Not Your Mother's Craft Fair- Part 4

 So far I have shown you lots of very girlie and very "cute" (said with love)  work from the artists I have featured here, but there are indeed many other sides to the Renegade Craft Fair.  Today I will show you artists who work with found objects, mixed media and lots of vintage materials.   Zelma Rose and and her "vintage inspired curiosities" really took my breath away with the design and look of her booth.  She had fantastic objects and props she was using as displays such as old dress forms, vintage fabrics and crates, and just an overall beautifully done, cohesive display.

Everything about the way the booth looked created an overall experience, including the artist herself.

 Zelma Rose is actually San Francisco based artist Lisa Anderson Shaffer.  Exactly one year ago Lisa started Zelma Rose and she is already making quite an impact with her original and fun products.  Lisa has been making art her whole life, studied fine art in college, has taught, exhibited, and been involved in artist residencies all over the country.  After so many years of making amazing and marketable objects, she decided to go for it, and to make living off of her art a goal, and started Zelma Rose.  "This was my first time at Renegade.  When I started Zelma Rose last year, it was a goal of mine to get into Renegade this year.  It was great to be a part of it!"

A picket fence!

Cool old distressed crates!

 

 Besides these bow ties and earrings made from vintage fabrics, one of Lisa's best selling and most unique products are her lockets.  The outside of the locket is made from vintage fabric and they are like puffed up buttons.  The interior contains a chalkboard on one side, and a magnetic chalkboard on the other.  So you can write little messages, and stick on little mementos.

The locket closed...

The locket open!

I asked Lisa if she had any advice to other artists interested in pursuing craft shows with their potential for highs and lows, as well as advice on starting your own art business:
"Believe in your product.  Not every show has an immediate yield.  People remember what they like and sometimes a show might seem slow, or a bad match for your art, but often times down the road, people who saw your work here or there will seek you out and make a purchase online or from you at a different show.  When the going gets rough, I continue on and forge ahead because I have to.  I've come to learn that no matter what other pursuits I might delve into, I always come back to art.  Moving ahead and above is a necessity."

Check out these awesome lockets at:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/zelmarose
http://www.zelmarose.com/  

Hoot hoot!

Another booth that caught my eye and really stood out was that of Gold Fools, a joint venture between artists Hillary Webb and David Figeuroa.  These 2 artists are from Halifax Canada and this year they began touring the US doing Renegade shows.

The artists with their wares. 

To me, their booth and art really stood out.   There was an immediacy to their work, a spontaneity that can at times be lost at a craft show where everything is typically tight and emphasis is placed on craftsmanship.  Their booth was like a breath of fresh air, maybe not FRESH air, but atmospheric air. Their art and jewelry was all mixed media, that included collage, embroidery, drawing, painting, old frames, buttons, felt and lots of vintage, distressed ephemera.

A chalkboard wall that displays their pieces.

David does the collage work, Hillary does the embroidery work.

 

Gold Fools has recently opened an Etsy store and they hope to keep building up their business, including continuing to travel and collecting goodies along the way that they will incorporate into future pieces.  When not on the road, Hillary, a lover of vintage books, has just finished her masters in Library Sciences and is becoming a librarian.  David has a successful vintage clothing business called Vagabond Vintage.  I asked them about how life on the road has treated them, and how their experiences have been so far doing craft shows.

"We've both had good and bad luck at shows, but the trick is to find the city and show that works for you, then keep going back so that the customers can expect to see you there in the future. Renegade was a great time for us!"

Hillary and David also have a series of amazing pieces in which Hillary has embroidered on some of Davids wonderful vintage shirts.  And you can see them at:

 http://www.etsy.com/shop/GoldFools

http://goldfoolslove.tumblr.com/

And you can see one here...

 

Thanks to Lisa, Hillary and David for talking to me.  See you next year!