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What Can Hands Do?
Something for everyone! As we say, there is never nothing to do at the PEACH. Every season there is something to make and learn. There are always people around to guide and extend a helping hand so that all may take joy in the work created. This is the traditional world of the Practical Arts. Here is where silence is recognized, so that we may hear the whispers of the muse. Every task is met with the best of intentions, so that we may be steadfast in practice. Here is where appreciation grows so that others can experience the love that is put into our work.
Idle hands are the devil’s workshop; idle lips are his mouthpiece. An evil man sows strife; gossip separates the best of friends. -Proverbs
In many ways, there is a ritualistic or religious aspect to the Practical Arts. Doing this work is not approached with an attitude of ‘getting it over and done with,’ but as something one looks forward to doing, a concentrated respite. For some meditative, for others, the excitement of completing a project or the beginning of creating something new. The Practical and, specifically, the folk arts, carry within all the arts, the refinement of the Fine Arts and the mastery of the Skilled Arts. Yet, its beauty is often fleeting and meant for one person for a short amount of time.
The Calendar lists the topics we will cover every month. Some gatherings, classes and festivals will be open to the wider community. All Practical Hand-crafted Folk Arts that have been passed down for thousands of years will be taught and practiced throughout the seasons.
Fine Arts & Fibers: basket and reed-weaving, wool-spinning, silk-spinning, qiviut-spinning, quilting, needlepoint, sewing, knitting and crochet will be taught and shared.
Practical Home Arts: bee’s wax candle-wicking, soap making, bath salts, traditional medicinal tinctures, culinary, baking, canning, drying, butchering, filleting.
Musical Folk Arts: learning and singing traditional folk songs, playing the fiddle, penny-whistle and concertina.
Skilled Folk Arts: cordwaining, book-binding, mosaics, paper-making, tree-tapping.
These gatherings and classes are conducted in small groups by people practiced and skilled in their chosen craft. Most of all we wish to create an atmosphere of appreciation and reverence for what nature has provided, and a deeper understanding of the history of these Practical and Folk Arts. Our goal is always to inspire the imagination, provide the tools and guidance needed in order to develop the skills required, but most of all, is simply to take joy.
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Basketry or reed-weaving is one of the oldest arts in the history of the world. It has been around as long as humans have walked and carried food back to their cave. Even desert tribes had a form of basket weaving. The symbol we use for zero “0” comes from ancient India, it represents a basket with nothing in it.
Basketry or reed-weaving is the practical art of taking plant fibers, sometime living and supple and sometimes dried and brittle, and weaving them to create a container to hold food, feathers, fur, twigs, leave or what ever is needed to carry more than a hand can hold.
There’s a fine art to basketry and so many processes are used and there is so much to experience and experiment with by adding a variety of fibrous or pliable materials, anything that will bend and form into shape. For example; pine, straw, willow, shrubs, stems from all manner of plants, animal hair, feathers, silk and wool threads and kindling.
Different times of the year, those working in basketry go out and collect the plants and fibers needed. We are near a wetland so plenty of cattails and willows, sumac and shrubs switches. We are also surrounded by farms, so there is ample hay grasses, including corn. In the forest there are vines, twigs, conifers and a weaver’s favorite, forsythia.
During the late summer and early autumn cattails are gathered, their downy seeds are also used in paper making. Straw is gathered several times a year during summer and autumn. These fibers are sometimes severed and striped, made into long weaves or dried and twisted. Grape vines and ivy are collected in the autumn through the beginning of winter, stored in cool, dark places. Occasionally, we will import bamboo from a member shop in Florida and taking a number of weeks to work making baskets with these tough southern fibers. By spring, we have enough baskets to use in order to carry and spread seeds on the farm and to collect small and larges harvests in the summer and autumn.
Baskets are used everywhere in the community, in the café for breads, the co-op and apothecary to hold teas, candles and soaps, as well as, in the home for what ever your needs may be. The sewers love them for holding yarns and threads, and many weavers give them away as gifts. There probably isn’t a person on the planet who doesn’t have a basket holding or filled something.
Making baskets requires skill, patience, dexterity along with an eye for aesthetics and a creative touch. Every year we have a little competition. The most skilled, the best design and practical use, and the most creative. Two of the baskets are filled with food and other trinkets, then given to the winners of our Greek Olympics. The third is presented to the person who has dedicated the most time helping in the community.
