Showing off their wares
By Denise Baran-Unland Correspondent November 29, 2012 11:46AM
Oakmoon Crafts of Bolingbrook will offer a variety of embroided goodies at the Fabulous Foo Gallery in Joliet. SUBMITTED PHOTOS
If you go
What: Fabulous Foo Gallery
When: 5 to 9 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday
Where: House of Foo, 1022 N. Raynor Ave., Joliet
Etc: Participating artists include the Foo Tribe (Sandy Costa), Oakmoon Crafts, Troll and Fairy Creations, Moon and Stars Soaps, the Thea De Luna Traveling Memorial Art Show and Landscape Quilts. Refreshments will be served.
Contact: 815-723-3957
Article Extras
Updated: January 1, 2013 6:17AM
Whether you’re celebrating winter solstice, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Yule or Hanukkah, Sandy Costa, 53, of Joliet and her Fabulous Foo Gallery of local artists are offering unique gifts that are sure to please.
The gallery will operate from Costa’s home Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The public is invited to peruse the wares — including Costa’s custom-made jewelry — and enjoy some holiday refreshments.
“This is the biggest spending season of the year, so why not do local good while shopping for quality, unusual gifts?” Costa said. “When we buy local art, we are showing pride in our area and helping out the whole community.”
A variety of artists will be featured. These include Landscape Quilts as well as Oakmoon Crafts (Jennifer D. Borovicka-Zawitaj and David Zawitaj of Bolingbrook), which offers a variety of embroidered crafts and handmade items.
Moon and Stars Soap (Janet Erio of Joliet) features handmade “gentle on the skin bath” products; perfume roll-ons with essential or fragrance oils; lavender body sprays, body/massage oils and sachets; peppermint lip balm; and bath salts.
Troll and Fairy Creations (Joe Gladkowski and Janet Adams, both of Joliet) will bring hand-sewn and beaded bags, crystal and arrowhead pendants, wooden lanterns, portable tables, beaded feathers and smudge fans.
One special feature is the Thea De Luna Traveling Memorial Art Show.
Last winter, Costa’s dear friend and show partner — a survivor of a rare stroke in the basal ganglia — died. Costa is memorializing De Luna’s work and the spirit behind it at this year’s gallery.
“She drew, painted, threw pots, worked glass and beaded, all with only one functioning hand,” Costa said. “She didn’t just live. She thrived.”
The Fabulous Foo Gallery originated in 1997. Costa, then an adjunct English teacher at the University of St. Francis in Joliet and a new Joliet resident, decided to host an open house to meet people as well as introduce them to her work: hand-crafted jewelry from sterling and gold wire, semi-precious stones and the occasional antique piece.
The event was so successful and Costa enjoyed it so much, she repeated it two years later. By then, Costa had met other artists, so she invited them to showcase their work, too. Since then, every few years, Costa hosts another Fabulous Foo Gallery, always in her home.
“It’s more comfortable here than in a rented hall and cozier,” Costa said. “The Foo Gallery is an informal and social event; we like to chat and be at home. This is not an upscale studio; it’s my house. Not only is the gallery a very good reason to clean house, but if I forget something, I don’t have far to go.”
Costa said she could not run her Fabulous Foo Gallery without the assistance and support of her silent partner.
“Although my husband Scott Marshall is not named as a participating artist, I could not do this event without him,” Costa said. “He keeps me fed and housed, sets me up properly at shows (He’s my roadie), puts up with my hectic schedule and acts as the Fabulous Foo money manager.”
