FOLK | No. 14

FOLK LIVE AUTHENTIC

… Jen O’Connor Presents…

Artful Décor and Accessories for the Handmade Life and Home paintings, jewelry, folk art, textiles, soft-sculpture, heirloom toys, pottery art dolls, vintage items, luxury goods, books, paperies, fashion and more

Shop On-Line or Catch The Art Girls’ RoadShow!

February 28 & March 1 • “heART of winter” – SOUTH • Sanford, Florida March 27–April 3 • Old Glory Antiques “Grand TEXAS Opening” • Burton, TX June 6, 7 & 8 • “Country Living Fair” – NORTHEAST • Rhinebeck, NY

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WELCOME

WINTER COMES FOLK readers take us in search of winter in America.

TOP TO BOTTOM | LEFT TO RIGHT: 1) J. Rinks 2) Evan Schwanke 3) Lynne Bechard 4) Jordan Vonderhaar 5) Kyle White 6) Steve Naylor 7) Tim Albon 8) Melissa Barrett 9) Cyndi Monaghan Winter is a time of food, warmth, lights and dreams. Summer friends seem to dissolve like a vapor, but winter friends are family and stay in our life forever.

— RYAN HIMES

KRISTEN BLANTON is a music journalist and photographer who studied creative writing

at university in Manhattan. She currently resides in Austin, Texas. This March, she and three other photographers are heading on the road to document the US on 35mm film. Their journey, “Hello America� is one she has been planning for many years. At 23, it is finally happening.

CONTRIBUTORS Anna Addison Alice Hale Adams Chris Amat Kristen Blanton David Guenther Melissa McArdle Mark McInnis Mike Seehagel Rikki Snyder

INDEX 4 8 12 16 22 26

THE LITTLE THINGS: LINDSEY SMITH EXPLORE: A PHOTO ESSAY A PASSION FOR COFEE JENNIFER & RICHARD LANNE L.L. BEAN IN THE WILD: A PHOTO ESSAY

FOLK VOLUME 4 NUMBER 1

THE LITTLE THINGS

LINDSEY SMITH “Embrace the art of discovery. Learn about the things you are buying, where they come from, and what they are made with. I think you will fall in love with the stories of these people just as I have.”

— Lindsey Smith, owner of Maker’s Workshop The American-made movement has brought together a host of makers, doers, creators, visionaries, and leaders. For my second story in this series I have the honor of spending a few moments with Lindsey Smith, the owner of Makers Workshop.

When I first met Lindsey Smith it was at the Country Living Fair in Atlanta. From the start I knew she was someone I wanted to know. She came dressed in killer, Americanmade clothes, carrying a fierce camera, and well versed in the importance of preserving the past, and celebrating American-made, hand-made, and well-made. A few weeks ago she text me to let me know that she and her photographer were heading out to document the workshops of makers across the country, I, sitting at my desk in rural western Kentucky, am dying that I am not on the road and in the shops with her.

MEET LINDSEY SMITH “I am Lindsey Smith; Louisiana native, rambler, and founder of Makers Workshop, a blog focused on Made in America quality handcrafted goods and the skills passed down from generation to generation.”

WHAT INSPIRED MAKERS WORKSHOP “I have always been an artist of sorts. In college, my passion was fashion design.

After graduation, I threw myself into the visual world of Anthropologie for several years. Later, I would take on event styling, jewelry, woodcraft, and anything else I could get my hands on. All the while, I was tormented by one simple fact; There was not one single thing that I loved enough to do just that. When anyone would ask what I wanted to do, my answer was simply, “I want to do it all.”

Then, a few years ago, I began working as a buyer for a retail store in Louisiana. This brought me to several trade shows each year in cities across the USA. With each buying trip, I was disheartened by what I had to choose from for our customers. Everything had a gimmick, was made overseas, and the sales rep knew little to nothing about the product in front of them. I knew this wasn’t the way it should be. If I wasn’t connecting, then certainly our customers wouldn’t! But, every once in a while, I would discover a brand so full of heart and purpose that I

wanted to run out of the building shouting in exclamation! My fast heart beat and admittedly sweaty palms told me THIS was how it should be.

