It’s Pack Rat Magazine, b*tches!

Okay, so I know I’ve been awol recently and I’m sure you’ve all be struggling to find the will to live without my sage words of advice (JK) but I’m back and the reason for my prolonged absence and subsequent return is that I’ve been working diligently on producing for you all (or y’all where appropriate) issue numero quatro of Pack Rat. This issue we help the Earth in the spirit of Earth Day by doing what we do best: recycled crafts and lots of them. We also talk with jewelry designer Becky Houle, a.k.a. The Vicious Kitty, look into what this whole letterbox craze is all about and, with the help of Cat Morley from Cut Out + Keep make our own letterbox stampers, hit the thrifts for some inexpensive crafting supplies, and just about a zillion things more. Head over to www.packratmag.com/zine to get in on the action. I missed you all and I’m glad to be back. Happy crafting!

Hi kids!  the Feb/March Issue is finally out and rarin’ to go.  Click on the pdf link below!  And remember, if you think you could do better, you’re welcome to show us what you’ve got. Submission deadlines for next issue will be March 20th.  Happy reading.

issue3.pdf

Check out Issue #1 from Pack Rat Magazine!

Hey guys. Quick blog for all you Cali knitting crazies out there. If you’re in the Bay Area, make sure you check out SF Chicks with Sticks, a hip young knitting group open to women, men, and having a good time. Use them as a motivational jumping off point, or work with fellow knitters on a “Knit Along” group project. And above all, make friends!

Urban Craft Uprising, that is. One of the biggest indie craft organizations on the west coast, UCU is in its third year of rocking Seattles knitted socks off. If you are in the area, start counting the days down to their big show, December 1st and 2nd.  And, if you are a vendor or someone interested in selling your own wares, check the website often.  They frequently have workshops to help independent crafts businesses, such as the one coming up Oct. 20th.  P.S.  I think the design of their website is awesome.

Well, technology has bested me yet again. I wrote today’s blog out, all nice and neat, and then some how managed to lose the whole thing when I went to add photos. Oh well. I will not let technology win. It may be smarter, but I am more stubborn. What I wanted to tell you about is this great online charity, headhuggers.org. Run by head honcho (yes, pun intended) Sue Thompson, this site is dedicated to creating and distributing caps to people in need. This all started when Sue went to lunch with a friend of hers who was battling cancer and as a result of her chemotherapy had lost her hair. The woman was forced to wear a baseball cap to keep her head warm and this just seemed like insult added on to injury, that this woman would have to deal with being cold on top of everything else. So Sue started Head Huggers in order to help people with hair loss due to chemotherapy, brain surgery, burn wounds, and more. The mission of these hats, according to Head Huggers brochure, is to provide people in need with warmth, comfort and dignity. Sue has been at it some time now, since December 2001 and she is always looking for more volunteers. If you knit, crochet, or sew there are patterns available on the website for the caps, and there are also copyrighted patterns available if you contact Sue directly. She loves cap donations, but what she really seems to need right now is help distributing. You can help by starting up your own local chapter of Head Huggers and donating your hand crafted caps to your local oncologist offices and chemotherapy clinics. Sue has had a good amount of success so far. She’s delivered between 5,000 to 6,000 caps in 19 different states since the project began in 2001. But as always, she needs help to keep it going. So use your wonderful crafting skills to send someone a long distance hug.

Price alert. Today’s blog is about Make Workshop, a magical place in the Big Old Apple where how-to lessons for cool indie stuff abound. I say price alert because while the classes are not outrageously priced, they are a little on the outside of our usual price range. Classes start at $60 and can go up to $350 plus the cost of supplies. But wait, before you tune out, check out the titles of some of the workshops they offer: wallpaper making; pattern making, revamping your wardrobe, shoe making, letter press workshops as well as more standard fare like embroidery, sewing, knitting, soap making and much more. Pretty slick, right? And as much as I applaud people who teach themselves, sometimes its just easier to have someone show you the way. But, if you can’t quite make it to New York, or if $60 a class is just too steep for you, go ahead and pre-order Make Workshop creator, Diana Rupp’s book, S.E.W.: Sew Everything Workshop, scheduled to come out in September.

