Modish Guest Blog

a super handmade collection - portland's edith and edna

i'm wrapping my guest blogging stint up today with a final post about one of my favorite places in portland to find handmade goodies.

edith and edna on exchange street in the old port is a bright and cheerful space full of local and web-favorite handmade items.

local favorites include bobbin bags and clothing by betsy scheintaub, milo in maine adult + kids shirts, lulubeans yarns, buttons by pixiegenne, handmade baby clothes + bags by soulemama, pinecone + chickadee shirts and papergoods, sewn goodies and mixed media collage by betsy thompson, and much more.

they also carry  dovetail ceramics (a personal favorite of mine - i love the square mugs,) collages and owls by leya at curious bird, nikki mcclure prints and calendars, walter and veronica scarves (i got one for christmas and haven't taken it off since. really) and cd cases, lovely stuff from alena hennessy, wonderful books from if'n books + marks, a wide selection of craft books, and tons more.

my pictures are a bit dark because it was a rainy day when i visited, but i bet you can get a sense of how wonderful the shop is. most definitely worth a visit next time you're in portland!  thanks to shop owners brandie and julie for letting me come by and snap some pictures.

i've had a great time guest blogging this week, and i hope i've given you all a good sense of what a great town the east coast portland is. i didn't come close to covering everything here, but i've tried to show you a good smattering!
thanks so much to jena for inviting me to make these posts this week.
cheers, jen

Ahpeele

For the guys: Ahpeele's origami lightning tshirt is a navy blue Alternative Apparel tee screenprinted four times in a semi-transparent ink. The result is subtle, stunning, yet very wearable. The design wraps around to the backside as well, a cool feature, one that we don't see often on guys' gear.

Timber!

Timber's old man maze shirt combines an illustration of a grizzled old timer with a maze! Yes, hidden in the beard and hat of the old man illustration is a secret maze. The solution appears printed on the tag of the shirt. It's an article of clothing and a game, all in one! The shirt is available in several sizes so you can pick up one for yourself and your own old man.

I'm also a fan of the village v-neck tshirt, also by Timber. I love how intricate the asymmetrical design is and how the neckline cuts into it, ever so slightly. It really is like wearing a work of art but the black ink on gray shirt keeps it from feeling too busy, even though the print is quite detailed.

Pretty Racoon

An Etsy search for "screenprint" turned up Pretty Racoon, a shop I'd never heard of before. I'm digging the oversized, single-color prints of bikes, snakes and chandeliers on t-shirts and hoodies.

Remember those perfume commercials. . .

the ones where they say, "If you like _____, then you'll love. . ."
In support of buying handmade, i thought it might be fun to do some of these throughout the holiday season.
Let's play, shall we?

If you like Anthropologie, then you'll love Sew Bliss Sew (left: a view of Bliss's table at the Handmade Market; right image: Anthropologie)

If you like Room Service Home's Holiday beauties (below left), how about Maggie Kern's cute creations over on Makool Loves you? (below, right)

If you love Jonathan Adler (image below, right)  then you'll adore George Ryan (below, left)!

If you like a bright and cheery desk (see left, 3-M brand post it notes) then you'll (REALLY) love boygirlparty's notepads (see right).

If you like Tord Boontje's work (remember the special guest Target designer everyone loooooved last year around the holiday season?; black and white image on right) then fall in love with Rob Ryan's (red and white image on left) work, then clickity click through his etsy shop an swoon!

And, finally, for this installment, if you like Crate and Barrel's birch bark candles, perhaps you'll love the longer lasting birch bark picture frames from Annemarie Sandstrom's etsy shop!

What have you seen in the great big world of shopping that reminds you of a mass produced Indie Crafter's work.  Anyone out there have any "If you like _____ then you'll love _____?"  I'd love to see what you've come up with, and what better way to draw a bit of attention to those out there working so hard to make quality handmade goods? Post a comment and please share!