THE ART OF METAL & STONE
Lake Superior Rock Creations
Mark and Jan make each item from beginning to end, letting the stark beauty of the rock show through. Their products are truly Unique – Naturally!
Wendy Hightshoe
Many times when she sees a piece of metal she sees it as a part of a bird or an animal, and other times it is just an object that intrigues her. Her items not only make her feel good as she’s creating them, they also make people smile and laugh when they see them.
Doug LaBorde, DL Smithing
He uses a coal forge at his shop at home and also for demonstrating to heat the steel for forging on the anvil or other appropriate tools (vise, cone mandrel, swages, punches, drifts). Doug does electric welding on some pieces, forge welding for others. He tries to stay with the older methods of fabrication but there are places where electric welding is far more cost effective but it is still a hand process, just a little more modern. His demonstration smithy uses no electricity, just coal and hand power and he has made many tools he uses himself.
Julie Beal – Earth, Wick & Fire
Earth, Wick & Fire is a small, family-based business located in Excelsior, Minnesota. The hand-crafted stone oil candles are made out of natural slate that varies in beautiful mineral colors and textures. During the creation of each candle, the characteristics and design are controlled by the composition of the slate and the artist.
With the use of a small rock hammer and the controlled pressure of the strike to the slate, the design simply starts with that first strike to see how it will fracture. The break inspires them to continue to move around the piece, in a fashion of interest and inspiration, allowing the slate to come alive. There are never two candles exactly alike.
Earth, Wick & Fire has created a maintenance free, low profile candle that you will enjoy for years, just add oil. The fiberglass wicks do not burn away and each copper wick holder is hand crafted by them. The reservoir holds 1 oz. of lamp oil and will burn for approximately 5 hours before putting itself out. The addition of essential oils to the reservoir will add a wonderful aroma to your space. Citronella oil may be used outdoors.
It brings them much joy in creating their candles and they hope that you will enjoy your hand-crafted candle for years to come and share them with your family and friends as a unique gift that will hold memories.
Kevin & Deb Pietrzak – Kevin’s Candle Creations
Kevin and Deb Pietrzak dba Kevin’s Candle Creations, have been creating beautiful handmade firestone candles for six years. The candles are made from a natural slate stone. There is no shellac or any other finish on the stone because Kevin feels (as do his customers) that the natural slate stone is beautiful just the way it is.
He creates one to four-wick firestone candles. Each candle comes with a wick, a glass insert, and a funnel. The candles can be filled with either lamp oil, or if you prefer, tiki oil to enjoy outside and help keep the bugs away. Each candle has its own unique character. Kevin and Deb enjoy creating the candles. “It is a true pleasure for us when we meet new people everywhere we go, and they come up and inquire about the candles and remark how beautiful they are.”