A Thanksgiving Table

 Potter Mary Briggs is once again bringing her special brand of ceramic art to the store. We're honored to be hosting a trunk show of her work this Friday & Saturday November 4th & 5th .  I had the pleasure of visiting Mary's studio today to get a sneak peek of what she's got cooking and was really impressed by how Mary continues to push herself as an artist and remain true to her vision.  She's playing with her color palette and having fun with a host of fun and whimsical shapes for some great platters and she has some magnificent sculptural pieces....

So if you can, come down and join us during the Artwalk from 5 to 8 pm and find yourself some beautiful work to grace your Autumn & Winter table ..  Mary will be giving a short talk about her work aound 6:30 and she'll be here to answer questions and share her inspirations.  Find out what we've had to say about Mary's work in some other blog posts by clicking here. And come visit us soon for more table inspiration.

New Favorite Color......

Another comment on the Country Living cover.....there were those amongst us at Passionflower who had some harsh words to say about the toile covered pumpkin, but I paid them no heed....it was actually the mustard colored quilt pattern on the white pumpkin that caught my eye.  Call it golden, call it amber, call it mustard or "moutard" if you will, but I am seeing this color everywhere and liking what I see especially when I see it backed up with white.

                                             
                                                                                                        

  Star witness number one to my new love affair with mustard, this beautiful backstrap loom woven runner I brought back from Teotitlan de Valle in Oaxaca.....to me it's a timeless piece with a great folk arty vibe..... and it lightens up the whole room while still being very mellow.                                                                                                             

A Peek Inside Someone's Home

 

Magazines delight the voyeur in all of us.   Which is why it was so much fun to find Laura Zindel's home featured in the October issue of Country Living.....Laura is a Vermont potter whose work we've been carrying at Passionflower for about two years now.  

 

They describe her home (above) as "nature inspired"....we like that.

 
Here's a display of Laura's snake designs that we've been featuring for our Fall Halloween look....I love how the cream and white of the plates looks dramatic and stark but when you pair it with natural wood and earth tones  it feels all warm and cozy.

 
I think her snake designs are some of her strongest....the high graphic, almost escher like quality of her work with a very organic pattern makes them really sing to me.

 

And if snakes aren't really your thing, well there's always her crows....mixed with feathers, ferns and eggs....All Laura's designs are transferware of original images she draws with graphite.
I love it when fine art and utilitarian ware blend so beautifully.