Handmade Mart

We headed out to Silver Spring, MD (next to DC) for the first ever Handmade Mart. It was one of the best craft shows I've ever been to. When we got there volunteers helped us unload the van and some other people helped us set up the tent. There were bagels and some fruit for us too.

All of the tents were set up along one side of the street down at our end. I was surprised at the amount of traffic. It was really crowded! But because the street was so wide, it didn't seem bad --everyone had room to walk and for most of the day, we were in the shade. We were across from a noodle shop so lunch was amazing. Perfect weather, great music, frozen icy stuff, yay!

The rompers I made in May were a big hit at the Squidfire's show so I added some new designs and people again really seemed to like them. I have two of the designs photographed so I'll add them to the shop this week.


As you can see, they are really comfortable for both romping when you're supposed to be sleeping, and for a short snooze:


We decided to only bring one table to make room for the pack n play.

I put the beans in front of the table in one of our laundry baskets and that worked well. We used both clothing racks so there was plenty of room for all the goods too.

The yetis hung from the back wall of the tent and they were almost all gone by the end of the day. My friend is printing up some more of these and I'll have them soon.

Squidfire's May show (yes, May)

Better late than never, huh?

There have been some major computer issues here in Lemonland. Finally, the new computer is loaded with programs and files and several hundred pictures that have been molding in folders and on the camera.

The Squidfire's show was amazing. As usual, Baltimorians are super nice and very friendly. We had a great spot with a nice patch of grass behind the tent so we could chill with the little one in the shade.

We shared a spot with Kim of Shortees/Smartee Pants. We had so much fun. It was really nice to hang out with a fellow crafter and mom all day. Her son is just two months older than Baby Lemon so I got the scoop on what's coming next (one nap, beastly teeth, walking...). Kim makes amazing clothes from recycled t-shirts.

The best part of the day was a visit from one of our biggest fans:
She is the daughter of Sweet Pepita, a really amazing crafter.

Thanks to everyone who came to the show! The new rompers were a big hit so I made more for the Handmade Mart. Now that we're technologically stable again, I'll get some photos of the new stuff and add it to the Etsy shop.

I'm a Crafty Bastard!

I just got the chance to check my email and read that I was one of 95 applicants accepted into this year's show. This is such great news. I was a vendor last year and it was, by far, the best show ever (with Handmade Arcade running a very very close second).

See you September 28!

I think we can do it.

So this weekend we did our first craft show with Baby Lemon. The little model slept soundly in the car the whole way there, while we were unloading, and while we were setting up. She only woke up when I took her to the Odyssey to eat because I was getting worried. (She probably would have been fine but I'm a new mom...).


The event was a total success. The weather was not. It was incredibly hot and humid until it poured. Luckily, we were mostly packed up so only a couple of the bins got a bit wet. We've got the tent out of the bag and drying in the basement.


As always, the Pittsburgh shoppers were awesome. This was my third show up there and everyone is super supportive and nice. I was hoping to see some of the people who stopped by at Handmade Arcade but the cloudy skies kept a lot of people away.


I made a lot of changes to the whole setup. While reviewing pictures of last year's events, I decided that it was all just too busy. There was too much going on. I made bright lemon shapes and used black sticker letters in different fonts easy-to-read items and pricing. I also made a couple of sale signs. I really like the way they turned out.


Because of the weather, I couldn't use my tall displays. The shirts or onesies just act like sails and are so hard to control. I will definitely be using them again when it's not so windy. I think the look is really important to my tables.

I also decided not to use the yellow baskets with the lemons and cadet plushies. I thought maybe they were a bit distracting but now I think the display is looking a little bland so maybe they'll make a comeback -- or maybe the tall displays are all I need. We'll have to wait until next time to see.


Baby Lemon is generally very cooperative during the day. She was pretty easy this time (thanks to tinted windows and the awesome event coordinators who let me use their offices to feed her later in the afternoon). I've applied to a couple of shows that aren't too far away and have plans to apply for several more to take advantage of my maternity leave. I think we're just going to keep taking it one day at a time.

There are a few more pictures with notes in my flickr.

I Made It!

Lemon Cadet is back in action with a craft show this weekend. Team Lemon (Mr. Lemon, Baby Lemon, and special guest star Sandi Lemon) will be at the I Made It! Market at a huge festival in Pittsburgh, South Side Celebrates 250.

The market will be on 19th Street between Sarah Street and Carey Way. You won't be able to miss the celebration. It seems as though all of the South Side will be taking part with "dining specials and sidewalk sales from 10th Street to SouthSide Works, artist demonstrations, kid's zone, plays, entertainers, a community wide yard sale, food and much much more!"

