Happy New Year and Holiday Hours

Cheers to You!!!

This is a special reminder to all of our Holiday hours through 1/1/12:

Monday-Friday 10-6
Saturday, New Year's Eve 10-3
We will re-open on Monday, 1/2/12.

Don't forget that our delightful staff will cheerfully wrap your hostess gift for your New Year's party or that lingering holiday present!! We have great New Year's Eve-themed ideas like Beer Bands, OUCH toothpick man, bottle stoppers, coaster sets, glitter earrings, rings and bracelets!

Come in and use that gift certificate that you got for Christmas!

From all of us at the Dancing Eye Gallery, we wish you a very Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Holiday and a very Happy New Year!!

ANTONIA HARBIN-FIRST FRIDAY ART WALK

Spend some time this Friday evening in downtown
Northville during the First Friday Art Walk.

Visit us at the Dancing Eye Gallery and meet local artist Antonia Harbin from 7-9 p.m. Her unique silver bracelets can be customized with your favorite charms and ready for Christmas! (Allow 2 weeks for a special order.) Or choose from her jewelry selection already in stock here and wear it home!

We are open until 8 p.m. on Fridays until Christmas, but Friday, December 2 until 9.

Make the Dancing Eye Gallery is your gift-shopping destination!

Our friendly staff will even wrap your gifts for you!

"Thank You" "Merci" "Gracias"

The Dancing Eye Gallery would like to thank all of you, our customers, who made a special effort last Saturday on Small Business Saturday and shopped with us. So "Thank You!" We really appreciate your show of support for us and for the artists that we represent. If you read about Shopping Small on our blog or facebook, even better. That means that we got the word out to you.

And just so you know, these items pictured were some of our best-sellers on Saturday.

To make your holiday shopping more convenient, please note our holiday hours for the next few weeks:

M-Th 10-6
Friday 10-8
Saturday 10-7
Sunday 11-5

Thanksgiving Blog #3

Can you guess the subject of these drawings?

Well, in keeping with our Thanksgiving theme, these 4 surrealist murals by Maugre were his graffiti chalk drawings that appeared on Detroit's J.L.Hudson building prior to its demolition in 1998.

Maugre claims he was inspired by the Hudson's Thanksgiving Day Parade. The freakish human figures, exaggerated birds and other bizarre animals represent the floats, balloons, clowns, masked characters and colorful spectators of parades gone by.

What better way to commemorate our beloved Hudson's store, Thanksgiving and local artists than adding these 6"x11" plaques to your holiday decor!

ALSO...

DON'T FORGET TO SHOP SMALL ON SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 26! THAT DAY IS SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY AND JUST ONE PURCHASE FROM YOUR FAVORITE LOCAL SHOP (DANCING EYE GALLERY) WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE AND SUPPORT LOCAL MERCHANTS. WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU ON SATURDAY AND WE THANK YOU!

Thanksgiving Blog #2

Now that Girl's Night Out is over, we'll get back to celebrating the holiday of Thanksgiving. On the first blog, we talked about vessels that you could use for your Turkey Day dinner.
Today we'll suggest some wall art for your home. Everyone needs a little new something for that empty spot on that wall you've been meaning to fill. Well, now is the time, especially if you have guests coming for dinner.
So, take a look at some of many ideas we have:

The first photo is of 2 wall vases or ornaments by Marlene Galperin.
The second is a 6x12 Pewabic tile entitled "Oak Leaves."
The third is a medium leaf pocket by Black Cat Pottery.

Besides creations by artists shown above, come ifn to see beautiful tiles and other pieces by David Ellison, Earthen Craft, Pruckler, Sligo, Appleman, Full Circle, Motawi, Sarah Frank, Sharkus and Macone.
Of all the shapes and sizes of unique wall art, we just have to have a piece (or more) for you. Who knows, you may even start a new collection with that one new piece.
So, come on in and stop saying to yourself: "I keep saying that I am going to put something in that spot."
This Thanksgiving, show off your good taste with some Michigan art!

Girl's Night Out -- Friday, November 11

This Friday, 11/11/11 is Girl's Night Out shopping extravaganza in downtown Northville!

Shops will be open late, there will be lots of fun activities and best of all, shopping!

The Dancing Eye Gallery has a special surprise for you. We will be hosting a trunk show for 2 local artists: Christine Wilson (Christine's Beadworks) and Stephanie Scigliano (olive m'lou).

Christine will be featuring her beaded and metal wearable art. She is drawn to unusual stones, artwork and recycled materials. Bottle caps often appear in her creations because they have creative designs on small spaces. Come in to see her collection of wrist and neck adornments made from bottle caps, metal, hardware, beads and fabric. Very cool!!

