Country Living Fair 2011

I have been waiting patiently for this fair to come back to Atlanta... remember when I posted about it last year?  Finally the magical Friday came and my friend Noelle and I whisked our way up to Stone Mountain Park to witness the magazine pages come to life!!

To be perfectly honest I thought the fair was better last year.. maybe because it had lots of the same vendors so the "wow" factor was gone for me.  The fairgrounds were set up exactly the same with the famous pumpkin mountain at the entrance.

I did enjoy seeing the Sisters on the Fly set up..  here Noelle is in line to get a peek inside.

I don't think the girl would do to good in one of those things.. she is so dang tall!

Very cute interior though.  Next we saw my friend Joanna from Findings.  Her and I are on the same business blog together and I love her stories about selling at the Fairs.  She travels all over selling her jewelry wholesale at the Gift Markets and she also takes her 18 wheeler truck to the Country Living Fair in Columbus, Ohio.  I can't imagine working that hard.. LOL! 

I did buy from her a unique Ironstone platter for my collection... love it Joanna!  Next Noelle and I had some of the BBQ Pork and glazed candy pecans which was conveniently at the stand next door.

I honestly could eat several bags of these.. I did find this recipe for them which I will trying very soon.

So as I said before.. I was a bit disappointed this year because I only saw a handful of new ideas and products (and frankly for a $16 admission price I wanted to be "wow"ed).  Here are some the things I thought were clever...

Poinsettias made from Burlap..

Necklace made from crewel work...

I really could do lots with these Vintage Grain Sacks...

Even though she was there last year, I always am inspired by the Happy Chair booth.  Look at this Mermaid!!

A work of art indeed.  Found some great new ways to dress up my mannequins this Christmas at Gillyweed.

Same fabric pumpkins from last year but I thought the display was brilliant.

I bought some ceramic wine labels this year that I will be putting on leather cuffs for presents.

And finally my regret... This turkey was only $24 but I walked away!  Oh well, I'm sure it will be there again next year!

Did you go to the Fair too.. what did you think?

Palette Knife Landscapes week 1....

Funny how in the last post I mentioned that I would be adding "Teacher" to my resume as I have been asked to teach several classes at the Corner Arts Studios in downtown Newnan (last I checked I think they are almost full too!).  What I really am is a perpetual "Student".. I love the thrill of learning new things and taking classes.  I've learned how to do sublimation, encaustics, fused glass, enameling, soldering, crocheting, making websites, the list goes on!  I've taken classes from Sally Jean Alexander, Stephanie Lee, Laurie Meseroll, Jennifer Murphy, and Gina Adams.  Today I can add Dawn Kinney Martin to my list!

Dawn Kinney Martin is an Atlanta based artist specializing in the Palette Knife technique.. one that resembles Encaustics by its rich textures and dimensions.  So off I went to the Spruill Art center today to start week 1 of my 3 week lesson.  First I stopped at Utrecht Art Supply store in downtown Atlanta to get all my acrylic paints and palette knives.  After a quick lunch at the Perimeter Mall, I was off to meet Dawn.

Here she is explaining how to paint with a knife and how to get started "mapping out" your project.

Did I mention that this is what the finished piece is suppose to look like.... ummmmm let's hope!

Mapping out the project starts with taking a BW photo of your inspiration, drawing a grid on it for scale, then painting a monochromatic sketch of the piece to find Value & Light.

Then comes the actual paint on canvas... any color could be used for the first layer

then, according to my grid, I add in the land mass.

And finally I start adding my first layer of color using only that white little knife you see next to the painting.

Can't wait to see what week 2 & 3 bring...

Enjoy!

Add "TEACHER" to the resume...

Okay peeps...I am finally getting up the nerve to teach an Encaustic Class!  OMG my stomach is already in knots just thinking about it but if the little engine could.. so can I!!   My first Encaustic Class will be this Poppy painting because honestly if I had chosen anything else, my dear Friends Mary and Julie would have killed me!  So please come join us November 12th from 2pm-4pm or November 16th from 10am-12pm at The Corner Arts Gallery & Studio. 

The Corner Arts is a brand new Gallery in downtown Newnan owned by Jenny Jones.  It is located at 14 Jefferson Street, next to The Times Newnan Herald building.  I am doing small classes (6-8 people) so that I can give each and every student my full attention. 

The cost of the Poppy class will be $65 and the only supplies you will need are an apron and your own set of natural bristle brushes like the ones shown below.  This set came from Michaels for only $5.99.  These will be your brushes to keep because you will soon find out how addictive Encaustics can be...

