One Step Back, Two Steps . .
Going to a show is always a gamble, but lessening the
possible blows through calculated risk is the way to go. Even with all this fabulous wisdom and over twenty
years of selling creative creations, I still haven’t figured out all the ins
and outs. The NY Market of Young Designers had the feel of a NYC flea market; many amazing jewelers and clothes
designers, and some unwelcome buy-and-sell vendors. I felt nostalgic recalling over 25 years ago
setting up my hand-made suspenders stall in a small artist / designer Market in
Soho. Back then, two things fueled me: one, the possible financial gain, and two, meeting people who could help / educate me about the craft
business. A third motivation I didn’t acknowledge at the time was the adrenalin
rush of the process of finding materials, creating products and selling them to customers. Every stage had a plateau, a
sense of pride in accomplishment, and a spark to move to the next step. Back then I didn’t know that this process was
going to feed me as an artist; the little nuggets of joy from step to step providing me the fuel to move forward. Stepping back sometimes informs one about the
eternal threads that lead us to where we are going.
I meet a beautiful Barbados milliner this weekend, Cynthia
Hunte’s Chapeaux. We exchanged our different methods used in
creation. I got fuel from the passion in
her words and her hats were exquisitely finished. She had the old school touch of perfection
with flair to transcend time. She
shared, “One day while I was working it came to me I had been creating since I
was 5 years old. My mother would give me
a tablespoon of cod liver oil every morning and a wedge of lemon to get the
taste out of my mouth. On my way out to
school I would turn the skin in side out, shape it into a Cloche style hat
and place it in the sun to dry. When I
came home it was hard. I gathered wild flowers and decorated the
hats to match my rag dolls’ outfits.”
Throughout the event she continued to share, about how the local seamstress
would save her scraps for her, how one of the trees had long thin leaves she'd use to lace up her shoes and protect her legs, and how the wet tar from the road got attached to the
heels of shoes to assist in making a high heel sound. She said, "Although I’ve spent many years at Chase Bank, I have always been a designer." I think she is right.
Over this weekend I met many creative artist/designers who were excited about sharing their process.
Although the dollars were not flowing as much as much as I'd hoped, there was a lot of
communication around the creative process.
So, for anyone looking for more than just a bargain, for a hand made item
filled with care and a story, please support the artist/craft designers. I believe it is truly special to wear
something that has been made with loving caring and has a story.
