Artisan Gallery

Alluring Jewelry by Shelley Alvin of Grand Marais, Minnesota
Handmade Jewelry

"I love the great outdoors and the beauty of nature. "Alluring" is inspired by natural materials, simple life forms, peace and tranquility."

Amy Akers Passolt
Hand Etched Wood Earrings & Ornaments

An avid outdoors lover and adventurer, Amy collects wood and seeds for her one of a kind creations.

Brenda Hansen
Felted, Tapestry and Beaded Purses, Knit Baby Clothes

While husband Mark, the youngest of the Hansen brothers, is busy making wreaths and garland, Brenda is busy being a creative wizard designing, sewing and knitting. That is, of course, when she's not doting over the Hansen grandchildren!

Cedar Ridge Design
Knit Headbands, Christmas Stockings

Educated at the University of Minnesota in mathematics and psychology, Carole Meidinger is a self taught designer and knitter. She has been creating custom Christmas stockings for people all over the world since the early 1980's. Her love of color and texture combined with a desire to offer useful and beautiful headwear led her into making wool headbands with unusual design elements and interesting yarn combinations. She resides in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, with her husband and two cats, but takes special delight in spending time with her three grandchildren.

Dave Hansen
Minnesota Nature Photographs

The middle Hansen brother, Dave, is an extremely well respected photographer, but he's humble. He hasn't given us a photo to include here. Come to the tree farm to see some of his photos, or visit the University of Minnesota, Bell Museum to see an exhibit of his photography that opens Saturday, January 9, 2010.

John Hagerman
101 Ways to Keep the Spirit of Santa Alive

Inspired by a mother who always made the holidays magical, John loves Christmas and has made it his mission in life to keep the spirit of Santa alive for "kids" from 1 to 92.

Kelly Dupre
Linoleum Block Prints, Cards, Magnets

Kelly is a well known Minnesota artist and writer. If you've visited Grand Marais, you've probably seen the beautiful public art mosaics many schoolchildren have made under Kelly's creative guidance. Plus, she has enhanced lives young and old as an outdoor educator, naturalist, camp director, science and special education teacher, and class coordinator at Northouse Folk School. "The natural environment and the art of indigenous cultures continue to be my greatest influences. Joy, symbolism, and a dash of humor are what I strive for in my art and writing."

Laser Works
Wood Ornaments

Sandy Hercke creates delicately cut wood holiday, sport, and nature ornaments.

Lightstone®
AromaCones^TM & FireCone^TM Aromatic Pinecone Firestarters

One of a kind, real, natural pine cones richly coated by hand with scent-infused wax. AromaCones (TM) are naturally gorgeous and fragrant. One FireCone (TM), scented Clove & Balsam with pure essential oils, is all you need to easily start a fire in your fireplace, woodstove, outdoor firepit, chiminea or even a campfire. No kindling or newspaper is necessary and the wax completely burns up in the heat of the fire. Both are ecologically sustainable, fragrant beauties for your home or as gifts.

LillyJoe
Birch Note Cards, Package Tags

A fourth-generation member of a forest products family, Katie Rajala Thomey puts slices of birch veneer to work as distinctive note cards and package tags. LillyJoe is based in Deer River and St. Anthony Park, Minnesota.

Most writing utensils work well on LillyJoe cards.

Linda Mix Yates
Mosaic Art Plaques, Frames, Mirrors, Ornaments

Technically, the type of mosaic Linda creates is "picasiette", a folk art tradition, that loosely translates to "crazy plate stealer". But, in modern context speaks more of the use of broken pottery. Linda embraces the challenge of creating new, spectacular and meaningful works of art out of the obsolete and mundane.

Lora Johnson
The Night I Met Santa Children's Book

Amazingly, Lora, a Mother of five, found time to write a touching children's Christmas book. Her creativity was inspired by the frustrating behavior of her stong willed four year old and the lessons the whole family learned one Christmas. Christine Ann Edwards, a University of Minnesota Fine Arts graduate, created the lovely illustrations.

Luna-Sea Beadworks by Valerie McFarlane
Natural Stone Necklaces, Earrings, Bracelets

Mother Nature does all the work - I just get to play with the stones, discovering new and interesting combinations of color and texture.

It is endlessly fascinating!

I hope you have discovered beautiful stones that you have never seen before, as well as old favorites, in my work.

