My Halloween Kick-off Event: Bewitching Peddlers of Halloween

For the last several years, my true Halloween kick-off event is making the trip to Marshall, Michigan for the Bewitching Peddlers of Halloween art show. If you've been following the blog or know me personally, you'll know that for me, attending BPOH is when I go completely delirious with joy. It's the one time every year that I can count on feeling like a child again. At one point during the show this year, my husband, Rich, actually told me that I should probably go sit in the car for awhile to calm down and relax for a bit. Ha! He was right! I needed a time out.

"Bewitching" was last Saturday (Sept. 28) and I'll give you the quick rundown. (It looks long, but really, I'm leaving a lot out.) It takes us about 12 hours of driving to get to the show from Connecticut. We leave before dawn because my goal is to get to Marshall on Thursday evening in time to claim a number to stand in line for the early morning sale on Saturday. This isn't a ticket. Just a place holder for standing in line- and you must show a driver's license- collectors are serious about their place in line. It's important to get a low number if you are hoping to purchase a specific piece at the show. And, you will fall in love with specific pieces ahead of time because the artists attending will be flooding your social media feed with what they are bringing for weeks in advance. It got so bad that I had to scroll quickly through my feed this year with my eyes closed. I don't like to fall in love with a piece because the chance that you'll be able to purchase it is pretty low unless your number is under 10. My number ended up being 122 this year to put it into perspective, and I was near the front of the line. 

As we drove into the Calhoun County Fairgrounds, I spied Kristen Stafford of the podcast Halloween Art & Travel waiting to greet us. She arrived shortly before we did and got her number right before us. Line buddies! We couldn't have planned it better.

Friday was spent shopping downtown Marshall- which is adorable and right out of a Norman Rockwell painting and then heading to Chelsea, MI for some more shopping. I know that you're probably wondering why I would be shopping ahead of the show, but as I explained to my husband, I wanted my credit card company to know I was there. I didn't want them declining my credit card because I was spending crazy amounts of money in under an hour on Saturday. Don't worry, Rich didn't really believe that excuse either. All I can say is that there are some really cute shops in this area. Also some good beer. We love visiting Albion Malleable and Dark Horse Brewing while we're in Michigan. (I swear no one is sponsoring this post- I just love these places so much!)

Friday evening there was a meet and greet with BPOH artists at Eastend Gallery in Marshall that was lots of fun. Some of the artists were invited to sell a piece of art at the gallery show and I was excited to be able to purchase a beautiful skull made by Ellen Gee- you may know her as the publisher and editor of Autumn Brilliance magazine. We had a delightful conversation about the beauty of death.

It was a frenzied hour of trying to talk to artists and other collectors. We only see each other once a year! I have to add that the punch probably helped the atmosphere- it was so delicious I asked for the recipe: one bottle of caramel vodka, one gallon of apple cider, and some caramel sauce swirled in. 

At one point, all the witches in the room went up to the ballroom on the third floor for a photo. I was chatting with Rebecca Miller Campbell and she said she hoped some child on the street was looking up at the windows and might see a witch standing there. Brilliant! I told her to gather the witches in the windows and I ran down to the street for a photograph. I wish I had a better camera than my phone, but the sentiment was captured at least. 

We all headed to bed early that night in order to be fresh for the show next morning- at least that is what we promised each other before heading out to a brewery.

I'll post about the actual show tomorrow.