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DALLAS — Lyn Carey describes her tiny craft shop, tucked away on Main Street, as a “brick and mortar Etsy.”
Earth and Wears is a haven for local artisans seeking a home for their handmade items such as pottery, jewelry, sculptures and decorative items.
Carey, the shop owner, also displays her own art at the store.
After seven years, she has forged a bond with many of the local artisans and the loyal base of customers.
“The artists and customers have turned into great friends,” Carey said.
She takes pride that the work inside her shop is all handmade. Looking over the the sculptures, coffee mugs, silk scarves and re-purposed vintage wine bottles, she calls them “handmade lovelies.”
Carey, 59, was an art education major who had hoped to find a career in teaching.
During the day, Carey works at Earth and Wears. At night, she is an artist, creating pottery and jewelry. Her pottery features surface textures, her niche in the art world. Her blue coffee mugs and pitchers with about one thousand polka dots has earned her the nickname of “the crazy dot lady.” She uses vintage wrist cuffs from the 1960s in some of her bracelets and necklaces.
Wire artist Sean Brady has sold many unique figurines at Earth and Wears over the past four years. Brady said it is nice to have a home base where his work is showcased year-round. About 30 to 40 of his small wire figurine climbers, skiers and yoga posers are housed in the shop.
“Lyn has done a really great job getting the word out about me and my work,” Brady said. “It’s great to have a shop so close like this. It really helps especially during the slow time in the winter.”’
Another advantage of being featured at Earth and Wears is that Carey has often acted as a representative for the Plymouth artist taking orders for custom pieces for customers.
Brady, a native of New Hope, began his artistic career by accident while working in a greenhouse in Portland, Oregon.
“I was just playing with some wire and happened to create a little figure,” he said. “And things just really took off from there.”
Some of his larger wire figures can be seen “climbing” the Marquis Art and Frame building in downtown Wilkes-Barre as well as several other buildings in Kingston.
Carey bought the shop nearly seven years ago.
“It was 2008 and the economy wasn’t good and I thought it would be a big risk, but then I decided to try it,” she said. “It was a quick decision. The first couple years were a little tough, but business is really good now. At Christmas, we were crazy busy and Valentine’s Day as well. ”
The shop owner finds that customers are becoming more interested in buying locally and sometimes getting the opportunity to meet the artist who created their purchase.
“It’s something I’ve always been interested in doing,” Carey, who once managed an art gallery in Hawaii, said. “I’ve always been focused on creating and appreciating other artists.”