Art Calendars

This year we have four great calendars!

Elaine O'Neal's Luv This Place® 2017 NORTH CAROLINA Calendar
For over a decade, Elaine O’Neil has been re-creating the places you love in North Carolina with her unique textile art. Now you can celebrate the places you love throughout the year with her new Luv This Place® 2017 North Carolina calendar.

Standard 11 x 14 art calendar

A share of the proceeds benefits the N.C. Cancer Hospital.

Each calendar page fits into a standard frame size for hanging. Clip here to purchase.

Jan Francoeur New Bern Desk Calendar
Each year I do a cd desk calendar with paintings I have done of New Bern over the past year. 4 3/4 x 5 3/4".  $15 To order click here.

Sticks 16 Month Calendar

We have sold sticks furniture and art for many years. Their wall calendar is always a big hit.

Sells for $14.99. For more information and to purchase click here!

Curly Girl

SideWalk Sale Saturday October 29 10 to 6

We are having our second annual Sidewalk Sale Saturday, October 29 from 10 to 6 pm.

We will be taking 40-60% off selected items to make room for Christmas!

Among the items on sale are.

Balloon People

 Granite Food Slabs for Serving.

Prints by Dan Goad

Selected scents - soap, perfume and bath oil

 Jewelry by lots of artists

 and Assorted Household items!

Don't miss the chance to pick up a few great items!

Travel to NE last installment

I started down the Eastern Shore and I wanted to stay in St Michaels or Easton, I knew there were no places to camp but I was going to stay in a hotel. Not. An Iron Man Competition was going on, the place was packed and every hotel room taken. I did not even stop to go into any shops. Ended up staying in Salisbury. They have the potential to have a really nice downtown, it's just not there yet.

As I was wandering around town I caught some pottery I recognized out of the corner of my eye in a shop window. I stopped and went in and there was Dana Simpson.

We met years ago and we used to sell her work. She has since scaled back her operation and sells mostly out of her own shop. We had a great conversation and she gave me this card when I told her about Michael and my trip. Seeing her took the disappointment of St Michaels away.

Knowing I was nearing the end of my trip I wondered if I should just head home that night then decided no, I didn't want it to end with the disappointment of St Michaels. I knew there was a campground near the Bay Bridge Tunnel. On the way I visited Crisfield and Chinnoteague, wasn't too impressed with either and was a little let down.

Just before I got to the campground I saw a sign for an RV resort so I thought I'd check it out. Wow! The Cherry Stone Campground and RV Resort. I had the perfect spot on the water. The campground had about 200 rvs in it but there was no one around me. It was beautiful and I kept thinking Michael would love this.

It was the perfect ending to a great trip, wish you were here Michael.

Travel to NE post 5

I have enjoyed Rockport before on visits, and this time was no exception. Lots of nice shops (yes that's what I do when I travel, go into lots of shops looking for display ideas and to see what the next big trend is).

Then on a whim I decided to drive out to Provincetown, haven't been there since about 1980. Really hasn't changed much. Love the drive along 6A.

I stopped at a little gallery that had funky sculpture outside. Turns out all the work was by sculptor Alfred Glover.

From there I drove to Mystic, CT, and stopped at the museum. I didn't go through, I had done that another time, but did look around a little bit.

Then I ran across the BF Clyde Cider Mill, circa 1881 the oldest steam powered cider mill in the country.

 It was very interesting and had a great shop where you could buy the cider (delicious), wine, donuts and more.

I spent that night back in Morristown. The next day headed down the Eastern Shore.

Travel to NE Part 4

Shelburne Falls is a cute and quaint little town. Things I enjoyed most were the Bridge of Flowers, a potter I met and just the general look of the town.

Since I was so close I drove to Deerfield, that didn't do much for me but then I did not tour any of the historic sites. I DID love seeing this giant pumpkin on the porch!!

From there north to Brattleboro, VT, stopping along the way at the nicest rest area I've ever been in.

I liked Brattleboro a lot, visited my friend Greg Worden who owns a gallery there. They have a lot of nice shops in their downtown, galleries, several independent book stores, and the sweetest florist shop I've ever been in. It's tiny with lots of unusual plants and gifts, all made by the owner, from pots to cards to jewelry! Maybe some day when I retire from CC I'll have a tiny shop like this - or not.

From there to the lake district of New Hampshire, wow -  loved the lakes and can't believe I'd never been there before. I could spend the summer there, of course the lakes in Michigan are just as beautiful.

Rode the COG Railroad to the top of Mt Washington, it was fun. The top of the mountain was not clear but it was still neat, -1 with 50 mph winds. There is a great museum up there, restaurant and gift shop. Just for fun and to remember how cold -1 is I stood outside for about 20 minutes in the weather. It was invigorating but 20 minutes was enough.

I was going to go to Manchester but decided to go east to Kennybunkport, remembering how pretty that area was and it had some nice shops. I've been looking for another spinner for our porch. So glad I went there because a gallery had a yard full of Lyman Whitakers spinners. I've followed his work for years seeing it in Asheville and Naples, FL but have never seen that variety. This was the treat of the trip, getting one myself. I'll post photos of it at home once I get it installed.

Everywhere I went were beautiful flowers!

Of course had to drive along the water to gaze at the Bush estate.

From there south to Newburyport. I walked into Valeries Gallery, I've been in a business Association with her for years but we don't see each other too often. I walked in and she said Jan? I was surprised she recognized me but she follows me on Facebook (and I her) so is used to seeing my face there. She has a nice little gallery. 

Then off to Rockport in the next post.

Travel to NE Part 3

The drive up the western side of Connecticut and Massachusetts was beautiful, passing through many small towns on Hwy 7.

There was a rest area with lots of cairns! I've never seen that before in a rest area.

Some of my favorite towns were Kent, Stockbridge, and Pittsfield.

A few sights along the way.

Everywhere I looked there were sunflowers - everywhere I looked! Next year I'll have some in my yard.

I've always wanted to go to North Adams since potter friends of ours told use years ago that they were turning the mills there into studios with living space above. Then Mass MoCA opened in 1999, 16 acres of grounds in the Downtown, nearly one-third of the business district! The museum is housed in a complex of 19th century mill buildings and is the largest art museum in the country. So forward thinking for this small town of 14,000.

I enjoyed the museum, a lot of the art was a little too far out for me but a couple of the installations I loved.

Like this one that shows the history of the earth since the big bang.

And these drawings, very interesting.

The Downtown shopping district wasn't that great so I went to Williamstown. The highlight of that town is the Clark Museum. I'm seldom blown away by art museums but this one I was. I loved everything about it, so well done. They have a fabulous collection of Impressionist paintings, all collected by Sterling (b 1877 and and heir to the Singer sewing machine fortune) and Francine Clark.


Even the gift shop was beautiful, each display curated and displayed by color. Every piece having some connection to the museum.

From there I drove the Mohawk Trail through the mountains to Shelburne Falls- next post.