Here’s a little visual tour of the San Juan County Fair, which happens every August on San Juan Island… And I look up and see this. Hmmm…. Still not sure what to make of this poocchini mobile… Zulu dancers from Mombasa, Kenya… Something I’ve had on …
Last summer I tried Zumba for the first time. Alyson Stephens is the instructor and she makes it what it irresistibly is – a totally joyful experience. You dance moves you didn’t know you had in you, you laugh at yourself when your body is first catching onto them, and …
For over 50 years, Leo Lambiel has been collecting mostly local art – some of it very expensive art – and displaying it in his home. Now it is all coming to an uncomfortably abrupt end. He started out with a little 24′ x 24′ cabin and built on it …
Yesterday the power went out around 10:00 in the morning. While in the library, I heard from a frustrated woman that it would be at least six hours before they’d get it fixed; she was very upset that she couldn’t use her cell phone for the day. Maybe she was …
How often do you get invited to 34 artists’ studios to see what they make and watch demonstrations? Here, where most roads are marked private, you rarely even see how others live, so this is a double whammy of a tour. Leading up to this fantastic annual 3-day weekend event, …
The moment we stepped foot on the property, Kandis’s husband Bob whisked us over to his yellow plum tree to share his bounty. A humble man with kind eyes and a generous spirit, he then walked us over to his mulberry bush for samples off the branch. I bet he …
Our stop at Sean’s ceramics studio was brief, unfortunately. I love meeting the artists and listening to their stories, especially if I’ve never been there before, but this was an in and out kind of thing. An immediate potty break was needed by my little companion, so my visuals will …
Feng-shui-wise, this was one of my favorite studios to spend time in. Something about the color of the walls, the lighting, the music, and Anusha’s warm, genuine, inviting personality. All combined, I felt like I could hang out in there for awhile. Our little boy must have felt the same …
This guy is way far out. At least physically speaking. It’s one of the farthest drives from town, and sometimes very entertaining, literally, depending on when you happen to show up. Inside his blacksmith shop, aside from thousands of tools, is a full band set-up. A few years ago, we …
Barbara’s studio was a new stop for us this time around. In fact, I chose to stop there based on the tiny picture next to her name in the tour brochure. When there are 34 studios, you have to figure some way to whittle it down. Her art studio, connected …
Michael Yeaman’s studio was a must for me and the boys. We had visited it in the past and the boys appreciate geology and the big-ness of Michael’s specimens. Perhaps it’s the allure of what seems impossible to them – having such immense beauties right in the backyard. He is …
My mom often reminds us of the only time she saw our older boy cry. We were visiting Orcas Island as tourists one summer eight years ago and Zackarya Leck was demonstrating his skills at the Farmers’ Market at the Village Green. Our son, who was four years old at …
Driving out to Peg’s studio meant traveling to some nether regions that I had yet to experience until the art tour. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the chance to meet Peg; you know, three solid days from 11-5 is a lot of time to meet and greet people at your studio, …
Sharon and friends opened a studio in Eastsound several years ago, and I’m vicariously loving that she – a mom of 3 boys around the ages of our sons – has carved out her own time and space to live out her passions in the midst of raising children. Her …
Something I love about the studio tour is the enjoyment of seeing new neighborhoods and new vistas. Barbara Bentley’s studio overlooks Crescent Beach from an eagle’s point of view – it’s a sweeping look at the sea below that I’ve never witnessed before. Absolutely breathtaking. When we entered her studio …
Warm, grounded, and full of youth, Mary Jane is a neighbor of ours, and we have the pleasure of running into her all the time. She teaches classes from her wonderfully inviting studio in front of her house, she sells her ceramics in Orcas Island Artworks in Olga, and she …
All-around nice guy, Bruce Wilson is married to Mary Jane Elgin, and they are quite the artistic duo. Here is Bruce demo-ing his wax technique. He makes his own oil and wax cakes and melts them on a hard canvas board. Sometimes he completes them in a day, sometimes in …
Rosemarie’s studio is in a gorgeous wooded setting in front of her house, nestled in a little neighborhood on the road just outside of Eastsound. Her warm, bubbly granddaughter, Karoline, greeted us and explained that art made by their three generations of women was being shown in the cozy little …
You drive into a gated area leading to a plane-hangar neighborhood right on the air strip here on Orcas Island, and you’ve arrived at Kim Middleton’s studio. I love the diversity we experience on this tour. Kim’s dazzlingly colorful paintings of birds convey her love and knowledge of the avian …
When fall comes I’ll be homeschooling both boys. One of my ever-favorite things is the planning – gathering various resources from all ends of the earth and envisioning the different subjects we’ll wallow in. In the past, I’ve asked God to sew it all together as we go so that …
My mom rents the bottom floor of a house that hovers over the ocean about a 5-minute walk from our house and she spends her days overlooking paradise, keeping up with the news, and reading gobs of books. She’s in the library’s monthly book club, so she passes the good …