Our weavers teach others in the community how to make these beautiful creations, and their work will be our basket focus for the year. The public can find these works for sale at the co-op and the Thrift Shoppe Fensalir, during the farmer’s market and Advent Artists’ fair.
The best part about this area in the Practical Arts are that people come together, sit around the table in the studio or outside and weave while they chat, listening and sometimes singing to the music played by one of the many musicians strolling the grounds in our community.
Sally Littlemaker who works extensively with basket weaving in our community also gives a lecture once a year on the history and use of baskets making and weaving. She will also give a short presentation on the coming year’s basket activities and show many of the works created by the weavers in the community.
Please check the schedules for the days and hours of the workshops. Residents and members are always welcomed to join, and the public can register for these special classes, workshops and basket circles.
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Book-Binding
Since the monks of the Middle Ages, book-binding has been a respected and practical fine art. Before the book, humans expressed their thoughts through song, words and thoughts, translating their experiences using pictographs and symbols. From cave paintings to clay tablets and structures, to the use of sedge and pulp in the development and manufacturing of paper. The Greeks called it papyrus, the Egyptians aaru. Papyrus is a sedge, a grass, which grows in wet humid climates. We’ll discover more about paper in the Printmaking section, but for now I wish to discuss what covers, holds and binds this paper together, through the creation and amelioration of what we call, a book.
Books took us from the oral traditions, through pictures or pictographs, and the use of abstract symbols in order to express our thoughts. The technological development of writing came about in different cultures and at different times. In the southern part of Europe it developed much earlier than in the northern parts, in fact, writing came late to the Celts. There were symbols in Viking tribes and a few that were adopted by the Celts, but it wasn’t until the Christian in the south brought books that the Celts in norther Europe ran away with this new form of technology that continues to expand even today.
Much of this development and the spread of language was transported by books. Unlike clay tablets or scrolls of paper, books were a very easy way to express thoughts, copy religious texts and keep account of mundane harvest records and exchanges of gold. Books like the wheel were a new form of modern technology. No more arguing about what or how something was said, one could find it in a book and as quickly as texts were written a cover would be required and not just something strong and durable something beautifully crafted that would last hundreds perhaps thousands of years. Hence, the art of binding a book.
What is a book?
In practical terms, a book is a handwritten or printed work on sheets of paper fastened or bound together within a cover. This form of technology by far had the greatest impact on the world in spreading knowledge and connecting communities and tribes.
How did it start?
We aren’t exactly sure, however, the oldest book we do have is The Gold Book of the Etruscan, 600 BC. The entire book is. 6 sheets bound, and made of 24-carat gold. The oldest printed book is Gutenberg’s Bible – 15c AD. Prior to this are the Nag Hammadi Library – 3 c AD, The Garima Gospels – 4 c AD, St. Cuthbert Gospel – 7 c AD, The Book of Kells – 8 c AD. All the writings are of a Religious or Philosophical expression. All the books are either written or transcribed in Greek or Latin. It took cold and tireless hands of Christian Monks or Temple Priests to create these wonders. It is indeed a true act of will to write a book, ask any author.
What is the book-binding process?
There are many processes to binding a book, but for our purposes we will be using only three: Saddle Stitch, Coptic Stitch and Case Binding. There are usually a series of nine journals made, different sizes and development, using more extensive techniques in creating the cover. Practicing with different pulps for the signatures, along with different grades of leather and cloth on pressed bind-board. This takes time to learn in order to create a book that is practical and beautiful.
Those first venturing into book-binding will start by creating a Saddle Stitch Book. This is a very simple process and requires patience, time and clean hands. In this process, focus is on the paper and the stitching of the signatures. The cover is usually a simple handmade sheet of paper or just a piece of card-stock.
Creating a Coptic Stitch Journal requires using hand made paper for the signatures with a thick, tough flat leather sheet for the cover. The signatures will be bound using fine linen or silk threads. Hemp or a thick waxed linen will be used to bind the cover to the signatures.
Case Binding is very extensive in its approach. The entire book is covered with either leather or cloth. The cover techniques will vary from burning, metallurgy along with leather-craft tools, brass die casting stamps; some custom-made by our smithy, and used for gold, silver or copper leaf decorative. Lastly, in conjunction with the painting department, a short introduction into the lost art of fore-edge book painting for existing books.
