Summer Tea

Buttercup and Marigold had tea on a mid-August afternoon. They gathered their meal from the forest and field~ dandelion, rose hips, sumac berries and a mushroom. To the song of a nearby meadowlark, they recalled what they loved most about summertime.

Buttercup tended her garden each morning. Her strawberries, tomatoes and herbs were the very taste of summer! Some lazy afternoons, she sat with a book next to the rosemary, catnapping to the buzz of grasshoppers and daydreaming with visiting hummingbirds.

Marigold rested contently against a mossy boulder, nature's bounty spread before her. She had watched patiently as the field greened at the start of summer and delighted at the early, dewy blooms. She now savored the late wildflowers~ hearty broom, cutleaf daisies and nodding sunflowers. She was grateful to have seen another season turn, to have felt its sunny blessings, and for the sweet summer memories made with loved ones.

These little rag dolls (and others) are available in my Etsy shop and would love to have tea or adventures with you! They and I hope you have a wonderful last few weeks of summer~ these lazy, crazy, dreamy dog days.

For the Madness

I've been working on some super-fun collaborations lately, and I'm so excited to share this first one! I've painted a few posters for my friends the Mile Markers, but this spring they asked me to create artwork for their second cd, For the Madness. They wanted linocut prints, a medium that is still a challenge for me (I have so much to learn!), but one with a handmade quality that works well with their folky-Americana sound.

The girls already had wonderful images in mind evoking madness~ a full moon, bare trees and crows~ and some possible cures.

They send me recordings of the songs for inspiration. So, to the poetry of broken hearts, rambling free spirits and a medicine man, I carved five blocks in all for the cd and packaging.

Looking good so far... and a few weeks later

it came to life! Graphic designer Blake Denney worked magic with color and texture, giving the prints depth and an enchanted feeling~ moonlight shines from the medicine bottle and whiskey jug!

I feel so honored to have helped Julie, Bevin, Sal and Nicki bring this beautiful project to realization. These women are so very, very talented and kind, with a future brighter than the brightest full moon. Please give them a listen!

This week in an artisan and vintage market in my town, I found a wonderful old postcard for only $2! I have it hanging on the refrigerator right now where I can see it all day long, because I am in love with these two~

The United Photo Stores Co. once had three studios in Denver where one could have their photograph made in this prop automobile, with a choice of mountain backdrops and witty(?) captions on the front. The photograph was made into a real photo postcard.

This card was never mailed, so it has no stamps or written clues to its date. But did you know that postcards like this one can sometimes be dated by the design of their stamp box in the top right corner? I sure didn't until today! :) I'm still researching the photographer but not finding much, and nothing for these addresses today. I need some help from Denver old-timers! By her hair and hat, I guess this was taken between 1910-1915~ a hundred years ago.

Now, I suppose this fashionable couple's message could be interpreted as full-on snark, an early sarcasm meme~ a regrettable decision to motor through (what appears to be) Garden of the Gods in a suspicious-looking horseless carriage. The roads are rough, it could be either hot or cold, there are rattlesnakes, maybe they have a flat tire?

But looking closely at these two, I believe this is a proud announcement, a joyous declaration that We are Having a H-L of a Time today! Look at her sassy smirk, eyes confident behind the wheel. He is close at her side, enjoying the ride, rakishly cool with a loosened collar and smokes in his pocket. This young couple commemorated this day out on the town, probably just on a whim while walking by, and the image captured that day is beautiful and timeless~ they will face any hard road together with humor and adventure and a love for life, Having a H-L of a Time!

Happy Springtime!

Two sisters went for a walk in the woods on the first day of spring. They saw tiny new blades of grass, fresh, soft and green, just barely poking through the dry fallen pine needles. "It won't be long now", they rejoiced~

Rag Mama

I made this little rag doll on Saturday during a snow storm. When the sun came out yesterday, she was ready to play. Now she needs some (spring-inspired) sisters! Have a beautiful week~

Oconee Bell

As much as I honestly do love winter, I admit that by about this time I start longing for spring. Heavy boots and woolen scarves and hats sounded so fun back in September, everyone loves sweater weather then! :) Since the beginning of January, there's been a few inches of snow almost every week. Eleven inches last Sunday and two more yesterday! But warmer days aren't that far away, a lesson from a little wildflower~

The fairest bloom the mountain knows
Is not an iris or a wild rose
But the little flower of which I'll tell
Known as the brave acony bell

Just a simple flower so small and plain
With a pearly hue and a little known name
But the yellow birds sing when they see it bloom
For they know that spring is coming soon

Well it makes its home mid the rocks and the rills
Where the snows lie deep on the windy hills
And it tells the world "Why should I wait
This ice and snow is gonna melt away"

And so I'll sing that yellow bird's song
For the troubled times will soon be gone

~Gillian Welch & David Rawlings

Oconee Bell, Shortia Galacifolia, is one of the rarest wildflowers in the United States, found in only six counties in the southern Appalachians of North and South Carolina and Georgia, blooming in early spring along shady stream banks.

