Chagrin Falls Eclectic Talent!

Meet Annette Brag from Just Soap...

I have always like to make crafts and enjoy making soaps as a hobby. I have been making soaps for about a year now. 

This is my first Avant-Garde show and I am looking forward to it! I like learning new things - it challenges me and I enjoy the unlimited blending of colors, scents and shapes when it comes to making soap. 

For some reason I have always wanted to learn to make soap. I have made my own laundry detergent for years and thought it would be fun to make my own hand soap as well.

I'm a Libra - apparently it's a requirement to be artistic and creative for your entire life! lol. 

You can view more of my work at - https://www.facebook.com/annettebragg2016/

Meet Cindy Bloyd from Percy Homestead...

We didn’t foresee our love for honeybees and beekeeping. A few years ago, our son recommended we get some bees. After some long thought and a garden that was suffering from lack of pollination, we decided to give it a try. This opened a world of fascination, learning and challenge! We also have learned that there is a wonderful fellowship of beekeepers that meet regularly and seriously strive to help each other be successful. In addition, we have discovered an amazing excitement and appreciation in the public for honeybees and the products they produce. We love our bees, and love seeing people smile just talking about them and how much they love honey!

Our apiary at Percy Homestead continues to grow as we endeavor to raise healthy and productive colonies that can explore the fruitful landscape around us in Geauga County, Ohio. Honeybees are nothing short of amazing! We love to talk about them and spend time with them. Is it weird that we have two lawn chairs in the bee yard where we sit and sip some honey wine (mead) and just watch our bees work, while we talk about bees? If so, we are weird!

We have been in the business for seven years, but this is actually our first year participating in Avant-Garde Art & Craft Shows. 

So often, a comment from a customer sends me on a journey of creating the product they are looking for. Our son had a hive and we were fascinated and decided to start our own 2 colony apiary.  We now have 25 hives and are looking to expand again this year.

Meet Lynne Provance from Provances Pieces...

Lynne Provance, from Bristolville, Ohio, has been an international stained-glass artist since 2005. She has working studios in both Ohio (USA) and Prince Edward Island (Canada) [PEI] and employs exclusively the foiling method (Tiffany style). Window paneled stained glass art became a favorite art medium in which to express

one of her artistic abilities. 

She is fascinated by how the light is reflected through the different colors, textures, and opacities of the glass. Light is her canvas. She enjoys both designing and constructing original art pieces & she finds “painting” with the colored glass interesting and challenging.

She provides collaborations in both designing and constructing specialized orders, repair/restoration work, stained glass art classes and "hands on" workshops, offers her patterns for purchase, and showcases her art for sale in select art shows, galleries & festivals in the USA and PEI. 

Her work can be viewed on her Facebook Page: Lynne Badger Provance.

Meet Gayle Hammer from Whimsical Wire Gifts...

I have always been creative myself and have loved to purchase colorful artsy products. I just recently decided this past September to become an entrepreneur out of my own need. 

As a high school physics teacher, I was always putting my glasses down somewhere, or placing them on top of my head, and the kids in my class were always helping to find them for me. I hunted online for something colorful, handmade and fun to use as an eyeglass strap but found nothing out there. 

After recently retiring, I decided to be creative and design my own whimsical, one-of-a-kind, colorful aluminum wire eyeglass chains so that I never misplace my reading glasses or sunglasses again! 

Based on suggestions of customers at my first Avant-Garde show in December, I have also created lanyard chains, necklaces, and earrings to match the colors and designs of many of the eyeglass chains that you see at my booth and on my Etsy site(etsy.com/shop/WhimsicalWireGifts). 

I really look forward to watching my business grow and to expand my products based on the needs of my customers. 

I hope you find a design that represents your personality and enjoy wearing your purchase as much as I loved making it for you.

Meet Marianne Carroll from M|C Pottery Studio...

I am a ceramic artist in Chagrin Falls inspired by Nature and its beauty. I've been in the business for 5 years. This is my first time participating in the Avant-Garde Art & Craft Shows. 

I create art to connect to a deeper purpose, I connect with creativity as a joyful experience and appreciate the form and function of nature in ceramic art. I graduated from CCAD with a degree in fine art oil painting, but always wanted to explore ceramics.

