Vendor Spotlight: Little Eye Designs

Some colorful selections from Little Eye Designs.  Hey, that’s me!  🙂

Big Thaw Barrettes from Little Eye

Tea Cup Candles from Little Eye

Pebbles Ring by Little Eye

Strawberries Earring and Barrette Set from Little Eye

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Vendor Spotlight: Bon Appetit Petites

Cookie pendant and post earrings by Bon Appetit Petties

It’s no secret that we Forest City dwellers are, to put it lightly, incredibly obsessed with food.  For a population size this small, we sure have a lot of kick-ass restaurants doing excellent things with edibles.  If you’re skeptical that you could get just as excited about food you can’t eat (or shouldn’t without a serious choking hazard) then let me convince you:  when you hold Gabrielle Stevens’ Bon Appetit Petites creations in the palm of your hand you’ll be mesmerized by the accuracy and yes, the ‘cuteness’ of dollhouse scale food that has been made wearable by the additions of rings, posts and other jewelry things.

Tuna Sushi by Bon Appetit Petites

Little Eye sat next to Gabrielle at a very quiet craft show some time back, and spent the time pretty much just ogling all of the TINY FOOD that was presented on the table next to me!  Hamburgers, hot dogs, cake, sushi, cookies, bacon, eggs – you name it, she made it.  Art on a small scale takes such dedication and precision, each item I picked up to look at I could spend five miniutes getting lost in the construction, execution and aesthetics of each little one.  Plus, who doesn’t love a tiny hamburger?!

Pop Tarts by Bon Appetit Petites

Gabrielle Stevens of Bon Appetit Petites will be joining us on Saturday May, 12 from 10am to 4pm (the day before Mother’s Day!) at the Mayo Street Arts Center at 10 Mayo Street in Portland.  You should join us, too!

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Vendor Spotlight: The Proud Maine-iac + Jeanne Marie Coleman Photography

Jeanne Marie Coleman

Happy Tuesday, readers!  Tonight we bring you Jeanne Marie Coleman of the Maine Photo Source and The Proud Maine-iac.  It’s no secret from the name that Jeanne’s work reflects the more tangible reasons to be proud to be a Mainer.  After all, you can’t take a picture of what it looks like to survive a five month winter (although this year we did all right!) or what it sounds like to have a county accent.  Still, check out these photographs from the Maine Photo Source website that features all of Jeanne’s work:

Jeanne Marie Coleman

Jeanne Marie Coleman

Jeanne Marie Coleman

In addition to her photography talents, Jeanne has started a graphic design business with products like the packable canvas tote (seen below), novelty pillowcases, game boards and sweetly framed prints of the photographs above and many more.

Jeanne Marie Coleman

Come see Jeanne and all our other talented vendors on Saturday, May 12 from 10am to 4pm at the Mayo Street Arts Center at 10 Mayo Street!

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Vendor Spotlight: filia.

Poplin Skirt from filia.

Evening, kittens!  We’re happy it’s the weekend, too.  We’re brightening it up even more by featuring Kate O’Toole of filia.  You can find her on Etsy here, or if you’re more of the continual narrative type, her blog here.  Check out the before/after picture at the bottom of the page of an ottoman she reupholstered that was featured on the blog!  Ooh, ballsy!  We loved you and yer work already, Kate, but now we’re just jealous!

Geometric Print Cotton Sundress from filia.

BT:What does filia make and sell for Big Thaw shoppers to fawn over?

Kate O’Toole:  filia is a collection of modern, feminine apparel and small personal accessories that I design and sewn from my home on Munjoy Hill. The collection ranges from casual, brunch- or farmer’s market-ready skirts, tops and tunics to flirty, floaty party dresses, and includes many one-of-a-kind items. The filia aesthetic is distinguished by classic, stylish shapes updated with of-the-moment details and vibrant colors.  I work mainly with natural fibers like wool, cotton and silk and finish each garment with special detailing, such as grosgrain ribbon facing, hand-stitched hems, and pockets in nearly everything (they’re so useful!). Each filia design is produced in limited quantities and custom orders are always welcomed. Accessories include small bags, zipper pouches, envelope wallets, yoga mat bags, and iPod/tablet sleeves.

Black and Tan Skirt from filia.

BT:  How has your own mother (or mother figure) influenced your art, craft or endeavor? 

KO:  My mum has always been a huge inspiration in my creative endeavors. In the most literal sense she provided the foundation for my business by teaching me to how to sew as a little girl, but more importantly, as I watched her pursuit of several different types of crafts and creative expressions through the years, she instilled in me the fun and satisfaction of making things with your own two hands. When I decided to turn my love of sewing and creating clothing into a business in May of 2011, I named it filia (which echoes the Greek word for family and friendship) to honor the influence my mum all my loved ones have on my work. My mum occasionally helps me with the finish work on some garments if I’m finishing up a big order in a time crunch, is an invaluable consult on fabric choices or working out the construction of a item, and is generally one of my biggest cheerleaders and supporters. If I end up as a vendor at The Big Thaw, she will probably be with me at my table as my right-hand woman!

Tank Style Dress in Purple Floral from filia.

