FOLK ART

So I'm finding that I like Folk Art. The Museum Of National Folk Art describes Folk Art as "Art of the every day. It is rooted in the traditions that come from Community and Culture."

To me, there are two types of Folk Art.  One type of Folk Art is labeled "naive" in that it usually is created by someone with no art training but is created from someone's imagination and using just the materials one has on hand.

But I also think there are other kinds of Folk Art in which the Artist HAS had training. I found that many artists can't even agree as to a simple definition of the term "Folk Art".  It's kind of confusing, really.

These are two "Folk Art" dolls I have that I'm loving right now. 

 This funny lady held cleaning rags ( clean ones! ) for me but is now for sale in my Etsy Shop.

                                       This Folk Art Dog is also for sale. He has wheels and you can take him for a walk using his leash. You can also take the top off and put the dog's treats or toys in there. He's rather quirky, I know.

I have a lot of other fun Folk Art pieces, some of which I'm keeping and some that are for sale or WILL be!

Check out my Etsy Shop, Gwen And Alma's here.

Does anyone else collect Folk Art?

Thanks for stopping by!
Sandy

SIMPLIFYING AND NEW FINDS

I've been working on simplifying my life lately, paring things down to the important things in my life...like spending wild and crazy times with family and quiet time with God, trying to stay healthy by cooking more rather than going out to eat, getting enough rest and enough exercise ( important at my age ), and helping others through volunteer work. But I DO take time for fun, hobbies, and pleasure. So I have also made time for collecting treasures for Hob Nobbers and  Gwen And Alma's, my Etsy Store.

I've been pleasantly surprised how much I'm selling in my Etsy Store. Not that I'm "raking in the dough" but I thought it would take a few months at least for people to even "find me" considering there must be hundreds of thousands of little Etsy stores out there. But in the first two months I have made sales from New York, to Washington, to Oklahoma, to Virginia, and more! I keep wondering how they are finding me?! But it has been fun so I'll keep going and hopefully it will keep growing!

Assorted wooden bowls and utensils, shown here in wooden trough ( also for sale )

I've been slow to write on my other blog, My Balanced Life ( due to simplifying my life...and trying to maintain balance ). I'm going to have to figure out a strategy there. Things were busy over the holidays and then we moved right into birthdays and overnights with Gramma and Grampa ( that would be my husband and I ) and then Valentine's Day. Whew! It's been a whirlwind of activity! And it's all good!

Folk Art Bottle Cap person

I have just a few things to show you that I bought for our Spring Sale! I've been able to find some nice things at auctions over the winter. Usually I'm scrambling in the Spring for inventory for our sale but this time I've been searching high and low over the winter.

You'll have to look close to see the salt cellars here. Some with spoons.

Here's a closer view

 

 

I was excited to find this framed, signed, numbered, limited edition Charles Wysocki print, Merrymakers Serenade. This is a poor photo of it so you'll have to come and see it for yourself. Check it out on the internet in the meantime. It's a beautiful painting.

Of course we always have a few vintage flower frogs. Many people use them as photo holders or vintage postcard holders.

              I found a couple of rustic metal "sugar cube trays" that you could repurpose. What would YOU use them for? OR they could still be used for sugar cubes! Hah!

I'll be sharing more of our "finds" in the days ahead.  I'll also be writing more about simplifying your life as well...

Check out Gwen And Alma's, my Etsy store. I have to replenish it though because I'm running out of inventory there. Find it by clicking it on the right sidebar.

If there is something specific you are looking for, let me know and we'll look for it when we're out searching. Let me know also what you would be willing to pay for it.

THIS WEEK'S VINTAGE FINDS

There was a Estate/garage sale in a small town near here but I decided to sleep in on the first day of the sale. I know, Early Bird gets the worm and all that but I was tired. On the second day, and in the afternoon, I decided to drive over and hope there might be something left. Shoulda been there on the first day. Coulda bought some great stuff. Woulda if I hadn't been tired. Shoulda, coulda, woulda...

