Guns, drugs, and sewing machines? While you won’t see the San Francisco Craft Mafia shooting others or shooting up, they do wield some mighty powerful crafting talent. You’ve likely come across my other mentions of the group here on my blog, but if you are just tuning in, you have been missing out. Founded in October 2005 by yours truly, I handed over control of the group to the members last year. Thanks to their own personal dedication and genius, the SFCM has become a well-known entity in the Bay Area. They never cease to surprise me with the unique creations and the events they develop on a regular basis.

Next up for this collection of crafty connoisseurs is the Family Affair event, which is the first of its kind for the SFCM, though I doubt the last. Hosted by fellow SFCM member, the Stitch Lounge, the free event “will feature a variety of Do-It-Yourself (DIY) activities & demos including clothing customization & embellishment, jewelry-making and delicious cupcakes to decorate! Bring a shirt to customize - all patterns, supplies and instructions will be provided.”

Taking place next weekend - Sunday, August 12th from 2-6pm - I’m honored to say that I will be at the Family Affair event, taking part in all the creative commotion. The Stitch Lounge is located in Hayes Valley at 182 Gough Street (@ Oak St), close to oodles of bus and BART lines. For more specific directions and parking information, click here.

I had the pleasure of catching up with SFCM PR Manager and Feisty Elle creator Leslie Yang [PART ONE], as well as two of the three founding members of the Stitch Lounge [PART TWO], to talk about the upcoming shindig, crafting in the Bay Area, and a new great new DIY book coming out in October. Read on to see what these great ladies had to say, as well as an EXCLUSIVE GIVEAWAY.

[PART ONE]

How was the idea for A Family Affair born?

Leslie Yang, PR for the SFCM: A Family Affair stemmed from discussions we had as members of the SF Craft Mafia to build a vibrant community in the Bay Area of crafters and indie craft businesses that are in dialogue with one another, supportive of each other’s endeavors, and just want to have fun together! We envision recurring events, like A Family Affair, with spaces to craft, learn, and network.

The launch of CRAFT Magazine was celebrated in SF with the Craft Mafia, which turned out to be a fantastic event. Do you expect a similar, enthusiastic turnout?

Leslie: We certainly hope for and are working hard for a great turnout! We’re doing press, distributing promotional materials, buying all sorts of crafty goodies, and working out all of the logistics to make A Family Affair a fantastically fun and crafty event! Tell your friends!

Do you find planning an event that the public will be so heavily involved in equally stresses and invigorating?

Leslie: Event planning always has its challenges but when you’re working together in a group, there’s always this energetic dynamic that keeps us all going and focused. Also, having a group of creative people collaborating on an event makes the experience very rich and engaging. The best part is when the event finally happens and the public at large comes out and is so supportive and grateful for such events.

As a crafter and small business owner, how receptive do you find Bay Area stores and sellers?

Leslie: Bay Area stores and sellers are always on the cutting edge of recognizing trends and new ideas, therefore the concept of handmade has really gained increasing appreciation and support from them. My personal impression is that independently owned boutiques and stores are especially open, receptive, and supportive to handmade work from independent craft-related businesses like those of the SF Craft Mafia.

[PART TWO]

How has joining the SF Craft Mafia been beneficial for your business?

Melissa A and Melissa R from the Stitch Lounge: Simply by helping spread the crafty gospel! The Craft Mafia creates a better crafty community on the whole, which in turn benefits our business and ones like it. Additionally, the leadership team is a great group of folks that have tons of crafty ideas and resources and are always willing to collaborate. The Craft Mafia group is so diverse that we are also able to make new connections outside of the seamster community. We look forward to meeting more active contributors and enthusiastic crafters!

What lead you to sponsor an even like The Family Affair?

Two Melissas: We wanted to sponsor this event because we’ve got space and resources available to make it work! We like to give back to the crafty community however and whenever we can, and a creative and interactive event like this is perfectly in line with our “lounge” concept.

The Stitch Lounge ladies have a second book coming out soon; will we be hearing any more about it at the event?

Two Melissas: Our second book is coming out in October, and while it is not the focus of the event, we’d be happy to share information about it with anyone who is interested.

For more information and to purchase the books from the Stitch Lounge ladies, check out the following links to Amazon.com:

And now, the moment you have all been scrolling for - THE GIVEAWAY!The prize? A card for 1.5 hours of studio time at the Stitch Lounge, good ’til July 1st, 2008.

From their website: “Stitch is the first place of its kind, a drop-in urban sewing lounge open for Bay Area urbanites to sew and socialize. Imagine a location for a modern sewing circle, where you can use (but don’t have to keep and maintain in your city-sized apartment) all the sewing equipment you need.”

How do I enter? Simply send an e-mail to stitch.giveaway AT gmail.com (remove spaces and replace AT with @). The contest is open until August 12th, 2007 (the same day as the Family Affair event, go figure). After the 12th, a winner will be selected at random and e-mailed directly.

Rules? Only one entry per e-mail address!

So ENTER NOW and start planning how to spend your free crafting time.

[For a collection of spectacular DIY fashion books, click over to my latest post for GreenOptions.com]