Add this Oregon-centric event to Father’s Day weekend: More than 50 local makers of wearable art, handcrafted home goods and other handsome and practical objects are participating in Assemblage PDX’s Spring Makers Market from noon to 6 p.m. Saturday, June 17, in Southeast Portland.
It’s free to attend the kid- and pet-friendly event at Sustainable Northwest Wood lumberyard and warehouse at 2701 SE 14th Ave. in the Hosford-Abernethy neighborhood near the Clinton St./SE 12th MAX Station.
Assemblage PDX’s second annual Spring Makers Market is twice the size of last year’s. Vendor booths, along with food carts and games will be set up on Southeast 14th Avenue between Southeast Clinton and Southeast Taggart streets.
Talk to people who create art, jewelry and pottery, as well as handmade items for bath, garden and home, and culinary delights. The BeerMongers bar and bottle shop will offer a selection of locally crafted brews and there will be wine tastings hosted by Hip Chicks Do Wine urban winery.
“Portland is on the cusp of a renaissance and our makers markets bring together shoppers and makers with different interests and diverse backgrounds,” says Frank Barnett, event organizer and co-founder of Assemblage PDX, which was launched in 2020 to connect artisans to the public after craft markets closed during the pandemic. “Working to revive the City of Portland and our many neighborhoods is at the heart of what we do.”
A portion of funds raised will go to the Portland Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a public charitable organization dedicated to the support, education and development of LGBTQQIP2SAA+ communities.
Mark your calendar: Assemblage PDX’s Makers Fair Summer Market from noon to 6 p.m. on June 24 in Northwest Portland’s Slabtown neighborhood will spotlight longtime local makers as well as people who relocated to Oregon after fleeing their home country to escape war, persecution or natural disaster, says Barnett. Sparrow Furniture and Home Goods, the fair’s beneficiary, will sell handmade home goods by people in its paid woodworking apprenticeship. The June 24 event takes place outside 2377 N.W. Wilson St. between Northwest 23rd and 24th avenues. For more information, visit assemblagepdx.com.
Here are some of the handmade offerings at the 2023 Spring Makers Market on June 17:
Art pieces by muralist Daren Todd of Art Larger Than Me Studios, block printing by Anne Pick Art and Xochilt Ruvalcaba’s Xochi Fine Art and others will be available throughout the makers market.
At one booth, you’ll meet Astrid Furstner of Atrum Arte Wood Art and Guitars, who makes Salvadoran art inspired by her heritage and life, and Brent Furstner, who sells and repairs guitars and other instruments.
Eliza Holt of Eliza Illustrated is an artist and architectural historian who creates Portland-centric illustrations and designs. Jessica Norman of JessBecauseArtCo draws and devises digital illustrations of her customer’s favorite places while artist Jennifer L. Foran focuses on nature.
Also displaying their works is Sam Pletcher of Sam Pletcher Goods as well as Briana Rossi of Little Leaf Ink, who makes eco-friendly botanical and watercolor art, and Victoria Moon of She and the Moon, who curates handmade pieces reflecting the beauty of nature.
Wood objects will be for sale by woodturners like Dan Young, Kevin Jesequel of Forlou Studio and Alex Duffey of Duffey Woodcraft. Mark McNamara of Conundrum Woodcraft in Gaston has decorative items made from maple, oak, cherry, black walnut, black locust, apple and birch trees sustainably foraged from the Willamette and Columbia river valleys.
Christy Covington of Tree to Table PDX repurposes salvaged urban trees into a variety of handmade wooden products. Shoppers will learn that Bryan Ortiz of Ortiz Woodworks has been perfecting his woodworking skills since in 2019 and be able to talk to woodworkers Clark Moss of NW Moss Made and Chris Wilson of Wolf Tree Woodshop.
Also on the scene: Kevin James Poest of Poest’s Wood is a master craftsman and artist who makes custom wood pieces.
Decor and home goods for sale at the market include ACS Textiles by Allanah Steen, a self-described obsessed quilt artist who designs and makes modern heirlooms by hand. Julie Wilson of Department of Work restores, re-seasons and rescued cast-iron cookware, and Elias Watts of Elias Watts Ceramics explains that he produces durable items from mud.
