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Handmade Tile Association Newsletter

May
2011

12th Year  

Greetings! 


The next meeting on May 2nd is a important one and I have some info to relay to everyone.

pizza oven
Woodland Stoves is making Pizza at the meeting don't miss out
First I made a mistake in the last newsletter on the day of the meeting at Woodland Stoves it is still on May 2nd (and that is a Monday) at 6 pm not a Tuesday as it said in the last newsletter.

Second we have a very special guest Mpls.St.Paul Magazine senior editor Melinda NelsonMpls.St.Paul Magazine is one of three sponsors of the Minnesota Tile Festival. Melinda is interested in meeting us and finding out more about the artists of the HTA. Trebuchet Marketing who set up the opportunity has devised a concept that we have a "Thank You Sample Bag" to give to Melinda to highlight all of the great work the HTA members create.  We will be asking interested member artists to submit one tile no bigger than 6" x 6" with a business card taped to the back of your tile. You can also submit a brochure or postcard. Many of the members have already submitted literature for the NKBA event in March so we can also pull from that stock if you wish. You can bring your tile to the event or bring it to Clay Squared to Infinity anytime before May 2nd and we will bring it to the meeting.

Third we want members to attend!!!! If there is a meeting that you should be at this is the one. We will get a great tour of the Woodland Stoves showroom. Peter from Woodland Stoves wants to talk to the HTA artists to see how he can collaborate with all of us to offer your services and products. We also want to make a great impression on Melinda and her staff on how we are excited and engaged with our sponsor. Woodland Stoves is going to fire up its pizza oven and make some awesome wood fired pizzas for us. This will not be pot luck so you do not need to bring any food.  We ask those in attendance to please dress professionally. We need you to RSVP so we know how much food we need to have.

This being the last scheduled meeting before the MN Tile Festival this is our chance to brain storm as a group. Lots of great ideas came from the last meeting and we want members' input on the main marketing thrust.  Please RSVP so we know how much food to have.
In This Issue
Early registration saves money at Minnesota Tile Festival.
Congratulations HTA Grant Winner
Art A Whirl
Join us on Facebook
Welcome New and Renewing Membership
May Jobs
Featured Article
Featured Article
Spotlight on Artist Schedule
Deadline April 30th for Minnesota Tile Festival registration

tile festival postcard
Tile Festival postcards now are available
The HTA want you to be RICH and get EXPOSURE! The MN Tile Festival deadline for early registration is May 1st.  You can save over $25 per booth space by registering early. Members save more.

If you know you are going to do the show but have a cash crunch tell the HTA and we will RSVP you at the discounted rate! Then we can plan for how many vendors we are going to have.

Click here to purchase your space on line.

Click here to download a printable application.

The Pitch
Most trade shows and arts festivals cost $300 to $2500 and have hundreds of booths and a few thousand attendants. We have space for 60 vendors and 3000 - 6000 guaranteed visitors.  MN Tile Festival booths are only $185 for a two day show. That is a DEAL for the exposure you get! If you make tiles, mosaics, design with tile, set tile, sell tile tools or have any tile service or product that people should you should have a booth at this show. Sign up today!

Artist and trade registered for the show
Kuilema Pottery, inc
Duluth Pottery
Christine Nelson Design
Stephanie Kaczrowski
Mad Zebra Tile
Clay Squared to Infinity
Pearson Artworks
Stone Hollow Tile
SoMi Tileworks
Mercury Mosaics
Margy Jean Balwierz
Linda Taylor
Lea Way Designs
Hohn and Hohn Tile Setting
Brainstorming on Tile Festival

Midtown Global Market
Midtown Global Market

At our meeting we had a fun and over the top brainstorming session. The goal was to throw out any idea that people could think of that might lead to a great PR concept. Here are some of the ideas from the meeting. 

Mosaic a car, Fashion show, mosaic a bike , stripping (Yes it was Christine Neslon idea) tile on bathing suits, mosaic manikins, heart of the beast puppets, large-big-outrageous, Tall hats, give free, foot steps o the ground, tile play house, round the world, flags.  

At a committee meeting We worked on a concept of the Friends and Family night with a special coupon concept for Friday night and one for Saturday. The Friday night one we want to ask the vendor to offer special discounts for Friends and Family.

On Saturday we are also thinking of a flyer concept to help foster the idea of spending more money than buying one tile. The idea is to ask vendors to offer 10% off any sale over $100.

.    

 

Attendance at the meeting:  

 

Host: Lori Green of Mosaic on a Stick  

Leann Johnson, Rebecca Ryman, Stephanie Kaczrowski, Jan Hohn, Lisa Trnka, Christine Nelson, Nancy and Sheryl Froseth, Alex and Phenolope Chin, Kathy Grubbs, Josh Blanc.  

