Bazaar Bizarre – The Strange and the Fine

December 19, 2008

bb_11Just a few more artists I wanted to mention from Bazaar Bizarre last weekend, then I can go back to my normal tangential (as opposed to secant-al) ramblings.

In addition to the energetic collection of colorful crafts, there were many things at the Bazaar that were a bit off the beaten path. Or on the beaten path, as is the case of the beaten metal and wire (and beyond) jewelry of Valerie Tyler Designs, some of the more elegant jewelry I’ve seen. It’s very different from the kind of thing you could expect to find in a mall corner store, but every bit as fitting for a formal occasion.
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The jewelry of Oh Melisa is maybe not quite so suited to a black tie event, but the steampunk-esk pieces still have a formal, classic look to them that I love. They were also one of my husband’s favorites of the day. We tried to give our wedding party a steampunk look (photos soon, I swear) so maybe it’s an emotional connection, but the jewelry and presentation have a stand alone beauty beyond any attachment we might give it.

bb_6Another favorite of Matt‘s was the felted head from I Felt Like It. Actually, all he said was: “Oh wow, can we have a felted head like this for our house?” but I think that means he liked it. I also approve, and agreed that we’d have to find a place for one in the house of our future. Personally I think it would look great hanging below the gargoyle, but we might need to pick of a few other oddities to complete the look.

bb_7Somewhere else in our future house, we’ll have to find a place for some of these lamps from Kirkiture. They’ve got that lovely stark Japanese look to them, and the gentle way the light bleeds through them gives me a feeling of calm. I think they’d look great in a bedroom or library, or anywhere that’s meant to seem quiet. I expect we’ll have a bedroom before we have a library, but since we’re intending to turn most of our living space into a library-ish space eventually, we’ll have plenty of opportunities to fit in these cool wooden lamps.

Then we came across some wings made by Faerystone Creations that would make either a great part of a Halloween costume or a neat ceiling hanging.
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Ok, honestly I’d buy some and wear them around all the time, but I’d be afraid they’d get broken. They remind me of the wings I saw sold at a Renn Faire this summer, but I don’t think they are made by the same people. These are simpler, and more stylized, and I think a bit more adventurous. Check out the green leaf wings and ice faery wings on their website… very unique and beautiful.

I would also like to mention Psycho Reindeer, the only booth where we actually ended up spending money (I got a kick-ass dead Pac-Man T-shirt and Matt got a shirt with a creepy owl), and Supernova Design which had some awesome pirate-y art, which is, you know, always good, and also lots of other pretty engraved work.
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I’m glad I went this year. Even though I knew the disappointing sights last year were caused by our bad timing rather than the Bazaar itself, it put a crimp in the excitement leading up to this one. Now I am cured of that worry and looking forward to next year without reservation. Who knows, by then maybe I’ll have something of my own to contribute? I doubt it, but stranger things have happened.

About Author

Meagan

Meagan is an artist, writer, and whatever else suits her at any given moment. She lives in the Cleveland area with her husband, son and too many cats. Meagan blogs at https://hadesarrow.com/blog and cartoons at http://dragondown.com

4 Replies to “Bazaar Bizarre – The Strange and the Fine”

  1. I think that part of the allure of those steampunk-esque pieces is the sense of history that each item has. And since you don’t actually know the history, it’s an intriguing mystery.

    Btw, I LOVE the PacMan tshirt! Where is this Bazaar Bizarre? I need to go next year.

  2. It’s just east of Lakewood, kind of in a warehouse-y area. I think it’s always a couple weeks before Christmas. I think you’d enjoy it. 🙂

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