Spring Means Arts and Crafts Shows

On the weekend we went on one of our little rambles.

First we went to the Ernst & Young Centre in Ottawa for the annual Originals Craft Show. We used to go to this show all the time, but apparently we have not been in the past four years, since one of the venders told me they had been at that location that long.  I'm sure we had never experienced the show there before.  Another reason I'm sure I must not have been lately was that everything was new to me, other than one or two crafters and the Manitoulin gourmet food producers from Hawberry Farms, who make the jams and dips, etc. the only other person I recognized there was John Shae. He's one of my favorite area artists, and we seem to find him everywhere we go.  Of course, seeing all new (to me) vendors just made it an even better show as there was lots to explore and be tempted by. 

There was a man from the Gaspe region who creates marvelous boxes with little drawers, as well as the most fantastic bird houses I've ever seen. He does it all with driftwood he finds at the beach.  No two pieces are alike as the wood dictates what he does with it. Then there was the lady who sews purses, or bags, that are designed to carry your iPad as well as your usual purse stuff. I bought a purse big enough to do that last year, but these were made of denim and weighed next to nothing. That's a plus point right there!  Some of them had sayings embroidered on them in either English or French. They were totally washable too.  I was very impressed with her designs.  And nothing is as fascinating as Birchbark Poetry....pictures Mother Nature paints on bits of birch bark, found, preserved and framed by  Galyna Kovalenko, Elena Galiamova & Stalina Roubinova.

I'm always on the lookout for sauces that you can pour over ice cream or cake.  Hillshire Farms used to have them, but they don't anymore.  I found some wonderful ones at the Originals Craft Show containing maple syrup, butter and honey.  Some even had sea salt added, which seems to be the latest fad in foods.  I tasted a couple of varieties and picked one out. It was so good!  It is my usual method to tour the room and then go back and pick up what I decide to take home, so that I don't spend money at one booth, only to discover something I'd rather have further along.  I fully intended to go back for this marvelous concoction, but my hubby discovered some Verbena Blue Jam from the Tangled Garden  and didn't hesitate to pay for that then and there. I knew I was not going to leave without the Crab Mousse from the Little Shop of Lobsters. Since it was pretty pricey, I ended up leaving without the carmel sauce after all. 

On the way home we stopped at Manotick, for their Art Association's Brush With Art Spring Show and Sale. It was a little difficult to locate, but once there we viewed the work of 65 artists.  I enjoyed the works of Douglas Laing and Joseph Coban, both of whom were new to me, as well as many others. I could not leave without one of Bonnie McQuillan's delightful cat magnets. The are the size of a post card, so they are meant more for display than to hold things in place. This is now on my refrigerator, and makes me smile every time I enter the kitchen.

 

Rideau Lakes Studio and Garden Tour

Sunday's weather was perfect to go gallivanting so we took in the Rideau Lakes Studio and Garden Tour.  We started in Portland, at the studio of Michael Doxey.  I found his pieces interesting and not at all like everyone else makes. It was a good way to start the tour.





Next we visited, a woodworker, John Cochrane who had a wide variety of products on display. We got his card as he might just be the man to build me a coffee table that actually fits in the room someday.

Next door to John, Lorna an Dennis Hutton  displayed some lovely paintings. She does acrylics and watercolour, while he paints in acrylics and oil.  There is lots to see, and well worth the stop.

At a large brick farm house we found the functional pottery of Sherry Rogers and fine arts and quilts by Margaret Kelk.  The was another attraction there too.  Barn swallows had built a nest above the light on the front porch.  The mother was guarding the nest. People were directed to the side door. 

The next stop was at the studio of sculptor Doug MacDonald in Phillipsville.  I bought some little cement balls that held tea lights from him years ago.  I didn't see any of those on display this time, but when I mentioned them, someone brought a couple out. Today's version is much smoother than what I have, and not nearly as interesting to me, but if you are looking for a sculpted piece to hang on a wall, this is the place to stop.









John Shea is also on this tour, and is by far one of my favourite artists. We didn't go to his place as I've seen his work so many times and it was off the beaten track. We wanted to make sure we had time to get the rest of the stops in before closing time. Actually, I'm thinking we should have gone as I've never seen him in his home setting.  Oh well, maybe next time.

The garden at Barb and Jim Rowat's place is worth a visit, even if you are not into art. I remembered this was where we learned to put pieces of Irish Spring on garden stakes years ago, to ward off the deer. Apparently theirs have gotten used to the soap after 10 years, and it no longer works for them. There was actually a painting here that I was very tempted to take home with me.  Beautiful daisies, all in blue and white. Honestly, I simply don't have the wall space, or they would have sold that one to me!

