The last day to take in this holiday gift event at the Baum School of Art is December 21. On that day, you can attend the closing reception as well as the rest of Destination Arts: Third Thursday, when Downtown Allentown is filled with arts related events and there are restaurant specials, happy hours, live music, late retail shopping and the Allentown Art Museum is free and open until 8pm.
The Holiday Gift Gallery’s reception hours are 6-8 PM, December 21. Baum School of Art is located at 510 Linden Street, Allentown, PA.
Yesterday, I participated in the indiemade craft market in Allentown, PA, a long-time favorite show of mine. The event was founded by Ann and Teri ten years ago, and I’ve been in nine of them. It’s a holiday party for me, I always feel; I see many art friends there as exhibitors and I have been lucky to find customers who return to see me year after year and who have become art friends as well.
Ann and Teri are retiring from the show this year and turning it over to Ken and Ron, who have a studio/shop, Mercantile Home, in nearby Easton, PA, as well as a lot of other art ventures that reach out into the community (they explain it better than I can: look here.) There is a sadness about saying goodbye to the founders and the hope that we will be seeing them still (I think they ought to take over one of the DIY areas at indiemade, just saying), but also a welcome for the new guys. Best of luck to everyone, I say!
OK. Back to the show. We set off about 6:30 in the morning and made our usual stop at the gas station, this time in Colmar, PA.
Our car, named Cara Mia, is there in the background with her lights on.
Wawa is a local chain gone regional and you can find one pretty much everywhere around here.
It is about 7 AM on Saturday and look at how busy this place is. People need gas and coffee.
We arrived about 7:45 AM. You may remember this show gives out a swag bag, filled with contributions from the artists, to the first 50 people in the door. Three people were in line as we started to unload and upon asking, I learned that Person #1 had been there since 7:15 AM (the show opens at 10 AM). Now, I think that’s crazy, but plenty of people don’t agree. I have heard stories of how friends get together to wait in line and have made an occasion of it. I like that idea.
We unloaded – I have tiles only at this show today. Our table was upstairs – the show takes place on two levels, with the downstairs being the majority of the vendor locations, but I like upstairs. Both floors have music and people chattering and so on, but upstairs is toned down from the first floor, making it a more relaxing and easier to talk to customers, I think.
Here is upstairs – we are the first people to arrive.
Vendors came in and got things going.
The table down the middle is a DIY location – the show features two spots where guided art activities for all ages take place. Upstairs, we had paper flowers and origami (many kids were wearing paper crowns made at this location); downstairs was macrame.
I snapped a few pictures of my table before the show started. As a note, each person gets an 8-foot table provided by the show – you do the rest.
Now here is where my chronicle loses coherence. It was a really busy day for me and I was very happy about that. I didn’t get to make many more pictures, though. Here is a view of our floor not too long into the show.
And that is about it. I want to say thanks to Ann and Teri for so many good years and for their friendship. And here is a shout-out to John G and Missy M for stopping in to see me.
This being the last show for me in 2017, I also want to say thanks to all the people throughout this year have looked at my art, were interested enough to listen to me talk about it, who encouraged me or admired my work and told me so; who bought my art and want to live with a little bit of my vision of the world.
I am especially grateful for all the friends I have made in this art circuit I’ve been on for so many years.
And, thank you to my husband who has so faithfully and patiently and cheerfully supported all my doings for these past two decades that we’ve been participating in art shows. Here is to many more.
I wish everyone a happy 2018 in art and in all other things.
My racks to the right, along with my husband (in the black Iron Pigs shirt).
Once again I have tiles in this holiday event, taking place from November 30 to December 21 at the Baum School of Art, Allentown, PA. The Baum School is a wonderful art center in downtown Allentown (510 Linden Street) and sponsors exhibits, classes, and other art activities all year long.
There will be two receptions:
Opening Reception – November 30, 6-8 PM
Closing Reception – December 21, 6-8 PM. This reception coincides with Destination Arts: Third Thursday, when Downtown Allentown is the location for lots of arts-related events and there are restaurant specials, happy hours, live music, late retail shopping and the Allentown Art Museum is free and open until 8pm.
It’s December, and that means the indiemade craft market, Allentown, PA, is back. This show is dear to my heart for a lot of reasons, and especially so this year. Ann and Teri started this event 10 years ago to showcase quirky and original craft. They have done much more than that – they’ve created a welcoming place for artists and crafters to exhibit, they put on a show that is a party as well, and they have become friends I value highly.
This year is the last year they will run the show; they are turning it over to a capable successor and the show will go on. But it won’t be the same without them, and I for one will miss their involvement.
So this year is special.
