Indy's indie craft scene in full force

Wood worker Allison Ford, 31, shows off her god father sterling silver and wood rings. She will be one of the artists featured in the INDIEana Handicraft Exchange. (Credit: Michelle Pemberton)

Allison Ford is turning into her grandfather, and she's cool with that.

It's definitely not because of her style -- white glasses, a nose ring, skinny-legged jeans, handmade wooden sandals -- or her love for vintage jewelry.

It's because she works in her studio at the Harrison Center for the Arts four nights a week using the old, hand-me-down woodworking tools her grandfather once used, while enjoying a beer or two from the mini-fridge in the shop. Ford uses the scrap leftovers from her grandfather, who worked as a woodworker, for her smooth and wavelike rings, bracelets earrings and necklaces.

She's one of about 70 artisans who will sell their wares in the third INDIEana Handicraft Exchange at the Harrison Center on June 13. The exchange is a DIY show for crafters and contemporary artists with small-time operations from all over the Midwest to showcase their work.

This includes Busty's Fun Bags (purses made by a retired roller derby girl), pop culture finger puppets (and witty felt tampon cases) from abbeychristine, cool kids accessories and sorta-subversive stained glass.

"When you think of stained glass, you don't think of bacon and eggs," said Sarah Cravens, one of the glass artists behind Bad Ass Glass. "We just tried to have fun."

The exchange is an example of what artists such as Ford call an art show "revival," where the pieces become more local, more handcrafted and less expensive. Last year, the event -- held during a First Friday event at the Harrison -- attracted several thousand people. This year, the exchange goes biannual, with another show in early October.

"There's more of an appreciation for doing things by hand with younger people," said Eric Nolan, an artist behind Flatland Kitchen screen prints. "The mind-set has changed a bit from the old days when it was primarily older people buying older people's art. I think people want handmade things and they want local things."