Bad Girls of the North at the Alaska State Fair

It has been a crazy, busy week. We finished setting up our Bad Girls of the North booth at the Alaska State Fair just in time for the opening at noon on Thursday, August 27. The booth looks fabulous this year. Here are a few photos that I took that day. Of course, many things have already sold, so it looks a little different now, 5 days later.

These are handmade mittens by Nancy Nolfi from Big Lake, Alaska. She starts with recycled wool sweaters. She felts them and turns them into these super-fun mittens with lots of surface embellishments like embroidery, needle felting and applique. She also adorns them with vintage buttons. They're absolutely adorable!


Get a good look at these perching metal ravens. They are made by our good friend Cindy Shake of Anchorage. We had a whole bunch of these (I think we started with 6) and we just sold the last one yesterday! I sure hope Cindy can bring us some more before the weekend starts.



The sweatshirt on the left in this photo is our latest promotional item. It is a pigment dyed zippered hoodie with great graphics. We decided to feature fireweed, which is a much loved local, ubiquitous plant. You can't see it in this photo, but there are a series of fireweed plants printed around the waist area. Our customers are responding nicely to this new item. On the right are our ever-popular toddler shirts and onesies.


I will be back later in the week!

First Friday

This past Friday evening Rick and I went into Anchorage for the First Friday art openings. To be quite honest, we only went to one opening. We went to Half Moon Creek Gallery specifically to see our friend Cindy Shake's newest creations in metal art.

Once again, Cindy has amazed us with her artistic sensibilities and whimsical designs. Her HUGE praying mantis was sold by the time we arrived, which was only 1/2 hour after opening! Rick got a kick out of the grasshopper and I'm entranced by the hostas and sunflowers. You can see photos of some of these items on Cindy's blog.

Of course, I still love the piece I purchased at Half Moon Creek during their grand opening 7 years ago. So much of the art in my home is sea-themed and this sculpture by Cindy fits in perfectly. It also appears to have been created just for that spot above our 2 large windows, doesn't it? It's 11' long and features fish, starfish, shells and sea glass.






(Whatever setting I had on my camera totally whited out my windows and skylight, which have no shades or curtains at all. It's actually quite green out there!)

Update on the Xena Situation ...

The Xena Beast (aka Bouvier des Flanders) is still in dire need of a haircut and a bath. The weather has moderated a bit, so I have made an appointment at the groomer for next Tuesday. That's St. Patrick's Day, so I know she will have a green kerchief on when her grooming is complete.

She is so overgrown and shaggy that I've completely given up with the brushing I had been so diligent about. (Xena says "whew!")

I tried to get her to pose in front of this stake, but she wasn't about to be told where to sit. I love this stake. It was made by local artist and friend Cindy Shake. I have several of her pieces, but this is the only outdoor one. When Xena first saw this, she said "That fake dog will never catch that fake bone. Poor thing." I agreed. We are of one mind. It's a little scary, isn't it?

Stay tuned -- Xena just told me she wants to contribute to the blog again sometime soon.