As the title implies, I am currently smacking my forehead with the palm of my hand for not mentioning getcrafty.com earlier. It is such a staple in the craft community, the “hub of the new domesticity,” as the site says, that I assumed that I had already written about it. Imagine my embarrassment when I went back over the archives and realized I had been remiss! Paint me red. I’m going to pretend that it was my subconscious telling me to hold off because soon a mention of getcrafty.com would, as my friend’s professor says, “feed two birds with one scone.” Recently posed on the site is an article about the first ever Craft Congress by Christy Petterson. Craft Congress, you say? Indeed I do. The biggest and brightest stars of our tight knit community came together earlier this month to discuss this ever-growing movement and how we can come together to make a difference. If that doesn’t get you pumped, well then check this out. Topics discussed: the possibility of shared health insurance for self-employed crafters, affecting copyright laws, and the political power of the crafting community just to name few. Isn’t this invigorating? What’s a more exciting call to action then “Crafters Unite!”

Permit me a serious moment here. We at Pack Rat firmly believe that crafting for a cause is always a good idea. Using the gifts of creativity and skill for the embetterment of others is the best gift your can give anyone, including yourself. More than just giving money, when you craft something for someone in need, you get to give something of yourself. And hopefully in return you get something bigger and deeper back. Emptybowls.net is a great cause dedicated to just that. Empty bowls was started in 1990 by a Michigan school teacher as a way to get the community involved in the school’s fund raising efforts. Seventeen years later, they are still going at it strong. The basic idea for Empty Bowls is simple. The fund raisers create ceramic bowls, then serve a simple meal of soup and bread. Fund raisees or donaters come to the meal and choose a bowl to use. They get to keep their handmade treasures as a reminder that there are always Empty Bowls in the world. In exchange for a meal and the bowl, the guest gives at least the suggested minimum donation of ten dollars. The funds collected then get donated to an orgazination, any organization that fights hunger. This can range from an local organization servicing the immediate community, or an international service involved in world hunger relief. What better way to express yourself than this?

Resist the awesome allure of The Sampler. What is The Sampler you might ask? Well, although it sounds like a radio drama super hero (”tonight’s episode of The Shadow features special guest, The Sampler”), it is actually an indie craft breeding ground. Check this out, if you subscribe then every month The Sampler sends you a little bundle of indie products from an assortment of indie businesses (think “kid kits” from the BSC, except with cool indie trinkets instead of chinese checkers). Can you imagine? Every month a gift bundle in your mail? It’s like you get 12 birthdays a year instead of one. What’s good for the goose is great for the gander (whatever the hell that means). The only thing better than being a member to The Sampler is being a contributor. If you have an indie business, The Sampler is where you want to be. It will get your name and your URL out to your potential clientèle and you’ll be in good company, having your name associated with other popular indie business such as CROQ zine, Sublime Stitching and more. Plus, if you contribute you get a free Sampler for that month. Sa-weet. Roll on over to the website to see samples and read cool how-tos like these featured lamps made out of colanders.

Since this is time sensitive, I want to write a special blog about it. If you live in the Boston area and you like ‘zines, clear you calendar for the weekend of March 24th and 25th because the Boston Zine Fair is coming to town. It’s going to be from 10 am - 6 pm both nights and will be held at Massart. Check out the website at bostonzinefair.org.

Their official statement:

The Boston Zine Fair is a weekend-long event with the aim of bringing together zinesters, artists, small presses and other producers of independent media. The conference includes two full days of tabling, an opening night show with live bands and readers, as well as potluck meals throughout the weekend. There are also numerous hands-on workshops and discussion panels which give us the opportunity to learn new skills to use in our own creative enterprises, as well as to explore the importance of independent media in a corporate-owned world. The Boston Zine Fair is free and open to the public. In previous years the Boston Zine Fair (formerly known as Beantown Zinetown) has drawn hundreds of both local and national publishers, and has been a great way to build community and just enjoy each other’s company.