This Saturday is the eighth annual Handmade Harvest event put on by the fine folks at The DIME Store. This annual event is probably the single best day of shopping available in Denton. Yes, even better than that day after Thanksgiving when everyone eats leftover pie and then goes to Target to fight over discounted televisions. At the Handmade Harvest, makers from all over gather together under one roof (this year at TWU's Hubbard Hall) to sell their wares. Read on to find out why you should make sure to stop by this weekend and what to check out.
Read MoreCLINT WILKINSON OF BELL & OAK
Clint Wilkinson of Bell & Oak
Clint Wilkinson, the founder and owner of the new handmade leather goods store, Bell and Oak, is a cool dude with some hardcore Denton roots. We recently chatted with him about his process, his vision for his new venture and some other stuff. If you don't already know about Bell and Oak, it's high time you did. This guy is crafting and creating some of the most beautiful handmade leather goods around. His Instagram feed alone will make you swoon. We're pretty much feeling like we need all leather everything now. Don't even get us started on the amazing 'new leather' smell that happens when you pick up a new piece for your growing wallet collection - it's addicting. Read on to find out how Clint is honing his craft and sharing it with the world below.
Yo, Clint. Share with us a little bit about your family’s history with Denton.
Well, I believe my Grandpa (Weldon Burgoon) is a 6th generation Dentonite. The University of North Texas did an excellent oral history book on his life this year. It’s 200+ pages about his descendants traveling to Denton back in the 1800’s all the way to present day. It has some really neat pictures in the back of it describing certain locations in Denton and old cowboy stories. We sell them inside Weldon’s currently.
Going back to 1957, that’s when my Grandpa, Grandma, Mom, and Uncle started Weldon’s Saddle Shop. It was located on the east side of Bell & Hickory St. but moved to the west side(our current location) in the 60’s. He started it by making custom saddles, leather goods, and tack but he slowly started carrying western wear to get a little cash flow. As years went on it’s progressed into what you see today, sorta a Denton landmark. We have western clothing for men, women, and kids but what I think makes our shop so unique, is all the Texas Cowboy Collectibles and working leather shop inside. It’s really like stepping into a western museum.
In 2011 my Grandpa got inducted into the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame because of the extraordinary Denton Junior Stampede Rodeo that he and my family created in the 70’s that was held at the Denton Fair Grounds. He’s also been inducted into the National Bit & Spur Association Hall of Fame for his contributions.
My Dad grew up in Denton and was a professional calf roper. His Dad died before I was born, so I never had the chance to meet him, but one day I will! Dad was raised a cowboy too and I remember as a kid traveling to rodeos in the back of his truck every weekend to watch him rope. Those were the good ol’ days, not a worry in the world!
So I’ve been a Dentonite for 31 years I guess. I’ve seen it change quite a bit.
Your past in design and your transition into handmade goods is inspiring. What really made you want to make the jump into doing this full time?
I could go on for days with different reasons why I wanted to make the move into this field but, the main reason is because I just had too much stuff going on at one time which led me into an extreme anxiety filled burnout. Some of you may have read My Story on Bell & Oak’s website about how ,in 2007, I helped start the worlds most popular online publishing platform for the motocross industry, vurbmoto.com. I was also working at Weldon’s during that time so one minute I would be designing motion graphics for Red Bull, making web elements, learning code, on Skype calls.. the next minute trying to sell a pair of boots or help my Grandpa fix something. On top of all that I have a lovely wife and two kids who I’m trying to spend time with. I would find myself running wide open from 6am - 1am most days, with little sleep and to much coffee. I did that for 6 years and finally my body had enough and just shut down. I told the Vurb guys I needed a break.
During that break is when I discovered how therapeutic working with leather was. There’s something about working with your hands thats really satisfying. So one day I went back into our leather shop and just made an iPad Mini case. It took me about 2 weeks to complete because I’d never made anything like it before. After that I made my Dad a belt for his birthday, fully tooled with a liner sewn in. By that time a month had passed and I could feel my body slowly getting back to normal because I cut out all the stress I was having. For the next 4 months all I did was go to work at Weldon’s and work on leather, help customers, and go home. It brought me back to when I was young before all the craziness.
