December Shows

In the aftermath of the pandemic shutdown, we've been very busy doing shows all over the area.  Most of our regular shows are back, but we've added some new ones as well.  Below is a list of the shows we have coming up through the end of the season. 

December 2-3, 10:00-5:00, December 4, 9:00-4:00

Holiday Craft Sale

SIU Student Center

Carbondale, IL

www.facebook.com/events/262914265806667

December 5, 11:00-3:00

Holiday Gift Fair

Buckwater Brewing

213 E. Main

Carbondale, IL

www.facebook.com/events/1281797049001985

December 19, 11:00-3:00

Holiday Gift Fair

Buckwater Brewing

213 E. Main

Carbondale, IL

www.facebook.com/events/585589509440235

December 19, 6:00-10:00

Christmas at the Castle

Castle Ridge Wedding and Conference Center

1750 Tee Lane

Centralia, IL

www.facebook.com/events/1000027250557652?active_tab=about

Vuture Fest - Makanda, Illinois 2021

 Woo hoo!  We're getting ready for Vulture Fest in Makanda this weekend.  This is a fantastic show, probably the most unusual you will ever see.  Lots of different people, lots of different vendors,bands, the Rainmaker's Garden, and, of course, vultures.

 

 We look forward to this show every year, and really missed it last year.  Not sure where we'll be set up (they don't tell us until we get there), but wherever it is is sure to be a great spot.  Do look for us, stop by and say hello.  We can't wait to show you all the new things we've been working on and all the new ideas we've had in the last two years.  The weather looks to be near-perfect, so we can hardly wait.

Wine and Art Festival at Rend Lake - 2021

 We've got a great show coming up this weekend.  The Wine and Art Festival at Rend Lake is at the Rend Lake Visitor's Center in Whittington, Il.  We've done this show almost since the beginning, and we look forward to it every year.  This is a fantastic opportunity for wine lovers to try wines from wineries they might otherwise not be exposed to.

 

Wineries attending this year will be:

Hidden Lake Winery

The Pour Winery

Walker's Bluff

Vahling Winery

Pheasant Hollow Winery

Niemerg Family Winery

Lincoln Heritage Winery

Lasata Winery

Fox Creek Winery

 Castle Finn Winery.

 

We will be set up near the entrance, so look for us as you come in.   We'll be looking for you.

Cutting Bees Out of a House

 We did another cut-out this weekend.  A house on the other side of Cedar Lake from us had a colony of honeybees in a wall, and they are no longer there.  

This was an old house, the owner's childhood home.  They truly don't make them like this anymore, with solid oak studs and wooden sheeting on the walls.  The bees had gotten in at an inner corner where two walls met.  

We were lucky in that they were confined to one section of wall.  We were a little less lucky in that the best way to get to them was through the wall of a tiny closet, with barely enough room to work.  I removed a section of drywall and the hardwood sheeting underneath.  We vacuumed up as many bees as we could, then carefully pried and scraped out the comb.  Most of this was honey comb, nearly two buckets full. The rest was brood comb, still enough to fill two medium boxes when rubber-banded into the frames.

After removing all the comb and scraping the walls down to remove as much wax as possible, we kept vacuuming bees to get as many of them as we could.  We left the site overnight, then returned the next morning to vacuum up the remaining bees, and to fill the place where they had entered the house with steel wool.  This will keep any other swarms of bees from entering until the owner can make repairs and fill the gap properly.

If you or someone you know has bees in a building where they shouldn't be, give us a call at 618-713-4101, and we'll happy to help you get them out.  Remember, never spray honeybees in a structure, as that will leave all the beeswax and honey in the wall, drawing insects and rodents with all the attendant problems they bring.  Let us remove the bees and their stores, getting rid of the problem for good.

Shows...2021...Maybe...?

 One of the casualties of Covid was the craft and art show.  Pretty much all of the events were cancelled for last year, with the hope that they would come back this year.  At this point we are looking forward to returning to our regular round of shows in 2021, but, of course, things are still unpredictable enough that no one has definitely declared their event to be happening.  

So below is a list of events that we hope we will be at, based on the schedule we had on 2019.  All dates are tentative, and even once an event is announced, the situation could change as the facts of the pandemic change.

Here, then, is a very tentative list of shows for this year.  We will keep you updated as we get more information.  Feel free to contact us if you have concrete information about any of these shows.  We are really hoping to see you all sometime this season.

 

 

Pride Fest

               Carbondale

              Date TBA

Join us at this local celebration of a national event.

DuQuoin State Fair

               DuQuoin, IL

               Sept. 4-5 (?)

We had a great time at our first appearance at the fair last year, we’re looking forward to an even better time this year.

Murphysboro Apple Festival

               Murphysboro, IL

               Sept. 17-18

A truly Southern Illinois event, a celebration of one of our best local products.

DuBoisCenter Fall Festival

               DuBois Center, Dubois, IL

               Oct. 3

We didn’t know what to expect last year, but even with a rain-curtailed afternoon, we had a great show and met some wonderful people.  Can’t wait to try it again this year.

