to find a lot of ex-CEOs and dropouts from corporate law. Instead, she discovered “middle-class people struggling with modern life. Underemployed recent college grads learning to knit because they got no satisfaction out of their temp jobs. Women who ‘just happened’ to learn about attachment parenting at the end of their too-short maternity leaves from jobs they felt ambivalent about to begin with.”
As Newsweek notes, some of the people who are turning DIY projects into businesses are doing so because, for reasons of class or gender, they've found themselves shut out of the traditional job market:
[O]ver 14 percent of young people between ages 20 and 24 are either unemployed or underemployed. Matchar quotes a 23-year-old woman who is trying to launch an artisan jam business in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. “My parents keep asking when I’m going to get a real job,” she says. “Nobody my age can find a real job. We have to be creative. I have a friend with dual master’s degrees who’s been unemployed forever; now she’s making and selling doughnuts.” [Retailer Gaia] DiLoreto is 38, but she says most of her vendors are in their 20s or early 30s and became entrepreneurs because “there were no jobs or they were unhappy with the jobs they had."
While it's concerning, on a broad, societal level, that companies are still not doing enough to retain talented and creative female workers — if there are rungs missing on the ladder, that impacts us all — it always bugs me how this narrative is spun out in the media. Stories about people's Etsy boutiques or the home canning project that turns into a profitable small business are always told with a "cute woman does cute thing!" kind of lilt. But what these women really are is entrepreneurs.
Yet their ambition to turn their ideas into money is rarely presented as laudable, and I think that's in part because of gender. The Newsweek article is full of finger-wagging sources who caution women against this kind of entrepreneurship — one even says trying to build a DIY-based business "guarantees mothers’ continued economic vulnerability, as well as that of their children." Did anyone concern-troll the risk-taking dudes who founded Hewlett-Packard in a garage? Did anyone speculate about the well-being of their children in the national press? It seems like we ought to be able to find ways to simultaneously celebrate these women for their business acumen while also working to fix the problems — inadequate maternity leave, the wage gap, employment discrimination — that continue to dog the traditional workplace. And we could start by giving respect where it is due: anyone who has found a way to charge $8 for a goddamn bar of chocolate probably has a few things figured out about retail.
Urban Mamas Get Crafty [Newsweek]
Image via Everett Collection/Shutterstock
May 9, 2013
Around The Corner
In 2010, Virginia Kraljevic started a series on our blog called "Around The Corner". Hoping that they may inspire an outing, here is a listing of the destinations Virginia and other writers of the blog have suggested:
If you happen to be in this neighborhood, visit Grant's Tomb, Columbia's Campus, Tom's Restaurant and the Cathedral of St. John.
The closest thing to a castle in New York City.
Visit this 1699 Dutch farmhouse and become inspired by the spirits of the Battle of Brooklyn, August 27, 1776.
An amazing place to bring out your inner Rousseau. Take your sketchbook and become inspired.
What are some of your favorite places in New York?
Simone
groundsel.etsy.com
Morningside Heights
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| General Grant National Memorial |
The Cloisters
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| The Cloisters Courtyard |
The Battle of Brooklyn
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| The Old Stone House, Brooklyn |
The Museum of Natural History
An amazing place to bring out your inner Rousseau. Take your sketchbook and become inspired.
What are some of your favorite places in New York?
Simonegroundsel.etsy.com
May 8, 2013
Broccoli Dreams: Printing with Veggies
In search of a fun baby shower gift, I rummaged through my refrigerator and found some veggies to print baby onesies. So here it goes:
Materials
- Onesies (or anything else you want to print)
- Fabric Paint
- Veggies and fruit (broccoli, lemons, apples, celery, mushrooms)
- Cardstock
Steps
1. Brush the print side of the vegetable with a thin layer of paint.
3. Once you feel ready to commit to fabric, lay out the onesie and slide a piece of cardstock between the front and the back of the t-shirt to prevent the paint from leaking through the fabric. Brush the paint on your veggie and go for it.
Here are some examples:
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| Lemon Sun |
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| Celery Smile (The hair was printed with the celery ribs) |
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| Apple Buttons (slice the apple in half to expose the star shaped seed center) |
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| Broccoli Trees (slice the broccoli lengthwise to get a flat surface) |
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| Lemon Boat |
groundsel.etsy.com
May 7, 2013
I'm Going On A Picnic . . .
. . .and I'm bringing:
Now that it is slowly getting warmer and our winter weary bones are craving the sun, it's time to get ready for picnic season. Here are some picnic inspired doodads designed by the members of our team and curated in a treasury by Sheryl of Life is Balance.
Before you go on a picnic you need to be properly accessorized:
Maybe finish off your ensemble with a hat:
Of course you need a pillow to rest your sun-deprived head:
For more picnic inspiration check out Sheryl's treasury:
Simone
groundsel.etsy.com
Now that it is slowly getting warmer and our winter weary bones are craving the sun, it's time to get ready for picnic season. Here are some picnic inspired doodads designed by the members of our team and curated in a treasury by Sheryl of Life is Balance.
Before you go on a picnic you need to be properly accessorized:
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| Green Floral Necklace by Wandering Laur |
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| Sunhat by Rocks and Salt |
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| Bicycle Picnic Pillow by Eye Heart Us |
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| I'm going on a Picnic and I'm bringing. . . |
groundsel.etsy.com
May 2, 2013
Background Inspiration
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| www.camilacrazut.com |
Recently I had a conversation with a friend who is in the creative business and we got on the subject of what we listen to while we work. Most of us on the Etsy NY Team work independently and don't have to worry about sharing sound space. We know that music makes us feel inspired, sad, energetic or relaxed but what do we listen to where we can work and concentrate and feel good. I posed this question to my fellow team members and received such a variety of responses.
The most popular response was NPR (National Public Radio) and the Moth, which are true stories told live. Camille of www.camilacrazut.com and Angie of Angie Colombo Jewelry both listen to the same programs and they both are jewlery designers....hmmmm..... interesting.
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| Angie Colombo Jewelry |
Christina from http://bowsprite.com/ along with many others listens to http://themoth.org/.
The one cool extra about this self assigned task was I checked out each responders website or etsy shop.
Christina's blog and etsy shop pleasantly surprised me. She is an illustrator of nautical items.
Reading that she likes to listen to the moth and seeing the nautical pieces just clicked to me.
Being on the water and listening to stories, seems like an automatic link.
Looking for a new radio station? Rosie of Hanky Blanky listens to http://www.thecurrent.org/listen I am looking forward to listening to
some music I haven't heard and discovering new bands.
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| Hanky Blanky |
From a few artists I received such precise responses I was so impressed.
Jenny who make the most beautiful bee jewelry and sells on etsy thru J. Topolski most enjoys the streaming videos on pbs.org.
It is interesting to see what people listen to and what they design. How do the programs influence and inspire their creativeness?
Tracey Toole
https://www.etsy.com/shop/traceytoole
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