As a child,  I would always turn to art as an important process in my life. I love the act of playing with clay. I write down a lot of ideas, set goals for production and just go for it.

I recently built a ceramic studio on my property in Chagrin Falls to have a better space to create. I look forward to launching a website where I can focus on shipping my work all over the county.

The message behind my work is that beauty is everywhere!

Meet Jen Ertle from Honeybee Hobby...

My name is Jen and I am a nurse by trade; I currently work part time as a nurse educator and I also have two little ones at home! My husband recognized that I needed a little get away/a hobby so he got me a Cricut a little over a year ago and I have been creating ever since! 

I have been working on my items for a little over a year. I started out making ornaments and now I don’t make those at all! I have transitioned to wooden gift tags (which I love creating and making!), wooden wine charms for all four seasons, and now small felt flower pots to go with little memory jars and journals- the perfect gift for anyone!

This will be my first Avant-Garde show! When I feel stressed, I work on this hobby. It helps me calm my mind and focus on something. It also gives me a quick getaway from the busy hustle and bustle of family life.

I got into this because I needed a hobby/something to do :)

I worked through many different phases of what I wanted to create! I actually found the gift tags by accident when trying to create ornaments and decided it would be cool to create these gift tags. The best part about them is that you can write on the back- no need for searching endlessly for a card anymore and they are perfect for any occasion.

I tend to have ideas here and there; I look up inspiration and images and work to create things I would use and what I think others can use. I also love that the things I make are different from what most people make. 

In five years, I hope I'm continuing to create crafts and enjoy this hobby. I would love to continue sharing my craft with others!

I love using my crafting/creating to work through stressful situations. I feel that mental health is incredibly important yet often stigmatized in the world today. That is one of the reasons I created my gift baskets- a great little gift idea which includes a handmade journal with fun stickers to help people keep track of whatever they want (gratitude, vacations, baby’s milestones, new home ideas, etc.) while having a little flower pot to brighten their day, and the tiny memory jars can be used to write down memories and pull them back out during stressful times. I like to think of it as a mood booster pack! Nothing beats paper and pen and a little fun color :) 

2025 Chagrin Falls Spring Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show

Saturday, April 12, 2025

10:00am-4:00pm

Sun Valley

10000 Edwards Lane

Chagrin Falls, OH 44023

For more information, contact Becki Silverstein, Event Coordinator at Becki@ag-shows.com

Visit us on:

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

PINTEREST

LINKEDIN

Spring into Chagrin Falls Next Weekend!

Meet Chelsey Farnum from Studiowurk...

I’m an art educator and interdisciplinary artist who loves to experiment and transform materials, as well as find the humor in things. I’m a massive goofball and love to laugh and spend time with friends. I’m also a major animal lover. Part of my art business is painting custom pet portraits. My husband and I moved to Cleveland last September from Denver, Colorado.

My journey as an artist has been a bit of a balancing act. During my last three years of teaching art in public school, I taught half-time and built my business half-time. Now, in year four, it’s my first full-time year, and it feels both energizing and overwhelming. The mysteries of running a business still befuddle me!

This will be my first Avant-Garde show, and I couldn’t be more excited to share my work with the community. Observing the world around me or experimenting usually inspires me to create. An idea for a new piece often comes from either something I’ve seen or just messing around with materials. I’ve found that having a loose idea of what something should look like really works for me—it’s a play between my idea and the limitations of the materials I’m using, and I really like that balance.

I’ve always loved making things—drawing, sculpting, and more. I guess I was lucky enough to go to art school and learn a wide range of methods and techniques. My drawing ability actually got me some (rare) positive attention from my peers at school. There was somewhat of a blackmarket trade of goods in elementary school, and drawings of Garfield in the '90s served as valuable currency!

When I get an idea I really like, I try to make at least three of it, exploring the different possibilities within the idea. Sometimes that will lead me off on a tangent if I discover something unique. When I don’t have commissions in the queue or anything to work on, I love experimenting with the random things I hoard in my studio—an elementary art teacher habit! I really love trying to make my own tools or using materials in an unconventional way.

In five years, I’d love to see myself expanding my commission work to some bigger projects, like art installations or mural painting. I’d also love to expand the portrait portion of my business into people, not just pets.

