fairhope

in the great little town of fairhope, alabama, there are many spectacular things. one of which, the annual arts and crafts festival. its one of the largest in the country. i saw artists from wisconsin, new jersey, even paris (france, not texas). it never disappoints.

my favorite artist was marc james villanueva.

the piece i wanted got bought while i was browsing. i'm considering getting him to do a commission piece if my finances change anytime in the near future (fingers crossed).

i actually didn't buy anything at all except for an (overpriced) extra long $6 corndog, and a totally worth it home-made ice cream root beer float. it was deeeelicious.

also in fairhope: a plethora of antique shops. ranging from the "is this really an antique?" junk stores, to the "i'm afraid to touch this" rare finds, its quite an adventure. along the way i met and fell in love with this french bergere. one day she will be mine, considering she is still there after some time.

and, unexpectedly, me and the feller got a rare treat. nestled down fairly long driveways and hidden well by trees, are 2 amazing "fairhope castles." we wandered down to take pictures, and the mother of the architect just happened to be outside and was so kind to invite us inside. i didn't take pictures of the inside (as not to impose), but it was equally marvelous. the architect (who we met, last name mosier) is also a painter and had some fantastic HUGE paintings in his studio--2 which will be hung in historical galleries; one in fairhope, one in annapolis. i didn't take any pictures of the first castle, but its the original, built by the father-in-law of the architect of the castle got to see close-up. they are right next door and have/will remain in the family. take a gander.

from the driveway
the entrance (can you see the moat??)
fountain that feeds into the moat

upclose view of the castle tower...there are glass bottles, toy cars, etc in the walls. neato!

view of the awesome front door with the lowered door over the moat (don't think its a working door, but its still cool.)

what a weekend, huh? and to top it off we had gooey fries and hot wings at baumhauers, and then we went to bass pro! doesn't get much better than that.