Touring the Budapest Christmas Fair + Craft Market in Vörösmarty Square

Sad-sack me clearly needed a little pick-me-up over the weekend, so we headed to the Budapest Christmas fair and I bought a puppet: 

I am totally normal for buying this puppet because it's a gift for my niece and I have NO plans to buy one for myself.  It is handmade by an adorable older couple and the gentlemen just sits there, puppeting (is that a word?), so it's impossible not to get draw into their booth.  Actually, the whole market is delightful and chock full of eye candy.  But can you believe these artisans will be freezing their tushies off in this outdoor market all December???   

Of course we couldn't leave with just a puppet!  Mom bought this pair of oil paintings . . .

. . . and bought me one too!

Then I bought a set of four enamel paintings.  They are the same landscape in spring, summer, fall and winter.  I had to buy the set because, come December 21st, I will have visited Hungary in all four seasons!  But I asked for them sans frames (and the price was lower as a result) so they will be easier to bring home and I can frame them to suit the townhouse. 

I bought this day timer as well (am I the only person still using these?) and the vintage Budapest map on it features - of all the neighborhoods - my exact apartment!  I'm loving these sentimental, made-for-me treats.  Maybe this is my karma coming around?

When Hubby comes for a visit, he will have to learn to live without gotch and socks because I am going to need a good chunk of his suitcase space for these treasures.

Have you started hitting any holiday craft shows?  Seeing all of the hard work and creativity that went into these 100 or so booths made me really happy and inspired.  

Budapest Design Week: Kreatim and Nemurimuri

Budapest Design Week (er, month more like) has had no shortage of markets, fairs and strange names.  We decided to take a look at Kreatim, an artisan market held four times per year, housed in the amazing 

Iparművészeti Múzeum (museum of applied arts).

With a roof like this, you just know there are good things inside:

Like this ceiling.  My gosh:

Because there was a small admission fee, we took the opportunity to take in the museum exhibits, also, including an amazing art deco exhibit where I managed to snap one forbidden photo for you.  I am 100% going to weld some nested tables just. like. these.
 

Kreatim:

The admission fee also had the welcome side effect of smaller crowds and, overall, delightfully fewer instances of pushing, shoving and being touched by strangers.  Which I am learning is a privilege I have taken for granted back home (the not being touched by random people at random times.  I often feel like a sardine here - we will walk 5km home to avoid the packed streetcar, but that's another story for another day.  Back to the pretties).

 

We didn't buy anything from this market (applause, please, for the restraint we exercised), although I am tempted to buy some of Mester Borbala's prints of Budapest, that feature abstracted city scenes mixed with Hungarian text.

I go weak in the knees for anything with text (exhibit A, exhibit B, exhibit C), and Hungarian text is just extra enticing (exhibit D).  I still need some thinking time, though.  Like I mentioned yesterday, Hungary & I have a history of bad decisions. 

Parliament, Image from Mester's Blog

Image from Mester's Blog

The streetcar stop that takes us to the library; Image from Mester's Blog

Nemurinmuri:

 
At Nemurimuri, a market/installation (that was so wee, we almost walked right by), we did take the plunge and pulled out the Hungarian Forints.  We each bought this cute print by Tascali David ("lesz" is a Hungarian word that sounds like "less" and the saying means, roughly, "it will be how it will be," a spin on our "it is what it is" - which is an expression Hubby despises, so I only love this more).

Imagine a whole wall of quirky graphic art:

Photo Via

I also bought this tote:

I desperately want a tote with Hungarian text (mmmm, text, text, text) but this saying was so perfect for me!  Plus the tote is handmade in Hungary with a neat design twist: the bow snaps off and is interchangeable (I also have yellow, orange and brown bows! 

I also loved these mint and gold bracelet by Juhos Janka, but they were a touch too pricey for me.  Perhaps a thrift store bangle and some spray might have to suffice.  I spy a DIY . . .  



Now it's back to work for me!!

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