manayunk arts festival 2010

I deviated a bit from my indie craft show habit to attend the Manayunk Arts Festival in Philadelphia today with my mother-in-law and her pal. I don't consider it a true "indie" craft show since it's in its 21st year and is heavy on the fine art & photography, but times have changed since I was last there 8 years ago. I thought I'd go see what's new. Sure enough, I did find some modern crafters mixed in with traditional folk which suited the all-ages crowd. I was particularly impressed with all the upcycling going on.

Vintage tins are upcycled into pretty belt buckles by Constance Scott of Studio C.

More vintage tins, antique doll parts, and salvaged metal are recycled into decorative doll sculptures by Primitive Twig.

Vintage post office boxed converted to banks by Lone Wolf Woodworks. Too cool!

Brian Marshall combines found objects into funny robot-like creatures that exude personality. I love the name of his shop: adopt-a-bot.

My, my, my, look what can be done with discarded glass bottles! Kathleen Plate of Smart Glass takes bottle recycling to a new level. Her gorgeous chandelier-like hangings really capture the light...

as do her interesting loopy necklaces. The glass colors are the original colors of the bottles they came from.

Shena Curreli of Resinate With Nature  had the most appealing earthy-modern resin jewelry displays. This wood bowl with rice perfectly complements the rings made of tiny seeds, leaves, and other natural bits encased in resin that it contains.

Rustic frames fashioned from reclaimed wood salvaged from old homes and barns by Margaret Taylor of Dancing Dryads.

I recognized Dave Conroy's distinctive jewelry made of stainless steel nuts and nails from the Crafty Bastards show last fall. Alitas Jewelry will be making the rounds all summer. Coming up soon... the Artscape show in Baltimore on the weekend of July 16.

I couldn't walk away a second time without buying a piece from Dave. This cuff bracelet is made of tiny nuts fused together in a Moorish pattern and hammered. It looks like a delicate filigree tattoo on the wrist.

I'm considering coming back the weekend of September 25 to check out the new Manayunk Eco Arts Festival. So many shows, so little time!