Straw Art At The Craft Market

I'm continuing my craft market presentation as it's #marketfriday again, hosted by my dear friend @dswigle. Today I'm going to start with some straw art and most likely continue with something random, I don't know yet but we'll see.

This kind of art has a long tradition in our country, especially at the countryside. There are museums all around the country to preserve the tradition. The most famous products are the straw hats. Village people were using straw hats while working on the fields or guarding grazing animals. Straw hats are still in use at the countryside. I have one myself and using it when I'm working in the garden, harvesting currants, to protect my head and neck from the sun.

Yes, you're right, at the beginning they were making products that they could use in the house. Now it's an art. As you see, there are decorations you can put on the wall like the flower wreath in the center of the photo. There is a wine mug covered with straw, bread baskets and those round things you put under hot pots.

Then there are these flowers you can put in a vase and enjoy them no matter the season. Look at that meticulous work! Imagine yourself creating a straw flower like that and they try to put a price on it. How much would you ask for a flower like that?

Straw hats in the background, wreaths for different occasions. Those with angels and bells are for Christmas, the one with a bunny and egg is for Easter.

There's a funny hat here I haven't seen before and some paper napkin holders. I have a similar one, it was a gift and I love it.

This is my straw paper napkin holder, I made a couple of close up photos so you can see the details.

This is my straw coaster.

Those hanged lace like products are for tables, similar to tablecloths.

These are mostly Christmas decorations, bells and angels that you can hang on a Christmas three. Small keepsake boxes on the left and two wells that look exactly like the wells you can see in villages. There are some wooden spoon holders in the front of the table.

Braided straw basket decorated with embroidered linen. This is new to me, I've never seen a basket decorated like this. Baskets were usually simple, but I love it, it looks very nice.

Here you have pretty much everything. I'm going to name a few things that are not on the photos above. Look at those bells on the left. I'm seriously thinking of buying some for my Christmas tree. Beneath the bells there are two identical hair pins. That is a traditional hair pin, older women from villages were using it and maybe they are still using similar ones.

There was a habit according to which married women had to wear kerchief or headscarf and they were not allowed to cut their hair, so they had to wear a bun. This was a pin used to fix the bun.

There's also a flower holder on the upper left that I like very much.

This is it for this week, see you next week or in two weeks with another entry from the craft market.