Wine and Art Festival at Rend Lake

                Artisan’s Center, Whittington, IL

               Oct. 9-10

The grand-daddy of wine and art shows in the area.  We’ve been doing this for over fifteen years.

              

VultureFest

               Makanda, IL

               Oct.  16-17

Vultures. Makanda.  Us.  This is always a fun time, and 2918 was the biggest any of us have seen.  You won’t want to miss this show.

    

Heritage Festival

               Southeastern Illinois College, Harrisburg, IL

               Nov.  6-7

A return to the eastern part of Southern Illinois, we look forward to seeing you all in our usual corner of the gym.

AutumnFest

                John A. Logan College, Carterville, IL

               Nov.  13-14

What a great show!  We love doing this one, as it has the largest group of the best artists and craftspeople in Southern Illinois.

Arts and Crafts Extravaganza

               Show-Me Center, Cape Girardeau, MO

               Nov.  20-21

 Our only out-of-state show last year, a chance to meet a whole new group of people.

Holiday Craft Sale

               SIU Student Center, Carbondale, IL

               Dec. 2-4

The grand finale, a three-day blowout in the student center at SIU.  We’re always amazed at how this show gets bigger and better every year.

 

Spring Art Market at Carbondale Community Arts

Our first show in over a year! I wonder if I still know how to do it?

There is a nice selection of my pieces, as well as work from a number of other wonderful artists, available at the Spring Art Market at Carbondale Community Arts, 304 West Walnut, Carbondale, IL. Starts tomorrow and runs through May 14. Just in time for Mother's Day!

 

 

Win Some, Lose Some

 Went to collect the two swarm traps last night that had hits.  The first one had a nice sized colony in it.  The second one, however, which had a lot of activity in it two days ago, had about three bees in it when I got to it.  

Ah, well.  The season is young.  I expect a lot more swarms to come.

One Day, Three Swarms, and More

 Swarm Season 2021 has started with a vengeance.

I put swarm traps out nearly a month ago, early, I know, but I wasn't expecting such an extended cool spell well into April.  Once things finally started warming up, the bees started coming out.

On my way home yesterday morning, I was checking swarm traps for hits.  The first two were still empty, bu the third on had a nice colony with a lot of activity in it.  I took out my phone to get a picture of it, and saw I had a message from a woman with a swarm in a tree by her rental cabin.  The cabin was a bit away, so I hopped in the truck (I keep swarm trapping equipment with me in the truck) and headed her way.

 As you can see, it's a very pretty bunch of bees.  they were about head height in a small tree.  If I had set the hive box on the ground, the bees would have had a lot of branches between them and the box.  So I borrowed the trash can from off the porch, stacked some empty hive bodies on top of it, and placed my hive assembly atop that.  The cardboard is to keep the bees from falling far from the hive when I shake the branch.

Once i had my set-up in place, it was a simple matter to bend the branch with the swarm on it down till it was touching the top of the hive..  The bees immediately started exploring this new space, and in a few minutes, most of the colony was in the hive.  I set the cover on top, leaving a gap for a bit to allow more of the bees to get in, while discouraging the bees already in the box from leaving.

 

When most of the bees were in the hive, I slid the lid over to close the top, being careful not to squash any bees in the process.  There were still some bees outside, but because of the cardboard, they were near enough to find their way in easily. 

I like to leave the hive in place until after sundown to allow all the foragers to return and join their sisters.  Otherwise, I lose a substantial number of bees, and those bees come back with nowhere to call home, to the general consternation of the land owner.  It was quite windy while I was doing all this, and after I had the swarm hived, I was afraid the wind would knock the whole pile over, so I put a ratchet strap around the hive, set one hive body on the ground and placed the hive on top of that. The remaining hive bodies went back in the truck, and the garbage can went back on the porch.

After I got home, I got another call about bees in a structure.  I hopped back in the truck and went over to take a look.  This looks like a huge colony, as well as another colony in another building (!).  The building managers are coordinating things, so I hope to have a report on a cut-out soon.  

Meanwhile, the swarm trap at Ruth's sister-in-law's had a swarm in it!  

One day, three swarms, and a potential cut-out.  And the season's just started.

Kentucky Coffeetree Twelve Bottle Wine Rack

One more special order found a new home today. This rack holds twelve wine bottles, and is made from Kentucky Coffeetree, a wood I've only found from one local source. The pictures don't do it justice, if I say so myself.

 

Viking Chairs

I've finally caught up on my special orders. I'll keep posting pictures so you can see what I've been up to.

Here is one of a set of three Viking chairs (camp chairs, bog chairs) I made out of slabs of local cedar. They turned out very nicely, and the new owner said they were the most comfortable of all the outdoor chairs they had.

 

 Do you need some for your favorite outdoor area? Drop me a message.

 

Walnut Cutting Board and Salt Cellar

 

A special order I finished which was delivered this weekend. My first cutting board with a juice groove, and a salt cellar, both made from black walnut. I love the grain on the cutting board.

 

Pro tip: if you don't want to scratch up a beautiful cutting board, cut only on the one side and use the other side as a serving board.