One day, sitting in my home office, a little light bulb went off and almost instantly the name, MAKERS WORKSHOP, came to me. I started the blog that day and haven’t looked back since.

This Fall, we launched our online store featuring a select group of quality handcrafted Made in America products. When you purchase a product, you will see who made it, get a behind the scenes look at their process, and know that you are getting something that is made to last.

Ask me today what I want to do and I will still reply, “I want to do it all.” Working closely with all of these makers gives me that and inspires me every single day.”

those products is what makes our heart skip a beat (and we think yours too!) It is with a discerning eye, we offer a very well curated lot of craftsmen and products that resonate with even the humblest of makers. Our good friend Hall Newbegin of Juniper Ridge said, “My dreams aren’t about getting bigger, I dream about getting smaller and more specific.” And that is what you can expect from Makers Workshop.”

WHERE DO YOU WANT TO GO WITH IT “Makers Workshop is always evolving. Our latest plan is to launch a kickstarter campaign early next year that would involve us and you and the whole of the USA. Telling makers stories and finding the last generation of men and women preserving handcraft and the new generations that follow. There is a story to be told and my heart tells me it’s mine to tell. It’s a hefty goal but I’m in full pursuit of it.

WHY IS MAKERS WORKSHOP WHAT IT IS “We live in an age when we cannot even walk to the mailbox without some sort of product being pushed on us. I think we are at the point where we want the story, we want to be moved to buy something. At Makers Workshop, we give you that. If I wrote and supported everything that arrived on my doorstep, I would not be any different than any other blogger out there. We have never been the blog to visit for daily posts.

Quality is always better than quantity in our eyes and that is something we will always maintain.

There are thousands of Made in America products out there and while we love that, Made in America to us is not a trend or fleeting idea.

Made in America is quality handcrafted goods and the skills passed down from generation to generation. The timelessness and soul of

As always, we enjoy partnering with brands that align with our mission and aesthetic. My hope is that enough people are passionate about this purpose and want to do something about it.

Who knows what great things will happen from this little idea. It has the power to be pretty big if we let it.”

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO TELL THE WORLD OR AT LEAST AMERICA “Embrace the art of discovery. Learn about the things you are buying, where they come from, and what they are made with. I think you will fall in love with the stories of these people just as I have.”

— makersworkshop.net

PHOTOGRAPHY: ANNA ADDISON

EXPLORE ...freedom, exploration, and living in the moment...

There is no map and no set direction. It’s about freedom, exploration and getting outside to live in the moment. When we embrace where we live, we create our own paths and experiences. We are lucky to live in such a geologically diverse, and mostly untouched, area of the world. The pristine beauty and majestic colours make capturing the essence of the surroundings somewhat simple; the same way a photographer may feel with a beautiful model. To stand apart from the crowd means finding uniqueness.

My journey into photography has led me to a group of photographers with a similar craving for exploration and discovery. Together we have traveled the vast expanse of the prairies and rocky mountains in an effort to showcase what we feel is beautiful through our lenses.

Some of the best moments captured have been just a few feet away from our vehicles on a random road because something has caught someone’s eye.

And while we all may be shooting the

same scene, what we each take from it is different. We savour the experience, and part of the thrill is making-up our own adventures with the goal of inspiring others to create and share their own stories.

This concept has grown into a project for our group. Our goal is to create a community of photographers who share and promote their unique and beautiful view of our country. The primary focus is within Canada, but we hope to inspire people from all parts of the world.

To me it’s about capturing the moment, the experience and the feeling. I have never been a great storyteller with my words. I have always been a visual person and, as of recently, design and photography have been my way of expression. The story I tell is though my photos.

The places in these pictures range from Waterton, Pincher Creek, and Jasper, Alberta.

STORY: & PHOTOGRAPHY: CHRIS AMAT

A PASSION FOR COFFEE Melissa visits 2Girl Roaster in Sausalito, California

Tera and Olja always have coffee on the brain. They roast it, pour it, drink it, and chew on coffee beans just because they can. 2Girl Roaster is their labor of love, and it goes without saying that their passion for coffee literally runs deep through their veins.

