Artists will show in Unique Boutique this weekend

Out and About about people and places in Calvert

Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009

The group opened at this storefront about a year ago, noted Leslie Downs, who is the bead maven. Nancy Donely, the owner of Ch'naca, is the weaver, spinner, knitter fiber artist.

Ch'naca is not an arcane, ancient Peruvian or Incan word, as I first imagined. It's a combination of three owners' first names — Chris and Nancy Donely, and Cat, their daughter. Cat is a spinner, weaver and designer. Husband Chris is not an artisan, but is very much on hand to help whenever he's needed. His basic responsibility is care of their farm and livestock, including two llamas and an alpaca, known as, "The Boys." The boys help out by donating their wool to the shop every year when they're sheared.

And the name of the shop?

"Our collective name is really the Southern Maryland Folk Art Center, but that sign would have been longer than the width of the storefront. Even Ch'naca Fiberworks and Bag-O-Beads would have been too long. Besides, each letter worked out to cost about $300, so we figured Yarn Beads said it all," Downs said with a laugh.

This shop — by whatever name — is, in many ways, a community treasure. The interior is airy, full of light and color; like a bazaar — a real feast for the eyes. The first thing that hits a visitor's eyes on entering the store is a long glass case stocked with samples of Downs' bead jewelry and some small antique collectibles. Downs has a small jeweler's worktable just behind the case. Colored light flashes off the many different types of beads in little transparent boxes, and off the glass bead bracelets and semi-precious stone necklaces hanging on a pegboard along one wall. Downs stocks beads of every sort — glass, ceramic, semi-precious stones.

Panes of stained glass in jewel colors are stacked in a bin across from the beads. Baskets in many sizes and styles are arranged in the opposite corner and hang from hooks. Yarns of all kinds of fiber — wool, mixes, commercial knitting, cotton yarns for knitting and weaving, hand-spun yarns from local spinners, in every imaginable shade from pastels to bright and dark are stacked in vertical bins along the wall. Skeins of yarn hang from hooks and lines stretched across the store. Some examples of handmade garments also hang high up, and a wicker dressmaker's form holds a magnificent crocheted shawl.

All the artisans teach their crafts in individual classes. There are no scheduled series of classes. Donely will coordinate the time for her fiber classes to fit each student's time limitations.

"I usually have four knitting class sessions for beginners, but I'll do five or six classes if a student needs it," she said.

She also teaches weaving, although that sometimes requires more effort.

"I'm going to do a ‘house call' for a woman who has a loom that's too big to load in her car and bring to the shop."

Donely's grandmother taught her to crochet when she was little, and later, a college roommate taught her to knit. She hasn't stopped since.

Two students were busily knitting at a table in back of store. They occasionally broke into our conversation to ask Nancy a question, and that's perfectly fine in this setting. The ambiance is very friendly, a good place to learn and create at one's own speed. "Only two [students] is usual for this place, usually they're fighting for space back there," laughs a friend who dropped in to say hello. The shop isn't large, but the owners somehow find the space to teach their specialties. They will gladly arrange for lessons in beading, knitting, weaving, spinning, basketry and stained glass.

The shop accepts donations of unused yarn — they keep a donation basket in the shop. The yarn is often leftovers from students' and customers' projects — for projects to benefit local charities. The shop organizes a "knit-in" every February to make caps for chemotherapy patients. The completed caps are given to the Calvert Memorial Hospital for distribution to patients in the hospital's Infusion Center.

"We also have a couple of knitters working on blankets for Hospice patients," Donely said.

An ongoing project for students and volunteers is to knit scarves and helmet liners for our overseas troops.

"This project is coordinated by the United States Marine Museum in Triangle, Va. The scarves and liners have to be all wool, and only in certain colors. The colors now are limited to tan or black. They used to allow forest green when we started this project," Donely said.

An abstract sculptural wooden head models samples of the helmet liner and neck scarf.

There's something of interest to catch the eye in every corner of this shop.

All the shop artisans will create custom pieces, and will even hand-dye yarn for a customer's project. Downs, who in her other life serves as a judge of the Calvert County Orphans' Court, will restring, redesign and fabricate a new piece of jewelry from a customer's own old bead necklaces.

Donely also has been selected to show in this years' 36th annual Unique Boutique Fine Arts and Crafts Show and Sale. Unique Boutique is a cooperative, made up of a group of talented local artists. They refer to themselves as artisans, but the work they produce is gallery quality. By spreading the cost and hard work among the members, they can plan and produce a show of excellent quality at competitive retail prices. Unlike a craft fair, where any vendor can rent a table, this show is juried by the members.

The Unique Boutique show always has excellent creative wares at very reasonable prices — an important point these days. It's a great source of holiday gifts and decorative pieces — I still have ornaments from earlier years of this show. Everything is handmade and made to last, not cheaply mass-made. These artists take pride in their work, putting the joy of creation in every piece.

"We'd all make more [from our crafts] if we were somewhere else, but we love living in Southern Maryland. The colors, the atmosphere, the light qualities of this water and land are in our work," Donely said.

The Unique Boutique Show is Saturday, Nov. 14, from10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, Nov. 15, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., in Hollywood, Md., at the Hollywood Volunteer Fire Department Social Hall.

For further information, go to UniqueBoutiqueSoMD.com.

And feel free to drop into Yard Beads for a friendly chat, and to look at the store or maybe arrange for a class. Creative handiwork is well-known to reduce stress and tension. The official address is 143 Central Square Drive in Prince Frederick; phone, 410-535-4344.

patullberg@comcast.net