arts – Country Design Home

Crafts from the Castle(berry)

It’s Wanderlust Wednesday, and this week we stayed close to home! During the last official weekend of summer, it was essential to get outside and enjoy the glorious New England weather. We ventured down to the Topsfield Fairgrounds

for the Castleberry Fair. Now, anyone from the New England area knows of the Topsfield Fair, the oldest country fair in the US, dating back to 1818. For 10 days every fall, these fairgrounds are home to carnival rides, livestock of all shapes and sizes and farmers vying for the grand prize in the Giant Pumkin Contest. These would make quite some Jack-O-Lanterns!

This weekend’s Castleberry Fair was a smaller sampling, with pop-up tents set amongst the (now empty) livestock and harvest barns. With handcrafted goods of all kinds, food trucks and a little country music, the fair was a nice way to spend a couple of hours in the warm afternoon sunshine. Whenever I attend these events, I always try to find something new, something out of the ordinary, something that you would not see at your local retailer. Todays finds included: Sue Handman Collage Art. A unique collection of hand-decorated clothing and bags.

With loads of cute quotes and vintage photos printed on fabric for a one-of-a-kind look.

Lovely. Felted. Feathered. Flowered hats from Blue Moon Design Studios of Wethersfield, Conn.

Docksmith Shop creates these organic docking stations for anything “i”- phones, pads or pods. Made from driftwood and rootwood, they are perfect for an eclectic, natural decor. Their slogan: ::plug into something real:: LOVE.

Hebert Honey David J. Hebert, from Oxford, Mass. offers a wide range of products that are 100% natural and organic.

You had me at Alpaca. This adorable face drew me into the booth of Clark Summit Alpacas from Deering New Hampshire.

The lovely Kari Lewis, co-owner, shared her story of the farm and its origins. They breed the alpacas for sale (check out their “alpacas to love” link, or to harvest their soft, luscious wool that is spun into skeins of yarn. From this wool they create stunning shawls, clothing and home accessories. Do you think Coach might consider adding an alpaca for the barn workshop?!

We’ve seen lots of alphabet photgraphy, framed into words, but these from Creative Letter Art are in a class of their own. Original, artistic, colorful photos are presented in specific genres: neon, beachy, architecture, musical. You can order your words directly from the website. This 3D wire mesh sculpture art from Peter Robinson-Smith was dramatic and eye-catching.

A country fair wouldn’t be complete without some food trucks! Love BostonPoppers Kettle Korn. Crunchy, sweet, best when freshly popped off the truck!

My final stop was to try a sample of this Muddy Mary’s Bloody Mary Mud.

This stuff is yummy- just add tomato juice and vodka! So, getting ready for the big one next weekend- Brimfield!!! Susan

“SOWA’rd Ya Go Sunday?”

Coach and I spent the better part of Sunday afternoon at the SOWA Vintage Market and Open Market in Boston’s South End. What fun!

The indoor market vintage shops are crammed with various and curious items for sale like art

and style

…and just plain sexy. This loveseat and chair were heart-stoppers for me!!

The artist, Holly Czapski, from Re-Furnish of West Concord, transforms pieces of old furniture into works of art. Using vintage photographs that she transfers onto fabric, she creates one-of-a-kind, stunning functional art pieces that could be the focal point of any room. AMAZING. You can reach her at holly@re-furnish.com

The larger part of SOWA is the outdoor farmer’s market and arts and crafts show. With pop-up tents filled with hand-crafted and vintage goods surrounded by food trucks of all shapes and sizes (kickass gourmet grilled cheese at Roxy’s, the line was 20 deep at all times!) this weekly event is not to be missed. If you are traveling to Boston, or just looking for an entertaining Sunday afternoon, SOWA is a must see. There is not room enough on this blog to note every item I deamed awesome and noteworthy. But I will highlight a few of my favs- for the rest, you’ll just have to go and shop for yourself. I am always searching for unique, quirky, fun items. I found a few here:

Love On The Blocks Your favorite photographs printed on to handcrafted birch blocks. The images are soft but true.

Nonsense Institute Whimsical creations by Anisa Asakawa. Handmade. Screen Printed. Recycled. Adorable.

Darn Good Barn Wood unique furniture made from reclaimed antique barn wood. Gorgeous finishes. Perfect for a country kitchen!

Oh How Cute Coasters! Started when a small, piggy-tailed kid was constantly over the coals for not having a coaster under her drink. Morphing the fear of water rings on furniture and a love of photography, Oh how cute! Coaster Co began. Handmade in New Bedford, MA.

Marcart Graphic art by Marc Roulstone. A must-have, since we had Bartlet the French Bulldog tagging along with us (with his mommy, who was stopped approximately every ten feet by Frenchie fans wanting to pat him and play with him. We must have heard “Oh, he’s sooooo cute!” at least 100 times! Being the celebrity that he apparently is, he took it all in stride. He was more interested in eating food droppings off the ground than acknowledging his admirers.

Those of you who know me and my blog, know how much I appreciate recycling in any form or fashion.

So here was a very fashionable recycling booth!

Manswap, sponsered by SOWA,

where you could bring your clean, gently used items and swap them. “Swap is the New Shop”. LOVE.

And finally, another unique shop, this time a converted school bus filled with vintage clothing. Great way to set up shop: drive up, park, sell your stuff, drive home. Gives a whole new meaning to the phrase “Sunday Drive”. Susan