Issue Five the harvest ISSUE
“The heat, still with us, has recently become more gentle on our backs as we make our way through the tall grass, into our garden. Our skin is much darker now, and the breeze holds a chill that we haven’t known in nearly a year. There’s a kettle sounding on the stove and baking spices in the air. Soon we will push to the back of our closets for a thicker coat. The trees begin their dance with color, warming our eyes with shades of fire and gala apples. Until then, we gather our last harvest of the year, and ready ourselves for more days indoors.”
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CREATED BY ELEANOR MASON & HEATH VESTER
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CONTENTS ISSUE FIVE: THE HARVEST ISSUE
IN YOUR STATE
IN YOUR TOWN
IN YOUR HOME
6-7 Bonfires in October Mallory Dawson
40-43 A Search for What Inspires Heath Vester
62-63 The Spice of Life Audrey Birkhimer
10-15 Greasy Hands Barbershop Christian Hilley
44-47 Featured Artist: Billy Jordan Christian Mott
64-65 Moon Calendars Don Green
16-21 Coffee Culture: Turbo Coffee Christian Hilley
48-49 The Richness of Grace in the Violence of Grief Shannon Pinkston
66-69 An Autumn Kitchen Autumn Wood
22-23 Secondhand Sweater Audrey Birkhimer 24-27 Loyal Stricklin Riggs Taylor & Jennifer Rexrode 28-31 Autumn Style Eleanor Mason 32-33 Tuesday Morning at 7:26 am Mallory Dawson 34-37 Last Swim of the Year Christian Hilley & Eleanor Mason
50-55 The Farmer Heath Vester 56-57 Keller Works Trey Taulbee 58-59 Warm Shadows Eleanor Mason
70-71 Homemade Carrot Cake Audrey Birkhimer 72-73 Friendsgiving Mallory Dawson 74-77 The Art of Whittling Eleanor Mason 78-79 Clean Eating for Two Mallory Dawson 80-81 Death Goes to a Halloween Party Christian Mott 82-83 Raisin Cider Ham Sauce Eleanor Mason
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OUR
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FA M I L Y
ELEANOR MASON
HEATH VESTER
Co-Founder, Senior Editor
Co-Founder, Senior Designer
Satsuma, AL
Saraland, AL
MALLORY DAWSON
april loyle
Story Telling
Photography
Fairhope, AL
Mobile, AL
AUDREY BIRKHIMER
Michelle Taulbee
Story Telling
Photography
Saraland, AL
Fairhope, AL
Shannon Pinkston
nathalya Richardson
Story Telling
Modeling
Saraland, AL
Mobile, AL
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CHRISTIAN HILLEY
CHRISTIAN MOTT
Director of Photography
Co-Editor
Montgomery, AL
Mobile, AL
AUTUMN WOOD
TREVOR BENNETT
Styling
Photography
Gulf Shores, AL
Mobile, AL
RIGGS TAYLOR
JENNIFER REXRODE
Story Telling
Photography
Mobile, AL
Mobile, AL
Trey taulbee
don green
Story Telling / Photography
Story Telling
Fairhope, AL
Saraland, AL
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IN YOUR STATE
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Bonfires in October Mallory dawson
Everyone here knows, Content in amber light and shadows, We are the smell of smoke and ciderDiscovering the world.
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Greasy Hands Barbershop Christian Hilley
Austin Shirey opened Greasy Hands Barbershop in October 2014, and has been booked solid ever since. Walking into Greasy Hands feels a bit like stepping into Floyd’s iconic barbershop in the fictional city of Mayberry. It’s the reincarnation of a bygone era. Austin masterfully brings an experience to the table that many people our age would have otherwise outlived. The barbershop experience is one that has all but died out today. Cheap, average-looking, and quick walk-in cuts have attempted to replace the classic barber, all but robbing a generation of men of the opportunity to intentionally and thoughtfully make an appointment with their barber and getting a good, old-fashioned shave and a haircut in order to look handsome before going to meet a woman. As we have seen with the resurgence of film photography in the digital age, the skill that goes into the craft captivates generation nostalgic for an era they were born too late to experience.
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Have you always wanted to be a barber? How did this dream develop? Well, I was working at Esquire magazine doing ad sales, but sales in NYC is brutal. I did that for two years, and started looking for other options that fit more with what I already enjoy doing… I really enjoyed the grooming sections of Esquire, and found myself always looking forward to those sections in the issues… I was getting my hair cut at a barber shop there pretty regularly called Blind Barber, and started asking barbers questions about where they went to school, what it cost, how long it took, and things like that. Once I got everything figured out, it was kind of a no-brainer. It was pretty cheap, pretty quick, and the school was right down the street from my apartment. I had some money saved up to live on and could work a part-time front desk job at a barbershop while I was in school. So I quit my job at Esquire and enrolled in barber school, and the rest is history. When was that? I moved to New York in late 2010, and enrolled in barber school in January 2013. Before that I went to Alabama for 5 years, from ’04 to ’09. Has the Florence/Muscle Shoals area changed a lot since you grew up here? Oh, yeah. When I got back from NY, I almost didn’t recognize it. 15 years ago there was
nothing downtown, just old department stores and that’s about it. There was like one good restaurant around. When I came back, new restaurants and businesses moved in and brought some more fun jobs for young people. There are creative things going on that you can join in on, and 20-somethings and 30-somethings can actually make good money here! Do you think if you tried to do this, say... 5 years ago here, would it have worked? No, I don’t. The culture has grown a lot, plus the structure of barber shops in the past has developed. It used to be all walk-ins and pretty cheap haircuts. Over the last several years while I’ve been away, the barbers here have started moving to appointments, and a few have crept up on prices. So I was able to come in and open my shop at $20 a haircut, and appointments only. I think those two shifts would have been too much 5 years ago. Did you always want to settle in the Florence/ Shoals area? Is that why you moved back? Not necessarily. When I moved to NYC I moved to be there indefinitely; not saying I’d live there forever, but not really thinking of moving home. I definitely loved New York,
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but it was so stressful and fast-paced, and after about 3 years I started realizing you can do a lot of the same things here {Alabama}, if you try hard enough. When I finished barber school I started doing part-time shifts at Blind Barber and Persons of Interest. At that point I had to decide whether to stay and work to build a clientele there, or just cut ties and move back to Florence to open a shop. At that point I knew I was planning to move back eventually… So, I just figured, “Why not start investing now to build a clientele down here?” And for me, it was either New York or here. I mean, why start over in another big city, where I would still miss my family? So I chose here. Do you regret moving back at all? No; I think when you decide what you want to do and pursue it, you can still hold on to pieces of other things you enjoy. Like, I still go back to NY twice a year for fashion week and do Mens’ hair up there… So it’s really the best of both worlds. Have you had difficulty in starting a business, or did it come easily when you moved in; was it super well received? Well, I kinda did it in what you could call a “safe” way. I moved home and started for Bob & Bill’s barbershop in Sheffield, and I
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started building clientele that way. When it got busy enough to where I was making pretty good money, I found this space and signed a lease. During the transition my clientele just kept growing at Bob & Bill’s, and by the time I had moved in it was no trouble. I was booked a week ahead when I started, and I’ve been 3 weeks ahead since then until now. So it’s been super well received. What products do you recommend to clients who come in? Are there any you’d like to recommend to Ant Farm readers? In my barbershop I sell Imperial pomades. They have a complete line of anything from a soft pomade to a hard gel, and I wanted to open with one complete line rather than a bunch of different products. People get confused when they haven’t used pomades before, so instead of having so many options that people walk out with a product different from what they need, it’s an easier to say, “Well, here’s the line I always sell and always use. What do you need?” I also recommend Ursa Major for skin care. We carried that at POI in New York; I’ve been using their face wash and face balm for over two years exclusively on myself. 100% believer in that product. Obviously I also love the Blind Barber stuff, and the Great Bear stuff. He’s building an incredible list of products that we all believe in.
