Felted Food Friends by Hanna Dovhan

My mom just had a way of mixing the powdered cheese with the hot butter and then coaxing them to cling to the boiled elbow noodles patiently waiting in her stainless steel Sears farberware sauce pan. No matter what your relationship to cheese and macaroni they are an undeniably inseparably pair. These days the fanciest of childhood treats can run up into the triple digits when paired with foie gras, caviar or gold flakes. Under the most glamorous of cloaks the working mans duo is still about one thing which is illustrated perfectly in this Mac to My Cheese Card. Some things are meant to be together and stay together. Much like the comfort of Mac and cheese, this card can be there for the recipient (or you) when your mom can’t. We know it’s not the same but it’s better than nothing.

So, we have a thing for pizza. Not only do we love to eat that crispy crust, bubbling cheese and aromatic triple meat topping BUT, we’ll wear it on our lapel. Jen Adrion and Omar Noory make lots of perfect little, delicious items. None more satisfyingly cute than this pizza pin. Their website does tons of explaining on who they are, their Ohio studio details, what they have done (and it’s a lot) and where you can get their stuff. Aside from their creative excellence the seemingly obsessive use of ™ and ® is fantastic. As in their tagline, WE MAKE THINGS™. The line YOU LOVE THINGS™. Or, as in this mantra, These Are Things®. Whether truly trademarked or registered, the inside joke or official-ness is welcomed. Plus, they have cats that are dope based on their Insta.

We are huge fans of Phin and Phebes ice cream. Not such big fans of this election. WTF. It’s like Mark Burnett was put in charge of running things. Ice cream has always made everything better. Nobody knows that better than these ladies. Partnering with Madewell, they took a stand and started the Phin and Phebes Pints of Positivity campaign. Show your colors. Join the movement. Wear some schwag with pride. Ohh, and don’t really vote ice cream. Please vote for one of the primary candidates we don’t need any more skewed election drama on poll day.

Our dining room doubles as a watercolor studio these days. Botanical art being a big part of the weekend. It’s no wonder that a stop at Bower Studio’s booth at the Renegade Craft was mandatory. Vincent Frano and Isa Wang screen their delicate and intricate designs on patches, pins, bags, scarves and cards. The best part, the paper stock is seeded, therefore plantable. Who doesn’t want a greeting card that turns into a bunch of wildflowers? The above set of wild mushroom prints are unmatted, original ink drawings with digitally collaged watercolor that is printed with Epson archival inks on textured Fabriano watercolor paper. The essence of their craft is humbly articulated in their website description. “…to create functional artwork that encourages environmental stewardship, highlighting the diversity of American flora and fauna with educational products that use environmentally friendly materials.” We kind of LOVE that.