I'm 34 YO born and raised in CLE on the eastside. I
obtained a Fine Arts degree from BGSU in 2004, with a focus in
photography. Since college I've been working in Corporate America and
working in the arts as a hobby. I've been creating jewelry for about 10+ or so
years now. This will be my second Avant-Garde show!
I’m inspired by color! Bright, vivid color that surrounds
us in this world truly is what inspires me. I love to take a color (or
colors) and create a piece that can make me feel just as excited as when I
first see a great color in our environment.
How I got into my craft.. My very first job was at a bead
store in Beachwood Place back when I was 14 years old. My love for jewelry
kicked off from that job. I found out I had talent when it came to making
jewelry when I watched what others created and tried to copy their
pieces. Once I started making variations of what I saw others doing, I
realized it came easy to me.
My creative process.. I try not to over think a piece....when
that happens I get restless and end up overthinking it to death. I just
start working on a piece, and let it flow.
My five year goal.. I'd love for this to be my full time
job, jewelry making. However I do also enjoy working full time in Corp.
America. So who knows?!
The message behind my work is that sometimes simplicity is
best. Sometimes there simply isn't a message, and that's okay! View more
of my work at www.TheChrisCo.com.
Meet Arielle Westfall from Strung of Jewelz...
My name is Arielle, Raised in Canton, but recently just
moved to the beautiful countryside of Lawrence Township. In love with anything
outdoors, hunting, shooting, riding, and working in the garden. So when I tell
a lot of people that I also make jewelry, they are usually pretty stunned. My
family is made up of a bunch of different crafters, from stained glass, neon,
and metal fabrication, to upcycling. So it just kind of made sense that I had
to find my nitch.
I have been making jewelry since I was little, but seriously
started into it about 2012, then put up a site on Etsy in 2014. That lead to a
bunch of craft shows the start of 2015. This will be my first Avant-Garde show,
I am really excited to show off my collection!
My
inspiration comes from my complete mess of a craft room. I love throwing all my
supplies on my desks and just see what jumps out at me! It is my organized
chaos, patterns and color schemes I would have never thought of present
themselves right in from of me.
This
all started when I wanted to make Multiple Sclerosis Awareness bracelets for my
Dad, they turned out great and everyone was asking about them. Soon after I
started getting asked to do other charities, organizations, cancers. I said yes
and it just grew from there. After that, all the Hematite and gemstones started
coming into play, the more I read about the natural healing principles behind
the stones, the more I wanted to put in every piece I made.
In 5
years I would love to just be able to work a part time “Real Job”, travel to
bigger shows, and design and operate my own website. Make Strung Out Jewelz a
bigger name.
The
jewelry someone wears makes a statement about who that are and what they value.
It gives us a glimpse of their personality, life, struggles, and achievements.
I design and create jewelry with a purpose. Quality, comfortable, and a
personal connection is what I strive to put into every piece.
Meet Marti McHugh-Curtis from ArtyMarti Designs...
Hi to all! I am Marti
of ArtyMarti Designs. I live in Chagrin
Falls, OH with my husband, Keith, who is endlessly patient with all the clutter that goes hand
in hand with creativity! I have been
greatly interested in art, photography, lettering, writing, and just about any
other creative field, since I was a very young child. I remember the frustration at age 9, of lying
in the grass, trying to focus close-up on a flower, with an instamatic Kodak
that took flash cubes…anyone remember those??
Anyway, as the years passed, I spent time studying at both Miami
University and Kent State University in the art departments. My studies ranged from wallpaper and fabric
design, to calligraphy, jewelry & metals, & photography. However, once I was married and had the first
two of my four children, photography seemed the best fit, both as a creative
outlet, and also a way that I could work part time. I began entering contests, became an active
member of the Chagrin Valley Camera Club, and was eventually recruited as a
free-lance photographer for the Chagrin Valley Times.
This worked perfectly with the demands of an
active family; as by then I had one daughter and three sons. I continued this work for about nine years,
and felt the urge to try something different at that point. As I had already been making many of my own
greeting cards for years, by applying photos I had taken to card stock, it
seemed like a perfectly natural transition for me to attempt to make this
endeavor into a small business, and find a way to “update” the card style. I registered the name ArtyMarti Designs in
August of 2015, and have been busy building the business and learning the ups
and downs of marketing one’s own product.
I have had Open Houses, have some cards in local shops, as well as in a
store in the Chautauqua Institution in New York state. I participated in my first “tent event” at
the end of last summer, and just recently discovered the Avant-Garde Craft
Shows. The Canton show will be my first
Avant-Garde Show, and I have been busy planning the best ways to display my
product. I hope to attend many more, and
I hope to see you there!
