The DIY Trunk Show is no more. After 11 shows in 12 years, the current manager of the show decided that she needed to concentrate more on her actual business, so she's put the show away for the foreseeable future. Never say never, right?
The show was universally loved by the vendors that were part of it; every year that I worked I would hear raves about how much they enjoyed being a part of that show. The show has two major legacies: it introduced the Chicago craft world to the Pulaski Park building, which eventually hosted a large number of events; and the Craftifesto, which was the statement made by the show's founders and posted on the site. That statement was used and referenced by a number of crafters, and eventually got made into a fine poster sold by the makers of the 2009 Handmade Nation documentary.
We're a bit sad that the show is officially done, but after 12 years of craft going on in the city, there are more craft fairs and shops selling handmade goods than there were in 2003, so the craft movement will still continue. A lot of older crafters that we know are putting down their tools and concentrating on other parts of their lives, but there are new crafters showing up all the time. Can't wait to see what kind of shows they put on!
My photos for all Trunk Shows except for the very first one (which for some reason I don't seem to have pictures for) are up on Flickr.