Monthly Archives: July 2012

Events, Mity Nice news

Fairy games, crafts and fun coming Aug. 12

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Fairy Photo

If you’ve never seen a fairy in Ann Arbor, perhaps it’s time you started hanging out at the Mity Nice cart. They like to stop by around dusk, and play a few games and pick up an itty bitty Italian ice to take home to their brothers and sisters.

Or better yet, come by on Sunday, Aug. 12 for the Fairies & Fairy Door Festival, when fairies and humans will mix and mingle and enjoy an afternoon of fun and games, arts and crafts.

We have some surprised planned, so we can’t tell you everything. But here’s some highlights of our fairy and pirate event:

  • The folks at FLY Art Center will provide some wonderful craft activities. Fairy fans will be able to make a wand and a tiara and pirates and their pals can create their own villainous mustache and a hook from tin foil and a cup.  (They also are our non-profit partner, so a percent of all Italian ice and food sales from Mity Nice will go directly to this great group.)
  • Children and adults are encouraged to dress up as fairies or pirates, and join the costume contest at 1:30 p.m.  (No sharp swords please.)

    Fairy Photo

  • The folks from BrickBash, the cool Lego-building festival, are bringing out some of their favorites to share with our guests.
  • A face painter will be available to give you a flower or some fairy dust or perhaps a patch over your eye or a terrifying scar, if you’re a pirate. Thanks to the kind support of LilyGrace, the luxury cosmetics boutique on Main Street, we will offer free face painting for most of the event.
  • We will offer an array of fairy games and dances – some of them will be magical. (Yes, you can play even if you have no wings or magical powers.)
  • Hear stories of fairies and fairy adventures, listen to fairy tales in some storytimes on the steps.
  • See some new fairy doors that are popping up, both at the Mity Nice cart and throughout the Artisan Market.
  • Try some treats made by local fairies and their cousins, the sprites and brownies.
  • Buy some amazing fairy items – including some locally made fairy doors and wands and some postcards, crowns and books from the Mity Nice Fairie Shop.  We appreciate Nicola’s Books for handing over most of the fairy books that will available.
The event starts at 11 a.m., though mosf the children’s activities and crafts will commence at noon, at the Sunday Artisan Market in Kerrytown, and at the Mity Nice cart. If you flit by early enough, though, creep by and spy on the fairy circle just a little after dawn at Wheeler Park.
This event is organized by Mity Nice and Integrity Shows in partnership with the Fairy Council #3 and the Sunday Artisan Market.
Thanks to our sponsors LilyGrace Cosmetics and Tea Haus of Ann Arbor for their support.
Copyright Mity Nice LLC

 

Mity Nice news

Art Fair – we’re there, times two

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If you’re looking for your Mity Nice Italian ice for the next few days, you’ll have to head up to the heart of the Ann Arbor Art Fairs.

We have two locations this year, on either end of the Diag. They are:

1. State and North University  – We’re serving from our mini-carts but you’ll find four flavors of ice and plenty of lemonade and tea too.

2. South University and East University – Look just past the Information booth and you’ll see Mity Nice in a sliver of a space.

In both spots, you will see our red, white and green umbrella that is one of our signatures. We’re serving up Tea Haus tea, including the beautiful flavor Summer Romance and the classic black (so you can make an Arnold Palmer).  The raspberry lemonade tastes wonderful with a scoop of lemon ice added, too.

We know it’s a ways from Kerrytown, but we hope you’ll come see us!

Mity Nice news, Photos

Almost a circus at the Mity Nice Street Fair

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We’re sharing some photos of the fun we had Sunday at the Mity Nice Street Fair:

And we want to give thanks to Zingerman’s Bakehouse, Tea Haus of Ann Arbor and Found Gallery for their support of this event, and to the food carts, the performers and everyone who came to play and juggle with us. It was Mity Mity Nice!

Events, Kerrytown news

Watch for fairies flitting, playing, drawing, singing

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Fairies have bought our Italian ice since we debuted in 2009 (they are one reason we offer the Itty Bitty size, which is enough for a fairy family to share!) And they rejoiced when we installed our own Mity Nice Fairy Door last summer.

This year, we’re adding a second door and celebrating the fairies, er faeries of Ann Arbor, again in our Second Sunday event on Aug. 12.  The event at the Sunday Artisan Market will again encourage people to dress up as fairies and if they prefer, pirates. We firmly believe that boys or girls may be faeries and that girls or boys could be pirates, and adults too!

We will have arts and crafts, much of it provided by FLY Children’s Arts Center, our charity partner for this event. (They receive a percent of all Italian ice sales that day, plus our undying appreciation for coming out in August to join us.)

Visitors will see many more fairy doors this year besides ours, and we have more fun planned too, which we’ll share in future posts. We’re inviting a face painter, a fairy queen and much more. For now, here’s the basics:

The Second Sunday Fairies & Fairy Door Festival

When: Sunday, Aug. 12  11 – 3:30 p.m.  (Arts & Crafts end at 3 p.m.)

