Erica & Wes go to Tulsa, pt.2.

Tulsa on Sunday - a day at the Philbrook Museum of Art.

A few months ago, I saw an article about an installation art exhibit at the Philbrook Museum of Art. The early pictures looked so neat, I knew I had to go... and so off we went! (Since it is about an art museum, this blog post will mostly be pictures.) Before our day at the museum, we went to Tally's Cafe for breakfast. The diner serves an award winning chicken fried steak sandwich so that is what I ordered. It was delicious (and so much food!) The atmosphere was retro rock n' roll. There was a booth with Elvis memorabilia decor but, sadly, we weren't seated at that one. 

So about this yarn installation art... it was abso-freakin'-lutely amazing!! I want a replica at my house! LOL It was made from a bazillion pieces of colored yarn hung from the ceiling. It was visible from each floor and it looked different from each angle. Each piece together formed a rainbow effect and it looked like a triangle shape if you're looking at it from the outside. If you laid on the floor (which I did) and looked up at it, it looked like a Spirograph drawing (remember those art kits from the 90s?) I highly recommend taking the drive to Tulsa to view the exhibit before it is uninstalled. 

The Philbrook Museum is basically a very large mansion. Each room has art pieces displayed on the walls but still looks like a room within a house (with furniture, rugs and such). There were all sorts of artwork from all eras- religious oil paintings, pastoral scenes, ceramics from all cultures, African masks (Wes' favorite room) and even a mummy (my favorite room). It was all nicely laid out and the museum was navigable. Oftentimes, I feel like I miss a section or two of art museums because the layout is too much like a maze, but the Philbrook was very straightforward. We were able to fully see the museum in its entirety in about two hours.

It was a nice day out, so we also walked along the museum grounds. The garden had over 20,000 bulbs planted (according to the guide we received) but not many were in bloom, yet. There are also three resident garden cats! I only encountered one of them. There was also some yarn bombing on a few of trees.  There was a sculpture artwork path but we didn't follow it exactly so we probably missed some pieces. I wish we were hungry enough for lunch because the gardens were a perfect place for a picnic. I think I enjoyed the gardens as much as I did the art inside. 

After the art museum, we got some fun drinks and headed home. The skies must have let out all its rain Friday night because the rest of the weekend was gorgeous. Each restaurant we ate at was tasty. The two arts festivals were more different than they were similar so it kept the day interesting and the museum was great. Even Wes (who isn't as into art as I am) enjoyed the weekend. All in all, we had a fun art-filled weekend getaway!

Erica & Wes go to Tulsa, pt.1.

Mayfest 2017!

Yippee...a travel blog! \(^_^)/ Wes and I recently went to Tulsa, OK for their annual Mayfest and Blue Dome festivals. I thought it was a little weird that the city would hold two large outdoor arts festivals on the same weekend only blocks away from each other, but it made for a good mini-vacation so I can't complain. We completely disregarded the weather and drove to Tulsa in the middle of a thunderstorm. The drive was stressful but the lightning show was spectacular. (I wish I could have taken some photos or video!) We arrived mid-evening Friday, navigated through the scary parking garage of the downtown Holiday Inn, grabbed a bite to eat at the hotel's restaurant and hit the hay. An event filled day was ahead of us tomorrow!

The awful parking garage; the ceiling was held up by buckling wooden support beams and there were no arrows directing traffic.

Our first stop Saturday was Mayfest. We got there a little after the festival started so we beat the afternoon crowds. It was nice getting to stop by all of the booths, view the artwork and talk to the artists before they got too busy. I thought Mayfest had a nice variety of art mediums. There were oil paintings and glass sculptures, as to be expected, but there was also a nice mix of clocks & toys, antique jewelry and paper crafts thrown in. I liked how there was both fine art and more purchasable artwork. I preferred Mayfest to both the Blue Dome festival and the Festival of the Arts in Oklahoma City.

