Christmas is a time of giving....

SO for Christmas we ( The Handmade Brigade Of OC ) were contaced by Mercy House to see if we wanted to be part of their Stockings for homeless children living in motels all over orange county... Of course it pulled on my heart strings so we decided to make a craft party out of it!! It was a bunch of fun and good to know it was going towards a good cause. We bought the stockings and then had a crazy amount of crafty stuff to decorate them. People went a little crazy....



Some were literally 2 hours stockings... I made some myself and they were super easy... I turned all mine into reindeer hahahahha...



I guess the kids probably wont really care about the outside of the stockings but more whats inside but it was a good way to get people to come and celebrate Christmas by giving to those who are less fortunate then ourselves. Also got a chance to hang out with fabulous people who always support all our events. One being Frances and her Husband... Shes great! She always helps us with anything we need!!!

We also had a bunch of great sponsors who helped donate food and money to our event.. If it wasn't for everyones great support it wouldnt have been as sucessful as it was! I hope to make this an annual event for the HBOC.

How was everyones Christmas???

Here is a blast from the past... the freaking best Holloween costume since 1960... Honestly... this is genius!



This is my uncle hahahahhaah!

LB Patchwork is Sunday

Happy Pre-Turkey day! Don't forget that this Sunday is Patchwork Long Beach! All of the info is on the poster and the Handmade Brigade booths are right towards the entrance, #44, 45 and 46.
Hope to see you there!

Sunday is PATCHWORK

I apologize for the lack of posts we've had on our official blog..there are so many projects in the works for us right now! Expect a very extensive update next week about our upcoming events we're planning and participating in, but for now, be sure to visit us at PATCHWORK SHOW this sunday in Santa Ana. We'll have all the info you need about our upcoming "Stocking Stuffer" event too! Hope to see you there

Oh Goody

So one of the highlights of the Handmade Brigade Indie Craft shows is the coveted "Goody Bags" given to the first people to enter the event. The tote bags are filled with promotional items from craft companies like Sublime Stitching, etsy.com, but mostly from etsy sellers (local, and not-so-local). For the HBOC Holiday Indie Craft show happening Nov. 1st at The Camp (11-5) we are asking all of our fabulous vendors to donate 25 promotional items for the bags! By "promotional items" we mean something that will "promote" your shop. A promotional item could simply be a business card, a 1" button, a coupon, stickers, magnets, candy, or an actual item that you might sell in your shop. What would make someone want to visit your shop online? Pictured below are items donated from etsy sellers for the SPEAKEASY Indie Craft show to give you some ideas of clever ways to promote your shop.

1. Sample of bath product from Lemon Lollipop

2. Coupon and eye color sample from Orglamix

3. Business card and button from The Pinpals

4. Felt strawberry and business card from Softie Cafe

5. Magnet and 1" pin from Down Home Amy

6. Strawberry charms from less apathy. more cake

If you are still unsure about what to donate to the goody bags, or of you aren't a vendor at the HBOC Holiday Indie Craft show but would still like to donate items to promote your shop, please send an email to HandmadeBrigadeofOC@gmail.com.

Now accepting Applications!

The Handmade Brigade is proud to announce that we are accepting applications for our Holiday Craft show:

HANDMADE BRIGADE holiday show 2009

Sunday November 1st at
THE CAMP 2937 Bristol Street Costa Mesa, CA 92626
11:00 AM - 5:00 PM

To apply, simply follow the instructions on our apply page on the HBOC website. We will have artwork for the show in a few days, so keep on the lookout! Be sure to apply as soon as possible!

Speaking Easy

September 20th marked the day of the HBOC's Speakeasy Indie Craft Fair, held at Costa Mesa's Detroit bar. Unlike indie craft shows we've presented in the past, this one was quite distinctive because it was tucked away inside a bar! Shoppers par-oozed the fabulous vendor's booths with drinks in hand while listening to records spun by a DJ. It made for a very class and relaxed experience!

To see all of the photos, visit the Handmade Brigade's Flickr site


A HUGE thank you to all of the Vendors who came to sell their beautiful handmade treasures as well as the etsy sellers who contributed to our very sought after goody bags! Without all these creative spirits, there wouldn't be incredible indie events.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS:
November 1st
Handmade Brigade Holiday Show
11:00 AM - 5:00 PM
The Camp, Costa Mesa

If you are interested in being a vendor and haven't applied yet, you may fill out the form here.
We will be posting more information about the show very soon!

Goody Bags!!!

Our show is just around the corner!!! Sunday at 5pm! Be there or be square! Make sure you come early. First 25 people will be getting one of our awesome bags! FREE!!! The best part? They are made by us! Reconstructed t-shirts into eco friendly bags with our awesome logo!!! I also had Etsy as well as many Etsy shops donate samples and promo items for the bags... I also am super excited to announce that my favorite indie business

SUBLIME STITCHING sponsored us and has given us free patterns to add to the bags! YYYAAAAYYY !! See you Sunday!!!

It's Here, it's HERE!!!!

The Coast Magazine article is here! We met Jessica of COAST magazine for coffee last month in Newport and a couple of weeks later, was the dreaded Photoshoot. Needless to say, the article was fabulously written. To read it, click here and navigate to page 36.

Don't forget, SPEAKEASY is right around the corner on September 20 at Detroit Bar in Coast Mesa. (5-10pm).

Ladies and Gentlemen: The Line-up

So we've finalized our lovely vendor line-up for the Speakeasy Craft show (Sunday September 20, 5-10 PM, Detroit Bar) and we honestly have the best most awesome handmaidens and Handfellows (what's the equivalent of maiden for a guy? haha). I hope everyone realizes how much fun this show will be!

MandaLanda
Knickerrocker
Loverly Ink
Salvage Life
Not Quite Vintage
Voz CLothing & Art
Melissa Loschy Designs
Tacos n' Eggrolls
Fourth & French
Wolves & Willows
The Boo Dog
Heirloom CLothing
Sons of Thunder
Yellow Wallpaper
Annierexic
Melt Brianna
Polly Danger
Oh Hello Friend
Love California
Random Nicole
Zombie Factory
Tyler Bender Book Co.

Karen Kang Art

Nan Lawson

It's coming!

Melissa's turn

So today the last of the 4 Handmade Brigade girl profiles was posted on OCweekly about Melissa Loschy Designs. Read it here!

Thanks again to Steph Calvert of Hearts and Laserbeams from the OC Handmade Brigade! In this third article, she wrote about Jackie of Voz Clothing and Art. It's on OCWeekly.com. If you comment on the article, you're entered for a chance to win a gift basket filled with goodies from each of our shops!

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Read the article here

Hooray Brook!

Thanks again to Steph Calvert of Hearts and Laserbeams from the OC Handmade Brigade! The second article she's written about Brook Owens of and HBOC is up on OCWeekly.com. If you comment on the article, you're entered for a chance to win a gift basket filled with goodies from each of our shops!

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Read the article here

Yay Nina!

A big thanks goes to Steph Calvert of Hearts and Laserbeams from the OC Handmade Brigade! She's writing profiles of each of the HBOC girls for OCWeekly.com. Her writing is incredibly witty. Nina is the first of the 4 to be featured. If you comment on the article, you're entered for a chance to win a gift basket filled with goodies from each of our shops!

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Read the article here

Welcome!

Read the article about us in OC Register

The Orange County Handmade Brigade is a brand new renegade craft club made up of entrepreneurial indie crafters all living in orange county who meet up to share ideas and plan events. To find out more about the Handmade Brigade girls, head to our member section.

Be sure to check out this blog regularly!