Nine journals will be produced, the pace in which one moves will determine how long it takes to complete all nine. Creating nine books should give anyone time to grow accustom to all the hand tools and materials used, from stitching the signatures, experimenting with the different cover materials and techniques, practicing the making of end-bands, along with the use and care of spreading different glues. There is also the upkeep of the journals so that one can fill the canvas between the covers with creative and inspirational ideas and works or a lifetime.
What are books good for?
Apart from the exclusivity of the elite, books began to grow first within the church as a way to spread a holy and religious endeavor, handwritten by monks under arduous conditions, the word of the Gospels. Pagans may have called these books’ propaganda. In many ways, books were the modern technology of the Middle Ages. Books reached their zenith during the Renascence what began to spread on a massive scale after Gutenberg’s invented the printing press. The first book printed was the Holy Bible; considered the most valuable book. Slowly the reading of books grew exponentially through the Reformation, Enlightenment and in our Modern and Post modern age. Today there are 130 million books, the longest, “Les Hommes de bonne volonté” – “Men of Good Will,” by Jules Romains, 7,892 pages. Published in France in 1932. The shortest book published, “For Sale: Baby Shoes, Never Worn,” by Ernest Hemingway, year unknown, early 1900s. This is often a popular read for discussions in many book clubs. The largest book is “Te Kuthodaw Pagoda,” 1860, a total of 729 marble slabs inscribed with the teachings of Buddhist. Each page is made of marble, gilded in gold. It stands 3’high and 5’wide. The smallest book is printed on a silicon microchip and must be read, with difficulty, using a microscope, Title: “Teeny Ted from Turnip Town,” by Malcolm Chaplin, 2012, 30 pages. The most expensive book today is, “The Codex Leicester,” “Codex Hammer,” by Leonardo da Vinci, 1507-1510, his handwritten journals. Its current worth is $50 Million and owned by Bill Gates. Finally, the estimated total of books written, published throughout history is 130 Million books. If one were to read them all 12 hours a day, it would take roughly 360,000 years.
Author!
For many authors, writing a book is like giving birth, so much of yourself goes into what you wish to say. Absorbing the information, allowing it all to digest, then by analyzing what you have taken in then finding a way to express your thoughts on paper. What you know, have learned and now wish to share. Pulling that all together, how do you wish to illustrate not only the inside of the book, but what is the reader’s first impression of your book? Does it catch the reader’s attention according to the genre? Is the purpose of the book itself to be admired? If it is to be read, will it make it through the first reading without falling apart? Is it a comfort to hold?
The Art and The Skill
Over the years, Book-Binding has developed more than 250 times. It has been created completely by handmade, replicated by the press, to absolute machine with the aid of the computer.
At the PEACH we wish to preserve the work with natural substances, understanding the skills, beauty and the quality of the materials. How to work and manipulated the properties through the create process in order to develop something of quality, as well as, the protective and preservation attributes that makes what is written, drawn or collected inside important and treasured. Like anything worthwhile, Book-Binding requires above all else practice and patience, for this is the cover that will cast a reflection of one’s own life. What does your book look like?
There is an idiom that says, ‘never judge a book by its cover,’ that is, unless the book is about the cover. It is difficult to talk about Book-Binding without also including the skills of writing and printing, which is why we have a Book Festival the 4th weekend in April, Shakespeare’s Birthday. There are of course demonstrations and lectures covering Book-Binding, Printing and Writing. Of course there is tea and coffee, biscuits and Fibonacci cookies, poetry, short story writing, and reading, the making of a small journal and the printing and design of the word. It is a wonderful and fun weekend for lovers of the printed word read from a book.
Also, this year we have a contest, the creating of a Shakespeare Garden. There is still time to get your entry in, see the website for the list of flora and the size of the area for the planting and care.
Our Book Binder Shop, Vidar & Seshat, is run by Lars Carlson. His work is truly beautiful, he also lectures on the history of the book and conducts a number of introduction classes throughout the year based on skill and temperament.
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Candlewicking
Beeswax candlewicking is one of my favorite activities at the PEACH. The subtle flame of the beeswax candle burns soft and gentle creating a warm atmosphere. The scent of honey has a calming effect, walking into a room lit by beeswax candles is an act of reverence.
