Before making the switch to selling antiques, Jennifer from Happy Day Antiques and her sister, Shelley were at the helm of relicboutique - a hand craft company specializing in vintage accessories. Think vintage button rings, antique fabric headbands and such. Below are a few press hits obtained by Jennifer and Shelley back in their relicboutique days:
"At Relicboutique, something old is always transformed into something new. A case in point: the company's charming rings, which feature artful stacks of vintage buttons." - Country Living Magazine
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"You know you did it. Lifted old washcloths from the linen closet for Caribbean Stacey's beach cover-ups. Gleeped dad's most obnoxious ties during that weird gypsy-headband period of yours (then again for Styling Head Skipper's matching coif). You've always had a knack for transforming the mundane of yesteryear into a treasure of today. And not that you've grown up, the sisters at Relicboutique have done the nabbing for you. They've refurbished ornate lighting hardware from your kooky uncle's tool shed to bring you (literal) chandelier earrings that are timeless, not trendy. They've scoured mom's old sewing table for vintage buttons and fabrics, creating ingenuous necklaces and brooches in the process. Every one of Relic's designs is one-of-a-kind, hand-remade from the cloth, clips and general clutter that kept your Malibu beach house rivaling Donna and Gianni's any day. Barbie would be so jealous. Not that you care anymore, of course." - Daily Candy
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"Relicboutique is helmed by two sister who grew up on a North Georgia farm and now indulge their love of craft in their own business venture. Relic offers adorable recycled alternatives to shiny gemstones and precious metals in charming - and affordable - rings made of the humblest of materials: buttons." - Creative Loafing Atlanta
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Although no longer a group with the line-up described below, Ubetsy founder Shelley Yankus was able to secure the press hits below for the Atlanta Craft Mafia:
"The white tent provided little relief from the baking hot sun that afternoon in October as Shelley Yankus, Alison Evans and Emilie Sennebogen waited and waited for someone, anyone to stop by their booth at the craft fair and buy something, anything. An older woman approached, and fingered one of Yankus' mod headbands. It's fashioned from vintage fabric, Yankus told her. But no, you don't wear it across your forehead like Olivia Newton-John did back in the 80's.
Sigh.
Sennebogen's bottles of hand crafted lotion sat largely untouched. Evans, frustrated by sitting in the dead zone, kicked back with her copy of US Weekly. Nobody seemed interested in her delicate silver and beaded jewelry, displayed on a bed of bright green lentils.
Suddenly, a potential customer appeared, a woman towing her young son. Evans perked up. Then the boy started pawing the merchandise, raking his hands through the beans and tangling the bracelets. Please don't do that, Evans begged. Please stop.
Sigh.
At least the three women had each other. Their banding together in that booth was the product of more than just friendship; that month Yankus, Evans and Sennebogen were debuting a collective identity: the Atlanta Craft Mafia. It's the local chapter of what has become a worldwide famiglia of independent designers fo jewelry, apparel, accessories and other hand crafted goods. The group was born in 2003 in Austin, Texas, and now has more than 25 chapters that offer members - most of whom make jewelry in their basements or mix litions in their kitchens - marketing muscle, emotional support and a forum for sharing ideas.
There aren't a lot of strict rules for the different chapters. Each must represent a single city, not a region. A crafter who intends to start a chapter must alert the original group and then, within 30 days, get a web site up and gather a minimum of three members who represent different craft-related businesses. In return, the new chapter gets access to other members through online bulletin boards set up for trading samples, sharing business advice and planning events. It's not the place to go for tips on dried macaroni art or the latest on doilies.
'The Craft Mafia is more alternative,' said Sennebogen, who runs a body products company called Mama Bath and Body. 'We're not talking about the knitting stitches. We want to talk about our bussinesses.'
There is an 'edge' to the mafia groups, said Jennifer Perkins, a founder of the original group in Austin and head of an accessories company called Naughty Secretary Club. 'The crafts seem a bit edgier and funkier.' While the crafts made within the mafia chapers are a bit different and offbeat, the collective concept they all embrace is a familiar one. Think medieval marketplaces, modern malls, restaurant rows.
'When you bring people with diverse goods together, it attracts consumers,' said Ken Bernhardt, a marketing professor at Georgia State Unvierstiy. 'When you aggregate a market, you draw a broader group of customers than you would individually. It's a concept that's proven over and over again to work.'
So far, the three members of the Atlanta Craft Mafia say they've seen the benefits of joining forces. When one mafia member gets publicity, they all do. When one has a trunk show, they all do. They pool their marketing dollars. They keep each other focused, and their revenues climb steadily. The 'mafia' concept is catchier than anything they could have come up with on their own. The members each have different strengths, and contribute to each other, Sennebogen says.
Yankus has crafting in her genes. Her mother sells antiques and eclectic goods from her Dahloenga, Georgia gift shop - Cranberry Corners. Yankus now designs modern accessories 'handcrafted from vintage origins' - headbands made from retro grosgrain ribbon, rings made from buttons bought at estate sales - in her basement and sells them full-time under the name Relicboutique in the BeehiveCo-op near Buckhead and online.
Her first festival as a member of the Atlanta Craft Mafia, a five-hour show, generated three times as much revenue as her highest-grossing pre-mafia show - which last an entire weekend. Being affiliated with the Craft mafia helpd her make triple the money in less than half the time.
'I've worked for a jewelry designer, in music PR, real estate, property management, in a salon,' she said. 'Now I've found my niche. I do what I want to do. And I don't have to wear pantyhose.'
'Sennebogen started a body-products business called Mama in 2004 after losing patinece with working long hours as a music video producer in Los Angeles. On a whim, using recipes she found on Google, she started concocting creams and body washes in her kitchen sink. She moved to Atlanta about a year ago, and now sells her products at craft shows and online. 'Previous to my particpation in the Atlanta Craft Mafia, Mama's revenues were based on a small number of web-based sales per month and seasonal craft markets.' said Sennebogen, whose group currently isn't taking any members. 'In the six months since joining forces with the girls, Mama's sales have more than doubled, both on my web site and at festivals.'
Sennebogen says her desire to be creative is often greater the the lengths of her attention span. She brings web design skills to the group. 'It's lonely when you don't have stores' she said ' You need support.'
Evans recently gave up on jewelry design. She's spent too many long hours painstakingly stringing miniscule silver beads to watch her products sit forlornly in cases at craft shows. When demand did pick up, she couldnt keep up with it. So Evans, known as the worker bee in the group, the one who's willing to dash around at a craft show and get things done - is planning to start a furniture-painting business. She's looking to her fellow mafiosi for support and, while her basement undergoes renovation, perhaps some borrowed studio space.
All three are certain their businesses will only grow a s a result of the group. 'We're all bootstrappin.' Sennebogen said. 'Working together helps.' - The Atlanta Journal and Constitution
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Highlighting hand crafted goods available at The Atlanta Craft Mafia's HoHoHoliday Extravaganza Craft Show was the focus of this Sunday Paper, Atlanta, Holiday Gift Guide.