This dynamic female duo roasts the beans in their café located in the heart of Sausalito, California.

When it came time to brand the beans, they relied upon the wise advice of marketing friends and agreed upon using girls names. Using the names of people they love as well as favorite customers, they have already created a line-up of wit-filled descriptive girl-names to perfectly define the choices of varietal beans. Currently Marcia is in the lead with her intense, never bitter flavor, Kim is strong with a sweet side, Liz is bold, Alison is well-balanced, and Dawn is a bit of a hippy with her incense-filled aromas. Clearly, 2Girl understands coffee and how to relate it to personalities, moods and the essence of taste with scent inspiring aroma.

all go through every day of fine-tuning, examining, and contemplating the things that bring us joy.

Businesses of process understand that OUR place of joy resides in the doing, in the work. We take the factors that we can easily control along side the factors that we control though thoughtful manipulation to create “craft”. We started our journey to the beginning of coffee from the end.

We began as joyful consumers who then became interested in how such an amazing beverage was prepared. Questioning daily the changes that we tasted in that week’s roast. Or why does today’s coffee like to be extracted at 40 seconds while the coffee last week was happy at 32 seconds? Why is it that 21 grams of coffee pull a beautiful shot for one roast/blend, while in another 23 is the sweet spot? Why does the French press give you such a hearty cup, while a pour over makes the same coffee taste light and airy? Why, why, why…. Let’s taste more…. Lets see what others are doing… Lets roast our own.

An introduction from a Sausalito family, who taught English to farm owners in South America, led them to directly source the beans from a small farming family in Costa Rica. The people who walk into the café, baristas, and other roasting companies in the Northern California Bay Area inspire them daily. All of these people and the daily encounters enrich the coffee experience and inspire 2Girl Roaster to craft the very best. These 2 Girls had a dream, and they have made it a reality, one coffee bean at a time.

American roasted, poured, and enjoyed to the very last drop.

Perfection in the cup is elusive. It depends on many factors outside from the cups contents. What was your morning like? How long did you wait till you were met with “ Hello, what can I get for you? All of this is part of the process too.

Why is what you do so important?

The choosing of beans, roasting methods, offering the perfect cup of coffee, etc.

Realizing sustainability is a very important factor for 2Girl Roaster, how do you determine what beans to purchase and have you personally met any of the suppliers?

The process of “craft” has always been important to us personally and professionally. The steps we

The process of cup perfection is what we strive for; we understand that what happens outside the cup can effect the perception of our attempt of perfection inside the cup. The process of sourcing well, tasting well, roasting well and serving well are all the elements of the process to our craft.

We have a few carefully selected suppliers in the

STORY: MELISSA MCARDLE | PHOTOGRAPHY: REVERIE -DAYDREAM

north bay. We are buying only local and we like to meet with them to see what they have to offer, and then we do a lot of cupping. We taste a lot of coffees from many regions and pick only a few that we really like. We choose to buy green beans that are in the session, so we have a small variety between four to six coffees from different regions.

Give us the scoop on your bright red roaster?

We should come up with a great girly name for that one! She is a Geisen W6 6 Kilo gas fired Roaster.

This is a top of the line piece of equipment, hand made for us in Holland by the Geisen Company.

Geisen has been making the very best coffee roasters for decades. We started the build of the machine in November 2011 and it was finally delivered in June 2012. This excellent piece of machinery will be one of the keys to success of 2girl Roaster.

At what moment did you decide you could roast beans and make an incredible coffee?

There was no particular “a-ha” moment for us. We feel looking back on our journey it was more of a little voice that kept singing, “You have something to say, so say it!”

There is a lot of skill associated with choosing beans, blending varietals, roasting, and then offering it to the public. What is your favorite part of the process {from bean to cup} and why?

Our love with coffee began with the preparation of espresso coffees. Now we also enjoy developing the perfect blends. Our favorite part is definitely costumer feedback. When a costumer tells you that we took their coffee experience to another level, it makes us happy.

How do you keep your coffee making skills sharp?

