Orange County: Inspiring Locals to Stay Local

One evening Delilah Snell, owner of Santa Ana DIY workshop and boutique The Road Less Traveled, was sitting in her backyard sipping on a glass of wine and chatting with her niece. “There are a lot of rad people in Orange County, there’s just nothing to do,” she said. Her niece, Street Artist and Fashion Designer Nicole Stevenson, replied “Let’s do a craft show.” 

Delilah Snell (left) and Nicole Stevenson (right), Founders of Patchwork

They called up twenty to twenty-five vendors they knew and invited them to set up a small fair in the parking lot behind Snell’s old store location on North Main Street in Santa Ana. The word spread about the event and 500 people showed up to support. That was eight years ago and now “The Patchwork Show: Modern Handmade Festival” takes place twice a year in Costa Mesa, Long Beach, Oakland and Santa Ana. The first out-of-state location will launch in Phoenix this fall. 

The festival is an afternoon of mingling with local artists, shopping for handmade goods, live music, arts and crafts and food trucks.

The project is about more than having fun, it’s about encouraging people to find inspiration in their communities.

“Craft can make the world a better place…the feeling one gets from making something with their hands is beyond empowering,” said Stevenson.

It’s because of people with a commitment to staying local that Downtown Santa Ana is giving artists in Orange County a long overdue neighborhood to live and work. 

“There are so many creative people in every city and town, not just in the big cities,” Snell said, “You don’t have to go where the ‘cool’ is, it’s right in your own backyard.”

Click here for a calendar of Patchwork events