Arts Council Christmas Bazaar!

I've been at the studio every day getting ready for Cecil, but I'm REALLY excited about the Arts Council Christmas Bazaar this year. This is fun! It's really cool turning the upstairs of the Arts Council building into a bunch of cool little shops. Today, Vickie Clark amazed me by turning an otherwise drab corner of the Arts Council main classroom into a stunning jewelry boutique. It's all coming together better than I ever expected. Here's the cool ad we are posting tonight all over the Internet. Check it out!

Arts Council Christmas Bazaar!

The Arts Council Christmas Bazaar opens Saturday, December 4th, 5PM-9PM, UPSTAIRS in the Arts Council building on the NW corner of the Lamar Square. Come visit us after the parade (or even before)! This is not like any ho-hum "Home for the Holidays" Arts Council event you've seen before. It's an all-local, handmade, ultra-cool "mini-mall" with three separate stores to choose from. The Handmade Shop features stunning (and affordable!!!)jewelry by Vickie Clark and Fern Brown, "Mo-Chocolate" gourmet cookie mixes and candy's by Janet Dermott, Queen's Family Farm's fabulous dips, jams, candied nuts, Pam Allen's local honey, plus wreaths, scarves, holiday decor, etc etc etc! Wow! Store #2 is a "re-sell-it" shop featuring high quality, gently used, items. We've got doll house furniture, hand-carved African masks from the Ivory Coast, beautiful framed art, books, movies, clothes, dishes, just tons of amazing stuff and more coming in every day. Last but not least, store #3 is Peaceacre - you all know who that is! Handmade soaps, scrubs, lotion bars, spa salt bars, gift sets, and other natural bath and body care products. Peaceacre has added imported Bohemian cloth purses, lace scarves, and all kinds of new goodies just for this Bazaar! And the best part is, after Saturday, all three stores will be open every Thursday and Friday from Noon to 6PM, and Saturdays from 9AM-2PM though December 18th!

But wait, there's more! The amazing Kristie Boswell of Creatively Designed Photography will be doing Christmas portraits. Visit her Facebook page for details - http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/profile.php?id=100001893811571

There will be frequent drawings for gift baskets, jewelry and other "door prizes." Check back for details!

More info is available on the Arts Council website at http://ACOBC.org.

See you all Saturday!

Upcoming Shows

First, I want to thank everybody for a great farmers market season. I want to acknowledge that Peaceacre kind of fell off the farmers market map there toward the end, but our loyal customers kept telling us we needed to take our show on the road and so we did. The success we had at some of the out of town shows has enabled me to invest in  bigger and better soap making equipment. I had trouble keeping up with demand in the past, making small batches, but with the new equipment, that should change. This is my second year in business, and I am learning as I go. Thanks for your patience! I could not have done any of this without my local loyal customers - Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Enough traveling for now. I am back in the area and will be at three major shows right here at home between now and Christmas.

The first is the annual craft show at St. Andrew's Lutheran Church in Stockton on Saturday, November 13th.

The second show is Amanda Kenter's fantastic Lamar Handmade Boutique, Saturday, November 20th at Memorial Hall in Lamar.

The third event is very exciting. Beginning during Lamar's "Home for the Holidays" celebration on the Square, December 4th, lots of very cool stuff is going to be going on in the Arts Council building at 206 West 10th Street, on the northwest corner of the Square.  Downstairs in the Gallery, Lamar jewelry artist Joanna Turnbull is hosting an "Artist's Market" featuring the work of a variety of artists from far and wide throughout the four state area. Upstairs, the Arts Council will host a handmade store along the lines of what I did last year when I opened Peaceacre to the public for the holidays, only MUCH expanded and full of surprises. It's going to be really cool, featuring awesome handmade items, demonstrations, even a rummage sale! So, to all you crafty ladies out there, if you are interested in taking part, email me at peaceacre@ymail.com ASAP! It's going to be fun! Visit this website frequently for updates!

Thank You to Everyone Who Made the First Annual Lamar Fall Folk Festival Possible!

The Arts Council of Barton County and the 10th Street Community Farmers Market would like to thank all the fine folks who made The First Annual Lamar Fall Folk Festival possible!