Please contact Jenny at 678-633-5705 to sign up for one of the Poppy classes.  You can also contact me if you have any questions or concerns about the Encaustic process. 

Enjoy!

Love At First Sight...

Steve and I met about 3 weeks ago at Angel's Antiques and it was love at first sight!!  Then I got cold feet and went home w/o the little fella.  Later that evening I said "Mirror Mirror on the Wall..(which means on posted on facebook).. How much of a redneck would I be if I went back for him?"  Okay let me clarify here that Steve was not really intended for me but for my adorable son who happens to be obsessed with squirrels.  His birthday is tomorrow!  Many of you said do it.. some said I was crazy.  Crazy in love yes indeed!!!  Steve was very excited to come home with me too... seems the last squirrel got eaten by the Bob Cat who also lives at Angel's Antiques!

Many birds wanted to come home with me too but alas my heart belonged to only Steve.

At one point, Sally tried to woo Steve away from me with her wild ways...

but he didn't fall for that vixen!  He told me later that he was afraid of Sally's purse... which was made from very soft animal fur.

Mary tried to avoid the whole love quarrel between Sally and I...

I think somebody had doe eyes on Mary as she was leaving the scene...

In the end, Steve chose me for my nice rack...

Your chariot awaits handsome! 

PS...  One comment from Facebook that I would like to share concerning my love for Steve was from Mrs. Sally herself..."dear Lord, just don't get him any cow horns! tee hee".  Let me just point out that the cow horns were in fact purchased by Sally! 

Enjoy!!

 

Getting Cozy....

Here are a few pictures of my booth re-do at Rockin B Antiques.  Re-do indeed because I moved my booth again (yes it is the 3rd time) to another location closer to the front of the store.  The reason for the move is that the 10x14 space I was in previously was only a temporary move until a 10x10 opened up for me.  I loved having the bigger space but I really wanted something more cozy.  Plus I have been selling all of my huge items (lucky me) and don't really need the larger space anymore.  So here it is...

my 5' plushy greeter to the space...

as you can see it is fully decorated in vintage Halloween..love!

one of my favorite finds to date is this vintage turquoise blue modern chair.

 

a must have for any Haunted House.. a Vintage Ouija Board.

 

a little wooden Boo sign.

and one of my favorite pieces from the old store... this was in the bathroom.

Enjoy!



Island Living...

House Hunters International (on HGTV) has been my new addiction lately.  Since moving to the burbs of Atlanta 15 years ago, this Floridian has been dreaming of a beach hut near the coast... but lately the lures of the Caribbean have been calling to me!  My husband, although intrigued by the idea, swears I would not like island living.  "You can't sit still and you would be bored in a months time" he says.  I beg to differ, I would say, "I did grow up in Antigua."  Well technically I lived there from ages 5-7.. but still

who wouldn't want to live in a house like India Hick's home in the Bahamas

inside her gorgeous 1950's bungalow.. notice the huge sailboat?

This 30"x 35" Union Jack Pond Yacht is available at Gillyweed for $95.

Okay so I can't have the Island or for that matter Beach Bungalow right now. (anyone want to purchase a commercial building in Carrollton, Ga?)  I can, however, start accumulating sources for style inspiration.. like these amazing furniture collections.  Xavier Furniture, mostly known for their French Provencal (my other love) and Hampton's style pieces, has a new Caribbean line that is so pretty. 

 

  

 

 The Stuart Membery Home Collection would be the perfect choice for outdoor verandas, porches, and sunrooms.   

 

 

Curse you House Hunters International!!!!

Enjoy

Art Walk Weekend

 Looking back at old Art Walk posts from this blog and my old one, I found that I always post pictures of how I re-arranged the store or the new products that had just arrived.  I rarely posted pictures of my artwork.  Yes that is right... my art!  I don't call myself an artist.. I call myself a dabbler.  My medium is Encaustic Wax which basically means lots (and lots) of melted wax gets layered on top of each other.  Then I painstakingly scrap away bit by bit, here and there to get the image I want.   Here are a few recent ones I did for the upcoming Art Show this Friday, September 14th.

Birds Nest.. this is in one of Philip's new frame designs.  Love it- $125

The Regatta... Box Frame made from Salvage Trim- $150

Don't let the picture fool you, this piece is actually 30 1/2" long..  The Offering- $350

Lakeside... $95

Marigolds... $150

Sea Spirit... $300

Hope to see you strolling around Mainstreet this Friday!