…because MALL is a four letter word.
That’s one of the first things you’ll see on the homepage for Got Craft?, a semi-annual event in Vancouver that “aims to bring together a community of handmade and DIY culture.”
When I went to the Maritime Labour Centre over the weekend for the Holiday Edition of Got Craft?, my first reaction was that the craft fair was akin to a real-life Etsy. Dozens of local vendors showed off their little handicrafts and other creative creations, offering unique gift ideas just in time for the holiday shopping season.
Rather than go to a big box store to pull a mass-produced item off the shelf, Got Craft? provided attendees the opportunity to shop for something a little different. This is in stark contrast, for instance, to the items I listed in my gift guide on a budget. At the twice-a-year craft fair, I observed a few unifying themes or trends.
First, as mentioned, it sure felt like what Etsy would be if it were a brick-and-mortar kind of business. Second, many of the artists focused on being as local as possible, featuring landmarks and iconic imagery from the Vancouver area, as was the case with the paintings by Jon Shaw and the sketches by Urban Sketcher Won Kang. Third, there was also a focus natural ingredients and materials. We found comfortable bamboo clothing from littleMoSo and untreated maple teething rings from Bird On Elephant, for instance.
And there was a lot of jewelry, which would also align with the Etsy feel. And although I’m clearly not a jewelry kind of person, I appreciated the uniqueness of the art and the variety of materials. LanaBetty creates 3D-printed pieces,while Cabin + Cub uses wooden bits. As creepy as some of them may have been, the “cute” portrait paintings by A Cagey Bee were beautiful and the adorable magnetic bookmarks from craft’ed were awfully neat too.
You’ve missed your shot at this year’s Got Craft?, but they should be back for another event in May.
For more pictures for the 2014 holiday edition of the fair, check the Got Craft 2014 tag in my Flickr photostream.
A good number of the vendors are on etsy. Etsy’s ran a few local events this year, and I’m beginning to recognize faces.
That’s cool. As empowering as the Internet may be, it’s a lot more satisfying seeing these kinds of things in person before buying.