February 20th, 2009

UPDATE 5/6/09: We have changed the date of the workshop to December 5 & 6 2009 10-5pm. The book signing and gallery show will be December 4th from 6-9pm. This amazing two day workshop at our studio will take place Saturday May 30th and Sunday May 31st from 10am-5pm. The price for the two day camp is $230. You must have basic spinning experience and will learn new techniques to create personalized art yarn like the ones shown here! On Friday May 29th there will be a Free, very special Gallery show, lecture & book signing from 6-9pm. Come to the Gallery show but trust us, you’ll want to sign up for the class now to ensure a spot! :-)

Lexi’s book, Intertwined, The Art of Handspun Yarn, Modern Patterns, and Creative Spinning (Quarry Books, 2008) is filled with patterns, techniques and stories that reveal spinning as an art as deeply connected to the human spirit as it is to the spirit of D.I.Y. Crack open her book and you’ll see an amazing assortment of styles and stories – all told through handspun yarns. Flipping through the pages you’ll see skeins filled with doll parts, candy wrappers, fabric scraps and more. You’ve just got to see it!

We are already counting down the days until Lexi Boeger waves her plucky, fluffy wand over The U.C.C and transforms the studio into a world of truly one of a kind yarns filled with; sparkles, nubbles, crescents and coils. Lexi’s Camp Plucky Fluff workshops are world renowned – she is scheduled to teach her Camp in Japan and Norway in the next year!
To sign up for the class now, please call us at 310-392-0139, visit us in person, or download the class schedule here to print out the sign up form to send it via mail.

Find out more about Lexi Boeger and Pluckyfluff here, and the class materials list here
Feel free to call us with any questions or concerns!

February 14th, 2009

I’ve been dreaming about Etsy world takeovers. Each crafter sharing their creations and supporting each other’s stores….zines pouring out of the walls…balls of yarn piled high to the ceiling. If you haven’t heard of Etsy, it is an amazing online opportunity for anyone to buy and sell all things handmade.

Looking around our studio, there endless ways to improve an Etsy store here!!

With just one day pass at our studio you could:
1. Use our lightbox and flood lights to take professional photos of your products.
2. Use our die cut machine and assortment of stamps to make adorable price tags and packaging.
3. Look through our crafting library of books for new pattern ideas and projects.
4. Maintain your store on your laptop with our free wi-fi.
5. Get to know other crafters working in the studio – its a great place to share ideas!!
and much much much more!!

Polly began her Etsy store, Polly Danger, a couple of years ago. She found the experience exciting at first, but discovered that after a while, her handmade revolution had outgrown the 6′X7′ crafting room in her San Fernando home.

“After spending so much time as a solitary crafter, I needed to find an environment where I could be surrounded by other people creating and learning from each other.” Ixchel began working at the Urban Craft Center in September, and has since found that the space and opportunity to meet other crafters has not only helped her store, but reignited her desire to create.

“The U.C.C has helped me!” She says, while picking out coordinating fabrics for her latest collection of men’s aprons. “These cutting mats and table space make my crafty time more seamless. I’m much more productive here.”

Karen, another U.C.C resident, has found the studio’s photography equipment a great way to take professional pictures of her products. Karen’s signature bag at the moment is the Quickie Clutch. She sells the patterns on Etsy and at The U.C.C! She recently helped a first time sewer complete her pattern in our studio.

And what about me, you ask? My store, Shared Madness, has Custom Converse shoes, embroidery patterns and my favorite, zines! The studio here has helped me in so many ways, especially as I discover new ideas in our library and make friendships with other crafters.
Community is the key!

If you have an Etsy or Artfire store…if you sell handmade goodies to your friends or zines out of the trunk of your car…if you make things but haven’t started to share or sell them…our space and equipment is here to help you and your handmade revolution!

Our studio rates are:
1 hour $6
2 hours $11
Day pass $15
Memberships begin at $45 a month and give you unlimited access to the studio, a locker for your supplies, friend passes and more.

You can find our Etsy sites here:
Polly: pollydanger.etsy.com
Karen: hyperart.etsy.com
Rhea: sharedmadness.etsy.com

February 4th, 2009

This Sunday February 8th, the studio will be closed until 2:00 P.M and Monday February 9th from 3-8 p.m for filming! OIC Productions will be filming our studio as a children’s arts class for the independent feature “Hit List.”

We won’t get to put on the costumes or say the fancy lines, but we consider ourselves moviestars regardless. :-)

Today, we started a papermaking project! Soon enough, there will be kits ready to go in the studio with project instructions to make your own handmade paper. It only took us about two hours to complete the project, so why not come try it yourself?!

Now we’re just anxious for it to dry. Create! Create! Create!