two city broads hit the highway to ohio to experience some Country Living...

so i have a little confession to make...i'm a bit of a closet farm girl...

and by that, i mean i am a committed and happy city dweller who loves the creative and vibrant community i live in, but i would give it up in a heartbeat if i were to stumble upon just the right farmhouse for sale in any one of the outlying farming villages that surround buffalo. yup, that's right...this lifelong city girl would gladly pack up her 100+ year-old home to trade it in for the simple life of a pumpkin farm...someplace where i could grow good food, raise some chickens and maybe a pig (if it could handle the near constant aroma of bacon wafting from my kitchen), grow a ton of gourds and pumpkins and squash, with a little studio cottage in the back where i could craft and create my little heart out.

so it may not surprise you, dear readers, to know that i'm in love with Country Living, a wonderful Hearst magazine publication that is now in its tenth year of print. the magazine is a virtual how-to guide for those of us who fancy the cottage/vintage/country aesthetic. there really isn't enough i can say about Country Living, its that good...and i'm not the only one to have such a notion. in the last few years, the good people of Country Living have been bringing the pages of the magazine to life for its readers to enjoy in the form of the Country Living Fair. held in the midwest, the fair brings featured vendors, instructional sessions, and demonstrations to guests. this year, i was lucky enough to talk my mom (who customarily hates to travel) into making the five hour drive from buffalo to columbus, ohio for the event...and we two could not be happier that we did!


one of the great fall displays as we entered the grounds.

this was a first for my mom and i...travelling alone, just the two of us. my mom and i have a wonderful relationship, but i was quite worried that perhaps the fair would not measure up to my expectations, or the hype that i had created for the sake of getting her to attend with me. well, i think the patron saint of antiquing was watching over our shoulders, because we made it there without any trouble at all (despite the many highway detours and closures and hours of traffic), our hotel was lovely and new, and we were surprisingly close to the fair site. we were, however, also extremely close to Columbus State University, which also happened to be in its first weekend of their semester while we were there. and as an aside, allow me to inform you that the good people of Columbus love their college football. coming from buffalo, where the Bills fans run amok, it was odd for us to see such support for a collegiate sport. we expected to meet many fellow fair goers at the hotel and around town, but when we would inquire, people looked at us as though we were from outer space. everyone was consumed with the first Columbus State football game of the season. this did not bode well in my mind, for i thought, if no one here even knows what this Country Living Fair-thing is, then we could be in trouble...

these fears were greatly allayed though when we pulled into the Ohio Historic Village early saturday morning (which was, by the way, in the shadow of a football field!). we had gotten there at the perfect time, since the line for admission was nearly down the road. we were able to snag an excellent parking space, grab our tickets from the very cordial Country Living staff, and claim our place in line. the weather was crisp and sunny and cool, and it felt like it could be a perfect fall day. we could feel it in our bones...there was a palpable vibe amongst the crowd waiting to file in. mom and i knew this was going to be unlike any craft show or fair we had ever been to...

the first thing that was noticeably different about the CL Fair was how well planned and organized the event was. the fair was held on the grounds of a living history museum, where many historic buildings have been preserved, and it was quite quaint. however, CL amped up the ambiance even more, planting hundreds of mums and stacking tons of pumpkins and gourds everywhere. the layout of booths and exhibitors was also really well designed. we had no problem navigating the rows and tents with our many bags full of treasures. and with over 150 vendors and artisans, there was no shortage of booths to spend our money at! some of my favorite buys were a vintage wire postcard rack (which now looks perfect in my french kitchen), some wonderful velvet trims and dresdens for crafting (from a lovely pair of ladies whose shop i am now gleefully obsessed with), and an antique Royal typewriter from the early 1900s (for only $20!). mom was less adventurous with her purchases, but was equally as thrilled with all there was to see and learn. one of our favorite experiences while there was attending a wonderfully informative demonstration class on wreath arranging with Richard Kollath and Ed McCann, two regular contributors to the magazine.

mom and i had three goals for our trip to the Country Living Fair: (1) buy lots of great stuff, (2) gather tons of inspiration for our projects at home, and (3) learn something new. well, we overwhelmingly agreed that we had accomplished all three of those goals while in Columbus. we had such an excellent time, we have decided to make this an annual tradition for the two of us, mom and daughter, spending money and being creative. and really, that is perhaps my favorite thing i brought back with me from Ohio...


coming up...i will post pictures of the many treasures i brought back with me from the CL Fair, tell you a little bit about my new shop, and share one of my favorite halloween decorating ideas...