While COVID-19 has thrown us all off balance, people are helping each other get back on their feet in some lovely ways – sharing their art, connecting people with resources, checking in on family and friends, donating where they can, helping the “helpers” on the front lines, and buying from their local mom-and-pop shops and restaurants. (All from a safe distance, of course!)
I’ve rounded up a list of various goodies to help you stay well, support independent artists and businesses, and give back.
Courtesy of Saywells Design + Why I Love Where I Live.
Backgrounds for your phone or Zoom meetings by Tucson-based Saywells Design, including mask-wearing cacti.
Lisa Congdon sketchbook via CreativeBug
Workshops
Debbie Allen Dance Academy: Founded by Debbie Allen of Fame fame, DADA is a non-profit organization with programs to expand young people’s access to dance + theater.
$3 dance classes on weekdays (signup via Zoom required).
Knitting Tree – Sale on discontinued and overstocked items.
Wildflower Studio – Shibui Knits Maai $14/skein (regular $17.50) + free digital pattern for M.1 scarf by Shelli Anderson with purchase of 4 skeins.
Zoe’s Knit Studio – Free shipping (or curbside pickup) on select kits. Email info@zoesknitstudio.com for details.
MAST (at Mercado San Agustin): Free shipping on U.S. orders with promo code MARCHON. Or 25% off any one item made by Mellow, Sofie, or Tasha with code LEANON.
Make a donation to help them provide hot coffee to overnight hospital workers.
Republica Empanada, Mesa: $2 beer or $10 mix-and-match six pack with any order.
Tucson To Go: Reforma
Tucson
Several Tucson restaurants are offering $30 takeout meals for two, as part of Tucson To-Go! Even though it’s presented by Sonoran Restaurant Week, this deal is ongoing.
Agustin Kitchen (at Mercado San Agustin): Burgers and sandwiches (a.k.a. “handhelds”) are buy one, get one free from 2-4pm daily. Walk-up or call-in orders.
Beaut Burger (at MSA Annex): Buy one, get one free vegan burgers weekdays from 4-5pm. Walk-up orders only.
While the Quilt, Craft, and Sewing Festival has great fabric and pattern vendors (some of which we featured in Part 1 of this post), that’s not all that’s there.
Quilt shop cuckoo clock from Cheryl Ann’s Design Walls booth
You can find booths for guilds and organizations devoted to keeping handmade traditions alive. There also are lots of vendors selling tools, embellishments, and materials that go along with quilting and other types of crafting. It’s impressive how many of them have invented, made, or designed the products they’re selling!
Pauline’s Quilters World – Pauline Rogers invented the Sasher, a small plastic tool, shaped to make it quicker to fold and press strips of fabric. She also created the Quilt As You Go technique and wrote The Quilt As You Go Handbook (QAYG).
Tailor Made Tables, LLC – Sewing machine repair and sewing extension tables custom-made to fit your machine by Dean the Table Guy.
Made in San Tan Valley, AZ.
Thread Cutterz – Invention featured on Shark Tank to easily cut thread or fishing line. You can wear it on a ring, or it can mount flat to the side of your sewing machine.
Lakeside Scissors Sales – Specializing in hard to find small tools, they have bins and bins of scissors, pliers, magnifying glasses, and other gadgets.
Cheryl Ann’s Design Walls – These are portable, freestanding fabric surfaces for laying out quilt squares. Instructors can use them for demonstrations. They’re also helpful at quilter get-togethers where design wall space is limited – like quilting classes, retreats, and guild meetings.
Uniquely Crafts, LLC – Family-owned business specializing in 5D Diamond Art Kits, a craft project where you create a picture using a special tool and a type of beads (“diamonds”) with a flat, sticky back. It’s kind of like paint-by-number with rhinestones.
We met both Stan and Amy Regal at their booth.
Amy designs their kits.
They offer a selection of 5D diamond kits for kids.
Custom Keepsakes – Heirloom sewing and machine embroidery in the style of vintage handiwork. They had lots of adorable little dresses on display to showcase their Heirloom Collection.