Highlights from Mayfest were this clipboard that I purchased (top left picture). Artist, Jeff Duerksen, creates and cuts paper silhouettes. He spray painted some onto clipboards; there were many fantastical designs to choose from and I ultimately chose a mermaid walking her pet octopus. Jeff's booth was a fortress. He had it specially designed with an office-like space in the back for him and his wife, an awning over the front and very sturdy support beams. I also noticed many booths with literal weights holding them down (bottom picture). I think that is a much safer idea than using water jugs or sand bags. I love talking to other artists who are seasoned show experts. They're always really friendly, supportive and full of good advice. We also got to participate in a artists' contest (top right picture). Four artists were allotted an hour to paint a common theme picture--something incorporating Tulsa and Mayfest--and the audience participated by casting votes for their favorite painting.

Blue Dome Festival 2017!

After a quick break, we headed to the Blue Dome Festival. The first thing we saw was a car show with whimsically decorated vehicles. My favorite was a life-size replica of a wooden toy car (top right picture). The rest of the festival wasn't anything to swoon over. My favorite part of it was the dog area. There was a section of AstroTurf (mimicking a mini dog park), local pet rescues and booths hosting spay & neuter programs and passing out flyers. There was even a food truck for dogs (selling mostly treats). We should have brought Sadie & Athena! The Blue Dome Festival was more like a craft show/vendor event than an arts festival. There were way too many similar vendors (mostly clothing/t-shirts, every other booth was jewelry and there was some wooden home decor sprinkled in the mix). It had mostly crafty and boutique items and was geared toward a younger hipper crowd. I don't have a problem with that since I own a small business that makes its living off craft shows and vendor events but I didn't find the vendors to be all that great. I saw a few things that I might have purchased but nothing that I couldn't live without. In my opinion, I think Wanderlust Pop-up Shops and the Indie Trunk Show in Oklahoma City host much more talented vendors.

Because I love to eat, we have to include a paragraph about food. Before we went to the Blue Dome Festival, we stopped at Hurts Donuts for lunch... yes, donuts for lunch! They were ginormous donuts! After the festival, we went to Seoul Bistro for dinner. It was a very authentic Korean restaurant. We were among the few non-Korean patrons. I'm not a fan of Korean cuisine but Wes is and he said the food was very very good. After dinner, we headed back to Mayfest and saw a few local bands. I also got a chocolate dipped cheesecake for dessert (I warned you that this paragraph would be all about food!) I enjoyed the convenience of both of the festivals being held in downtown Tulsa (and walking distance from our hotel). It made our time manageable and we were able to experience both festivals in one day. It was also great that both festivals were dog friendly. I saw so many adorable pups! After going to both festivals, I can understand why they were hosted on the same weekend. They were different enough that the same crowd would not likely visit both events. And if you did visit both events, you would have completely different experiences at each one.  One art filled day down, another one to come on Sunday! (As a preview, here are my three favorite things about the Philbrook Museum of Art.)

RagsReborn's Summer Craft Show Schedule.

Sorry the picture is little blurry... apparently, I'm not very good at screen shots.

Everyone loves a little shopping during the summer, right? I know you do and here are three craft shows for you to get your shop on! I won't be participating in any craft shows throughout the months of July, August, and (maybe) September so I hope you can make it out to say hello before my craft show hiatus. Don't worry though, I'll still be sewing, selling on Etsy and I'm always ready for custom orders!

The Village Fair-
Saturday May 6, 2017 10am - 4pm at Casady Square on the corner of Britton and Pennsylvania
www.thevillageok.org/villagefair.html and https://www.facebook.com/villagefaircasadysquare/
       This show benefits The Village Library and is their annual fundraising event. I get all of my books through the Metropolitan Library System so I was very excited and eager to participate when I heard about this event. It is outdoors with lots of great handmade & direct sales vendors, food trucks, entertainment and it promises to be a fun filled family event. The shops at Casady Square are also holding their annual sidewalk sale on the same day so come prepared for some serious shopping. No storms this Saturday, too!

