Define Crazy. For the brave and adventurous only.

Hi! I generated 10 questions and they are nothing without your 10 answers! I am a writer, and this survey is for a writing project-- I will keep you posted with progress on the project.

Your answers are Anonymous because I understand the need for privacy. Therefore I do not ask for name, gender, date of birth or any other personal identification questions and in fact, you are able to skip whatever questions you prefer not to answer.

The questions have been described as "SCANDALOUS" which is true because when I have a choice, I usually prefer to go with scandalous. My philosophy is: yes, based on my personality but also on the fact that it is easier to trim the fat off the meat than to make a meal out of bone. With that, I prefer to "go there" instead of playing it safe with art & writing. Hopefully you can too!

 THANK YOU for being brave and adventurous and participating.
xo.

click here to give it a whirl>>http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/K5QNTWT

I'm officially obsessed with him & his work.

I am officially obsessed with him.

The artist: Mark Andrew Webber well, maybe not all of him but his  carving works of words & images in particular....

Yes, it has a lot to do with the fact that I am a writer and believe in the power of words and ALWAYS mix words into my art-- Always...

So of course I am attracted to words on art, like bees to honey especially if the artwork carries beautiful, powerful, witty & humorous messages interwovenly defining the pieces, for without the words, the pieces fall. 

Anyway, like most artists: I am weird and know it. I don't care, I am always in my head creating something and sometimes even if the person I am talking to is super interesting and beautiful and the conversation is super high energy and funny (I like funny) I can STILL wander into the vortex of my creativity and start dreaming up a character to write about or a piece of jewelry to create or how to plot revenge j/k!

Anyway, I am always drawn to keep things, make things, and just plain see things in a different light because I am an artist. So yes, people think I am weird when I want to keep something to make art out of it later when they just rather throw it away.

Artists are weird and Mark finally hit it on the head-- with this carving (the orginal is a carving, this is a screenprint of his work) and I love him for it. :)

And if that wasn't enough for me, I went on his website and rummaged through his "Misc. Carvings" and found more favorites! Like... THIS ONE.

AND this one!

I mean it doesn't get more real than that.

It is so easy for us to look down on someone else, so easy to judge and hate and ______(fill in the endless negative reactions)
but the way he puts a spin on the obvious and most importantly, carves this all out on wood!
These are screen prints of his work, but check out his site and the orginal work carvings are amazing!

His Misc. carving works are a breath of fresh air for me but who am I kidding, he had me at the "Be Creative" piece.

Thanks for reading!
Check out his site HERE

xoxo.

Mano y Metal.

Bloody Marys

Saturday was the first time Mano y Metal participated in Handmade Market Chicago! I had no idea what to expect, and stood up all night working on finalizing inventory and checking the “to bring’ list 30,000 times.

---I really NEED a better system of lugging everything around… maybe like a luggage carrier where I can stack my crates and wheel everything around in one stride versus balancing acts with crates threatening to fall out of my grip, while holding the gate open with my foot, searching for the keys while hissing at my 4 year old to please walk faster.

--Anyway, I arrived and the table space I was assigned to was showered in the sunshine that came in through the windows. A Definate plus, as I am a fan of sunshine.

---Setting up has gotten faster too as I no longer get tangled in my anxiety since I created a systematic way to hang every earring, place every pin, ring and layer the levels of necklaces in a time efficient way.  That "time efficient' way is largely due to the big plastic divider that holds every piece of jewelry in an slot and makes my life waaaay easier (please get one if you make jewelry as it saves soo much time and karate chops anxiety). With time comes experience and Mano y Metal is gettin’ more experienced in a very hubba-hubba handmade way.

 --I was amazed at how much traffic poured into the venue with people eager to see what handmade goods would await at every table a vendor hosted. It reminded me of a pulsating organ with spurts of people pouring in at one time, then a pause in the foot traffic, only to have another spurt of people to pour in and that rhythm remained constant throughout the afternoon. In addition, the vibe was very positive and meshed well with the music that spilled out of the speakers creating the frosting to a very delicious Saturday afternoon.

