"There's only one corner of the universe you can be certain
of improving and that's your own self. So you have to begin there,
not outside, not on other people."
- Aldous Huxley
Boxes of Pear Variation Gourds On Sale!
Boxes and boxes of Pear Variation gourds
are on sale now! These fantastic pear shapes of various
sizes are excellent for bowls, containers, masks, and so
much more! With so many box combinations and so many ideas,
take advantage of the additional savings while the sale
lasts!
The Pear Variation Boxes are on
sale now until May 24, 2004!Order
now!
View Our
Entire Catalog!
Save time & money! Order gourds by the box! Learn a new gourd
craft, order one of our craft-specific gourd kits complete with
instructions!
"Thank you so very much for the Gourdzette.
I was so thrilled when I opened my mail... I have enjoyed this
newsletter more than you know and it makes me want to go to the
basement and start painting!"
- Maggie, Butler, MO
"I love your newsletter, particularly
the tips and ideas!..."
- Sioux G.
New to Gourd Crafting?
Get started now with the most popular gourd crafting kit on the
market!
CORRECTION:
Back on April 1, 2004, The Gourdzette ran Bonnie Gibson's "Put
a Lid on It" article and mistakenly left off the web address
links to view more of Bonnie's work. Here are the links:http://arizonagourds.homestead.com/
(Gourd Art) http://albums.photo.epson.com/j/AlbumList?u=1655407
(Photo Albums)
We sincerely apologize to Bonnie Gibson and to our Readers for
the oversight. To revisit Bonnie's article, click
here!
ANNOUNCEMENTS
(1) SAVE UP TO 40% ON
PRE-BOXED GOURDS!
Save money and buy your Welburn gourds without having to meet
a minimum order! Pre-boxed gourds save time and money and that
savings is passed right into your wallet! Order your Welburn gourds
by the box and still get top quality gourds at discount prices!
To place your order, call toll free: (877) 420-2613. Or visit
the Shop section of the California Gourds web site. Click
Here! California Gourds is the official mail order company
for Welburn gourds!
(2) LEARN
TO PAINT GOURDS LIKE A PRO!
Whether you would like to hone your skills or learn from scratch,
Professional Painting Techniques is the Gourd Art Class for you!
Aurelia Conway is the author of several gourd painting books.
The class is offered both Thursday and Friday before the festival
with different projects each day! This is your one time chance
this year to learn from the Master Painter herself! Register
now!
(3) ENROLL
TODAY FOR JUNE FESTIVAL CLASSES!
That's right! The moment you've been waiting for! With 24 classes
to choose from, you are sure to find a class or two that you just
have to take! Each class has limited space and some are only offered
once per year! So be sure to get the class you want before it's
full. Word to the wise: these classes do fill-up. In fact, some
already have been filled, so Register
now!
(4) ADVANCE
TICKETS FOR THE JUNE GOURD ART FESTIVAL ON SALE NOW!
Purchase your tickets to this year's International Gourd Art Festival
to be held at the Welburn Gourd Farm on June 26 & 27, 2004!
By purchsing your tickets in advance you will save up to 15% off
the "At The Gate" price. Click
here for more info!
(5) STOCK UP ON GOURD CRAFTING SUPPLIES!
The 2004 gourd crop is in! Stock up on all of your gourd crafting
supplies! And California Gourds is the one-stop shop for all of
the latest tools, dyes, pastes, and books. If you've been putting
off getting that Detail Master, now is the perfect time to treat
yourself! Order
Now!
(6)CAN'T
FIND WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR?
Send us an e-mail and let us know what your gourding needs are!
Your suggestions could be the next great deal on pre-boxed gourds!
Your needs are our business! E-mail us today!
(7)ADDRESS
BOOK UPDATE
It's time to update your address books with the e-mails for Welburn
Gourd Farm and California Gourds! To get information on Custom
Orders or to contact Welburn Gourd Farm directly,
send e-mails to sales@cagourds.com.
To give product suggestions, inquire about an online or phone
order (other than Custom Orders) or to contact California Gourds
directly please send e-mails to sales@californiagourds.com.