Stephanie is bringing her beautiful hand-dyed and tie-dyed scarves to show. She uses colorfast and safe dyes. Her favorite materials are bamboo rayon (antibacterial) and cotton. The color combinations are perfect for adding a little pizzazz to that coat or outfit. It changes the whole look! And the material is soooo soft. She makes the scarves in Orchard Lake, MI.

Vessels for Thanksgiving Dinner

Today, a customer mentioned to me that Thanksgiving is her favorite holiday and that she feels that it gets passed up with Halloween being so big, then Christmas rushing in to take over.
Well, I thought that I would give Thanksgiving its due by making it a focus of our blog for the next few weeks.
This week, we will concentrate on 'vessels.' According to the dictionary, a vessel is a container for holding something. Simple enough. Maybe even one of the first things fashioned by man.
The three photos above are samples of vessels that you will find at the Dancing Eye Gallery to prepare you for Thanksgiving entertaining. What other time in the year do you need a collection of vessels other than Thanksgiving?

Photo 1: Leaf tray by Marlene Galperin in beautiful Michigan colors.

Photo 2; 3 sizes of lace bowls by Black Cat Studio available in fall/earthtone shades.

Photo 3: Michigan license plate inspired vase by Marlene Galperin. (pssst, it will hold a wine bottle so you don't stain that white tablecloth with a red wine ring!)

There are many more where these came from, so trot on in to the gallery and see our great selection.

What Day is It?

Tuesday, October 25th is Sourest Day! Celebrate by being grumpy, crabby or just downright mad at the world. This guy above is. Or maybe he's just peeved that the Tigers aren't playing in the World Series.

But we at the Dancing Eye Gallery say: "Thank you Tigers! You did a great job."

We also have advice for you on Sourest Day: "OK, be sour for 1 day. After that, come in to the gallery and let us cheer you up! We have a lot of art to put that smile back on your face. Psssst -- the best thing to make you happy is to treat yourself. That's right, buy something for YOU! Guaranteed to banish the 'sours' and release your 'feel good' endorphins. (Not to mention, the consumption of extreme amounts of candy will do the trick too!) If you stop in on Saturday, you can kill those 2 birds with 1 stone."

Oooohhhhh....Sccaaaarrrrryyyyy!

Appetite for Animal Prints?

On the prowl for some trendy, yet neutral animal-themed art? Well then, saunter in to the Dancing Eye Gallery and check out these pieces before they become extinct!

Pictured is one of several unique, handmade jackets by Artclothes.
Necklaces with earrings to go with them are by Antonia Harbin.
We even have animal tiles and paw print tiles like this one by Terrapin Tile.

Tame the wild animal in you. Be territorial -- we are.

Halloween and The Ghoultide Gathering

Do you like to hang out with kooky pumpkins? Do you like one-of-a-kind Halloween art? Well then, ride your broom over to the Dancing Eye Gallery this weekend to see our selection of Halloween goodies like the kooky pumpkin pin above by Cheryl Oz.

Cards, my pretty? Cheryl Oz and Susan Jacobson offer themed cards as in the above photo. We also have a selection of Halloween tiles and home decor with more to come.

While in town, make a stop at Northville's famous Ghoultide Gathering art show at Mill Race Village, Friday September 3o and Saturday October 1. Check out the Ghoultide Gathering website for show hours.

Now is the perfect time to get in the Trick or Treat mood!

Knight&HammerMUSE Trunk Show

Come meet Joseph Knight, the creative force and designer of New York-based jeweler, Knight&HammerMUSE at The Dancing Eye Gallery during the Victorian Festival.

Knight&HammerMUSE is dedicated to evolving the best ideas, materials and techniques from our global jewelry heritage into innovative, fashion forward designs. The Knight&HammerMUSE lifestyle encourages adornment with consideration to the broad scope of beauty throughout the world.

Discover Knight&HammerMUSE's richly gilded 18K yellow and pink gold and platinum gild over bronze jewelry and unique hair ornaments all day Friday, Saturday and Sunday, September 16-18 during regular store hours.

GREAT NEWS!! As of Monday, Sept. 19, we are keeping several great pieces of Knight&Hammer jewelry in our store for fall shopping -- so if you missed the trunk show, come in and see some special pieces!

Victorian Festival Time!

Finally! Northville's annual Victorian Festival is this weekend, September 16-18! Kicking off with a parade on Friday at 6:30 p.m., the weekend will be abuzz with entertainment, crafters and a Victorian clothing sale, just to list a few things for adults. For kids, farm animals, rides, games and many more fun things will be happening.

It wouldn't be Victorian Festival without a visit to the Dancing Eye Gallery! Come in and check out our art, mainly from Michigan artists -- some new, some true blue.

