January 1: I Made It! Market

The I Made It! Market was born in Pittsburgh, PA in 2007, the brainchild of two incredible local women: Carrie Nardini and Nina Barbuto. Their goal was simple: fill a need for regularly occurring opportunities for Pittsburgh's artists to advertise and sell their incredible wares. In May 2007, the first I Made It! Market was held at the Garfield Artworks with 20 local artisans.

I had my first experience with the I Made It! Market that same year as a shopper at I Made It! for the Holidays, held in Homestead, PA. The space was a little dark and I had to park far away, but I will never forget how amazed I was when I pulled open that door and saw a place PACKED with people, amazing arts and crafts, tons laughter, and real love. I continued to shop year after year, until I took the leap to start my business in 2010 and participated in my first show ever, the I Made It! Market at WYEP's Rock the Block. Since then, I have been blessed to be one of the "regulars" at the shows.

Today, the I Made It! Market has grown to iconic status, seeing more and more friends and success at every event. You can see anywhere from 10 to 100 local artists at any given event, and are guaranteed to find quality, locally-made, wonderful items. Carrie and Nina have done what few others have been able to do: they have given opportunities for hundreds of local artist, crafters, and small businesses to see real success and growth. With each I Made It! event, more and more artists and crafters are being given opportunities to sell their wares and join a community of people that are truly among the world's best.

Whether you are an artist, crafter, small business, large business, mom, dad, student, retiree...there is always a place for you at the I Made It! Market! There are lots of exciting events already scheduled for 2012. Make sure to mark your calendars for I Made It! Mine on Saturday, February 4, 2012 from 12pm-5pm at the South Side Works.

Find out more about Carrie, Nina, and the I Made It! Market on Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, and be sure to sign up for their email list.