The Tipsy Craft Circus, formerly known as the Craft-Tacular Art Spectacle, is a neighborhood craft market. We hold quarterly events in Rogers Park. Our March and September events are at R Public House, 1508 W. Jarvis, and our June and November events are at Rogers Park Social, 6920 N. Glenwood. Our vendors are very talented artisans, most of whom live right here in Rogers Park. We've had photographers, painters, home goods makers, seamstresses, printmakers, t-shirt designers, knitters, crocheters, stuffed animal creators, bath and body product chefs, jewelry makers, potters, musicians, dancers, bakers -- we don't discriminate!! And all of these artists bring the most delicious creations for you to buy and cherish. My name is Dawn-Marie. This is my circus.
It all started in October, 2013. I hadn't participated in a craft show in a while, and my crocheted goods were piling up at home. I needed to sell some stuff! So I started looking for a show to do. I couldn't find any that were conveniently located, fit my schedule, and -- most importantly -- were affordable for the vendors. So I looked at my then-roommate, the very talented artist Sarah Bell, and I said, "I'm going to host a craft show. How hard can it be?"
Sarah's response was, "I'll design the poster!"
And a craft show was born. We had eight vendors at that first event. It was fun and everybody sold stuff, and I asked my artists if there was interest in doing an event quarterly. There was! So I put together an event in March of 2014. The Fieldhouse had no rooms available to rent on the day I had chosen, so I approached Colm Treacy, the owner of The Glenwood Bar, to see if I could hold the event there. He welcomed us with open arms. I quickly learned that craft shows are more fun when they're held in bars. There was music, there were cocktails -- what's not to love?? So we held our June event at R Public House, our September event at The Oasis, and our holiday event at Rogers Park Social. Since then, R Public House and Rogers Park Social have become our home venues.
Over the course of nearly two years, the Craft-Tacular Art Spectacle has evolved, and our neighbors have become aware of our presence. They look forward to our events. It started to be too much work for one gal to handle! So I enlisted the help of my dear friend and brilliant graphics designer, Matt Andersen. The posters got fancier. I decided to update the name of the event. I brainstormed with the legendary Wally Andersen and we came up with the Tipsy Craft Circus. And then I tapped the brain of Rogers Park royalty, Sheree Moratto. Ideas were hatched. The word spread further.
Our next event will take place at R Public House on Saturday, September 19, from noon til 5:00. As of this moment, I have secured the talents of Nicolena's Photography, Annie's Handmade Decor,What the Cup Gourmet Cupcakes, and Kirk's Rummage. And of course I'll be there with crocheted confections. I'll let you know as I acquire more talent. What's new at this event is a build-your-own craft table. I'm going to have supplies available and an artist on hand to teach you a new skill. There will also be crayons and coloring pages for the little guys, because kids love a good circus!
I still have vendor slots available if you or anyone you know and love has crafty goodness that you'd/they'd like to sell. Please contact me at craftspecrp@gmail.com. And mark your calendars for the 19th of September!!
