Good morning! Did you have a nice weekend? I hope that you did! I’ve been very busy since I saw you last – never a dull moment when one is still in the “honeymoon stage” of a relocation. There is so much to absorb and do! One thing that I did was attend a beautifully organized arts and crafts show called the Weihnachtsschau for Kunst Handwerk & Design on Saturday.

Imagine two floors in an all white gallery-like setting with nothing but jewelry, papers, wood, glass, felt, candles, ceramics and handmade textiles and all for sale, you could purchase and take home any item that caught your eye. I enjoyed seeing so many lovely handmade things presented in a gallery setting where you’d expect sculpture or painting, it elevated craft works to where I feel they belong — displayed as pieces to respect and cherish for many years. The only thing about this presentation that made it difficult was that some things felt too “fine” — I almost felt intimidated and I did not want to touch anything fearing it may not be the right thing to do in such a setting. And in some cases, I could not touch items to try them on — all of the jewelry was locked in glass cases where you could only write down the number and take a slip to the cashier in the front of the building requesting to see the item. This all felt entirely too complicated and given the crowds, I was not willing to navigate them to ask someone to unlock a case. And as a result I left this wonderful exhibit without purchasing a few of the pieces that I liked so much. Which leads to be think about a study I read once about touch and how researchers found that if you touch it you will buy it. Here’s the article, it’s fascinating – I’ll quote a bit of it below.

“The amazing part of this study is that people can become almost immediately attached to something as insignificant as a mug,” said study leader James Wolf, who began the work while he was a graduate student at Ohio State. “By simply touching the mug and feeling it in their hands, many people begin to feel like the mug is, in fact, their mug. Once they begin to feel it is theirs, they are willing to go to greater lengths to keep it.”

I still enjoyed the event very much and the overall offerings, the presentation was exquisite and of course the level of skill and talent shown left me speechless in some areas of the exhibition — I found things that were truly impressive examples of talent and craftsmanship. And surprisingly enough, prices were affordable. I expected some items to cost double or even triple. I didn’t walk away with anything but I’m thinking of returning this week to give the show a second look because downstairs I did find an item that I loved, and that I touched and surprise! I have been thinking about it ever since so I think that study just may be pretty accurate when it comes to my shopping behavior.

What did you do this weekend?

To start things off today I thought I’d share with you the latest prints from Lab Partners called Pen Pals. Sarah Labieniec was nice enough to send me her new work last night and because I’m a fan I couldn’t resist sharing them here this morning. Sarah also has a sale going on right now in her shop: buy 2 prints get one free! The free print must be of equal or lesser value and this offer is valid only until end of business TODAY, November 30, 2009.

(images: lab partners)