African Everything / Maendeleo Imports – I met Rashawnda Ogwel, who was standing in for her mother-in-law, the entrepreneur and importer known as “Basket Mary.” They continue to offer gorgeous handcrafted products from across Africa, like Ghanaian baskets and batik wall hangings from Tanzania.
Wooly Felted Wonders – A reusable alternative to dryer sheets or fabric softener, Wooly Felted Wonders are dryer balls made from 100% New Zealand wool and ethically handcrafted in Nepal. The company also sells other felted wool accessories, like bags, hot pads, and cat caves.
Chenille-It – This bias tape comes in a rainbow of colors and provides a shortcut for getting the frayed-edge look of of chenille in quilting and sewing projects.
Sew Many Creations specializes in natural cork fabric, which is a renewable material that’s sturdy enough to use as a leather alternative for bags and wallets, yet thin enough to stitch with a regular sewing machine. They sell different colors and sizes of cork fabric, as well as patterns and hardware kits for bags. Owner Jessica VanDenburgh has also designed fabric lines for Windham fabrics and leads workshops and weekend bag-making retreats.
These organizations are devoted to a particular type of craft. They are usually open to anyone interested in it, regardless of skill level. While they may have annual dues or membership fees, you can almost always attend a meeting or two for free to see if you’d like to get more involved.
Phoenix Area Quilters Association (PAQA) – Organization with quilt programs, speakers, quilt challenges, blocks of the month, quilts for charity, prizes, and these adorable little cactus pincushions!
Lacey Ladies of Arizona – Gathering of women who craft with or make lace. They host an annual Lace Day celebration in the Phoenix area in November.
Chapter of the International Organization of Lace, Inc. (IOLI).
Hosting the 2020 IOLI National Convention in Mesa in July.
Arizona Desert Weavers and Spinners Guild (ADWSG) – Friendly fiber arts group that sponsors informational activities and demonstrates weaving and spinning skills at schools, craft fairs, and other community events.
Phoenix meetings on the first Saturday of month (October through May).
The world feels different than it did two weeks ago. It seems like a different place than it was when I published this list of Happenings we assumed would actually… happen.
Even in the few days since I started this update, things have changed rapidly. COVID-19 is on the rise, and things are being shut down left and right to prevent its spread. We’ve learned terms like “community transmission” and “social distancing.”
While we can’t physically gather, we can still be there for each other. We need the artists and shop owners who have poured their hearts into work that is now on hold indefinitely, and they could certainly use our support.
So here is what’s happening with the Happenings, along with ways YOU CAN still connect with events that have been canceled and support the people behind them.
The status updates are under each event title, followed by slashes (///) and original descriptions.
As far as I know, the information here was accurate as of 9am March 18 but, of course, could continue to change.
—S
Maybe it’s because of Earth Day. Or springtime. Whatever the reason, there seems to be some common threads running through the upcoming Happenings.
First, there is gardening: seed saving (see #12), vegetable growing (#11), and a garden with an environmentally-focused art installation woven throughout (#7). In fact, preservation of the planet is recurring theme in this spring’s art exhibitions from San Francisco (#6) to Scandinavia (#17).
So here is my list of 22 upcoming Happenings, ordered by date. There are also some free or discounted “goodies,” which I’ve asterisked (*) for you. Enjoy!
STATUS: Ongoing. You can keep supporting local art by sharing photos with the hashtag #localartloves! Originally, this was only for February, but indie artists could use the boost even more now!
///
Now – ? / wherever you are / free
Monthlong celebration of local art around the world. Join in by posting photos of your favorite murals and other art from your community on Instagram or Twitter using the hashtag #localartloves!
YOU CAN continue supporting local food and farming! CWFM has a list of vendors you can buy from directly or find elsewhere.
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Now – Apr 4, Saturdays 10 am – 2 pm / Cambridge Community Center gymnasium, Cambridge, MA
The Cambridge Winter Farmers Market is a program of the Cambridge Community Center, a nonprofit that has been serving the Coast community for over 89 years. The Market strives to promote vibrant local economy, create access to fresh, healthy food, and provide a gathering space for community throughout the winter months with local food, craftspeople, and live music.
*Different weeks include different goodies, like free tote bags, coloring pages and activities for kids.
