A couple of weeks ago, Frank and I took a couple of day trips around and about his neck of the woods. We drove to Port Hope, Ontario and visited an antique and craft store called Primitive Designs. We'd seen it advertised in one of those freebie magazines which offer suggestions about where to go and what to do in the area. Their Native Canadian crafts and imports from Southeast Asia intrigued us, prompting us to visit.
We spent over an hour looking over the many beautiful and unique items, and left with a carload of purchases. Among them, a huge coffee wood plant stand, a wooden crow, a carved wooden dragonfly which balances delicately on a stand, some incense and ...
a totem pole which now resides at Frank's place. (please click to enlarge)
The place is set up as a series of well-sheltered tents outdoors. It's cold inside but after a awhile you scarcely notice it. You're too busy looking at all of the fascinating pieces of art. (please click to enlarge)
Can you imagine placing one of these huge garden sprits in your back yard? (please click to enlarge)
She's got legs and she knows how to use them - as a table support, of course. (please click to enlarge)
Carved wooden loons sit among colourful rain sticks. (please click to enlarge)
This beautiful wood carving had such incredible detail. (please click to enlarge)There were far too many items to show in separate photographs so I put the rest of them together in a three minute video. I hope you enjoy it.
In a few days, I'll have some photos taken around and about our day trip.
53 comments:
I can see how you guys spent so much time there. So much to see. I swooned for the carved doors at the beginning of the video. Love them.
I am glad I didn't go with your, as I would have bought more 'stuff' and I don't need that. I love wood carvings and antiques,etc. The garden gnomes would have been my downfall. I wonder how the owner protects all of that inventory from both theives and weather?
I would have been in my element in that place. Loved the totem pole, oh and the erm table legs. I absolutely adore anything made of wood.
we love sneaking away to find neat and odd places in the surroundings. what a interesting and eclectic place. i like the carved horses...
My kind of place and I'd be there the entire day! The leggy table makes me think she needs a ladies room!
What a very cool place. I love antique stores. Those garden spirits are humongous and quite unique. I 've never seen anything like it. My favorite thing is the table legs...a little whimsical, yet sophisticated at the same time.
The totem pole was nice too and also a little unique. I've never seen a totem pole with the wings expanding out like that. Very cool find.
What a wonderful part of your day to share. I enjoyed this post.
Lovely.
I wanna go!
What an incredible place, I want EVERYTHING!
Thanks so much for sharing the pictures and video.
Those horses were beautiful!
What an interesting place. i really like the elephant heads.
Thursday Thirteen - Fiendish Facts
I love wood carvings - I'd have needed lorry and a bag full of money if I'd gone shopping with you!
I love shops like that .. and that totem is awesome
I just love those wooden carvings especially the horses...... though they are all great photos. hard to choose.
Nuts in May
I agree with everyone. It is a lot of fun to visit such eccentric shops. Beautiful finds!!
Ooo! What fun! I love those garden spirits. :)
Beautiful stuff. You may not want to leave wooden pieces outdoor for too long.
Why does that fountain thing have a penis coming out of its mouth?
The totem pole with the owl is a keeper.
These types of shops are fascinating, when you think of the work involved when one slip of the chisel and the whole thing is spoiled.
I'm thinking those garden spirits would fit in nicely with my trees.
Find the legs most interesting also. Oh, to be an artist with such imagination.
I feel like I've just had a mini trip to a museum. I enjoyed the pics and the video. You are fortunate to be able to explore and appreciate all the beauty out in the world.
How lovely, the garden spirits and and the horses are wonderfully done.
Lovely that you got some of that nice stuff, but I'm just curious, were you planning on buying? And have you got someplace to put them?
I LOVE the legs...! Now there's something you don't see every day. :-)
Wow, what a great place! I love the elephant heads.
I love the garden spirits. Well...what am I saying, I'd need to rent a semi-truck and fill it up to the brim. Great pictures.
Lovely loons! So much to see... and I loved the video & music.
