Renegade Craft Fair LA.. part 1

Saturday afternoon I shopped the Renegade Craft Fair. RCF has been the biggest DIY fair running, getting it's start 6 years ago in Chicago. They even have a store front location in Chicago for handmade artists. This year RCF went on tour and hit Los Angeles for the first time. The fair was held at the California Market in downtown LA, on the penthouse floor with amazing views of the city. There were lots of artists including illustrators, jewelry, plush, letter press, apparel and accessories. In part 1 of my blog posting I have selected my favorites in accessories and notebooks/journals. Part 2, tomorrow's post, will include jewelry designers and illustration. Please enjoy my favorites below..

Appetite is a screen printed home goods and accessory line run by artist, Erin Albin, based in Portland, Oregon. I loved the muted colors of her fabric and the organic and nature inspired art. Her booth was really nicely merchandised with her product.

As I walked the show I noticed these great felt tree pillows with really nice stitching details. Hi Tree is a really cute line of felt appliqued accessories, pillows and even felt earrings.. everything inspired by the trees. I met artist, Tina Rodas based here in LA, at the Etsy meet up later that evening and we talked a lot about her success with Etsy over the years. She was a featured seller last year. Since then, Tina has grown quite a following for her niche items and has seen a lot of sales come through her Etsy shop. One of the important things we discussed about having an Etsy shop is a really clean and put together line.. from your business cards, logos, to photos and shop consistency.. it's really important to tell the story of your brand. Tina does a great job at this and it came through in her booth presentation too.. You can also read more about her adventures with Hi Tree on her blog..

I seem to always find myself stopping to check out handmade screen printed journals, wallets and business card holders.. Chikabird's booth stopped me on Saturday. Run by friends, Chika and Jean from their Seattle studio, the line was eye catching with a clean and fresh design sense. You can check out their full line of items for sale in their Etsy shop , which includes applique hoodies too.

Next I came upon a shop, Tyler Bender Book Co., with a really unique and interesting idea.. Vintage and recycled notebooks. Covers were made from old t-shirts, cereal boxes, old book covers, wallpaper, anything interesting in design or texture.. inside pages were old blank spiral notebook pages neatly bound. All books are hand bound by artist Tyler Bender based here in LA. He also has a booth at the Silver Lake Craft and Vintage Fair on Saturdays.

For photos from the LA show.. check out Nerdski!'s photos on flickr..

Check back tomorrow for part 2 and a recap of the Etsy Meet Up that followed the RCF..