Space Invaders 2

Santa Barbara is known for many things but not handmade design. It's a shame really since there are plenty of wonderful independent designers, crafters, and artist in the area. Through esty teams and individuals' efforts there have been little shows around town, but the one with the biggest congregation of designers was Space Invaders 2. Organized by Vanae Rivera of Mary and the Machine and located outside her studio, SI2 was a collection of artists, jewelers, photographers, seamstresses, and good people.

Held on a cool Saturday afternoon, SI2 brought crowds that supported local design and art. Music filled the air while an energy buzzed. There was a raffle that supported Heart 2 Hand, lemonade and cupcake stand, and great DJ. It was not the biggest or flashiest of shows, but it is a start to buying local and supporting community!


Some of the scene.




The Man Alley had lots of art and a deer head. It was fun walking through.


I made a friend.


SB Retro's cashmere plushies!


The Lemon Grove's cute table had my favorite design.


Plates, bowls, vases by Spiral Sea Arts.


Sea glass was collected from Santa Barbara beaches to create lovely pendants like the above by Susan Dempsay.


Glass coasters by Sukiku.


Sofi's Duckies turns your regular rubber ducky into your favorite cultural figures. I saw Ghost Busters, Michael Jackson as Thriller, Rainbow Brite, Hello Kitty, but my favorite was Bowie Duckie!


Our table neighbor was Eleven 13 Jewelry. Michelle creates one of a kind pieces from sterling silver and gold fill, hooray for quality material! She was also fun to chat with :)


Vanae had her art around the space and her studio open to visit. This was one of my favorite pieces.


Also loved all of these paintings.


We enjoyed super delish burgers from one of SB's gourmet food trucks, The Burger Bus.


And had a nice time. Here was our table display for SI2. This may be the last time we use this look/color scheme. I love this display, but there's always room to spice things up so while we will keep the general layout, we will be changing up the color scheme and may add more components for Unique.

Thanks Vanae, hope the handmade community in SB continues to thrive!