After learning how to build things better and getting into a groove of normalcy I knew this was something I would love to do. So I browsed around the internet at some different brands who kinda fit the same style I’d like to create. I was confident in my ability to start a brand by myself because of all the experience I had, so I went for it and here we are today! The guys at Vurb supported me during that time period and I’m forever grateful to all of them for that.
On top of all that, I want to keep my Grandpa’s leather craft legacy alive. I would love to teach my kids how to craft things out of leather and hopefully they’re interested at an early age. I feel like this is my contribution to the foundation that started Weldon’s Saddle Shop.
Your online presence really grew incredibly quickly. What has the challenge been in creating that presence?
I still have a long way to go in order to reach my goals online, but I was shocked at the response I received after putting out the link to My Story on facebook in January. On the first day My Story received over 1600 likes on facebook which was way more than I was expecting. Heck we have over 180K Followers on vurbmoto’s facebook page and it was hard getting that many likes on posts, so it was definitely reassuring.
“I feel like this is my contribution to the foundation that started Weldon’s Saddle Shop.”
The biggest challenge I think is keeping people interested in what you’re doing. People have so many distractions in their lives these days, it’s tough to keep them interested in your posts. Think about how fast you can get information these days. People want things as fast as Google gives it to them and then they move onto the next thing just as fast. So I try to not overdue posts on instagram, I try to only post the best images once a day. From my past experience in building a world wide brand, we had to figure all of this out the hard way. So I’m truly taking what I’ve learned building past brands and applying it to Bell & Oak.
Your shop is chock full of beautiful handmade leather goods. Which of these goods are you actually using/wearing right now?
I’m always wearing the Standard Belt with Belt Key Chain because I don’t like keys in my pocket. As for wallets, I’m a Grissom guy during the week and Hickory guy on the weekend. I also love using the iPhone Sleeve compared to those huge rubber bricks that are so hard to put in your pocket.
How do you choose your leather? Can you tell us why you believe in creating a product that uses really high quality leather?
I knew that I wanted to get the best quality leather so people could tell a difference. Since I’ve been blessed to work at my Grandpa’s shop, I get to hear all the stories about how someone’s belt only lasted 9 months or that a wallet fell apart in 6 months yet, they continue to buy the same exact product. I want those people to buy a Bell & Oak product so they can feel, smell, and experience the difference when real quality leather is used. Plus the fact it’s made right here in Denton Texas, I would hope the locals can appreciate something like that. I want the customer to have the opportunity to pass down a Bell & Oak product to their kids or at the very least, be able to enjoy it for years.
If you visit the Materials Page on my website, there is an awesome video interview of the Horween Leather Tannery by Filson that explains why they believe in quality too.
Your Grandfather was an amazing at leather tooling. How has he handed down that craft? What have you had to learn on your own? What is your favorite kind of design to work on?
As a kid I remember going back into the leather shop to watch him but I don’t think I realized what he was really doing. When I got into my teens I started to understand what some of the tools did, so I would get some scrap pieces of leather and mess around with it. From time to time he would look over my shoulder and tell me how to do something right.
Back in his days tooling patterns weren’t as intricate like todays stuff. The tools weren’t as precise and the technique wasn’t as refined. Plus, learning new techniques wasn’t as easy as it is now with Youtube video tutorials. So you really had to learn your own way.
There is a great buddy of mine, Ely Ganzer, who has been a long time family friend that showed me the more modern way of tooling once I started taking it serious. He gave me tips on what tools to buy, what work to look at, and showed me a few techniques he likes to use. Once that was established I just started tooling more patterns so I could get better.
My favorite style of tooling is called the Sheridan style. It originated in Sheridan Wyoming, to me it’s the prettiest and most difficult style to pull off.
What has opening Bell and Oak taught you about the maker community and the challenges of handmade production in the age of the online world?
Well it’s given me a lot of respect towards makers who helped grow this country many decades ago. I’ve also learned that makers like to help one another. I’m talking with a few local makers, who are brilliant in their respected craft, at doing some collab work with me and they’ve embraced it with open arms. I have some cool Wood + Leather stuff I’m working on with Pastrana Studio, special watercolor prints by Mandy Cave, and lifestyle photos by Melissa Barrett.
