Name: Clare Madill
Website links: heyday design

What do you make?
I work in ceramics – I make molds of found, mostly vintage, forms and translate them into fine porcelain objects. These are currently taking the form of vintage canning jars. Also, I make countless variations of earrings and brooches from the positive and negative patterns on the bottom of vintage glass pickle dishes. I am also currently working on a series of porcelain lights...

What or who inspires you?
I definitely get inspired when I go thrift-store shopping – seeing what I can find and how I can use these found snippets of information and translate it into something else. I am super-inspired by the people I know who are successfully make their living creating things with their hands.



How did you get started?
Before going to Emily Carr, I took some ceramics classes at a community centre in Ottawa. While studying at Emily Carr, I found a fantastic community of people; it was easy to be completely immersed in ceramics. Participating in the annual student show + sale was great experience for making and selling my work.



What are your favourite materials to work with?
I love the translucency of porcelain, of course. But I'd also have to say plaster is a favourite – I can't believe I'm writing that, but it's actually true now. It's the material I need to make my molds so that I'm able to make what I make. It helps that i've gotten waaaaay better at mold-making so it's not the disastrous chore it used to be!

I kind of have a thing for platinum lustre, too – it adds a bit of glamorous detail to the situation.



What is the hardest and most favourite part of crafting?
Hardest: the long hours and how physically hard on my body my work can be. Favourite part: meticulous fine details really satisfy the obsessive/compulsive part of my personality...



List 5 of your favourite links and why you like them
design sponge: great bizladies articles, and always fun to see what creative and talented people make and how they integrate design in their environments

musing about mud: great for links to all kinds of calls for submissions, etc., for people working in clay

I like having a bit of a laugh at the end of the day... regretsy is a new fave.

since i just got home from a 14 hour day in the studio and have emails to send, i don't really leave much time for surfing around... gotta go to bed (1:24am)...

(photo images courtesy of Clare Madill / heyday design)

If you are interested in being featured, please send us an email at info(at)gotcraft(dot)com.

Check out our past features...

Smeeta - feature #27
ACageyBee - feature #26
Maked - feature #25
Firefly Notes - feature #24
Florence Ann - feature #23
Him Creations - feature #22
Jenny Hart - feature #21
district thirty - feature #20
tinywarbler designs - feature #19
telly designs - feature #18
Cabin + Cub - feature #17
Rachel Hobson - feature #16
Green Couch Designs - feature #15
Tanis Alexis - feature #14
Sweetie Pie Press - feature #13
Fibre Manipulator - feature #12
Sam Made - feature #11
All Things Paper - feature #10
Owl + Pussycat - feature #9
Bliss in a teacup - feature #8
It's Your Life - feature #7
Faythe Levine - feature #6
Coco Cake Cupcakes - feature #5
pomomama design - feature #4
GroovyGlassGirl - feature #3
Bueno Style - feature #2
The Beautiful Project - feature #1

Labels: buy handmade, ceramics, claire madill, design sponge, featured artist, heyday design, musing about mud, regretsy

Visit Granville Online and read my article on what craft markets are happening in Vancouver during the Olympics!

Labels: art of craft, Blim, buy handmade, canamade, granville magazine, museum of vancouver, Qortezan Market, scraps vancouver, vancouver craft events

Craftacular is ready again for their next show!
Sunday, February 7th, 2010
Little Mountain Gallery - 195 East 26th Avenue
11:00am to 6:00pm

Come check out over a bakers dozen of local artists including the Culinary Temptresses with their gluten free and vegan treats! A love themed photobooth will also be set up, so don your Sunday best!

Labels: buy handmade, craft fair, craftacular, little mountain gallery, vancouver craft events

photo credit: dashing etc.

It's Valentine's Day coming up on February 14th! Here what caught my eye over on Etsy ...


photo credit: alexandra ferguson

... because you know ... sometimes you need a pillow to express how you feel.


photo credit: b. children's wear

A whimsical shirt that comes with a felt envelope and letter inside. Perfect for the little one in your life.


photo credit: earmark invitations

Remember on the Simpsons when Ralph Wiggum gives Lisa a Valentine's? He said it best!


photo credit: Art Mind

Perhaps a key to your heart for your one true love?

Labels: art mind, b children's wear, dashing etc, earmark invitations, etsy, gift guide, valentine ideas, valentine's day

The heart on is a celebration of what we do for what we love - art :: music :: dance :: design

A get together to revel in Vancouver's amazing mixture of creativity, originality and talent. Admiring the romance between arts and culture to celebrate what makes us heart.

