Pretty in Pink

Frank Tuuri's dichroic glass jewelry is a favorite of our customers. In making this jewelry, the light is bent in a prism effect, exactly like what occurs in rainbows and dragonfly wings. These pink earrings and barrettes sparkle with many shades of pink and also pick up the colors around them, changing constantly in the light.



Another pink item that would highlight any wardrobe is Jude Stuecker's hand made cloth zippered purses. The smaller one is 3 1/2" by 4 1/2" and would be great for coins, cell phone and other small items. The large size measures 5" by 7" and is perfect for cosmetics or your own special Mo-Jo! They are embellished with vivid colorful and humorous images.



Jude also creates these comfy t-shirts, for casual wear. Each tee is hand dyed, hand painted with her own designs with reverse stitching, giving it a ragtag look.



Click on the artist's name for more details about each. We are joining in on Pink Saturday so please visit the other participants.

White on White

The huge flower arrangement in the Great Hall this week is white on white so that will be our theme too.



Master Beadweaver Willowsong creates such gorgeous jewelry from tiny glass Czechoslovakian beads. The main stones in this exquisite necklace are mother of pearl, abalone and baroque pearls. You can see the woven beadwork more clearly in her matching earrings below.



The lovely ribbon scarf is a creation of fabric artist Karen Atwood. The ribbons are tied together using a a crochet stitch. Several widths of white ribbon make up this scarf along with a shimmer of gold ribbon running through the white.



Hope you enjoyed our white on white. If you would like to know more about these artists, just click on their names. For more white posts, please visit Faded Charm for White Wednesday!

Sunny Yellow Gift Ideas

This local soap maker is peddling our famous NC sunshine as a great smelling soap that leaves your skin feeling so soft and clean.

For a bit of sunny yellow to brighten up your wardrobe, try our sgrafitto butterfly necklace by local artist Kimberly Anderson.

Fabric artist Joy Cafaro creates colorful nature based pot holders like these below with the goldfinches perched on a cone flower. The would certainly cheer up any kitchen!



For more takes on Mellow Yellow Monday, be sure to visit!

Dogs Are Great!

Staff member Debra's dog Putter loves to romp in their fenced in backyard. He enjoys the multi levels of their hillside yard and runs from top to bottom and back. Whenever she is out working in her garden Putter is sure to be there helping!



For the dog lover's out there the Gallery carries these unique and whimsical pieces by Julie Calhoun-Roepnack. Her pottery is carved and finished with a bright colored glaze. Julie features dogs, cats, bears and mountain scenes. For more info on the artist and her work just click on her name.

Please visit Camera Critters for more wonderful animal posts!

New Hoodies from Jude Stuecker

New fleece hoodies with a button front from Jude Stuecker - great for cool nights at the beach or for fall. An assortment of colors to choose from.

Kathleen Lewis

This fabulous fun pouch is designed to attach to the belt loops on your favorite pants. The Hip Pocket is a hands free handbag to carry the basic items needed for a day on town or hiking in the mountains.



The swivel snap hooks have been reinforced to stay securely attached to your belt loops. Fine quality fabrics are chosen for each bag.



This bag has been lovingly designed and created by fabric artist Kathleen Lewis a local resident of Asheville.

Laura Cardwell

Inspired by nature, local artist Laura Cardwell's eclectic jewelry captures the eye of everyone who passes by her case at the Gallery.

As Laura so perfectly explains, she is "inspired by the spaces in nature: the stillness between two raindrops in a puddle...the consistency and uniqueness in each leaf." You can see this in the simplicity of each design, the fluid flow of each piece and the organic materials she uses to make them.





Using argentinum silver which is sterling silver with a touch of germanium added that inhibits tarnish, she forges, fuses and anticlastic raises her silver and 14kt rose gold pieces. As in nature, each piece grows differently so each one is unique.

Bird Lovers

All of us at Gallery are share a love of nature. Sallie has a special affinity for birds. Here she is talking to a crow at one of the area's wildlife rehabilitation centers.

If you like Crows, the Gallery has many - on tiles, cards, carved in wood and in paintings. The carved crow below was hand carved in wood by Bobbie Carnell, a local resident of Black Mountain. Her mother was a wood carver and passed the art down to her. For more information about this artist and her work, click here.



For more animal posts, please visit Camera Critters.

More Fun Hats In......

These two friends from West Virginia both bought themselves a paper hat by Jennie Hart Robinson. The hats are a fun accessory to any outfit - great for parties!

We just got a new shipment of hats in - wildly decorated with feathers, silk flowers and fun found objects!

Rubies Galore!

Local jeweler Amy Moore loves to work with the deep rich color of ruby quartz in her delicate nature based jewelry.





She is an avid nature lover and her pieces show it - the shapes and textures of poppies and pomegranates highlight these lovely red jewelry items items.

A cool fact about Amy is that a portion of her sales is donated to help the honeybee population and she is also a not-for-profit beekeeper, herself.

We have joined in on Ruby Tuesday today so please visit the other participants!

Dragonflies

Nothing says summer more than the delicate beauty of dragonflies.

Lyn Lyndall hand paints this exquisite dragonfly on her hand sewn leather handbag. The blue stitching around the edge adds even more detail to the piece. The leather is soft and buttery to the touch. Be sure to check out her other handbags here.

For more blue visit Blue Monday!

Steve Schwarz

Steve lives in the Asheville area during the spring fall and winter and spends his summer as a naturalist in Yosemite National Park. Inspiration for his art comes from blending years of glass blowing experience with the symmetry, flow and patterns found in nature.

His glass art pendants are hand blown using the ancient "flame working" technique dating back to the Egyptians. This method uses a small open flame which allows for detailed and intricate effects. He also layered gold and silver within the glass created by melting the metals and collecting the fumes on the hot glass. Silver fumes produce blues and smoky whites, gold gives a pink or orange hue and golf and sliver fumes combined creates many shade of green. Each piece is truly one of a kind.

Sleeping Cat

The staff at the Gallery are avid animal lovers and most have pets. Here is one of Cheryl's lovely cats sleeping soundly in the sun.

The Gallery carries many cat related items from jewelry and ceramics to cards, handbags and wall decor. The cats below are by Cynthia Link!

For more great animal photos please visit Camera Critters.

Birdhouses by Ken Wheeler

The Gallery received some new items from Ken Wheeler - some lovely tables - great for a night stand, a hall table. Some have a single drawer and others have none. Just a simple design in bright colors.



His new birdhouses have been a hit with customers. Made of found wood and eclectically shaped they can be used inside for decorative color or outdoors for the birds. The bottom screws off for cleaning. Aren't they great?