Shaun Seaman's studio is also worth exploring.  It's a true cottage on Indian Lake.  His grounds are totally fascinating and a work of art on their own with various cement pathways leading down from the road to the cottage..

There was a jeweler there too, but she's not listed on the brochure, so I don't know who she was. She had some very interesting pieces there, and some of them were quite reasonably priced.

We stopped in at Eleanor Pinsonneault's Cedar's Art Studio at Chaffey's Locks.  The usual Chaffey's deer was grazing under the apple tree and a lady with a camera was in hot pursuit.

Our last stop of the day was at Roberta McKinney's weaving studio. She has several looms set up and gives classes.  The looms were currently set up to make tea towels, each one with a different pattern. The students make a towel, and then rotate to the next loom. By the end of the class season, they have all made 9 towels, each with a different pattern.  Her studio is located on the same piece of property occupied by the Loonie Sports Club.  This is quite an amazing facility to be found so far out in the boonies.  On this particular day painter Margaret Martin also had her work on display there.

It was a lovely day for a drive, and there was lots of exploring to do, so we really enjoyed our day.  The tour continues on Canada Day, so if you want to do something different, perhaps this will fit the bill.  Go have a great day.

Happy Canada Day everyone!

It's Finally Geocaching Time!

The Thousand Island Spring Arts Show and Sale was held in Rockport Victoria Day Weekend. We decided the weather was nice enough to finally get out to do some geocaching, so we headed in that direction, armed with a GPS full of coordinates.  

Rockport is always a busy place, but it was over run with people on Saturday. We found an area designated as event parking and set off to see what we could see around the village.  I found John Shea, whose art I've admired for the past couple of years. His paintings are uncomplicated, and striking because of it.  Nearby was another artist whose work taught me much about the use of colour.  Tricia Wilmot Savoi has mastered the art of getting my attention, and that of many others. What more could an artist ask for?  I'm ready to abandon watercolour for a while, and see if I can apply what I learned just from looking at her paintings.  Somehow, I doubt be able to duplicate the effect, but I'm stirred up and willing to try.

We would have stayed in the village longer, and even done some geocaching there, but the people were so desperate for parking spots, they didn't care if they blocked each other in or not. We decided to make our escape while we still could. 

We crossed the 1000 Islands Parkway and explored a few other artists, including a photographer, a glass artist, and a guy who made concrete plaques and mushrooms.  He reported that sales were going very well for him.

We hunted down our first geocache nearby, near, but not in a cemetery. It was just a micro though, and so, after signing and replacing the log, we journeyed onward.  We found two other caches on this day, but found more interesting things where we didn't actually find the caches.  As I've said before, it's not the treasure, but the hunt that makes it all so much fun.

We made a rest stop at the Jones Creek property of the 1000 Islands National Park.  It's too early in the season for the main building to be open, but signs directed us to a compostable toilet along the nearby trail.  I think this site was worth the stop. I know of a two story outhouse at a nearby museum. This one in the woods is not a two story one, but rather just a second story one. I've certainly never seen that before. I might add that it's a great idea though as it's a very clean place, unsmelly place..

View from the top.  Notice the trail well below.

 Traveling back along the 1000 Island Parkway, we saw a couple of families of geese, as well as some interesting islands. Some of them were not far from the mainland.

 While looking for geocaches, we found this old drain. It is inscribed "The Kings Highway 1938".  It's big enough I suspect the area wild life use it go get to the other side of the road during certain seasons. 

One of the great things about geocaching is you often learn something you didn't know before. We found out that the 1000 Island Parkway was originally built to be Hwy 401.  After the eastbound lane was completed they abandoned the project and completed it further north, leaving us with the beautiful scenic roadway we have today. There is a bike path on the north side of the road, which would have been the westbound lane and runs between Gananoque and Long Beach. The path was laid by Bell Canada and covers a Fibre-Optic line that runs through the area.

There is a place where it is very obvious that the bike path was supposed to have been a roadway as both bridges were built before they the people in charge of this project changed their mind. 

The parkway is on the right, and the bike path is on the left.  Enlarge the picture by clicking on it for a better view.

 

 

 From the right hand side of this bridge, there is a view of where an older one once stood.

We finished off our day at Tim Hortons.  So did everyone else, from the look of things.