A chandlery was the office held in a large wealthy medieval household, he was responsible for wax and candle. It was also the room in which the candles were kept, The Office was often next to the kitchen. The office keeper was called a chandler. However, by the 1700s a chandler was known as holding the profession of a candle maker, and one who sells tallow and wax for soap. He was also a dealer or trader in supplies and specialized provisions.
The process of candlewicking is very simple, almost ritualistic. The solid bricks of the wax are broken down in a variety of ways, the chunks are then placed carefully in a double-boiler; which must be at least 2 feet tall and 8 to 10 inches wide. Meanwhile, as the beeswax slowly melts cotton wicks are prepared and stretched on wicking-sticks. These sticks are long and flat; 12 inches by 1.5 inches. Four notches are carved on the sides at the top spaced about 1.5 inches apart. The wick is measured based on the length of the candle you wish to make. A wick of 13 inches for two 6 inch candles, 25 inches for two 12 inch candles and 5 inches for two birthday candles. The wick is draped over the stick and secured in the notches. Each side is measured twice before the wick is cut from the bolt of string. While some people work on preparing the wicks others are setting up the drying racks in an orderly fashion.
Once the wax has melted to a fine yet, thick liquid gold. The wicks on the stick are dipped one at a time until the cotton absorbs the wax, about 20 second. The sticks are then lifted out of the wax, the covered wicks meet the air the wax immediately begins harden. While the wax is still supple the wicker pinches the bottom pieces of the wick pulling it down firmly stretching the wick so that it is taut and straight. This is a very important step, this action will determine how upright the candle will stand once the dipping process is complete. The wicks will then sit on the racks for at least few minutes. The wicks are then examined to make sure they are straight with no gaps or bubbles. The dipping of the candle now ready for a veil layering. This process requites a certain amount of concentration and focus, It’s important that the wax now coats the candle evenly and that a candle already dipped doesn’t melt back in the pot. Each dip of the candles in the wax requires at lease a minute to dry. When doing this with small children it is wise to have then form a line, dip their candle, then walk around the room and back in line. This ensure the candle has enough time to dry and keeps the little ones focused. This is important for the wax is hot, and can burn, but not tragically. When the candle is at the thickness desired there is one final dip. Only adults should do this step. The candle is removed from the stick and very carefully, by hand, the candles will be dipped covering the very top of the wick. This final dip is a bit slower to create an even and smooth candle. If there are flaws or some mistake has been made along the way it is not necessary to throw the candle out, both the wax and wick can be removed and used again. Even candles that are decades old can be dusted or washed and dried and melted again. Nothing, no energy of the bees is ever wasted.
Throughout this whole process there begins to develop a deep appreciation for the treasures given to us from the bees. Their only requirement is to leave them to their work, provide a clean and natural world so that they may continue to share their gifts. What transpires between the bees, the flowers is noting short of a true act of magic.
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[TBA]
Cordwaining
In the age of machines and one size fits all, Cordwaining is a skill few people seem to need or even know existed. For someone to fashion a shoe that fits your feet perfectly is something few people have ever experienced since the modern age of mass production.
There are few Cordwainers in the world, however, we have one of them. Cordwaining is not a dying skill, but more of an exclusive art. A Bespoke Cordwainer can spend several months making the right pair of quality shoes, using the best leather for your feet. A good quality pair of dress shoes made by a Bespoke Cordwainer will last a lifetime, and the Cordwainer will stand by any and all repairs. Those who have a pair of shoes custom-made become almost addicted, refusing ever to wear a store bought pair again.
Our Master Cordwainer, River Segel, who runs St Crispin’s Shoe Shop and Leather Goods, spends his days making custom shoes for his clients. His specialties are Chukkas, Penny Loafers, Saddles and Leather Flips. He also has Saturday classes for children and adults who wish to learn the craft. All students begin with a standard Canvas and Turn-shoe, graduating to Moccasins, and a fine Leather Flip. He will also work with the felters who wish to make baby and toddler shoes. He and our Book-Binder, Lars Carlson, both make wallets, satchels and wristbands as well. Those wishing to intern with either craftsman will start with the basics of Leather-Making, care and quality. Later moving towards producing Chukkas and Loafers, hoping one day to creating a Bespoke Dress Shoe.