---Another positive was the restaurant linked to the bar that allowed me to run in increments to order, pay & pick up my food while vending. Bloody Mary’s & mimosas adorned many visitors who browsed the market.

--It was a thrill to be a part of Handmade Market Chicago and I am on the waiting list for the February Valentine Show but will for sure be there in the spring for the April show! It is a monthly event and definitely worth checking out, even if it s for the deliciously bloody—Bloody Marys ;p

xo.

-Mano y Metal.

Mano y Metal will be @ Handmade Market Chicago THIS SATURDAY! Jan 8.2011.

hey, what are you doing this Saturday (Jan 8th)? You free anytime between 12pm-4pm?
....You should come hang out with me if you are...:)
Mano y Metal will be one of 33 featured vendors at the monthly event: Handmade Market Chicago!

It is hosted at The Empty Bottle from 12pm-4pm- Stop by for a drink and to see what one of a kind treasures you will find to take home with you! I'll have tons of crazy new products launching that day too (hopefully-if I can squeeze a couple mroe hours into a day or eliminate hours from sleep).

Either way I am working hard to bring you handmade goods. Hope to see you, especially you northsiders!

xoxo.

Mano y Metal

Keepin' Project "YEYs" & Tossin Project "NAYs"

So this week has been one adventure after another and intensely creatively challenging in the sense that an idea swarming in my head is much more easier dreamt up than brought to life. Yes, even if I researched the project for hours and obtained everything I was supposed to according to the “experts”… there is STILL no telling how your project is going to come out and you may just end up tossing the entire idea after all.

Exhibit A: I started to work on a few ideas that had been colliding within the walls of my brain… and I figured, why not? I have a show coming up this Saturday, I figured it was the perfect time to introduce new products to see the reactions of people to them in person. Right? Sure.

Like most things in LIFE: “Easier said than Done.”

As a snapshot: Materials & Tools I started using this week that I NEVER in my life used before:

• Patina (in various colors/types/combinations- you name it)
• Solder Gun
• Saw
• Wood
• Glass
• Copper Tape
• Clay

—Projects lay scattered all over my apartment in half-way scenarios, waiting patiently in their “prep” mode for me to tend to them between work, school, child and sleep.

Two projects are a success so far, & that means: I am feeling good about them and believe I can pull them off.

One being my favorite because it—(I can’t tell you what it is yet because I do not want to give it away) has united me to my long-lost love: collaging.

[Tangent begins] I think I smile as I collage because it is so relaxing to me to layer the words, colors, and images to create a message—I’ve resented having to be a cubicle hostage from 9-5pm this week because I crave a day to just sit and collage all day. [Tangent Ends]

    Project abandonment: Melting metal around glass has been abandoned as of yesterday. I was not happy with the final product so I accepted that at this point in my life and within the perimeters of my apartment --we are not a match. Maybe Glass and Metal melting will make their way back into my creative life later—but for now, I cannot do it and am moving on.

Wood & I are making chemistry this week though let me tell you…—although metal is my first love, wood has found its way to me and convinced me that I can use metal with it and make lovely creations, so alas, Saturday will be the day I unveil the projects and see if you like them or not or what or-

I know I am being real mysterious right now, acting like a Scorpio but I can’t help it—I was raised by a pretty intense Scorpio so it has rubbed off on me—but look, Saturday is my deadline and it’s a day away, so I will be working on finalizing all the madness into a product that hopefully you will want to take home with you.

Xoxo.

-Mano y Metal

Interview w/ Mano y Metal by Heart Handmade Blog!

Interview with Mano y Metal on Hearthandmadeblog.com 

Random Facts About You?
-I am guilty of adding salt to food before tasting it.
-I will shamelessly creatively brainstorm while pretending to listen to someone talk.
-I am a playwright.
-I love law & order, vampires, & sour patch candy.

