Meander & Harvest Fest - 2012

My decorating style and taste has changed dramatically over the years.  I used to buy random things I liked; got bored with it; got rid of it at Goodwill or a garage sale.  I have a few pieces that are antiques and are tied to me for sentimental reasons and of course my collection of tea pots I could never part with!

Now, I bring things into my home that have more of a meaning to me.  Things I will never part with.  Now I decorate my home with books I love, photos that remind me of all the fun I've had in my life and the wonderful people I'm sharing my life with, mementos from amazing family vacations, and artwork by artists I personally know.  I also love to surround myself with food grown from someone I can actually talk to, jewelry made by someone who says, "I just love your mom" and books by an author who had children with which I went to high school.

This first weekend in October is a great way that my mom, my sister and I have found to support the artists, farmers, bakers, craftspeople we know and love by visiting the Meander - Upper Minnesota River Art Crawl and the Harvest Fest.

The Meander is an art crawl in western Minnesota where a variety of artists either open their studios to the public or display their artwork in public spaces.  Here is the brochure:

You can check out all of the artist and Meander information at www.artsmeander.com or on Facebook at MeanderArtCrawl.

Here's a little sample of what we found.  Our first stop was the Red Barn that housed a number of artists.

 We bought notecards and a painting by artist Neva Foster.........

A shawl clip and a necklace/earring set from artist Barb Ash.....

After lunch at Java Jule's in downtown Ortonville we browsed the photography on display by Rob Rakow and my sister purchased one of his mounted photographs.  I have a lot of photos by Rob in my house - all places my sister and I are familiar with but see with a new eye through Rob's lens.

THEN it was off to Harvest Fest.  Not a part of the Meander but a place for apples, crafts, gourds, baked goods, pasta, canned goods..........  I wonderful fall celebration.

We bought gourds, pasta, jelly and pasta.

Find local artists, bakers, crafters, farmers, authors.  Make connections so that what you bring into your life is authentic and real and not something that will end up in Goodwill in a few months!

"The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls."  -Pablo Picasso