Monthly Archives: May 2011

Portland Craft Party!

Posted on May 31, 2011 by Isaac | 12 Comments

I Heart Art: Portland presents

Portland Etsy Craft Party

A Benefit for Japan Earthquake Relief

June 10, 2011

Etsy’s at it again! I Heart Art: Portland and Museum of Contemporary Craft will host an all-day celebration and an evening party in Portland as part of Etsy’s Worldwide Craft Party. We’ve teamed up with the Quilts for Quake Survivors project and Mercy Corps’ Japan Relief Fund to reach out beyond our community and raise money to help those in dire need through our own crafty ways.

All proceeds from the evening party will be donated to Mercy Corps’ Japan Relief Fund.

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Posted in Events, Community

Tagged etsy, Mercy Corps, craft, craft party, benefit, quilts for quake survivors, japan earthquake relief, charity, donations, crafty

Mixer Match in Photos

Posted on May 27, 2011 by Isaac | 1 Comment

I Heart Art: Mixer Match at Design Within Reach

Mixer Match: Speed Networking for Visual Artists, a set by PNCA on Flickr.

Another successful speed-networking event went down last week, on May 18. With 16 gallery/curator/art professional stations to rotate through, the 40 participating artists only had two minutes to present their work for each of them.

Many thanks to those who participated, including our “superstars” and the kinda gallery owners curators and arts professionals who gave audience to the eager artists.

A special thank you is also in order to Design Within Reach, for hosting the event once again, and to Deschutes Brewery, who donated the beer for the evening.

Did you participate? Tell us about your experience in the comments.

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Posted in Events

Tagged curators, deschutes brewery, design within reach, galleries, mixer match, networking, speed-networking, visual artists

Shifting to Success

Posted on May 25, 2011 by holdentees | Leave a comment

It’s not uncommon to stumble upon a craft. Maybe you studied graphic design in college and were constantly making note cards for friends. Then, one thing leads to another, and before you know it you’ve got an Etsy shop, or an Artfire kiosk. With any luck, your indie business takes off. At some point you realize it’s time to buckle down and shift your business into high gear.

For a few handy tips and critical dos and don’ts check out this article from Portland’s own Bettie Newell: Making the Mental Shift from Hobby to Business.

Bettie also has her own blog full of information and inspiration: Little Paper Cities.

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Posted in Reblogged

Tagged artfire, bettie newell, business plan, business tips, customer service, handmade success, little paper cities, professional development, social media

Connecting to Your Community: Part One

Posted on May 20, 2011 by Isaac | 2 Comments

This article is part of a series addressing the topics discussed during our March 30 Salon Discussion, Connecting to Your Community. Some background information about the subject is available in a preliminary post, Learn to Share.

Author’s Note: I do not profess to be an expert on the subject matter, but I do hold a special interest in this community and a passion for the topic. That said, I am still learning, and welcome any feedback in the comments, be they in agreement with what I’ve said, questions about finer points, or arguments in opposition. This is a conversation, not a lecture.

Setting the Stage

HYPOTHESIS
The best way to balance our commodity-driven culture is to contribute to the community through the open exchange of knowledge, ideas and information.

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Posted in Articles, Salons

Tagged business tips, collaboration, community, give back, isaac watson, professional development, salon discussion, salon discussions, salons, share