And yet....they were now selling treasures for HALF PRICE! So I think I got the BIG DEALS of the day! I managed to find some fun "smalls" and a couple of larger pieces. The sale was in the garage and on into the kitchen of a townhouse. An elderly couple sat in chairs in the living room, talking to people as they walked in. They seemed to really be enjoying themselves. I found two sets of salt cellars. As I picked them up to look closer, the elderly lady shared, "Those are really old. I've had them quite a while."

 Not many people use salt cellars these days but I think they should make a come-back. They dress up the table in a simple way and are not very expensive, at least not at our sales!

Below are three egg cups. The first is Norwegian Figgjo Flint. The red one is from Norway and the other is unmarked. I might have a hard time letting these go as I have a small egg cup collection myself.

           
                  Not sure what this is but it is heavy for its size. Could be used as a paper weight.

                           
                               Below is a vintage matchbox holder with a candle holder.

             
 This is an interesting piece of handmade funky Folk Art. It's a bird of some kind carved out of wood with a hollow "nut" as the body. I love Folk Art so it always stands out to me.

And last but not least ( of the smalls anyway) is this fun golfer door stop or book end. Another one selling like it on eBay says it is from the 1930's but I don't know if that is accurate.

My husband, a golfer himself,  might want this so we'll see...If not, it will be in our Mantiques section at our Hob Nobbers sale. So that is just a few of my fun finds for this week!

ART FINDS

 A while ago I found these framed prints  in my hunt for treasures to sell. Pictures don't always sell well at our sales but there was something about these that I really liked, even though they weren't vintage or antique art. They were folk art which I personally like, and the colors were bright and happy! So I bought them.  Sorry about the poor images here. The lighting didn't work for me.

After two events they didn't sell but still liking them myself, I decided to see if they might fit in my home. And yaaaaahhh, I'm so glad I did! They really fit into the way I was decorating my home as I became more intentional about my decor and weeding out what didn't fit. Now I'm happy they didn't sell! I guess they were meant for me to have after all!

I checked out the history of the artist, Colleen Sgroi,  online and found that the artist was quite well known in  New England where she lives. Her paintings have been purchased by such famous people as Congressman Marty Meehan, State Rep. Bill Green, and Actor Matt LaBlanc of "Friends". Disney also used two of her Noah's Ark images for their Baby Einstein DVD's.She has a website here. Go check out her work! And be sure to check out the art we have for sale when you come to our events. You never know what you are going to find!

FOLK ART DOLL

Adorable dress with a banner of flags.

I've started another new collection. Usually I'm not one to make impulse buys. But I did last week. And I don't even have buyers regret. In fact, I was so happy with this purchase I've decided to turn it into a collection of sorts. As I said in my last post I don't like clutter. That doesn't always fit into collecting vintage treasures but I'm working on that. I'll be sharing how that's going in future posts. So my new collection is... handmade folk art dolls! Look at all the detail in this cutie!

Banner has tea stained flags with tinsel and a bell hanging from each end.

Yes, this little lady caught my eye and I HAD TO HAVE HER! I have always enjoyed folk art  and dolls and was looking for some things to decorate for the 4th of July and she popped up fitting the bill for all three. Isn't she adorable?

Loved the details of the little flower and the tinsel "halo" crowning her hair.

Cute little "shoes" with red, white, and blue ribbon.

I purchased her on Etsy from Leigh at Leighsstonehouse. Leigh also included a cute little card and a tea stained flag which the doll ( gottta give her a name ) is holding. Go see Leigh's other folk art pieces here. She's an amazing artist! And I simply LOVE all the detail she puts into her work.

 I also found a darling rocking chair at a garage sale for $2. She is sitting on it but it's not visible in the photo.

Folk art is really popular these days and there is plenty of it to be found at reasonable prices. We'll have some vintage folk art for sale at our next event. Sorry, my little bottle cap man  in the last post won't be one of them.

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

                                       WISHING YOU A HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

                                Cute little Bugle Boy the  work of Nancy Malay