It's Holiday Craft Fair Season here on the south Island so we got a car and headed up the Saanich Peninsula for some crafting action. The weather was fine and the crowds were huge. I can't believe so many people live around here and they all seemed to be out at the craft fairs.
There are so many fairs here that we have to be selective in what we attend. Cindy and I have a process we enjoy. We chose the fair based on the building, so we have some new and funky architecture to check out. And then I gravitate towards the vendors that make things I would like to make myself. The painters, the print makers and the paper makers all get my special attention, followed by the functional craftspeople: the potters, woodworkers and knitters and weavers.
We satisfied our building criterion by going to the Saanich Fairgrounds and then the Japanese Pavilion at Gorge Park. The Gorge Pavilion has been on our list for a while and it did not disappoint. A lovely structure with huge but graceful cedar beams, set beside a gorgeous traditional Japanese Garden.
I purchased two small items for inspiration. A linocut card, to remind me that I want to make my own linocuts and learn printmaking, and also to remind me to send more cards and letters. And a small piece of pottery that I will use to hold my tea bag. It has a rustic but delicate painting of an orange slice in the bowl, and it reminds me that I need to paint more, and I need to embrace my own rough, rustic style. I don't need to paint a perfect orange; I need to paint something that reminds me of an orange (or a horse, or a house) with colours that make me happy.
Two little treasures to hold and look at often. Two reminders to sit down and make things often. It was a good day.
(Shout out to the amazing and inspiring RedPotPottery and Sparrow Printmaking )