Performers:

Dennis Wilson, The Drywood Bluegrass Band, Verne Young, Joe Smith, Pat Bean, Tom Richards, Ralph Williston, The HH Cloggers.

Artists:

Lowell Davis (and his wonderful wife, Rose), Carolyn Dunsing, Jason Branum, Pam Allen, Mick Lindsay, Brent Kelley, Lindy Davis.

Volunteers:

Sue, Rick and Emily Katz, Carolyn and Katlin Dunsing, Mike and Lesa Queen, Carol Branum, Pam Allen, James McMullen, Elizabeth McMullen, Jane and Roger McGuire, Betty Kuhn, Kathy Jenkins, Ione Chancelor, Bertie Wooten, Officer Greg Evans, Christie Boswell, Randall Miller, George Parsons, Bruce and Denise Clements.

Food:

Dixie and Junior Johnson, St. Mary's Youth, Rose Davis.

Donors and Supporters:

Donna Holt, Wes and Sally Hart, The Lamar Art League, Legacy Farm and Lawn, Jason Roark, Dennis Suiter, Walmart, Barton County Chamber of Commerce, Doyle Robinson, Marsha Doyle, The City of Lamar, The Lamar Democrat, Lamar Police Department, radio stations KNMO, KWRP and KRPS, TV station KOAM, The Joplin Globe, Kathy McComber, The University of Missouri Extension Center, Steve Shields, Jim Judd, all the area businesses and libraries that helped by displaying or distributing our fliers. Special thanks to all of the awesome craft and Farmers Market vendors. Our thanks and apologies to anyone we might have overlooked on this list.

And a big thank you as well to everyone who came out to enjoy the festivities - we couldn't have done it without you!

To one and all - THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

Don't Miss The First Annual Lamar Fall Folk Festival!

The Arts Council of Barton County and the 10th Street Community Farmers Market are Proud to Present

The First Annual

Lamar Fall Folk Festival!

When: Saturday, October 23^rd, 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM

Where: Under the Moore Pavilion, 10^th & Poplar, Lamar, Missouri!

Featuring Blue Grass Music by

The Drywood Bluegrass Band

Vern Young and Joe Smith

Storytelling with Ralph Williston

Art Show Featuring Lowell Davis

Magic by Dennis Wilson and Tom Richards

Breakfast & Lunch to benefit the St. Mary's Catholic Church Rebuilding Fund - Lunch Featuring Chili Cook-off Champions Dixie & Jr. Johnson's Famous Firehouse Chili!

Plus: 10^th Street Community Farmer's Market!

Square Dancing demonstration, craft vendors, traditional skills demonstrations, lots of children's activities including face painting, pumpkin painting, build-a-scarecrow and more! Trick or Treat Safety with the Lamar Police Department! 100^th Anniversary of Boy Scouting! Civil War History and Antique Weapons Display! And much, much more!

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Admission is FREE!

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Craft Vendors: NO RISK! Set up is FREE. Pay 10% of actual sales to the Farmers Market. Call 417-682-6990 to sign up!

Folk Artists: SHOW YOUR WORK! Call 417-214-5458 for details.

TRADITIONAL SKILLS: Can you demonstrate quilting, spinning, weaving, woodcraft, blacksmithing, corn shelling or other traditional country skills? Call 417-214-5458!

Saturday at the Farmers Market

Despite the extreme heatwave we have been experiencing this past few weeks, the 10th Street Community Farmers Market under the Moore Pavilion in Lamar is going strong! This is our second year, and the market is growing by leaps and bounds, both in the number and variety of vendors, and in the number of shoppers visiting the market every week. For those who are interested in becoming vendors at the farmers market, it's become easier this year. You can set up for the day with no setup charge. If you're interested, email me at Peaceacre@Ymail.com.

We are so glad to have become members of this farmers market. We have fun every week. We sell a lot, of course, but its not all about commerce. We have made many great friends and have had the opportunity to meet all kinds of awesome people in the community. It's like attending a festival every weekend! Here are some pics from a typical Saturday:

 Farm Fresh Produce from Queen Family Farm

Awesome Dip Mixes from Queen Family Farm

 Lesa Queen's Hand Made Dishcloths

 Doyle Robinson's Cabbage

Doyle's Tomatoes

Lendy's Day Lilies. Lendy Davis sells a huge variety of lilies, and they're all beautiful!

