Dear Friends,

Happy 2002!  I’ve been busy these last few weeks updating the website,
so if you haven’t visited for a while there’s a lot of new things to
see.  I have several items that I picked up on my last trip to Hungary,
and only have in a limited quantity.  I used to just buy these items for
craft fairs, but now that I have more experience maintaining the website
I don’t mind making more frequent changes.  These new items include:

· Hand painted wooden frames and clothes hangers by Szabolcs Kovacs.
Lmntl has been featuring embroidered items made by Maria, Szabolcs’s
wife, for some time now, and I’m pleased to now offer these beautifully
crafted folk art pieces.  Mr. Kovacs learned this traditional art from
his father, and has earned the title of Master Craftsman.   The frames
come with either a mirror or glass; either can be removed and replaced
with your own photos or artwork.  One customer was going to insert a
small blackboard and hang it near her phone for messages – a great
idea!  There is an article about the Kovacs family at
http://www.lmntl.com/kovacs.html.

· Hand-woven tablecloths from Decs, made by Master Craftswoman Maria
Fodor.  She works in the Sarkozi folk art tradition, doing both strictly
traditional pieces and more modern ones using the same techniques.  She
works with natural materials such as cotton, linen and hemp.  I hope to
offer more of her work in the future.  I haven’t actually finished that
web page, but the red and blue striped tablecloth with four napkins
pictured on the gifts page sells for $48.00 for the set.  Email me for
more information.  You can read my article on Sarkozi folk art at
http://www.lmntl.com/sarkozfolkart.html.

Also new are the hand-woven rugs and crocheted doilies by Mrs. Ottilia
Kercsik of Mosonmagyarovar, Hungary, which I plan to offer on a regular
basis.  The rugs make really nice table runners; unfortunately my photos
don’t really do them justice.  You can access all of these new items
through my gifts/books page at http://www.lmntl.com/products.html.

A lot of people in the US are interested in cross-stitch, and I’ve been
asked about Hungarian cross-stitch patterns.  There is a very strong
cross-stitch tradition in Hungary, especially in the north of the
country.  I plan to eventually offer cross-stitch patterns, but in the
meantime you can read my new article on the village Tard.  Tard, which
is near Mezokovesd, is part of the Matyo region of northeastern
Hungary.  Besides doing embroidery similar to that of Mezokovesd, the
villagers also did beautiful cross-stitch work.  When I visited Tard in
October, I saw an exhibition of new and antique cross-stitch pieces and
also learned a lot about how people used to live in that region. The
article is at http://www.lmntl.com/tard.html.

I’m offering an “after-Christmas” special on our Matyo Christmas
ornaments:  Buy 3, get 1 free.  You can mix and match; the free ornament
will be the lowest-priced one.  Plan ahead for Christmas 2002 – these
make great inexpensive gifts for co-workers, teachers/students, gift
exchanges, etc.  They are also perfect as “box-toppers” for special
gifts.  The stockings are open at the top so that you can put in a
couple of candy canes or other wrapped candy – I put in a couple pieces
of festive foil wrapped szaloncukor (Hungarian Christmas chocolates).
With the exception of the stocking, these ornaments aren’t exclusively
for Christmas – the heart, for example, would be great for Valentine’s
Day!  The ornament page is http://www.lmntl.com/christmas.html.

Finally, I’ve started a second books page, focusing on general
needlework books, at http://www.lmntl.com/books2.html.  I welcome
suggestions for either of my books pages – if you’ve found a great book
that would fit in with any of the topics on my website, let me know.

Thank you for your interest in Lmntl Crafts!

Donna Fenton
Lmntl Crafts
http://www.lmntl.com