A lot of people know Carey Gustafson as the former bass player behind Blush, then drummer for Outrageous Cherry and then keyboard player for Johnny Headband. A lot of other people know her as one of the three masterminds (along with Stephanie Tardy and Lish Dorset) of Handmade Detroit and the Detroit Urban Craft Fair. Others know her as a stained glass artist with her own company called Glass Action. And still others know her as the driving force behind the annual Zombie Dance Party.
Friends and visitors to her Ferndale bungalow know Carey as a Muppets and Monkees maniac. Muppet band action-figures, a Monkee-mobile, a Mickey Dolenz autographed Monkees 45 and a Kermit doll used a music stand are but a few pieces of genius memorabilia found lying around. “You can’t outrun what you loved as a kid” Gustafson says.
The Zombie Dance Party — an annual musical freakout at the Magic Stick — started here four years ago as dual celebration of her getting fired from a stained glass gig and her emergence as a self-employed artist. Carey’s company, Glass Action, makes stained glass crafts and works on commission. Her Ziggy Stardust night-light is arguably the most popular and iconic item she makes.
The basement serves as a practice space for her new all-chick trio, Serenity Court (with her sister-housemate Emily), as well as her studio for Glass Action. Working with glass definitely leads to more than a few cuts and scratches. “I’ll never be a hand model,” quips Gustafson.
Handmade Detroit will have tables set up at the Magic Stick for this Wednesday’s Blowout Launch