Darlene Megli and Danell Howard Demonstrating How to Use a Spinning Wheel.

Darlene raises fiber sheep. This is an example of her dyed wool.

 Peaceacre Herb Bread - New This Season! I still have all the soaps, balms, lotion bars etc. And some new stuff you might want to check out!

Janet Dermott's Handmade Candy

Our farmers market rocks! I hope to see you Saturday!

Farmer's Market Season Begins - ETC...

The 10th Street Farmer's Market opened today, with lots of bedding plants, along with fresh breads, spring onions, spinach, lettuce - and, of course, Peaceacre! We met a lot of cool out-of-towners today, and we had a lot of people ask how they can find Peacecare products when they go home. I am working on getting more of my market items into the Peaceacre-Artfire online store. One that IS currently listed is the herbal healing balm, which I sold out of at the market this morning (I have more for on line sales). This is one of the most popular products that I make. I'll be making more for local sale soon. We've had really good feedback on this balm. Other new items this year include Spa Salt Bars with French clay, Orange Cream Whipped Lotion in a tin, Pure & Natural Laundry Soap bars, and tea rose scented and "healing hands" herbal lotion bars. Last year's favorites are back, too, of course, inlcuding all the varieties of soap you've come to expect from Peaceacre. I have plenty of surprises planned for this year's Farmer's Market season, so expect good things to come.

Since Peaceacre is really NOT all about commerce, please note that we WILL NOT be at the market every weekend. In May, we will be there the 1st, 8th and 22nd. If we add more dates, we'll let you know.

In other news... I'm working on a number of projects for the Arts Council, including, this month, a FREE kids class for Earth Day on making art from recycled materials. You can find more info on that class in the "peacecare art" section of this website, and also at acobc.org. I am also planning adult classes soon at Peaceacre studio on making herbal balms, herbal teas, and maybe needle felting, too, so watch this space for announcements.

Thanks everybody for a great first day at the Market, and a lot of positive commentary. We look forward to a great season!

10th St. Community Farmer's Markets at Apple Days

On October 3rd, Peaceacre joined the other vendors of the 10th St. Community Farmer's Market at "Apple Days," Lamar's annual fall festival set up all around our historic downtown square. Georgous fall colors were everywhere, the weather was great, and people turned out in huge numbers.

The bravest amongst the 10th St. Farmer's Market vendors plan to continue on at the Moore Pavillion well into November - but for Peaceacre, the cold weather means we're moving our operation INDOORS!

This has been the first year for the 10th St. Community Farmer's Market, and the first year we've sold our handmade soaps and herbal products in a public venue. It has been a fabulous year, for the Market and for Peaceacre. Lots of folks have asked if they'll be able to find us after the market closes for the season. We WILL be continuing all winter long! We found a great studio space upstairs in the Arts Council building on the NW corner of the square, and have set up shop. "Apple Days" pretty much wiped out our on-hand stock, but I am busy in the studio creating new batches of all of the favorites and most requested items, and coming up with a few new suprises, as well. We have also created a "store" page (see the link in the "my pages" section of the right hand menu bar of this page) where you can see the various products that we make. At this point, we are not set up for on-line sales, but we're working on that.

If you don't live in Lamar, and you just can't live without our stuff, email me! I'll work something out!

I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has been so very supportive of Peaceacre in our first year. We have met so many wonderful people, and made lots of new friends.

Open Mic Night on the Courthouse Lawn

Despite the intense August heat, a lot of musicians, poets and other great peformers showed up for our town's monthly open mic night. Thanks to Ann Killmon for organizing these entertaining monthly events. If you live near Lamar, Missouri, and have a song to sing or a poem to read, email us at Peaceacre@Ymail.com and we'll let Ann know to add you to the roster. Or if you just want to come down and hang out and hear some great music, poetry and more, check out Ann's MySpace page for dates and times at MySpace.com/aectunes.