 

Art A Whirl Set up

AAW 2011Mercedes Austin and Sheryl VanderPol have been busy meeting and communicating with the 12 artists who will be putting together an HTA display at Art A Whirl. This event will be the biggest showing of HTA member outside of the MN Tile Festival. There are five other artists that have their permanent studios in the NE Minneapolis Arts District showing 17 tile artists in four major buildings during AAW. With 20,000 visitors attending they will see tile at every turn.

Mercedes will be at the next meeting to discuss time slots, display materials needed and overall goals of the event. AAW catalogs will be available for pick up at the meeting.

Artist Participating in AAW

Mad Zebras
Lea Way Designs
Stone Hollow Tile
Emily Dyer Ceramics
Miriam Shuros Ceramics
North Prairie Tileworks
Tierney's Tile
Somi Tileworks
Clay Squared
Untapped Resource
Mercury Mosaics
Deb L'Air Ceramics
Hjelle Studio
Sheryl Tuorila

Potek Glass

InPlain Sight  

Emily Dyer 

 

 

Join us on Facebook
The Handmade Tile Association is doing regular updates and we invite our members to post new projects and artwork they have completed. We also invite you to "like" the page as well so you can follow the group and keep up with updates between newsletters. 

To join the Handmade Tile Association fan page click this icon Find us on Facebook


Handmade Tile Association Meeting  

 

May 2nd
When - Tuesday 6:00
Where - Woodland Stoves
2901 East Franklin Avenue
Minneapolis, MN 55406-1128
(612) 338-6606 


Tour of Woodland Stoves and wood fired pizza
Meet Melinda Nelson of Mpls/St.Paul Magazine
Art A Whirl final info  

Tile Festival brainstorm and update 

Register for 2011 Minnesota Tile Festival  
Please RSVP so we know how much food to have 



mosaic of the americasBen Smith the owner of Glaciers Café at Lake and Minnehaha. This casual café is housed in the Resource Center of the Americas also called the Mosaic Building because the South facing exterior wall is a tile mosaic. He is planning an exterior fireplace and we were discussing facings and we thought of tile to complement the building. It occurs to me this might be a good venue for a member or vendors to display their tile on a working fireplace in a public space.

 

This is our last meeting before the summer. Don't miss out on great tile conversation, get to meet other tile artists 


We are looking for venues to have meetings in 2012.  If you would like to host a meeting please contact the HTA to set one up. info@handmadetileassociation.org

If you are not in the Minnesota region consider creating a meeting of tile and mosaic artists in your area.  The HTA can promote your meeting through this newsletter and on the website, Facebook, and Linked in. It is a great way to learn and promote tile ideas.

Sincerely,

Josh Blanc
Handmade Tile Association.LLC
Quick Links check out all the new info
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Business Members

Carol Hegedus Consulting Inc.


Michelle K Arterburn

Super Member
Tile Council of North America

May Jobs
5 Hours button
Get your 5 hours in!  
  
We need a data entry person!!! Over 250 people have requested directories since January and we need to enter them in the system. 

I can help Click here to tell us what you can do 


Thanks to


Thanks to Christine Nelson for joining the Tile Festival Committee and taking on lots of jobs!

Thanks to Sheryl VanderPol and Mercedes Austin for all the work on AAW. It is going to be a well run event.   

Garden Concrete Furniture Workshop Fundraiser for HTA

concerete workshop link

Garden Concrete Furniture Workshop
with Carol Dean of Dean Tile in co-ordination with The Handmade Tile Association. 
Make your own furniture 

When: 2 day workshop June 10th and 11th    

Where:Minneapolis MN           

Cost: $225    
Handmade Tile Association members receive a 10% discount.
Click here for more details

 

MN Original Tile Video
Josh Blanc making tile
Josh Blanc making tile
Back in February Public Television contacted Josh Blanc as part MN Original a group that organized because of the MN Legacy Fund programing and asked if they could document a tile making process. Josh gave out the HTA directory to the video crew and hopefully many MN Tile and Mosaic artists will be contacted in the coming years. Click the video below and see what they did on Clay Squared to Infinity

 

Spotlight on Artist Schedule
Spotlight on artists for 2011.  Please send us any new images, information or news that you would like to be highlighted by the first of your month to the the HTA.

 

May 2011-  Bella Vista Tile, Hjelle Studio, Dean Tile  

 

June 2011- Mad Zebra Tile, Pewabic Pottery, Red Step Studio

 

July 2011 - Terrapin tile, Tina Schowalter, Bon Ton Designs

 

August 2011- Ceramic Chinn, North Praire Tileworks, BA Schmidt

 

September 2011-Earth Wood and Fire, Margy Jean Balwierz, Thomas Kent Collection 

 

October 2011- Tile Restoration Center, Weaver Tile, Swan Tile

 

November 2011- Sheryl Tuorila, Stone Hollow Tile, Emily Dyer,

 

December 2011- Untapped Resources, Suzanne Crane Fine Stoneware, Mercury Mosaics




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