Arts and Crafts Movement

What a long but glorious weekend! I spent Friday through Sunday selling my sewn little goodies at the Cabarrus Arena. The turn out was great, the vendors were better than usual (and usually wonderful!!), and I sold a fair amount of my stuff!
Ignoring the spirit of the show, Christmas, I didn't buy any gifts for others, but I did buy a gorgeous mirror framed in a 3 inch strip of bead board. I kept staring at it across the aisle the entire show, and the last evening I went to check it out, held it up against the table cloth I'm turning into curtains, and it was (surprisingly) perfect! The bead board is painted in muted, fall-inspired colors, which really struck me. I wondered if it was just because of the crisp Autumn weather we're starting to feel. On the way home I realized I have no idea what the names are of the people who made it.
Then, this morning, I visited Creative Swoon, saw the work of PBCP Studios and fell in love with their darkly themed skull painting. At $45.00 it was irresistible, and if I can get over my selfishness, it just might become a Christmas gift for a very special friend. (If you're reading this, very special friend, and you think it's you, well, it isn't you. This is for someone else, no matter how perfect you think it is for you.)
And in other arts and crafts news, I would like to extend a warm welcome to the Charlotte Craft Mafia. So far it seems to be all gals on the organizational level, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed that guys won't be too intimidated to get in there and get active. It is great for Charlotte to have this group, we seem to have an understated arts culture that is being swallowed alive by the banks and corporations. I can't wait to see what great things happen with the Craft Mafia in town!!