Archive for April, 2008

Rex and Roy are Making Friends

Posted April 17th, 2008 by Sue Steiner

Hitching Post Mural Hitching Post Mural

Today I worked on getting the Lehman’s sign painted on the Hitching Post mural.  I had some very nice folks stop in and chat with me today.  I am posting a picture of some of Rex and Roy’s new friends!  I apologize because I did not write down their names and so far the horses aren’t talking!  I asked the folks if i could post this photo here and they said yes. They said they would check in to see it.  So here ya go!  :)  I hope you had a fun visit today.  Thanks for stopping by! 

Next time I’ll get more than just the horse’s names right.  I promise!   

 To see previous blog posts of the mural ‘work in progress’ pics click here.   

Be sure to mark your calendars for Sat. July 12 for Lehman’s Local Artisans Festival.  I will be there along with other local artists doing demonstrations in the store!   

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Hitching Post Mural Update

Posted April 16th, 2008 by Sue Steiner

 

I am making some progress on the hitching post mural.  As you can see there is an actual hitching post in the mural!  Tomorrow I better paint a lead rope tied TO the hitching post so Rex and Roy stay put!

 I am enjoying the visitors in the Buggy Barn at the store.  I’ve already taken several people’s photos in front of the mural.  Today I photographed families visiting from Sweden and Switzerland as well as several states in the US.    So if you’re in the store stop in the Buggy Barn and say hi! 

To see previous blog enteries of mural work in progress pics click here       

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A Bedtime Story - Of Bantam Eggs and Kings

Posted April 10th, 2008 by Wade

Great Aunt Daisy kept Guineas. This was back in the 1970s, and up until this spring, most everything I knew about domesticated fowl- I learned from her guineas. The finer points of guinea behavior I picked up more recently from watching the “Jurassic Park” movies with my son.
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How to Shop Green (part 2)

Posted April 10th, 2008 by Glenda Ervin

This is the second of a three-part series on how to live an environmentally responsible lifestyle. This article will help you make eco-friendly choices as you shop.

Buy as little plastic as possible. Corn plastic, which is a biodedegradable substance, is now being used for everything from travel mugs to ball point pens. Every time you buy something made out of plastic, think about the 2,000 years it will take that item to biodegrade.

Buy local. There are so many reasons to do this. When you stop at a local farm market for corn or peaches, chances are that produce was very recently picked, retaining valuable nutrients (not to mention flavor). Not only does the food taste better, it is better for you. In addition, the fossil fuels used to transport that product from Florida to Ohio, for example, are almost non-existent when you buy local.
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Training in Toughness: Lessons from a Rooster

Posted April 10th, 2008 by Judith Costello

Why do I have holes in so many of my pants? Right near the knees, my blue jRoostereans gap open. I’m sure the neighbors wonder if I’m trying to be in style with the local teenagers or if I save up old jeans to wear the barnyard. But the truth is, it is a nasty rooster who is ruining my wardrobe.

He’s a big white fellow who waits until my arms are full or I have turned my back. Then he puffs out his chest and jumps at my legs with his claws fully extended. I usually give him a swift kick or shove him away.

Most farmers would have turned him into soup long ago. But the problem is my daughter loves this bird. She raised him from egg to adulthood. And he was such a sweet fluff ball after he hatched from the incubator! How is it he became such a passive-aggressive rooster? We’ve had other roosters and none of them have attacked the hand that feeds them.
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A Green Solution to Drying Clothes

Posted April 10th, 2008 by BeeSmith

When my partner Tony and I gave ourselves a challenge to live as consciously and as sustainably as possible, I figured we would ace it in twelve months. Now, nearly four months into our experiment, I am beginning to have some doubts. It’s just that there is so much to consider once you do start to consider things. Take laundry for instance.

Laundry is an essential task. You can be careful not to overdo the cleanliness obsession. I have access to a good ecological laundry detergent that is effective at 40 degrees. You can make sure you always do full loads. But then there is the drying process.
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Roy and Rex, Amish Work Horse Mural

Posted April 8th, 2008 by Sue Steiner

Hitching Post Photo Op

I had lots of visitors today in the Buggy Barn at Lehman’s while working on the Hitching Post Mural.  Once I am done with the horse portion of this mural I will paint a Lehman’s sign and a hitching post.  My hope is that people will stand by the Hitching Post to take pictures and that is just what happened today!  Stan, Sandy, Paul and Brenda from Zanesville, Ohio have already been in the store twice to see the progress on the mural and they even asked if I would take their photo.  Don’t they look great?? What fun this was for me and I think they were enjoying it too!  They said they’d be back when I was finished for another picture. 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Sue Steiner

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Equine and Amish Art in a Big Way

Posted April 1st, 2008 by Sue Steiner

April 1 Progress Long ViewClose up of April 1 Progress   

This is ‘big’ equine art as in 7.5 feet tall to the tip of the back horse’s ears!  I am getting the sense of the statement Roy and Rex will make as people enter into Lehman’s and the Buggy Barn.   They are big, bold and powerful looking!   And kind.  If anyone knows drafts, they know these big horses are very often very gentle and sweet-natured.  I am enjoying hearing the stories from the ‘English’ or non Amish people in the store who remember having work horses on either their grandparents farm or their own farm growing up.  I know that world seems far removed from most of the kids in our society now so I am glad to have a part in keeping those memories alive.   

 preliminary draft for mural    chalk drawing for mural

I also am enjoying hearing how original art touches people.  I am hearing people tell of how they enjoy creating themselves and they appreciate seeing something others create that is original and hand-painted.   As you can see in the one photo I freehand sketched the rough draft of the harness on the wall with chalk and then refine and define with the paint as I go along.  I freehand drew the horses on the wall with chalk too in the very beginning which is quite different than drawing on paper because when I drew on the wall I could not see the whole picture.  What I did was measure out marks where I thought the tip of the ears should go to, or the crest of the neck or the point of the shoulder to give me some parameters to work within.   I made out quite an elaborate draft with points and measurements before I started to get the right porortions but really once I got to drawing it became easier to use my eyes and not the measuring stick!  I would NOT make a very good carpenter because I draw much better than I measure! 

If the talk of original art and creating things of beauty is of interest to you, mark your calenders for Sat. July 12 so you can come to the Kidron store and see myself and other local artists at work at Lehman’s Local Artisan Festival.  I plan on bringing my equine and amish themed art in watercolors, acrylics and pastels.  We also will have other artists demonstrating their art such as potters, rug hookers, fiber artists, wood carvers, painters and musicians.  Check back often or visit www.kidronarts.com for individual artist’s profiles.  To see previous work in progress blog posts click on my name under the title of this entry.  To see more of my artwork go to www.suesteiner.com 

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