(8)HOW CAN
WE SERVE YOU BETTER? California Gourds is dedicated to bringing you the best
gourds, products and service possible! Please let us know how
we can serve you better. What would you like to see changed or
improved on: web site? newsletter? products or services? Send
us an e-mail!
FEATURE
ARTICLE
Deer Antler/Gourd Wall
Hanging
by Cara Hollingsworth
Step
One: Start with artificial antlers. Take a Minwax stain pen,
Early American shade and stain the antler. Rub soft cloth over
the antlers to buff the stain. Let this dry for a couple of
days.
Step Two: Wash and dry a round gourd that will sit well on
the antlers. Draw a line to divide the gourd. I use a fat rubber
band stretched around to get a good line. Mark with pencil.
Step Three: Take a knife to start a slit where the line has
been drawn. This will be the start for the jigsaw
to cut the gourd in half. If you do not have a jigsaw, just
follow the line with a knife. Clean out the inside of the gourd.
Step Four: Now, measure ½”down from rim. Start
marking around rim ½”down and across. This will
be for the holes to be drilled for the pine needle stitching.
When marks are made, take the drill bit of the Dremel tool and
drill holes. You can also use an awl if you don’t have
other tools. Wash off the pencil marks when finished drilling.
Step
Five: Now, cut about 6’ of twine to stitch the pine needles
with. If you have a needle big enough for the twine, use that.
If you do not have a needle, which I never do, put a piece of
tape twisted on the end of twine to keep it from fraying and
it is easy to put through holes. Take two pine needles and place
them against the gourd where the first hole to be stitched is.
Wrap the twine through hole and around the set of pine needles.
Tie a knot on the inside of the gourd to tighten the pine needles
in place. Get two more pine needles and do the same thing, wrapping
the twine around the rim and the pine needles. Keep adding all
the way around. Stop adding pine needles when you get to the
last hole, but continue looping the twine with the leftover
pine needles ends. When the last of pine needles is wrapped,
just bury the last couple of inches of twine into the pine needles.
Step
Six: Spray antlers and gourd with a clear enamel and let dry.
Then set the gourd bowl inside the antlers and it is ready to
hang on the wall to hold potpourri, change, doo dad stuff, washclothes,
etc.
Thank you, Cara, for your project submission! Cara is the President
South Carolina Gourd Society. To see more of Cara's work or
to see her in person, be sure to go to the 1st Annual South
Carolina Gourd Gathering in Santee SC. For more info, click
here or contact Cara Hollingsworth, President of SCGS at
(864) 233-4951. The show is the weekend May 7-9, 2004.
If you have an article submission for The Gourdzette, we would
love to hear from you! Please send article or idea for an article
to editor@gourdzette.com.
CALENDAR
OF EVENTS
May 7-9, 2004
- The 1st Annual South Carolina Gourd Gathering in Santee SC.
For more info, click
here or contact Cara Hollingsworth, President of SCGS at (864)
233-4951.
May 14-16, 2004
- Kentucky Gourd Show May 21-23, 2004
- The second Gourd Artists Gathering in Cherokee, North Carolina.
For more info, click
here.
June 5, 2004 -
a Great Gourd Gathering at the Condill Farm in Arthur, IL. For
details about attending or participating, contact Carolyn Ferdinand
at 618-457-7616 or TedFred@aol.com
June 26th - 27th, 2004 - 8th Annual
International Gourd Art Festival at the Welburn Gourd Farm. The
complete festival information is available online at www.GourdFestival.com
July 10th, 2004 - 5th Annual Shingletown
Gourd Festival. The proceeds once again are donated to the Northern
California Burn Foundation Summer Camp for burned children. Festival
will be held on Saturday July 10 in Shingletown, California from
9:00am until 4:00pm, just 28 miles east of Redding on Hwy 44 at
an elevation of 3500' out of the heat of the valley. Info: contactNorma
Bond at nbond@shasta.com 530-474-3178 or P.O. Box 44 Shingletown,
CA 96088.
