Despite the pandemic, Handmade Arcade will be shaking up its spring show and trying something new.
For the first time, artists it will feature during its online marketplace will all be based in Allegheny County. The show opens Friday at handmadearcade.org and runs through Sunday.
During its 17-year history, Handmade Arcade has attracted makers from across the country, including Ohio, West Virginia and even the West Coast. For the spring marketplace, though, organizers wanted to pay tribute to the event’s roots.
“This is what we’re calling a hyperlocal event,” said executive director Tricia Brancolini-Foley. “It’s where we’ve developed our brand and our following. And it’s a way to give the maker and creative economy the real boost it needs to recoup some of the losses it’s felt over the course of the last year.”
Handmade Arcade has a juried system that reviews the artist applications. Brancolini-Foley said the goal was to select 50 makers for this show, but they ended up giving 60 artists a spot because of the talented pool of applicants. Because of the local focus, more than a dozen of them will be making their Handmade Arcade debut.
“We were looking for a good mix of different types of artists,” Brancolini-Foley said, including ceramics, accessories, bath-and-body products, housewares, cards, wood designs, glassware, clothing, and things for children.
Part of the fun of the in-person events is interacting with the makers. To try to adapt that experience to an online show, makers can personalize their own pages on the Handmade Arcade website and upload photos and a video introduction. These features were well received during the winter online marketplace, Brancolini-Foley said.
Organizers also discovered some opportunities for growth based on feedback from the last online event. For starters, it was too long, Brancolini-Foley said. The spring marketplace will be six days shorter to keep the excitement up.
A “favorites” tool also has been added to the website. As people browse the sale, they can select and save their favorite items, and then come back and look at them more closely before deciding what to purchase. (Site visitors can either create an account on the Handmade Arcade website to view their favorites later or keep the tab with the website open on their screens.)
There’s a variety of ways to explore the marketplace, too. Shoppers can browse by category, artist or their own search terms if they’re looking for a particular piece. Makers process and ship their respective orders and keep all money from their sales. The only cost for them to participate is an upfront vendors fee.
More online markets are planned for this summer, Brancolini-Foley said, with the goal to transition to a hybrid of online and in-person shows later this year if COVID-19 safety guidelines permit. She’s also hopeful that Handmade Arcade makers will be able to take over the chalets in Market Square in late December after the Peoples Gas Holiday Market closes as they did in 2019.
In the meantime, Brancolini-Foley encourages Pittsburghers to keep shopping local — no matter if it’s in person or on the internet.
“Handmade Arcade has things for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day and for sprucing up and getting ready to go back out into the world,” she said. “I hope people will support our maker community.”
Sara Bauknecht: sbauknecht@post-gazette.com or on Twitter and Instagram @SaraB_PG.
First Published: April 29, 2021, 10:00 a.m.
Updated: April 29, 2021, 11:45 a.m.