I don't spend nearly enough time singing the praises of the wonderful people who teach at the Brainery. Look out for lots of posts in the coming weeks where I do just that. 

Carmen Artigas runs Viva La Vida, where she designs the most fun totes and bike baskets, working with artisans in Mexico to turn plastic into woven awesomeness.

If you're interested in ethical fashion, also check out her Facebook group on the subject, always a reliable compendium of the latest news and interviews on the subject. 

Teaches: The Era of Eco Fashion and Fashion Anthropology through Shoes

Christine Garvey has convinced me that the Brainery really needs its own stationery set. Her own work is full of imaginitive creatures and ever changing scenes, and it's simply really cool. 

Teaches: Make Your Own Stationery

Madelyn Freed's comics at Demon a Day are always hilarious and always true. Some of the demons she considers? Tiny dogs and tourists standing in line at Abercrombie & Fitch.

Teaches: Cartooning: Art for the People

Whitney Crutchfield is multitalented, to say the least. She teaches us how to screenprint at home with few specialty tools and in her real life designs super fun textiles. 

Teaches: Low-Tech Screenprinting

Emilie Shapiro turns scrap metal into magic, and basically, I would like to own all of her jewelry. You can check out her work at emilieshapiro.com and also feel jealous of her talent.

Teaches: Hand Stamped Jewelry

Sade Williams is our resident calligraphy expert, and by now, she's taught about half of Brooklyn the first steps to good penmanship. She's also a photographer, singer, and professional calligrapher, which is a lot of very cool things to be. 

Teaches: Calligraphy

And, of course, I have to mention our own very amazing Kaye Blegvad, who will soon be way too famous to even consider working at the lowly Brainery. She illustrates and makes lovely jewelry in the shape of skulls and arrows and other things that you wouldn't think to design jewelry around.