One of the tough things about selling online is that the customer doesn’t get to experience the product until it’s been shipped to them. They have to completely trust the brand in order to make that type of commitment. I hope that’s something Bell & Oak gains, a solid reputation. Being a one man operation, I’m playing the role of many hats to keep things running seamlessly as possible.
I think if the makers can grab a’hold of the youth so they can get interested in buying American Made products, we’ll be in good shape. Thats a huge task, but technology has allowed us to reach so many different types of people that it can be done.
Where’s your favorite place to pull out that amazing wallet and grab a bite?
You can catch me at Rusty’s Taco, LSA, and The Cupboard most of the time but, you guys keep me posted on new places to try so I need to take advantage of that!
THE DEN10: APRIL 30
On top of a week full of incredible things to do, possibly the most important thing you can do is vote early. With four of the seven seats up for grabs, this is possibly the most important election in the history of voting. With District 2 being won by 14 votes in the past (seriously, 14 votes, y'all. That's fewer people than were at your band's last show), every single ballot cast this week counts. With only 3% of the city showing up to vote in city elections, nowhere else will you be able to have your vote count so much. Your vote can make a difference. TUESDAY IS THE LAST DAY TO EARLY VOTE. There's still other stuff going on for some reason, though. Let's take a gander...
Questions, comments or civic initiatives? Email glen@wedentondoit.com
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Thursday, May 1st
Glen Farris Fundraising Bash | Oak Street Draft House | 6PM
On May 10th your vote can make a difference. The District 2 race is turning out to be very close and it’s going to take everyone pitching in to push us to the finish line. So come out, have a beer and drop a donation in the hat. There’s also a silent auction and there will probably be speeches made. Editor's Note: Glen wrote this, but we at WDDI love conflicts of interest. Also, he promised me that there'd be a megaphone and those are always fun.
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An Evening With Slaid Cleaves | Dan’s Silverleaf | 8PM | $20
One of the regions greatest songwriters hit’s the stage at Dan’s on Thursday. If song-craft is your thing, this one’s for you.
Friday, May 2nd
The DIME Store Sidewalk Sale | 510 S Locust | 6PM
We’ve really come to love the sidewalk shopping that comes with First Friday. We’re hoping someday, it becomes a weekend tradition in the vein of Bishop Arts. This even features discounted or older merchandise from several DIME makers. It'll be from 6pm until close on Friday and all day on Saturday. Cheap stuff, y'all!
Seryn / voltREvolt | Dan’s Silverleaf | 9PM | $15
Go get changed.
Saturday, May 3rd
CrossFit 940 Grand Opening | 3801 N I-35 Suite 226 | 8AM - 2PM
Vendors and free community work outs topped with a good old fashioned ribbon cutting ceremony. Some of the WDDI crew will be on hand to check out this new cross fit facility.
FREE Comic Book Day | More Fun Comics & Games | 11AM
Hundreds of graphic novel fans will descend on the square Saturday and line up for their free comic. Here’s a sneak peak at this year's titles. Of course, UNT has a trove of comics in it’s collection at the Willis Library because, why not? This is, after all, Denton. Go get your nerd on and make sure you actually purchase a trade or graphic novel while you're there. Have you read Y: The Last Man yet?
UNT Short Film Club Spring Screening | RTVF Building | 6PM - 8PM
Time for the Spring 2014 Short Film Screening. Check out the work of some of our town's blossoming film talent.
The Ever’s Mansion Open House | 1035 W. Oak St 10AM
Wanna poke around in an old historic mansion? Be careful, that’s $267 a square foot you’ll be walking on which works out to $1.775 million. Not bad for a house that cost $8k to build in 1903 and has gone through two fires. There’s a bunch of stories around this residence, do some digging and you’ll be rewarded with a little bit of our rich history.
Sunday, May 4th
Sunday Spins | Dan’s Silverleaf | 5PM
Hosted by some local folks with deep record collections, this is a prefect way to wind down the weekend and get ready for this last, final campaign push to Election Day May 10th.
Tuesday, May 6th
LAST DAY TO VOTE EARLY @ THE DENTON CIVIC CENTER OR THE DENTON COUNTY ELECTIONS BUILDING
Fishboy / Bellow / Delmore Pilcrow / Sunnybrook | Macaroni Island | 6PM
No Jerks.
