These wacky sculptures, created by Glen McLean, were spotted at Kempenfest in Barrie, Ontario. The fellow in the middle had a bandage on his nose...nothing a little white glue won't fix!
In This Issue: First off we would like to apologize to those subscribers who have had problems receiving this newsletter for the past couple of months. It took a bit of experimentation to figure out exactly what the problem was and now we are confident everything is fine. To see the issues you may have missed go to our website at http://www.northerndipper.com/news_archives.php
Please welcome Katie Lewis, student and practitioner of the ancient Chinese art of Feng Shui. Feng shui dates back 3000 years, and is the balance in the energy forces of yin and yang. To learn who uses feng shui and how gourds play a part, read on. Our conversations with the lovely Katie Lewis are both enlightening and educational.
Last month we received a couple of letters from people who are anxious to harvest their crops...they can't wait to get their paint brushes and wood burners on them! Get the scoop on September happenings out in the gourd patch in this month's issue of Gourd Fever.
Last and not least we have a few gourd sightings from the arts and craft fair Kempenfest. It just goes to prove that when you least expect it, gourds just seem to pop up everywhere.
And now please welcome our featured guest Katie Lewis...
Katie Lewis
"Living In Harmony"
In Chinese philosophy, yin and yang are the two cosmic forces that shape and balance all life. Yin, which is feminine and fluid, is present in the moon, rain and floods. Yang, which is masculine and solid, is the force that is the sun, the stars and the earth. Feng shui is the way of dividing yin and yang in the landscape. In other words the term feng shui represents the power of the natural environment, which is alive with hidden forces.
Many years ago a friend lent Katie Lewis a book about feng shui. She was immediately enthralled and soon one book led to twenty. Soon Katie's journey led her to search out a feng shui master. She became a student of Master Joseph Yu and has been studying with him for the past four years. Katie has studied feng shui, business feng shui, The Four Pillars of Destiny (astrology) and Date Selection. Looking back Katie says what began as a good book has turned into an amazing career.
Katie explains "Feng shui is a way of living harmoniously with the natural world. It is a study of energy from Heaven (time) and earth (space) and how it affects our lives. It is space relative to time... a mathematical science that is used to balance the energy flow around us. The Chinese have long known that choosing a beautiful and fortunate dwelling leads to a more prosperous life. When a building is constructed, an exact compass degree reading that it faces produces an energy map. This map shows what energies reside in the different areas of the home or building. I can then tell a client how best they can utilize the energy of their home to improve their quality of life."
"Clients hire me for a variety of reasons. Some already own their home or business and would like me to improve upon what they have. Some clients hire me prior to buying a new location so that I may confirm that the location will be auspicious before they buy. Other clients want to implement feng shui before they begin building."
"The calabash or Chinese bottle gourd is an important feng shui cure. The round figure eight shape and the golden yellow colour of the gourd represent the element of metal. Metal is what we use to pacify or redirect sickness energy associated with the element of earth. A feng shui audit will determine where the sickness energy is located. The client will then place a calabash in this location and the sickness energy is removed."
"The gourd needs to be cleaned and a hole is drilled into the top of the gourd. The center of the gourd is cleaned out and the gourd can be painted either golden yellow or can be varnished. Then the calabash is ready to use."
Katie is busy on the home front as well. She married her childhood sweetheart and is the mother of two children; Jack, age 6 and Emily, age 4. Four years ago Katie and her husband left Toronto seeking a more peaceful lifestyle in Innisfil, Ontario. She and her family are now just minutes from beautiful Lake Simcoe. In her off time from her Feng Shui work Katie can be found in the kitchen baking up a storm. She claims she has a tireless sweet tooth and enjoys spending time with good friends over a glass of red wine and great food.
Katie provides many feng shui services including residential and business feng shui audits, real estate audits and sun and moon ceremonies. She also teaches so be sure to check out her schedule and the testimonials at
http://katielewisfs.com/index.htm
Thank you Katie, feng shui is a fascinating subject and you are a fascinating guest. We have already talked to you about having a feng shui audit and we do look forward to seeing you again. All the best, Carolyn and Linda
The Canadian Gourd Society presents Gourd Fest 2008!
Karen Cheeseman's Relief Work
The CGS is excited to announce that their annual festival has been relocated to Black Creek Pioneer Village, an interesting and beautiful historical setting in Toronto, Ontario. This festival will bring together many of Canada's best gourd artists under one roof for a fun-filled weekend.
WHAT will you see:
*Competitions - The competition gourds are always amazing. To the right are some of the CGS festival's past entries.