What got you started crafting?
I have always been obsessed with collecting earrings: the crazier, brightest, colorful-est, oddest earrings-- Then while visiting Puerto Rico this summer, I met a street vendor who inspired me to come back to Chicago and start making my own. So I found some wire, my friend made me a steel block and I would come home from my cubicle, sit in front of my house and start shaping, twisting, turning and hammering my wire earrings on my front stoop. Then a snow-ball effect happened where I could not stop dreaming up new designs and ways to create jewelry. In three months I had 6 collections: "Abstract & Contrary," Steel jump rings I hand paint and assemble into necklaces & earrings- "Wired Expressions," my hammered wire earrings-- "Heart of a Biker," jump rings that resemble bike cranks-- "Word Puzzles," my letter stamping collection where I stamp words away on necklaces & earrings, my "Kaleidoscope" Collection that is my new fascination of sealing images of all sorts into pins, earrings & rings and finally my: a 'I'm a Jerk" series-- that I created to contain all the profanity, rude and sarcastic head-nodding words I stamp on metal. I have a dozen more ideas swimming in my head and if only I had more hours in a day... but I will get to them, because the ideas are like a scorned lover refusing to let me forget them-- they burn into the forefront demanding to be created- so I must and will get to materialize them.

What is your source of inspiration?
Life, love, insanity, people, emotions, experience, all of it! I pull from all angles. My most transparent collection is the "Word Puzzles" Collection of hand-stamped jewelry I have. It was brought to my attention by a very special person who is close to my heart that apparently the type of week I am having is loudly advertised in what I decide to stamp on metal that week.


For example: One week I stamped "F*** this, F*** that, F*** off, etc-- and the next week I stamped: Love, Faith, Believe, Amor, got Milf, etc..on earrings--so clearly I was on a different emotional wave length those two weeks and my hand-stamping can give me away. Which being the private person I am, I am learning to deal with but also have fun with because humor lies in honesty and in that case, I got some laughs for the world.

What have you made recently?
I recently started rummaging through the character files I have created in my writing projects and put their voices and opinions on pendants in relation to famous art pieces... I haven't posted any pics yet on my store because they are still in process, but it is a mixture of fantasy and reality, heartbreak and heart-happy, cruel & kind, hard to swallow and easy to digest, rude and in-your-face, funny type pendants. I'm curious to see how people react as I get bolder with my creations, which translates to: I'm interested to see how people react as they near the core of my insanity which is my creative vortex of a mind, heart & soul.



Where do you sell your crafts presently?
I started on Etsy. I opened my store: Mano y Metal in mid October 2010. Then since the holiday season was just beginning I signed up for one craft show after another, and pulling all nighters to create inventory... and despite the lack of sleep it was so energizing to establish myself as a vendor and see people's reactions to my work in person. But I love Etsy! I have joined teams and came across so many awesome sellers/stores that continue to inspire me with their stories and creations. So as of now: Etsy is my primary source of selling and Mano y Metal makes appearances at local Chicago art/craft shows!


Why are handmade crafts important to you?
When I found myself coming home and being magnetized to hammer out some earrings everyday, I thought to myself: Look woman, if you are going to be make jewelry you are going to be serious about it and do it full force because you don't have time for a hobby!


So I did just that: I went full force, opened the store, signed myself up for craft shows, researched, became obsessed with shopping for new tools and have not been able to stop because the reality is--I do not have a choice: I must create, if not I die. Seriously, I am not being dramatic, I mean I am dramatic by nature but if I try to deny myself creative time--
I get C-R-A-N-K-Y, sad, withdrawn... (fill in all the side-effects of those sleep-aid drugs advertised on TV) the point is: I am not happy if I am not creating. Even if it is choreographing an entire dance to my favorite song in my living room alone, I need that, or editing pics to have an artistic edge, or googling the crap out of "how to make a race-track cake" for my 4 year old son's birthday party-- I need to be creative. So Mano y Metal has been an amazing and fulfilling venture for me because I am able to share my creations with the world. I am able to create things people want to wear and appreciate and that is mind boggling and explosively addicting-- because ever piece I create carries a bit of my spirit in them and that cannot be found in mass-produced chain store products-- and that is the beauty of handmade items.

