Have you heard of Ojai, California? It's an enclave of fairly well off, ecologically bent art lovers. It supposedly is an escape for hollywood bigwigs, but truthfully the cross section of population has plenty of similarities to the average town (farm workers all the way up to millionaires). Larry Hagman used to marshall the July 4 parade, Beatrice Wood is the most famous past resident (pottery artist).
Anyway, there are several well established art fests in Ojai each year. It is an accomplishment to participate. I participated this past weekend as a guest of a resident artist.
It was an open studio tour; this is where dozens of artists throughout the area invite the public to their work areas. The locations are spread pretty far apart. I was out front of the studio of a very gracious lady with a couple tables in her tranquil yard.
See stop 30 on the map at
I was under a couple BIG pine trees and a HUGE oak at least 75 feet tall. A nature lovers setting. Wonderful. The trees were full of jays, a woodpecker was next to me most of the days.
We had a small steady stream of visitors, more than I expected being pretty far off the main center of activities. Sales were enough in 2 days to make it worthwhile, but not enough to jump for joy. I'll use the fact I was invited and participated as a qualification for future art endeavors.
I brought mostly sea glass jewelry, jeweled eggs, and wire weave jewelry. The wire weaves attracted a LOT of compliments (wish they sold just a much!). Many people asked for my biz card.
But since I don't have much made, I hadn't put any wire weave work on my website. Folks will probably be checking out the website though, (I noticed a few clicks even before the show), so today marks the first day the wire weaves are for sale on my website. At my fantastic low prices.
Here's the first, inspired by autumn leaves...
Copper Apricot and Emerald Wire Weave Necklace
A flash of orange and green in swirling copper curves are just like outdoor fall leaves and breezes. Intricate detail, described as modern, feminine and mesmerizing. Supremely affordable for original design from The Frugal Artisan. See all the details at
Pretty Cheap Jewelry
And the acorns? There were hundreds and hundreds under that oak so I gathered a large bag for a birder friend who has great knowledge and feeds wild species in her yard.
Also free to me that weekend? Dozens of limes from my host's tree. And before I left, her neighbor brought over a jar full of seaglass for me to use in jewelry. People love to collect it, but without a way to use it have been giving it to me. OK with me!
October 14th, 2013 at 11:48 pm 1381794494
Here's a great healthy beverage you can make without all the added sugar and preservatives of store-bought junk.
Fill a glass pitcher full of cold water. Add the juice of two limes, Stevia to taste and a quarter cup of fresh mint leaves. Let steep in fridge overnight. It's delicious!
October 15th, 2013 at 01:56 pm 1381845378
June 12th, 2015 at 12:49 pm 1434113392