About

A Brief History

In 2003 Amy Carlton and Cinnamon Cooper decided that there was so much amazing and local talent that Chicago needed a locally-focused indie craft show to give those creative folks of all DIY ventures a venue to show their stuff to the city. But more than a one-day-show, they wanted to give the creative community a leg-up in development. They wanted people to see the value of being able to look the person who made something in the eye. They wanted to create a place where people could start a small business and see it grow. And that is exactly what happened on a cold and rainy November day.

As years passed and the creative DIY community changed, evolved, and grew, so did the DIY Trunk Show. The show grew to be more than Amy and Cinnamon could handle, and Cinnamon had met all the other Chicago Craft Mafia members through the DIY Trunk Show, the Mafia seemed the perfect group to take over the bulk of the management and planning, but Amy’s radical suggestion of “Hey! We can do that!” is the spark that started the show, and the spark that has been felt at each show since.

In 2011 the show moved from Pulaski Park (which had been a wonderful home for 8 years) to the much larger Broadway Armory. The Edgewater neighborhood embraced the Chicago Craft Mafia and the DIY Trunk Show. Alderman Harry Osterman and the Edgewater Chamber of Commerce were very instrumental in making the 2011 show the biggest, best attended, and most dynamic yet. While we miss the fantastic mural and the great staff of Pulaski Park, we adore our new home, the staff of Broadway Armory, and every fantastic business owner who was happy to see our shoppers wandering through their businesses after they left our show.

We are beginning to plan our 10th show and we can’t be more excited about being able to have an entire decade of meeting and helping DIY business owners create, grow, and expand just as we have. Amy Carlton and the members of the Chicago Craft Mafia thank you from the bottom of our crafty hearts for helping us prove again and again that we are the city that works, and the city that makes the best work.

Thanks,

Chicago Craft Mafia

The DIY Trunk Show Craftifesto: The Power is in Your Hands!

© Amy Carlton and Cinnamon Cooper, DIY Trunk Show co-founders

The DIY Trunk Show is an annual event that brings the best of the Chicago area’s alternative craft community to the people.

We believe:

Craft is powerful. We want to show the depth and breadth of the Chicago crafting community. Anything you want—clothing, jewelry, art, music—you can probably get from a real live person here in Chicago. And buying handmade, one-of-a-kind goods from your neighbor kicks the ass of buying mass-produced, slave-made corporate stuff.

Craft is personal. To know that something was made by hand, by someone who cares that you like it, makes that object much more enjoyable. And it makes you feel less lonely when you realize that you know the name of the person who made the bar of soap you use, the earrings you wore when you met that special someone, or the scarf that kept you from freezing while you waited for the train.

Craft is political. We’re not just trying to sell stuff. We’re trying to change the world. We want everyone to rethink corporate culture and consumerism.

Craft is possible. Everybody can create something—you don’t have to be an established business to make stuff. The DIY Trunk Show encourages new crafters by giving them a place to sell their work for the first time. We hold workshops to teach people how to make things. And we’re creating friendships and connections between crafters — being a small business owner doesn’t mean you have to work in isolation.

Copyright 2011. All Rights Reserved. Chicago Craft Mafia