Meet your maker

(photo from feltclub.com)

Okay. FELT CLUB report.

Doors were scheduled to open at 11a.m. this past Sunday, and they were giving out swag bags to the first 250 folks.

Tim planned to take Sofie to the zoo while I, uh, clubbed.  We left the hotel shortly after 10a.m. figuring there was bound to be a coffee place near my location where we could stop for a bite before they headed off to the zoo.

Fortunately, I grabbed a to-go cup of coffee from the hotel, for when we drove by the venue at 10:15 a.m., there was a line of people that wrapped around the block.  We rounded the corner to find the end of the line, I instructed Tim to let me out of the car (”NO, I can’t take time to go eat!”), and bid him farewell.  It was clear this was going to be a big deal. (Tim attempted to hunt and gather coffee and pastry to bring back for me, but was not successful.)

Anyway, who knew?  Well, apparently, every craftacular person in the LA area.

So, two young women took their rightful place in line behind me; we got to chatting when one asked me if I got my coffee nearby.  One of them counted the number of people in line, concluding we were at around #130, minus any spots being saved for people.  She also reported some had been in line since 8 a.m.!  Huh?

The other woman said that there was a big write-up in the LA Times that Thursday, and that Felt Club recently appeared in a couple of popular magazines.  (I just simply got an email from Junior Society.)

The time passed quickly, chatting with those around me as I stood directly in front of Scoops… discussing how NOT in and out In-N-Out is; the crazy number of drive-thru espresso joints in Eugene, Oregon; amazed there was NOWHERE to get coffee within 5 blocks (unless you counted McDonald’s); the joys of Target and Ross;…

And I enjoyed my funky surroundings:

 

  

The doors opened precisely at 11a.m.  By the time I made my way around the block, I could see that the line had queued all the way back down the block again… There were AT LEAST 500 people in line waiting to get in.  I made it to the front, paid my $1, and grabbed my swag bag! Good stuff: the latest issue of CRAFT:, a knitting book (I had actually thought about buying months ago), greeting cards, a necklace, tattoos, etsy lip balm, buttons, other books and mags,…

  

(Totally click to enlarge the swag pic.)

So, I totally wanted to get in straight away because the first demo I wanted to attend was the print gocco one at 11a.m.  I managed to grab a yummy Clementine Izze, sign up for the 1:30p.m needle felting workshop, and grab one of the very few seats in the print gocco workshop room.

It’s an interesting technique.  The effect is like woodblock or linocut printing (which I love and really should do more of).  However, the fact that it requires special (kinda pricey) equipment will probably mean I won’t pursue it.  And I prefer the tactileness of carving the image myself.  With gocco, one takes an image, photocopies or laser prints it, and the carbon from the copied print is used to burn an image through a mesh screen.

Heck, this explanation from savegocco.com is a bit more clear:

cleverly combining the basic priciples of screenprinting and rubber-stamping, “print gocco” is a clean, easy, and fully self-contained compact system that exposes and prints all in one unit. using flash bulbs similar to those found in old cameras, an original image is thermally imprinted on a master screen. next, colorful prints are made by pressing the ink-applied master screen against a sheet of paper placed on a sponge pad.

Anyway, I got to make a print of Gluey Gluerson, which is depicted in my swag photo above.  (It unfortunately smeared a bit while in my bag…  Just too much swag.)  AND, the best part was that I got to meet and chat at length with Goli, an Associate Managing Editor of Make:, after she finished the gocco demo.

A couple of good things I learned about from Goli were Make mag’s Maker Faire in San Mateo (I TOTALLY gotta go next year!) and that there is an awesome second-hand shop - of craft tools! - in Sebastopol.  (She got her Gocco printer there.)

The needle felting class was fun, mostly because of the three other women with whom I sat.  And instructor, Jamie Chan, from Maryjane’s Attic, was super nice and helpful.

I learned that wool is made up of microscopic scales, like on a pine cone.  When you take a felting needle, barbed on one end, and poke it in and out of the wool in an up and down motion like a sewing machine, the barbs lock the scales tighter and tighter, eventually transforming the wool into felt.

While glad to know what it was about, none of us at the table really saw us doing it again.  Although, it could come in handy if I want to create embellishments for larger items I knit then felt in the washing machine.  (I apparently need more practice though, as Tim declared the project I made in the workshop - a flower - looked more like a Brillo pad.)

Many inappropriate comments were made at our table about felt ball, and threats to make felt ball necklaces for everyone at Christmas.  That led to one at our table suggesting using the ball as a tracheotomy cover.  You could see the light bulb go on over all of our heads… felted tracheotomy covers, colostomy bag covers…  now THAT’S crafty.

So, other random stuff:

Charles Phoenix was the esteemed emcee.  I had a brief conversation with him… I was looking at one of the crafter’s stalls, Charles was speaking with an admirer… and was in my way.  I finally tapped him on the arm and said, “I know you’re the grand poobah and everything, but I kinda want to get behind you here to see this merchandise.”  “Why, yes, darling, absolutely.”

I don’t care who you are or how charming you may be.  Don’t get in my way when I’m shopping.

Other things that captivated me:

Felt bacon magnets from SappyMooseTree: They were, like, a foot long.  I loved these!

Mmp: Absolutely CHARMING CHARMING things.

Old-school vending machines:  A couple of vendors had these set up.  They filled the plastic capsules with miscellaneous samples of their products.

Knitted Gnomes at Mahar Drygoods:  SOOO adorable.  I also really liked the felted cannoli and glass octopus pendant.  The best part was getting to meet and chat with super-nice head-honcho, Robert!

Kokoleo: super-charming kids clothes and monsters.  (There were other equally cool creators of kids clothes and monsters.)  But this one grabbed me:

I had to get it…  Sofie’s taken to making these growling noises lately, and I call her my baby monster.  It turns out that was the ONLY item I purchased at the event!  Well, except for my workshop materials and my Craft: mag subscription.  (I admittedly hit the ATM to get some moolah to purchase a $12 set of cards from Mmp, but the ATM fee was $4.50.  I couldn’t rationalize it, so backed away.)

After my last workshop, I stopped to chat one last time with Goli, then stumbled my way around the corner to meet Tim and Sofie at Scoops.

mmmmm…  Scoops, how I love thee.

Anyway, mark your calendars for November 18… It’s Felt Club’s holiday show!

Filed under craftacular, geektacular |