Posted by Sunset, June 3, 2009
By Amy Anderson, Sunset editorial intern
Last weekend was the little bit of heaven in the Bay Area known as Maker Faire, a two-day festival of DIYers, zany scientists, cute crafters, and even a lifesize version of the board game Mouse Trap.
I stopped by on Saturday and fought the crowds to find some great designers in the craft building and make cute clothes with recycled pieces at the Swap-O-Rama-Rama. Here are some of my favorite finds:
Chanda Beck of Ezme Designs makes these great ceramics with simple, sweet designs--plates, bowls, mugs, and more from this Oakland, CA artist.
Dutch Door Press's greeting cards, stationery, and prints make me feel like I'm back in the Midwest. Mara Murphy and Anna Branning work together on these Northern European-style letterpress designs filled with vivid colors and folky patterns.
My purchase of the day came from Bradley Boggie at Tiny Sparks Design, a San Francisco artist who uses his woodworking and screenprinting skills to create beautifully natural pieces. There are prints of leaves and trees, but my personal favorite is the little bird, now up on my wall.
Oakland's Patchwerk Press, a community screen-printing shop, was camped out at the Swap-O-Rama-Rama, where they offered free screen prints on clothes from the swap. I snagged a tank top and had one of the artists print a hawk on the back. Not a bad addition to the wardrobe for free.
There were even bees! I of course thought of our resident beekeepers at Sunset--seems like the trend is catching on.