Junk Utopia-
Saturday June 3, 2017 9am - 5pm at the Centennial Building at the Oklahoma State Fairgrounds
https://www.facebook.com/events/647318792106360/ and https://www.facebook.com/officialjunkutopia/
       This will be another RagsReborn + Moon Drake Soaps combo event. If you want to purchase both handmade soaps and handmade pillows from one booth, this is the only place you'll find them! This is also another Revolve Media show (the same company that hosted Wanderlust Pop-up shops). They do an amazing job with craft shows and attract the best artisans & crafters.  I expect a large variety of repurposed and handmade vendors--no direct sales.

OUHSC Spring Craft Fair-
Friday June 9, 2017 10am - 2pm at Robert M. Bird Library at OU Health Sciences Center
       I participated in the Fall Craft Fair last November and had such a good time that I had to sign up again for the spring show. The entire library is transformed into a mall of sorts with booths selling jewelry, home decor, clothing and food. There is a good mix of direct sales and handmade goods. Let's all play a little hookie and come out to shop on a work day... sure does beat being at the office!

While it would really make my day if you came out to one of these shows, I completely understand if you can't... and not to worry because RagsReborn will still be selling pillows on Etsy (www.etsy.com/shop/RagsRebornGifts - all of my inventory is currently listed and updated in real time) and I do in-person deliveries throughout the metro Oklahoma City area. Custom pillows make great gift ideas. I free hand draw all of my patterns so each one is unique!

Check out this adorable Trolls pillow I made as a birthday gift.

RagsReborn's Spring Craft Show Review

~*~*Awesome pillows galore! ~*~*

This past spring, I decided to take it easy and only do five shows. I was originally scheduled to do seven but one show had to reschedule for a different date--and I wasn't available--and another one cancelled all together. While I would love to be selling at shows on a regular basis, I am glad I did not overbook myself. (Less stress is always a good thing, right?) I had more time to focus on new designs & patterns and try out different ideas creatively, which I believe turned out to be a better investment than participating in back-to-back shows. Per tradition, here is my recap of the previous handful of shows I participated in.

Each of the shows I participated in was a good one and I really don't have much of a critique. \(^_^)/ The event organizers at each venue did an amazing job with advertising and vendor hospitality. Unloading and booth set up was a smooth process at each event, the organizers and volunteers were friendly & helpful and a steady stream of shoppers was present all day. If invited back, I would definitely repeat each show next year. 

My first outdoor show was a success! Wanderlust Pop-up shops was one of the most fun shows I ever participated in. The turnout was amazing... I think around 5,000 people came out to support the local artists and crafters. I had the pleasure of borrowing a tent and being neighbors with some friends; the day went swimmingly. Not even the crazy gusts of wind brought our spirits down! The other show that I really enjoyed was DUCK Week. It was my first time sharing a booth and that was also a success. It was nice to have company throughout the day and to also have someone keep an eye on my belongings when I had to step away. Now that I've passed those tests, I will be signing up for more outdoor shows and sharing booths with Rachelle.

My shared booth with Moon Drake Soaps.

Unfortunately, the shows with the lowest grossing sales were at the Newcastle Fair Barn, Western Oaks Christian Church and the Quarter Mania Auction. I attribute the poor sales directly to scheduling (Quarter Mania occurred on Good Friday so turn out was very minimal) and weather...ugh, that blasted Oklahoma weather! *shakes fist at sky* The show coordinators did the best they could, but the weather was really out of their control. Despite that, my sales weren't horrible.. just not where I would have liked them to be. The show in Newcastle occurred on the coldest weekend in March and the show in Western Oaks occurred on the coldest weekend in April. I learned a fun trick from one of the volunteers in Newcastle. He said that whenever his son had a baseball game and they wanted to influence the weather, he would draw a turtle on the baseball field if they wanted rain and draw a cactus if they wanted sunshine. He drew a large cactus right outside my booth and the sun actually started to peak out! 

Speaking of sunshine, my summer show line up is getting finalized this week. I won't be doing too many shows this summer so my pillows will be "limited release" LOL I'll post the schedule on next week's blog post. You won't want to miss these shows!