October 9th & 10th, 2004 - The
Tennessee Volunteer Gourd Society Show will be help at the East
Ridge Community Center in Chattanooga, TN. Classes will start
on October 8th. For information contact Terry Cline at 7557 Hwy
156, South Pittsburg, TN 37380 or phone 1-423-837-6664. E-mails
may be sent to Ann Galbreath at annglbrth@aol.com
FESTIVAL
UPDATE
Now
with this newsletter update, you can keep informed of the exciting
happenings of the annual International
Gourd Art Festival, held every June at the Welburn Gourd Farm,
the October Gourd and Pumpkin Fest, held every October at the
farm, and any shows where you can find dried, craft-ready Welburn
gourds.
2nd Gourd Artist Gathering, Cherokee,
NC Next show - May
21-23, 2004
Yes, it's true! Welburn gourds will be available for purchase
at the Second Gourd Artists Gathering in Cherokee, North Carolina.
The Diaz family will be traveling across the country once again
to attend and support this fantastic weekend of gourding fun!
"We are so grateful to be able to go again this year! We
met a lot of great people last time, and we are looking forward
to seeing them and meeting new friends this time!", said
Lorenzo Diaz. For all of you gourders on the East coast, this
is a great opportunity to hand select your Welburn gourds and
save money on shipping! If you are going to the show and have
a specific gourd request, please email Lorenzo directly at lorenzo@californiagourds.com.
International Gourd Art Festival
Next show - June 26 & 27, 2004
Learn how to paint gourds like a pro! Class taught by the
well-known gourd craft author, Aurelia Conway!
Festival Classes
are Posted and are Nearly Full!
Some classes have already been filled! There
are still some great classes with spaces available! They
won't last long! Register today to join in on all the gourding
fun! To see the complete list of classes, click
here!
Advance Tickets are On Sale Now!
Purchase your tickets to attend the 8th Annual
International Gourd Art Festival in advance and save money!
To order your tickets, call 760-728-4271 Monday through
Friday, 9am - 3pm PST. To get the complete scoop on advance
tickets, click
here!
TELL
A FRIEND
SEE
YOU NEXT TIME!
ABOUT CALIFORNIA GOURDS
California Gourds is the nation's leading online retailer of Welburn
Gourds. Welburn gourds are sold throughout the continental United States,
Canada, Hawaii, Australia, and more.
Known for their thickness, and easiness to clean, a Welburn gourd is
the gourd of choice for musical instruments, basketry, woodburning,
staining, painting, beading and more. Over the years, the Welburn gourd
has taken on an identity all it's own. If you have not yet worked with
a Welburn gourd, now is the right time to give it a try!
This newsletter is a copyrighted publication of California Gourds.
For information on reprinting this publication in whole or in part,
please contact the Editor of The Gourdzette, at editor@gourdzette.com.
To make this your last edition of
the newsletter, click on the link listed below.
Step
One: Start with artificial antlers. Take a Minwax stain pen,
Early American shade and stain the antler. Rub soft cloth over
the antlers to buff the stain. Let this dry for a couple of
days.
Step
Five: Now, cut about 6’ of twine to stitch the pine needles
with. If you have a needle big enough for the twine, use that.
If you do not have a needle, which I never do, put a piece of
tape twisted on the end of twine to keep it from fraying and
it is easy to put through holes. Take two pine needles and place
them against the gourd where the first hole to be stitched is.
Wrap the twine through hole and around the set of pine needles.
Tie a knot on the inside of the gourd to tighten the pine needles
in place. Get two more pine needles and do the same thing, wrapping
the twine around the rim and the pine needles. Keep adding all
the way around. Stop adding pine needles when you get to the
last hole, but continue looping the twine with the leftover
pine needles ends. When the last of pine needles is wrapped,
just bury the last couple of inches of twine into the pine needles.
Step
Six: Spray antlers and gourd with a clear enamel and let dry.
Then set the gourd bowl inside the antlers and it is ready to
hang on the wall to hold potpourri, change, doo dad stuff, washclothes,
etc.
