Follow the Yellow Brick Road

I was fortunate enough two years ago to receive

golden bricks that once formed a road actually danced and trod upon by just about every cast member from the

Wizard of Oz

except Dorothy herself. This gift was the result of a string of events involving the town of Chittenango (where Frank L. Baum, author of

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

, was born and raised), harsh North Country winters, and two dear friends of mine, Walter and Sunny.

You can read the full story by

clicking here

.

So what's a girl to do with 50 pounds of bricks with such an illustrious history? Find a place to inlay them, of course. Enter

Better Farm's Art Barn,

which in its former incarnation housed animals and utilized a gutter in the floor that nowadays has simply laid empty in such a way as to create a bit of a hazard for the inattentive wanderer in our gallery space.

It's a perfect trough to lay in some gold bricks; so that's what we did. All it took was a few bags of concrete mix, a little water, and some elbow grease.

Now, all visitors to our gallery space can walk on the same golden bricks the Scarecrow, Cowardly Lion, Tin Man, and oodles of Munchkins have danced, walked, and skipped on. A little magic, right here in Redwood.

Fresh Dill Bread: History and recipe

Ridiculously delicious dill bread. Photo/Holly Boname

By Kathryn Mollica and Rebekah Kosier

After planting in the garden all morning, the rains set in. So, we all headed indoors for an afternoon of baking bread and learning a little history about this universal food.

Bread History
The Hungarians have a saying: “Bread is older than man.” More than 12,000 years ago, man made flat bread by crushing wheat with a mortar and pestle before mixing the flour with water. The bread was baked in the sun. Later, dough would be baked on heated rocks or in the hot ashes of a fire. It was said the Egyptians created “starter” wild yeast from the air that was kept and mixed with other dough. There is also a legend of a slave forgetting about some dough; when he come back, the dough doubled in size. He tried to hide his mistake and started punching. The result? Lighter bread. Once barley and wheat found use, it started the Neolithic or "New Stone Age". The farming culture raised up. In Old Testament times, women were the bakers. Through the years millstones gained prominence for grinding wheat and the refinement of the flour made it possible to bake white bread. In that time, white bread was the most valuable bread of them all. Later on, the stone mill came into use. With Americans growing wheat, it was easier to make white bread. White bread no longer was just for the rich.
 
Making Bread
To make our dill bread (featuring fresh dill from the garden!), we followed a simple set of instructions. First, we mixed the yeast into a little bit of warm water. While we waited for the yeast to become active, we made the dough using 3 cups of bread flour and water. Then we added a mixture of thyme and sesame seeds to the dough for flavor. To save time, we used a processor to mix the dough instead of kneading it by hand. When we discovered there was a little too much dough for the processor, we divided it into three sections and used the processor on one section while kneading the other two sections in flour. When all three sections were ready, we combined them into one ball of dough and added some fresh dill we harvested from the herb garden by cutting the dill into fine sections and rolling the kneaded dough into it. After that, we coated the dough in olive oil before placing it in the oven to rise. After an hour in the oven (350 degrees), we took the dough out and sectioned it into two rolls and rolled both loaves in more olive oil before placing it back into the oven to rise a second time before baking it.



For additional bread history, click here.
 

How's it Growing?

Pea plants growing out of a piano.

The nice, heavy rainfall a few nights ago clicked everything into high gear in Better Farm's gardens. Yesterday, our Sustainability Education Program students worked tirelessly to get weeds out of the way, baby plants from the nursery into the garden, and got the hang of direct-planting some bean seeds. Today they're continuing their work clearing beds to make way for new transplants and seeds; meanwhile, existing plants have had a serious growth spurt! Here's what's going on on the back 40:

Strawberries take shape on our back deck.

Hubbard Squash, from seeds we collected from a plant grown last year

Broccoli

Beets!

Kale

Butter Crunch Lettuce

Imperial Artichoke

Beefsteak Tomato

Onions

Russet Potatoes

Spinach

Radishes

Raspberries

Reliance Dwarf Peach Tree

Manchurian Apricot

Chives

Dill

Harvesting lettuce.

Garlic

Don't worry—our farm stand opens tomorrow!

Introducing...

From left to right Jessie Coyle, Katie Mollica, Jacob Firman, and Rebekah Kosier build new garden gates in an afternoon activity led by Greg Basralian.

Our Better Farm Sustainability Education and betterArts Residency summer program season has begun! To kick things off, there's a brand-new cast and crew we are happy to introduce. 

• Vivian Hyelim Kim is a visual artist from Elmhurst, N.Y., who makes installations, paintings, photographs and art books. She is joining us through the betterArts Residency Program. Vivian has her MFA from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, N.Y., and her BFA from Herberger College of Fine Arts at Arizona State University in Tempe, Ariz. Her work has been shown extensively in solo and group exhibitions throughout the country; and Vivian has been part of many other artist residencies, community outreach projects, and received multiple awards for her amazing work. She is a writer and teacher who has made it her mission to educate people of all ages. While at Better Farm, Vivian is keeping a visual diary that will take its form of a wall installation. She takes walks in outdoor surroundings, picks one element of nature every day, and brings it into the studio. Vivian tapes or pins the element and writes down the dates below to record the passing of time. Another form of the visual diary is the form of photographs. She is taking pictures every day to record the passing of time, which will eventually be turned into a book. "Through the process of finding materials from nature and finding sources to photograph," Vivian told us, "I am finding the beauties in our everyday lives that we easily overlook. The works encourage us to carefully observe the shapes and forms of the elements of nature, and thereby see and appreciate the diversity in nature. I wish to continue this series of work during the residency and this is the reason I wish to work at the betterArts residency." To see samples of Vivian's work, visit www.vivianhyelimkim.com

• Rebekah Kosier is a student at Wells College in Aurora, N.Y. Growing up in a rural area in Alabama, she had the opportunity to witness the process of farming and to know many farmers; but she is interested in connecting sustainable farming practices to her interest in food sovereignty. "As a political science major at Wells College," she told us, "I want to work to transform the ways people can interact with political institutions. For me, that transformative interaction is through the use of food and farming. As major corporations gain more control over the process of food production, people lose their right to determine the sort of products that they consume, especially people who lack financial or physical access to fresh and locally produced food. I want to learn more about sustainable food production practices so I will be better equipped to encourage and help people begin to grow at least some of their own food."  Rebekah's central thesis? That if people can take back the production of food, then the political institutions prioritizing corporations like Monsanto at the expense of consumers will eventually be forced to change their practices. 