Keeping your skills sharp at the bar requires you to work daily with the coffee that you are serving / roasting. A Barista’s job is not an easy one for many different reasons. You have to be experienced with your equipment and be present / mindful with every shot and extraction. You need to know the type of coffee, the age of the roast and be ready to change any number of variables in making sure the coffee is performing well. It helps to be interested in what other baristas are doing so that you can taste and see how they are expressing themselves through coffee. Finally you have to be interested in people because a coffee bar cannot forget that

customer service with the cup is not the exception it is the rule.

What’s the best coffee you tasted? And do you still remember the moment it happened and where you were? Do you feel the aesthetic surroundings of where one enjoys a cup of coffee also plays an important role in the full experience of coffee drinking? {Olja}: What I thought at the time was the best coffee I ever tasted was in Greece about 15 years ago. Nothing tasted better on a hot summer day than an iced greek frappe. Believe it or not it is made from instant coffee. It is made with a teaspoon of instant coffee, sugar and little water blended in a cocktail shaker to form a foam and then added to a glass with the cold water, ice cubes and some milk.

I am not sure if I would enjoy frappe here as much as I have enjoyed it in Greece. With the beautiful Greek people, busy streets, and a sizzling hot day you need Greek Frappe. {Tera}: I have had many great coffee experiences, but my first Ah-ha moment was on a raining morning at Blue Bottle only a few weeks after they had opened at their Mint Plaza Location. I had a perfect shot of 17 Ft. ceiling (which is a hard coffee to work with as a Barista). It was the first time I acknowledged to myself how deeply I felt about this little cup of brilliance! I walked though the busy line to give my thanks to the caring Barista who pulled it. I do feel that the surroundings that day opened me to having my Ah-ha moment for sure.

On that particular day I was quietly by myself, which never happens in my busy restaurant environment or with my 2 children! I think the surroundings and service should always be held in high regards.

What do you believe is the epitome of good coffee?

The epitome of good coffee is something like umami! It contains that mysterious 6th sense that makes it undefinable. It must contain quality coffee, expert preparation, beautiful drinking vessel at a minimum. Depending on the time of the day, beautifully steamed milk or perhaps cold brew over ice! But sometimes the experience can be enhanced by great music, friends, cold rain or a really beautiful warm fresh sugared doughnut!

—2girlroaster.com

Jennifer & Richard Lanne AUTHENTIC.

Growing up in upstate NY Richard Lanne, Jr. dreamed of living off the land. His childhood was full of adventures he recorded in many notebooks, documenting the fleeting knowledge of the land and being able to do for oneself that he learned from the many scoutmasters and old timers that passed through his world. He grew up in a story akin to the Foxfire books of old. He spent much of his youth learning how to forage, trap, hunt, build, and forge his future.

Richard grew up in a family that was very outdoor and nature oriented, a family of inquisitive and resourceful minds that always looked for clever ways to do things for themselves. Mother grew up on a farm and taught him the country ‘know-how.’ Father’s family were born hunters and trappers and knew how to live off the land, dad worked in construction for 8 years and taught him basic principles of building and fixing buildings.

When Lanne joined the Boy Scouts it gave him a new opportunity and a new group of people from whom to learn practical skills. He says he learned all he could from the scoutmasters and was constantly asking questions, jotting his newfound knowledge down in field notebooks. Ed Theilman, the leader of his scout troop taught him survivalist lessons through edible forest roots, flowers, and berries. Pointing out each plant that was edible or ones that were used medicinally he passed down his knowledge of the local forests.

Another scout leader taught him how to trap and hunt, and his father who was also involved in the organization lent his own knowledge of hunting to Richard’s troop.

He and his core group of friends in the scouts took their organization very seriously and learned as much as they could about nature, camping, foraging, and living sustainably.

They often went above and beyond on their

PHOTOGRAPHY: RIKKI SNYDER | STORY: HEATH STILTNER

// 85 //

outings learning to supplement their rations with live frogs caught in nearby ponds and streams. His most vivid memory of the scouting days was seeing his first portable forge brought to the camp. He watched Scoutmaster Nick Schaper spark the fire and use the forge for the first time and quickly started learning the trade.

“He made a profound impression on me, not only as a scoutmaster, but that he could make anything he needed for his small farm,” Lanne remembers. “From a door hinge or a knife, to various tools he needed for woodworking, he made everything by hand and it’s something I try to emulate today.”