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Culinary Arts
Who doesn’t like to eat a good home cooked meal?
One of the most wonderful places inside the PEACH Center is our 2 incredible, fully functional, glorious kitchens. They were both designed in the late 1940s and early 1950s for Betty Crocker. Although there have been a number of significant appliance updates, all the wood cupboard and closets are the original and are still in great shape. Our resident Master Carpenter, Hosea “Hutch” Kristofferson, has restored everything that has shown excessive wear and tear, he continues to do an incredible job, the cabinets both in function and color look seamless.
The windows in the cabinet area and booths look out into our fabulous gardens. There is a short walk to the chicken’s coop where our farmers collect fresh eggs every morning, and from spring through autumn we have, as a visiting resident, our milking cow, Milky. We now have three resident ducks and what looks to be a very protective rabbit family living in the brie patch. When a fox or coyote pass through one of the rabbits, we think it’s the father, dart past the coop and across the field as a warning to all trouble is lurking. Of course, seven months out of the year we have a resident Tomten who watches over the property and is a professional diplomat.
Within the center we have our own chef, Paul de Blanc, he creates not only the most delicious meals you have ever tasted, they are also simply incredible to look at and far too beautiful to eat, but in the end, we must. We are in desperate need a photographer to capture his beautiful and exquisite work.
We offer weekly and two 4 hour bi-monthly cooking classes that create what can only be titled as, simply scrumptious. Yes, you get to take the meal you make home, so make sure to bring an empty dish and warming bag, or if you wish to donate your creations and efforts to the residents who live on campus this is always greatly appreciated.
Day one will be sitting down with Paul and begin setting the menu, purchasing ingredients and preparing parts of the dish in advance. Day two will be cooking and talking about what to serve with the meal or desert: grain, vegetables, wine, coffee and teas.
Members will learn how to make a baked Alaska, put together a beef Wellington, prepare and cook fresh fish and how to make homemade ice cream and custard. Time is set aside to learn ow to brew beer and make wine, the perfect lasagna and the art of the crêpe. All the rules for measuring, toasting, boiling, steaming, baking, sautéing, etc… will be addressed and experienced. Those who participate in the club will have a final family dinner in the dinning room. Music, wine, dinner and desert along with a troupe of our theatre actors who will perform a short play, something lighthearted and food related. Last year, one of the theatre members wrote the play entitled, “Maestro Rossini Takes the Knife and Fork on the Road.”
The working part of the kitchens includes 3 giant double door refrigerators, 2 giant freezers, 2 industrial stoves; with 6 burners each, 3 large gas ovens, a warming oven, an industrial dishwasher, 2 12qt. Hobart mixers and, yes, a Nuova Simonelli Aurelia Cappuccino maker recently donated by the Capone Family. The kitchen is loaded with stainless-steel tables, it is absolutely perfect for cooking on a massive scale.
All the café foods are prepared in the smaller kitchen which has its own stove, over, refrigerator, freezer, a utility sink and 2 stainless-steel prep tables. Some of our past club members now work in the café creating their own creations and delights. The larger kitchen is where the Baking Club meets.
The big kitchen is also where our elves bake all our co-op, café, festival, holiday cookies and desserts. We hope those who join the Baker’s Club will also become an elf.
This year we will be offering a Friday Fish Fry and Sunday Spaghetti Dinner created by folks from the local community churches. Check Community Announcements.
If cooking is what you love, or if you just want to know how to make a particular dish, keep an eye on our Baker’s Club Calendar for details.
There are fees for the food (hair net included) and we ask for a small donation to keep our facilities going. It is also expected of everyone to help keep all the food prep areas clean and sanitary at the end of each class.
Bon appétit!
“To eat is a necessity, cooking, however, is an art.” -Anon
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Fiddle, Penny-Whistle, Concertina, Irish Harp, Drums and Banjo
Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast. To soften rocks, or bend the knotted oak.” -William Congreve
No matte your age or disposition, there is nothing like a little toe tapping to a happy, familiar melody. Folk music, music of the volk, has been around since the cave man first sang to the setting sun and cursed the weather overhead. Of course, we have evolved over time from tribal music to the greatest music ever written, the Symphony and the Opera. However, in the Practical Arts, our focus is mostly on the solo player or small combo. Fiddle, drum, banjo, tambourine, the guitar and a variety of horns, wheel-fiddle, whistles and flutes call us to war, to the solemnity of a funerals march, to every festival and celebrations throughout the seasons, to the soulful and uplifting songs in church liturgy. All of these live within every one of us, and it should, for every planet in the cosmos has a song. Music is indeed the highest form of unites. It is what binds us to each other in thought and in memory.
