Friday, November 18, 2016

Circumventing Wyoming: Mormon Row


Waiting for hiking weather to come to Grand Tetons National  Park, we went to explore Mormon Row situated near the Gros Ventre river.   



Click Here to read the history of the Mormon pioneers that clustered their homesteads in the Jackson valley starting in 1890.
The day we were there, the overcast sky only emphasized the hardship the families dealt with in the unforgiving land of Wyoming. 



 The buildings that are left have now becoming iconic images, captured by weathered photographers coming out at the crack of dawn to get the sun coming up over the Tetons behinds the iconic barns, stark homes and outbuidlngs.

                    



But walking past the windows of the pink house, my thoughts were on the women homesteaders. How  successful were they at getting some flowers to grow outside and did they have geraniums in the windows?




Monday, November 07, 2016

Circumventing Wyoming: Overcast Grand Tetons


Never during our trip to Grand Tetons National Park, did the sun illuminate all the peaks in all their glory. 
Monday, coming out of our hotel room in Jackson, the smoke from the Berry Fire, which straddled the border between Grand Tetons and Yellowstone parks and closed the road for two days, created an eerie haze over the Elk Refuge... 




Seeing the glorious peaks rise up from the valley floor is such an iconic view for a moment I was disappointed but then again this isn't an Amusement park. Other than Old Faithful in Yellowstone, which does somewhat hold to a set schedule... this is wilderness and that, ladies and gents is the reason why these natural wonders are so important. 


We love to camp at Jenny Lake in Grand Tetons, as does everyone else, so we got ourselves a coffee/tea and a bagel, and early in the morning, made our way into the park to see who was leaving...


luckily it was the end of the season, literally the last full week the Jenny Lake campground was open, so we had a few choices and course we had to circumvent the campground, a couple of times before compromising   ( aghhh...me getting my way). But look at the view we had sitting around the fire pit. Yes, the trail to the bathrooms were right on the other side of the tent, but contrary to Jon, I saw that as a plus. Close proximity to the outhouse, in grizzly bear country I see as a good trade off to foot traffic.
Too dreary to do any hiking, we then circumvented the Park, going north up the park road and then south down the Jackson Hole highway, we stopped at the Cunningham cabin.... 


J. Pierce Cunningham and his wife were one of the first homesteaders who tried to make a go at the base of the Grand Tetons. All I can say is burrrrrrrrrr.....


Getting back to camp we just enjoyed the view and realized that we had not camped, together and alone in about twenty five years. We have taken kiddos all over the Rocky Mountains and this was our third camping trip to Jenny Lake. We did do quite a bit of weekend jaunts just the two of us, but apparently a nice hotel in Santa Fe seemed more appealing to us when our kiddos were home.



The heated outhouse was rather nice and but covered in bear etiquette warnings in the stalls. Keep all smelly things including lotions, toothpastes in locked car  or bear box. Don't sleep in clothes you ate or cooked in.... that one was a little disturbing laying on the ground with just a thin nylon tent between you and a grizzly wanting a snack...


The next day we woke up to the snow  line quite a bit down towards the lake...





So decided to drive the River Road, that drops down just above the Snake River and there were rafters who apparently had already paid for float trips and couldn't get their money back or families pulled along by Dad's that, well. were set for an adventure...burrrrrrr again

We also passed the remains of the Bar BC Dude Ranch   established by Maxwell Struthers Burt, a writer and novelist that was instrumental in the creation of Grant Tetons National Park turn of the century.



Meandering towards Kelly, Wyoming. yes for a photo opt, we came across a cluster of cars, and people with really really big camera, the best indication that some wildlife is near by...



Sure enough, a mamma moose and baby bedded down. Then the sun started to come out....



and the tourist&^%$$%$#$#$#
The tourist that come in crowds and block traffic at any overlook or view that does not involve more than fifty steps from their big shinny buses... 


We did finally get away from "the people" and of course we had to bushwhack it down to the lake...





The clouds and sun gave us a awe inspiring view of the Cathedral group above Jenny Lake


Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Now my Art reaches a little further, from the comfort of a couch...

So in the middle of the biggest harvest of well everything on our old homestead...

 apples, apricots, beef and even an elk from the mesa above us....

                
a week long camping trip in Wyoming...



and just getting back from here, the other way in Arizona (both of which I will be hopefully posting about soon).



                                   
 I reached a little further with my art, finally making an online "stand" in the world wide market place of  ETSY


(that is actually the Taos New Mexico market, which if you can, go see in person)

If you are not in the "Etsy" know, it is an online marketplace for art, hand made goods, art and craft supplies, vintage goods and it is really really cool, like hipster cool. Started in 2005, read about their history HERE

I have actually had a "store front" with ETSY since 2011, but having been focused on illustration and publishing I am just now getting around to stocking it with my artwork.




And there is a lot to build behind the scenes....learning how to take amazing product photos, developing your branding, store polices, estimating shipping, educating myself about selling to Europe and other places around the world, packaging, and the worst......pricing

                                                               ( I didn't make that)

Yeah, so I priced things one way, the cheap way, and realized I was literally making less then minimum wages. In fact in a few instances about $3.50 an hour. Second try...I repriced everything, off the formula of how many days does it take me to make it. Last time I checked substitute teachers made about $75 a day, surely my art skills are worth that, so this on ETSY. is $85 ( including cost of frame)



 takes me at least two days so priced it at $175

These are my " not to be sick to my stomach" if something sells price, I guess we shall see what the market, my market can bear.


I don't want to even think about how long "Stopped for Coffee" took me to make, so not thinking about pricing my larger fabric collages yet...

On a more fun note (apparently being wordy or grammatically correct today is too much to ask) I have some out of the box, or frame ideas for my smaller fabric collages. This summer, went back to the east slope of Colorado to visit my mom and we did some antique shopping. Between Alt, Colorado and Loveland I scored a few 1950 coffee cans, wooden Velveta boxes- which I have not been able to find how old....


and about thirty something vintage cookies cutters-the ones with backs, which I have been tracing and creating the creature or character to put inside as an  fabric collage ornament...






 And since it is only sixty some day until Christmas, I have been making these...

 But will not subject you to Christmas inventory until the Friday after Thanksgiving. To reward those smart enough to Not leave a cozy house to go join crazed shoppers at big blue electronics stores.
Seriously, just go to Etsy and buy from any of the other Artist who you will find there.
ETSY  CHRISTMAS

P.S. You will need to register on ETSY.COM
once you do, you can shop, set up more interactions, etc. It really is a feast for the eyes shopping, in the comfort of your own home, on the couch, with dogs at your feet, fire crackling, in your yoga pants...you purchase through ETSY, so no one has your credit card info, email info, etc, and most artist send their wares in the neatest packaging. Last Christmas, Daughter #2 did almost all her shopping from Etsy.