Craftcation: The Best Week of the Year!
It's Monday, and tomorrow I head out for one of my favorite weeks of the year: Craftcation, held every April in Ventura, CA. Before we dive in, I want to mention that this post is NOT sponsored. I want to share my experience because this community has made a difference in my life. All of this is my own opinion & experience.
Working as an artist and small business owner can be isolating. You work with yourself, for yourself, and you have to actively seek out connections with other artists and creative small business owners. I sort of knew this when I started pursuing art professionally, but it was also at the beginning of the 2020 stay-home orders, so being isolated was just kind of part of the deal then.
After several years of working by myself, for myself, I found that I was starving for professional connections. When I was teaching, I worked with others constantly - my students, other teachers, administrators… everyone had a stake in what everyone else was doing. I got feedback in real-time, and I had built-in folks to brainstorm, refine, and implement with. Being an artist removes so much of that, and I really started to feel the effects of that by the end of 2022.
(Side story for some context: my husband and I married in our yard, by ourselves, in October of 2020. I found a pair of earrings I really loved on Etsy and ordered them for the event. They came, were gorgeous, and I left a review saying so, and noting that they were for my wedding. Sarah, owner of Magpie Mouse, saw my review and sent the matching necklace for me as a wedding gift. I started following her on social media, and she was my inroad to the next part of my journey!)
Following Magpie Mouse on social media led me to lots of other creative professionals. In particular, I was drawn to Dear Handmade Life, which was a business that provided community, support, and education specifically for small, handmade business owners. In the beginning of 2023, Nicole, the head of DHL, started posting about Craftcation that was coming up in April. I messaged Sarah and Nicole, asking them their honest opinions about an introvert with anxiety going alone and it being my first trip since the end of 2019. Both of them reassured me, and Nicole even sent me a couple of videos via IG messenger that talked directly to me, answering my questions, and reassuring me that the community was incredibly welcoming.
I decided to go. Craftcation is held in April in Ventura, CA. The pre-trip nerves were huge. I had never left our dog for this long, hadn’t been on a plane in 3.5 years, and was still feeling very COVID-cautious. I booked my hotel, rented a car, and flew to LAX at the end of April 2023. Craftcation was everything it was promised to be - craft classes, business classes, professional connections, an inclusive community, and a safe haven for (sometimes awkward) crafty weirdos.
I registered for 2024 during the closing ceremony of 2023. I knew this group was for me, even if I had been shy and introverted during my first year. Last year, I came back and met new “camp friends,” whom I’d connected with online over the course of the past year. I had an art piece accepted to display during the conference, and I had my products back in the pop-up shop again. I met Emily McDowell, learned lettering from Natterdoodle, and just generally had an amazing time.
I registered for 2025 during the closing ceremony of 2024. This conference has been the life raft I needed. I didn’t know how much I needed it, but I now have a community of peers and colleagues who face similar challenges. We can vent about weird craft shows, ask about taxes, and excitedly share about our successes. I am also part of The Club, which Nicole and Katie run throughout the year. We have monthly virtual classes, mentor sessions, and co-working times. I am able to maintain the connections I make every April over the course of the year.
This year, I have another art piece on display (at the entrance to the hotel!), and I’ve been hard at work on props and pieces that go with it. I shipped out my pop-up shop inventory a couple weeks ago. I’m gathering my art supplies, clothes, and business cards to pack up and leave tomorrow for year 3. I know the hotel, I know instructors, I know participants, and I know that I’ll be welcomed with open arms. I’m taking a mix of business and craft classes this year, and I worked hard to try to balance business and crafty classes (a lesson I learned after my first year). I truly cannot wait, and I can’t wait to share what I learn after I get back home.