Handcrafted jewelry, sculpted ceramics, and vibrant crochet scarves filled the Chumash Auditorium during the ASI Craft Center’s fall Makers Market. Buzzing with shoppers and soft indie music in the background, the event showcased a diverse range of one-of-a-kind creations from 32 local, faculty, and student vendors on Nov. 20-21.
Jennifer MacMartin, Craft Center coordinator and organizer, said the event provided local craftsmakers a place to sell their creations to the community.
“It’s a really wonderful venue to show off their art,” MacMartin said. “Having that unleashed creativity during a high stress time of the quarter is a really good outlet for people.”
Formerly known as the craft sale, the Makers Market has been a beloved tradition in each fall and spring quarter since the ‘90s, MacMartin said. Due to the Craft Center’s recent renovations, this is the first Makers Market since spring of 2023, making establishing a strong sense of community a high priority.
“[Community] is a huge focus of mine,” MacMartin said. “We’ve had some vendors [where] this is their first market they’re ever selling at, so they get to learn from other vendors who’ve done it before and get guidance from them, which is really beautiful.”
Most vendors are students, including graphic communication senior Sage Rousso-Schindler, who sold handmade cards at the market. As a curator for the Shakespeare Press Museum in the Graphic Arts Building (BLDG. 26), Rousso-Schindler sold cards that she created, along with those made by other students in past years.
“A lot of this is cards that have been made over the past decade,” she said. “We’re just here to spread the word [about the museum], and I love meeting the vendors and all these artsy, talented people.”
Rousso-Schindler described the process of making handmade cards, which begins with finding stamps. The stamps make up the pictures, symbols, and words on each card.
“You line them up, and then we put them in something called a chase, which is basically a frame that holds it all together,” she explained. “Then you put the frame on a press, and put ink on it, and there you go.”
Handmade jewelry was another product popular at the Makers Market. Thea Labrenz, a first-time vendor and former academic counselor at Cuesta College, has been making jewelry for 21 years.
“It’s my first time here, so I wasn’t really sure what to expect,” Labrenz said. “I’d like to get a little bit more into [selling jewelry] if I can, so it’s cool and really nice [to be here].”
Labrenz’s jewelry journey began when she discovered Beads by the Bay, a bead shop in Morro Bay. She sources her beads from bead shows throughout the Central Coast, especially in Santa Barbara. Her work focuses on wire wrapping and bead stringing, and each piece reflects her love for quality craftsmanship and unique stones.
“[Jewelry making] is a really nice creative outlet,” Labrenz said. “I took a couple classes and realized it was fun, so now I just mix [beads] as it comes to piece jewelry together.”
Vendors like Labrenz, whether students or non-students, can apply to participate in the Makers Market through ASI’s website. ASI charges a 15% commission on products sold by student vendors and a 25% commission for non-student vendors.
Communication studies senior Kate MacPherson is a repeat Makers Market shopper, who described the event as “awesome.”
“I love that they’re still doing the Makers Market,” she said. “I always find great [things], gifts for friends [and] stuff for myself. I love seeing what my peers are creating.”
