Some Bling-Bling to Start Your Weekend

Following my art quilt bee's trip to the Page-Walker house on Monday to see the Narrative Threads exhibit, we went to lunch nearby at Serendipity Gourmet Deli.  Then, it was a short walk around the corner to a fabulous bead shop called Beautimus Beads.  The store was well-named...everything in there was attractively and cleverly displayed. 

I was as happy as a Kindergarten child with a new box of crayons!

I loved these little clear bowls...with feet!

Even if you are not a beader or embellisher, you could find yourself a little something in this lovely shop.

How about a pendant/pin?

Or scarves, bags, or cuffs?

We might be having a future bee meeting at this shop for a personalized tutorial on beading.  Love that idea!

Then we visited the Purple Polka Dot gift shop next to Ashworth's Drugstore.  I would never have guessed that this block of Cary would be so artsy back when my little sister was making hot dogs and milk shakes at the lunch counter in Ashworth's!

 Lots of fun and quirky items for the home.  I like the fused glass items in frames.

  They would look good hanging in our cabin!

Here are some ideas for decorating a baby's room with simple fabric applique and rickrack on mounted gallery canvas.

Our final stop was at the Cary Gallery of Artists, on the same block. 

We were lucky that Ana Sumner was working there on this day.  She is a fiber artist who did the artwork for the Cary Lazy Daze publicity. (You can see this piece featuring well-known Cary landmarks on her website.)  We had a nice time talking with her and discussing all the lovely pieces in the gallery.  I invite you to visit their website to see some of the fine watercolors, oils, and other work produced by the artists in this group.

After visiting with my aunt in a rest home near Cary and doing a little shopping, I then met my daughter-in-law and her mother at Elegant Stitches in Cary.  There is a little girl arriving in December who needs to have a pretty nursery!  Somehow, we three opinionated women chose a selection of fabrics to make a quilt, dust ruffle, curtains, chair cover, and whatever else inspires us as we play with the ocean-themed fabrics.

I need to finish up the work on my house so I can get busy sewing again!