Richard is a Civil War re-enactor in his free time when he isn’t managing the farm he lives on with his wife Jennifer. The reenactments employ all his survivalist lessons he learned as a kid and allow him to have an avenue to share all of that knowledge. As a born and raised Yankee, it’s odd to think that he would play the part of a confederate soldier but Lanne says he relates to the mindset of the men who served in their army. “They were a makeshift army without the strict regimen of the Union to guide them but with nearly half the number of soldiers carrying personal rifles and muskets held their ground through a four-year war by employing their knowledge of the land, home remedies, foraging, and hunting. That kind of resourcefulness is something I’ve always strived to learn more about and I think you can learn a lot from them when you strip away the reasons for the war and get down to that core knowledge.”

He uses his skills as an ironsmith in both his reenactments and his daily life on the farm.

I try to use my knowledge of the land and classic trades to solve all of my problems. When something on the farm needs repaired or a part of his reenactment rifle needs replaced he employs his foraging skills to find the materials needed to fix it by scouring the woods on his property for the kindling to fire his forge, a forge he sparks by using an ignition strike he made on the forge itself. Everything on the farm

is cyclical, when there’s a problem it’s fixed using tools made from fell trees and found materials on property he crafts on his own forge.

Richard and his wife Jennifer moved to Ballston Spa twelve years ago to a historic farm property once owned by an exiled Scot named Agnus McDearmid. The home was in fair shape when the two moved, but they were looking for a fixer-upper and the 1779 farmhouse was just what they were looking for. For both Jennifer and Richard, the most important part of finding a home was that it be historic and original. “So many historic homes in the area were gutted somewhere between 1970-1990 and completely remodeled,” says Jennifer, “but this one had the original floors and low ceilings we wanted.”

Richard and Jen got to work restoring the home to its former glory by replacing the roof and appliances and fixing the septic. However, a bigger project came when they decided to restore the original barn. Using the skills he learned as a boy scout and those gained from his father’s knowledge as a former builder, Richard hoisted the barn using railroad jacks and restored the original stone foundation by hand. The barn now acts as Richard’d studio and forge where he creates tools as he needs them around the property. “He can really make anything, and that came in handy when we bought this farm,” say Jen. “Anytime we needed a bracket for a door he was able to forge it, he really does know how to make just about anything. If he doesn’t he teaches himself.”

Richard is still involved with the Boy Scout organization and has now become a scout leader himself. He uses his position to pass down the skills he was taught as a child growing up in the are to a new generation.

“It’s important for me to pass on skills I have learned,” he says. “As times change, knowledge that isn’t a part of the everyday dissipates and dies away with the old timers. I have read many books on forgotten arts but there is nothing like hands on learning.”

L.L. Bean

ONE HAND-MADE BOOT AT A TIME Norm Bellemare works away at his station, meticulously placing die after die onto the smooth, chestnut brown Bison leather in front of him and diligently cutting the pieces that will soon become leather uppers for the famed L.L.Bean Bean Boot. “I’ve been working for L.L.Bean for 31 years,” he says, “I’d love to know just how many pairs of Bean Boots I’ve made in my time here.” For Norm and the other craftspeople that work in the manufacturing facility for L.L.Bean in Freeport, Maine, the factory has become a place they enjoy working and seeing their skills keeping an American tradition alive rewards them.

When Leon Leonwood Bean started the company we know today as L.L.Bean, back in 1912, the company was operated out of his brother’s basement and started on nothing more than a circular mailing list Maine hunting license holders and one product, the Maine Hunting Shoe. Sending a four-page catalogue describing his rubber-bottomed, leather hunting boot Bean sold a significant amount of his first run of boots, only to have them returned after a defect. That was the start of the legendary customer service that has come to be expected from L.L.Bean, fixing his design

and returning every pair of Bean Boots to his customers, Bean turned the company and boot into household names for hunters all over the country and started the American tradition of L.L.Bean American heritage outdoor gear.

Today the boots are made in much the same way that Leon Leonwood produced the original Maine Hunting Boots however the operation has grown somewhat in the last 100 years.

