I first fell in love with art when I was in high school. My art teachers and mother were constantly encouraging me and feeding my creative mind. By my senior year I knew art was the direction I wanted to go in. I attended art college in Atlanta Georgia where I learned all sorts of mediums from pencils, to paint, photography and sculpture. The exposure through that experience was something that stretched my creativity. It wasn’t until 5 years ago that I saw a piece of art with rope in it. I was immediately intrigued and wondered how I could create a picture entirely out of this material. It was a lot of trial and error in the beginning of the process for sure, but I felt I was on to something as I improved. I am continuing to refine my skill with each piece and I sincerely enjoy creating an art form that is uniquely mine. I get most of my inspiration from the things I see while hiking, hunting and fishing. The outdoors is my favorite place to be.
Camden Clay Co.
Posted by Austin Smith & filed under .
Austin P. Smith is the artist and maker behind Camden Clay Company. He studied ceramics at Bennington College from 2003-2007, and has maintained a studio in Maine ever since. He is inspired by his home state’s coastal landscape and waterways, which is especially evident in his Chart Series. Austin primarily enjoys working in slip cast porcelain, and has studied with such highly regarded slip casting artists as Andy Brayman, Tom Spleth, and Steven Heinemann. He has been both a student, and teachers’ assistant at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, and a resident at Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts.
Water’s rhythmic power of erosion and deposition forms the ever-changing coastal landscape of my home state, Maine. This is not unlike my approach to clay as a medium. In slip-casting, there is a constant give and take of material – carving away and filling in. As the saying goes, “You could not step twice into the same river.” Neither can you cast the same mold twice. Each time I pour liquified porcelain clay into a plaster mold it alters the mold, and each time I pull a piece out of a mold I learn something new, thus altering my knowledge and perception as an artist.
Snow Hill Lighting
Posted by William Fiegener & filed under .
As seen on Maine Cabin Masters, season 7, episode 6 and featured in Downeast magazine in their on line store.
What is retirement???
From Marblehead, MA to sailing to the Bahamas, to taking up residency in Maine – Bill’s journey is nothing short of amazing! Once settled in Maine he began a fascinating collection of old telephone/electrical insulators that are sometimes found at yard sales, flea markets and on line collectors around the USA. The collection grew until that day when the kitchen renovation was nearly complete except for lighting over the island. The rest is history.
All lighting is custom made-to-order with a selection of colored glass, fixture finishes, and design options.
Bulbs used are: LED 7 watt (60 watt incandescent equivalent) 3000k, 500 lumens, soft white and fully dimmable. Its an E12 base modified candle-opera bulb. Useful life span of 22+ years.
Clay N Wire
Posted by Kelly Luger & filed under .
I started making jewelry as a way to reconnect with myself after becoming a mom. I was at home with my little girl all day and needed to have something that didn’t have to do with being a mom. My little girl is no longer so little, and my escape into jewelry has become a full fledge business. I have a strong passion for art, design and color. I also dabble in graphic design, oil painting, and watercolor. I love exploring New England and spending time in my garden tending my flowers which you can often see in displays at events which my daughter loves to attend as my helper.
Sheepscot Harbor Yarns
Posted by Linda Perry & filed under .
Linda Perry has spent much of her life creating unique hand crafted wearable art, distinctly apart from anything mass produced or made by machinery. She works quietly, taking inspiration from nature and the ever changing skies and harbor waters surrounding her tiny studio on Davis Island.
With diverse knitwear pattern designs featured in national shows and magazines, including recent spreads in Vogue Knitting, Interweave Knits, Piece Work magazine, Spin Off magazine and Victoria magazine, Perry has sold her work online exclusively for the past few years. This summer her shop was opened in downtown Damariscotta.
Her background as a fiber artist goes back decades. “Knitting has always been my passion” Perry says. She has degrees in Textiles and Fashion Design, and taught at the college level for over forty years. Natural dyeing has been the focus for about a decade and a kaleidoscope of colors created with natural dyes has evolved. Dyeing with indigo has been a special adventure. Being surrounded by the nature of the water and sky, it has created her love of indigo dyeing or “blue magic” as she calls it. Perry spends many happy hours outdoors dipping yarn into kettle pools of the natural dye, always surprised at what might emerge as the wool hits the air, oxidizes and the colors magically change.
The clear sea air and the calm harbor waters are an inspirational spark for creativity, where life and knitting are easy…just as it should be.
Norway Candle Co.
Posted by Ryan Lorrain & filed under .
I’m Ryan Lorrain, a lifelong Mainer who loves all things our great state represents and our way of life. As an avid candle and scent enthusiast, I created Norway Candle Co. in the fall of 2019 along my wife Becky. We produce handcrafted small batch soy candles and wax melts in the western Maine town of Norway.
Our products are sustainably made and non-toxic, using soy wax made from the oil of soybeans; along with premium essential oil blended fragrances that are phthalate-free. All of our candles consist of lead-free wicks to ensure they do not emit any toxins into the air and are not harmful to your health. We do this to ensure a clean and environmentally friendly burn, safe for you and your family.
Knit Fit LLC
Posted by Michelle McCann & filed under .
Our mission at Knit Fit is to support knitters who want to be more active. As seen on television as well as the Vogue knitting app, we at Knit Fit are dedicated knitters who are committed to keeping fit as we knit. We enjoy knitting as we walk and “getting fit one stitch at a time”.
Knit Fit has everything you need to take your yarn for a walk. We have designed a unique Knit Fit bag to accompany you as well as an instructional guide with sample patterns and tips to get you started on the right foot. Let Knit Fit show you how to enjoy your knitting and keep up your fitness at the same time!
See what WABI TV learned when they visited with us here.
The Faithful Hound
Posted by Kirsten Flakne & filed under .
I attended the University of the Arts in Philadelphia where I earned a BFA in crafts. After school, I spent many years as a sculptor, building museum and trade show exhibits and illustrating on the side. I am a self taught printmaker and started The Faithful Hound with an interested in combining my love for painting and illustration with my training in crafts. I spend much of my free time walking in the garden and hiking in the white mountains. I like to create stories about what the insects and other creatures are getting up to when they think no one is watching. As a result, much of my work has a strong narrative quality.
Caron Collectables
Posted by Helen Caron & filed under .
Caron Collectables is a small business I started where I personally handcraft quality detailed miniature figurines. Crafted with pride from different colors of polymer clay not paint each one is handmade one at a time so you are guaranteed an original.
Casco Bay Glassworks
Posted by Ben And Molly Coombs & filed under .
Fine handblown glass, made fresh daily.
Studio, gallery, lessons, and demonstrations.
Casco Bay Glassworks was opened originally as the Portland Glassblowing Studio in Portland’s Munjoy Hill Neighborhood. After 13+ years at that location we moved to our current spot on Route 1 in Woolwich, ME. All of the glass is made on location by owners Ben and Molly Coombs. We create objects from small ornaments up to large sculptures and everything in between. Our Gallery hours fluctuate during the year and can be checked by looking on Facebook, or sending us an email.