Off the road for a little while

I went to Charlotte on Friday for the annual Charlotte Trunk Show. It was previously held at my friend Patty's house, but since she moved to Maggie Valley I've been doing it at Hospitality House of Charlotte as a benefit for that wonderful organization. They provide low-cost housing for people who have loved ones in the hospital. A portion of my sales from this event are always donated to their cause. Plus, my good friend Kimberly is their Executive Director and I get to spend quality time with her and her family while I'm there. It was a pretty lousy turnout this year, blamed on the economy as usual, but they'll still get a nice donation from me. We went out for a fantastic dinner last night - I'm still celebrating my birthday!

I designed a charm with the Hospitality House logo on it that we were going to raffle, but since there were only two customers who entered the drawing we decided that it wasn't really fair. I ended up just donating the charm to them to raffle at another time. I decided that I will take orders for this charm and a portion of the price will also be donated. I already have orders for two of them. Here's a picture of it:

I'll be listing it on my Etsy site soon. You can have one of your very own for only $25.00.

I like to listen to audio books while I'm driving. I've had Bridge of Sighs by Richard Russo checked out of the library for a long time. It's on a "Playaway" (a book loaded on an MP3 player and you only have to provide your own ear phones). I didn't realize how long this book is, (25 hours, I finally found out) so on the way home today the battery died. I got out my iPod, but it was dead, too. There was a football game on my favorite radio station. So, for the last 45 minutes I drove in complete silence. I can't remember the last time I did that! I let my mind wander and came up with several good ideas. Some about how to re-design my show display and a couple of new jewelry ideas. I'd forgotten how good a little quiet time can be!

I don't have to go out of town again until December 11 - a family thing in Raleigh - and I'm glad to be out of the car. My back is sore and I'm looking forward to a little down time. Maybe I can clean up my house and pay some attention to my poor neglected cat.

Fall Show Schedule

I have several shows coming up in the next few weeks that I wanted to tell you about. I always enjoy meeting my customers in person, and this is a perfect opportunity to catch me live.

The first one is next Saturday, September 26th in West Jefferson, NC. It's called Arts on the Side and is sponsored by the Ashe County Arts Council. It's a small, informal show on the grounds of the Arts Council and inside their gallery. We'll be set up from 9:00 until 3:00 and my friend, Janet, will be spending the day with me.

The following weekend, October 3-4, I'll be part of the Chatham Hill Winery Harvest Festival in Morrisville, NC (near the Raleigh-Durham Airport). The hours are 12:00-6:00 on Saturday and 1:00-5:00 on Sunday. There will be wine tastings, of course, and several different craft artists an well as some community interest groups. My sister and her husband will be there selling items to benefit the American Cancer Society.

On October 17 is the Valle Country Fair in Valle Crucis, NC from 9:00 to 4:00. This is not too far from home, and one of my favorite shows. It's an over-grown church bazaar that has turned into one of the best shows in the state. It occurs at the peak of fall color season and its bucket loads of fun with music, great food, and 135 craft artists. I've done this show every year for almost 15 years. We've experienced all kinds of weather, but it's only rained on us one year that I can remember. It's usually chilly in the morning and one year we had a few morning snow flurries, but normally you can count on a clear, crisp fall day.

Then a few weeks break until the evening of November 20. I'll be doing a benefit Trunk Show for Hospitality House of Charlotte. This wonderful organization offers low-cost housing to out-of-town people who have family members in Carolinas Medical Center, which is right across the street. I'll be donating a portion of my sales to them. The details haven't all been worked out yet, but I think the date is firm. We'll probably start in the late afternoon and go until around 7:00 or 8:00. We'll have wine and food and this will be a great opportunity to help out a deserving organization.

If you are part of a local charity and are interested in hosting a benefit Trunk Show for your organization, please contact me. Or, if you'd like to host one in your home for your family and friends, we can do that, too! Those are always a ton of fun.

Even after this blog post moves down your screen (assuming I continue to blog on a timely basis!), the schedule will remain to your right. So -- now you know where to find me!!