BT:  What new products or finds will you have available for shoppers at The Big Thaw that you would like featured on our blog? Please write a little about them and attach pictures (or links) if you’d like!
KO:  I’d hope that at The Big Thaw shoppers would find great gifts for their mothers and the special women in their life among my clothes for women of all ages and fun, stylish accessories. This spring I’ve got a ton of new fabric in bright spring and summer colors and patterns, ready to be turned into fun, warm-weather fashions! Designs will include drawstring-waist tunics, gathered skirts, blouses, and a variety of dresses in different styles.  For accessories, I have useful little linen zipper pouches, embellished with ruffles and geometric designs and lined with patterned cotton. I also have a line of stargazer linen zipper pouches that are hand-embroidered with different constellations – a fun gift to personalize with someone’s zodiac sign or for someone that loves looking at the night sky! I also have my popular yoga mat bags in a variety of colorful new patterns. I use a lot of the extra cotton from my yoga mat bags to sew cute little envelope wallets, which are great for holding small gifts like jewelry or gift cards, and iPod/iPad sleeves, which are lightly padded and make fabulous gifts. I’m always working on new items, so more would probably be added to this list!

Before

After

Come see Kate from filia at The Big Thaw on Saturday, May 12 from 10am to 4pm at the Mayo Street Arts Center at 10 Mayo St.  Happy weekend, jellybeans for everyone!

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Poster Process!

A huge part of the Big Thaw and the Big Chill is our handprinted posters, a collaboration from Kris Johnsen and Meagan Anderson.  Advertising our event with artwork that has been locally-sourced and cared for is important!  And… we’re picking up the posters this week – excitement!  For now, enjoy these pictures of the process that Kris and Meagan went through to make them.  We’ll post pictures of the final product soon:

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Vendor Spotlight: All Strung Out

All Strung Out

Hello, hello!  Welcome to the first installment of our Vendor Spotlight, featuring All Strung Out from Nancy Desrossiers.  Because the Big Thaw falls on May 12 this year (one day before Mother’s Day) we’ve asked some of our vendors how moms have influenced their work.

All Strung Out

How has your own mother (or mother figure) influenced your art, craft or endeavor?

I was blessed to have two special ladies who influenced any craft project I ever attempted growing up – my mother and my grandmother!  My grandmother was a talented woman who could make anything and she shared her passion for crafting with me as a young girl and taught me how to knit and sew.  Through the years, my mother supported anything I wanted to try by first buying any supplies that I needed and later by encouraging me to try new things.

All Strung Out

 When I started making jewelry about 8 years ago, she was the person that I went to for her opinion about any new items I had made and she would offer suggestions … or usually just enthusiasm!  She had received quite a few handmade items over the years and was always thrilled.  She passed away about four and a half years ago and my husband has stepped in to her role of guidance and support (poor guy!)  He is such a good sport.

All Strung Out

We agree with you, Nancy!  Making and receiving handmade gifts in the family can mean so much more than the gift card from Amazon or Forever 21.  Hear, hear!

If you’d like to see more from All Strung Out, check out these links:

-All Strung Out on Facebook

-All Strung Out on Etsy

-All Strung Out on Twitter

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The Big Thaw will be held at Mayo Street Arts Center (10 Mayo St., Portland) on Saturday, May 12th from 10am to 4pm.  It’s the day before Mother’s Day – so why not treat your favorite lady to a shopping spree full of handmade goods?

Also, we just made a Twitter, so follow it for the latest.

G’night, everyone!  We’re going to have trouble sleeping,… Kris just told me that the screen printed posters should be ready very soon!!

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May 2012: Vendors Announced!

It’s official!  The 2012 Big Thaw vendors have been announced and listed right here.  Before you get going browsing these talented people while you should be doing real work at your desk (guilty as charged) I’d like to let y’all know that each vendor is featured once on the blog between now and the Big Thaw (Saturday, May 12 – the day before Mother’s Day!)

If you enter your email and click ‘Sign me up!’ at the bar on the right hand side you won’t miss a thing.  We promise to pack the spotlights full of big, beautiful pictures and not too much of the babbling.

Like what you see in the collage above?  The vendors (from left to right, top to bottom) are:    Bowerbird Handmade, Judy B Designs, Kris Johnsen, One Woman Studio, Meagan Anderson, Lilleputt Studio, Makings of Shanna Tice, Lillianka and Lofted Designs.

Get excited, Portland, Spring is coming soon!

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The Big Thaw will be held on Saturday, May 12, 2012 from 10am-4pm at the Mayo Street Arts Center at 10 Mayo St. in Portland, ME.  Can’t wait to see you there!  It’s the day before Mother’s Day – hard to forget!

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Applications are Open!

Copper Heart Necklace from Rough Magic Creations, $45.00. Click for listing!

Oh, good!  In a surprisingly easy technological effort of composing the application, waving my magical .pdf wand and uploading it to wordpress:  applications are here, and five hours before deadline!

If you’d like to visit the application page, click here.

Or if you want to cut through the red tape, just click here to download the application..

Applications will be open from Wednesday, February 1st through Wednesday, February 29th.  Space is limited and we try to accommodate as many applicants as possible by working together!  We love shared tables (got a crafty friend?) and we try to consider all factors when planning the line-up/layout of the event.  Please contact Audrey at:  thebigthawportland at gmail dot com if you have any detailed questions.

The Big Thaw will be held at the Mayo Street Arts Center, as always, with a wine, beer and snack bar and local music sounding from the rafters.  Yayyy!  We can’t wait!

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