DIME FEATURED MAKER: MADELINE WOOD
Every so often, we like to check in with the ladies over at The DIME Store and highlight one of the makers whose work they sell in-store. This month we hear from Rachel Nichelson from the handmade clothing outfit, Madeline Wood. Nichelson has been making handmade clothing for both adults and children for years now and has her work sold all over the place. We think she's pretty cool and that her clothes are, too. Read on to find out what drew her to fashion, how she manages to appeal to all age groups and find out about her brand new collection!
DIME: So first of all, what's the skinny behind the name "Madeline Wood"? Because the word on the street is that your name isn't Madeline. ;-)
Rachel Nichelson: Yes, I know it might be a little confusing and I have occasionally been called Madeline at shows. But Madeline Wood is actually just a simple recognition to my grandmother. And now it is also my daughter’s name. You might say Madeline Wood embraces the past and present.
What first drew you to fashion?
I can always remember loving fashion and creating with my hands, even as a little girl. But in my early teen years I got the opportunity to work in a small womens boutique. I loved unpacking the inventory and seeing all the new styles. Dressing up the mannequins and setting up the window displays was amazing. I fell in love with fashion.
We love that your dresses and accessories for little girls are just as tasteful and timeless as your line for adults. What do you love most about designing for youngsters and adults alike?
I have always loved how little girl clothes embraces more of a whimsical feeling. A few years ago I had a strong desire to start adapting my women’s designs for little girls. But recently some of my little girls designs I have been adapting for my women’s collection. Its so fun how they can be interchangeable. But what brings me the most joy is when my daughter asks for one of my dresses in her size!
At the DIME Store, we see everyone age 20 to 80 drawn to your adorable shirts and blouses. What do you think makes your work so appealing to basically everyone?
I hope its because they are drawn to my colorful fabric and simple vintage inspired silhouettes. I love color and patterns both in modern and vintage fabrics. I am also fascinated with vintage fashion and use it for inspiration when designing. Blending these all together you get colorful timeless fashion, and I think that is what draws women and girls of all ages into Madeline Wood.
We love your material choices! How do you go about finding your eclectic fabrics?
I have been collecting fabric for years, you might say I am bit of a fabric hoarder. I buy surplus fabric, which is designer and manufacture leftovers and misprints. And I will scour the internet and estate sales for vintage fabric. I also have found some great pieces at Scrap here in Denton.
“My dream is for Madeline Wood to be in boutiques across the country and world wide.”
What are you most excited about with your new collection?
I am so excited about the fabric I found last spring and the new styles I have added to my own wardrobe. Although every piece is my favorite, I was ecstatic about the hound hunting fabric I found and for the last year would daydream about it as a mini skirt! I am delighted to finally introduce the Marie skirt to my Etsy shop.
Where are you hoping to see Madeline Wood go in the future?
My dream is for Madeline Wood to be in boutiques across the country and world wide. I would love to see the wholesale side of Madeline Wood grow. But for now I am focusing on my Etsy shop and I hope to see it flourish.
How did you get involved with the DIME Store?
Well I met Rachel and Shelly when I participated in one of the Etsy Denton Handmade shows a couple years ago. I was invited to bring in my garments when DIME opened a year ago, but it wasn’t until February this year that I finally brought Madeline Wood to the DIME Store.
Aside from the DIME Store, where can we shop your work?
You can find Madeline Wood on Etsy or in my studio by appointment.
Any advice for aspiring makers?
Do what you love, work hard at it and develop your skills. Don’t compare yourself to others or worry about mistakes, just learn from them. Trust your instincts and love what you make!
DIME FEATURED MAKER: ARI JONES
As we kick off a new year, DIME met up with the ever-inspirational Ari Jones of Project 4.30. Not only will this gal’s impressive line of bags motivate you to travel more in 2014, but she’s got a pretty unique story to boot. How many people do you know have moved back to Denton FROM Austin because our creative community is a better fit for them? Yeah, that’s what we thought.
Read MoreDIME FEATURED ARTIST: TRIPLE THREAT PRESS
Our fine friends over at DIME feature a seller/artist with us once a month. Check out their new store on South Locust when you have a chance, and read on to hear all about this month's featured artist.