Minnesota Mittens
Mittens, Scarves, Hats

These are winter warmers with a mission. Items are cut and assembled at the Winona ORC, a sheltered workshop for people with disabilities. Each item is made from wool & cotton fabric or yarn, which remains after sweater parts are cut. Sweaters for your hands, neck & head, that also warm the hearts of people in need.

Momento - Adornment For The Home
Lavender Sachet Ornaments & Pillows

The Momento Collection is inspired by Robin Getsug Taple. Robin creatively flourishes in mixed media collage: combining old and new, merging image, text, layering, and incorporating fine fabrics as well as a bold use of color. Her beautiful creations reflect 20 years in the field of design, being a 2004 McKnight Foundation Recipient and 2008 Artist in Residence with Kulture Klub Collaborative. Momento's Mission is to add beauty to our everyday lives with treasured memories that touch our hearts.

Papa's Hands
Wooden Bird Houses, Trees, Ornaments

Jeff Liljestrand of Grand Marais, Minnesota uses recycled wood to create fun, colorful bird houses, natural and forest green trees, and painted wooden ornaments. The name of his business was inspired by his grandchildren. "What have Papa's hands created today?"

Paul Moeller Pottery
Mugs, Bowls, Vases

Paul's functional, handmade pottery mixes Japanese and American folk traditions with an appreciation for contemporary shapes. Each piece is lovely and idiosyncrasies and imperfections are celebrated as evidence of human vulnerabilities and foibles.

Petina's Collectibles
Whimsical Santas, Angels, Ornaments

JoAnn Schuna's profession is representing the work of other artists. But, she is a true artist herself. Her magical holiday decorations and ornaments are inspired by her imagination and created from recycled fabrics, found items and her amazing ability to assemble and paint creatively.

Rhinestone Farm
Wild Rice

A two-generation farm located in Northern Minnesota, Rhinestone Farm grows, harvests, and locally processes delicious and healthy wild rice.

Scott Carvings
Wood Carvings, Ornaments

Russ Scott and Lynne Medgaarden carve, and carve, and carve. The result is wonderful traditional, and sometimes not so traditional, but very fun, wood carvings that they then paint, and paint, and paint. This year Russ has designed new Santa's based on antique post cards from the late 1800's and early 1900's. His new motto is: "We create family heirlooms that descendants will fight over for generations."

Sherri Lynn's
Soups, Dips, Bread Mixes, Candles

Delicious, winter tummy warmers. And, all home made with natural ingredients. Fill you home with the aromas of freshly and easily made soups, breads and dips.

Tiglio Arts
Polymer Clay Ornaments

Heather Tinkham utilizes a wide range of materials, including polymer and ceramic clay, fiber, metal, stone, and glass to create her ornaments. Her work has grown out of a passion for pushing the boundaries of traditional approaches to express emotions that move her. "If I have managed to share even the smallest bit of the wonder that I feel in the works and places of astounding natural beauty that inspire me, I will consider my work successful."

Timbersweet^TM
Maple Syrup, Combo Gift Boxes

Timbersweet is the product of a century-old sugaring operation in the Sugar Hills area south of Grand Rapids, Minnesota. Pure, particularly delicious Timbersweet is light- to medium-amber syrup that has drawn fans from around the world.

The North American Maple Syrup Council annually conducts an International Competion. Timbersweet Light Amber Syrup won Third Place in 2007. Winning top awards more than one year is very unusual. Yet, this year, Timbersweet won Second Place!

Twigs & More
Forest Crayons, Pencils, Sets

It's almost like magic. John Wyant gathers small tree branches and somehow inserts colorful crayons and pencil leads. Fun art tools for children of all ages.

upcyclePhD
Recycled Fiber Hats, Scarves, Accessories

Jan Hagerman starts with old sweaters, felts (fulls) them, deconstructs them, and then redesigns and remakes the fibers into wonderful accessories. The felting process makes the creations denser, warmer, nearly impervious to wind, and much more water resistant than the original sweaters. Wa-la. New, unique, wearable accessories. "I love the idea of taking old sweaters and clothes that would probably have ended up as rags or in the trash, and not just recycling, but upcycling them into something fresh and new."

Vicki Olson
Glass Ornaments

A Southern California transplant, Vicki Olson stays warm in her Minneapolis kiln-formed glass garage studio. Drawn to the spontaneous and volatile nature of glass and the accompanying challenge that, with one unplanned move, the artist could be forced in a different direction, Vicki creates unique, funky and functional glass art. Watch Vicki create a superstar fused glass picture frame on HGTV "That's Clever", Tuesday, January 19, 2010 7:30 AM.