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*Make and Take - This event is extremely popular with both kids and adults alike.
*Demos - Watch the experts carve, woodburn and coil. Ask lots of questions - these artists are both knowledgeable and friendly.
*Workshops - For details check out the CGS website.
*Guest appearance - Catherine Devine will be signing her new book "Coiled Designs for Gourd Art." This book contains gourd prep, coiling materials, projects and a gallery of gourds from talented artists from the gourd and basketry world. There are also included instructions for both lefties and righties which is super cool!
(We at Northern Dipper love this book and will be doing a review in the very near future.)
Northern Dipper will also be at Gourd Fest with hundreds of dried gourds and supplies.
WHEN: Sept. 27 - 28, 2008
WHERE: Black Creek Pioneer Village
It is located one set of lights east of Jane St, on the south side of Steeles Ave (follow the Village signs). It is accessible from Highway 400, 401 & 407.
For more details including a map click here:
September: Watching Those Gourds Ripen!
September can be one of the nicest months of the year. Warm days, cool nights, and out in the gourd field, the vines are green and lush. By month end your gourds may be showing the beginning signs of the drying process. In Canada do not harvest in September under any circumstance. Harvest will happen at the end of October once the first hard frost hits and kills all the vines.
Go through your gourd patch one last time to check that all the gourds are sitting upright. Check under the umbrella sized leaves too. There are always a few surprises just waiting to be discovered.
If you have trellissed tie up any heavy gourds with pantihose. Keep in mind that you can keep those gourds on the trellis over winter. They will dry beautifully. (Sorry ground growers - you will have to harvest yours!)
Minis: Mini vines may be dry by the end of September but the gourds are still very much green. Minis will be the first thing you will be able to harvest. Keep 1" - 2" of stem attached when cutting the gourds from the vine.
Next month there will be lots to do so take the time to enjoy the magic during this last month of summer out in your gardens.
Reader's Corner
Dear Linda and Carolyn,
Arrived home safely to Nova Scotia. Just wanted to say ' thanks' for your guidance and suggestions when we visited you on Monday.
We had a great time and are still amazed at all the different shapes and sizes of gourds. Bob has cleaned a couple but I haven't started yet.
Once again thanks again for your assistance.
Anna
Hello Northern Dipper,
A few weeks ago, while in Toronto for a visit, I attended the Kempenfest Arts and Craft venue in Barrie, Ont. It is a weekend-long annual event and is very well attended.
There is a huge section filled with artists, antique dealers and other equally fascinating vendors. As I was walking along my eye caught these gourd drums. I just loved the way the tops were angled...and they had a great feel and sound to them as well.
As it turned out the maker of these drums was Glen McLean, an old aquaintance that I met in the gourd world a few years ago. Glen and his wife Madeleine do very well with their gourd art, hand-made brooms and wooden spoons. They are perfectionists in their art and it was a thrill to see them again.
Under Gourd Sightings in this newsletter, there are more photos of some of the gourd art I saw both at Glen's and at a neighbouring booth.
Cheers,
Pam Grossi
PS Thanks Glen for the spoon. Peter liked it too!
" Summer at Aunties "
Nicholas and Amanda are Carolyn's nephew and niece and they always enjoy it when they have their yearly one week visit at Northern Dipper Farm. This year they had the chance
to make lined water bottles. They made corded netting and
will be able to carry their enviromentally-friendly water bottles over their shoulder.
NEXT ISSUE:
We are thrilled to present Jan Rollenhagen, an artist whose work has been found in numerous galleries, and in private collections, around the world. Jan started off as a professional Fashion Designer and then took an interest in cast paper sculpture. As with many artists her sense of adventure led her to gourds and as you will discover, Jan's gourd designs will astound our most seasoned gourders.
' Happy Fish ' Cast paper sculpture by Jan Rollenhagen
We will also have some exciting photographs of the CGS Gourd Festival. Remember to mark your calenders - Sept 27 and 28th at Black Creek Historical Village. We at Northern Dipper are really looking forward to this weekend. As you know we love all things gourdly and can't wait to see what everyone has been up to the past year.
Next month will be the last month of the Gourd Grow Report. Harvesting will be the main topic along with the storage of your green gourds over the winter. A sad and joyous experience all at once - summers over but look at the art supplies at your fingertips! Yippee...can't wait to get to them in the spring!
Keep well, have fun, see you next month,
Carolyn Cooper and Linda Bond
PS We welcome contributions to this newsletter. Please send ideas, articles, tutorials or letters to info@northerndipper.com