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When I asked Reese if he and Austin planned to work together, his response was excited: “My brother and I have pretty much always wanted to work with or around each other, so this partneRship thing works out really great for us!�
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COFFEE CULTURE
Turbo coffee christian hilley
Turbo Coffee offers something distinct in the world of coffee for more reasons than one. You’ll find Turbo Coffee through a doorway in the back of Greasy Hands Barbershop, its small space not cluttered by anything other than bare essentials. Turbo is about one thing: great coffee. And Reese knows great coffee. When Reese moved to Opelika to be closer to his fiancée, he got a job at Overall Company and fell head over heels for the barista life. He knew he wanted to open his own shop one day, but didn’t know where or when. When brother Austin moved back to their hometown of Muscle Shoals to open a barbershop, wheels began turning for Reese. Once Greasy Hands Barbershop opened, Reese decided to rent the back portion of the shop from his brother to open Turbo Coffee. When I asked Reese if he and Austin planned to work together, his response was excited: “My brother and I have pretty much always wanted to work with or around each other, so this partnership thing works out really great for us!” After sampling several top – notch coffee suppliers, Reese chose Parlor Coffee from New York City as his house rotation, a newcomer to the coffee scene in NYC, who has very quickly come to compete with staples like Stumptown. Reese relies on a single-group La Marzocco machine
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and a Hario V60. No flavored syrups, and no frills; he lets the coffee speak for itself. For espresso drinks, he offers 8 ounce lattes and cappuccinos, 5 ounce flat whites (always poured beautifully, as Reese is known around town for his grade-A tulips), and espresso with or without milk. V60 offerings include standard pour over coffee and Japanese – style iced coffee. These bare-bones offerings seem boldly confident for a newcomer to the Alabama coffee scene. He does, however, have a couple of tricks up his sleeve. Prior to Turbo, Reese was known for his homemade ice cream company, Shirey Ice Cream. His Turbo menu will include Affogatos, featuring Parlor espresso over his homemade coconut ice cream. He also offers a unique iced coffee cocktail he calls the Spark Plug. His take on the classic Moscow Mule includes espresso, seltzer water, ginger, and lime, and is served in a mason jar. This refreshing and balanced drink will surely be a favorite among Turbo Coffee customers. Reese also plans to have a collapsible, mobile coffee bar, enabling Turbo to pack up shop and set up virtually anywhere. His plans for Turbo Coffee are to continue to grow the Alabama coffee culture, and he seems to already be doing a fantastic job.
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SecondHand Sweater Audrey birkhimer
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Every autumn, I pause and I ponder, “How did I get lucky to run off and wander?” You don’t often remember packing toothbrush and clothes, But not everyone’s as lucky as me, I suppose. A young man picked me up at the store. I was afraid I’d be forgotten, afraid I’d be torn. We ventured to outings and work occasionally, Much to my surprise, the man took good care of me. One day, I was put in a dark box, Destined for the attic, or at least up and locked. Jostled and tossed, it seemed like forever Until out I came, but in foreign weather. The scent of sausage and sound of unknown tongue Had me wondering did the man move away or run? But the food and the laughter made this long trip better, For who can explore without their favorite sweater? The time came for us to go home, I was no longer afraid I’d be left alone. In fact, as the man’s life gradually slowed down, I noticed he brought a lady back to his town. Then there was an addition, and another one, and another, As I heard the man and lady called “Father” and “Mother.” Diapers and sippy cups, playtime and naptime, Eventually I started to get left behind. Soon I felt the dust on my shoulder. I was put in a place that left me much colder. I vowed to never forget the adventures I made, But slowly and surely memories began to fade. Until one day, daylight came again. Except this time, there was a girl with the man. Like an old picture, I thought I knew her, From where exactly I could not be sure. Though the man was smaller and his hairs much, much fewer, His eyes hadn’t become any less bluer. The daughter listened as the man began to impart Stories from long ago that I knew by heart. Her eyes widened as she heard us ski alpine mounts; Her heart swelled knowing her dad’s pancake eating-record was too high to count. And of course there in her stomach grew the butterfly knot As her father said, “Your mother is the first woman I loved more than a lot.” It may be different now, but we explore, she and I. I’m one of the luckiest, you can’t deny. I know that, because not every sweater Gets a second chance at love and adventure.