For hours of the festival and for more specific information about what and where, check out the Northville Chamber of Commerce.

Information on the photos in this post are, in order:

Photo 1 & 2: Spoon Bracelets by Antonia Harbin, right here in Northville.
Photo 3: "Found" artist Sandy Fisher creates jewelry out of found items from Victorian era forward.
Photo 4: Catherine Trever is a repurposed jewelry artist from Berkley, Michigan.
Photo 5: Marlene Galperin from Southfield, teaches ceramics in Birmingham and creates beautiful nature-themed vessels.

Labor Day Weekend

Monday, September 5th is Labor Day. Famous for honoring the American worker, it became a federal holiday in 1894. Designed as a day for rest and parties, it is often celebrated with parades, picnics, barbeques, fireworks and public art displays.

The Dancing Eye Gallery is getting in many new items just in time for fall shopping, so while you are in town this weekend, stop in to visit us and see our newness! We will be open late on Friday for First Friday Art Walk, regular hours on Saturday and Sunday. Don't wait until Monday to come in because we will be closed to enjoy our Labor Day!

The tile pictured is one of many by Sara Frank.

What Is That Heavenly Scent?

That's what we hear so many of you ask when you enter our store. Well, as you may now know, it's the mingling fragrances of our Zum Bar soaps. And, we just received a new order of all of your favorites like: patchouli, lime-basil, almond, grapefruit and many more!

Just in time for tucking away in that college-bound student's duffle bag, for your guest bath, as a clever little hostess gift, or just a yummy shower for yourself, Zum Bar has your scent!

Jewelry by Karryn

Looking for some sparkly jewelry to jazz up your wardrobe for these last few weeks of summer? Karryn has the perfect earrings, bracelets, and necklaces. Pssst, necklaces have been marked down 15-20%!! Certainly, you could add some bling to that pedicure with a pretty, colorful ankle bracelet. We have a large selection to choose from here at the Gallery.

Part of the Heart, as Karryn calls her line, is creatively designed and made with such a variety of colorful crystal beads that we know there is something calling your name!

Buy Michigan Now Fest!

Visit us this weekend for the "Buy Michigan Now Fest" in downtown Northville. The streets will be filled with sidewalk sales, street vendors, live music and activities for the kids.

The purpose of the festival is to highlight Michigan-based businesses and Michigan-made products of which we can offer both here at the Dancing Eye Gallery. We are definitely a Michigan business and our gallery is filled with art by Michigan artists, so come and shop with us and help support our wonderfully talented Michigan artists!

The festival runs from Friday through Sunday, August 5-7.

It's also the First Friday Art Walk this Friday.

How can you miss it?

Dog Days of Summer

Celebrate the dog days of summer this weekend by attending a free concert in Downtown Northville at the Town Square on Friday evening!

While you are here, keep cool by coming in to the Dancing Eye Gallery if you are in search of that perfect gift or a present just for yourself! Sure, reward yourself for making it through two-thirds of the summer. Do you wish it was longer or are you ready to get back to your routine?

Pictured is a selection of fabulous tiles by Sara Frank.

Come On In!

HAPPY HOT JULY TO EVERYONE!

WE ARE OPEN AS USUAL DURING THE SIDEWALK CONSTRUCTION.

DON'T BE DETERRED BY A LITTLE DUST OUTSIDE--WE ARE HERE FOR YOU!

SO, STOP IN THIS WEEK JUST TO GET OUT OF THE SUN FOR SOME PEACE AND QUIET IN THE STORE--AND SOME GREAT CARDS AND GIFT IDEAS!

Daisy Chains Trunk Show

To tie in with Northville's Arts & Acts event this weekend, June 24-26, the Dancing Eye Gallery will be having a trunk show featuring a collection of Daisy Chains jewelry brought in just for the weekend, in addition to what we regularly carry in the store.

Susan is a local artist who designs one-of-a-kind Thai and sterling silver jewelry called Daisy Chains. Her pieces are as unique as a personality. She feels that jewelry worn should be an extension of the person wearing it.

She is inspired by nature, textiles and the stones and silver themselves.

Come on in this weekend and take a look at her collection of earrings, bracelets and necklaces--there is something for everyone!

Father's Day is Sunday June 19th

We have the best gift for Dad for Father's Day! How about: "1 Amazing Mug?" This mug and its very cool reusable tin is a geography lesson of Michigan as well as the United States. Dad can test his knowledge while he is drinking his coffee. And when he's drunk that last drop, well, there is a little surprise on the bottom of the mug! Visit the Gallery to see our other Michigan products. We are now open every Friday night until 8 p.m.

P.S. The mug makes a great grad gift too!