

The holiday market is over, the oak leaves have been swept up and the chimineas cleaned of soot and stored away. It couldn't have been nicer..we had perfect weather, a chance to see old friends and beautiful gifts to take home and wrap.
10th annual Athens Holiday Market, held in the courtyard of Big City Bread at Finley & Meigs in Athens, Georgia. Friday and Saturday Dec. 12 & 13,2008, in the evenings from 4-9pm.
One of the many pleasures of living in Athens is the annual Holiday Market in the Big City Bread courtyard....with chiminea fires, music, lots of beautiful handmade gifts, high-quality crafts and original art.
There will be live music, too. The Solstice Sisters sing 3-part harmonies and Rick Lawrence performs on banjo and mandolin. Bring a friend and enjoy the music by the fire...Athens is so delightful during the holidays!
Handcrafted, hand-signed beeswax Honeypot® Luminary candleholders and lamps by Bee Natural, Inc. make wonderful gifts. Handcrafted by our artists in Athens, Georgia, each Honeypot® is unique and add a warm glow and real honey aroma to any home or garden decor.
Songbird Soaps creates handmade natural soaps, body oils, sachets and soy candles using natural ingredients such as pure plant essential oils, dried herbs and organic seeds and oats. Come smell their coconut candles at the holiday market, or shop their new winter soaps online at Etsy or at Athens Locally Crafted.

Cindy Jerrell creates haunting puppet boxes, ghostly wooden dolls and vibrant prints using vintage portraiture. She will also be offering some one-of-a-kind never seen before assemblages. Cindy is a longtime Athens area resident, winner of two Georgia Council for the Arts Grants, a former Flagpole cover designer (and current Special Agent), and she has more dogs and cats than you can shake a stick at - which lead her to create her first custom "vintage" pet portraits. Instant pet ancestors. These are proving to be very popular Christmas presents!
Everyone can use a Koozie -- even if it's just to keep their hands warm when drinking a cold PBR in the winter time! Artist and designer Michael Lachowski is offering a limited-edition, signed and numbered pink-on-yellow authentic Koozie at this year's Holiday Market. Get the life affirming slogan, Joy All Over It, into your life for just $5.00! Optional gift box sealed with Michael's gift wrap tape brings your shopping excursion to a satisfying conclusion!
Jamie Calkin paints scenes of Athens in ink and watercolor. Above is a view of the Big City Bread courtyard.
Tara Taylor makes one-of-a-kind plush toys, hand knits, accessories and reconstructed clothing. You can see her work at her Etsy shop.
Casa de la Cultura was created in 2004 by Casa de Amistad in conjunction with the Lyndon House Arts Center to provide art education opportunities for Latino families and to provide free pottery workshops for Latino women. Last year they brought their clay creations to the market and we are excited to have them back again this year.
Originally from North Carolina, Will Eskridge roamed the southeast setting up shop in Charleston, Savannah & Nashville and now calls Athens his home. He focuses his paintings on weathered, distant subject matter with a longing for home and an obsession with history. His original oil paintings, prints, notecards and magnets range from $5 - $500."




Billy Ball and Zhang Xuan have set up an online store for local artists called Handcrafted Industries. It's only a few weeks old, but already a hot spot for the terminally curious. You'll be able to see the entire H.I. line at the market as all the artists are sharing a booth, where Billy's birdhouses and Xuan's felted animals will be making their public debut. Handcrafted Industries will be at the holiday market both days, and also the Hand.Craft.It show in Madison on Saturday.
Serra Ferguson creates handmade clothing, jewelry, hats and redesigned items under the name Gypsies,Tramps and Thieves. She is co-creator of the Athens Indie Craftstravagannzza and owner of the store Remnant.
Nick and Melinda at Satisfactory Printing will be setting out table-fulls of original silkscreened t-shirts and causing a probable stir with their artistic goings-on. They also have a blog, so go pester them.
Lynn Louise Larson and Mom will be offering handbags, knitted caps and scarves this year. For you fashionistas out there, LyLou is the owner of Nourish, a clothing and accessories boutique on Prince Avenue in Athens.
Jimmy is an outsider artist who creates colorful paintings of flowers, chickens, cows & landscapes on cabinet doors, tin, screen or other recycled materials. The inspirational sayings that accompany the paintings have touched many an art lover, creating strong bonds between artist & buyer. You can check out his web site in progress now, then see him and his amazing cap-covered truck at the market.
Lou will be at the market again with tiny paintings, tote bags and other small artworks. Her "3" paintings can be purchased online at Handcrafted Industries.




Peter Loose is a painter, illustrator and sculptor of the Visionary School who has been a part of the Athens Holiday Market for many years.