Only two days left to apply for vendor space at the Charm City Craft Mafia’s 2nd Annual Holiday Heap craft fair in Baltimore, MD.

Holiday Heap will be held inside St. John’s Church on November 15th from 10am-5pm. The CCCM puts on some of the best shows in the area with lots of shoppers, friendly helpers and plenty of my favorite crafters. I participated in Holiday Heap last year and it was splendid.

Don’t miss out! Submit your application before midnight this Sunday, October 5th.

Charm City Craft Mafia just announced that applications for their winter craft fair – Holiday Heap 2008 – are now available online.

Holiday Heap will be November 15th, 2008 from 10-5pm at St. John’s Church in Charles Village (Baltimore). 40+ of the country’s most crafty vendors will be carefully chosen by a panel of jurors to sell their wares and thousands of shoppers are expected, much fun is guaranteed! Click the words “apply now” below to do just that:

APPLY NOW!

Applications are due October 5th. Jurying and acceptance status will be emailed by October 15th. There is a non-refundable $10 application fee required to complete the application process. Accepted vendors will pay an additional $65 for a space. (includes an 6 foot table & 2 chairs).

Phasefest, the East Coast’s largest queer music and arts festival, is looking for a small handful of queer crafters/artists to sell and display their wares at Phasefest 2008. The booth fee is $50 for Friday (6pm – midnight-ish) and Saturday (2pm – 1 or 2am-ish). For that cost, you’ll have a designated space on the back patio at Phase 1 Lounge, the oldest lesbian bar in the country, the ability to hear and enjoy some of the nation’s best queer music, and the opportunity to sell your wares to a captive audience of awesome queers!

If you are interested please e-mail phasefest@gmail.com for more information or visit their website and click on the “artists” tab: www.phasefest.com. Fill out the application and send it their way!

Applications for CRAFTLAND are due August 31st!

CRAFTLAND is a holiday craft show in a unique consignment store format in downtown Providence, RI. CRAFTLAND 2008 will be open seven days a week, from December 5-24th. Now in its 7th year, CRAFTLAND has grown to feature the work of over 150 artists from around the US and other faraway lands. Artists do not need to be present to sell their work at CRAFTLAND, but those that volunteer 12 or more hours are rewarded with a 70% retail cut (while artists who do not live in the area or who are not able to volunteer receive a generous 60%). CRAFTLAND also donates 5% of proceeds to area arts-related non-profits to help continue in its mission to provide and enable economic opportunities for emerging and professional artists and crafters.

Apply online today!

For frequently asked questions about applying to Craftland, please visit http://craftlandshow.com/faq.html.

To see a listing of last year’s artists, check out http://www.craftlandshow.com/artists.html.

I can’t believe it is that time again, but it seems like the holiday indie craft shows are starting to accept applications! If you feel like traveling this December, you might want to apply to Bazaar Bizarre Boston. The show will be held at the Castle on Sunday, December 7, 2008, from 11am – 7pm.

Some history of the event from their website:

Bazaar Bizarre began in 2001 in the Boston-area as a hodge-podge of friends and acquaintances cobbling together their handcrafted DIY wares to sell and staging an offbeat entertainment extravaganza. In its seventh year, the Bazaar Bizarre has brought its hip, fun craft fairs to Boston, Los Angeles, Cleveland, and San Francisco. Last year, over 3,500 shoppers attended the 2007 Boston Bazaar Bizarre at the Cyclorama.

Bazaar Bizarre is a juried craft fair that receives 300+ applications for 150 vendor slots. The vendor fee of $165 will get you one 6″x3″ table and two chairs. According to their application, you are not allowed to bring any additional tables or displays that will not fit on your 6″x3″ table. Eek!

Applications are due online by August 29. You can apply here.

The 2008 Handmade Arcade will be held Saturday, November 8 (10am-7pm) and Sunday, November 9 (11am-5pm) at the Hunt Armory, 324 Emerson Street, in the Shadyside neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Handmade Arcade is held indoors. Each vendor receives an 8-by-2.5 foot table and two chairs. Each vendor space is 8′ x 8′.

Applications for the 2008 Handmade Arcade are due August 17, 2008. Apply online.

You can check out photos of past events on the Handmade Arcade Flickr page.

If you have done this show in previous years, please post your experiences in the comments!

Celebrate summer shopping in DC with the Mid-City Dog Days of Summer Sidewalk Sale. This weekend-long event will take place on August 2nd and 3rd in Mid-City, the area surrounding 14th and U Streets NW.

This Sidewalk Sale is not only a great opportunity to eat, drink and shop at discount prices, but it also takes place during DC’s Tax Free Holiday, which is an awesome bonus!

Mid-City doesn’t have the frenzy of tourists that Downtown has, nor the shopping frenzy of places like Georgetown… and that’s a good thing for locals. Mid-City’s attraction is its ever-growing assortment of small restaurants and cute boutiques that ooze neighborly charm… and it’s the cute boutiques make this area a definite stop for weekend shopping.

We all know that shopping for affordable indie finds in the District used to be almost impossible…. but Mid-City has become a hub of sorts of eclectic clothing stores with handmade dresses and accessories from local independent designers, not-your-average shoe stores, funky shops that sell everything from magnets to one-of-a-kind glassware, and a Saturday Farmer’s Market that supports local growers.

Some of my favorite Mid-City shops that support local indie crafters and artists, or are just plain cool, include:

Dekka (1338 U Street, second floor)
Nana (1528 U Street)
Lettie Gooch Boutique (1911 9th Street)
Garden District Interior (14th and Church Streets)
Miss Pixies (1626 14th Street)
Pop (1803-A 14th Street)
Go Mama Go (1809 14th Street)

So get down to Mid-City this weekend for the Dog Days of Summer Sidewalk Sale. You’ll be in for some sweet shopping and a host of other free activities. For a full list of participating shops, restaurants, bars theaters and galleries, as well as discounts and events, check out midcitylife.com.

Looking for handmade shopping this weekend? Get over to Baltimore this Saturday, June 21st from 10am-5pm for Charm City Craft Mafia’s 2nd Annual Pile of Craft Fair. 40+ crafty vendors will be showing their goods indoors at St. John’s Church located at 2640 St. Paul St, Baltimore, MD.

Last year’s Pile of Craft was a blast and we can’t wait to see what’s in store the 2nd time around. If it’s anything like CCCM’s holiday show, it’ll be busy and awesome.

You know the drill. Read the instructions before you start. Deadline to apply is July 17.

You can read the more detailed instructions along with tips and advice we posted on the blog earlier this year. Want to know more about the event? Read the FAQ.

Ready? Get started here.