PA Guild Fine Craft Fair – Rittenhouse Square

Had a most enjoyable day at the Pennsylvania Guild Fine Craft Fair, 

held at Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia.

So many stellar handcrafted items! Here are a some of my favorites:

Raku orb lamps by Wender Pottery.

This polymer clay bowl was created by Emily Squires Levine, who was this year's recipient 

of the Guild's Benchmark Award for Excellence in the Unique Voice category. 

Congrats, Emily! Well-deserved. 

Handmade decorative tiles by Earthfire Greenware.

Glass on glass mosaic window hangings by Lucky Break Mosaics.

Art quilts and tablerunners by Rachel Derstine Designs.

Gyotaku, the art of Japanese fish rubbings by Michael Reimer Gyotaku.

Hand loomed bamboo shawls by Annaesthetic.

Ceramics by Lana Heckendorn.

To learn more about the Guild, or to see a schedule of upcoming Fine Craft Fairs,

visit the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen.

Choosing a Book

Igor Shin Moromisato

Courtesy of Teach.com, here's an infograph to help you out 

when you need some suggestions on what to read next!

Summer Reading Flowchart: What Should You Read On Your Break? infographic

Sojourner - Lambertville, NJ

I stopped by Sojourner, a great store with unique items from around the world.
Such inspiration to add a touch of the exotic to our decor!

There's something about finding a gem of a shop along a quaint street.

Richly crafted furniture pieces and accessories are brought in 
from all over the world, including Indonesia, China and Turkey.

 Lush fabrics! Cottons, velvets, silks. 
Ikat. Intricate embroidery.

These patterned skirts are just one example of the colorful clothing

you'll find from countries like Guatemala, Japan and Bali.

Here's the Sojourner website.

They're located at 26 Bridge Street in Lambertville, New Jersey.

Pippi Longstocking

Fancy Fig Leaf at Etsy

Does "Villa Villekula" mean anything to you?

If you've read Astrid Lindgren's beloved tale of Pippi Longstocking, 

then you know just what I'm talking about!

Pippi was one of my childhood favorites. 

Her kooky personality and wild, wacky adventures had me entranced.

I dug around to find several Pippi gift items that would be fun to give along with a copy of the book.

At Huset, I found a charming Pippi and Herr Nilsson doll set, plus some adorable birch trays.

I found cute ceramic mugs and a wooden Villa Villekula at Scandinavian Design Center.

Toy figurines for the house, plus some fun clothing can be seen at Lekmer.

 

Weren't Tommy & Annika so lucky to have a friend like Pippi?

Paper Cut Butterflies by Rebecca J. Coles

Paper artist Rebecca J. Coles sorts through stamps, hand-written and typed pages,

maps, and illustrations with her eye set on choosing particular colors and patterns.

Armed with scissors -very sharp ones, I'd imagine-

she transforms these bits of ephemera into beautiful butterflies.

Delicate butterflies, each with its own history, join together in a winged conglomeration!

The resulting piece of art is a bold, contemporary statement,
but as we look closer, we see each individual, fragile butterfly.

 

Rebecca delights in the process of reusing common paper

to draw, cut and shape lovely butterflies into a captivating 3D work of art!

Not entirely unlike the metamorphosis from their cocoons, I'd say.

 

 

Light and airy. So intricate! Just gorgeous.

 

Here's Rebecca's website.

 

 

 

All images used with direct permission from Rebecca J. Coles.