The whole event lasts from noon until 6 this Saturday, June 28 so there's plenty of time to stop by.

I'm just about finished with the new designs and will preview them on flickr as early as tomorrow. I'm also working on the display and am really excited about how it will look. More on that later.

Hope to see all my Pittsburgh peeps at the show!

Crafty Bastards 2007!

I know it's been almost a week but there has been a lot to catch up on around here. Since I put everything on hold while getting prepared for the show, I've been taking care of old business.

So I'm sure you've heard that Crafty Bastards was amazing. There were thousands of people there. I sold lots of stuff and even bought a couple of things. I think Team Lemon singlehandedly (or two fistedly) emptied Sticky Fingers of their vegan treats.

The first photo shows most of the booth at the very end of the day with two very tired team members, Steph Lemon (aka Sister In Law or Sister to my Husband, Mr. Lemon) and Mr. Lemon. Both are sporting items from the Lemon Cadet line. I think Mr. Lemon looks hot in that yeti tee. Soon the facial hair will disappear as he shaves for tonight's Mustache Show at Wild Zero studios. My friend Jen stopped by and she snapped this photo of me (if you're dying to see me hot and sweaty and holding a bean).


That's Ingrid of Team Lemon who not only let us stay at her house, but also helped out for most of the day. She was a madman with wrapping up items in tissue and making everything sparkle.


The beans were a huge success. I didn't bring home very many of them and I'll be adding those to the shop next week. They also got featured on the My Aim is True blog.

The new yeti screenprinted tees were also a hit. I still have lots of sizes for kids and ladies in stock and I'll be ordering more of the men's sizes later this week. I want to have more ready for Handmade Arcade. I'm not sure if they'll make it to the Etsy shop since I didn't print them myself. So if you want one, let me know.

For more pictures of the event, check out the Crafty Bastards 2007 flickr pool.

Heading to Brooklyn

The Lemon Cadet bus is once again hitting the road. Find us Saturday, August 11 at the Brooklyn Indie Market in the Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill neighborhood next to the Eckerd Drug at Carroll Park on the corner of Smith and Union Streets. Find a map and directions here. I got the above photo from the Brooklyn Indie Market's photostream on flickr. They have a nice catalog of photos from previous weekends. I chose that photo because I love the banner and the cute kid. It's hard to see but all the action is happening inside the tent. There are also cool looking kiosks on the other side.

As with every market or craft show, there's something new. Finally, the Yeti Brooches are finished and all packaged up!!! There are three different colors: orange, turquoise, and pink. Also there will be a smaller bean doll available in two differnt patterns: a gorgeous vintage inspired quilt fabric and that hip retro floral print you've seen in the beans.

The market's hours are from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Please stop by.

Collage city

This weekend I'm going to do the Brooklyn Indie Market. Every time I do a craft show, I'm overwhelmed with setting up. I want it to go more smoothly. So I made this collage of where I want everything to go on the table.

Yes, it seems crazy but this is how I work. A drawing just won't do and I'm a visual person. This will help me when I get there and draw a blank.

I'm also going to do a better job of packing up the bins so I'll be able to put out the display smoothly and without a hitch. I wanted to do some rearranging from the way the table was at the Lancaster Eastern Market so I printed out some of the photos, cut them out and moved them around until they worked. I also printed out some pics from earlier shows where stuff wasn't blocking another piece.

See my flickr image for notes if you want more info on what's going where.

Lancaster, PA and the Eastern Market

It was a beautiful drive to Lancaster. We hardly had any traffic and it was a little overcast so I didn't have to wear sunglasses all day. Mom and I ate lunch at a crazy diner and then got to our hotel room with the evening to spare.


The Eastern Market was really cool. I got to hang out with some amazing Etsy sellers. Actually most of the vendors there are Etsy sellers. But seriously, how much better can it get than to drive up, get out of the car, and get a hug from someone you've been "talking" to online for months? That's one of the reasons why I love Etsy. It is such an amazing community. I have made so many friends and the network has allowed me to meet a lot of them in person.



One of those sellers is Steph of Stephanie Gibson Designs (above). Her jewelry is really exquisite. I was so impressed by the quality of her craftsmanship. My mom got a very nice necklace and some matching earrings. I bought a lot of soap and a lip balm from The Professor's Wife. She's not on Etsy yet but we're trying to talk her into it. I can't even list all of the other artisans who were selling their work that day because there are just too many of them. I was pretty happy with the way my table turned out. I've been adding new types of products (like the bean dolls) and it was a struggle to figure out where to put everything. I'll keep working on that one.