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Loyal Stricklin RIGGS TAYLOR & Jennifer Rexrode
It’s a humid Southern day in Opelika, Alabama’s historic district, where creative individuals thrive and the music lives. I walk down the railroad tracks to a strip of old brick buildings, one of which serves as the Loyal Stricklin shop and headquarters. Sara, the fiancé of owner Michael Stricklin, is hard at work on some wallets, but immediately welcomes me with hospitality as warm as the day is hot. I have to walk around the shop for a short while, just to soak it all in. The shop is an open-door outfit- literally. No air conditioning here, just the occasional breeze and some fans set up around the workers, which today only consists of Seth Brown (Michael’s first employee), and Sara. Since I arrived a little early, I decided now would be the time to buy myself the wallet I’ve been wanting. Sara shows me all of the stock, and I decide on a rich, supple wallet made of Horween leather- my favorite. After transferring all of my cards and cash, I head back into Michael’s personal work area to chat with him about the company.
So, I read that you’re a pretty educated guy. What degrees did you acquire while in school?
So you started making leather while being a full-time student, how did you balance that? I went to school during the day, came home and worked until 10 or 11 o’clock that night. If I had time, I did it before classes, too. (laughs)
When was it that you officially decided to go into leather working full-time? By the time I graduated, I was making enough money that I could go straight into it, so I hired a couple of people and took the risk. I haven’t looked back since.
Was keeping Loyal Stricklin in the Downtown Opelika area important to you?
Yeah, it’s where the creative community was and is, and I love Auburn and Opelika. It’s affordable, and the shop has the look I wanted and the space I needed. I do a lot of community events, I believe in this town and I believe in staying I have a Bachelors of Architecture and a Masters’ of Integrat- here. ed Design and Construction, both from Auburn University. Is there anything in particular Nice. When did you first start that inspires you to create and making leather goods? innovate? Is it what you find lacking in other goods you bought off It was my senior year of college. I was in architecture the shelf? school, and I wanted a new outlet. Leather was easy to transition into from the skills I learned in school, and I like to make things (laughs). A lot of times, it is something I spent the $500 I had in the bank on leather and tools that I have a use for or that a friend of mine has a use for. to get started. There are other things that you just want to make, but I use need as an indicator of what should be made next.
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jennyleighphotography.net
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I draw inspiration from looking at other designs and figure out what I want to do similar, what I don’t like, and how I am going to make it stand out. A lot of what we do has already been done, and a lot of people do it for cheaper, but people buy from me because they like the materials I use better, or they like the aesthetic the products offer. We make it a point to use the best materials we can get our hands on, and design as beautifully and simply as we can.
So is quality a top priority at Loyal Stricklin? Absolutely. We like to use full-grain leathers, as opposed to really thin top-grain leathers a lot of companies use. They back it with cloth and other materials to give it more rigidity, but we aren’t really into that. Honestly, it takes more work to do it the way a lot of the cheaper, massproduced companies do it. We love it because we use it ourselves, and it’s what we like. There is this whole community that only purchases stuff with tough waxed canvas, or Horween leather, etc. The materials are super important, even down to the hardware we use. We only use solid brass, because it wears better as it ages and that is the point of what we do. We fully back our products as well. If stitching comes undone, or a rivet pops off, or the hardware breaks, just ship it back and we’ll fix it on our dime.
Now that the team is more than just you, what has your role at the shop evolved into? I usually am emailing, keeping up with financial records, handle the customer service, keep the website updated, and handle all the social media, primarily Instagram, but I’ll soon be doing blog posts as well. I make notes, to-do lists, and draw up designs and sketches for future products. I handle all of our purchasing, and talk to all of our suppliers. That’s usually all done in the morning. In the afternoon, I try to make stuff and find ways to make the products, brand, and experience better.
With a Bachelors’ and Masters’ degree from Auburn University, did you ever have friends or family pressure you to get a job in your field of study? For sure (laughs). When I first started, I was a little
bit delusional with where I thought this all was going to go.I thought it was going to get a lot bigger a lot quicker, and there was this miscommunication that made them think I was going to throw away school. There was a summer in between senior year and graduate school where I worked 8 hours a day just on the business, which showed me that it was what I wanted to do, and I could do it. Once I had proven myself after couple of years of doing this with success, they were totally supportive. They help me at any events I need help with, my mom went to a trade show with Sara and I and helped me at the booth. They saw that I didn’t give up, and took that as proof that I could do it.
It seems that the maker movement is doing really well. Do you think this is because people are tired with what we are getting from overseas? Absolutely. 50 years ago, 95% of clothes and daily goods were made in America, and now it’s all made overseas. I read some statistic that said it’s now down to 5%. I think the maker movement is important and thriving because people now don’t have to settle for foreign goods or working for someone else. It takes a little talent, some skill, and a lot of hard work. I want other people to see they can do it too.
How important is the shop dog, Mason, to the work environment? She’s as much a part of the team as anyone else! She barks when people come in to the shop, which helps since we have an open door. It’s nice to be able to play with her throughout the day, so yeah, she is absolutely critical to the shop.
Through all of your experience with Loyal Stricklin, have you found that hard work and a good beard are the keys to success? A good beard…(laughs) sure, although, a beard gets pretty hot in here, since this is an actual sweatshop. Hard work is definitely part of it, especially when times get hard. This past year, I got a huge shipment of leather in the same day that taxes were due that I had to pay for, and that was rough. We were able to make it work, and we are going to keep making it work. It takes a little talent, little skill, and a lot of hard work to make it happen.
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Autumn Style Christian Hilley & Eleanor Mason
by Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) III. NATURE. XXVIII. AUTUMN. The morns are meeker than they were, The nuts are getting brown; The berry’s cheek is plumper, The rose is out of town. The maple wears a gayer scarf, The field a scarlet gown. Lest I should be old-fashioned, I’ll put a trinket on.
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Tuesday Morning at 7:26 AM MALLORY DAWSON
Autumn blinds with reds and grey skies Swirling the seasons’ round again And you stand by the window like the still point in the turning world.
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last swim of the year Christian Hilley & Eleanor Mason
Although summer has ended, the water has not taken notice—still just as warm now as it was in late July. Only the evening breeze seems different now, carrying inside it a briskness that can only be felt after one has already jumped in and resurfaced. We celebrate in fall, as though it was only the end of summer. We take opportunities that will end shortly, as the winter comes next. Before the banishment to a world indoors, to counting our breaths in the air, and to warming ourselves only with fire and each other, we live in our current moment, enjoying the last swim of the year.
