Play all day at The Art Barn!

This last week dear friend Kris (who now lives in South Carolina that I've known since middle school) stayed at my house. Her brother was getting married over the weekend so aside from a few family obligations we had plenty of time to catch up. I was her plus one at the wedding….also great fun seeing her little "platinum" brother (back in the day) tie the knot.  All good…..

One day we ventured to a place in Douglas called THE ART BARN.  The property was overflowing with colorful daisies and cone flowers in the abundant gardens. Whimsical garden ornaments, ceramic frogs, birdbath and bird houses, and flags caught our eye at every turn. Everything was bright and lively, each thing enticing you inside. The grounds even included an old fashioned elevated water tank with brightly colored tulle petticoats hung over the side implying naked bathers were enjoying a cool dip.  

We arrived shortly after 10:00 and the place was already packed. For an $8 studio fee, we could make things all day, at least from 10-6. Prices for the base items were reasonable, and included all the supplies and tools you need to leave with a finished item. The clock included an installed mechanism; a lamp was ready to hang a shade and screw in a bulb. You leave your items for firing or finishing and pick up in a day or two. Their tools and your imaginations, from painted ceramic plates and bowls to jewelry to mosaic tiles to painted silk scarves. 

The hard part was deciding what to do. A mosaic, or a necklace or earrings or both?  We kept being drawn to the glass fusing. The round and square brightly colored garden stakes were simply too beautiful to resist. But the shaped glass bowls and platters were incredible too. It took us forever to decide. I finally settled on a small clock and Kris picked a sun-catcher...both good starting projects.  They were big enough to master the skills and challenge yourself yet small enough not to be overwhelmed. Carol the owner gave us the basic instructions how to snip the glass, do overlays and fill in, then we were on our own designing and creating.  Then our projects were placed in queue in the finishing room.

Sunday afternoon we returned to pick up our projects. Both of us were very pleased with our debut projects, and agreed we need to return to attempt something more daring now that we have our first project behind us. I'd like to do a couple lamps and both of us would like to do a large garden sun-catcher. All Kris has to do is plan a return stay during the hot summer! Tick tock!!!