Red Rabbit Arts & Crafts Market Vendor Opportunity

CCCOE member floresflorestanis is helping to put together the Red Rabbit Arts & Crafts Market which will be held Sunday July 19th at the Los Angeles Arboretum. This show will feature all handmade items by artists, craftspeople, crafters and designers and we've still got tables available for anyone interested in participating. Here's our website for more info and applications: redrabbitworkshop.com

May Member Announcements

Check out what's happening with CCCOE members! LuckyZelda will be at: PATCHWORK INDIE ARTS & CRAFTS FESTIVAL Sunday May 17th 11am-5pm 2202 N. Main St Sana Ana 92706 Visit the Patchwork Show Website for more info. TheChainmailleLady will be at two shows July and August: INT'L GEM & JEWELRY SHOW July 3, 4, 5, 2009 Pasadena Convention Center (Main Building) 300 East Green Street Pasadena, California Visit the website for more information. If you are interested in free tickets to this show e-mail your name and address to QJDesigns [!at] yahoo.com PASADENA BEAD & DESIGN SHOW July 30th - August 2nd The Pasadena Hilton 168 S. Los Robles Ave. Pasadena California In addition to selling her work she will also be teaching classes in chainmaille. Please visit the website for more information. ORANGE COUNTY MUSEUM OF ART Ocean Avenue Silks has created an exclusive line of scarves for the Georgia O'Keeffe exhibit at the Orange County Museum of Art. For the duration of the exhibit they are available only at the museum and their online gift shop. The exhibit is called Illuminations and runs through September 6th. Information on the exhibit can be found on the museum's website. CCCOE MEMBER SALES BKD Signature Boutique is offering free shipping through May 10th in celebration of Mother's Day! CCCOE Team member announcements are being made here monthly. To have your show, sale or even posted in June's announcements please convo your information to shellmitchell.

Summer Gift Guide Announcement

The 2009 Handmade In California Summer Gift Guide is here! There are a number of exciting changes from the Holiday Guide so please read carefully. ·The Summer Gift Guide is optional and all California based Etsy sellers are invited to participate. ·The cost for each shop to participate in the California Summer Gift Guide is $10.00, which includes 6 images per shop, listed under 3 different and appropriate categories of your choice. If you have more than one shop, each shop must pay $10.00 to be included. If you have more than one shop, sharing items between your shops is not allowed. (For example if you have Shops A and B, you cannot combine items from Shops A and B and pay only $10.00.) ·To reserve your space, go to http://www.handmadeincalifornia.net/guide-reservation.html ·Follow the reservation instructions ·Once you reserve your space and categories, you will receive an invoice to pay for your listing within 48 hours. ·All spaces are on a first-come, first-serve basis. Upon making your reservation you will be guaranteed your first category choice. ·No shops will be added after May 15, 2009 ·Each category will be limited to 20 shops. The categories are as follows: Adornments Art Aficionados Décor Eco Friendly Fashion Forward Etc. Gifts by Price Range (choose a sub-category): Under $25 Under $50 Under $75 Luxe – items $100 and over For Her Fun in the Sun (I like this-summer related items) Mining for Gold in California (Vintage items) Tot to Teen Jewelry (choose a sub-category): Necklaces Bracelets Earrings Rings & Things Paperie Spa Special Occasion Father’s Day Summer Holidays Indulgences ·The front page of the gift guide will rotate and each member should be on the front page 1-2 times between launching and August 31, 2009 depending on the number of participants. These will also update automatically from Etsy. Each store is marked as a favorite when they sign-up to be certain that the items rotate often. ·A press release will be sent to several newspapers, tv and radio stations and stylists throughout the state. If you would like your bio sent with the press release, please forward to anniek at anniekclothing [!at] gmail.com. Some newspapers thought the press release was not relevant to their readers without having a shop in their area. ·Money collected from guide listings and advertisements will go towards promoting the Summer Gift Guide via web ads. i.e. project wonderful, blogs and other places that the PR Committee determines to best suit the advertising needs of the Gift Guide. Suggestions are also welcome. During the Spring Gift Guide, ads were run on thru Google, Project Wonderful and various blogs/websites. ·The guide received 5000 hits from January-April and we expect traffic to grow with each edition. ·Other expenses such as payment of the graphics and other items will also be used from the fees. ·Advertising will be accepted for the front page and each category. Ads will be 125 x 125 pixels. Front page ads cost $ 25 each and category ads cost $15 each. Ads will run May 15 through August 31, 2009 ·The Gift Guide will accept advertising from all California-based Etsy sellers regardless of participating in the Gift guide. The PR Committee reserves the right to refuse any and all ads. NEW CHANGES For the Summer Gift Guide vintage items will be included in the Gold Digging in California. The first 30 participants to reserve space on the guide will be featured on the front page under the new "SpotLight" section. Shop Spotlights will run for 3 days. Members who reserve their space after the first 30, will be featured on Spotlight sections under appropriate category pages. The "Chatterbox" is a new section where buyers can find sales, promotions and the latest news. Guide participants may email their news and shop updates to: info [!at] handmadeincalifornia.net During our Spring edition over 250 new members signed up for email updates and of course, a chance at the giveaway. Please review the guidelines carefully and feel free to contact AnnieK at anniekclothing [!at] gmail.com should you have any questions.

