Happy Holly Daze!

Here we go ya'll, the slithery sled ride through America's winter festival season. For me this time of year is always such an intense mix of joy and stress and glee and darkness. Take a deep breath....

Nov. 21,22; and 27-29: Eugene Holiday Market, booth# 83

Dec. 4-6; Humboldt Artisans Crafts and Music Festival, Eureka, CA, booth#73

Dec.5,6; Eugene Holiday Market, (yes we are at two locations this weekend, Eugene and Eureka) booth# 193

Dec.12,13; KPFA Crafts and Music Fair, San Francisco, CA, booth#56

Dec. 12,13; Eugene Holiday Market,(again...double boothing it, Eugene and San Fran.)booth#106

Dec.19,20; Eugene Holiday Market, booth# 106

Dec.22,23,24; Eugene Holiday Market, booth#106

Please have a blessed season

Peace,

Cada Johnson

The Spineless Flip FLop Jig

When I am faced with my own inconsistencies I tend to want to run screaming for cover. They make me quake in my boots. You could say it is akin to having multiple muses playing tug of war with one's creative integrity. It is as though the gods are kicking my sanity around for their amusement and I'm on the sidelines begging for a moment of peace. So I try to make rules for myself. As an artist who paints on clothing, I have said countless times these words. "No, I am sorry, I do not paint on clothing which is provided by my customers. You see, there is too much opportunity to destroy or maim a perfectly good piece of clothing. I paint on clothing which I purchase wholesale so that if I destroy it then there is no problem. " Perhaps you are surprised to find that the question "Will you paint on my clothing?" is that common. I'm certain that I have had to answer that query at least 200 times in the last 19 years. It is actually quite common. Many, many customers appreciate my paintings but I don't have a garment which fits them or is their style. Their face lights up as they hit on the idea. "Hey...what if I bring you a piece of clothing? Would you paint it?" And I have to shatter their hopes and explain that the odds of their clothing surviving my studio are low. Much less, it is unthinkable that I would paint on a precious piece of clothing like formal wear or a wedding dress! Horrors!

The other rule which has served me well all these years of practicing my trade has been this: I do not paint on white clothing. Well, at least, the clothing that I paint on does not remain white. In fact, the very reason that I embarked upon dyeing clothing was because of the curse of white cloth. It is a soil and spot and paint magnet. I discovered in college that I could gain years of use out of clothing which I had spilled and stained within moments of it being in my vicinity, by dyeing it. After college this habit gravitated into a craft and a source of income. But after the first year of selling t-shirts and clothing in open air venues I swore that I would not sell white clothing as a finished product.

Lo! Along came a customer who has transformed himself into a friend over these years and offered me a project which has made me question my integrity. I broke all my rules. He sent me a white tuxedo, a precious, white, garment of his own and asked me to embellish this item for Burning Man. Yikes! What was I thinking? My work table is riddled with the evidence of paint misdirected. I have spilled as much paint and as many quarts and full jars across half finished garments as I have said no to customers asking for custom work. It is trying to be a clumsy artist.

I felt so much triumph that I was able to take on this project and get away with only 2 smudges that I have recorded my efforts for you here. The owner of this tuxedo took it off to the desert of Nevada for Burning Man and promptly spilled coffee on it.

On the Road

Okeydokey! I'm packing the van, getting things organized and hitting the road. For 3 weekends in a row I'll be in my booth at festivals. Here they are:
September 19,20
North Country Fair, Arcata, California: I'll be in booth #65. It is on the North end of G street, West side of the street.
September 26,27
Corvallis Fall Festival, Corvallis, Oregon:Booth #137, the street I'm closest to is NW Madison St.
October 3,4
Issaquah Salmon Days: I haven't received my load in packet for this one yet so I'll post it when I get the booth #
And remember, I will have tall silk flags on my booth. If you're hunting for me, look up. It is a great way to find the booth. You can see them from way down a long string of booths.

The fall is upon us. Time to embrace the changing seasons, the crisp clean clear air, the morning chill, the abundant harvest.
Many blessings, have a beautiful autumn.

Etsy!

If you haven't been there yet. You should check out Etsy. It is a massive website "venue" of handcrafted functional art. I have finally gotten on board and I'm making my t-shirts available that way. There is a red button below my profile picture which will take you to Etsy's site. When you get to the Etsy home page, put Hartware into the search bar at the top and it should whisk you to my on line shop. Yeehaw! ....Wow! I just had a hummingbird fly into the middle of my yurt (where I am writing this from) hover and fly right back out the door. Nice Grand Opening moment!!! Wheeeee!
Happy Heat Wave!

The Oregon Country Fair

Yeehaw, the "Fair" is upon us.  For those of you who have never attended this event....I say there is nothing else quite like it.  And for those of you who have been there.....how many times have you heard these words? "I swear there was a booth here that sold really nice t-shirts...a minute ago. How did we get here?.....Where was that cheesecake booth?....no the bathrooms are that way."  I have had so many painted, bedazzled, giggly, festers tell me that they could not find my booth that I can't take it anymore. Here I am!!!! Da ta da daaaa! M68 is the official booth number. We are on Wooten Way which is the shady side of Chela Mela Meadow and when you get in the neighborhood look up.  The silk flags!  They really help. They will be above us. (it is way too hard to make them go below us). So have a magnificent Fair even if you never find us. 

Summers here and the livin is easy........

Hartware's entire festival schedule for 2009 is at the bottom of this page.

Altared Nation

I have returned from the Freemont Fair stimulated and jazzed and pumped with new ideas. I have been traveling with my buddy Olive who inspires me toward whole new levels of  interactive explosive joyful living. I am on fire with the idea of you. All of you are walking kinetic altars. You all choose with care the items which you drape upon your body.  And  with this act you are allowing the juices of your unique spirit to seep onto the physical plane. There you are!  

I am seeing a fashion trend a foot. The act of integrating the found object into each unique outfit. Folks are running around with all kinds of things draping off their bodies! Olive and I intersected with a young charmer who is turning cowboy boots into camisoles! Yes indeed! I am inspired! I am ready to turn coffee makers into turbins and candy wrappers into thongs and television screens into waistcoats. Be prepared.  I think that change is in the air. 

I also want to tell you about the charming liquid moments which occurred. But I am feeling that I don't have time at the moment. Remind me to tell you about the guy sitting on his pick-up truck who started singing DoReMi,( yes, from the Sound of Music) with us while we were packing up the booth.  

The other thing I am inspired to do...? To actually write something in my blog. Hah! 

I must be off to work. I have much, much, much  to do for the Oregon Country Fair. If you would like to find me there I will be in booth #M68 in Chela Mela Meadow.

The rest of the year's festival schedule is at the bottom of the page.

selling t-shirts on a blog

OK

 I believe that I can do this. Post things to my blog in little 10 minute bits of time between eating and making the t-shirts. 

The two designs above are heat transfers and I can put them on to tee shirts with many color combinations.  They are printed over a white rectangle created with a wax resist so there are cracks and texture in the background. I am dying the shirts with a unique process which gives a subtle texture to the whole shirt. They are pre-shrunk and completely machine washable. 

• tank tops $25
• organic short sleeve tees $30
• organic long sleeve tees $38

add $4 for shipping and handling. 

If you would like one of these designs or have any questions e-mail me and I'll give it to ya straight. 

Yay!