Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Just Hear Those Sleigh Bells Ringaling

Pictures by Bea

So we went to the Christmas In July art show this past weekend, and had more fun than people should be allowed to have, visiting their sister. This is because there was shopping involved, and it wasn't for the cheapest groceries, or socks and underwear. No, no, it was shopping for beautiful handmade things made by folks we know and love. Here I wave at Bea, because I forgot to even bring my camera with me. I felt naked all day long.Here are some of the dolls made by The Fairies Nest. The Crow Woman in the foreground is one of my all time favorites of hers. I want to have her come live at my house but I'm afraid it would mean her death - my many cats would delight in tearing the feathers off of this exquisite flight of fancy, and then I would have to mass exterminate and Geez! that's tough to explain to the kids! This was a brand new fairy - I'm ashamed to say I've forgotten her name (I think the wassail might have been spiked), something like Callie Ente, 'cause she's the Hot Sauce Fairy! I just love this doll, from her red pepper overdress and her little buttoned boots, to her tiny little bottle of Tabasco! This fairy is a cat guardian, by the name of Kit. Her cat's name is Thomas. Her pinafore is made from a fabric that has little cats all over it. The cat was my favorite part of this - I really want a trio of them in different colors, to put in a basket. Like Callie, Kit also has the new boot foot, which has bitty little beads sewn on as buttons. It's the details that make these dolls so incredible!This one is called The Autumn Harpist. He is a very groovy Cerunnos type of woodland deity, with his antlers on his forehead the incredible little lyre he's holding. I played around with arranging him when no one was looking. Oh alright - so I re-arranged all of them - hey, she's my sister - I can play with her dolls if I want!This mermaid is another of the bigger dolls and is really a one of a kind. She's hanging next to a display tree of okra ornaments. These things are wild - they twist and curl in all sorts of shapes! They are both bizarre and beautiful at the same time, and I've gotten hooked on collecting them.As you may know from previous posts, I have a pottery Jones. I rarely get to give in to it, but the hand painted flowers and designs on these pieces of Earthworks Pottery are so incredibly rendered, like little paintings on each piece, that they're irresistible. This is the one I want! Check out the okras - they are so funky and fun!There were other things for sale too; crocheted shawls and hats (I had my eye on a raspberry beret, and even modelled it, while singing the requisite Prince song. Oh, you know you would do it too!), handmade marbled paper and books, and jewelry. I don't know why Bea didn't take pictures of them - it could have been the wassail - but at least she remembered to bring her camera, so she was doing far better than I was!

So how was your weekend?

9 comments:

Chanda (aka Bea) said...

Why didn't I take pictures of the other stuff?? Surely I did. Damn that wassail. It was a great time though, and I didn't even feel guilty about spending money on such beautiful stuff.... Just don't tell my checkbook what I've done.

thailandchani said...

Those are really beautiful dolls. I might have even bought the Autumn Harpist. :)

Saphira said...

I LOVE the Autumn Harpist.

flutter said...

this whole post made me so happy!

bandick said...

I'm sorry but I cannot read anything related to Christmas. It just stopped snowing like three days ago and we just (literally) got the boat in the water so I refuse to think about the dark side of the year.

Although, if I were to have browsed the post, I'd have to say the pottery is lovely.

FairiesNest said...

Thanks for the plug sis! I love those okra ornaments, I have about as many as a tree can legitimately hold and yet every year I find one more! The harpist is still for sale here (shameless plug alert!) http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=7069010
Just in case anyone is interested!

hele said...

"beautiful handmade things made by folks we know and love."

Can there be anything better? I think not :)

Jennifer S said...

The fairies are beautiful!

And I love pottery, too.

Gypsy said...

God, that looks like fun! :) Beautiful, lovely things.