I love so much of the stuff!! I would have not known how to stop buying
the loons are beautiful
so is the totem pole
A winking owl totem pole--very cool. Do you know what it means? So many beautiful, interesting things. You did a fabulous job with that video--I'm with steviewren about the doors. Sounds like a fun trip. Thanks for sharing!
Wow! Now that was an amazing clip. Mind you, I would have needed a pick-up truck to cart away all of my favourites. I do so, love to browse about in such environments. The variety of items would peak the interests of many shopper I would imagine. Must admit, we do have some great shops here in Ontario! Great stuff Hilary.
You chose the perfect music to go with those pics. I too was swooning for those carved doors at the beginning. Such a treasure trove!
Think I'll pass on the garden spirits, however - I'd never fit one in the car anyway. LOL!
Looks like you had an incredible day.
I LOVE the legs!
I love the legs and the song line for them. Perfect!
Amazingly well made items Hilary. I especially admired the saddle in your video. Good video too. I admire your technical skills! - Dave. www.cimba7200.blogspot.com
Wow, those things are amazing. I've always wanted a Cigar Store Indian. Did they have any of those? And how much would it cost me to ship over to the UK?!
Wow. Some seriously cool carvings there. And you have a nice talent for putting together a video (along with your other artistic skills - I'm jealous!)
I love wood carvings...hunks of wood with a spirit caught inside until the right person with the right whittling knife comes along to release them...beautiful work here!
Sandi
I could spend hours there! Ha! Thanks for the little video tour. I think Frank made a wise choice with that totem pole. When we visited Canada with friends last Fall, we were searching for small totems. They are fascinating. Can't wait for the next installment of your day trip.
I can see how you could spend a long time looking at such interesting art pieces. the Komoto Dragon is huge. Can't imagine that in my yard. Kind of scary.
Looking forward to seeing more pics. of your day trips.
Oh yes the table legs would be quite the conversation piece, that's for sure.
Treasures! Those legs make me want to go potty;)
I am in love with that table! SO fun : )
What amazing stuff! Loved seeing all the photos...we may have to take a trip there too! :)
* Thanks, Steviewren. I loved those doors too. If only I'd had a spot for them! Thanks for stopping by. :)
* Tabor, I'm not sure exactly what happens to their stock, come winter. They're only in operation until the end of December, then they're closed for the winter. Right now, they're under heavy-duty canvas type tents. They seem quite protected from the elements. Thanks for the visit. :)
* Valerie, you'd have been dipping into your wallet for sure. So many wood items. I'm glad you enjoyed the photos. :)
* Brian, I do too. There's always something to take home with you whether it's an item, a photo or a memory. Thanks for stopping by. :)
* GS, that's exactly the impression I had too. Thanks for the visit. :)
* Thanks so much, JarieLyn. I'm glad you liked the items. There were so many things that begged to be taken home. Thanks for dropping by. :)
* Thanks, Leah. :)
* Ellen, next time we'll let you know in advance. ;)
* Thanks, Crabby. That's kind of how we felt when we were there. Thanks for dropping by on your way across country. :)
* Scarlet, I thought so too. Thanks for the visit. :)
* Thanks, Nessa. I'm glad you liked it. :)
* Jinsky, we just about needed that for the things that Frank bought. We truly weren't sure it would make it into the back of the car. It just did. :)
* Thanks, Daryl. You would have loved it there for sure. :)
* Thanks, Maggie. I'm glad you enjoyed it. :)
* Thanks so much, LD. I'm sure you would have loved it there. Thanks for the visit. :)
* Thanks, Kat. They sure were fun. :)
* Thanks, Lakeviewer. At this point everything we bought was meant for indoors. Thanks for stopping by. :)
* PHST "Why does that fountain thing have a penis coming out of its mouth?" Because he's pissed off. ;) I'm glad you like the totem. Even more so, I'm glad I like it because I have to see it fairly often. Thanks for the visit. :)
* Moannie, that's so true. There's an incredible amount of talent in that place. I bet you'd love it there. Thanks for stopping by. :)