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IN YOUR TOWN
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A search for what inspires: Matt & Kristen scott heath vester
Inspiration has always come in many forms. Some people are inspired by the company they keep, those who push them to create more and be better at their craft. Some are inspired by the landscape that surrounds them, whether it be rural, coastal, urban, or mountainous—yet while our surroundings may push us to appreciate our home, it can also encourage us to get out and see the world outside our front door. To begin a search for what inspires them, I sat down with Matt and Kristen Scott, friends and fellow artists. Matt from Birmingham and Kristen from West Palm Beach, Florida met and fell in love here in the Port City. They spent their first years of marriage in a little cottage in the heart of Midtown, where they encouraged each other to follow their dreams. Together they built a life full of creativity and art, and drew inspiration from the local culture and each other. They bounced their ideas and dreams off one another, motivating each other to take the next steps in their artistic careers. One of those steps was leaving the South and moving to Boston to further their education, to experience a different culture, and to become more secure in their crafts. They took their talents to the world around them and pushed past the insecurity so many of us struggle with as artists. While living in Boston, Kristen developed her skills in photography, capturing inspiration from the city and its people. Matt worked on furthering his love for music, evoking inspiration from his past and resurrecting the sounds he had collected over the years. From this their brand, The 2654 Project, was born, hearkening back to the house number on the bright red door of the Midtown cottage where they began their lives together.
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They soon left Boston, longing for the Southern climate they remembered and a chance to be closer to family. They settled in the coastal town of Bluffton, South Carolina where they were once again greeted with the warmth and friendship our regionis known for. They have since begun building a house and putting down some more-permanent roots. With Kristen’s photography career flourishing and giving her the opportunity to be more creative in sharing the stories of peoples’ lives from around the world—recently returning from documenting a people group in Mexico with no written language— and with Matt beginning to sharpen his native skills of carpentry and selling his work to clients all over the South, they have really made an impact on their community, something they have aimed to do everywhere they go. They look forward to continuing creating and doing the things they love, and want to encourage others to do the same. As our conversation came to a close, they encouraged me to continue striving, to keep creating, and to make my community a better place to live. They encouraged me to remember the reason why I’m doing what I’m doing, and to remain faithful to that. That advice is what I wanted to share. Take time to reflect on what you are doing, and remember why you are doing it; take time to find solitude in and with the things that inspire you, and most importantly, strive to make your community a better place that inspires others to do what they love. I’ve found that we are most influenced and inspired by the relationships we have with others. Having people who encourage and push us to better our selves, and having a place we call home is what we all long for, and what we all need.
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“continue striving, keep creating, and make [your] community a better place to live.�
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Featured Artist: Billy Jordan Christian Mott
Billy Jordan is a visual artist from Mobile who has pursued a lifestyle and made a name for himself in a generally unexplored, yet anciently ubiquitous medium: tattoo. He began working for Tom at Tattoo Zone, the oldest licensed professional shop in Mobile County, and also worked at Royal Street in downtown Mobile when it first opened. Throughout his 13-or-so years of putting beautiful permanent art on skin, he’s worked in a variety of places both in and out of the South, including shops in Pensacola, Las Vegas, Wisconsin, and New York City.
position from when you didn’t know anything about tattooing, for when people come in—you have to understand that these people don’t know what’s going on. I did read this thing that Tim Hendricks wrote that said, “You don’t find tattooing, tattooing finds you.” That’s, oh, that’s stuck, because that’s the way I felt. I was just floating around . . . and all of a sudden I felt like tattooing was pulling me towards it. It all just worked out. What inspires you?
Billy currently tattoos at The Bell Rose in Fairhope. He also goes by the alias Red Tide.
Art in general, honestly. That ability to be creative, and get that out . . . I’m able to put it in such a medium that it’s something sacred. It’s so personal How did you get your start in to someone. I think it’s awesome. I like to paint and tattooing? draw and do other mediums, but to be able to tattoo someone is so completely different you can’t wrap I always wanted to do something with art, I just your head around something like that until you’re didn’t know what. Every job I ever had, I thought, actually in it, and you’ve experienced it. “This is not real—most people who work here are I’m inspired by everything that I see. Literally evmiserable.” But they just think that’s the way it’s erything I see, I see it completely different from the supposed to go, you know? One day, a friend of way the next person sees it. Most people, it’s just a mine who used to get tattoos, he said, “You should chair. It’s just a piece of art. It’s just this, or it’s just come to the tattoo shop with me . . . I think you’d be that. I’m looking at it like, whoa, that’s really cool . . . good at tattooing, since you draw all the time.” And Anything handmade is inspiring. Everything breaks I didn’t have any tattoos at the time. It never crossed down into some sort of art form, whether it’s furnimy mind. The only image of tattoo that stands out in ture-making, or sculpting, or music—everything is my mind, from my childhood and my whole life, is an art. Someone had to come up with that idea. my uncle had some Navy tattoos on his forearms— like, a hula girl from the 40s, from the war. They What sets you apart from were cool to me, but it never ever once sparked that other tattoo artists? I wanted a tattoo. So I went to the shop with him one day, took some artwork in there. I met the guy I feel like I’m pretty well-rounded when it comes who owned the place, Tom, and he looked through to tattooing . . . For the most part, if I need to draw some stuff. And I was like, “Are you guys . . . hiring?” something a specific way, I can do it. Just from being Like, I didn’t know! You know? Looking back on it, versatile when I was growing up and drawing differyou always had to put yourself in that ent things from cars to animals. I wasn’t just
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drawing dragons or just angels or just certain things. I think that’s one of the good things. Some people can only do very straight-forward traditional tatoos, and they do them well. But some tattooers don’t have any kind of artistic background. Someone wants them to draw a dagger, they’ll draw the most simple, straight-forward, traditional dagger that they’ve seen time and time again, but I can draw you five different ones.
and I just want you to kind of do your thing.”—that’s the best client to have. When they put it in your hands, and they’re open to your interpretation . . . That’s when I get really inspired, when I’m able to have such freedom with the design . . . I’m gonna work as hard as possible to make that next tiger the best tiger that I do, every time. What is your creative process like?