What makes you heart?

Starts: Saturday, February 6th, 2010 @ 9:00pm
Ends: Sunday, February 7th, 2010 @ 3:00am
Box Studios - 1622 Franklin Street, Vancouver

Visit ' the heart on ' for more information!

Labels: the heart on, vancouver events

Name: Rita Leung from Smeeta
Website links: Smeeta on Etsy, Noticle blog

What do you make?
I make lots of different things... but as for what I make to sell that would be mostly felt brooches, toys, and bags/purses. I was encouraged to be creative with what I had when I was a kid (read: no money for fancy toys! Oh wait... that's now too! haha) so I've always that "well, if I can't buy it, can I make it?" mentality.



What or who inspires you?
What doesn't inspire me should be the question here I think! Whether I see something that is so fabulous that I want to try making it myself, or whether it's something so horribly designed that I know that I can make a better version, I find that I'm constantly inspired by the things around me. I think particularly in the spring and fall I'm influenced by the natural environment and I love all things Japanese so that definitely plays a part in my style and design.

Also, when I go shopping for supplies, rarely do I have an extensive list of things I need to purchase. A lot of the time the things I make come from being attracted to a particular material. When I go to the fabric store, if I see something I like and really want to use, I think, what can I make with this?



How did you get started?
I guess I've had a bit of an entrepreneurial streak ever since I was a kid. When I was 12 one of my best friends and I started "R & B Odd Jobs". We went around the neighbourhood stuffing mailboxes with our photocopied fliers offering services such as babysitting, garden work, dog walking etc. We ended up with only ONE gig all summer which was cutting grass for my friend's dad's friend. Hah!

As for the craft selling, when I was fourteen I learned how to make my own little weaving loom out of cardboard and wove a bunch of purses. My mom sold all 6 of them for me at $15 bucks a pop. I was hooked! First off, I really enjoyed the process of creating, and then secondly, I realised how satisfying it was for other people to like my work enough to pay for it. Mind you, they probably only bought them because they were my mom's friends... but hey, it was that little bit of encouragement that planted the seed for my crafty future!

What are your favourite materials to work with?
Currently that would be oil cloth. I do have a bit of a love/hate relationship with it though. I love the way it feels and looks but I hate the way it sews! I also really enjoy working with felt. It comes in such pretty colours, is soft, and is non-fussy to work with.



What is the hardest and most favourite part of crafting?
Hardest: Not being able to figure out what you're doing wrong while making the same mistake over and over again. For example, I was not a happy camper when I first tried sewing in zippers.

Favourite: Holding the finished product in your hand and just feeling proud because you created something (you think) is awesome.



List 5 of your favourite links and why you like them

flickr: In addition to the crafty stuff, I also love taking photographs. This is a great wealth of inspiration not to mention a great site to find really cute pictures of cats. meow. p.s. my flickr is here: http://flickr.com/photos/smeeta

keyofgrey: did I also mention that I'm into music? Key of Grey is run by my boyfriend and is a daily blog with music gear reviews, questions and answers about producing music, and general music banter.

facebook: I was hesitant to join at first, but am so glad that I did! It's really helped me connect with so many people and made organizing my 10 year high school reunion soooo much easier.

etsy: I think this one is pretty self-explanatory. It's a place I get to sell my wares, and sometimes, more importantly, a place I get to *buy* goodies! It's so easy to get lost in browsing all the incredible things that people make.

icanhascheezburger: no explanation required. hehe.



Do you have any advice for those in the biz?
Two words: TIME MANAGEMENT. Learn it. Do it. Or else get sucked into spending 6 hours too many surfing the net and only 1 hour being productive. Lesson learned. :P

And a few more words: spend some time to really think about pricing. In general, things always cost more than we think they do to make and sell them. It's not only the cost of the materials and the time you put in creating - there's so much more involved. For example, are you going to charge for the time it takes to design your product, purchase supplies, photograph, list, promote, package, and ship your items? Also, there are the cost of packaging materials, your tools, electricity, internet bills, camera, and so on. Eeps! I'm still not sure if my prices are what I want them to be or what they should be, but for now, they will suffice!



Do you consider yourself an artist or a crafter?
Yes, these are different. What I am at any given point depends on what I'm doing... I consider myself both an artist and a crafter. However, for the business side of things, I would say that I spend most of my time as a crafter.

