Phoenix Flea does Small Business Saturday

This happens to be Small Business Saturday as well! You have the chance to get a jump on your Christmas shopping while keep your shopping efforts local. If you’re staying in Phoenix the weekend after Thanksgiving, make sure you stop by and shop dozens of local artists and craftsmen!

Get more information here.

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Got the stash of tasting notebooks, journals and sketchbooks all set up!

Mother Road Brewing in Flagstaff, Arizona has been so cool! Not only did their rep Caliegh buy several books, but she also supplied me with a stack of boxes to use in the future! Thanks again, Mother Road!

I’m insanely excited to share that beginning with the install June 28, Three Sheets Books are available at Made Art Boutique! Starting with the July Phoenix First Friday, my books have the featured artists slot, on the front table right side the front door. You can’t miss ’em!

Since the Phoenix First Friday is basically an institution, I have a special focus on local Arizona breweries. Dragoon, Nimbus, Four Peaks, Grand Canyon, Mother Road – I went all out building up my Arizona collection of this event. As always, if there’s something specific you’re looking for, please don’t hesitate to ask, either at the event or through my Etsy shop!

Speaking of Phoenix First Friday

I know it’s hot, but I’ll be there for both July an August First Friday events, answering questions. If you’re in the Phoenix area, feel free to swing by and chat! Interested in a custom box special request? You could even bring it down and get the process started right there.

By the way, Made is chock full of other awesome locally-made artisan work too. Jewelry, distressed pallet signage, prints and paintings, ceramics, you name it, Made carries a constantly changing inventory of one-of-a-kind items made by more than 100 local artists!  If you’ve ever been to a Phoenix First Friday, you know that Made is a core player in the Roosevelt Row Arts District. Definitely worth your time! Pop into JoBot next door and get something cool to drink and get your First Friday started off right!

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As it was a hot day after a disastrously-windy setup, I had a ton of foot traffic into my booth, and it was people recognized the labels of their favorite craft beer. Somewhat disappointed that I wasn’t offering the cool liquid refreshment usually associated with that image, most stayed to chit chat about the books, replaying their mental beer history with me.

Eventually, they would pick up a book, thumb through it, and look at me with a “why are these are blank?” stare, and I would reply with “They’re sketchbooks. Or journals. Or you can take them to meetings and take notes…” and inevitably I was interrupted:

“Oh, I can’t draw.”

Children don’t think they can’t draw. This vampire was done by a boy who took me up on the offer to draw in the community book.

This was tough for me, as one of the things I would like to do with these books is reinforce the fact that yes, you can draw. And craft beer boxes seemed like an approachable way to encourage people. Everyone can draw. Remember when you were a kid and a box of crayons and a stack of blank paper was all you needed to occupy an afternoon? Or how your fridge growing up was covered with drawings the contents of which were known only by you?

Yes, yes, yes! You can draw. Not everybody is going to be a great artist, but I can attest, if you sketch or doodle at least a little every day, you will improve.

Even if you have to use a post-it notes or bar napkins, if you want to get better at drawing, just put pencil or pen to paper every day. Practice makes perfect, as they day. Oh, and don’t give up if your vampire ends up with a triangle head and three mouths.

Can we get back to the craft beer boxes?

This isn’t a tirade post about people thinking they can’t draw, it’s about the art and craft  show. Which was great. The other vendors were terrific, there wasn’t any sense of competition, and I made all kinds of new contacts and friends.

Definitely check out JoshuaByOak’s work. So cool.

Since it was my first show, I didn’t feel like I had enough product to fill a whole booth, so I went in on splitting a booth with a terrific local artist. Debbie runs Joshua By Oak and does lino block prints on pillows, bags, note cards, etc., . Having to spend two full days in a hot 10X10 foot square booth with someone the very first time you meet them could have felt like a jail sentence, but it was a great time.

All in all, it was a great experience. I learned a ton about the whole art show experience, how to set realistic expectations, and just how much work goes into those shows. I never realized just how much effort was required to basically set up a storefront one day and man it for two days. Not to mention the work required to then take it down and haul it home.

I may do another show in the future, but hopefully be better prepared for it, and Mother Nature will cooperate the next time around.

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