* I agree, MJ. That kind of whimsical creativity would be a joy to possess. Thanks for the visit. :)
* Thanks, Anita. I'm glad you enjoyed the images in the post. I agree.. we're very fortunate to find places like this around. Thanks for stopping by. :)
* Agreed, Reb. I loved pretty much everything there, but the horses in particular kept my eye. Thanks for the visit. :)
* Gaelikaa, it was Frank who did most of the buying and yes, he was figuring on and hoping to find something of interest to buy. He's doing a lot of renovating in his home and is always on the lookout for this sort of thing. Thanks for stopping by. :)
* Jo, that's a really cute piece, eh? There were so many tempting items there. Thanks for the visit. :)
* Thanks, Steph. Yes, the elephant heads were really cool Thanks for dropping by. :)
* Thanks, Elizabeth. We just about needed to do that too. Not quite, but almost. Thanks for the visit. :)
* Thanks, KC. I'm glad you enjoyed it. :)
* Thanks, Dianne. We kind of had that problem too. It was definitely a credit card purchase. Thanks for the visit. :)
* Thanks very much, DS. I'm glad you enjoyed it. I don't know the meaning behind this particular totem, or winking owls. Maybe he only gives half a hoot. ;) Thanks for stopping by. :)
* Thanks very kindly, Bogey. I'm glad you like the photos and video. I agree that we have a great many Ontario places worth exploring. Thanks for the visit. :)
* Thanks so much, Wendy. We did indeed have a great day. I'm glad you liked my music choice. Thanks very much for stopping by. :)
* Louise, pretty cool, eh? Thanks for the visit. :)
* Thanks, MT. I'm glad you noticed that. ;)
* Dave, good to see you. It's been a while. I'm glad you liked the post. That saddle was actually a purse. Fun, eh? Thanks for stopping by. :)
* Maddie, I can't tell you about shipping costs but I do believe that they did have a cigar store chief. I can't swear by it though. I'll look specifically next time. :)
* Thanks very much for the kind words, Suldog. I'm glad you enjoyed the post. You're quite correct about the carvings. They're very cool, Thanks for the visit. :)
* Sandi, that is such a perfect description for wood carvings. There's such an air of truth and magic to that. Thanks for that. :)
* Thanks so much, Nancy. I'm glad you enjoyed it. The totem pole really is a cool item to have. I'm at Frank's now and it's staring at me while I type. ;)
* Sue, you're quite right about the dragon. It was enormous and takes up too much space for the average home. But how cool would it be to happen upon it in a yard? Thanks for the visit. :)
* MPM it has that look about it, eh? Thanks for stopping by. :)
* LWK, it sure is a fun piece. Thanks for the visit. :)
* Thanks very much, Andrea. I hope you do go there. I'm sure you'd love it. Let me know what you think, if you do. Thanks for stopping by. :)
It sounds like you had a very interesting day. Interesting and different pictures. Your play on words gave me a chuckle - She has legs and she knows how to use them - Ha, good one.
Ah, that is so beautiful. Just look at that intricate hand work. I love the relief of the horses; tat is simply stunning...
Have a wonderful weekend dear friend.
xoxo
I would SO buy those lady leg table top supports! Cool shots as always. Thanks for expanding our horizons.
Everything carved, so unique and a perfect theme for this photologue...
• Thanks, Grayquill. I'm glad that you enjoyed the post and that my play with words gave you a chuckle. Thanks always for stopping by. :)
* Thank you, Protege, my friend. I'm pleased that you like the photos. I kind of thought that you'd like those horses. Thanks for the visit. :)
• Thanks kindly, Angie. Those legs seem to be the popular choice. :) Thanks for stopping by. :)
• Thanks very much, Terri. I'm glad you liked it. :)
What a remarkable set of images. I do love the totem pole and wonder about the story it tells. The garden spirits are like wooden poems.
Sandy.. "wooden poems!" I love that... you're such a gem.
Love the legs table. I showed it to Hubby because he has worked with wood alot and he marveled at the work that went into it and how hard it would have been to make it steady.
Thanks, Sandra. Yes, I can imagine it would be a great... ummm feat to manage those feet. ;) Thanks for stopping by, friend. :)
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