Come and see the show. I’ll have tiles and other clay items for sale. Don’t forget, there is a swag bag for the first 50 adult attendees. I warn you, you will need to get in line a couple of hours early if you want to get in on this last bit!
1221 S. Front Street, Allentown, PA, is the location. Hours are 10 AM to 5 PM on Saturday, December 2, 2017.
Yesterday, Sunday, October 15, my husband and I participated in the Bloomfield Farm Day Insider Art and Craft Show.
Bloomfield Farm is part of the Morris Arboretum, located about 15 minutes from my house. We are members, which is how I was able to participate – exhibitors are all staff or members of the Arboretum.
Bloomfield Farm is a section of the Arboretum that is not generally open to the public to wander, though it contains the education center in which classes are held. There is a historic grist mill which has been restored by volunteers on the site as well as research projects in progress on the grounds.
This event allows the public to see the site, visit the art and craft show, listen to music, and tour the ground and building. The grist mill also goes into operation and is open for tours.
OK. I’d never done this show before, so I didn’t know what to expect. I gathered that it would be a low-key day, given the location, the event’s multiple purposes, and the fact that it was to last only four hours.
We arrived – the weather was cool and gray, but not raining.
We exhibitors were arrayed near the education center. Set-up was peaceful and easy.
The show allocated a table for each of us. We brought our tent and another table. I had decided to exhibit just my small paintings today. Our set up was so pleasantly quick and easy.
Other things were happening. The 4H club from a local high school (in the city of Philadelphia but with an agricultural program) brought some of their charges to the show – 2 pigs, a calf, a black and white bunny, and 2 sheep. You can imagine how popular they were. The animals and the kids all seemed to enjoy being there.
There was music over by the barn. The barn was not open for tours – maybe in the future, as I think it is being restored. Originally it served as the dairy barn for the farm. Now the musicians had it for their backdrop.
The education center is LEED-certified and a really nice complex.
This building, and several others, had a green roof. You might not believe this, but this is a big garage housing farm and agricultural equipment. If you went on the other side, you’d see tractors and snowplows and so on through giant doors.
The weather never cleared, but then, it never rained or even threatened, either. There was a steady crowd through our area and the parking lot was full. The atmosphere was very relaxed; at any one time the people were very spread out over the grounds taking tours, viewing the trees, and so on.
I saw some really nice work and some people were also demonstrating crafts – there was a group of people weaving that caught my attention. I had a lot of visitors and yet had plenty of time to talk to each group. Unlike some shows, the visitors were paying close attention to what we were displaying and wanted to discuss it. I liked that.
Several friends came by – shout out to John G. and Penny and Rob. I also had time to talk to several exhibitors and I really enjoyed that. I guess you can tell I felt the show was a success and I look forward to coming back next year.
Next Sunday I will be at the Bloomfield Farm Day/Insider Art Show & Sale at the Morris Arboretum. I’ve never done this show before, so I am looking forward to it. Hours are Noon to 4 PM.
It will be held at the Bloomfield Farm section of the site and admission is free (if you want to visit the Arboretum across the street, you will still need to pay).
I’m taking paintings, and my display will be small – filling a table, I think. Let’s see what I can fit into my space!
I think this will be a nice way to end the outdoor 2017 season.
Well, everyone, this festival is history, and a nice memory it has turned out to be. Let me tell you about it.
The event is put on by the Community Arts Center, Wallingford, PA, but is held in the downtown section of Swarthmore, PA, just down the road. Swarthmore is a small borough and home of Swarthmore College – the downtown is not large but is enticingly full of shops and The idea is that you unload and then move the car out of the way. So we did, and got busy setting things up.
The weather was perfect, more like summer than early fall. Things at this stage of a show are quiet but everyone is moving. That’s a friend of mine carrying a painting down the street to his booth.
The raffle tent gets dressed in a purple skirt.
We got things done and ready to go.
Things always start off quietly but this show picked up speed quickly.
Here are some shots of my location. My husband is great at handling things when I am away from the booth. I am grateful for his help and his presence. Many people do not have a spouse or partner to help them and doing a show by yourself is hard work.
We were located very near the music. My favorite was a group called SwUkestra. Or – the Swarthmore Ukulele Orchestra. As the leader said, the best ukulele orchestra in Swarthmore. Well, I’m a fan. They played and sang a variety of selections, including “Unchain My Heart”, a favorite that I sang along with. Loved it.
Well, things wound down as we got near closing time.
At 5 PM we packed up. Here are a few of our possessions waiting to go into the car. The box with a couple of spaces – that’s a good thing, because it means – sales!
So that’s the report. The CAC put on a very well-organized show, pleasant to attend. They always do and it’s a pleasure to be in it. I saw several people I knew and had a lot of fun. Until next year!
