Outdoor Adventures

With the nicer weather and longer days, I am getting excited to go on our annual summer trips with my family. We enjoy spending a lot of time outside doing many different activities, especially on islands and in the mountains. The scenery and fresh air is food for the soul and the wildlife that we encounter is always an exciting surprise. One of my favorite things to do is to go on a glamping road trip with my husband and dogs in our camp trailer. We both enjoy exploring the backroads and little towns along the way. It is always an adventure to stay at unique campsites, meet new people and try the delicious food at local diners.

I thought this t-shirt, that I bought on one of our trips, was a good reminder to always be curious to keep exploring and learning new things. I hope everyone gets a chance to get outside and experience the wonders of nature. This series of pine needle baskets was inspired by getting out in the great outdoors.

"Wandering"

I made my "Wandering" pine needle basket with dyed brown Longleaf pine needles, brown artificial sinew, a cute camp trailer pottery connector bead and a colorful trees and sunset pottery base. This basket is 4-3/4"long x 4-1/2" wide x 2" tall.

"Mountain Air"

I made my "Mountain Air" pine needle basket using dyed dark brown Longleaf pine needles, sweetgrass, dark green artificial sinew, heart shaped "drink the wild air" pottery pendant and a beautiful blue mountain picture jasper stone set in resin base. This basket is 6" long x 5-1/4" wide x 2-3/4" tall.

"Paddler's Paradise"

I made my "Paddler's Paradise" pine needle basket using dyed green and brown Longleaf pine needles, dark brown artificial sinew, laser cut and etched canoe and paddle wooden beads and a zebra wood base. This basket is 5-1/4" long x 4-1/2" wide x 2-1/2" tall.

ENJOY!

Forest Foraging

On a recent trip to Montana, I was on the lookout for Ponderosa pine needles and pine cones to bring home with me. Ponderosa pine trees are one of my favorite trees. When we arrived at the camp that we were staying at, I immediately started searching on the trails for fallen pine needles. I was so excited and started to gather pine needles, until my husband came around the corner and told me to stop and follow him. He had come across a huge burn pile where there were lots of freshly cut and dried Ponderosa pine branches. We hit the jackpot! I was thrilled, because that made collecting pine needles so much easier. Thankfully, no more having to forage in the forest! 

For the first twenty years of making pine needle baskets I only used Ponderosa pine needles and raffia. Most of the pine needles were collected by myself, family and friends. I was inspired recently by a couple of friends who wanted to finish their pine needle baskets using raffia. I am excited to eventually show them how to finish their baskets, but in the meantime I started to make a basket using raffia to make sure I could remember how to use this natural fiber from Madagascar. It felt good to be stitching with raffia again. I had forgotten how lovely the texture was and how beautiful the raffia looked. It felt like coming home again to an old friend!

ENJOY!

Sea Ice

I have been fortunate to visit Antarctica and the high Arctic regions where I experienced sea ice in person. I found myself completely mesmerized by icy landscapes that surrounded me. The incredible sights and sounds of cruising through the brash ice in an inflatable boat is something I will never forget. I was exhilarated by the challenge of kayaking through and around ice cakes that were continually shifting with the wind and tides. Ice floes are amazing, seemingly alive, and almost surreal in their size, color and different shapes. Icebergs are gigantic sculptures, each with its own unique character and the most beautiful array of blue and white colors. Best of all, the natural beauty of the places where sea ice exists helps sustain a vast variety of sea life and wildlife. So many creatures rely on the sea ice to survive in their natural habitat, and this in turn serves a much broader ecosystem. I am so glad I got to experience these wild places before they began to change so dramatically, and I do hope we can find better and more effective ways to protect these remarkable features of our planet.

The things that I saw and experienced on these trips have continued to influence my basket making. Occasionally, new ideas just pop up like an emerging chunk of sea ice. This basket is an example of that. I started this basket with one concept but ended up taking a different path -- with this basket representing sea ice.  

I made my "Sea Ice" pine needle basket using a variety of dyed blue and green Longleaf pine needles, dark blue artificial sinew, handmade mottled blue recycled glass beads from Ghana, blue matte crackled agate beads, blue kyanite sliced stick point beads and a blue crystallized Brazilian agate set in resin center base.

This basket is approximately 8" x 7-1/2" x 3-3/4".

ENJOY!

Beauty From Beneath

The first job that my son had when he graduated from college was with a small travel adventure expedition company. One of the places that he got to go to was the White Sea. I remember when he told me where he was going, I had to ask him where the White Sea was! He told me it was where the beluga whales live! I learned a lot of geography and interesting things while I followed along virtually on his adventurous travels around the world. He was always so thoughtful and would give me a book filled with photos and information about what he saw on his trips when he returned. The photos and stories about the beluga whales has always stuck with me. The idea for this basket has been swimming around in my head for awhile and I am glad that I finally found the time to make it.

I had fun making this basket while thinking about the beluga whales and what amazing creatures they are. I am hoping to be able to see them myself in person someday. However, the stories that my son has told me about seeing beluga whales in their natural habitat and touching them will have to do for now.

I made my "Beauty From Beneath" basket using several shades of dyed blue Longleaf pine needles, blue and white artificial sinew, ceramic Peruvian beluga whale beads and a Brazilian blue crystallized agate set in resin base. I placed the beluga whale beads around the entire basket so they look like they are happily swimming and frolicking in the sea. I combined white and blue artificial sinew in a pattern on the top rows to look like whitecaps.

This basket measures 7-1/4" tall by 11" round.

ENJOY!

Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park

On a recent road trip, we FINALLY went to Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park! We have passed the sign for over 40 years and have never taken the time to stop. It was a beautiful park overlooking the Columbia River. The history of the area and the displays in the interpretive center were really interesting and we learned a lot. The variety of petrified wood was amazing and and so gorgeous. We are definitely going to take the time to exit the highway more on our road trips, because there are so many more amazing places to discover. I have been using petrified wood in some of my baskets for a handful of years now and came away very inspired. Enjoy!

Glamping

We just got back from our annual camping road trip, which I like to refer to as our glamping trailer trip. We spent many years camping in tents, but now our backs can't take it, so we invested in a camping trailer about 10 years ago. This allows us to take great trips and enjoy the beautiful outdoors with all the comforts of home. Our dog, Jules, loves the adventure of these trips, too.

We have discovered some great places to stay that are near or in national parks and several places in beautiful wilderness areas. Some of our favorite glamping sites include Bend/Sisters Garden RV Park near Sisters, Oregon, Umpqua Lighthouse State Park in Winchester, Oregon, Patricks Point State Park in Trinidad, California, West Glacier KOA in Glacier, Montana, Ellensburg KOA on the Yakima river in Ellensburg, Washington, The Nugget RV Park in St. Regis, Montana, Mazama Campground in Crater Lake National Park and Blue Lake RV Resort in Naples, Idaho. All of these places are located in amazing outdoor recreational and wilderness areas. We always come home relaxed and grateful that we have had the opportunity to spend time in the great outdoors.  It always refreshes our souls and inspires my basket making, too. ENJOY!

I made my "Glamping" pine needle basket using dyed green Longleaf pine needles, sweetgrass, dark green artificial sinew, a camping trailer pottery connector bead and a green trees pottery base.

 This basket measures 6" round by 2-1/2" tall.