Behind Handmade Ho Down- Meet the Committee

In this edition of Behind Handmade Ho Down, we introduce you to Erin Cadd, our Sponsor Chair and Vendor Co-Chair.

Erin lives in a small old house in Oakland, Ca with her Shih Tzus and her very tall boyfriend.  She has a particular propensity for things in miniature, as evidenced by her car, her dogs and her curio shelf.

Erin started sewing when she was just a wee tot.  Well, she was more like 6, but you get the idea. Her grandmother taught her on the sewing machine she now uses in her own studio.  She’s been sewing clothes for friends, swim meets, and Barbies ever since.  It wasn’t until Erin went to design school for Interior Design that her love – nay, borderline addiction – for fabrics and color became truly realized. 

When a friend told her about Etsy a few years ago, it was just another (wicked) fun place to shop.  But recently, as many may know, the market has slowed drastically in the Interiors and Architectural fields, just like everywhere else.  When Erin lost her job in February, she took a few months of wondering where to go next, looked for a new job unsuccessfully, and decided Etsy was her next big adventure.  

Her very own Etsy shop, Eristotle opened in July of this year. Eristotle is about fun and funky ways to decorate your pad and your life with reduce-reuse-recycle front and center to every design. All of her items  are handmade by using vintage, upcycled, thrifted or eco-friendly materials whenever possible.

"It has been one learning experience after another", she says.

Yet the adventure continues even still, as do the learning experiences, and hey let’s face it, life in general.  Erin joined SF Etsy, one of the Bay Area Etsy Street Teams just a few months ago. She fell into chatting online one night with a truly hilarious group of Etsy artisans, who turned out to be a dedicated and wonderful group of people as well.  

The idea was posed (by MonkeyandSeal, if she remembers correctly and she is mos def right!) that a craft show would be a great endeavor to pursue.  Hey! they all said, we might even get backed by Etsy! 

"Now look at all these people on our Street Team, just as excited as we are to be part of something like this!"

Erin is the official Handmade Ho Down Sponsor Chair and Vendor Co-Chair and there would be no Handmade Ho Down (Too Live) Crew without her.

Where can we get some of that tasty pie Erin? dang.