my Duct Tape does Dallas!

Sounds like a bad "b" movie title doesn't it? Can you not hear the eerie synthetic music accompanying the rip and tear of my duct tape roll? ha! But... it's true!!! I rolled my shiny duct tape right into Artisan Style in "Uptown Dallas"!

First - can I say this house is to die for?!!? I am going to have to do a whole 'nother post on the house that Brandon and Steve chose to open their gallery in!!! Whew - I just want to pile it on top of a tractor and haul it back South! Think duct tape will hold it on? Leaded glass windows, hardwood floors, crown and base molding, fireplace and built-ins, big bay window...the list goes on!!!

And the artists I'm in with...so talented - everything so colorful and fun!!! Unfortunately I didn't get to meet them all, but my day is coming!!! Opening night was SO crowded (Kathy Kromer's room was ABSOLUTELY packed and unattainable!) that my appointed photographer couldn't get in some of the rooms, so I am going to go back with camera in hand so that I can get you tons of photos to look at! In the meantime, here are some shots of the featured artists!!!

This is Courtney C. Lee's corner - "momento D'Oro" - and the guitar standing in the corner has shotgun shell caps running up the neck! Can you say red.neck girl's dream? ha! I'm chomping at the bit to meet her...she's a dumpster diver after my own heart!!!

And this is in the upstairs bathroom (again, I want this house...) and I'm not sure who the artist is, but OH MY GOSH - SPARKLY THINGS I MUST OWN!!!

Like I said, I didn't get to meet the artists that are featured but a few of them are: Darrah Gooden, Jelene Morris, Cindy Pacileo, Oscar Picazo, Linda Jones, Charlie Garrett (luckily Charlie doesn't mind sharing space with a red.neck - and his paintings are SO fun!!!), Dust Furniture and Hocus Focus Photography. I'm going to share some of the opening night photos with you - but you have to go see them in person!!!

And this one is Charlie (look, I do know something for sure! ha!)...

some of his photos have a clear resin/thick shellac poured over the front - they look SO cool with the light shining on them!!!

And here is lil' ol' me...

I kept singing to myself "think gallery, think gallery, think gallery" while planning my set-up/display because I'm so used to setting up a "general store" type area at shows and in the antique mall I'm at - filled with TONS of eye-candy to keep you entertained for hours! I wanted to take a few things that summed up red.neck Chic (really...is that possible? A summation in one small space? I think not...) as well as my handbags, so I ended up with 3 chandeliers and my infamous "coffee table"...the perfect drink holder for the bowling mechanic. HAHAHA!

I grabbed up about 15 handbags (most made exclusively for Artisan Style) and scattered them very selectively on some old chairs I spray painted metallic aluminum silver (good GRIEF I love spray paint!), snagged an old wooden ladder off of a front porch in a location I cannot pinpoint (can you get arrested for grabbing and running? hmmm...) and, of course, you can't be a true red.neck without the required wheels...so they are the bases for my chandelier stands. YEEEEE HAW!

I'm on my way back up next week with some more handbags and other fun things (I have to take another coffee table...I believe this one is gone already!) - but I have to tell ya... I kind of like the simplicity of my display!!! Of course, the day will arrive when I'm going to wheel my turquoise refrigerator and cinder blocks right into that corner - but, 'til that day comes I'm going to keep it as spacious and simple as possible, changing it out often so that each time a repeat customer comes in the local red.neck has provided new fun things - all with a side of duct tape of course!!!

When you are in Dallas next time be sure and go hang your hat at Artisan Style, 2417 Mahon St. in uptown Dallas (also known as the art district!)! It is SO much fun and SO colorful - and, you might even catch a glimpse of an orange-headed girl on cinder blocks rolling out her silver tape...

Comin' to you LIVE from a single-wide...hee-hee

:-) robelyn