Lancaster and its surrounding towns are incredible. Mom and I had a great time doing some touristy stuff like visiting the emergency room (seriously), shopping for crafts and antiques, checking out the outlet mall, eating at gargantuan country buffets, and buying miniature pies. It's a wonderful place for a family vacation (as long as you check out the Eastern Market!). That's a cool llama that I met.

For more pictures of the Eastern Market, check out Frost Imaging's flickr site. Alissa of DivaDea also wrote this nice blog post about the market.

Saturday at the Market

This weekend, Saturday, July 14, Lemon Cadet is heading to Lancaster, PA for the Historic East Side "Eastern Market." At the corner of East King and Shippen Streets in downtown Lancaster.

As always, there's going to be something new that's not in the Etsy shop yet. This time it's really big striped bean dolls. They're all finished and ready to go.


For this event, I'll only have room for one table. That's a big switch from being able to use the space of the whole tent like the last couple of shows. So I spent some time figuring out how I want it to look since I have a wider variety of items now. I left all the baskets and bowls empty and took a quick picture for reference. I'm going to print it out and bring it with me.

Find directions here. Photos of the event here. The weather is going to be amazing: sunny and warm without any rain. I'll be in the big building, just inside the doors next to StephanieGibson and her beautiful jewelry. You'll also get a chance to meet my talented mom.

There's no entry fee and it goes from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m.

Art Star!

Thanks to everyone who came out to see Lemon Cadet at Art Star last weekend in Philadelphia. Whether it was boiling with heat and humidity or chilly with the torrential downpours and wind, the event was still a lot of fun. It was so cool meeting all the people I've "met" online at Etsy. I really appreciate that so many people took the time to stop by.

As you can see in the pic, we had to put down the back wall because it was so windy. By afternoon on Sunday, we had three walls down and the front wall ready to go. For a while people had to use the zipper to get in or out because the weather was so bad. If you are a crafter, I highly recommend a canopy that has three solid walls and one with a zipper in the center.


The bean guy stickers were super popular and I ran out long before the end of the first day and had to fill my basket with a couple of kids tees until the swag bags from the Pittsburgh Craft Mafia arrived. I've been hard at work making more. If you have one of these, make sure you stick it onto paper, not fabric.


And for those of you who missed us, the cat panties will be in the shop later this week.

In a large marble hallway

The craft show this weekend at CMU was really fun and a great learning experience. I met a few Etsy people and some other cool crafters. My table was stocked with goods. I ended up making some panties at the last minute because I wanted to have a range of items. I've been planning on adding panties to the Lemon Cadet line for a while now and Bring It! gave me a good reason to get on it.

The table looked great! All the yellow stood out well against the darkness of the stone hallway so I got great feedback on my little guys. Several people asked where I was going to be next. I didn't sell much (and I didn't expect to given the crowd) but I feel much more confident about my line and where to take it. I'm hoping to do some larger shows in Pittsburgh this Summer.

For the next show I need to think about how to display the mirrors and the buttons better. I thought they would sell better since they're so cute and inexpensive. The buttons were pinned on the scout dolls and the mirrors were in a basket on the left of the table. Now that I see the photos I can tell it's hard to even see the mirrors at all. With the buttons, maybe people were afraid to take them off or something.

Next time I'll do it differently. What's funny is that I actually got a few requests for the scout dolls so I'll probably add some to the shop in the upcoming weeks. You never know!

So thanks to everyone who showed up to support Lemon Cadet. Special thanks to Dee and Steph, my trusty helper elves who stayed with me during the day. They are way better promoters of my stuff than I am.

On that note, I'll be adding lots of new items to the shop this week. I have several yeti tees just about ready to go (need to add their little fingers!) and a super cute bug shirt (see him in the photo just above the buttons).

Coming Soon: www.YetiPanties.com, a division of Lemon Cadet!

Bring It!

The Lemon Cadet bus it trekking up to Pittsburgh to be a part of CMU's Copyright and Transgression Festival: You're Not the Boss of Me. They've added a Trade Fair to this year's event and have invited artists, crafts people, activists, art organizations and others to be be a part.

Please join me at Bring It! on Saturday, March 31 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

In addition to all my onesies and shirts, I'll have some special items not available in my Etsy shop: buttons and mirros, all featuring the famous little guys.

This is my first craft show and hopefully the first of many to come. I'm really excited about it and hope to see a lot of Etsy people and familiar faces.

GETTING THERE: Carnegie Mellon University is located in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh at 5000 Forbes Avenue. Parking is available for an hourly rate at the East Campus Garage (location P5 on the campus map). The College of Fine Arts building is just a few minutes walk across the cut (location 7 on the map).

Bring It! will be held in the Great Hall at the College of Fine Arts.

This is a photo of the scout dolls in progress. They'll be used to display all the buttons.