Many things have inspired me to create. I have always been drawn to beautiful details
of things that I see. I love traveling,
and have amassed a huge collection of photos from those travels, that I now
find to be a virtual catalog for me to draw from for my card designs. I sometimes use “straight” photography, and
at other times implement “effects” on my photographs to change their appearance
to a more graphic or painterly style. I
have approximately 175 different card designs currently, ranging from old cars
and trucks, animals, botanicals, barns, antiques & architecture, to
anything interesting that catches my eye!
At first I made all of my cards blank inside, and found that many people
were requesting cards with verses. As I
enjoy writing as well, I embraced the challenge of creating verses that
connected well with the photos on the cards. I now offer many cards with verses
for varied occasions, as well as a large stock of blank cards for the customers
that enjoy writing their own.
At the Spring Canton and Fairlawn shows, I will have some
interesting gift “baskets” made up of assortments of custom greeting cards, pens,
and postage stamps in pretty containers of some kind, perfect for a Mother’s
Day gift or birthday gift. This may be
an especially nice present for an older mom, aunt or grandma, who can’t easily
get out the way they used to, but still love to write notes and cards to people
they know & love. I hope you’ll
check them out!
I do want to let people know that at this time I am only
able to accept checks and cash. Haven’t
made the big move to accepting credit cards yet, but probably will need to
check that option out soon!
I
am in a constant state of learning, as I go through this process of creating
and selling my art. I am always open to
hearing suggestions of what particular items people would like to see on a
card, that I have not yet made. My
greatest satisfaction comes when a customer truly connects with a particular
photo, and tells me the memories it brings to them, or when they tell me the
verse I wrote perfectly conveys what they would like to say to someone. I am very much looking forward to this new
adventure, and hope that I will meet many of you soon!
Meet Kathleen Modory from A Moment for Mom...
I am married with a two year old son and a little girl on the way. I work as a medical coder during the week. I live in Medina, Ohio. I love learning all sorts of crafts. I have been crafting bath bombs for about a year now. I have done about 4 Avant-Garde shows.
I like to try new things with my bath products. I see things in everyday life and think of ways to make bath bombs that look like ordinary things. As a working mom of a two year old the bath tub was the only place to be alone to just be me. I was buying bath bombs like crazy then thought I should make them myself to get exactly the scents and colors I enjoy.
How I discovered my talent.. I practiced for a few weeks. About 4 ruined batches later I got the recipe right. It seems very easy, but there is so much chemistry involved.
When it comes to my creative process... I am always thinking of ways to better my products and to make new ones. After each batch is made I evaluate what went right and what could have been better
My five year goal.. Hopefully still doing craft fairs every weekend. It's a nice thing to do with my husband. We get to spend time together as a family outside getting to know the people in our community.
The message behind my work is to take the time to slow down and put yourself first. Every mom needs a moment for themselves.
When it comes to my creative process... I am always thinking of ways to better my products and to make new ones. After each batch is made I evaluate what went right and what could have been better
My five year goal.. Hopefully still doing craft fairs every weekend. It's a nice thing to do with my husband. We get to spend time together as a family outside getting to know the people in our community.
The message behind my work is to take the time to slow down and put yourself first. Every mom needs a moment for themselves.
Meet Elizabeth and Erin of Craftologie...
Hi Y’all. We are Elizabeth and Erin of Craftologie. We met as coworkers while at a large jewelry company. We bonded in our multifaceted love of making and our ideals on the appreciation for products that are well made and beautifully designed. Out of a desire to spread this ideology, we formed Craftologie. For us Craftologie is a lifestyle. Through Craftologie we want to sharing our thoughtfully crafted lifestyle with everyone through our products and outreach.
We have both been making and creating since we were old enough to walk and talk. While we both have been doing shows and fairs for years, the begging of this year is our debut of Craftologie. Which we carefully formulated as a way to express and share our handmade lifestyle.
We are highly inspired by beautiful designs and happy occurrences in nature. We both find that there is an innate need to create with in us. It is this feeling that constantly has us finding new ideas and designs we want to try.
We both agree that we have an innate desire to be creative and to make things and if we don’t know how to make something we will teach ourselves how.
At a very early age we both had a desire to make. While we never were experts right away, we worked honed our craft by learning from our successes as well as our mistakes. We will always continue to perfect our craft.
Our process is collaborative so that we both develop an idea. We decide how we want the design and what is the best method of creating the piece from start to finish. From there we make a prototype which is then transformed into a full production line.
Our five year goal... We see our selves happily creating, constantly taking our creativity to the next level, and seeing all of our ideas come to fruition. We hope to influence the community in the lifestyle of appreciating how things are made.
Through our designs, creativity and craft we want to express this idea of the lifestyle of Craftologie. Specifically our mission is as follows:
Our Mission is to present you with thoughtfully designed thoughtfully crafted jewelry, decor and gifts galore. Your pieces are made with the highest attention to detail and with the greatest respect toward craftsmanship. Love them. Cherish them. Pass them on to future generations. Share the joy of the handmade and express yourself through Craftologie.
View more of our work at: www.craftologie.weebly.com.
2017 Canton Spring Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show