There’s more than a little excitement brewing around Triple Threat Press these days. The letterpressing duo is gearing up for the DIME Summer Bazaar, trying to keep their popular work in stock at the DIME Store, and planning their speech for May 13th’s Creatives Mixer at OSDH. Nonetheless, we found a bit of time in their schedule to hassle them about how awesome they are.
photo by Triple Threat Press
How/when did you guys decide to start your business?
Laura: In May of 2012 I graduated with my MFA in Printmaking from UNT. I was looking to purchase a press so that I could continue to print my own artwork, and when I finally found our Kelsey Excelsior letterpress in Sanger in early July, Dave planted the idea that perhaps we could use it to make a little bit of money.
Dave: In hindsight, it was a little foolish on my part because I didn’t know the first thing about printmaking. Luckily, Laura knows a lot about it. With her help, and through helping restore the letterpress, I was able to gain a working knowledge of how a it all works.
Why did you choose the name "Triple Threat Press"?
Laura: Growing up around theater, a "triple threat"–a talented singer, dancer, and actor–was something I always aspired to be. Triple threats are fiery, committed to their talents, and they are always in demand. While naming the business, we tried to pick a moniker that would comment on our dedication and drive as well as our services. We both have backgrounds in design, Dave is an incredibly talented coder, and I know my way around a printshop pretty well.
Dave: The other reason we picked it was because we thought of a lot of names that were very descriptive of us as people and we thought that it would be better to have a name that was descriptive of what we do. A lot of people ask us, “So, what are the three threats?”. We don’t have to go around telling people what we do. The name starts the conversation for us.
by Triple Threat Press
What drew you to letterpress over other forms of printing?
Dave: One of the things that we took away from the first Etsy Denton sale that we attended was that there was a real market for letterpress items in Denton. Basically, there wasn’t anybody doing it here. We figured that with good designs and well-made products, we could make a splash pretty quickly.
Laura: Also, letterpress is one of those printmaking techniques that allows an artist to create hundreds–if not thousands–of identical pieces of art from just one image. Large letterpress editions help us keep our cost down, which makes it that much easier for us to sell our goods and services at affordable prices. Thus, nearly everyone can afford to own something that we made. That might be the most beautiful thing about this process: because letterpress was initially utilized to create reading material for the masses, it truly is “the people’s art”.
What is it like to work in a business relationship with your significant other?
Dave: It's really great. (And not just because I'd be in trouble if I said anything to the contrary.) I think that we work really well together and it is fun to be able to bounce ideas off of each other whenever they come up, instead of only between the hours of 9-5.
Laura: I think that I might just be the luckiest woman in the world. To have a significant other who believes in me so much and supports me so fully that he wanted to start a business with me has got to be the greatest gift that I have been given in life. I know how mushy that sounds... and all of my friends will probably make fun of me for saying so, but that is genuinely how I feel. Put that in your press and print it.
photo by Lauren Apel
photo by Triple Threat Press
How did you become involved with DIME?
Dave: After we restored our letterpress, we started designing things like greeting cards and notebooks. We thought that the Etsy Denton Handmade Harvest would be a great place to try selling them. When we applied, we didn’t even have an Etsy store set up. Thankfully, we were able to sell at that event and it went really well. When the DIME Store opened, we quickly applied to be a part of it and were even asked to do a chalk mural on their wall.
Where can we shop your work?
Dave: We have an Etsy store. You can also find our work for sale at the DIME Store, and we will be selling some stuff at the DIME Summer Bazaar on June 8th. If you'd just like to keep tabs on what we're up to, there is our Facebook page, Twitter, or triplethreatpress.com.
photo by Triple Threat Press
Triple Threat Press is one of the featured speakers at May 13th's Creative's Mixer. How do you feel about being looked to as a voice for the creative community in Denton?
Dave: I still can’t get over the fact that somebody somewhere wants to hear what I have to say.
Laura: Dave still doesn’t understand that we’re not just some do-nothing teenagers anymore. We’re adults, and because we have worked hard to hone our adult skills, we are actually getting to be somewhat good at what we do. Imagine that, Dave. We do our jobs well.