You don’t want tattoos to look awkward and forced. It needs to have a really nice flow to it. It needs to be a That’s one of the hardest questions to answer. It’s a love- piece of art on the body. Say, if it’s gonna be a Japanese hate relationship . . . Art in general just isn’t appreciated tiger, I might go through old Japanese wood-block as much here. People don’t realize how much goes into imagery, and look at the positions of the tigers, and any type of art. Especially tattooing—it’s coming around how they’re crawling through rocks or bamboo. Getting nowadays more-so, but people just don’t understand any kind of ideas I can visually, and going from there. that type of art. The South is always going to be Home What’s going to look best on that part of the body, and . . . I want to be able to travel more, but this is a good just building on that idea—and drawing it probably 4 or home-base. I have roots here. I’m comfortable here. 5 times, over and over, until it feels right. You’re redrawing it, and you’re like, oh, this looks different, this looks What does the art of different, this looks weird . . . tattooing mean to you? What kind of goals can you set The freedom to be able to do exactly what I want to do for yourself as a tattoo artist? . . . I’m given so much freedom, in every aspect. I don’t have to wake up at 6 am, or wear a suit and tie to work, As far as goals, it’s limitless. I have different ideas all the or act like a different person when I get there because time . . . But I just kind of go with the flow. My goal is I’m not sure how my co-workers are gonna judge me . . not to make a million dollars by the time I’m 40, or any. It’s that sense of freedom and expression that I always thing like that. I definitely don’t want to be a celebrity. I wanted when I was younger, but didn’t know exactly don’t want anything to do with that. I don’t think they how to get it—and now I have that. Sometimes, thinking could pay me enough to be on one of those shows. No. about work, I realize how much tattooing has actually You can take it as far as you want to take it, and there given me . . . I could literally pack a bag and stay on aren’t many jobs nowadays I feel like you can do that in. the road for the next 3 or 4 years if I wanted to. Friends There are tattooers who have, you know, 3-year waiting I’ve made around the world, tattooing, I have places in lists . . . They love tattooing so much, and a lot of them Germany I could go work. I have friends in Australia . . . preserve the history as well, and try to keep tattooing I owe everything to tattooing, I feel. what it is, this sacred art, still sacred to some. Why the South?
What gets you excited about custom tattoo ideas? When people have done their homework, they’ve seen my tattoos, and they know how I tattoo. “I like your style,” basically. So that’s the best thing to do, especially when you’re looking to get a tattoo, is you need to find a style that you like, and a person who does that style . . . But when someone comes at me and they just have an idea like, “Not really sure exactly how I want it, but I want a Japanese tiger,
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People always want an answer to the unanswerable question: where is the most painful place to get a tattoo? I think the best way to answer this question is, the worst tattoo you will ever get, is the tattoo you’re getting at that moment. Because they all hurt, all places are sensitive. It’s a painful process, and it’s an easily forgotten pain.Either that, or I tell them, “Idaho. Definitely Idaho.”
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The richness of grace in the violence of grief Shannon Pinkston
Grief is a violent emotion. It doesn’t present itself as this neatly packaged thing that reads, “Handle with care.” Your grieving heart isn’t pretty. Its reaction is deep and wild and real, like all it can do is push and pull against itself until you feel as though it might tear open at any moment. Grief, a prized fighter, steps inside your ticker and uses it as a punching bag, completely exhausting your capacity to feel anything else but contact with its fists. Grief is a chasm of doubt and fear—a death of sorts that draws you into reclusion, and longs for your complete seclusion. It presents you as an untidily packaged thing that reads, “Handle with care.” Yet even as the thickest darkness closes in, there is a rich mercy, a great love in the form of a hand that reaches down to pull you out and make you alive again, a love that is evermore deep and wild and real than your violent grief. It’s the hand of a God who is inherently good, who shows you the immeasurable wealth of his grace and kindness. He shines the most brilliant of lights on a darkness you think you may never break through, and breaks it. The greater the darkness, the greater the Light must be to destroy it. When compared to His mercy, His love, His joy, your label reads “Handled,” and you realize the truth: Grief is an infinitesimal emotion.
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the Farmer heath vester
Many things are passed down from generation to generation; while some people pass down priceless heirlooms, others pass down sentimental possessions. For my family, it’s a love and respect for the earth, and the things it gives us. The garden. A place where my grandpa spends most of his afternoons, cultivating the land and sharing the crops he receives with friends and family. With each stalk of corn, bag of butter beans, or that single perfect eggplant, he gives a little piece of himself.
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Keller works Trey taulbee “I never actually intended on making a business. When I saw that I had the potential to help people, I had to do it.”
a lot of positive feedback that night, and some of those first customers are still buying her products today.
Sometimes, opportunity is born out of uncomfortable circumstances.
“Art Walk has always our best thing and it’s definitely the most fun thing to do because we get to be out in the community and talk to people, learn what people like and what they’re interested in.”
It was mid-2011, and Krystn and Ryan Keller had been to fourteen different doctors looking for an eczema cure for their son, Elliot. The rash was severe – affecting his sleep, play, and development. After changing his diet, trying countless steroid creams, topical ointments, and testing natural soaps to no avail, Krystn decided to make her own.
With the help of her husband (and designer) Ryan, she developed packaging and branding for her growing product line. Soon after, she built the Keller Works website and opened her online store.
