Toward the end of Summer I was looking through crafting books on amazon when I came across this book. It sparked my curiosity and I promptly called my local bookseller, Pheonix Books, to order it for me.
The Handmade Marketplace by Kari Chapin. It is everything you could want to know about the possibility of selling your handmade items. This book introduced me to this whole unbelievably productive thriving community of crafters online. I had been pondering the idea of a blog, but Kari convinced me to go for it.
I was sick for over a week in September, finishing this book and discovering the vast crafting blogosphere. I got stuck on Amy Karol’s funny, inspiring and prolific angry chicken blog. Kari, and my friend Maya in Portland, both highly recommended it. Not only did it inspire me, I also felt like it taught me how to do a blog by example. Just by her being totally herself I felt like I could be totally myself. Then her blog led me to others like a tapestry.
So lying in bed staring at the ceiling, I formulated my blog plan…
local wool pastures yarn
I also wanted to share that the Fibershed marketplace is now up and running online. If you are in the SF Bay Area and want some very local fibers and materials and some finished goods then check out fibershed.bigcartel.com. The photo is of a lovely Shetland/Alpaca blend from Marlie and Mimi at localwoolpastures.com.
photo by Ginger Smith Molloy
Also, more reason to search out these natural fiber products – I just heard that a huge source of plastic pollution in the oceans is from the waste water from washing machines after washing synthetic fabrics. Microplastic debris is washing up on shorelines around urban areas, and entering the bodies of marinelife, as well as the bodies of those who eat marinelife. You can read more about this here. .
Leave a Reply