Dave: I know a lot of people who do their jobs well... that doesn’t mean I want to hear them talk about it! I guess it is just crazy to me that this time last year, nobody knew who we were and now, people are going to sit and listen to us talk.
What did you get out of the first Creative's Mixer last October?
Dave: We showed up not really knowing what to expect. At that point, we weren’t even a business yet. We were just a couple with a letterpress. It was very neat to see so many people come out and to hear about what other people were doing in Denton. I think it gave us the assurance that what we were doing was good, that we had a market in Denton, and that people around here would support us.
photo by Triple Threat Press
photo by Triple Threat Press
Do you have any advice for aspiring artists who are looking to start a business or become an active part of the Denton creative community?
Dave: Know what you’re getting yourself into. It’s really easy to make things and put them out there for people to buy, but there is a lot of behind the scenes stuff that you might not really think about (More on that at the Denton Creatives Mixer on May 13th!).
Laura: It is really important to understand that there is a significant amount of time that must be devoted to creative work, and having realistic timelines in place to complete this work is essential to success. One last thing: No matter how hard you need to work to meet a deadline, try to schedule at least one hour of solitary time every day. Spend this time on yourself, not the business. If you’re anything like me when we first started our business, you’ll have a hard time turning off work. That’s not healthy. Take care of yourself, y’all.
photo by Triple Threat Press
photo by Triple Threat Press
photo by Triple Threat Press
DIME STORE PREVIEW
Photos by Dave Koen
We Denton Do It had the chance to catch up with our friends over at DIME (Denton Independent Maker Exchange) before their big store opening next week. Owner Rachel Aughtry answered lots of our questions about creativity, local business ownership and Denton in general. Read on for more!
Tell us a little more about DIME (Denton Independent Maker Exchange).
DIME is all about building the community of local handmade artists through connections—both with folks that want to buy their work and with other artists. The social aspect between maker and buyer, as well as maker and maker, is totally inspiring and encouraging. We want the store to give more consistency and presence to that community.
How
has Denton helped influence you creatively?
Denton really gave me the courage to pursue my own art as a full time career. I moved to Denton with every intention to go to school, get my degree, and move away to work for a corporate company, hopefully doing something design related. When I was a little UNT freshman, I put a few of my handmade bags for sale at Art Six – Tommy called me three days later and asked me to bring more because they were selling so well. The positive feedback I got from Denton folks at that little coffee shop gave me the confidence to start an Etsy shop, do the Denton Community Market, apply to big, prestigious craft fairs in Dallas and Austin, start Etsy Denton, and make my creative work my full-time job post graduation. (Hey thanks, Dentonites!)
You were a big part of starting the Etsy Denton Craft Fairs – tell us about how that got started, and how it lead you to creating DIME.
For sure! I never get tired of this question, as it is a true testament to the awesome creative community and spirit in Denton. When the Denton Community Market started in 2010, it was just once a month, so the same vendors were there each month and became a little family. Myself and Shelley Christner were among those vendors. We had done a few creative projects together prior selling our creative wares at the Market, but our friendship really grew that first market season.
As the season ended, all the vendors were a little sad to lose this great community we had developed, so Shelley and I formed Etsy Denton to continue and expand that community. We originally intended Etsy Denton to just be about local Etsy sellers being friends and hanging out, but at our first event we ended up sitting around and talking about how we should all do a craft show together. A few months later we did a barn sale in Shelley’s barn. Much to our surprise, people actually came to it. And they bought things. It was weird. After that, we started renting out the Center for Visual Arts for our now-massive Summer Bazaar and Handmade Harvest.
Last fall, Shelley and I decided that, due to the success of the shows, it was time to open up some sort of space for Etsy Denton. We changed the name to DIME (the Denton Independent Maker Exchange) to create our own identity (and to not infringe upon the Etsy trademark), and set about finding a space to house the DIME Store.
Have you felt like you’ve found a pretty creative support system in Denton? Is having a creative community something you place importance on?
Our creative community is everything. And what Etsy Denton/DIME has done in a mere three years could not have happened in a less awesome community. Every time we do any sort of event, so many of our artists email us asking what they can do to help us. And when we announced the opening of the DIME Store, pretty much all of our artists asked what they could do to help or let us know that if we ever needed an extra person working the counter, they would be there 100%. And it’s not just our amazing, talented artists, either.
