Wednesday, March 28, 2012

A Summary of Inactivity

It never rains, but it pours.... : (
I must admit, the last few months have been an interesting mix of lazy and hectic.  Following the much-anticipated American Folk Festival in August, I allowed myself to fall into a deep, dark, imagination-less pit of inactivity.  I would walk into my workroom, sit in my comfy chair, and just stare at the balls of yarn, bottles of paint and rows of blank pine horse heads around me without the slightest little spark of imagination.  During this time, I continued to sell off my stock of horses left over from the Festival, which had taken a severe hit to its attendance by a highly advertised and warned against "hurricane" that the Weather Channel quietly reduced, with tail between their legs, to "tropical storm" and finally to an embarrassingly low impact day of light rain showers and gloomy, oppressive clouds.  So, needless to say, the lack of activity at the Festival left me in a similarly overcast state of mind.


One of 5 Fireflies' adorable creations!

This anti-creative funk would have lasted until goodness-knows-when, had it not been for my new, eternally bubbly and positive minded friend Kathy Gearheart, one of the pivotal owners and artists behind the adorable family boutique Five Fireflies.  (I know you just saw the link there, why are you still reading?  No, really, I must encourage you to take the few moments required to click on the link and check it out, as all of her stuff is just the cutest and there is something for everyone!!)  Kathy extended to me an invitation to start the crafting year off right with an inspired event aptly entitled "Not Your Grandma's Craft Fair".  March 3rd, the day of the big shebang, followed a similar weather pattern to that of my previous event, but spirits inside the building were in drastic contrast to the misty, cold, dark atmosphere outdoors.  I owe Kathy a great big THANK YOU!!!, as without her I'm sure I would still be slumped over in my chair, desperately clutching a paintbrush and staring at it blankly through glazed, twitching eyes.

Justice and her favorite Painted Pony, "Dot"
Kathy's daughter Justice was one of my number one fans at the event, as she frequented my humble little booth in a regular pattern every 5-10 minutes, picking up one fuzzy finger puppet or another, or perhaps turning my little carousel style display to watch the array of painted ponies go 'round-and-'round for her.  She was even so kind as to take some of my ponies for laps around the event, "test riding" them for her own benefit and giving them some much needed exercise after weeks of being packaged up in bubble wrap and stacked in a corner.  My girl Justice is pictured here with her favorite pony, "Dot", who she landed on as the star of my wares after much debate and many more laps riding several other possible candidates!  She was very accommodating and allowed me to snap a quick photo of her posing with her with the chosen pony.



New design, "Monty" and new accessory,
handmade leather halter



So, where does that leave us now?  Ever since the "Not Your Grandma's" event, I have had a constant steady stream of ideas for accessories, design ideas, new tack, etc.  My work room is now, once again, splattered with dozens of colors of acrylic paint, scattered with bits of yarn & scraps of fabric, and crammed in every possible corner with small herds of wooden ponies.  YAY for inspiration!!

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