In the days gone by, from tribes to the settlers, music spoke our people, some heard a greater calling and decided this vocation was for them. When they happen upon a like-minded individual, no words were necessary, but a conversation of song and melody would begin without haste. Beethoven once said his music was an attempt at recreating the human voice, there was nothing purer or higher in the heavens than a human being expressing himself and herself in song.
At the PEACH, we are lucky to have so many wonderful and talented musicians. We encourage everyone to take up an instrument and let your heart sing. To us music is second nature, it is part of every event in throughout history, the calling of the Gods from Mount Olympus, to hand clapping, foot stomping, carol weaseling, the sophistication of a chamber ensemble, and individual soloist, to the style and grace brought on by a simple waltz. Every instrument expresses the delights of rhythm and melody, the bodhrán, fiddle, guitar, accordion, concertina, the piano and all manner of wind, brass and strings are there for anyone to learn and play along with others. Music wafts through the windows and floats on a breeze. When lost, it calls your home. When happy, it fills your heart with warmth and joy.
“Without music, life would be a mistake.” -Nietzsche
There is no set schedule for most of the folk instruments. Who ever is in town or has the time will spontaneously start to play on campus, join in if you wish, it is our tradition. If you have questions for any of the players, they will gladly answer them after one more refrain.
If you wish to study, to get the basics of the folk instrument, keep an eye on the schedule, or simply listen carefully and follow the music, you’ll know who is in town, and they are always eager to help you learn a turn or twirl. See the Weekly Newsletter and Music Scheduled for Performances and Contacts.
Voice
Throughout the year there are rehearsals for singing traditional period pieces, both concert instruments and voices in conjunctions with the theatre arts, festivals, celebrations and our lecture series. See the Weekly Newsletter and Music Scheduled for Performances and Rehearsals.
Instrumental
There are, of course, weekly lessons and rehearsals in the classical realm offered for stings, winds, brass, percussion, piano, guitar and voice. Check with our music director for the full schedule.
Music For Musicians
Paper Bluegrass Fest – The 3rd Friday and Saturday in August is the Bluegrass Fest. Music, BBQ, Distilled Spirits and a Weekend of Papermaking at the Printer’s House. All proceeds go to support our roaming musicians.
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Fabrics & Fibers They say, clothes maketh the man, whether a toga or a tunic fashions come and go, but since we have shed most of our great ancestral fur the practical need to cover-up spans the breath and depth of time and runs across almost all cultures. Hats, mitten, scarfs, a vest, baby booties, Chantilly lace draping her shoulders, the curtain fluttering gently listening to the whispers of an open window, and that one doily on grandmother’s dressing table require the developing skills of working with fibers and fabrics. The stitch, the knot, the weaving and tapestry, spinning, the delicate piercing of just the right needle requires patience, focus and skill. Needle-point. The loom.
Quilting Club 
This is a gathering for people who love quilting. Meetings are once a week for 5 hours, more time can be set aside, day or night, if the room is available. We also have a resident fabric artist, she will visit from time to time to aid in the sewing and discuss American Settler’s Quilting techniques. She will also help with assembling designs people are interested in creating for the coming year. Lastly, she will arrange a trip to one of the quality quilting conventions in the country. Fun time!
There is a special closet behind the little kitchen just for the Quilters, we encourage members to bring in or donate fine beautiful fabrics or scraps to share in the making of quilts. There is no fee to be a member in the club, but we ask that at least 2 quilts are produced each year, one given to the local shelter and one to put up for auction or sale in the gallery. Proceeds go to help maintain the PEACH center facilities. All other quilts will be given to new moms and to members with the most donated hours.
Each week we will have delicious baked goods for sale made from the loving hands of the volunteers in the Baking Club, good coffee and lovely teas will also be available.
We ask those in the club to spend some time cleaning up scraps and making sure they have scoured the floor for straight pins. As a reminder, the room is also shared by the Mother’s and Toddler’s Club, so this task is very important.