What we do wouldn’t be possible without the 2500+ Denton folks that come shop at our shows and buy from Denton artists. When we were planning the Handmade Harvest last year, we actually had to turn volunteers away because we had so many people offer to help make the day a success. The community of both artists and their supports is just absolutely amazing.
Did you have any trouble getting DIME open?
Anyone who owns a business in Denton will be the first to tell you that there are some silly rules on the books, whether at the federal, state, or city level. Making sure all the legal ducks are in their rows so that you can put all the fun ducks in their rows is crazy time consuming, but it’s going to make the store awesome and successful, so it’s all worth it.
Was
proximity to downtown something you took into account?
Absolutely. The growth of downtown Denton in the past few years is just totally amazing, and we wanted to add to the arts community that is an integral part of that growth. We’ve already talked to some other downtown-but-off-the-square businesses about expanding the idea of “downtown” to more than just the square. The next few year are going to be way exciting for this little town.
What sorts of things are inspiring to you right now?
I love looking at textiles—clothing, rugs, vintage needlepoint pillows, medieval weavings, everything. Fabric is totally fascinating. Maybe that’s why I majored in Fiber Art. I’ll let the cat out of the bag here, just for you guys—I’m hoping to start designing a line of fabric based on vintage fabric techniques and then use it on my bags. But I’m also opening a store in two weeks, so… it might take me a bit to make that happen.
What
kinds of events will you guys be hosting at your store?
Part of the store is our “Workshop” that is store square footage but can also transform into a classroom for art classes, creative business classes, open workshop days where our artists can come hang out and work, and hopefully so much more. We’ll still be doing the big shows at the Center for Visual Arts, but we’re also hoping we can do some smaller fairs and trunk shows at the store.
The DIME store will be celebrating their Grand Opening Party on Friday, April 5th and 6th (wine + cheese Friday night, BBQ Saturday, and live letterpress printing all weekend). The store is located at 510 S. Locust. It’s about three blocks south of the square in a converted 1950s house. After that weekend, normal store hours will be Tuesday - Saturday, 10:00am-6:00pm, closed Sundays and Mondays.
DIME FEATURED SELLER: MANDY CAVE
Interview provided by DIME. Photos by Sara Barnes
As Denton Independent Maker Exchange (DIME) gears up for the opening of it’s brick and mortar store in April, we caught up with DIME leader and accomplished water-colorist Mandy Cave. Mandy’s abundant enthusiasm will get you excited about her work, the store, and maybe even about creating some art, yourself.
How did you get into watercolor painting?
All I knew when I moved to Denton was that I wanted to be an art major. It wasn’t until I took my first watercolor class that I learned to love it. One day in class my teacher showed us the work of famous watercolor painters, and I recognized a couple of them from my childhood. As a kid my parents had a painting of a dog laying on a bed framed above their headboard. I would lay in their bed for hours staring at the painting. When I got a little older, I found my new favorite painting of a young lady sitting in a yellow field, reaching out toward a house in the distance. It turns out that a watercolor artist, Andrew Wyeth had painted both of them. After that I starting realizing how much I’ve always been drawn to Watercolor. Whenever I go to the bookstore, I find myself wandering over to the kids section to flip though the illustrations. Most of my favorites are always watercolor artists. Maybe I was hardwired to like it and just never saw it until later.
What is your favorite thing about watercolor?
There are these little moments behind the scenes I enjoy so much. I feel like all watercolor artists must like them. Like when I’m about to clean off a brush in a fresh jar of water. When I tap the brush loaded with color on the side of the jar, color floats and dances around in the water. It’s magical. Right now I am learning how versatile watercolor is. I can use it to make these huge, realistic, fine art paintings, or I can make small, simplified illustrations. Both are so fun! The illustration thing is really new to me. I’m just now exploring it.
Your custom family illustrations are the cutest thing ever. Can you explain how you go about making those?
