HANDMADE HOLIDAY GIFT IDEA #52 // Keep Time With Richard Birkett's Fantasy Clocks

As the hours left until Saturday's Handmade Holiday Craft Fair tick away, we'll give you another vendor preview that is...well, quite timely.

Richard Birkett doesn't make plain old clocks. He makes Fantasy Clocks. Inspired by an idea that was "implanted in his brain when he was captured by aliens," Birkett's creations incorporate not just a clock's typical hands and gears, but a whole slew of other additions and appendages, from old cameras and broken typewriters to slide viewers and magnifying glasses.

Birkett has been crafting these amazing Frankenstein-like timepieces since 1984, and they've been featured in markets and fairs across the east coast and on Bushwick BK and BoingBoing. Stop by 3rd Ward this Saturday and pick up a Fantasy Clock--perfect for the steampunk enthusiast in your life!

Hit the jump to see another one of Birkett's one-of-a-kind pieces.

-- John Ruscher

HANDMADE HOLIDAY GIFT IDEA #81 // Kids In Love Collective: Where Avant-Garde Design And Organic Hand Craft Collide

The Handmade Holiday Craft Fair is getting closer and closer but we can't stand to keep all of the goodness to ourselves. That's why we're previewing some of the amazing gifts that you'll be able to pick up this Saturday.

Founder Cathy Hsiao describes the aim of the Kids In Love Collective as "the marriage of avant-garde and graphic design with organic hand craft techniques...Avant-Craft!" Combining dye and print techniques, she's created an array of unique and vibrant apparel and accessories. "I love aesthetic dualities, nature's forms and textures contrasted with the abstractions of design, things that are unkempt and raw but still very natural and soft for my super sensitive skin," she says.

The philosophical perspective that Hsaio takes with her work is natural, as she was a philosophy teacher before starting the Kids In Love Collective. "I left my PhD program to be an artist and designer, to be able to work with my whole body, eye, hand and mind," she says. Her experiences with learning music and art in a DIY community inspired that decision. "The idea of a collective is important to me," she says. "I want to think 'invert the corporation, join the collective.'"

This will be the Kids In Love Collective's first craft fair, and they're debuting with a bang! Stop by their booth for hand-dyed and hand-painted scarves made with organic cotton, modal tops, printed canvas clutches and a hand-printed and hand-died calendar. They've also collaborated with Tom Tom Magazine on hand-painted drumsticks and will be offering a $10 discount when you buy two Kids In Love items.

Hit the jump for another look at Kids In Love's Avant-Craft goodness.

-- John Ruscher

HANDMADE HOLIDAY GIFT IDEA #77 // With Roots Brings Jewelry To Life With Tiny Terrariums

 

Our Handmade Holiday Craft Fair is just a few days away, and it's no secret that it'll be full of irresistible gifts for all of your friends and family (and probably lots that you'll want to snatch up for yourself.) To keep you from getting too overwhelmed with such abounding awesomeness this Saturday, we're offering up a steady stream of sneak previews of some of that handmade goodness.

With Roots is a homegrown jewelry line. We say that not only because it's a Brooklyn-based, one-woman business, but also because each With Roots piece features a tiny terrarium with real plants growing inside. Sharon Goldberg, also an accomplished photographer, started With Roots about a year ago. "I had made some custom terrariums for a friend of mine," she says. "He liked them so much he told me he wished he could wear them! I did my research and made it happen, and With Roots was born."

With Roots pieces aren't mere novelties; they're well-made terrariums that are self-sustaining and designed to be worn on a daily basis. In Goldberg's own words, they're "the perfect way to wear nature." At the fair you'll find most of the pieces featured on the With Roots website, including an array of necklaces, a terrarium ornament and perfume bottle terrarium, as well as some one of a kind pieces and vintage glass terrariums. Get there early though, these will go fast.

Hit the jump for a couple more photos of Goldberg's amazing creations.

-- John Ruscher

HANDMADE HOLIDAY GIFT IDEA #65 // H.S. Chocolate Co. Goes for Decadence and Nostalgia

Like we'd mentioned earlier, the Handmade Holiday Craft Fair is around the corner, and there's no shortage of unique, must-buy-or-else gifts. Here's one we predict will go fast...

We caught up with chocolatier MaryAnne Hoekstra Shekar of H.S. Chocolate Co. By way of introduction, let us say that we know it's hackneyed to drivel on about how decadent and sinful chocolate is, but some of her concoctions (the Figgy Blue candy bar, made with Bailey Hazen Blue cheese and fig Ganache, the Chinese Five Spice Chocomels) actually made us gasp. Pearls were clutched and monocles were shattered. These are some fancy chocolates. 

So yes, H.S. chocolates, candy bars, and Chocomels (chocolate covered caramels) sound lovely and indulgent. But would you believe they look nice too? Because of course they do. Gold foil, playful paper wrappers, and a retro logo bring a sense of fun and nostalgia to the whole endeavor. For Hoekstra Shekar, that feeling of reminscence is an important piece of the puzzle. "Our chocolates and confections make the best gift because they invoke nostalgia by putting a unique, modern twist on classic treats like candy bars, filled chocolates and chocolate-covered caramels," she says. "We use fresh, local ingredients to create exciting flavor profiles." 

--Layla Schlack

HANDMADE HOLIDAY GIFT IDEA #44 // For The Absolute Worst Days, Bummer Baskets to the Rescue

One of Bummer Baskets' dutifully bummed-out gifts.

We're making our lists, and Siri's checking them twice--because the 5th annual 3rd Ward Handmade Holiday Craft Fair is happening on December 10. In anticipation of this awesome event, we're giving you a sneak preview of who will be selling what.

The folks at Bummer Baskets know that what you really want on a bad day (a lost-your-job-and-got-dumped kind of day, or just a cowlick-and-shouty-boss day) is not a Hallmark card. You want a stiff drink, something sugary and a few tokens of the laughter and comfort of days gone by, before everything went to hell. That's why they've brilliantly put together care packages with things like "Here's to Happy Endings" wine glasses, fresh-baked brownies, temporary tattoos, and flower-planting kits.

Better still, the kindly basketmakers source their products as locally as possible. "Final selections for baskets are based on team input as well as asking friends and loved ones what they would want to receive in a bummer situation," cofounder Kerry Kirk says. "We are tirelessly baking new things in pursuit of the perfect recipes for bummer times-which is really at the core of our baskets."

While we certainly don't wish you or your loved ones to have bummer holidays, it may be helpful to have one of these adorable kits on hand--if only for yourself in case your drunk uncle decides to talk bad politics, and your grandmother starts hounding you about wanting to live to meet her great-grandchildren.

--Layla Schlack