Often, there’s something a bit irreverent or cheeky under the surface—or right in your face—about my work. My art is so varied in terms of medium and method that if there’s any unifying thread, that would be the one.

Meet Antoinette from Ace N Spades...

Ace N Spades is a mother and daughter owned company that makes and sells hard candy edibles. We have been in operation since April 2023.

This will be our first Avant-Garde show, and we are so excited to share our creations with the community. Giving back to the community by providing candy that can help with pain, sleep, and anxiety as well as tastes good is our inspiration to continue to make more.

The journey started when my mom was diagnosed with Graves’ disease, which caused her to have trouble sleeping and pain. She took medications, but nothing helped her. I was tired of seeing her suffer, so I started making candy for her. I discovered my talent by diving right in and making candy over and over again until we got it right.

Our creative process is pretty straightforward. We mix everything together, let it boil, then put it in trays for it to sit for 30 minutes. After that, we break them out, bag, and label.

In five years, I see us having our own kitchen and warehouse to make the candy and ship it out. Our message is that edibles are not just gummies, and hard candy tastes and works so much better.

Meet Nicole Anderson from Cole's Candles...

My name is Nicole, and I was born and raised in Cleveland with my mom, my dad, my grandma, and my two sisters. We were a very active household, bouncing around from swim practices to dance classes, basketball, softball, tennis, and so much more. I graduated from Kent State University with a Bachelor's Degree in Early Childhood Education. Aside from Cole's Candles, I work at the Cleveland Clinic downtown full time within Imaging.

What I enjoy doing in my downtime, aside from candle making, would be that I love to bake and cook new recipes, take nature walks, have movie nights with the family, and go to trivia nights weekly with my friends.

I started candle making back in the Summer of 2023 when I took a single class with my cousins. I really had a great time during the session, and what I had learned in that class stuck with me, and I quickly fell in love with it! A few months went by, and I decided to take what I had learned to make homemade gifts for my friends, my family, and my co-workers for the holidays. I had different holiday scents that I thought would work well for making candles, but based on a questionnaire I created and the answers that I received, I was able to create a scented blend for that specific individual so their gift was custom made and truly designed just for them.

After the holidays in January 2024, I received a lot of positive feedback from the people that I had gifted my candles to. I was so proud that I was able to create something homemade that really made people happy. One month later, I decided to take a leap of faith and create my own individual candle-making business and have worked at a few farmer's markets and craft fairs in the Summer and Winter of 2024.

This will actually be my first Avant-Garde Art and Craft Show, so I feel truly honored to be able to participate with so many talented crafters! I hope that this show will be the first of many that I will be able to participate in the future.

What inspires me the most is having the creative freedom to bring scents together into beautiful blends that bring people joy. Another unique thing about candle making is that there is not just one candle scent that I have made that people tend to favor more than the other scents. Everybody's sense of smell is different, and so it is nice to see that there truly is a scent out there for everyone!

Funny enough, I usually find my inspiration for making new scents in two ways. The first way is by walking through the grocery store and seeing items that I think would mix well into my candles. Another way I get inspired is from dreams that I have each night. I will dream about different ingredients, get the scent profile in my dreams, then I will wake up and immediately write it down in my journal so that I don't forget.

In the next five years, I see my business expanding, whether across the country or across the globe. I would love to be able to have Cole's Candles become my full-time work and to be able to share with the world. I would like for anyone to have a chance to find the right candles for themselves.

At Cole's Candles, our mission is to spread a little kindness. It is my wish that my candles help to send a little faith, hope, and love to you and to the ones you cherish. I genuinely believe that all we need to bring positivity to the world is to spread a little kindness.

Meet Keisha Berkley from F.O.C.U.S... 

My name is Keisha Berkley. I was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. I graduated from Cleveland State University, and I currently have my own online business, which consists of me helping consumers reach their health, beauty, and fitness goals. One of my many passions is art. I love to create different paintings and drawings based off real-life people, situations, and sceneries.