Now – Apr 23, 6 – 8 pm, Thursdays / Yuma Palms Regional Center, Yuma, AZ / free
Outdoor jazz concert series hosted by Yuma Jazz Company Quartet, featuring local performers, as well as student ensembles and bands traveling in from Los Angeles, San Diego, and Phoenix.
Now – May 3 / Museum of Craft and Design, San Francisco, CA
An exhibition exploring housing that is adaptable and sustainable to withstand climate change. It showcases architects and artists who have created artistically interpretive solutions and prototypes for emergency shelters.
*Admission is free on the first Tuesday of every month.
Now – May 10 / Desert Botanical Garden, Phoenix, AZ / Included with admission.
Installation of hundreds of brightly colored animal sculptures along desert garden paths by Italian artist group Cracking Art. Their work is meant to bring attention to environmental sustainability, the problem of plastic in oceans, and the importance of recycling.
*DBG admission: Free on monthly Community Days (second Tuesday) / Discounted during Garden Happy Hour evenings.
SN: I’ve been following Cracking Art’s worldwide installations ever since I spotted their striking red penguins at the 21c Museum Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky several years ago. So I was really excited to hear that their day-glo art has arrived in Arizona!
Now – May 31 / Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, IN / admission $12
California-based artist Heather Day makes uses scraped, smeared, and flooded pools of pigment to create work that is more about sensory experience than the literal represensation of a scene.
The exhibition will be closed to the public March 4-6.
STATUS: Complete. However, two Arizona Opera fundraisers have been postponed. The Bravo Vino Arizona Wine Festival has been rescheduled for November and the Gala Luncheon for a date TBD.
See artist’s spaces in “A View From the Easel” articles on Hyperallergic (an independent, member-supported contemporary art site). In recent editions, the artists also discuss ways being quarantined has changed their work and lives.
Visit the West 25th Street location by appointment. Email info@hollistaggart.com to schedule.
///
Mar 5 – Apr 11 / Taggart Contemporary Gallery at 514 West 25th Street, New York, NY
Two-person exhibition of work by interdisciplinary contemporary artists Suchitra Mattai and Adrienne Elise Tarver, featuring painting and embroidery as well as a large-scale, site-specific installation by Mattai. Both artists use intricate formal approaches to reveal the voices of individuals who have been obscured through oppression and deep rooted stereotypes, engaging with narratives of subjugation that remain relevant today.
Representatives from The University of Arizona Pima County Cooperative Extension present an overview of warm-season vegetable gardening with topics like what vegetables to plant, how to plant them and protect them from the sun and critters, and how to feed and water them.
Murphy-Wilmot Library: Mar 21, 10am. CANCELED.
Kirk-Bear Canyon Library: Mar 22, 1:30pm. CANCELED.
Plan to go to the July 9th workshop at the Miller-Golf Links Branch.
///
Mar 26, 2:00 pm / Joyner-Green Valley Branch, Green Valley, AZ
Native Seeds/SEARCH’s introduction on how and why to save seeds from your garden, basic botany for gardeners, tool and equipment recommendations, and tips for getting the most out of the seeds you save.
Mark your calendar for the fall edition of the Fair September 24 – 27.
Pre-register to be notified of ticket releases and other announcements.
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Mar 26-29 / Metropolitan Pavilion, New York City, NY / Tickets $20-70
The spring edition of the New York Affordable Art Fair will showcase thousands of original contemporary artworks priced between $100 – 10,000 from over 70 local, national and international galleries. Besides shopping a curated selection of paintings, prints, photographs and sculptures, you can enjoy hands-on workshops, live performances, guided tours, talks, kids’ activities, and a café.
Fiber arts community event taking place throughout Los Angeles County at 18 local, women-owned yarn shops. Each one is committed to education, meeting customers face-to-face, teaching yarn crafts, and inspiring creativity.
*Shops will offer discounts, commemorative totes and pins for purchase, free patterns, and prizes.
Exhibition bringing together seventeen Nordic artists and artist groups, who use their craft, tools, and deep material knowledge to address environmental issues and confront a longing for a deeper connection to the earth. Their work encompasses biology, geology, and cosmology, and challenges our perception of materials, of the natural world, and of ourselves.