We have also attached to the Quilting Club, The Spinners. There is no requirement to spin with the spinners, truly loads of fun. During the spring, we visit the sheep at the farm up the road and help with the shearing for the wool. We get a discount by the pound for our help. We take the raw wool to the maintenance area and wash it many many many many many times and over the summer we let it dry and wash it a few more times. When autumn arrives, a few of our resident knitters card and spin the wool into gold (j/k).
Quilting is also one of our community classes. Some wool is dyed with natural plant colors, some is also used by our knitting residents, however, the bulk is sold at the Co-Op. We do the same with the butterfly silk. The business of wool and silk is hard work, but very rewarding. This area of the Center could provide a great opportunity for a budding entrepreneur who would be interested in expanding our textile ideas.
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“Measure twice, cut once, tie up all loose ends and leave no scraps behind!” -Anon
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Folk Arts Toy Making, Mask Making, Treasure Chest, Bird Houses, Potholders, Reed Braiding, Wood Carving, Story Telling, Silhouette, Watercolors, Angel Wisps, Doll-making.
All of these Folk Arts are created during the Celebrations, Festivals and Artist’s Fairs. Tools and simple instructions are provided, and those who do not finish are welcomed to take their work home or make plans to complete them in the Studio.
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Home Life
The History of the Traditional European Family is directed by Marie Cassel. This educational opportunity meets four times a year, for 2-hours each, and is held on the Solstice and Equinox. Members of the community attend a series of lectures covering the history of the European Family. Starting with a brief summary of hunter and gatherer societies, Marie briefly cover the roles of each member in the tribe: generational connections, life, work, death, and each member’s importance in the community. Through research, the course covers all the historical information available, as well as, the tools needed to do a variety of research. After the presentation, each group contributes what they believe worked then and now, and what worked then, but would no longer work now. Topics and lists are made. The transition from primitive man through the Greco-Roman period is then presented. There is a little homework assignment digging through each society, tribe, ethnic group and their traditions. Upon return to the Autumn, each member reads their research to the group. Presentations should be written in summary form; a few paragraphs is sufficient. However, any greater research completed will be added to the Home Life Book for that particular year, and kept in the library for others to read. This template will be the routine for each class.
Lecture 1, The Greco-Roman Family. Lecture 2, Life of the European Pagan Family. Lecture 3, The European Christian Family. Lecture 4, The European and American Modern Family; how we mend what has been lost.
Much like a Book Club some members will go on to continue group discussions and research throughout the year, there is a room in the library for these discussions and research, If you would like to be part of this group speak to Marie concerning scheduling. Others are also welcomed to dive into researching their own family history. Marie can help with everything you need to start your investigation. At the end of each cycle there is a dinner or pot luck with a planned menu based on food through the research gathered. Some have written plays based on a particular period and presented them, other’s have brought stories or letters that were from a particular timeline and read during the dinner. Still, others have brought music and poetry to share, You may bring a guest, the dinner is informal and a lovely time for all. The faculties are open every Wednesdays for family discussions, resources and informational help.
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Mosaic
How do you make rocks, stones and the mineral world come alive and create a lasting legacy? The intricacies and attention to detail when creating a mosaic is an act of pure meditation. There’s a repetitive aspect to this art yet, at the same time, it requires an immense amount of concentration, especially, since we work with natural stones and glass when creating a mosaic. One needs to have a keen eye and the temperament that holds a great deal of patience, and time, once a mosaic is competed it will last under the right conditions, forever. Every element of this art requires one to be involved along with directly engaged with the mineral world and with light. Many mosaics have been produced as a work of art on the floor and well as the walls and ceilings. This speaks to the home, and the family, being held together by art. The topics vary and over time the subject has changed, but not the techniques, until the modern chemical era. Still, most artists in the field stick with the tried and true biding agents, along with the natural stones and glass methods. A mosaic of this caliber today can take 3 to 5 years to complete, depending on time and access to the correct stones.
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Paper & Tissue Arts
Paper comes from a world of skills, art and busy hands. From heavy pulp to delicate embroidery paper and the airy lightness of colored tissue paper stars. The art of papermaking has a long history, becoming commercially viable after Gutenberg’s Printing Press. Though it was the élite and priestly classes who learned to read first, over time reading has become common place and paper has a long and important history pushing that effort forward. However, with the age of technology, paper has fallen into decline and is finding its place once again among the beautiful folk arts.
