meet mae fern

A couple of weekends ago our family spent an afternoon at a small outdoor festival held by Ecole Bilingue.  A French bilingual school here in New Orleans.  The festival was free and kid-friendly,  delicious food, games, and fun.  It was a very hot day and being the baby that I am in the heat, I retreated to a nice shaded spot under a tree where some crafters were displaying their goods.  This is where I met Mae Fern.  

She had a beautiful display of necklaces like I have never seen before.  I didn't have enough money on me and I hate buying impulsively anyway, so I took her pretty hand drawn card and tucked it into my bag. 

I have been trying to come up with something special to give away here on my blog.  A little gift from New Orleans, a thank you for all of the nice comments and inspiration shared by so many of you on a regular basis.  Our time here is nearing its end and I'm feeling a bit sentimental.

The perfect gift came to mind, a lovely hand crafted necklace.  I emailed Mae asking if I could see the necklaces again.  She warmly invited us to her old Creole house that was once part of the Delachaise plantation.  I have fallen in love with the architecture here so I was very excited to see the inside of her home.  It was more lovely than I imagined.  

Mae and her husband did most of the refurbishing themselves.  Some walls were painted while others left to expose rich texture and age.  I'm guessing close to 200 years old.  I forgot to ask. She was so kind as to let me take a few photos around her home.

Mae has a 5 year old son and happened to have two toys zebras to give to my kiddos.  That kept them happy and busy while we talked.  During our conversation I learned that Mae has many artistic talents, jewelry making is just one of them.  She has a fine eye for detail and uses new and vintage supplies, some acquired from her travels or from the travels of friends.

The flowers are made from a metallic ribbon that was found in Paris along with the silk cord.  The beads in the center are vintage.

This necklace I found to be my favorite.  Like the others it is practically weightless and so beautiful in it's delicacy.  The beads in the center are steel cut and are either French or Czech, that mystery will remain, and were purchased in Ohio.  This is the necklace I'd like to give away.

If you have an appreciation for Mae's creation like I do, please leave a comment.  On Friday I will randomly choose a winner amongst the commenters.

Feel free to email her and inquire about any of the other necklaces.  Except for the purple one.  I bought that one, too.

I wish I could give a necklace away to all of you, I really do!  

On another note, please stay tuned for this weeks drawing challenge.  I have yet to come up with a theme.  I believe it will come to me in my sleep.  

Goodnight.