I have been creating art since I was a child. As a child, I would read a lot of books, mostly comic books. I started to draw cartoons that I saw in the comic books and tried to recreate them until I got it right. I grew up in a rough household, dealing with fighting parents, police being at my house almost every night, and living in a rough neighborhood. It was hard growing up, always feeling alone and unseen. The only thing I had was a pencil and some paper. I started drawing stick figures and cartoons, then soon started to create bigger images over the years.

This will be my first Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show, and I am so excited to be a part of it! Things that I’ve been through in the past are my inspiration to create art. Also, living life, going outside, looking at nature—things such as trees, the sky, and the sunset—inspire me as well.

My creative process is simple. I typically would put on an audio or turn on my TV, then clear my mind. Sometimes I think of different persons, places, things, or nature to paint or draw. I search different things up for ideas or paint an object that might be in my household.

In 5 years, I see my business thriving. I see myself having a large fan base and customer base for my art. I also believe I will be able to have paintings in art galleries, and some will be able to be auctioned off for large amounts of money.

The messages that I want others to understand about my work are that anyone can start or create art. Also, that they can do anything they set their mind to.

2025 Chagrin Falls Spring Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show

Saturday, April 12, 2025

10:00am-4:00pm

Sun Valley

10000 Edwards Lane

Chagrin Falls, OH 44023

For more information, contact Becki Silverstein, Event Coordinator at Becki@ag-shows.com

Visit us on:

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

PINTEREST

LINKEDIN

Chagrin Falls to Kick Off Holiday Show Season!

 Meet Nicole Carroll from Nicole Carroll Art...

I am a painter and printmaker currently based in Mentor, Ohio. I use color and texture to navigate my work, where I explore how we perceive and make sense of the world around us. 

I have started to take art more seriously in high school around 2017, and I started to be a part of art shows and fairs in 2021. My first art fair was at Ingenuity Fest and I fell in love, and since then I have been hooked! The Chagrin Falls Fall Avant-Garde Art and Craft Show will be my first one!

My inspiration comes from naturally occurring distractions in the world. Such as a bathroom window, or the way the sun is hitting the coke I’m drinking, or the dirty pond water I pass by while on a hike. 

I got into craft hobby by the love the versatility of paint, the mixing of each color before you start a new piece, the way you can layer on texture or keep it flat, the different types of paint available. Such a fun medium. 

I discovered by talent at some point, you notice the things you keep coming back to and I always found my way back to painting, printmaking and making earrings...

Typically I start with photos I’ve taken and I take time to mix the colors of the paint. Typically I work on 3-5 pieces at once, dealing with different levels of distortion. I find the work becomes less stiff if I have more to focus on. 

 

I use abstraction, color and texture to explore how we perceive and make sense of the world around us. Exploring the idea that we are never receiving “the full picture” in our daily lives, and how we all use our own experiences to navigate it.  

In the future I hope to be selling my work more full time through shows, fairs and commissions! 

Meet Kanak Kissinger from Jindount Treatery...

Known as "Mahm" to my 3 rescue Jindo-mix dogs. They were all rescued from South Korea and the Jindo breed is known for their loyalty, making me a Jindo-nut for sure! Jindos are also known for being picky eaters, and one of my rescues had a lot of tummy issues that got diagnosed as IBD and a gluten-allergy. Once I started researching better food options for my dogs to live happier, healthier, and longer lives, there was no going back. 

Jindonut Threatery went live this year in Ohio and this will be by first Chagrin Falls Avant-Garde Craft Show! We started in Solon markets over the summer in June and we're so happy yo have amazing customers in search of healthier, more nutritious treats for their dogs that are still doggone delicious 

My inspirations are my three dogs, Amelie (6), Aria (5), and Ziggy (3). They are the most critical judges of anything I put in front of them, and as I mentioned before, Jindos are known for being super picky eaters. If it passes their Pawlity Assurance tests, that's how we know it's scrumptious. 

What got me into my craft and hobby is I have always had a passion for cooking. I show my love for feeing people, and that naturally extended to my dogs when we adopted them.

I discovered my talent by making mg my own dog treats for Amelie in NYC when my husband and I lived there before moving to Ohio, and we soon became a familiar sight on the Upper West Side, sharing treats with those interested and soon became The Treat Lady of the neighborhood. The positive response from all the dogs on every walk inspired me to get into this as a small business and spread Rawfully Good Dog Treats message further! 