A partial specimen was first collected in 1788 by a French botanist, Andre Michaux, found somewhere "in the high mountains of the Carolinas". Fifty years later, an American botanist, Asa Gray, saw the specimen in Michaux's collection in Paris and realized the unnamed plant was new to science. He led expeditions to find it in the wild, and the rediscovery of the lost wildflower became an obsession for many botanists of the day. Nearly a century after it was first noted, a 17 year old boy named George Hyams found a patch growing along the Catawba River near Marion, North Carolina. By following descriptions in his journals, botanists and historians then retraced Michaux's route to the original source of his specimen~ along the Keowee River, near the old Cherokee town of Jocassee in Oconee County, South Carolina.

Long before botanists found and classified Oconee Bells, the Cherokee called it "Shee-Show", meaning "two-colored plant of the gods". It's believed that the tribe once made annual pilgrimages to the Jocassee Gorges to collect the flower, thought to be a rain talisman because it grew at the water's edge.

Faith, determination and the strength to bloom through hard conditions~ the snow will melt and spring will be here soon. Only a few more weeks...okay, maybe two months, but it WILL come! :) Warm end-of-winter wishes to you!


(photos: Georgia Botanical Society , appalachianhistory.net , Learn NC)

Simple Things

After the sparkle and abundance of trimmings of Christmastime, there is such a peacefulness in unadorned trees. There's a bare beauty in frosty breath and windowpanes, brown and white fields, and the lonely call of geese. Although, weather this cold usually puts me more in the mind of domestic (indoor!) pursuits. Last week, I made more linocut prints~ simple things, each primitive and useful.

I imagine the stark beauty of this time of year sounds like this, sometimes as fearsome and wondrous as black crows on a winter wind~



Winter won't last too long, and I love the wonders and simple blessings of each season. Hot tea, a crochet blanket, and someone or something furry to cuddle with makes nearly anything bearable, so let the winds howl!

Spinning Wheel

Year-wheel spins around again.
This year, what story will you spin?

Wishing you a happy and blessed 2013~

Mistletoe

Happy Yule and first day of winter! Five inches of snow fell here earlier this week, so it feels comfortingly wintery. So many recent events have made this month seem rather dark AND the Mayan calendar predicts the world may end today. But out of darkness comes light, it could also mean the beginning of a new consciousness~

Shine a light on the longest night of the year. Be kind, compassionate, grateful and hopeful. Forgive, accept and respect others. Love one another. Be your authentic best and share your gifts with others. Nurture the gifts and talents of others to help them shine. Teach, share and be kindness and love without end.

I need to remind myself of those things almost every day, but I'm trying. :) If it is the last day of the world, I'm baking cookies today, gingerbread and Scottish shortbread. The holidays have started, Sam is out of school and Cat comes home tomorrow. ^-^

Warm love and light, comfort and joy to you~

Danish Hearts

God Jul and happy Saint Lucia Day! Warm welcome to today's visiting blog processioners~

Thank you to Heather of Audrey Eclectic (our head Lucia) for inspiring this procession and Scandi-fest! I've never celebrated the pageantry of the day before, but it's a beautiful occasion to shine a light and share interests with others in the dark of winter.

Anderson or Neilson family? Sod roof!

My grandmother's parents, Hans Peter Anderson and Elsie Neilson, both emigrated from Denmark (with the mysterious photograph above) and were married in South Dakota in 1899. She and my grandfather later moved to Alabama, but Grandma Alice kept an adorable Minnesota accent, peppered with UFF DAs. I really don't remember celebrating any old-world traditions with her, but there were always bright tins of Danish butter cookies along with familiar homemade ones. She was proud of her Viking ancestors and I'm enchanted by a land of fierce winters, trolls, goblins and house elves.

