Black Friday, Small Business Saturday & Cyber Monday

Did you survive Thanksgiving and Black Friday? We only made one shopping excursion to Lakefront Brewery in Milwaukee so my husband could buy their limited edition Black Friday beer, which is only sold today.  If you are trying to do the buy local - buy handmade - support small businesses - thing, here are some suggestions for both in-person shopping in SE Wisconsin and some on-line gift guides in the form of Etsy treasuries for those of you in the rest of the world.

If you live in southeast Wisconsin and are looking for some local, handmade holiday gifts, here are some upcoming craft shows & one workshop:

Saturday, November 30, 2013
Art Vs Craft (their last year) - Milwaukee WI at the Harley Davidson Museum 

Holly Craft Fair - DePere WI

Sat & Sun December 7-8, 2013
Crafter's Marketplace (presented by the ABK Weaving Center)
at the Jazz Gallery, 926 E Center ST, Milwaukee  (I'm participating in this one.)

Sat. December 7, 2013
Holiday card making workshop at Redline Milwaukee

MKE UP Market Holiday Bazaar and Fundraiser for the Philippines at SPIN Milwaukee

Sun. December 8, 2013
Hovercraft 2013 at Turner Hall

Buy Local Gift Fair - Lakefront Brewery

There are probably plenty of others that I am missing!

If you don't live in Wisconsin, you can still shop on-line. (My Etsy shop is here)  I've also been putting together some holiday Etsy gift guides ranging from the kooky & creepy to the fun & colorful.  I've tried to keep the focus on handmade, as well as feature some folks I know both in person and on-line, though there are also strangers included along with members of the Etsy Wisconsin Street Team (WIST).  Enjoy!

Home for the Holidays (little colorful houses)
https://www.etsy.com/treasury/NTIxNzIyOHwyNzI1MzM3NzY0/home-for-the-holidays

Spoiled Cats & Spoiled Dogs (gift ideas for pets & pet lovers)
https://www.etsy.com/treasury/NTIxNzIyOHwyNzI1MzE0OTM2/spoiled-cats
https://www.etsy.com/treasury/NTIxNzIyOHwyNzI1Mjg3OTU0/spoiled-dogs

Krampus (a mythical creature who accompanies St. Nicholas and punishes the naughty children)
https://www.etsy.com/treasury/NTIxNzIyOHwyNzIyNjY4MzM5/krampus

Zombie Holidaze (and there's a lot of holiday themed zombie stuff out there)
https://www.etsy.com/treasury/NTIxNzIyOHwyNzI1MjQ0MDI4/zombie-holidaze 

Kooky & Creepy Holidaze (if you prefer your holiday a little off-kilter)
https://www.etsy.com/treasury/NTIxNzIyOHwyNzIyNzE4ODgz/kooky-creepy-holidaze

Now time for leftover pumpkin pie and a nap.... 

Warped Milwaukee 2013 Artists & Hours

Following up on my last post about the 2013 Warped Milwaukee 4th Annual Fiber Arts Exhibition, if you don't live in the Milwaukee area, you can currently see a slide show of the exhibit on the Riverwest Artists Association website here. The Jazz Gallery is located at 926 E. Center Street in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Participating artists in alphabetical order are Carolyn Brady (yours truly), Susan Buss, Elizabeth Carr, Taylor Easton, Jill Engel-Miller, Jan Falk, Darlene Hagopian, Katie Haws, Judy Kabriel, Mel Kolstad, Peter McMasters, Jane Moore, Mary Rutkowski, Phyllis Schlessinger, Jennifer Nicole Triolo, Maikue Vang, Nicole Werner, and NicoleWoltman.

Big shout out to Harmonie Baker for organizing this exhibit! Read more about the great work she's doing running an afterschool fiber arts program for Milwaukee school kids here.

And here's an updated listing of upcoming times when the Jazz Gallery will be open, and you can also find the gallery calendar on the RAA website.

Sun. Nov 24th, 12-5 pm
Tues. Nov 26th, 7-9 pm Live Jazz Jam
Fri. Nov 29th, 12-5 pm
Sat. Nov 30th,  12-5 pm (Artist Gathering) and 7-9 pm (Live Jazz)
Sun. Dec 1, 11 am-4pm -Winter Farmers’ Market
Tues. Dec 3rd, 7-9 pm Live Jazz Jam
Thu. Dec. 5th, 5-8 pm
Fri. Dec. 6th, 5-8 pm

Some art may still be up Dec 7-8, 2013 as artists will be picking up their work that weekend, and the gallery will be open for the ABK Weaving Center's Crafter's Marketplace (Sat Dec 7 from 10-5 and Sun Dec 8 from 12-5).  You can do your holiday shopping and may be run into some of the artists as well.  If you are interested in participating in the Crafter's Marketplace, they are accepting applications through December 1, 2013.

Please note that the Jazz Gallery is dependent on volunteers to keep the doors open, and the above schedule may be subject to change. There is a suggested $5 cover for the Saturday night Jazz Series. Otherwise admission is free, but donations to the Riverwest Artists Association are appreciated.

Warped Milwaukee 2013

Can you believe it's November already? Time for Warped Milwaukee's Annual Fiber Arts Exhibition! I have two pieces in the show, which opens this evening, November 9, 2013 at the Jazz Gallery, 926 E Center ST, Milwaukee, Wisconsin and will be up through December 7, 2013. Above is a sneak peek detail of my art quilt "Three Sunflowers" from the show.

Because the Jazz Gallery relies on volunteers to keep the doors open, the gallery schedule will vary, and I'll post the open times when I know more, but it will generally be open Saturdays 12-5 and Tuesdays 6-9 pm with additional hours expected on Sunday afternoons depending on volunteer availability. (On Tuesday nights they have live jazz.)

On the weekend of December 7 -8, 2013, I'll also be participating in the associated Crafter's Marketplace at the Jazz Gallery selling handmade goodies in time for your holiday shopping. A percentage of the sales benefits the ABK Weaving Center.

The Facebook event page for the Warped Milwaukee show is here. More information about Crafters Marketplace is here

UPDATED 11/15/13 Here is the Jazz Gallery schedule showing various times when it will be open for jazz concerts, winter farmers' market etc. Warped Milwaukee volunteers will also be gallery sitting from 12-5 pm on Saturdays and Sundays when the gallery is not already open for another event as well as Nov 29, the Friday after Thanksgiving.