Craft for me is something that is generally done with your eyes and your hands. You can craft without designing your own product and you can also make several of the same item. To be a skilled crafter is to be able to produce something of high physical (and preferably aesthetic) quality. Art, on the other hand is emotional and very subjective. It might be difficult to quantify the quality of a piece of art whereas you could simply say a craft is either well made or it isn't. I would say a lot of the people in this business are both artists and crafters. It's a very good combination. :)

(photo images courtesy of Rita Leung / Smeeta)

If you are interested in being featured, please send us an email at info(at)gotcraft(dot)com.

Check out our past features...

ACageyBee - feature #26
Maked - feature #25
Firefly Notes - feature #24
Florence Ann - feature #23
Him Creations - feature #22
Jenny Hart - feature #21
district thirty - feature #20
tinywarbler designs - feature #19
telly designs - feature #18
Cabin + Cub - feature #17
Rachel Hobson - feature #16
Green Couch Designs - feature #15
Tanis Alexis - feature #14
Sweetie Pie Press - feature #13
Fibre Manipulator - feature #12
Sam Made - feature #11
All Things Paper - feature #10
Owl + Pussycat - feature #9
Bliss in a teacup - feature #8
It's Your Life - feature #7
Faythe Levine - feature #6
Coco Cake Cupcakes - feature #5
pomomama design - feature #4
GroovyGlassGirl - feature #3
Bueno Style - feature #2
The Beautiful Project - feature #1

Labels: etsy, featured artist, felt, handmade, noticle, rita leung, smeeta

I was at the library last week and was brosing through the 'recommended reads' section when this book caught my eye. It seemed so randomly placed among the piles of mystery and romance novels.

When I finally got around to reading it (I have this issue where I feel like I should be finishing up work rather than reading), this book had me captivated from beginning to end. The chicken chapter that I planned on skipping? I loved it! I wish somebody would keep some chickens in our community garden! Oh, and the honeybees! The bee keeping chapter had me wanting a source of fresh honey as well. Yes, the likely hood of me going out and tending livestock and sewing up my own underwear may be slim, but if I wanted to, this book is what will tell me what to read, where to look and who to talk to.



In a world of mass produced items, Jenna teaches you how to slow down and appreciate the handmade life by looking at the world differently. Use your skills and knowledge to grow your own food, sew your own clothes, thrift for new to you items and even how to train your dog haul supplies.

The back of the book lists a few of the author's favourite recipes and a full list of resources including making pasta from scratch and optional reading on each topic. The book also includes a recipe for fresh bread that I am planning on testing out today. I will let you know how it turns out.


(made by me: rice krispie squares with marshmallows made from scratch!)

The book was written in 2008, but Jenna still has an active blog called the Cold Antler Farm where you can read about what she is currently up to.

Labels: book review, handmade life, jenna woginrich, made from scratch

Hair clips are back in stock plus new fabric covered bobby pins! Check out the new packaging using the pen blender tutorial by bliss in a teacup (via poppytalk).


I'm loving the sailor ones. I made an extra pair. You know.. one for the craft fair.. one for my own use :D

Want a pair? Drop me a line!

Labels: bliss in a teacup, bobby pins, pen blender tutorial, poppytalk, roxypop

Last Thursday, the Museum of Vancouver hosted a DIY night and invited Got Craft to be a part of it. Let me tell you... if you didn't make it down there, you missed out! It was so much fun!


The ladies from Yarn Bombing were on-site with yarn demostrations throughout the evening. There was a mountain of yarn that you can choose and make stuff with.


Jackie from Divesin oversaw paper collage workshops which were insanely popular. Opus donated all of the materials that you could possibly need to make the perfect take home wooden panels.


Got Craft had a super mini craft fair set up with SamMade, Divesin, Olive and myself (Roxypop).

Thank you to the MOV for all of their hard work in putting this event together. Hope to see many more DIY events! In the meantime, stay tuned for more information on 'Fine Craft' vs. DIY on Thursday, March 4th.

Labels: divesin, DIY event, got craft, museum of vancouver, olive, roxypop, sammade

Earlier this week was spent whipping up these faux desserts for our Indie I Do table display this Saturday. It was the first time where I sat down with a Japanese craft book and tried to decipher its instructions.


They look pretty delicious don't they? I'm pretty happy at how they turned out. Thinking of maybe doing a few cake slices to round out the thrifted tea caddy that I am displaying them on. Yummy!

Labels: craft projects, felt, indie i do, little apple, miniature food