My own family's holiday traditions are an American mix of the ones passed down, and also ones we've found, created or traded like recipes. I adore the feel of a Scandinavian Christmas~ simple, natural and homemade (visually and spiritually), golden candlelit wheat and warm red on snowy white. Years ago, I found straw ornaments and julbocken at the gift shop of the Denver Sons of Noway Lodge. That year I gave my parents a julbock three feet tall, haha!

This year I went a little berserker making Danish woven hearts. Traditionally, these are made of paper into little treat baskets. The first one was believed to have made by Hans Christian Andersen, master paper-cutter AND storyteller! Some designs are amazingly intricate, but there are simple patterns all over. It's just two long oval pieces folded in half, parallel lines cut and strips woven~

I made my hearts from felt and strung some on yarn as a garland. They're easy and inexpensive, and would be fun to make with little ones. :)

They're so fun that I also made some in a calico print! Cat and Sam made these beaded ornaments and God's eyes. They (and I) have been such prolific ornament-makers over the years that we needed another tree, so this smaller one is in the kitchen. My main elf hasn't come home from school yet, but I sent her some heart garland (in turquoise, gray and white) for her apartment in Boulder.

These hearts look right at home next to snowflakes crocheted by my Mema, my great-grandmother from the other side of the family. Old ways and new, made with hands and celebrated in the hearts of each generation~

Happy holidays and thank you for stopping by today! Other Saint Lucia processioners, I look forward to reading of your celebrations! Skål to all from Colorado~
~Kristina

Commission Mission

The past few months, I've had a (much needed!) steady run of commissioned work. It's a fun challenge to illustrate a sound, taste, mood or energy of someone else's creative endeavor. I'm grateful to be a part of it! In August, I painted dancing pigs for a friend's catering service, and then more farm animals kept showing up.

The She Saids are some new friends~ four lovely girls and I can't wait to see them again. They played a show with legendary banjo virtuoso, Danny Barnes! His set with Nick Forster was the fastest, most mind-blowing picking I've ever seen. A wonderful night! <3

This is a label for a homebrewer. Huzzah for beer!

And this project hasn't been given an all-clear, but here's a little bit~

I hope to share more soon! I love collaborative projects like these, but the one I'm cooking up now is all my own. It's cooking-inspired, getting ready for next week's kitchen action. Thank you for stopping by! ~Kristina

Long-Plumed Avens

This russet-pink beauty blooms in early summer. Later in the season, the flower's styles grow into silky, feathery plumes, commonly called Old Man's Whiskers. Wouldn't the later stage of the flower make for an interesting painting, too?

Angeline the Baker

Angeline the Baker, Angeline I know
I should have married Angeline twenty years ago



This old-time fiddle tune is often played bluegrass-style. An early version from 1850 was a slave's lament to his lost love. This Angeline is independent, no spring chicken, and a little sassy, I imagine!

Mule's Ears

The bright, sunflower-like blooms of Wyethia can cover entire meadows, and its glossy leaves resemble a mule's ears. The genus is named for Nathaniel Wyeth, a western explorer and fur trader of the early 1800s. This hard-working girl is adorned in garlands of high-country wildflowers~

Hello Stranger...

After my last post, I'm afraid I left this place a virtual graveyard! Well, I've dusted out the cobwebs and am ready to get back into the habit. I can be such an introvert sometimes. :/ But I do love to learn from and exchange ideas with others and read other blogs, and I would like to share my inspirations with you!

So, catching up... the little man started high school this week, and the girl is about to start her second year at CU Boulder. She's only an hour from home (not too far or too close) and it's been lovely having her home for the summer. Last winter, the nest had been feeling a little empty, so we brought home a new baby, Ruby.

She's seven months old now, and she and Gretel are (finally) the sweetest of sisters. We haven't camped or traveled much this summer with the puppy (just one night) but Gil's band has kept us busy closer to home. If you're near Denver, come check them out! I'll probably see you there!

Otherwise, I've had some fun commissions this year and have been learning to make linocut prints. Much more about that soon! Here's a new painting~

A song for all travelers, 'Oh Shenandoah' was a sailors' sea chanty by the 1880s. Different interpretations tell the stories of a trader in love with the daughter of an Indian chief, a pioneer or Confederate soldier's memories of home, or of a route to freedom for escaped slaves. The Shenandoah valley area produced parts (like wheels and seats) for wagons, then those parts were assembled in Conestoga County, Pennsylvania. In Conestoga wagons, settlers followed the Ohio river to the Mississippi, then west up the Missouri.

