Welcome to the
Affordable Art Revolution!
Created by Kelly J. Mendenhall
The mission of the Affordable Art Revolution is to spread love and joy to Spoonies everywhere through art and the written word. We are determined to make artisan and handmade crafts and goods more accessible to people with disabilities in every way.
Everything in the store is Name-Your-Price. There are no wrong answers.
You choose your price from the options available for each item, based on what best fits and honors your needs and budgetary constraints.
In addition, you may choose to pay for your order in full or select one of the pay-in-four options (PayPal, Klarna, or Afterpay) at checkout.
This pricing structure supports the mission of making artisan and handmade goods available and accessible to people with disabilities everywhere.
Custom or personalized orders for items like embroidery hoops or Christmas stockings are stitched in the order they are received; no one gets preferential treatment based on what they can pay. I may occasionally rush an order if someone has a specific event or gift-giving occasion they are ordering for.
PLEASE NOTE:
Our home is dog-friendly. Our home is smoke-free.
Unless noted otherwise, everything in this store is lovingly handmade by me, Kelly J. Mendenhall.
Please get in touch with me if you would like to contribute to the Affordable Art Revolution and support this shop.
Everything in the store is name-your-price, with price options for each item; you choose what feels best to you. I include the cost of materials and the hours spent creating each item in the description to give shoppers an idea of what goes into making each item. I will always credit artists for patterns I use and link to their shops when possible.
You will choose how much you wish to pay for an item when you order. You may also tip me after you receive your item.
It generally takes 80 hours to complete a stocking or 6-piece ornament set, which is double a full-time workweek, so please order with as much notice as possible. Depending on how many are in the queue before you, I can take 3-6 months to complete and mail a custom or personalized order. You may view the full shipping policy HERE. You may also review the return policy HERE.
Yes! You can support the Revolution without buying an item in the store!
Subscribe to the newsletter for special shop promotions and early access to shop drops!
Please note: Orders are crafted in the order they are received unless you indicate a special event or deadline in your order or email me to discuss.
Previous Works by Kelly J. Mendenhall
I am a Plaid Crafts Creator. Use my code, Kelly124, to save 15% on your purchases at Plaid Online.
Affordable Art Revolution
Affordable Art Revolution
- ALL PRODUCTS
- Heirloom Felt Christmas Stockings (Bucilla/Plaid/MerryStockings)
- Heirloom-Quality Felt Ornaments (Plaid Crafts/Bucilla/MerryStockings)
- Embroidery Hoops by Kelly J. Mendenhall
- Miscellaneous Items by Affordable Art Revolution
- Home Decor
- Guest Artists' Work
- Downloadable Products for the Affordable Art Revolution
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Kelly’s Crafty Background and FAQs
I love art, artisan-made items, and hand-crafted items. I grew up loving those things, influenced by my mom, the mosaic artist who knits quilts, spins wool, hooks rugs, you get the idea.
Looking back on my childhood, I realize I never knew how tight things were financially because we were always doing something. Most of the time, we created things at home or spent time at the Flint Public Library and museums. We also got to attend art classes at the Flint Institute of Arts. I have to hand it to my mom. She did a great job of doing a lot with a little.
As a disabled adult with minimal income, art and one-of-a-kind handmade items often feel out of my financial reach unless I create them, which is why I started the Affordable Art Revolution.
I was inspired by my musician friends who have held virtual concerts with “pay-what-you-can” ticket prices. My friend, a fabulous musician, did a “pay-what-you-can” songwriting promotion for the holidays in 2020. I paid $75 for a custom song written for Jeff, my Person, as a Christmas gift. I otherwise would never have been able to get him such a meaningful gift. It is one of our most prized “possessions.”
Crafting became my self-care as an adult.
I began learning appliqué and embroidery with Bucilla felt kits in 2016. Hand stitching and sewing became my soul’s refuge when I became disabled. I didn’t know just how much of a part of my life stitching would be.
I live with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD), Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). I am also on the Autism Spectrum. In addition to my mental health diagnoses, I live with severe chronic pain and multiple conditions and diagnoses that contribute to that pain. Mainly, it all revolves around my spine. (You can learn more about my medical experiences and things at my old blog, Nerdzilla Lives!)
For about 3 years, I lived mostly on a couch. There were periods when I couldn’t walk or sit upright and lost about 95% of my mobility. It seems like fate that I would have picked this hobby up just about six months before the worst of my pain hit. And as bad as the physical pain was, it was almost nothing compared to the emotional and medicalized trauma I experienced while searching for answers regarding my pain. Hand stitching, for me, is meditative, which positively impacts my anxiety.
Stitch. Breathe. Stich. (Throw in some ‘pray’ now and again. Now also throw in a little “bitch” because stitching and bitching can also be a thing.)
That about sums up how I got through six major surgeries and 5.5 years of a legal battle over my disability benefits.
Why do I create so many Bucilla/Plaid Crafts kits?
When I was a baby, my great-grandmother Mable made me (and all the other great-grandkids) a felt appliqué stocking. I love that stocking. I have loved it well my whole life. I am 40 as I write this, and this was the first year I didn’t hang anything in my stocking because it finally needed repairs.
When my older sister had her firstborn, I wanted to make him a stocking as unique as mine. Then, his sister came along, so I made her one. I was entirely hooked after that.
I’ve tried kits by other brands, and they were horrible, with the major exception of MerryStockings!