Fall fashions are going south – Southwestern that is. The world’s biggest designers have been including western details in their new collections for fall, incorporating bold hues of turquoise, tan, orange and brown into their designs. Luckily for San Diego, the best of the Southwest – including Native American jewelry, art and crafts – will be on display and for sale at Bazaar del Mundo’s annual Santa Fe Marketplace, Friday through Sunday, September 21-23.

Transformed into a vibrant outdoor marketplace, Bazaar del Mundo (located at 4133 Taylor Street in Old Town) will overflow with exquisite collections of authentic Native American jewelry, art, crafts and décor from Navajo, Cherokee, Hopi, Pima, Isleta Pueblo and Santo Domingo Pueblo tribe members, along with other noted Southwestern artists demonstrating and selling their goods.

Visitors can take in dazzling sterling silver and multi-stone inlaid jewelry made with stunning turquoise, coral and other exotic stones, hand-woven Zapotec pillows and rugs, leather accessories, fetishes, storytellers, Pendleton blankets and more. Guests will also enjoy daily musical entertainment and feast on mouth-watering Mexican cuisine for sale at the otherwise free event, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

Returning to this year’s festival, pawn trader Art Quintana will appraise visitors’ fine Indian jewelry and family heirlooms (up to two pieces each). With 30 years in the Native American jewelry business, Quintana’s collection of traditional and contemporary necklaces, bracelets, rings, bolo ties, concho belts, earrings, beadwork and more, offers a treasure trove of items he has discovered in pawn shops throughout the Southwest.

Other artists include:

  • Anomaly Imports offers a huge selection of hand-woven Zapotec rugs, blankets, runners and more in glorious colors.
  • John Balloue’s vibrant acrylic and mixed media paintings are held in many private and public collections, including the Cherokee Museum in Tahlequah, Oklahoma; the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington DC; the SWAIA Indian Market in Santa Fe, New Mexico; and the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Arizona.
  • Federico, a celebrity-favorite jewelry designer whose stunning turquoise creations have been worn by Ali McGraw, Christie Brinkley, Elle McPherson and more.
  • Al Joe, whose contemporary Navajo-style sterling silver jewelry won him I.A.C.A.’s Artist of the Year in 2001 and 2009.
  • Bill King with collections of authentic Mata Ortiz pottery, a centuries-old art form renowned for its hand-painted geometric and ancestral symbols.
  • Charlene & Frank Reano, a husband and wife team from the Santa Domingo Pueblo who specialize in handmade mosaic/inlay jewelry using methods that have been passed down by the famed Reano family for generations.
  • Kim Yubeta uses vintage beads from far-off lands made of turquoise, coral, lapis, spiny oyster, amber, jet and onyx to fashion her necklaces that show in galleries throughout the Southwest.