Where: The Sunday Artisan Market in Kerrytown  (Detroit Street near Catherine and Fourth)

Who:  Anyone who appreciates fairies or fairy doors and fun

Why: Because we adore fairies and Kerrytown and playing faerie games

How:  You may get involved by helping share the news of this mini-festival and of course, by getting your fairy wings exercised.

See a few photos from last year’s Fairy & Fairy Door Party, shot by Mark Bialis for the Ann Arbor Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, on Flickr. Used with permission of VisitAnnArbor.org

 

 

Events, Kerrytown news

A half dozen entertainers will dazzle and dance at The Mity Nice Street Fair

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Time flies when you’re having fun. And we’re packing so much fun and so much entertainment into one event this Sunday, that before you drop one juggling ball or $5 in a busker’s case, the  Mity Nice Street Fair will be started.

Here’s a preview of the entertainers who have confirmed they’re coming:

  • Detroit Circus – Strolling entertainers Tom and James specialize in contact juggling, poi spinning and other amazing feats. They’ll be performing and teaching some too on Sunday. (They’re bringing along teaching yo-yos, but we asked them to leave their fire juggling gear behind, partly because of all the beautiful but flammable art that’s for sale in the Sunday Artisan Market.)

  • Tom of the Detroit Circus will amaze and entertain on Sunday. (Photo courtesy spilt sugar / Detroit Circus)
  • The Josh and Roy Show. This duo combines “juggling and jocularity” and considers themselves an old fashioned vaudeville act. The wanted to bring their unicorn, or maybe it was a unicycle, but we don’t have a field nearby for frolicking.
  • Meaghan Roberts   This singer and guitarist from Toledo charmed us when she played at the Artisan Market during our first Second Sunday event. She’s lively in her folk/rock style, and also plays harmonica and other instruments.
  • Ian Tran – When we saw him roaming the aisles of the Artisan Market, playing violin and smiling, we were sold on this musician. He plays a mix of classics and children’s favorites and improvises tunes on violin and piano too.
  • Chris Abolio – She describes herself as a street dancer, and her style is popping  It’s a mix of funk and hip hop; it’s high energy and sure to appeal. See her perform in this video or live on Sunday!
  • Our open stage has several performers already likely to show up, and more welcome. They perform for up to 30 minutes near the Mity Nice cart on Detroit Street. (All entertainment must be family friendly and fun. Save the scary, angry, evil performances for the Terribly Mean Street Festival that our evil twin will put on someday.)
The acts start performing at 11 a.m. all around the Ann Arbor Sunday Artisan Market. And they will perform gladly, especially if we appreciate them with tips and purchases of their CDs and su
Tom of the Detroit Circus is ah “imported from Detroit.” (Photo courtesy of spilt sugar / Detroit Circus)
ch.  (Or buy them a Mity Nice Italian ice, a lemonade or bag of popcorn between sets.)

Many thanks to Street Fair sponsors Found Gallery, Tea Haus of Ann Arbor and Zingerman’s Bakehouse, each of which have  Adopted-A-Busker. No – they do not get to take them home and enroll them in swimming or kayaking lessons! It’s more like a foster program – for Sunday only!

Events, Mity Nice news, Photos

What a parade! What a lot of free ice!

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This is our third year in the Jaycees 4th of July Parade in Ann Arbor, and our second year to give away free Italian ice to everyone in it.

This year, we promoted the Mity Nice Street Fair — this Sunday – throughout the parade.

The parade loops around downtown, and it ends on Thompson Street, where Mity Nice surprises and delights everyone with a free little Italian ice in red, white or blue. (Flavors: raspberry, lemon or Go Blue!)  We pre-scoop much of this and serve it in pizza boxes so we can hand it to the groups going by.

Such smiles and delight on their tired hot faces when they see us!

We gave away 863 portions of Italian ice, with Mark scooping as fast as he could and our juggler friend, Dave, helping to pass out the pizza trays full of icy vegan sweetness.

Here’s a few photos from the start of the parade, as Shelley, Mark and Dannie, our brown mascot, were waiting to walk a mile amid politicians, pre-schools and prancing twirlers.

Events, Kerrytown news, Photos

Arts and crafts – puppets and play at Second Sunday

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Every month, we organize a Mity Nice Arts & Crafts area as part of our Second Sunday celebrations.

The craft activities usually match the them of the month, so for Dads & Dogs, Eleanor and the children made dog heads and ties, among other things. This Sunday, as part of our performers and street performers theme, we’re making puppets – sock puppets and paper bag puppets.

Here’s a preview that my Mom and I made together:

Two by two: Sandy and Sam and Mabel and Suzie are the first Mity Nice puppets.

We still need a few more socks for the sock puppets – so if you have some, toss them at us as we pass by during the Jaycees 4th of July Parade or else drop them off by Friday at Papa John’s on Division.

And please come this Sunday at the Mity Nice Street Fair. Whether you make a puppet or watch the Detroit Circus or a musician (and tip them for their performance), we’ve got plenty of fun for everyone.