Keller Works has expanded their product line to Six months of experimentation and recipe-modifiinclude soap bars, essential oil roll-ons, bath salts, cation later, she made her first soap bar containing 6 salves, lip balm, body sprays, body butter, and beard natural ingredients: coconut oil, sustainable palm oil, oil. All of her ingredients are certified organic, and sunflower oil, shea butter, castor oil, and oatmeal. her Beeswax/salve is sourced locally from Wooden Wonder Honey. For Elliot, it worked. In a few days, his skin began clearing up – and family and friends noticed the While the bulk of her business is through online change. Soon, others with eczema and similar skin sales, she is expanding into local stores – namely, the problems approached Krystn for a solution. As the new Whole Foods opening this fall in Mobile. ailments changed, her product line grew. Whole Foods, a national supermarket chain specialThough Krystn initially had no intention of startizing in organic and natural products, features local ing a business, she couldn’t ignore the results. Her vendors in their 400+ stores around the nation. Earproducts were making a difference, and others were lier this year, Krystn applied to be a local vendor, and seeing their value. Whole Foods immediately asked her to attend their supplier fair. When she arrived, she realized they had “There was a moment I was walking on the beach already researched her products, and were ready to with my sister-in-law – who is an entrepreneur – and setup a supplier agreement. She was shocked. she looked at me and said, ‘I want to see you out there selling that soap’ – and I knew what she meant.” “I actually asked the rep, ‘is this really happening’?” In 2012, Keller Works was born. Her first public appearance was at ArtWalk in Mobile. Stocked with only a few raw bars of soap on her table, she was bombarded by new customers interested in her products and her story. She garnered
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This partnership has inspired more local interests for Keller Works, from news coverage to other local stores looking to feature their product line. “Right now, I’m just taking it one day at a time, seeing where the business goes. I’m not just trying to sell my product, I genuinely want to help people.”
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Warm Shadows ELEANOR MASON
A glow blankets my shoulders, while you sit in the window, talking about your sister. The beams of light that stab into the dark wood floors are the only light in the house, penetrating the warm shadows that inhabit the remainder of the rooms. Dust made of diamonds sparkles in the rays, dancing on your face, and on my ankles, and on the arm of the couch, as we sit here staring into our cups of coffee, waiting for the leaves to fall.
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IN YOUR HOME
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The Spice of Life: Fall spices in Cooking and Baking Audrey Birkhimer
Each culture claims a distinct flavor, made unique by its particular use of spices. Curry is found in Indian foods, while many Oriental countries employ ginger. Fennel seeds are the staple of German sausages, and chili powder gives Mexican food its hot flavor. In America, our generation has come to love everything about fall: the weather, the colors, but most of all, the spices. Allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves have become the staple of a few all-American dishes, yet can be integrated in a variety of different autumnal recipes. Allspice is the wonderful substitute of spices. Named for their unique flavor that seems to combine cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves, allspice berries are native to the Caribbean and Central
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America. Although it’s a globally versatile spice, Americans tend to use it for desserts. However, allspice’s talent goes far beyond sweets. To incorporate it in fall-themed recipes, pair allspice with beef, rabbit, pork, or other meats. When braising meat, it’s best to add ground allspice at the beginning to capture the full flavor. For a European flair, add allspice to sauerkraut, Swedish meatballs, or sausages. It can also be used when cooking vegetables like carrots, spinach, squash, or sweet potatoes. For the perfect fall taste, add allspice to stews, hot cider, fruit pies, or cakes. My personal favorite allspice use is adding 1/4 teaspoon to French toast batter—autumn breakfast made instantly better!
Sweet and savory, yet woodsy and pungent, cinnamon comes from the dried bark of the genus cinnamomum trees. As one of the first known spices, cinnamon came from Southeast Asia and traveled worldwide via food. In addition to its flavor, cinnamon was believed to cure skin and bodily ailments. Today the benefits of cinnamon are being researched, including its anti-oxidant properties, mood enhancement qualities, and anti-bacterial uses, among other things. In the U.S., Cinnamon is the crowned spice of the holidays, being found mostly in sweet treats and warm beverages. Typically paired with apples, chocolate, or any recipe with sugar, cinnamon is a good spice to add to soups, chicken, and lamb. Add cinnamon to Mediterranean, Asian or European dishes when cooking global cuisine, or make pancakes or sweet potatoes for a more American approach. Cinnamon also cooks well with flavors like allspice, pepper, cardamom, cumin, ginger, paprika, and vanilla. Try a dash of cinnamon in your coffee alongside a homemade snickerdoodle. For a whole pot, add 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon to your coffee grounds before brewing. Nutmeg, which comes from the inner nut of an evergreen tree, has a strong and piney aroma. Originating from Indonesia, nutmeg is found in many European, Latin American, and Indian foods. Nutmeg is used worldwide for herbal medicine and beauty products. However, the best use is for cooking. Traditionally nutmeg has been used in sausages and soups in Europe. Nutmeg can provide a mildly sweet flavor when cooked with vegetables like carrots, spinach, asparagus, cabbage, or pumpkin. Begin with 1/8 teaspoon per four servings. Nutmeg can also be lightly sprinkled atop meats such as chicken,
pork or fish, while popular American uses are in cakes, puddings, and eggnog. Purchase nutmeg whole; since ground nutmeg loses its flavor, grate before cooking use. Nutmeg pairs well with allspice and cinnamon, so try pancakes with a pinch of all three spices! Perhaps the most aromatic of the fall spices, Cloves bring a warm and inviting scent when used in any kitchen. Their bold, distinct flavor comes from the essential oil eugenol. Harvested as sundried flower buds, cloves were historically more expensive per ounce than gold. Since its commercial growth and production, cloves can now be found in any local supermarket. Like nutmeg, cloves are best bought whole; grind with mortar and pestle or a coffee grinder right before use. Cloves taste as strong as they smell, but in the right amounts add a perfect boost of flavor to savory dishes with longer cooking times, such as roasts and ham. For a more Indian flavor, use ground cloves with curry powder, onions, and garlic. Cloves also pair well with pepper and ginger to marinate chicken or fish. Oftentimes, cloves appear with cinnamon in sweeter recipes, like pies, pickled peaches, or apple cider. If cooking with whole cloves, remove from dishes before serving. For a quintessential autumn taste, add powdered cloves, walnuts, and raisins to any Thanksgiving stuffing recipe. There is no taste in the world quite like an American harvest. Smells wafting from our kitchens draw guests in from the cooler air to places where comestibles and conversation warm us all. With the help of some sweet and aromatic spices, autumn holds its own unique flavor that we can cherish for life.
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Moon CalendArS Don green
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“People wanted to know my secret.”
Donald Green, a familiar face to the Ant Farm Journal, has grown up on and around the Mobile Bay. At an early age, Don was taught the unique skill of moon fishing; nature’s cheat sheet way of knowing when to catch the most fish. By following the phases of the moon and therefor predicting the tide, he was able to correctly pinpoint prime fishing times, down to the hour. Over the years, many people and almanacs have paid Don to share his moon calendars with them for individual and commercial use, but Ant Farm was lucky enough to have Don offer his fascinating and unusual skill to our readers for free.
