home holiday shopping party!

In case you didn't see my last post, this past Saturday I was apart of a Holiday Shopping Party held in Orange, CA!

And... on to the photos!

Our festive Christmas tree with hanging giveaways!

My tote bags and basket full of original artwork!

View of my table!

Pandas galore!
Now, let's take a tour around the house...

Melissa (Poppy Raye Studio)

And her beautiful artwork!

Derya (Jewelera)
Derya's mother's knitting goodness!
Elsie (Namaste Designs)
Rose (My Friend Roze)

Rose's second booth (Little Corners)

Rachel (Cherry Tree Lane)

Melissa (Melissa Loschy Designs)

(I did a lot of shopping here... can't wait for my
custom scarf and knuckle rings! Woot woot!)

What kept us munchin' all afternoon...

Cheese & crackers with a bit of red wine!

I think the most valuable thing I gained from this shindig was how important it is to not be intimidated to connect with local artisans that have familiar interests as I do. While they all specialize in their specific craft and each have a very distinct style, it was funny to realize how much we did have in common.

It's hard for many of us to stick to one thing... as we all enjoy the thrill of learning something new and challenging our creative minds. It's also nice to find comradery amongst one another. While we all have an enormous amount of support from family and friends (many who came to hang out for a bit!), there's also something special about finding people that you immediately connect with upon the simple reason that you share a similar passion... a passion for handmade, making things with our hands, and sharing our love with our craft with others.

These girls have impacted my life, are an inspiration, and are people I look up to. I just saw Rose (My Friend Roze) again at the this past Sunday's Ghettogloss Silverlake Art Show, and will be seeing Rachel (Cherry Tree Lane) and Melissa (Melissa Loschy Designs) this coming Saturday at Tall Mouse's Handmade Brigade! I'm beyond excited!

Speaking of the Ghettogloss Silverlake Flea Market, I'll be updating again soon with photos from this past Sunday! Hooray for craft show season!

xoxo,
Steppie
http://steppie.etsy.com

event update: holiday hotness bazaar.

On November 8th, which will be fast approaching as we near our Halloween trick or treating, will be an important day for me and Designs by Steppie! It'll be my first time selling my original paintings and handmade items at a juried show. If you don't recall, my first time setting up shop in front of a live audience didn't happen too long ago (Orange Home Boutique), but now I'm taking all that I've learned and my expanded line of Steppie goods to the heart of Los Angeles! And boy, am I excited!



The Holiday Hotness Bazaar (HHB) is a unique shopping experience, showcasing some of the best and brightest designers from the independent community. HHB will feature a variety of artists, modern crafters and DIY'ers.

Admission will be $2 and free for children 7 and under.

They will also be giving away 100 HHB gift bags to the first 100 patrons!



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On another exciting note, My, the brain behind the event has just spotlighted me on her blog and on the Holiday Hotness website!


While I'm adding new exciting things to my line of handmade goodies, I am also preparing myself for a fabulous craft show and am excited to keep you guys updated with the process of it all!

If you are around the area, I would love to see new faces there! I have created a Facebook event group, which you can mark as "attending" to get updates and reminders about the craft bonanza!

If you're a seller - will you be doing any craft shows this season? If so, which ones? And if you're a buyer, will I be seeing you around? I'd love to meet some new faces in person! And you'd be able to touch and feel my products - how exciting!

Hope to see you there!

xoxo,
Steppie

time to catch up.

Wow, it's been a long time!

Before getting a little more into what I've been up to lately, a very important update:

http://DesignsBySteppie.blogspot.com

My Etsy store is still in the same place, but my blogspot URL has now changed from "enrougedesigns" to "DesignsBySteppie"... all consequence to some changes to my shop and business branding. If you're here now, that means you've found me safely -- so update your links and get comfortable in my new home!

Now, moving on to the juicy stuff...

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With my recent home boutique on my list of epic accomplishments for my shop, I was swarmed soon after with playing catch up while being occupied by my last few weeks as a member of CADC for UC Irvine's Welcome Week. I'm actually still in the middle of it, and just finished my first week "on tour" with CADC. Two more to go, and the team I called my family for the last four years I will no longer be apart of. Well, as a current member, anyway. I'll finally get to call myself an official "alum" of the team. DC forever? Oh, hell yes.

CADC Senior Class '08
Anthony, Steppie, JPark, Kym, Addie, Beltran

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As mentioned earlier, I was just apart of my very first craft boutique! It was my first time selling my items to others in person, and while I was nervous and scared (I think we all are the first time), the experience was absolutely wonderful and unforgettable.

The event was small and intimate - but exactly how I would have wanted it for my first craft boutique. I met some fabulous sellers who were adorable, infectious, and extremely inspiring. They were all wonderful at their own craft, and seeing all that passion in one room was overwhelming! But man, was it an experience...

Some snapshots of my table display:

My table from afar!

Some of my larger canvas pieces hanging on the wall!

These are my newest obsessions.

Birdies on a hanging mirror?
To die for!

Table display.

Tree display and baskets to showcase my paper crafts:
greeting cards, postcards, journals, etc.

A place for people to sign up for my mailing list
or to make custom orders. I also had two-folders-worth
of a portfolio of all the work I've done!

Basket full of canvas paintings and prints!

ACEOs and buttons galore!

I love finding cool ways to organize my items!

Display to hold all my button designs!
Originally a candle holder!

A closer look...

The adorable ACEOs of my original paintings!


And, of course, a special thank you to everyone
that stopped by to support!
(Do you like my apron? It's hand painted by yours truly!)Thank you Rod, Anton, Noah, Beltran...
And those not pictured: Mom, Dad, Danette, Lay, Jungle, KDuh, and Mel

And a BIG, SPECIAL thank you to the boyfriend for sticking it out for most of the day (and even when you were gone, you were just outside the door, taking a quick nap in your car!).

This experience was eye-opening, and definitely something I want to keep doing. I have a few more craft shows lined up, and a few more I want to look into. So look out for me! I'll keep you bloggers updated!

And make sure to check out my Etsy shop: http://steppie.etsy.com! I've got a lot of new things listed!

And be ready for some more blog updates very soon!

xoxo,
Steppie

P.S. Leave me comments! :)