Feeling Quirky

Ok, so I know this blog is really supposed to be exclusively about Indianapolis shopping, but I am going to break from that philosophy to post about my favorite gallery ever - Quirk, in Richmond, VA. If you've never been to Richmond, definitely plan a trip there soon. It's a great city - kind of a mini-DC but artsier and cooler. Fabulous old historic homes, good restaurants (I love Comfort downtown on Broad Street), and a really great art scene.

The best of the Richmond art scene is Quirk gallery, also on Broad Street. Exhibits in the main gallery and back in the "Vault" area change regularly, but the front section of the gallery is devoted to a shop that stocks amazing jewelry, smaller works of art by mostly local artists, clever and hilarious cards, and just lots of fun little odds and ends. And if you are into the art jewelry movement, Quirk represents several very well known jewelry artists - several cases in the shop showcase works by these artists.

Be sure to pick up the August issue of Domino magazine, which features an article titled "Neo Southern Belle," about Katie Ukrop (proprietor of Quirk) and her fabulous home, and includes a nice shout-out to Quirk and photos of some of the unique things you will find there.

I was just in the gallery this past weekend, and started my Christmas shopping early! For more info, check out Quirk's website - www.quirkgallery.com. They're not doing e-commerce on the site yet, but if you see a photo of something you like, give them a call and chances are you can buy it.

Another Great Art Center Party!

I of course attended the Amuse Bouche fete last night for the Indianapolis Art Center, and had a fabulous time. The food was great - particularly the little crepes filled with smoked salmon, cream cheese, capers and red onions - but that's to be expected as Petite Chou did the catering. And, there was plenty of champagne, which is probably the fastest way to IndyStyle's heart.

Perhaps because French Pharmacie was a sponsor - and stayed open late to accomodate partygoers with a fashion jones - the party attracted a fashionable crowd of people who seemed happy to be finally busting out the fall finery.

As always, I loved what I saw at FP. One particular Thread Social dress jumped out at me - I would probably own it today if they had it in a size larger than a 2! I know that line runs large, but seriously...Actually, it's probably for the best because I've decided that French Pharmacie's strongest suit is its jewelry selection. I'm a sucker for great baubles, and FP's got them. As I mentioned in a previous entry, I treated myself to a really cool tiger's eye ring from FP not that long ago. Well, last night I did it again (Yes, my name is Cathy and I'm a jewel-a-holic), and picked up another - totally different - cocktail ring. In my defense, this one was actually kind of a steal. I know, I know - "steal" and "French Pharmacie" don't exactly go hand-in-hand. But seriously, for the size of this ring and the materials (read: real gems), I truly expected to see a four-figure pricetag. Anyway, I snapped it up. I also tried on an absolutely lovely rose-cut diamond bangle bracelet that shames the standard tennis bracelet. Unfortunately, that was $8000 - a bit out-of-reach for my budget. But my birthday's coming if you're looking for ideas...

Eye of the Tiger

So I completely broke down and splurged on a beautiful tiger's eye ring from French Pharmacie. I know, I know - tiger's eye? you're thinking...that tacky brown stone with the stripes? But seriously, this is cool. Big, chunky, interesting stone and the color of the season - brown.

It seems that tiger's eye might be part of a fall trend. As I was purusing Vivre catalog yesterday, I saw more tiger's eye - this time in the form of a very cool cuff bracelet with a giant tiger's eye stone.

Hmmmm. I might need that one, too. My birthday's coming soon-ish, after all.