To view or download Donald Green’s moon calendars for the months of September, October and November 2015, please visit our online blog at www.antfarmmobile.com/blog for a downloadable file.
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An Autumn Kitchen by autumn wood
This is the time of year we gather together and prepare a meal to share with the ones we love. We take time to slow down and enjoy experimenting with spices and seasonal ingredients, creating recipes and memories, in the one place that turns friends into family: The Kitchen. Autumn provided us with the recipe to the beautiful pistachio pesto seen in this photo series. We’ve made it available to our readers at antfarmmobile.com/blog.
Autumn Wood: Art Direction & Prop Stylist @autumnwoodstylist April Loyle: Photographer @aprilloyle Allana Bearse: Baker @allana_bearse
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Carrot Cake Recipe Audrey Birkhimer
Prep Time: 20 minutes Cook Time: 40 minutes Total Time: 1 hour Batter: 3 eggs 2 cups sugar 1 1/2 cup oil 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 2 cups flour 2 teaspoons cinnamon 2 teaspoons baking soda 1 teaspoon salt 2 cups shredded carrots 3 oz. coconut flakes 1-8 oz. can crushed pineapple 1 cup chopped walnuts (optional) Cream Cheese Frosting: 1-8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature 1/2 cup butter, room temperature 3 3/4 cups confectioner’s sugar 2 teaspoons vanilla extract Generously grease a 9x13-inch pan. Set aside. In a large bowl, blend eggs, sugar, oil, and vanilla extract together. Add flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt, and mix until well combined. Stir in the carrots, coconut, pineapple, and walnuts (if desired). Pour batter into greased pan. Bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes (check with a toothpick). Let cool. In a separate bowl, beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Add confectioner’s sugar and vanilla extract, and mix again until smooth. When cake has cooled, top with cream cheese icing.
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FriendSgiving MALLORY DAWSON
The first Friendsgiving was two ping-pong tables pushed together, a blanket from Samantha’s room, and some pinecones from outside the dorm walls. I was 18 years old, and community in college was as simple as walking down the hallway, announcing that I was going to cook. Lately, we’ve exchanged wedding rings and insurance forms and learned how to cook chicken (if not yet a turkey) and Friendsgiving is still our refuge against the storm of time. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday because it doesn’t require commercialism or the giving of halfhearted gifts, it’s simply a meal together and gratitude. It is a Holy-Day, reminiscent of the real etymology of the word holiday. I’m now 23, and each Friendsgiving has been a way to be thankful for this particular step in my journey. I should say, simply, that Friendsgiving is a Thanksgiving meal cooked with friends. One time my sweet potatoes casserole had the consistency of soup, and this year my butternut squash casserole was butternut squash soup. So hardly anyone ate it. The goal of this is not to outdo any grandmother’s Thanksgiving meal; it is simply to make a meal, to eat a meal, with friends. It is the intentional fostering of community. This year, as the last person left and my husband was voluntarily washing the mountain of dishes, the word that came to my mind was magnanimity. It’s a word that means generous but I’ve always linked it, probably incorrectly, with magnitude. Magnanimity communicates to me the largeness of gratitude, how it spreads out inside me and fills up everything. 23 looks different than 24, or 22, or any other part of this life, but I am filled with gratitude for mile markers like Friendsgiving that allow me to reflect on the journey.
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The art of whittling Eleanor Mason
Whittling is a small, simple past time that is becoming increasingly popular each year with people both young and old. Originally, the old Scandinavian practice, created probably without much thought at all, was quickly picked up around the world as a mindless, relaxing way to pass the time. Any young boy with a swiss army knife and a twig picked up from the ground could find pleasure in such an activity, and eventually it became something that everyone’s father did while sitting on the porch. It was a past time that we shared, without noticing it, with our father, our grandfather, and probably with his father and his father’s father. With the development of personal technologies within the recent decades, more and more people lost interest in simple fashions such as whittling, which is a word that many children now have probably never heard. Yet in such a digital age as this, people are aching for simplicity of living again— the simplicity we knew before the change of communication, social interaction, and the introduction of instantaneous entertainment. In whittling we find a clarity of mind, simplicity and rest. Carving off, one by one, little thin shavings of wood until you’re left with a smoother, smaller piece of wood. But the point isn’t the end result. The joy is in the shaving, and in clearing one’s mind. With this, I encourage you to take a walk into the woods, and with that old pocket knife that you rarely use, sit in the quiet, and whittle.
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Clean Eating for Two Mallory dawson Fancy Eating: For a date night eating in, the possibilities are endless. Our favorite thing to do is make steak and buy local produce. The shopping itself is part of the adventure; steaks on sale at Fresh Market, satsumas from the back of a farmer’s pick up truck on the side of the road, and homemade cocktails. This is the kind of night when we enjoy the process of cooking. We live in an apartment, so we make steaks in a cast iron skillet and grill the vegetables in the oven. As my mom says, ‘cooking is all about good ingredients’ so, if you’re buying your zucchini from someone who grew it, you probably can’t mess it up. Here’s a recipe for a first course soup: Carrot Ginger Soup 1 onion 2 tablespoons of grated ginger 3 cloves of garlic A bunch of Carrots Chicken broth Chop onion, mince garlic and grate ginger into a frying pan. Sauté in olive oil until onions are clear and your kitchen smells like paradise. This might be 3-5 minutes. While you are doing this, cut and boil your carrots. Drain the carrots when they are soft and return them to the pot. Add 3 cups of chicken broth and pour the contents of your frying pan into the pot. Let boil with the lid on for about 5 minutes. After this, transfer your soup to a food processor and process until the soup is a smooth, beautiful orange. Note: This recipe is wonderful as a fridge cleaner. The carrot and ginger taste is so strong, you can throw in a potato, sweet potato, squash or almost any veggie into the carrot pot. In the end, it will still taste as the exact same Carrot Ginger Soup. Just make sure you only throw in one or two of those ‘extra’ vegetables. On the Go: As much as we would love to spend every evening peacefully making soup & steak, that isn’t a reality most nights. Listed below are a few dishes we’ve made to combat the urge to order a pizza, on nights when we just can’t deal. Homemade Fries Potatoes Salt & Pepper Olive Oil Set the oven to broil. Thinly slice your potato and place rounds on a cookie sheet. Lightly cover in olive oil and salt and pepper. Broil potatoes for 3 minutes, or until they are crispy. Every oven is a little bit different, so it’s best to simply watch it. This is not light on carbs, but definitely quick and delicious.