Location
Pilsen, Chicago

Email Address
Desiree T. Castro

Personal Website
http://www.manoymetal.blogspot.com/

Store Website
http://www.etsy.com/shop/ManoyMetal

Twitter
@manoymetal

Mama Guilt. Read more, I'll Explain.

First you have a choice:
READ THE INTERVIEW HERE!!!! :D

or read this blog post first... THEN

READ THE INTERVIEW at the end of the post!!!! :D

Begin:

So I decided to work throughout the holiday break I had.

Yes, I was in my cubicle during the day but also after work-- I'd come home and work... on Mano y Metal related things...

and that is how it goes when you are in business for yourself, you feel guilty and like you are wasting time if you are not in some way pushing forward...

It's like mama-guilt-- oh you know "mama-guilt" even if you are not a mama, you have seen it leak out of the eyes of your mom, or your grandmother, or cousin, etc.

Mama guilt is that burning OBLIGATION you have-- that practically removes any choice you have and replaces it with the NAGGING feeling to pay attention to that kid when you really want to surf the net ;p or is what makes you get up and cook cause' you feel guilty the kid will starve if you don't.... ok, ok, I'm being a little extreme, but you get the drift. 

The point is: mama guilt is like...like me,  I always get suckered into cuddling my son at night and end up falling alseep, completely abandoning my long-desired "kid's asleep FINALLY this will be 'ME'-time."

Or another example is: even though you shouldn't, you indulge their little pleading eyes with an ice-cream cone or toy from target...

or make HUGE, difficult decisions based on what is best for them--
basically--the formula goes: mama comes second, child comes first if not mama guilt grows.

This is similar to the demanding pressure to keep pushing forward and adding to the maturity of your business... even if you should be asleep and your eyes are burning.

Anyway, my eyes were burning, I was sleepy, I should have turned off the computer about 2 hours ago when I stumbled across: hearthandmadeblog.com.

and of course I am drawn to navigate the site completely and discover an application process to get featured as an artist and crafter--and I was on the fence on whether or not to put it on the long-alien-like-never-ending-snake-of-a "to-do" list I have growing or just stay up LATER that night and gather pics, material, write, re-write and apply, apply, apply!
 So I pushed through it and said, come on, just do it! (sorry Nike, it's catchy)

So I did, and it paid off! I ended up being featured!

I woke up a few days later to find that Hearthandmadeblog

featured Mano y Metal!

See! it was worth it!!!
Just like all the mamas will say it was worth putting the kid first, when their kid(s) bring home good grades and wait to be married first, before having sex. :)

Moral of the post: Sometimes the mama-guilt for your business can be a great guidepost to motivate you to NOT put things on the never-ending to-do list and instead tackle the assignment right away!

Get on it!

xoxo.

Mano y Metal.

Now...

READ THE INTERVIEW HERE!!!! :D

Mano y Metal Joined the Upcyclers team!

What does that mean? a team? Well, on Etsy, once you open a shop to sell products there is an array of ways you can meet, greet, learn, promote and so fourth with other shop owners.

Joining a team is one way.

I searched and searched and Upcyclers is a great team, the positive energy and interaction bounces off the team like sun rays bounce off metal.

Get to know them too and see why!

get to know the team on ETSY!

or visit the team BLOG!

you can see Mano y Metal etsy store listed on their team gallery which is a HUGE honor!
:D
Scroll down the gallery, keep scrolling you'll find me, there I am!

And finally,
Visit our team on FACEBOOK & "LIKE" it to keep up with the fast-paced world of crafters who are upcycling!

Thanks so much for reading!
xoxo.
Mano y Metal