I'm debuting a new series today on Indie Icing called "Introducing..." where we get to meet -- and learn more about -- an up-and-coming indie artist/crafter.  The people featured aren't necessarily new to the world of handmade but have fewer than 100 sales and have been selling online for less than a year.

So, without further ado I'd like to introduce Small Adventure, the Etsy shop of creative duo Keiko Brodeur-Ward and Anna Hurley.

Embarking on a Quest. Copyright Small Adventure. When did you start selling your handmade goods?

Pretty recently! I opened up an Etsy shop in January 2009 and started making a few simple crafts. I was very inspired by the growing online craft community and did some research to see how other people ran their stores and what products they were selling the most of. Obviously the shop only has a small handful of sales so far, but at the end of this year I reduced my working schedule from full time to part time in order to really focus my efforts on Small Adventure this upcoming year.

Red Floral Elephant. Copyright Small Adventure.You've got a mix of items in your shop, from letterpress designs to monogrammed buttons to stuffed elephants. Do you have any favorite items you enjoy making?

Keiko: I enjoy working with both fabric and paper -- and really like working on a variety of different projects at once instead of doing the same thing over and over. I can't take credit for the beautiful letterpress prints that are currently in the shop. Those are by Anna, who has just joined forces with me to start creating a lot of new products for Small Adventure. So far she's been focusing on paper goods and I've pretty exclusively been working on projects with fabrics but I'm hoping that in the near future we'll be collaborating on both areas of design.

Is it Fall yet? Copyright Small Adventure.

Tell us more about your letterpress works. What's your process?

Anna: I'm so fortunate to have the resources to do letterpress printing! It's my favorite form of printing due to the deep impression it gives on the paper, lending such a wonderful tactile quality. My process starts basically with an idea for an illustration. I create all my final artwork in Adobe Illustrator, and then when I'm done, I decide what colors I want to use. With more colors, the more laborious, and the more expensive, and I generally limit my artwork to 2-3 colors. After that, I get it ready for output, and the artwork is made into film (with all the colors separated), which is then made into photo polymer plates. The press is then inked up for printing, and the printing process begins! I have access to a Vandercook press, which is hand cranked (each print is printed individuallly) and a Heidelberg that prints many at a time. It's quite the process, but totally worth it!

Mongrammed Buttons. Copyright Small Adventure.

What do you have in store for next year? Anything new?

We are going to be exhibiting our work at as many craft fairs as we can! We will hopefully be at both Renegade Craft Fairs in Los Angeles (where I live) and in San Francisco (where Anna lives) during the late summer as well as a few others that we will be announcing on our blog, A Small Adventure. Other than that our goals are to really expand our shop with more quality items, especially paper goods, and to spend a lot of time marketing ourselves online. Eventually I'd also like to have hand screen printed items such as illustrated t-shirts and tote bags in stock. We're really trying to make this our full time business so there will be many exciting change in 2010 for us!

 Reusable Felt Air Envelope. Copyright Small Adventure.

Thanks, Keiko and Anna, for sharing your story and shop with us!  I'll definitely be on the lookout for more of your work in 2010!