Craft Mafia are wiseguys behind local DIY fashion
Alex Woodward
Issue date: 4/18/08 Section: Life & Times
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When the last thing New Orleans needs is organized crime, Loyola alumna Mallory Whitfield and her colleagues in crime-free design, the New Orleans Craft Mafia, take to the streets wielding jewelry, clothing and other hand-made goods.
The original group, founded in 2003 by a small group of independent designers and business owners in Austin, Texas, served as a network for like-minded do-it-yourselfers. Now the family spreads across the globe, with more than 40 mafias in the U.S. and a few across the pond.
"We thought that'd be really cool to start one here," Whitfield said.
Rachelle Matherne, Craft Mafia founder, established the New Orleans-based group in June 2005 - though Hurricane Katrina "derailed the launch party," she said.
Once the group pulled together, the Craft Mafia found a city in support of its blossoming art community.
"It seems like now there is more support for local artists," Whitfield said.
Whitfield, A'04, started her design career as early as high school, where, with a little help from her mom, she made costumes for her school's theater troupe.
But by 2004, Whitfield started selling her salvaged-clothes-turned-recycled-fashions at local marketplaces like the Alternative Media Expo, as well as Magazine Street's former Turncoats Clothing Exchange, which permanently closed its doors after Katrina.
Whitfield sells her reconstructed clothing and accessories through her company, dismantled designs, from brightly stitched denim scarves with neon buttons to fleur-de-lis pins and barrettes, all with a signature worn-in feel and, of course, a DIY spirit.
"I don't like throwing anything away," she said. "My materials come from thrift stores, friends' old clothes, a lot of denim, old pants with holes in them - I use every last part."
The Craft Mafia thrives on its independent credo, acting not only as a network for artists and craft workers, but also as a way to pull together more interest in local art.
"There's no rules, no guidelines," Matherne said. "We make it what we want it to be.
"We work as a group rather than a microbusiness - but more like a support group sometimes."
MEET THE FAMILY
Whitfield's company is just one of the many Craft Mafia partners-in-crime.
The mafia, along with other special guest vendors, convenes at its biweekly Crescent City Art Market, hosted at The Big Top at 1638 Clio St., where brightly colored booths fill the art space on Sunday afternoons.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Rachelle Matherne
posted 4/22/08 @ 11:51 AM CST
Thanks, Alex, for coming out to our market and for writing about us!
Rachelle
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