Let's Face it......

It's been a tough week.  After a not-too serious fall on Sunday, I am nevertheless moving slowly in my last minute preparations for the St. James Court Art Fair this weekend.   My scraped up face (yes, I face-planed across that mulch and dirt with great impact!) looks worse than it feels, but sore muscles and bruises have kept me in bed with ice packs.
I can hardly wait to greet 200,000 visitors to the show this weekend looking like a battered babe, but I will be there with some new pieces providing nothing happens between here and Louisville!

Stop by and see the new work, and my new face!  Booth #409 on the court!

No More Monkey'n Around!

Yes, time has run out...no more monkey'n around.  We are putting the final touches on pieces for the Fourth Street Festival of the Arts and Crafts this weekend here in sunny (not rainy) Bloomington, IN.

"Stop by" and see us in booth #98.  

Bloomington's own CandyLand

Yes, the U Hauls are circling and thousands of shower curtains,  desk lamps and mini refrigerators line the shelves of Target.   Landlords have been hauling out the old and installing the new.
Bloomington residents know this signals the start of the new school year.  The on-going cycle of young, eager-to-learn, and ready-to-party students return to our bucolic B-ton.  

This year, some lucky students will be signing a lease to live in "CandyLand", one of Bloomington's most colorful rentals owned by an equally colorful and cool landlord!

He can be seen here approving the installation of his new "CandyLand" mosaic.  

Pork n' Stein

Pork n' Stein, a photo by Moe's Ache on Flickr.

This little piggy's going to market....
Pork n' Stein will make his debut at the Fourth Street Festival of the Arts and Crafts Labor Day weekend.

• A recent article in Eco-Artwear Notes featuring our recycled pieces  reminded me that I need to start making mailboxes again.  

With the advent of  email and texting in addition to postal rate hikes and less "snail mail", I was questioning if we even need mailboxes anymore. 

But after some thought on the matter, I realize we do.  Ever since I was a kid the sound of the postman coming up to the door meant the possibility of something just "for me".

As a resident of a neighborhood with older homes, we have the luxury of a mailbox mounted on our porch.  I know the sound of the lid being closed, signaling that the postman "cometh" and among the (albeit fewer) pieces of junk mail, bills and pizza coupons there may be some correspondence of the old fashioned personal kind.  

So, I am going to re-visit my stash of "orphan mailboxes" I have acquired over the years and start tiling!  Maybe the "build it, they will come" idea will work.  A beautiful mosaic mailbox with a real handwritten letter tucked inside waiting for the recipient.  Nothing better! 

Swimming Up Stream

Here it is 4 days before the Krasl Art Fair. The studio looks like a disaster zone,  partially finished pieces cover the work tables, the floor is crunchy with glass and packing material sits in "stand by" mode.  What happened to June?  Why will I never be ready for the next show?
We always look forward to Krasl.  A beautiful show in Saint Joseph, MI, on the bluff overlooking Lake Michigan.  This year they celebrate their 50th anniversary.  What once started as a "clothesline" art fair in 1962 has now turned into one of the nicest, juried art fairs in the midwest.  I'm always excited when I get my "acceptance", but never seem to have enough time to finish all the work I want to share with the patrons.  Although, Bud (packer-boy) will disagree with me when it comes time to load all the new work in the van!

So, back to the studio to put the finishing touches on the new pieces.  'Hope you will stop by this weekend, July 9 10 a.m to 6 p.m. and July 10 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.  We'll be in booth #181, just in front of the gardens across from the art center.

If I Only Had A Crystal Ball....

Well, it's not crystal, but our new gazing ball stand with cool blue tempered glass ball is finished and will debut at the Talbot Street Art Fair this weekend, June 11-12.  
Gazing globes as we all know look fabulous in the garden.  They also come with a rather fabulous legend.
A globe was said to bring happiness, good luck and prosperity to those who owned it. The globe was known to ward off evil spirits, misfortune, illness and, of all things, witches!  Some say the ball should be placed near the entrance to the house so that if a witch came to your house she would not be able to get past her reflection as she cannot tear herself away from her own image. There are other accounts that say a witch cannot bear to see her own reflection so she will not come near a "witch’s ball"
A more practical use for these beauties originated in the south.  Placed strategically by the path from the front gate, one could see from the veranda who was calling before the caller could see them, allowing plenty of time to prepare refreshments for their guest or to hide — whichever was fitting.
Whether you love the legend, or just the beauty of a unique piece of art in the garden, gazing balls are predictably cool!