I like to describe my creative process by thinking about healthy and interesting snacks that I would like for myself. The G&T (ginger and turmeric) line of single-protein treats came from a fun play on beloved gin and tonics but carefully curated ingredients to optimize dogs' gut health. 

Down the road I hope to be selling in stores and online nationwide to treat more dogs.... I firmly believe that mental and gut health are intertwined, and every treat is designed to optimize gut health with the addition pf organic raw apple cider vinegar. Healthy dogs are happy dogs!

2024 CHAGRIN FALLS FALL AVANT-GARDE ART & CRAFT SHOW 

Chagrin Valley Athletic Club

17260 Snyder Rd.

Chagrin Falls, OH 4402

Saturday & Sunday, November 2 and 3, 2024

Saturday- 10:00am-4:00pm

Sunday- 11:00am-4:00pm

One More Day to Go!

Meet Sandy Taraba from Visions by Sandy...

Photography brings me closer to nature and my "Vision" can capture your forever memories.

My love of photography came from my Dad. I can't remember a time when he didn't have a camera in is hands. My own photography journey started with just taking pictures of my kids. They started calling me "The Momma Razzi".

After sharing Cheer pictures of my daughter, in 2015, I was asked to take the Berkshire Rec Cheer and Volleyball pictures, which I have done for the past eight years. My portrait photography took off from there and my husband bought me my first professional camera. I now do Portrait photography along with Sports. I get super excited when I get to capture forever moments and memories, especially Senior year pics. I enjoy finding their inner beauty and learning about their dreams for the future. I am honored  to capture their final High School picture. 

I also absolutely love to capture this beautiful world we live in. There is Mystery and beauty all around us and I enjoy sharing my "Vision" of it, through my lens.  Nature and Birds are my passion. In 2017 I entered my first photo contest and actually won first place..  It was of a Female Cardinal that I took through my sliding glass door. She was looking right at me with an expression of "Who Me"?

Then in 2018 I submitted a Pelican (named him Oscar) to a Smithsonian magazine contest and got "Honorable Mention". At that point, many of my family and friends had encouraged me to sell my images. I didn't even know where to begin. Then a dear friend literally bought me a website and "Visions by Sandy" was created. I sell my images online at Visionsbysandy.zenfolio.com as well as Craft and Art shows. 

I am passionate about capturing God's Artwork. I feel in my heart that since it's His Artwork I'm going to put His Word on it. 

"His Art, His Word". You will find some of my favorite images with my favorite scriptures on them. Will happily put yours on as well!

I am self-taught and still have a lot to learn. I have definitely stubbled and failed miserably along the way.   My failures in photography haven't been a dead end, but a stepping stone towards my true destination.  They have guided me, shaped me and revealed hidden paths that have lead to my growth and purpose. I stumble but gain wisdom and know that my failures have put me directly on the path where I'm supposed to be. 

I love this Photographers poem:

"Life is like a camera. Just focus on what's important and capture the good times. Develop from the negatives and if things don't work out just take another shot". I look forward to seeing where my next shot will take me and what beauty I can capture.

The "Vision" in my Images are personal. You'll find a piece of my heart in every single one. 

Meet Eva Zala from Zara Designs & Services...

What inspires me to create.. My hungarian heritage inspired the use of materials showcasing the matyo and kalocsa fabrics from Hungary. I started sewing market bags and kept learning new things to sew. The rest is history!

How I got into my craft.. I remember complaining when my mom signed me up for sewing lessons at Stitch in Time when I was 12. Now I look back on those 6 weeks and feel so grateful for learning the basics. 

I come from a family of artists. Some in fine arts, jewelry making, woodworking and culinary arts. 

My creative process... I see something that speaks to me, whether it's something to sew, or something to draw or paint. I feel fear and trepidation sometimes to try something new. I let that drive my creative process. There is nothing more fulfilling than to face your fears and see the end result that others appreciate too. Whether it's something they purchase, or even just give a compliment when they stop at my booth!

Meet Rourke Stubna from Art by Rourke....

I am a Kent based artist, currently working in the environmental industry at a Greenhouse.

