Recently, I was asked to speak at my Alma Mater – SIUC (it was the first time back in over 17 years). It was fun to see the old stomping grounds… and an honor to sit with three other alum far more esteemed than I. The panel discussion was in honor of the great Bucky Fuller, also an SIUC alum- we offered our stories & counsel to current staff & students. SIUC LIBRARY THEN & NOW (which houses the auditorium we spoke at): SIUC PRESS RELEASE: Alumni of the School of Art and Design reunited at their alma mater Friday…
Read more →
it takes an army to build a treehouse like this one.a small one, precise, extremely talented, hard-working,the insanely generous sort of army. we’re talking about: shaun owens-case (stoneblitzer.com)tyler peterson (stoneblitzer.com)steven teichelman (threefold / steventeichelman.com)angela finney-hoffman (post27store.com)bladon connor (bladonconner.com)(and a slew of others who worked tirelessly to turn a dead tree into an beautiful house for everyone to enjoy) and it takes a visionary.(our friend angela of post27 wanted to the key project for her ARTCAMP ideato be a treehouse…) I was thinking the ‘american girl’ sort. maybe a platform. a rope bucket?she- and her friends- had other plans in mind……
Read more →
their love story strikes me as the real-life version of the movie UP. the 100+ year old victorian house was little more than a shell when she first saw it and told him she was in love and had to have it. so he saved it from the wrecking ball.for $1500.…loaded it onto a trailer & moved it to a little hilltop perch that he built special for it,nestled in some trees in a quiet little grove of 100 acres in southern illinois. they started resurrecting it together, with painstaking detail.the gingerbread, period fireplace mantel tiles, refinishing each wooden spindle…
Read more →
yes. i cant help it.this posting is all about gratuitous shots of charliegirl.starting from the bottom up: month one: in the woodpilemonth two: on the sheep hide.month three: all up in her face.month four: in her new nursery.month five: yesterday in the clover. 🙂
Read more →
he said the news wasn’t good. ‘its like cancer– you don’t know how bad its gonna be until you cut into it.’ the rust, that is. this is brandon, breaking the news. my friend at performance auto on grand avenue. he operated on one of our other wagoneers a few years ago. in woody’s case, it had metastasized. rocker panels. quarters. fenders. doglegs (the piece between the rocker & quarter, shaped like its name). lets just say that shes getting more cosmetic surgery than micky rourke. as it turns out, one of the hardest colors to…
Read more →
can you tell im running out of blog fodder? 🙂 from top:we trashed the crate troller thing the croquet set came in. so now we cart it around in this woven apple cart (i heart the wooden wheels!) i found this church pew bible holder at a flea market & forced it against its will to house the postcards i have been obsessively collecting. my girlfriend gave us this chicken feeder. god knows where she unearthed it. but we looove it,so a very long powerwashing later, its a new nest for coffeecups. (thanks, jill!) twine ($3 spool at dollar store)…
Read more →
ah. kids camp. now that we have one its much more fun! this years will be more fun that ever, now that we’re ‘seasoned pros’Â (thanks to everyone’s help– especially becky) stay tuned for the plans- and thanks for the pictures all!
Read more →
laid back. fun. adventurous. meet heather & chris. they were married at Wanda last year. Here are some of their engagment + wedding shots. and their company: VAVOOM PINUPS!
Read more →
— when the day’s work is over, the farmer’s wife provides a grand meal for these friends,-Such an occasion is described by the Latvians as a “Talka. … Sometimes five or six farms will be visited before the party returns home.” This coming April 30th we will be hosting our annual TALKA, with 30+ friends coming to help us paint, plant, repair, and open up our dear Camp Wandawega for another season. Here are some highlights of the chain gang (we mean ‘work party’) from years past.(thanks erik law for always having his camera handy!)
Read more →