This coming weekend (May 15 + 16) is the annual Art Star Craft Bazaar in Philadelphia, PA. I’ve been looking forward to selling the Peppersprouts line there for the last few months. My favorite part of doing out of town shows is all the new artists I get to meet and of course the lovely people who put on these events. So this week on the blog I thought I would share some of my favorites that will also be at Art Star this weekend.

First up is the adorable bubbledog. They have a wide range of cute products, from belts, to cards, to adorable totebags. It is going to be hard to keep my money in my apron when passing by their booth. Will you be attending this amazing festival?

During this long weekend I was able to take some photos of two new products I have available in the shop. These little 5×7 wood wall art pieces are just the tip of the iceberg in a small series of art that I have been working on. While I think they look amazing on their own, they also really pop when you put them in a 5×7 frame too! You can pick up one for yourself over in the shop. Stop back tomorrow and I will let you in on a little secret about how I got these great product shots! Hint: I do not have any green walls in my apartment!

I stumbled upon a detail of one of Tara Badcock’s on flickr a while back and just fell in love. Her embroidery work is so free and loose but the stitches and colors are so precise at the same time. It almost makes in a little hard to wrap one’s head around. The more I browse through her pieces the closer my jaw gets to the ground. Take a look for yourself and if your in Australia perhaps you can go see one in person!

As of this month Ikea has discontinued those amazing little wood drawers called the Fira. If you have ever shopped at Ikea I can almost guarantee that you at one point you went home with one of these little, pain-in-the-ass-to-assemble mini drawers. There best thing about these little storage units is that the possibility for creativity is endless. I had one on my desk for years that I painted the same color as my wall. So if you happen to be in an Ikea this weekend and see one of these guys, pick one up for me!

Clockwise from top left: Wall mounted display shelf found on Ikeahacker,  Veer inspired Fira from chuise, A black and white decoupage  diddy from JamieOfAllTrades, and beautiful stained drawers from chanco20.

Just in time for the new Tim Burton film, Alice in Wonderland, Comes this awesome paper craft. This awesome peice of fan art is ready  for you to print out, cut out and piece together. Looks like a fun project for kids and adults. You can download the pdf here.

At first look these embroidered pillows are gorgeous. The work is clearly done by such a skilled artisan. But then there is the story behind the work. These pillows are made by a group called Fine Cell. Fine Cell Work is a social enterprise that teaches needlework to prison inmates and sells their products. The prisoners do the work when they are locked in their cells, and the earnings give them hope, skills and independence. I love this idea and hope one day it can be implemented here in the states.

The work of Cecilia Galluccio is in a word, stunning. I love seeing a traditional craft taken to a whole new level with a modern design sense. Cecilia markets her work under the moniker of Burned Furniture but these are pieces that will become instant heirlooms. She burns each of her designs freehand into the wood so no two works will ever be the same. If you are ever looking for a housewarming gift that will make the new home owners jaw drop, look no further. These are sure to be the first thing you grab if your house really was on fire.