April Challenge Voting Going On Now!

The April challenge voting thread is up in the forums. Stop by, cast your vote and support your team! Voting ends Thursday, May 7th at midnight. We had 37 fabulous entries - check them out here. Thanks to everyone who participated in the April challenge!

Don't forget to Vote and Start Working...

The March Challenge Voting Thread is up in the forums, but you only have till the end of Tuesday to cast your vote. There are lots of great entries this month.

You can see all the entries together in the CCCOEteam Favorites section.


The April Challenge Thread is up too.
It's time to begin working on your entry for the April challenge -- "Mothers Day".

Items will need to be tagged 'CCCOE' and 'aprilchallenge' (one word) so that we can find them and add them to the buyer account favorites and voting thread. Deadline for entry is midnight (Pacific time) April 30. Voting will take place the first week of May.

Renegade Craft Fair

Call for Applications in LA and San Francisco. Deadline is May 1st. Go to the site for more info and the application.

CCCOE Member Studio Tour: Featured Artist: Pacific Paradise Soap Company

Dead Sea Bath Salt Soak Scrub

Custom Order

Tell us a little about yourself and how it all began.

I have been a very creative person my entire life. For fun, I took a soap making class with 2 Chemist friends from a lady on a farm out in the country more than a decade ago. The 3 of us would get together and make soap for Christmas presents over the years. Last year, after 23 years as a Senior Scientist, I experienced a Company wide lay off. A few friends & relatives suggested I should start a Soap Company. I thought working from home would give me more flexibility with my hours & allow our Son to not be in daycare. I’ve always been organized & really motivated to excel at whatever I do. I surely do not miss the hour and a half daily commute! Working from home is really a lifestyle. I really love what I do & it’s a good thing because I’m almost always working. That’s how Pacific Paradise Soap Company was born.Soap Rack and Soapmaker Where do you work? Show us your space please! Anita labeling her soap While vacationing last summer my Brother-in-law asked me “Where in the house do you make your soap?” and my Husband quickly interjected “Everywhere!”. I was shocked! But after I thought about it for a bit I realized he was right. Soap has taken over the house; the office, the spare bedroom, the hallway, the garage, the laundry room, the kitchen…one entire room in the house is filled with drying racks, flowers, lavender my Mom has grown, colored paper, boxes, ribbons, bags, salts, and soaps. I label soaps on the counter in the hallway where you are suppose to fold laundry. When I’m making a batch of soap I take over the kitchen, the laundry room & the garage. My husband can no longer park his truck in our 3 car garage because of the racks of soap. I also keep butters, oils, shipping supplies, molds, essential oils, fragrance oils, wooden bowls, gift crates, colorants, the gazebo & tables for craft fairs & farmers markets. The laundry room also has shelves of fancy molded soaps. 12 soap bar cutter What is your favorite tool? My favorite tool is the log cutter my Dad & I made. He assembled a 3 sided square with smooth wood & drilled 2 holes that I put a guitar string through. This tool makes the first cut that reveals the beautiful end result of my labor of love. I also really like my 12 bar cutter & my edging tool. What time of the day are you the most productive/inspired? I am most productive while my Son is in school for obvious reasons.3 Bar Soap Sets What inspires you? I wake up inspired with so many new ideas pouring out that I now keep paper & pen on my headboard. I am always thinking of new products to add to my store. I am inspired by Mother Nature. Sometimes I am inspired by customers needs or something said in conversation. How do you promote yourself and your shop? I promote myself, my shop & my team by communicating in the forums on etsy, Flickr, Team Blogs & at Craft Fairs. How long have you been on Etsy? I have been selling on etsy since October 2008. What else do you enjoy doing other than creating? I also enjoy gardening, doing yoga, making cards, aqua aerobics & going to the beach. What would you like to see happen/change with CCCOE? I would like to see more people buying from CCCOE. What is your favorite thing about CCCOE? My favorite thing about CCCOE is all the support & camaraderie. I also love the monthly challenges. What is your favorite food? My favorite food is chocolate J I also really enjoy ethnic foods like Thai, Vietnamese, Mexican & Italian. Favorite book or movie? My favorite book is The Complete Book of Essential Oils & Aromatherapy by Valerie Ann Worwood. My favorite movies are The Thomas Crown Affair & National Treasure. One thing you absolutely cannot live without? I absolutely cannot live without happiness Lastly what piece that you have created is your favorite and why? My favorite piece is a Fancy molded soap that says “Love” in a wooden dish. My Dad turns wooden bowls & platters on a lathe & I use them for my fancy molded soaps. I think Love says it all. Thanks so much to Anita of Pacific Paradise Soap for sharing her space and her work with us! Be sure to stop by her shop to treat yourself.