Tuesday, March 24, 2009

A New Favorite Thing

One of the things we love about Brasil is the availability of really awesome, incredibly affordable art. Original pieces are well out of our price range back in the US, but we've been able to acquire quite a few paintings and other artistic creations since our arrival in Brasil.

Back in November 2007, shortly after our arrival here, we set out on a mission to find a nativity scene. We were certain Brasil would be just the place to find a great handmade set. And well over a year later, after searching through two Christmas seasons, we hadn't found anything we liked. Everything was either too brightly painted, or too plain, or too small, or didn't have enough detail.

And then on Saturday, we walked into a small shop next to the Basílica in Congonhas and guess what I saw . . .






It was pretty much exactly what we were looking for. The clay-formed pieces have some size to them (the men are between 10-12" tall), and they are minimally painted with a neutral color and just a few gold accents here and there. And maybe the best part: we bought the entire set for R$130 (less than US$60)!

3 comments:

Beth O. said...

I have my grandmother's old wooden set. The pieces are small and frail, but so worth the extra tissue paper packing. =)

corinne said...

You just gave me another reason to go to Congonhas.

Stephanie said...

I have been wanting a nativity scene too!!! I wanted to find some while I was in Puerto Rico in December, but there wasn't enough time to really look! We found a couple but they didn't open the store until too late so we didn't get to go back and get them! It is a gorgeous set!!