I've been into art ever since grade school. I started to get more into my artwork in high school, thanks to my school's many art classes, I took every art class available. These classes included drawing, painting, sculpting, ceramics, and other art fundamentals. After high school, I started taking commissions, mainly doing pet portraits. In 2017, I joined an art group, The Novelty Collective, located in Avalon, Pennsylvania (https://www.thenoveltycollective.org/). Their annual Novelty Collective Art & Music festival was my first time being an art vendor. I have been a vendor at their annual festival each year since 2017. This year, 2024, is the first time I'm applying to other art and craft shows. In 2023, I decided to make a career change, running my own art business. While I've enjoyed my work in the horticulture industry, art is my true passion and I'm excited to pursue that passion and make a career out of it.

While I'm not longer interested in an environmental career, my work allows me to be in nature and that is shown in a lot of my work. The beautiful plants I work with, I found painting the plants to be a lot more fulfilling. The various birds I see are perfect subjects for an afternoon painting (and they're my most popular artworks). The landscapes I see inspire my simplistic watercolor landscapes.

My inspirations don't stop there. I am greatly influenced my popculture and music. Often times a song will influence what I create next. The song "Autumn Leaves", or "Les Feuilles mortes", inspired my painting "The Autumn Goddess" (attached), a tree woman, also inspired by the Walt Disney Silly Symphony "Flowers and Trees."

My fantastic art teachers in high school got me into art, and my art community, family, friends, and partner continue to support my art journey.

Years of practice is how I discovered and continue to discover my talents. I enjoy trying new things and learning new techniques. My work is constantly evolving. I'd say my talents are making connections with people through my art. Even if it's as simple as "I like birds, and I Iike your bird artwork."

My creative process is pretty simple: I see it/think it, I like it, I create it. On top of that, I'm always thinking of ways to improve my following pieces or utilize different techniques to keep my art interesting.

My five year goal... I see myself working for myself and making a career with my art. I'll be doing art events all around the country. I also see myself working with other great artists, collaborating on projects.

The message behind my artwork is making connections. Pop-culture is really a unique thing that allows a sense of community, connection, and relatability. In all my art there is some form of pop-culture reference. Such as my Lemon oil paintings are directly inspired by Beyoncé's visual album "Lemonade." My "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Rihanna" stickers is a quote from the show Broad City. My Blue Bird painting is inspired by Bestrice from Over the Garden Wall. I think there is a deeper connection someone might feel with a piece, not just because they think it looks cool, but also because they connect with my inspiration behind it.

Meet Logan Carmichael from Red's Custom Woodworking...

I am a medically retired veteran that started woodworking about seven years ago. I was a medic in the United States Army with two deployments to Iraq and six months in Kuwait. I moved here to Ohio about 5 years ago from Minnesota when I met my girlfriend on one of my motorcycle trips. 

Chagrin Falls will be my 4th Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show as I just started getting into the craft show scene!

My inspiration to create wooden works of art comes from both my imagination and the mind of those that I create it for. People give me an idea of what they are looking for, and from there, I just start making sawdust. No blue prints, no Auto-CAD, no drawings, just a visualization in my mind and I start creating. 

Both my dad and my grandfather are amazing wood working artists, both in their own style, so I take what I learned from them, and add my own little flair to it. In five years, I see myself still creating works of wooden art. 

I use wood working as a therapy for my PTSD. I know alot of Veterans out there that suffer from it and I guess my message behind my work, is to find a hobby you love and run with it. It's helped me out immensely and I have made many connections along the way!! 

I just recently created a linktree to my social media accounts that have a few works I've created over the past few years. I can only hope that the recipients of my work enjoy them as much as I enjoy making them!! So when you're at the next craft show, if you see the big sign that says, "Red's Custom WoodWerx", stop by and say hello, I love to chit chat!!

2024 Chagrin Falls Spring Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show

Saturday and Sunday, May 4/5, 2024

Saturday- 10:00am-4:00pm

Sunday- 11:00am-4:00pm

Chagrin Valley Athletic Club

17260 Snyder Rd.

Chagrin Falls, OH 44023

For more information, contact Becki Silverstein, Event Coordinator at becki@ag-shows.com

Visit us on:

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

INSTAGRAM

LINKEDIN