Evanston Sidewalk Sale Pods

We had a heat wave in Evanston Friday and Saturday. After the ever-lasting winter, I am not complaining. My one A/C unit is in the studio, so I set it up and when the ceiling fans could do no more I cleared off the futon to set up my computer station.

Of course I got distracted by all the inspiration, so it became a very creative week as well.

I gave my new Now That’s a Hammers! a place to hang out on my dresser. But the rest of the piles will wait after the Sidewalk sale.

The shelf that holds my ornament boxes got overtaken by other things, so it will be a process to reorganize, which feels futile when I am about to go off on art fairs.

I will be at Artem Pop Up Gallery on Saturday, July 27 from 11 am to 3 pm. The Sidewalk sale is Friday through Sunday, and various artists will rotate in and out of the Artem Sidewalk setup.

Of course my shelf remains, and will have some new additions once I have inventoried the latest.

So as I was cooling down in the one room with A/C, I reviewed things I wanted to incorporate into my pods. I had picked up a necklace from a clothing swap, and originally wanted to combine it with a bigger sequin bead. But as I wove the wire I created too much tension, making the pod space to small for the larger sequin bead to jiggle around. So I used two necklace beads instead.

I discovered Jeopardy on Netflix (all first episodes of each season with Alex Trebek are shown), and enjoyed listening to the trivia as I wove my pods. The announced prizes and companies were a blast from the past.

The silver balls jiggle nicely and add a little sparkle in finished form.

I also added Azurite chips to another pod. Azurite is believed to open the third eye chakra, thus giving the wearer clarity, even clairvoyance in some cultures. Who doesn’t want a bit of insight and wisdom on occasion?

When I did the Wine, Women and Mud class Joanna Kramer gave each of us a little memento. I decided to wire wrap the ceramic square. It sat for a bit until I looked at my square Now That’s a Jig! pegs and played with the setup. The 1-inch peg framed the ceramic tile perfectly. So I made a square design and then wrapped steel wire around it.

It’s a little bit heavy, but I love the look.

It also reminds me of this sculpture I see on my almost-daily walks.

Artem Pop Up Gallery will have various artists rotate in and out of the sidewalk throughout this weekend.

The store always has something new, and I recently met new artist Baz Art, who creates beautiful art out of reclaimed wood.

Vocabuart offers artful word play on Evanston.

Sarita Kamat Designs is expanding her jewelry displays with additional creations.

Erin Brie created a gorgeous Mermaid and was ahead of the current Cats-craze.

Kiddos can pick their favorite crochet snugglies.

And cork art is always fun.

This is Pulp Art!

So come in and see all the artisan-made gift items available year-round. Artists rotate in and out, but the store is here to stay, as am I.

You can also find Waldo as you make your way across sidewalk sale venues. The Sale is in both Downtown Evanston and the Main-Dempster Mile Shopping districts. You can find $1 books/CDs/LPs from Squeezebox, Ayla’s Originals has an Estate Sale, and Secret Treasures is doing its $1 per box sale again (which is crazy and fun).