Bryony Studio

Tomorrow is my first time at the Saturday Artisan Market in beautiful Buffalo NY. Today has been the mad dash to put everything together, and figure out what I needed to do. Craziness. St. Padraig's Poncho Above is a photo of one of the three ponchos for sale. I planned on a fourth one, but measuring and cutting this morning didn't work out right. One of the joys of art - problems always arise. Still, it wasn't a bad situation, and I was able to turn my poncho into a shrug. For me, one of the biggest fears is cutting the woven fabric wrong and not being able to use it for anything. It's one of the things about weaving that makes me realize how valuable fabric is - the time and energy. To create fabric takes time. To turn the fabric into clothing takes more time. To care for the fabric takes patience and knowledge of the fabric. I sit back and wonder at the knowledge we've lost in our push for cheap clothes. How does it hurt us individually? How does it h...

Somehow along the way, I think we skipped spring. It's been in the seventies and eighties here in Western NY with a dewpoint in the sixties. It's hot and humid, and feels like summer! I actually am not the biggest fan of summer, but hey, it's better than winter! Crabapple Blossoms The trees are blooming, the rhubarb growing, and I've started the garden. I especially enjoy walking outside without a coat, scarf, mittens, boots and returning even colder. This year, I'll be at the Saturday Artisan Market at Canalside in downtown Buffalo NY. Saturday (May 17) is the season opener. Fair season is just around the corner, and I look ahead with mixed emotions. Last year produced decidedly bad results. I made absolutely no profit, and found myself discouraged at the end of the season. Changes were needed, and part of the changes involved revamping what I created. In the past, I've focused on home accessories such as pillows, quilts and rugs, but this year, I...

I found out some cool news yesterday: I was accepted to the Saturday Artisan Market (SAM) at Central Wharf in Buffalo NY. Opening day is May 17.  Newest Weaving Project Can I just say how excited I am by this opportunity? It's going to be a great time of meeting new people and establishing myself in Buffalo. I will be there under my pen/artist name of Bridgette ni Brian, not under the Bryony Studio name since I'm still working on establishing Bryony. As the days progress, I'll keep everyone updated through here and my Bridgette ni Brian Facebook page ( here ) and my Twitter account @bridgettenbrian ( here ) Trying to remain encouraged and hopeful with all that's happening has been interesting to say the least. It isn't easy establishing oneself in the artist community, especially when people wonder just what fiber arts is. Trying to explain to people the benefits of supporting local artisans is even harder when most people are concerned about more importan...