U-Turn

Many of our pieces start with BFF's closing shop and opening our sketchbooks in the sky where the possibilities and idea potential see no fundamental or factual grounding. No kiln is too small. No glass is too big. No mold is too complicated. It is too soon to know how or what from this trip will find its way into our work but here are some of the things we noticed and wanted to bookmark for a rainy day in the studio. 

Our adventure began from our home on the Washington State Peninsula. We winterized our home and studio. Packed the truck with everything needed to live on the road for a few months and headed to one of our favorite places to teach- Penland School of Crafts in North Carolina.  

 Missoula, Montana 

Our first stop was Missoula, Montana. We randomly met a friend of a friend. A local business owner caught on that we were glass folks and knew of our old friend Edison. Miss you Edison, we will always remember our favorite VD was with you and our family at CIrcle 6 Studios. Missoula was the perfect stop after ten hours of driving to fill up on some of the heaviest, load bearing, glutinous, food coma inducing gluten-free buffalo mac and cheese at Thomas Meagher Bar. Woke up for a quick jog around town and while searching for Catalyst Cafe, a Missoula staple, tripped. Add road rash to road trip. 

Dickinson, North Dakota 

When you leave Missoula and you’re on the 90 headed east and want to average another ten hours on the road, Dickinson, North Dakota ends up being your stop. If for no other reason than a meal and a bed. The evening took us on a refreshing walk in the rain in which our gps felt equally as lost and out of place. Not always a bad thing to get lost or at least feel lost with your best friend. 

 Stillwater, Minnesota 

Day three of driving double digit hours puts us in Stillwater, Minnesota. A really great town located along the St. Croix River. We caught up with our longtime friend Eoin Breadon and enjoyed an endless rewarding stream of celtic storytelling. 

Wisconsin From Stillwater, 

After skipping a day of driving we traveled to Madison, Wisconsin. It was Tuesday, we were on the hunt for mid west tacos. We stopped in at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. It was great to see two studios full of fully engaged students working with glass in the hot shop as well as lined up to bend neon tubing.  Thank you Matt and Tom for that shining inspirational light into the future of glass as well as welcoming us. They recommended a taco shop across from the glass studio but the sushi at Oishi is the place worth mentioning. Madison is a great lakeside city to walk with a beautiful downtown capital area.

 Louisville, Kentucky 

Our next stop is Louisville, Kentucky. While there, we visited Flame Run Glass Studio for warm hugs from good friends and an updated tour of the gallery and hot shop. Thank you Tiffany, Eric and Brook. That night, bourbon was in the air as we watched Hurricane Helene roll in, we opted for an early night in. Morning after, we looked down at the freeway from the 15th floor of our hotel, it looked like a slip/slide. Flooded with water and filled with cars not really in control. Seemed like a great idea to join them

Flipping a coin between Knoxville and Asheville for a night before heading to Penland campus. 

We decided on Knoxville, Tennessee completely unaware that Asheville was flooding. The drive to Knoxville ended up taking five hours longer than expected. This was some of the worst rain conditions we can recall ever driving in. Complete white out with flooding on the road. Endless accidents, trees and trash paved our way. We found a place with a very helpful staff downtown to stay called The Oliver. It was an easy walk to Old City where we visited Pretentious Glass and enjoyed GR beer while watching a live demo in the hot shop. Thank you Alex and Will, thank you brewers for all the gluten reduced beer options. What was meant to be a one-night stop turned into three as we waited out Hurricane Helene. One eye glued to the weather channel we slowly learned about the catastrophic damage throughout North Carolina. It wasn’t until late into our second day when we heard from campus. Thankfully everyone at Penland was safe but classes were canceled due to the damage both on campus as well as in the area. Displaced but kept from harm, we packed up and prepared for our journey back to the Peninsula. 

 St. Louis, Missouri 

Our 'first' stop was St. Louis, where we stumbled on the Angad Arts Hotel. Each floor of the hotel was tinted one color, red, green, yellow or blue for mood. The hotel hosted impressive exhibitions, site specific installations, and a rooftop bar offering 360 degree views of the city as well as the iconic Gateway Arch. Shocking to us, a serious food city. Some of the most thoughtful food and innovative drinks of our trip were here at the recently opened Expat Restaurant. St. Louis left us with a promise to return. 

Sioux City, Iowa 

Head northwest ish ten hours and you can end up in Sioux City, Iowa. Our accommodations were pretty exceptional. The hotel encompassed a full blown cabin hunting theme which included rock walls in the lobby and a large stuffed bear, animal horns and eagles. Lots of eagles. Our room featured matching towel hooks, hanger and toilet paper holder made to appear as if they were made from sticks as well as black/red flannel plaid wallpaper.  Beyond this, we found gold on this trip to Iowa. The last place in town open and still serving food was The Elk Diner. Thoughtful menu and a friendly staff especially considering we walked in as they were wiping things down. We met a local old timer who shared his past and told about memory and loss. In recounting the loss of his wife “Memories are all you have, and you’ll never know when you’ll need them.” Thanks Mike(?). Interesting how the universe leads you exactly where you need to be at the right time to hear what you need to hear. 

Mother Nature reminds us again she is undefeated. 

Sturgis, South Dakota 

Sturgis, South Dakota? Why not? It’s another adult Disney of sorts. Funny places, funny signs. The Knuckle Saloon is one of the main drag bars acting as a ‘museum’ filled with old photos and memorabilia from past gatherings. The berkeeps have a heavy pitching arm and the streak bites can be addictive. 

Missoula 2.0 

Our final stop on our way home was Missoula. Different mind set. As we strolled towards Main St en route to the previously described Mac/cheese it almost felt like leftovers. We walked by and then back to and into Pangea, a new favorite.  We enjoyed a complex salad and a tasty gin cocktail. It was a nice way to wind down after our travels and this marked our last night checking the sheets for bed bugs in a hotel for a while. 

In conclusion, we returned to where we began, physically at least. It's uncertain what or how this time will impact our work. Even if we just need our very own tree branch towel hanger in the bathroom or we go through a phase of making homemade GF mac/cheese. It's important we were fortunate to realize early on that our trip to Penland was more than a means to a destination.

 Life is a process, enjoy your process. Or change it up. Thank you for reading.