A FEW FAVORITES

In my humble opinion, every single piece of shellwork I saw at this year's shell fair was exceptional. It was an amazing display of style, design and creativity, all contained within a single room. Like others, I found had my favorites that drew me in like a moth to a flame. They are pictured here in this post.

A small handful of shell artisans are allowed to have sales tables each year, where they make their own work available for purchase. This year one of those artisans was Mary Robertson of Jacksonville, Florida, whose table is seen above. Mary's work is incredible and varied; she covers vintage and antique boxes, lamps, wreathes, frames, sconces, jewelry and more with shells, using items she comes across through her antiques business. Much of her work has an deliberate aged and antique look to it, which she gives each piece using a process she developed herself.

It wasn't easy to choose one item, but after careful deliberation I decided to buy this fabulous shell encrusted box from Mary. It reminds me so much of the antique shell boxes I've seen in antiques shops and auctions, selling for prices way out of my league. Mary doesn't have a website, nor even an email address, but she can be contacted by phoning her at (904) 733-4502.


I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say that David Rhyne's sailor's valentines are the favorite of just about everyone who lays eyes on them, including Martha Stewart. David, a former shoe designer, has the patience of a saint; his valentines are breathtaking and every tiny detail is precisely crafted and placed with his steady hand. David has a website of his own here where you can see his work, including the 7" valentine pictured above. Most of his sailor's valentines are quite large, but this one is my favorite, probably because of my interest in all things miniature, as well as because of it's frilly, romantic design.


Here's a nice closeup of the sailor's valentine picture above. The largest flower in the center of the heart is less than 3/8" in diameter. I'll be posting pictures of some of David's large valentines in a couple of days.
I've admired Amy Ramsey's work for a long, long time and was kind of disappointed to see only one entry from her this year. Nonetheless her one entry was spectacular, as you can clearly see. To me, her shell pictures are reminiscent of crewel embroidery, although every thing is composed of shells. Amy and her shell art were featured in an issue of Martha Stewart magazine, and you can learn more about her here. Her artistic gift is genetic; her grandmother, Helen Woodring, was a respected shell artist in her own right.