For A List Of The Featured Artists 2007

For a List Of The Featured Artists 2006
 

Ann Jones-Shelton, a long time resident of Cathey’s Valley, has been an artisan all of her life.  She has been lovingly nicknamed “Granny Annie” and she ably fits the name as she makes her own soap, jams, salsa, bread, lamps, bowls, jewelry, musical instruments, and an awesome garden.  She says, “I’ve always thought I’d love to live back years ago when I’d have to live off the land.”

Jones has been growing gourds for over eight years.  She grows most of them in her backyard garden.  She used about 20 different kinds of gourds, the long-necked to the birdhouse.   She says, “Gourds have the same growing season as pumpkins.  I plant them in March and I stop watering in October.  They usually tell me.  The smaller gourds will be mature even before I stop watering.  The stems turn brown and that’s how you can tell when they’re ready.  After harvesting the gourd, comes the drying process.  I’ll just let them sit out in the air.   They get covered with fungus and mold.  Underneath this, it is beautiful. 

 Once I clean all that off, it’s mottled.  A lot of times I’ll clean that off and it will be so pretty and so mottles that I won’t want to carve on it at all.  I’ll make a basket or something out of it.”   After cleaning the gourds, Ann proceeds to decorate them.  A design is drawn on the surface of the gourd with a pencil.  Then she uses a wood burner to carve her intricate designs.  She then dyes them with leather dyes and later decorates them with elements of nature.  She says she loves working with them.  Sometimes she works up to 12 hours a day in her workshop.

Her wide variety of talents are a “not to be missed” part of your Art Trails weekend!