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Asheville-Centric magnets sold in Asheville? What a novel idea! You heard right, Not Made In China magnets are now available at "Write On," on Lexington Ave, in downtown Asheville. Hooray!
 About a month ago I came up with a new mantra: "When life gives you hands, make handmade." As soon as I said it, I knew I had to do something special with it. Enter: the fabulous designer boyfriend, Mr. Clinton. The man took it, and ran with it like an Ethiopian Marathoner. He decided the type had to be hand-lettered. And after several renditions in pencil, then ink, he imported it into the computer and created the final version you see above. Now it's on a whole... 'notha... level. It debuted at the All Arts Market as a 12.5" x 19" poster (only 3 left - so let me know if you'd like to claim one for $10)... but look for it soon on tshirts and buttons! {Below, Cory giving himself a round of applause :) Oh, and I added one more animation of his mad skating skills too, for good measure.}  It's that time of year - you know, when we all get drunk so we can put up with our families. Couldn't y'all use a bottle opener cleverly disguised as holiday decoration? Introducing the Ornament Bottle Opener! I like to call it the mullet of ornaments, "Business in the front, party in the back." These puppies sold out at The Big Crafty, but don't fret, we made more! So go get you some. They make great stocking stuffers, White Elephant presents or gifts for party hosts (especially when attached to a 6-pack of seasonal brews). And at only three bucks a pop, you can't go wrong. "Merry Christmas and Happy New Beer!" Click here to purchase.  As promised - here's a coupon for a FREE Not Made in China bottle opener, magnet, or mirror (of your choice) with any $10 purchase. Thanks to everyone who has supported me in this venture over the past year... can you believe it, it's already been a year!? I can't wait to see everyone's beautiful faces in the coming weeks! 
 Please stand by... regularly scheduled blogging will continue this week. Been bizzzay making buttons. In the past week, Not Made In China's OWAL (one-woman assembly line) has: - Made over 1,000 custom pins (750 pro-bono for the Charlotte Film Festival & 250 for a fellow graphic designer's [Melissa DePasquale] New York wedding) - Created 300 fabric mirrors for Maharam (a national commercial textile company) - Met with a local company and entertained the possibility of growing my biz and developing a partnership - Locked down two more custom orders (one order is out of Charleston, for a purveyor of Southern streetwear and lifestyle: H1GHER LEARNING) - Received a 4th restocking request, of over 100 magnets, for Paper Skyscraper Carpal Tunnel Syndrome here I come! But honestly, I can't complain. However, I do feel pretty slack for blogging so inconsistently this past week. I'll do better, promise.  The inaugural 5 Charlotte Neighborhood Buttons (premiered at the All Arts Market). Having difficulty deciding which slogan to go with for South End: 1. South End: Home of the Big Pink Building 2. South End: Enough condos to house all of Charlotte 3. South End: Charlotte's Art District 1st Runner Up Thoughts?   Developed some packaging last month... just now getting around to posting some photos. First debuted at the Big Crafty in Asheville.  I was thrilled to find that Not Made In China's "I Heart Lists" were featured on Apartment Therapy's Ohdeedoh blog today. Hooray! PS- for all you parents out there, Ohdeedoh has some great ideas for kids/decorating/design.  The Big Crafty: over 140 artists, free beer all day, a DJ playing 45s, several live music acts, thousands of attendees, all in the heart of downtown Asheville. The summer edition of the bi-annual craftfest was a huge success. As a first-timer, I have to say I was blown away. I met tons of awesome people and makers, made some new friends, was approached about few possible future vending opportunities, mingled with some fellow Crown Towners (Verabelle, Monkey & Squirrel, Stitch Machine, and Mason & Virginia), bought great one-of-a-kind gifts, and best of all, I got to meet some fans and blog followers in person (you guys rock!). One regret is that I didn't bring any Charlotte goods (what was I thinking?!), because Charlotteans were representing in rare form (holla!).  The Friday before the show I had a visual merchandising epiphany: peg board. It made all the difference. With only two trips to the local hardware store, a visit to Michael's, two trips to Kinko's, and a stop at Office depot (all in one day) I was ready to make a Price Is Right Plinko-style display board. It made a HUGE difference too. Now there are several "stations" for people to view the merch (plus I can drop ping pong balls down it, at parties, in the off season).
(Lots more Big Crafty after the jump) | When life gives you hands, make handmade.     May 2012  All  Online
Etsy Charlotte Paper Skyscraper Common Market SoBo Loft Park Road Books Eco-Licious Charlotte Visitor's Center All Arts Markets MoNA (formerly Plaza Muse) Green with Envy Think Chocolate Asheville Write On Asheville Art Museum Gift Shop The Big Crafty Elsewhere Crafty Feast Studio Slant Homespun Parties + Events  | ||
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