It is an opportunity to make friends. I get to know details that are important to people. One family I’m about to paint owns chickens. The wife asked me if I thought it would be silly to include them, but I told her I think those details are what make a family unique. I can’t imagine leaving things like that out. Some people are really open to share about themselves, like the origin of their pet’s name and the way their son likes to gel his hair. I love it! Then they send me photo references and I compose a drawing that feels fitting for their family. After I make the drawing in a sketchbook (and do a lot of erasing and re-drawing), I transfer it to watercolor paper with a projector. Watercolor paper is delicate. If you use an eraser on it, the tooth of the paper gets damaged. The projector prevents me from damaging the final painting. Then, the best part, PAINTING! I use this ridiculously small 4 haired brush to outline the edges of a sweater, the tip of a dogs nose and everyone’s tiny eyes.
You recently had your work featured on the prestigious Design*Sponge Blog. What was that like?
It was such a fun opportunity to be found by people I wouldn’t have met otherwise. Folks from California to Maryland. One gal who found me through Design*Sponge told me about her dream of documenting her family every year, just like her grandmother did for 65 years of marriage. It’s funny because I’ve been interested in capturing the changes in one family over a long span of time. Thanks to Design*Sponge, our little dreams met.
How did you become involved in DIME?
The postcards for the Bazaar’s are adorable! That’s how I first found out about DIME. I couldn’t make it to the Summer Bazaar but when I saw the cute postcard with the fall leaves, last october, I made it a top priority to be there. Graduation from College was coming up and I was nervous about the end of campus days, surrounded by artsy students. So, I did everything I could to make new friends at the Bazaar. I signed up to be on the e-mail list and made sure to go to the Christmas party. That night, we got to laugh at how everyone wrapped their gift in brown kraft paper and we ate chocolate cookies. After that, I jumped at every opportunity to hang out with Shelley and Rachel. I was eager to be a part of the creative community.
There are so many great artists around town. When I was getting started, Anna Tovar, also a DIME watercolor artist, met up with me to talk artsy-business over some killer breakfast nachos at Loco. The whole DIME group is inspiring and it’s contagious.
In addition to being a DIME artist, you are the newest leader on the DIME leadership team. Can you give us a little incite into your role?
Rachel, Shelley and Nikki are so fun, it feels more like play than work. Right now, I’m transitioning into my role. The most exciting thing I get to do is post on the DIME Facebook page about all the Artist’s who get into the DIME Summer Bazaar.
Where can we purchase your work?
You can find my custom illustrations at MandyCaveWatercolor.Etsy.com. I’m going to debut illustrated prints and cards at the Summer Bazaar on June 8th. After that, they will be available on my Etsy Shop and at the DIME store. The home for my fine-art portfolio is mandycave.com
Do you have any advice for aspiring Etsy sellers?
Yes! My 1st piece of advice is “Get Smart!”. There are a bazillion helpful articles about setting up shop as a small art biz. Etsy has a ton of blog posts, Dave Ramsey has solid financial advice, Jon Acuff has great advice about pursuing your dream, DIME teaches Etsy classes and the list goes on. Read up on all your business/art heroes. Wisdom is at your fingertips if you search for it.
My 2nd piece of advice is “Start!”. It is scary to begin a business, but don’t let that keep you from diving in. There is a lot to learn about taking photos of your product, writing descriptions of your work, how to be your own boss, keeping a schedule, doing your own taxes, blah di blah... But let’s be real, you can’t be awesome immediately. You just have to start and learn as you go. And you don’t have to quit your job at Starbucks to do it. My last semester of school I was working at Panera Bread and I started my Etsy shop. Somedays I didn’t feel like sweeping bread crumbs, but then I read something Jon Acuff said. “Your day job is practice for your dream job.” After that, I swept the floors with a little skip in my step. I needed to be a a good barista before I could be an entrepreneur. I started toasting bagels with gusto and paying attention to guest’s preferences. Because of it, I learned customer service skills that I use for my Art & Illustration Business.
My 3rd piece of advice is “Don’t Listen To Your Negative Thoughts!” They simply aren’t true. Sometimes I think things like “There are enough artists out there already.” But that is absurd. If we don’t share our negative thoughts, we become convinced of silly lies. You have to use your talent because no one else can use it for you.
My Last piece of advice is “Make Friends!” Finding Creative Community is so valuable. Otherwise, creative energy wanes and you will quit. Care about other people around you. Pay attention to what they say and learn from them. They are your greatest resource.