L.L.Bean trains each artisan who helps craft the Bean Boot in a 16-week training program.

The program teaches them all of the basics of industrial stitching and cross-trains them to be skilled in other jobs within the Brunswick, Maine manufacturing facility. L.L.Bean now offers more than 60 different styles of their iconic Bean Boot, including custom colors like Aqua and Orange they produce for the Japanese market who loves the American heritage brand. Each year, the factory uses 3 million eyelets to produce Bean Boots, last year producing 400,000 pairs. For lined boots like their shearling Maine Hunting Shoe the craftspeople essentially have to make two boots, a fleece interior with the classic leather and rubber exterior.

BY: HEATH STILTNER

The popularity of the Bean Boot has increased in the last few years with a new resurgence of the ‘New England Prep’ movement, and Bean Boots are a key ingredient to that style for both men and women. L.L.Bean Boots are the icon of the L.L.Bean brand. They’re authentic, back-tobasic, American made, functional, practical, and a good value with a 100% satisfaction guarantee. They’re not only a staple of the brand or of a trend, but they’re a staple of classic American Heritage style, a group of products that have endured over a century of use on good design.

Since 1912, the staff of L.L.Bean has grown from a small family operation to employing 5,000 everyday workers like Norm. The 350 employees in the Brunswick factory make more than just the world-famous Bean Boot; they also produce Boat and Totes, dog beds, belts, small bags, backpacks, and seasonally assemble skis and bicycles. Like the Bean Boot, L.L.Bean’s Boat and Tote has an illustrious past in addition to being the company’s highest-selling domesticallyproduced product. First introduced in 1944 as an Ice Carrier, the tote has become a staple bag for the brand because of its guaranteed quality construction and ability to withstand inclement conditions. They now produce close to 1 million totes annually and construct custom totes available in about 5,000 color combinations.

Last year L.L.Bean celebrated its 100th anniversary by releasing a red, woolen pair of Bean boots, based on an original pair held in their archives. When L.L.Bean celebrated its 100 years, the nation celebrated with them. For their customers, the brand isn’t just a lifestyle brand, and it certainly isn’t just a job to the countless artisans the company employs. L.L.Bean has always meant the same thing to all of these people, quality.

When L.L.Bean started to announce its plans to celebrate 100 years in business, sincere personal memoirs of people’s experience with the company started to appear all over the world and internet. Most notably California resident Stephen Gadecki, in an ‘obituary’ mourning the loss of his 15-year-old L.L.Bean backpack, explained that ‘L.L.Bean doesn’t make gear, it makes memories.’ The story is the same for all customers, and also artisans of the brand.

“I’d still love to know how many pairs of boots I’ve helped create in my 25 years as a leather cutter,” Norm Bellemare laughs, “but I know I’m leaving the craft to a new generation of leather cutters I am helping train.”

— llbean.com

Mike

IN THE WILD PHOTOGRAPHER MIKE SEEHAGEL JOURNEYS INTO THE CANADIAN WILD

“If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.”

— Anne Bradstreet

PHOTOGRAPH BY: DAVID GUENTHER

BRENTWOOD ~ COOL SPRINGS ~ LEIPER’S FORK ~ NOLENSVILLE

Stories as unique as you are.

LISA FOX,OWNER LEIPER’S CREEK GALLERY

FIND YOURSELF IN OUR STORY. VISITFRANKLIN.COM

My name is Lisa Fox and I’m the owner of Leiper’s Creek Gallery. I’ve been in Leiper’s Fork for 11 years. Initially, I was sent to paint a mural for Aubrey Preston and was here for six months. While I spent time here, I fell in love and did not want to leave. I would hang out at lunch with everybody at Puckett’s and talk about mending fences and chasing cows and just absolutely fit in because I grew up on a farm. And I was a painter so I loved the countryside and painting the countryside. When it came time for me to leave it was evident that I just belonged here.

Aubrey had remodeled an old Gulf Station building and asked me if I would run it as a gallery. I never expected to do any such thing. I was scared to death, but I took it on and it’s been a learning process ever since. Every day is a new day. We really have an awesome stable of artists, some of the best local artists around and I’m really proud of that.