Our Printmaker, Master Printer, Albert Kirchner, knows everything there is to know about the craft and its history. During the months of July and August, the Printer’s House, garage and yard turn into a papermaking extravaganza. All manner of fibers and rag that have been collected over the seasons; some soaking in a mixture of strange concoctions for years, will be pressed and dried for use in the making of building, tearing, painting, and printing of the paper. Every sheet is like a beautiful snowflake, truly unique. During the 2nd weekend of August the road in front of his house turns into a bluegrass, BBQ, Papermaking Festival. Paper masks, hats and the occasional paper dress can be spotted sitting under a tree.
The paper made during this time is also used in the printing of our seasonal newsletter. Work is submitted and printed on a press similar to Gutenberg. Our book binder, Lars Carlson, then stitches each copy together and gives every book a unique gilding, they are simply works of art. There is a total of 13 copies made, one is kept in the library and the other 12 are sold through PEACH Publishing.
Papermaking also falls into our Practical & Folk Arts Club Program, time is set aside for those wishing to be part of the fun and experience of papermaking, printing and publishing. It’s not only just a good time, some very important and valuable skills can be had as well..
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Silk, Qiviut & Wool-Spinning
Baa, baa, black sheep, have you any wool? Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full! One for the master, and one for the dame, one for the little boy who lives down the lane.
Between Spring and Autumn, we keep a few sheep and goats on our property. Not only are they excellent grass mowers, they also create a wonderful addition to the garden at rest.
Every April we help the local shepherdess with her shearing, in exchange for our help she gives us one sack (20/25 rolls) of wool and any wool the buyers don’t care for, and we are willing to clean. We also take with us any sheep who have suffered a loss of a lamb or who is currently adopting a stray or one who is having difficulty living with the other sheep. We pick them up when we see the first tuffs of green grass or the crocuses bloom. Not only that, but we keep them with us through the big harvest and the blessing of the animals, St Francis Day. We then walk the sheep and cow back to the farm for their winter keep. The chickens, ducks, pheasants and goats stay all year round.
From Spring through Summer, the Fiber and Fabric Club help to wash and dry the wool until it is clean enough to dye at the end of Summer. Many of the plant dyes grow on the property and are gathered yearly. Once the wool is dyed and dried, the spinners take over. The same process holds for the silk washers and spinners. The wool is used for knitting, weaving and felting over the winter months and the silk is used for needlepoint and crocheting. Hanks, skeins or balls of wool and silk thread, as well as some of the best wooden needles and hooks made by our woodworking shop can be purchased at the co-op or during the Arkansan Fairs and Farmer’s Market.
Spinners start in late summer using what is left of last year’s wool. The Spinning is done on the patio or in the screen-house. Most of the knitting takes place in the Mom and Tot’s Room, along with the Quilters. However, knitters can sit anywhere they wish on campus and feel free to knit and purl to their heart’s content. For some it is an act of meditation, for others a time to gather with a cup of tea and chat about this thing or that. For any musicians roaming, or otherwise the knitters are an instant audience. Those who knit, crochet or sew also love to teach the old-fashioned way, so grab a couple of sticks, a hook or needle and thread and someone will set you on the path or show you a new and fancy stitch.
{TBC]
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Tree-Tapping
One would like to think that when man discovered fire, the first condiment he made was syrup. The boiling of tree sap into a thick, sweet, delicious candied mixture is truly one of nature’s delights. Some might say the sap or resin is the lifeblood of a tree kissed by the sun. We are blessed with Maples, Birches and a number of different types of Conifers and Oaks. Our property also butt up against a large national forest. However, we only tap our trees, but we do help the forest service thin out the natural lands and help remove any invasive woody plants, like buckthorn. In exchange, we keep what we clear and use it all in the wood shop, for fencing, folk crafts and fire.
With the help of our Community Botanist, Dr. Karel Linnaeus, he chooses which trees to tap and which to lay rest. Part of our land is for restoration and part for perma-forestry.
Trees
I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth’s sweet flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain
Poems are made by fools like me
But only God can make a tree.
— Joyce Kilmer
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Living Pan-European and American Cultural and Heritage Community Center
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EMAIL: peachcommunity yahoo.com
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quicklink
PEACH COMMUNITY 