Deborah Bede of Stillwater Weaving Studio is a hand-weaver specializing in traditionally-inspired natural fiber textiles woven on antique looms. Laurel Vonderau of Laurel’s Stained Glass accepts custom stained-glass commissions and offers classes as does stained-glass artist Danielle Gregg of Sunday’s Dream.
Happy Hour Goods’ Lulu Winkler creates rugs. Tegan Bickford of Do Better Press hand makes resin jewelry, accessories and homewares. From Earth Goods’ Ava Mattaliano creates porcelain and stoneware pieces, and Sarah Kling of Sarah and Hareld has painted pots.
Melissa Larrabee of Wander the Woods is a wood-based laser-cut artisan who makes earrings and mixed media shadow boxes. Tara Butterworth of Dona Silvae constructs items using consciously sourced materials from the forest, and Ryan McClure of Irvington Woodworks offers handcrafted modern home goods.
Wesley Ballew of Landmarks Unlimited produces original travel collectibles for the modern-day explorer to reflect on their adventures, and Jim Meyer of Space Cat Studios makes functional decor in wood and glass. Hang this on the wall: Jason Rodgers of Jayemar Guitars hand-crafts multi-scale, extended-range electric guitars and basses in Lake Oswego.
Jewelry at the makers market will include Maisie McCarthy of A Little Bit of Magick’s polymer clay earrings made by hand “with a whole lot of love and a little bit of ‘magick’” in Portland. Catherine Chandler employs silver, gold and gemstones for her pieces, and Shoshi Shine of Certain Notions creates wild-gem wearable art.
Merrill Henson of Language of Stones is a jewelry maker and metalsmith. Julie Lau of Little Lake Metals offers handmade enamel jewelry. Ortal Gamliel of Luz Jewelry crafts gold-plated or sterling-silver jewelry, some with gemstones. Dave Olson and Melissa Greene of Tree Rings Jewelry offer earrings made of wood, leather, faux leather or acrylic paint. Kris Farrell of Curly Moon Designs also makes jewelry by hand.
Personal care products for sale include Amarylis Fernandez of Altared Ayurveda’s organic skincare products and altAred gifts. Day Bibb of Helen Rose Skincare Co. offers ultra-moisturizing skincare products free of tree-nut ingredients.
Candlemakers include Danielle Phillips of Gather In Flame, who uses coconut, soy and wax for her fragrant, hand-poured candles. Haeley Gjesvold founded Nightwork, a vegan candle brand, and Niyyah Ruscher-Haqq of Niyyah Handcrafted makes plant-based soap and candles.
Sita Waters of Running Late Apothecary is a small-batch producer of scents, skincare and cosmetics made from natural botanicals. And Rashmi Patel of Henna by Rashmi is a professional bridal henna and Mehndi artist.
Clothing offerings range from Harlequin Okikai of Okikai Designs’ apparel and lingerie handmade in the Eugene area to Payal Parekh of Parekh Bugbee’s eco-friendly clothing handmade in a family factory in Mumbai, India.
JD Cox of Dancing Heron is a screen printer creating androgynous punk and nonbinary inspired designs and ancient motifs with a modern twist. And Minichelle Designs’ Michelle Soto makes pride pins and other graphics.
Gifts are available from Malisa Tep of BBTEA Jars, who has custom glass Boba jars and Boba kits, and Mindy Gibbs of Mindy’s Beer Gear, who repurposes emptied six packs into durable beer wallets. Maisie Unis of Pretty Chic Party Gift Shop has macarons treat boxes, flowers and balloons, and micro flower farmer Kelly Rae of The Petal Dispatch makes cut-flower arrangements.
Pet items at the market include Rocky Jaeger of Rock Dogs’ pet bowls and pottery figurines. Wag Theory’s Jenny Ostoj has stylish and functional dog gear like a waxed canvas rain jacket, and Binta Loos-Diallo of Binta Therese will create a portrait of your pet.
— Janet Eastman | 503-294-4072
