Keep in Touch with our Industry

Niche Magazine is published by the Rosen Group who in addition is responsible for creating each year the Buyer's Market of American Craft, the venue show where hand-made craft retailers such as little ole' us go to select new artists or stay in touch with our current artists. Last year we were honored to be named a 2009 Top Retailer by Niche and our relationship with this industry of North American Craft continues.  National recognition within your industry is a wonderful experience.  The article titled "Building Business with a Standout Website"  in this month's Niche online magazine about our new website is a thrill.  As both a marketing professional and gallery owner, it is what I strive for.  Being passionate about our craft artists in glass and metal makes it easy.

The Journey Continues

We never know where life’s journey will take us…we’ve all heard that more than one time in our life.

I’ve written before how our journey in the new century left our conventional lifestyle behind and for reasons of necessity we came south from our home state of New Jersey, (yes, another set of Yankees) with roots from Ellis Island, landed by boat in Southport, NC in November of 2005.  That lovely boat was Quiescent. 

There is something about cruising on the water that gets into your bloodstream by way of your heart.  And Quiescent was a part of our love story on the water from 2005-2009.  Maybe it’s because I was born a Pisces with fish as my celestial kinship.  Most likely it’s because I have an adventuresome spirit and a husband that can be my captain and partner in the adventure.  Mind you, boating and living aboard a boat is about as adventuresome as I get.  Not interested in scaling mountains or jumping out of planes.  That is anothers journey, not mine.

Living on Quiescent was truly a journey.  It started with downsizing a house with 6 rooms of furniture and selling or giving ¾ of our possessions away to overcoming my fear of navigating the water as first mate, reading charts, tying off lines in our first “lock”, facing down the first gigantic barge in the C&D canal, and taking the helm of 46ft of fiberglass with twin Cummins 210hp engines when the captain had to jump down to the engine room to fend off some issue or another.  It was personal.

By way of Quiescent we started another leg of our journey with purchasing Crescent Moon.  A chapter that continues, and shapes itself day to day with challenges, and new opportunities. We hauled Quiescent out of the water in 2009 to concentrate on this next chapter and bought a house.  We love our house and we are acquiring possessions once again.  It takes me longer to clean and Mike has a lawn to mow, but it fits for now.  But at night, in bed, I don’t feel the water beneath me gently soothing and slighting rocking me into a nights rest.  I can’t look out any of our windows and chance to see a heron perched to enjoy dinner, or simply enjoy the sound of lapping water against the hull.

So our journey is taking us back to Quiescent, if only for awhile and if only for short cruises.  Quiescent was re-launched this week and is tucked snugly in a beautiful slip at Sawmill Point Marina on the Cape Fear River slightly north of Crescent Moon.  (This is where you imagine hearing me sigh in contentment).  We will take her south a bit to the downtown docks on September 12-13^th and enjoy sitting on the aft deck, inviting friends aboard, meeting new people and capturing a magnificent Carolina sunset.  A short cruise, but I’m sure a sweet one.  The first of a few cruises before Quiescent becomes a part of another couple’s journey when she sells.

So if you are downtown on Sunday the 12^th…

Why Is It So Quiet - Mack Bailey & Rachel Levy.mov

What In The World Is IT?

Ikebana – Japanese for arranged flower.  Wikipedia says…More than simply putting flowers in a container, ikebana is a disciplined art form in which nature and humanity are brought together. Contrary to the idea of floral arrangement as a collection of parti-colored or multicolored arrangement of blooms, ikebana often emphasizes other areas of the plant, such as its stems and leaves, and draws emphasis toward shape, line, form. Though ikebana is a creative expression, it has certain rules governing its form. The artist's intention behind each arrangement is shown through a piece's color combinations, natural shapes, graceful lines, and the usually implied meaning of the arrangement.

The container is a key element of the composition, and various styles of pottery may be used in their construction.

But our customers have come up with some humorous ideas of what it is.  Makes for a lightened day and gets the conversation going.  How about a potato baker?  Or a Lemon Reamer? 

And why is the “spiky thingy” to hold the flowers called a frog?  In short it seems to be a slang term which was in common use by the 1940s. Company catalogs never referred to the items as frogs. They were flower holders, arrangers, or blocks. Only rarely did the term "frog" occur in a patent.  Best guess-- The metal holders sit in water like a frog and are called by the Japanese kenzan.  The name kenzan literally means sword mountain.


I'm thinking though of trying it with the potato!