I'm not from Virginia, but I love this song so much. I grew up in Georgia, Tennessee and North Carolina, but I felt "bound away" west. Looking at maps or on family trips, I was amazed by so much open space and sky and wanted to see other landscapes and seasons (snow!). I'm sure a life-long Laura Ingalls obsession only fueled it, ha! Gil and I were blessed with the chance to start our family on an adventure of our own, so here we are.

So, in this journal, I hope to share my gratitude for the people and places that inspire me. And please share yours with me! I look forward to seeing you again soon~

Buckskin Joe

For Halloween, I want to show you a wonder of a place! Back in July, Cat and Sam spent two weeks with my parents, so Gil and I were able to go off alone anywhere we wanted, within two days' drive. My very first choice was the cemetery in the remains of Buckskin Joe, a mining camp near Alma, in Park County. At least two legends have haunted this cemetery.

There was a dance hall girl in Buckskin Joe, called Silverheels for the silver decorations on her dancing shoes. A smallpox epidemic hit the camp in the winter of 1861, and Silverheels was the only woman who stayed to care for the sick miners and families. She contracted smallpox herself, and the town took up a collection in gratitude of her dedication, nearly $5000. The next spring, when the miners delivered the reward, her cabin was deserted. She did not leave town by horse or stagecoach, so the nearby mountains and valleys were searched. Silverheels had disappeared into the hills, her beautiful and kind face scarred by the pox. A ghostly lady dressed in black with a heavy veil is sometimes seen placing flowers on graves around the cemetery, still tending the bedsides of the people of Buckskin Joe. Mount Silverheels is named for her.


J. Dawson Hidgepath was another spirit led by love. In hopes of finding a wife, he attempted to romance nearly every one of the few women in town, young or old, eligible or already married. In 1865, poor J. Dawson's body was found at the bottom of Mount Bross, where he had fallen while collecting wildflowers on the mountainside. He was buried in the Buckskin Joe cemetery, but his restless heart still yearned for love. A short time later, a dance hall girl in Alma found his bones stacked in her bed with his hat (with a distinctive crest) on top. He was reburied in the same cemetery, but again and again, his bones made their way into the bed or kitchen of a woman. Deeper graves with even heavier rocks on top could not contain his lovelorn skeleton. For fifteen years his bones roamed the county, whispering in ladies' ears and leaving love poems and bouquets of wildflowers at their door. Tales of J. Dawson's roamings grew taller and wider, until finally his bones were thrown down an outhouse in Leadville and he was never seen again. What a creepy story! :o

So, shall we go?


County Road 8, from Alma


There are few buildings left in this ghost town, some mines, stone ruins and rubble. There's lots more about the history of the camp here~ Legends of America!


Gold was found in the creek and collected in sluice boxes. Mined ore was crushed in burro-powered stone arrastras, water from the creek was washed through to separate rock from gold.


The cemetery is most of what remains of Buckskin Joe. Pale tombstones rise like mushrooms from the forest floor.




Columbines grow in the sunlit patchwork of an aspen grove. This place feels peaceful and warm. It's as inviting as a good new book, as thrilling as the creeeeak of an old iron gate.




A rough way to go! Marble stones tell many stories, some in languages of other homelands. Names and dates conjure up faces.






Some markers are more humble but have lasted just as long.




I cried when I saw these two tiny cradles. I sang a lullaby for them and felt another mother's love in the warm sunlight.


Who was this man? Did he read Tennyson? Did a grieving wife wish for his spirit to come back to her?


A shadow flits before me,
Not thou, but like to thee:
Ah, Christ! that it were possible
For one short hour to see
The souls we loved, that they might tell us
What and where they be!
~Tennyson


J. Dawson Hidgepath? :o


An existential reminder~
As ye are now, I once was
As I am now, ye soon shall be.


A feather was bound in this cross.






While history sleeps in overgrown beds, the all-seeing eyes of aspens watch the years go by.


Of course, it is all covered with snow by now. I wish I could have seen the white marble against autumn-yellow leaves! The songbirds of summer have gone, now crows and ravens darkly call from the trees, on branches white like bleached bones. How elegant the black iron fences must look in fresh snow! Timeless and quiet places like this make my imagination go wild! Their stories are whispered in the rushing of a creek or the rustle of leaves. Sometimes you have to listen carefully to hear them or look closely to find them, poke around and read up, but when you do, you'll want to learn even more. I've made a place on Flickr for pictures I've taken of abandoned places, ghost towns and cemeteries. I can't wait to find more and hope that they are interesting and inspiring to you, too!


(enter here!)

Wishing you happy hauntings and a happy Halloween~