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Fresh Fruit and Coconut Milk Seasonal fruit Canned Coconut Milk ($1.25 at Publix) We always have fresh fruit at the house, especially seasonal fruit. Eating with the seasons is always the best option; the fruit is of better quality and cheaper. This fall, buy a can of coconut milk and pour it a saucer of it with your fresh fruit. This makes for a light and delicious dessert. Muffin Tin Quiche Deli Meat Eggs cheese Veggies This is great for getting leftovers out of the fridge. Put a slice of deli meat in a muffin tin and pour a scramble of eggs, cheese, and all your fridge veggies on top of it. Cook at 350 for 45 minutes. These are yummy cold, so they are great as leftovers! Kitchen Staples: The only way to consistently eat well is to have a plan of action. If you know there’s nothing in your house for dinner, you’re probably going to default to ordering a pizza. Here are some things to always be stocked with that will help you to avoid those last minute bad food decisions. The Best Salad Dressing 1 cup Olive Oil 1 lemon 3 cloves of garlic Press the garlic, juice the lemon and combine all together. Dressing keeps for 3 months. This recipe works best with a garlic press. It will work if you don’t have a garlic press if you mince or crush your garlic, but I’ve found the flavor is really enhanced by pressing the garlic. This is a guilt-free salad dressing that is packed full of flavor; I use it constantly and absolutely love it. Frozen Leftovers: This isn’t a recipe so much as a tip. If you’re the kind of person who leaves your leftover Ginger Carrot soup in a bowl in the fridge and ends up tossing it, try freezing it immediately after you make it. Unfreezing it three weeks later will feel like eating something new, rather than eating old leftovers. This way you have ready-made meals for those days when no cooking can take place. Cheat-Cooking Chicken Cooking chicken takes an hour, but boiling it takes 20 minutes. Many times, I will boil my chicken first and then cover it with spices and broil it for 5 minutes. It’s obviously not the most gourmet option, but this is the recipe for on-the-go times. I will also freeze boiled chicken that I can pull out of the freezer and spice in different ways. Chances are, if you take the time and effort to prepare when you’re not busy, you’ll really enjoy those quickly prepared meals on Tuesday nights.
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Death goes to a Halloween party Christian Mott
www.christianbaxtermott.com
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Death goes to a Halloween party; no one knows who he is. He pours himself a pumpkin ale only to watch it fizz. With hours passing idly by, lurking through the crowd, he scowls at their merriment and thinks the music loud. He keeps off to the corners taking in the vulgar dances. He serves a Girl a piece of cake and ponders Her advances. Death goes to a Halloween party; everyone knows he’s there. Without a word all night, a few begin to stare. “He gave me this,” She says as She takes a bite of cake. It was dry and tasted funny. It crumbled yet didn’t break. All begin to ask around, Is there anyone who’s heard who this hooded figure is? No one knew him, not a word.
Death goes to a Halloween party; and no one really knows how his face could be so dark, how his hands are merely bones. The people, one by one, begin to drop like flies. Before Her cake is gone, She falls down and dies. The rest begin to notice whose bodies were deserted, and lying all around are men with whom She’d flirted. Death goes to a Halloween party; dead bodies on the floor. One kneels among friends, his face looking sore. “Who could’ve done this? Tell me, was it you?” Death lifts his bony finger and points across the room. There Her husband stands, his back arched in a hunch, with a bottle labeled “Poison” pouring into the punch.
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Raisin Cider Ham Sauce Eleanor Mason
Raisin Cider Sauce (For Ham) a recipe from The Joy of Cooking by Irma S. Rombauer, WWII Edition In a saucepan, combine: 1/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch 1/8 teaspoon salt Stir in: 1 cup fresh or bottled cider 1/4 cup raisins cut in halves 8 whole cloves 1 two inch stick of cinnamon Cook for 10, continually stirring. Then, add: 1 tablespoon butter After butter is melted and stirred through completely, remove the spices from your mixture, and serve sauce very hot.
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One year of Ant Farm Journal Heath Vester & eleanor mason
We’ve made it a year. We have come quite a long way from that first Family Dinner together. That cool night last September was filled with laughter, hand shakes, nervous smiles and big dreams of what could come of this, and of us all. Since then, we have turned a dream into a reality, not only in creating a community of artists and a successful publication, but making the transition from digital Journals to print after just two issues. With that said, Issue 5 is our Anniversary Issue. The Fall is where it all started for us, and as we gather together this time of year, we have fond memories to share; reflecting on the hard times and good times. With all this reminiscing, we can not overlook one of the most important things: the support and encouragement of our readers. Thank you, Mobile, and our state-wide readers, for the amount of love you have shown us over this year. We look forward to the years to come of growth and change as we continue to Redefine Life in the South. We hope you have enjoyed this year’s Journals, that you continue to read and contribute to our work, and create alongside our team.
From everyone at Ant Farm Mobile, Thanks again.
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Ant Farm A new generation of Mobile creatives is rising. These artists, musicians, visionaries and makers are propelling our community into a new era. We at Ant Farm believe that a generation’s art, traditions, and what they leave behind have the power to communicate to future generations what they valued as important. We aim to peel away the stereotypes of southern living, and showcase truly what makes us known nationally as the warmer half of America. By spotlighting the little things around us, we hope to encourage notice of traditions in our homes and in our communities, and celebrate the local normality that makes us so unique.
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Work with us Writing & Editing Eleanor Mason | itscourtneymason@gmail.com Photography Christian Hilley | christianhilley@gmail.com Advertising Heath Vester | antfarmmob@gmail.com Distribution Christian Mott | christianbaxtermott@gmail.com
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Ant Farm Mobile 1204 Shelton Beach Rd. Suite 3 PO Box 337, Saraland, AL 36571
www.antfarmmobile.com
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