Film festival held alongside ClexaCon, a multi-fandom event celebrating positive representation of LGBTQ+ women in the media. The festival will include short films, features, episodics, animation, and music videos.
SN: The film festival is organized by my friend Stacy Calvert, who I met through BlogHer.
Stacy will be screening her new short The Bra Mitzvah during a panel on The Ins and Outs of Making a Short Film, as well as moderating a filmmaker forum.
YOU CAN register online for your tour of choice! The Irish Tourism Group has amended their policies to be more flexible if you decide to postpone a recently-booked tour, but you still need to make changes at least 4 weeks in advance.
///
Apr 22 / Southern Ireland / €2,999
Tour of Ireland that combines seeing the countryside with knitting workshops and meeting local craftspeople. Includes knitting workshops (with yarn and patterns), accommodations, Irish breakfast daily, sightseeing (accredited guide, transportation, and entrance fees included), and activities like a traditional music show and whisky and chocolate tasting.
The Happenings List is made up of a seasonal events I’ve found for lovers of art, craft, and culture. I typically edit organizers’ event descriptions for length and clarity.
I try to make sure everything is accurate at the time I put the list together, but, of course, changes or errors are always possible.
Use this as your starting point, and then tell me about the Happenings you go to!
Wildlife rescue centers in Australia and the animals they’ve taken in have found some unlikely allies.
Joeys hanging around. Photo: Wildlife Volunteers Association Inc.
Caring for injured Australian fauna requires a very specific supply list, which includes things like marsupial sleeping pouches and mitts to protect burnt paws. These can’t be made out of just anything. It has to be soft, breathable 100% cotton fabric – exactly the type of material that quilters are experts at working with.
NotJustQuiltZ’s aboriginal-designed fabrics at the Quilt, Craft, and Sewing Festival in Phoenix.
Jeltje van Essen, owner of Quilt Shop 100 Rozen in Deventer, Netherlands, realized this and recruited a group of volunteers to sew for wildlife centers overwhelmed by Australia’s intense fire season.
Pauline Rogers demonstrates her products at the Quilt, Craft, and Sewing Festival in Phoenix.
Jeltje’s quilt shop crew in The Netherlands started by making mittens for injured koalas, using cheery fabrics to make their carers smile. They have since moved on to other projects, like sewing wraps for rolling up recovering bats into cozy little fabric burritos (bat-ritos?) that make them feel like they’re snug inside their mothers’ wings.
Bat wraps! Photo by Animal Rescue Freecycle Craft Guild.
The Dutch quilt shop volunteers certainly weren’t the only crafters to pick up their needles to help, however.
Donations of handmade items have been pouring in to the Rescue Craft Co. (RCC), based in New South Wales, which has been sharing patterns and coordinating shipments from around the world.
Nests by Nicole Jarczewski.
In fact, the reason the Netherlands quilt shop group switched projects is because the koalas in Australia are all stocked up on mittens. RCC has actually been so inundated that they’ve asked that people stop sending them.
Instead, they’re requesting veterinary supplies, a select list of crafted items, and monetary contributions to their logistics GoFundMe or other trusted organizations working to help Australia heal.
Photo: Wildlife Volunteers Association Inc.
How to Help Australian Animals (via Rescue Craft Co):
Last year, I went to two days of the Festival – one with my Mom and one with sister-in-law Dinah and friend Kelli.
The first day, we ended up parking in a lot that was actually meant to be for a dog show, which we needed to walk through to get to our Festival.
The second day, I parked there on purpose. We walked past booths of dog stuff and people with impeccably groomed and well-mannered dogs. I really wanted to ask one of them if their dog was available to tutor our little rascal Quijote. But that’s not why we were there.
Walking into the Festival building meant being surrounded by a dazzling array of colors and patterns, handcrafted items, crafty inventions, and big ticket items like long arm sewing machines. It was fun to check in with favorite vendors from the past, meet new ones, and see things I hadn’t before.
Pocket Change Fabric
Here are some of the fabric and pattern exhibitors we saw in 2019, plus their booth numbers at the Phoenix 2020 show. (Info about vendors for tools, accessories, and food is in Part 2!)
Orange Dot Quilts
Patterns
Orange Dot Quiltshas original quilt and bag patterns by owner/designer Dora Cary. I love her bold, modern designs!
