Home From Santa Fe

Hubby & I just spent a nice week in Santa Fe, NM. He was attending a conference for work there and I got to tag along. I've decided that this is a really good time of the year to travel - the temperatures are cooler and the crowds are smaller - a win/win situation!

Santa Fe has a very distinctive architecture as you can see by this home in a 'normal' neighborhood. I think home prices must be very high because we saw several homes for sale with a Sotheby's real estate sign in the front yard. 

This is a photo of one of the big hotels we walked by every day.

We stayed right downtown near the Plaza - there was a Fiesta going on when we arrived - with streets closed off for a big parade - and street vendors setting up booths everywhere you looked. When that was over, things got a little quieter. There are a gazillion specialty shops geared for the tourists, and I got quickly tired of seeing expensive turquoise jewelry and fancy art galleries. I finally took the rental car and explored the Santa Fe that the locals live in - checked out a few thrift stores and consignment shopss where I found a couple treasures. This plate is about the size of a pie pan and with the sheep in the middle I had to buy it - might use it for my snippets bowl. And I found a quilt shop with some striped Brannock & Patek fabric on clearance - most of their fabrics have a southwest flavor that didn't appeal to me at all.

I found some cool designs carved into wooden chests that I thought would lend themselves well to a hooked rug or punch needle project - they were in museums for the most part.

My favorite shop was located in one of the swanky hotels and it was called Faircloth/Adams. This gal sells antique quilts, coverlets and hooked rugs that are in pristine condition. She has been featured in both Country Living and Country Home over the years - unfortunately she didn't allow me to take any photos to share with you.

I enjoyed seeing an exhibit in the Capitol rotunda sponsored by a local group called BAG - they shared books that they had made from scratch, and some that were old books that had been repurposed in an artistic way. You can see them here - and one of my favorites is pictured below.

I checked into meeting with the local rug hooking group, but it just didn't work out with my schedule. It was a great trip, but it's always good to come home again!