Ray - Min Shoulderware at WildCard

Pittsburgh has a new boutique dedicated to handmade products. WildCard is located at 4209 Butler Street in Lawrenceville and is a fantastic new shop that features wearables and gifts [article here]. There are local Pittsburgh designers carrying their wares along with other designers from other crafty cities. Ray-Min just dropped off a few our latest designs (including new clutches) with Rebecca Morris, the owner. We're excited to be carrying our shoulderware at another Pittsburgh shop (the other being MF). WildCard is having their grand opening Saturday November 7th, from 6-10pm.

Sadly, we're going to be out of town for Handmade Arcade this December, but there will be plenty of places for our local Pittsburgh clientele to pick up a new Ray-Min bag!

Philly in October!

Next stop...Philly! October 17th, Ray-Min will be at Squidfire's Philly Art Mart. This time it's going to be a solo show, Raymond has to manage the Artist & Craftsman Supply shop in Pittsburgh so there will only be the Min in Ray-Min this time.

Next week I will be sending out a coupon for our bags to use at the Philly Art Mart. Those of you in the Philly area, sign up on our email list so that we can send you one!

For this next show, we have a new line of clutches and hip-packs (small pouches that slip onto your belt).

With the show just being one day, I'm hoping to check out a museum on Sunday before heading back the the 'Burgh. Possibly the Philadelphia Museum of Art or the Mutter Museum (the museum of medial oddities). I'll see what I can squeeze in! See you in Philly!

A trip to the Museum...

I was looking for some inspiration today and decided to go to the Carnegie Museum of Art. The current architectural exhibit, Palm Springs Modern: Photographs by Julius Shulman was amazing. I have always had a weakness for 1950-60's modern design and this hit the spot. The compositions of the geometric structures against the mountainous backgrounds were breath-taking. The color photos were vivid with bold yellows, reds, and turquoises, a popular palette for that time. I felt I could walk into these photos and just lay down next to the pool; they were beautiful. This is a traveling exhibit and well worth checking out if you have a love for 1950's modern design and architecture.

Favorite Artists from Renegade Chicago!

With about 300 artists at this past weekend's Renegade Chicago, it was even overwhelming as a vendor to check out all the booths. Being a duo (Ray & Min) we were fortunate to be able to give eachother a break from the tent to explore the show. Navigating through the 1000s of people these following artists were the ones that caught my eye!

Felix & Jayne - They created a unique application of stitched yarn on fabric. I loved the use of texture and color in all of their designs.

Urban Posture - These ladies from Des Moines, IA had a fantastic selection of home goods. Folders, binders, pin boards...all silk-screen with their organic styled patterns. I purchase the wooden coasters as a house warming gift for a friend.

MBMB - Michelle Brusegaard had a wonderful variety of silk-screened linens. Here designs were elegant, perfect to dress up any dining table. These napkins were also purchased for a friend.

Ryan Berkley - I absolutely love animals in suits! Before this show we had purchased the frog professor. He is framed in a stately gold frame in our home and was named Leopold Hopptemeier (after a high school english teacher we had in CT). It was great to see all of Ryan Berkley's dressed-up animal illustrations. We have plans to add to our collection...

Ray-Min is ready for Chicago!

Bags are ready to go! We had a late night getting everything ready for Renegade Chicago this weekend, but we're fully stocked with plenty of shoulderware. We have several new messenger bags to show,a new deluxe version with exterior pockets under the flap, great for easy access to ipods or cells phones. We also have lots of new totes and purses and well. We got a long drive ahead of us this afternoon, but looking forward to a fun weekend in Chicago!

Renegade Chicago! This weekend!

Just checked the weather in Chicago and it's going to be 70 degrees and sunny all weekend! We're finishing up the last of our bags before head out for the Renegade Craft Show tomorrow. We'll be booth #231 with Early Jewelry. Our favorite Pittsburgh printers, Tugboat, will also be there at booth #95. It's going to be a fantastic show with 300 vendors!

Innovation in the sewing room!

The best sewing purchase I have made lately; the Bobbin Saver! Odd looking yes, but it works like a charm. The innovative use of material makes this a fantastic product. The Bobbin Saver is made of a silicone type material. The elastic characteristic of the material allows the bobbins to snap into place and snugly holds them so that they cannot spin freely and unwind. This design solves the thread nest that collects above my bobbin tray!