The Cottage Rose Quilt Pattern Originals – Deb Eggers of The Cottage Rose created a pattern for a fabric Parcheesi board! You can just roll it up and take it with your for camping or traveling. The kit comes with the game pieces and pattern includes a little pouch to keep them in. She also made some adorable little fabric owls.
Bobbie G. Designs – Embroidery, cross-stitch, and quilting patterns in a shared booth space with More the Merrier. I was drawn in by their cute vintage camper cross-stitch!
Calico Patch Designs – Vicki McCarty is a pattern and MARCUS Fabric designer, who likes to incorporate wool and cotton appliqué into her quilts. Her “Homespun Appeal” pattern (above) was featured on the cover of Quilt Sampler Magazine (Fall 2018). Currently, “Rabbit Patches Runner,” made from a pattern she designed and fabrics from her line, is on the cover of Primitive Quilts (Spring 2020).
Calico Patch Quilt Shop located in Morehead, Kentucky.
England Design – Cynthia England was back with examples of her signature picture piecing method of quilting. True to its name, you can use this technique to make a quilt that looks like picture instead of the abstract shapes you traditionally see in quilts.
#641-642
Fabric
Bear Paw Quilts – Their (multiple) Seattle Seahawks fabrics caught my eye, and, yes, owners John and Shyla King are based in Washington. They had a large cutting board right there in their booth, so you could get exactly the amount of fabric you wanted – whether it’s a ‘Hawks design or not.
Booth #900-902
Elkhorn Quilt Company – It’s always great to stop by and check out what new fabrics and quilts Debbie Dominy has!
Spirit of the Artisan – A gorgeous collection of textiles imported from Southeast Asia by shop owner Gale Carson, who maintains a personal connection with many of the suppliers and artisans. Her wares include scarves, bags, tops, patterns, hand-woven Burma batiks, and ornate Hmong collars.
#628-630
Desert Stitchin – Quilts, kits, southwest-themed fabrics, and “desert delights,” which are sets of 2.5-inch color-coordinated fabric strips.
“Brolga Dreaming” by Nambooka + other aboriginal-designed fabricsFabric designs by (l-r) Nambooka, Narelle Kitson, Colleen Wallace + Vanessa InkamalaFabric design “Bush Banana” by Donna Abbots
NotJustQuiltZ – Largest U.S. collection of aboriginal-designed fabrics from M+S Textiles in Australia. The designs are are created — usually hand-painted — by artists of indigenous Australian descent, drawing on their cultural traditions. Artists receive commissions on their work as long as it’s in print (longer than usual in this industry), and many make their living this way.
Shop located in the Historical District of Niles in Fremont, California (Bay Area).
They also have long arm services, embroidery, custom, quilts, notions, and gift items.
Second Chance Fabrics – New and pre-owned fabric, as well as patterns and gift items. You can trade in fabrics from your stash in exchange for store credit. Anyone who sews probably has excess material around, so it’s great that there’s a place to give it a new home, while picking up something you’ll actually use!
Julie’s Sewing Corner & Quilt Shop is located in Miami, Arizona, which is a historic mining town near Globe. Julie and Don Reiman’s shop specializes in unusual, drive-out-of-your-way fabric.
Sun Valley Quilts – Sewing machines, wooden sewing tables, fabric, notions, and a book section. The store is large enough for groups to visit together during events like quilt shop hops and then go to one of the nearby restaurants.
Shop in Sun Valley, Arizona and online.
A rep from The Grace Company was also there, demonstrating their quilting frames and Q’nique line of quilting machines with handles designed for more control.
Traditional Primitives – Missie Carpenter developed a starch basting technique for English paper piecing and has her own lines of rustic quilting fabrics and other quilting products.
The Copper Needle – Shop focused on providing a welcoming, creative environment. Offering fabrics, threads, patterns, notions, Bernina sewing and embroidery machines, and classes in quilting, embroidery, and painting.
The closest parking is the South Lot at the Fair Grounds. Enter through the McDowell Gate at 17th Ave and McDowell Rd.)
Parking $8.
We were guests of the Quilt, Craft & Sewing Festival.
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