Renegade gals
Before the third anniversary of Renegade Craft Fair, co-founders Sue Blatt and Kathleen Habbley reflect on the Gap, weird vendors, and global expansion
By Mia Horberg
Published: September 9th, 2005 | 4:50pm
I'm sitting outside of Chicago's Hungry Brain waiting to meet Sue Blatt and Kathleen Habbley, the two genius minds behind the Renegade Craft Fair, an annual festival of creative vendors selling handmade crafts and fashions. It turns out that our interview is scheduled before the venue even opens. So, as I sit outside waiting, car after car slows down in front of me. As they pass and heads turn, eyes squint and all directions lead to my chest. While I'm sure boobs do have something to do with it, I realize that everyone is trying very hard to read the shirt I'm wearing. It is one of the many custom T-shirts I've made this summer whenever something funny, ironic, or nerdy pops into my head. It hit me that people are so bored with commercial, mass-produced items they're willing to slow down traffic and get the middle finger from me.
People want handmade items that are a break from the ordinary, and more and more people want to make these crafts. The DIY boom is upon us and Sue and Kathleen have put together an event that showcases talent, creativity, and something way more personal than an "inspected by number 2" sticker. In 2003, the first-ever Renegade Craft Fair took place in Chicago’s Wicker Park. Two years later, another branch launched in Brooklyn. While plans to take over the world do not seem to be on Sue and Kathleen’s minds, they have taken their act to Brooklyn to find like-minded craftsters. When the girls pulled up to the curb, we opted to go to Chicago's Beat Kitchen to get a couple of drinks and chat it up.
Did you guys grow up in Chicago?
Kathleen and Sue: Suburbs. Just outside of the city.
North side, south side?
Sue: Wes-siiiiide
Ah, the side I didn't cover.
Sue: Yeah, in a little suburb called Western Springs, and we've known each other since we were 11. We went to junior high together and then went our separate ways and then found each other again.
Where did the idea of the festival come from?
Sue: We kind of crashed the Around the Coyote Festival [in Chicago] one year, and I used to live above this bar called the Artful Dodger and they were "technically" on the Around the Coyote list of places to hit but they were closed during the day. So, we were like, "Well, why don't we try to sell our stuff?" because they would never let us in, they don't accept crafts or whatever and then we were thinking of doing the Bucktown one after we did that. We kind of looked into it, but they wanted slides and they wanted you to send a photo of your full booth set-up and it was 200 bucks.
We were like, "I wish there was something you could go to and just kind of hang out in a park was really low-maintenance." So we were like, "Well, why don't we do it?" We called the park to see what it would take and then we just went for it.
Most things are handmade that are accepted into your craft fair but is there an actual definition of what the craft needs to be in order to be accepted to participate?
Sue: Mm hmm. A lot of people just apply because they apply to every craft fair in the midwest. So, we try to stay away from just your typical sort of crafts. There's a lot of patriotic stuff or holiday stuff. ... We're kind of looking for more urban crafts.
Ah, so no Betsy Ross?
Sue: Totally. As long as it's handmade and original, that's cool then you're in.
What was the first craft that you picked up?
Sue: I started making jewelry.
Kathleen: I started sewing in college. Right after I graduated college, I wanted something to do and I thought maybe I could make money off of it.
What have some of your favorite booths been?
Sue: Ex Libris Anonymous and Bird Machine. Kathleen: My Paper Crane!
Sue: Yeah, she's awesome. She makes a lot of plush toys but [in the form of] burnt toast and milk cartons.
Have there been any booths that just didn't work out very well?
Sue: I think so. I think the first year we kind of accepted some people late and, I can't really remember why we did that because they just didn't fit in and they were upset that their sales weren't very good. Now we just know to keep it to all just totally DIY edgy crafts. They were just run-of-the-mill. We were just thinking, "Oh, who are we to judge what people make," but then we realized that it was important to jury it and have it be our vision. We want to represent what we think is good.
Have there been any surprising entries?
Kathleen: I know we were surprised out-of-towners applied.
Sue: Yeah, not so much the crafts but we were surprised that people from all over the country would want to come out.
How have the Chicago and Brooklyn fairs differed?
Sue: The Brooklyn one was just bigger. It went really well. We had about 175 vendors, but it was a lot of the same stuff (compared to Chicago). The neighborhoods are similar. Williamsburg is pretty much the same as Wicker Park.
Are you guys planning a global takeover? First Chicago, then Brooklyn, then San Francisco?
Sue: There's some talk about San Francisco, but we're not sure yet. We're actually going there on Monday to scope it out. We have to find a location so that's the biggest thing. But we'd love to hit another city. I mean we don't want to go crazy because it's just the two of us and we don't want to play it out either. We'll probably do another city and then maybe a holiday one but no global takeover.
What do you think was the catalyst of the recent DIY boom? I mean, not recently like yesterday but within the last five years. I feel like there's been a big trend toward doing things yourself.
Sue: I don't know, there are so many factors. Maybe indie magazines were just picking up on it and then other people kind of ... It snowballed and people want to have their own DIY business online and then things like the craft fair can happen. I don't know, some people say it's the economy because people don't have money to buy their own stuff so they have to make it, but I think it's like the whole indie culture promoting your own individuality and being unique.
Kathleen: Even Urban Outfitters and the Gap have picked up on it. It's so weird.
Sue: Yeah, you can't tell if it's a trend or a fad cause it's all these traditional things that are being reinvented.
Is anyone else in your families particularly crafty? If so, what do they think of what the two of you have put together?
Sue: I think my mom is just more of a folky person. She would always buy really cool stuff. The rest of my family thinks it's kind of weird. My dad is super proud of us. They know there's a market for it but it's not for them.
Kathleen: The only thing my mom bought at the festival was a bar of soap. My mom used to cross-stitch when I was little and I used to help her. I know she's proud but I think she thinks it's a little weird.
How has the festival grown and how have you been maintaining it for the last three years?
Sue: Well, it started out and we had 100 applicants but we were overwhelmed so we only took like 75. Looking back on it it seems so small. Now it's twice as big in the same location, maxing it out. Basically, it's a full-time job, so we work it that way.
Where do you think you want to take it in the future, or do you not want to build on it because it's great where it's at?
Sue: We kind of want to keep it where it is except maybe taking it to another city and doing a holiday one. Have one here in Chicago in early December at a big indoor location. A lot of people are looking to buy presents so we might do that.
The 2005 Renegade Craft Fair in Chicago will take place from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. on September 24 and 25. For more information, see renegadecraft.com.
Issue #34
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