• Jacob Firman is an environmental studies major at Oberlin College in Ohio. Passionate about food justice, addressing climate change, and working to create a more sustainable and just world, he was an obvious fit for Better Farm's sustainability education program. "I have found that there is something very satisfying about doing things for yourself," he told us.  "Self-sufficiency is a more practical, empowering, and sustainable way of life. I want to move beyond my role as a consumer and be able to produce food for myself and teach others to do the same. What interests me the most is getting a grasp on organic small scale farming and gardening, and learning ways to grow in the offseason through things like aquaponics or greenhouses. I want to start backyard gardens, community gardens, green roofs, green walls, etc., because I believe everyone deserves access to fresh, healthy, tasty food.

• Kathryn Mollica is a Jersey Girl going to school at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, N.J. She's always had an interest in farming and gardening; but it was with her recent employment at Whole Foods in Madison, N.J., that opened her eyes to the benefits of organic farming and changed her world. "Last summer I planted my own garden at home," she told us, "and grew tomatoes, peppers, basil, and other herbs, with successful results. This year I plan to expand by adding peas, cucumbers, celery, dill, and more. This garden will, of course, be only organic."The more I've read and learned about the dangers of pesticides and genetically modified foods, the more concerned I have grown about the food I ingest. My dream is to one day own an organic farm that can produce and sell wholesome, organic food for a reasonable price and benefit countless consumers."  
• Jessica Coyle is a student at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry working on a bachelors of science in conservation. She hails from Syracuse, and was raised on a small cattle farm in Central New York. She chose Better Farm because she wants to broaden her knowledge of alternative building, green gardening, and wilderness survival. She's already off to a great start: As part of her field-study work for school, Jessica spent three weeks learning plant, invertebrate, mammal, and aquatic species of the area and conducting a research project; while the next two were spent learning about the mammals and birds of New York along with field techniques such as small mammal trapping, scat/track identification, mist netting, and a day at a gun range learning the basics of using firearms and blow darts. Her goal is to pair these new skillsets—along with all the things she will learn at Better Farm—with her career goals.

Workshop: Beneficial Bugs and Insect Hotels

When: 3-5 p.m. Thursday, June 13

Where: Better Farm

Cost: Suggested $10 donation

Course Description:

Tidy gardens, chemically fertilized lawns, and a lack of dead wood in suburban/urban areas mean less and less habitat for wild bees, spiders, and ladybugs. You can combat this issue by creating an "

insect hotel

" to attract beneficial insects (read: pollinators and pest controllers) to your yard and garden. Learn how construct an insect hotel utilizing items you can find around your house and in your yard. Students will learn all of the above, and then try their hands at actual construction of an insect hotel. Those attending are encouraged to bring items from home for upcycling, including but not limited to discarded pvc pipe pieces, sticks, logs, bricks, flower pots (broken or unbroken), or anything else of your choosing. There will also be items available for use at Better Farm.

Instructor: Nicole Caldwell

To reserve your spot, please e-mail info@betterfarm.org, or call (315) 482-2536. To see our full workshop schedule, please visit

www.betterfarm.org/upcoming-workshops

.

The Tunes

Eight musical acts performed at Better Festival over the weekend, with many of the musicians staying on for an after-hours open jam in Better Farm's Art Barn to cap off the festivities.
We are still working on compiling video footage of the music from the weekend (please get in touch if you've got some you'd like to share), but wanted to give you a little preview. To kick things off, here's a short video montage one of the performers, Robert J. Finch, made:



Here's another one by Finch called "Welcome to Providence":


Capturing the crowd's heart in the late afternoon were AmberLee Clement, Erin Fulton, and Evan Wormwood. Here they are performing the Supremes classic "Where Did Our Love Go?":


...and "Say That You Love Me":


The Great Fraud came out and Tanisha Pusey brought the house down with her rendition of "Knocking on Heaven's Door":


The tunes carried on long into the evening (and following morning, and next afternoon, and the night after that). Here's a sneak peek at that insanity:

Thanks to all our musical acts:
Fox Richardson
Ian Wagner and Brian Purwin
AmberLee Clement, Erin Fulton, Evan Wormwood
Robert Finch
Adam Netto & the Zebra Musselz
Sarah Anne Ada
Corey Walts, North Country Idol Champion 2013
Aristocrats
The Great Fraud

Our genius sound technician over the weekend, Mike Breslin, is working on mastering downloadable MP3s from the event. Stay tuned for download/order information.

Better Festival Raises Funds for Arts, Sustainability Outreach

Thanks to a wonderful crowd braving frigid late-May temperatures, a cast and crew of diligent, hard-working volunteers, dozens of intimidatingly talented performers, artists, and musicians, and loving and generous sponsors, this year's Better Festival was our largest—and most successful—yet. We broke through the ceiling on our fundraising goals, which means we are all set to offer a very full year of programming, community outreach, workshops, and events to the public.

We couldn't have done this without the amazing, hard work and generosity of the following individuals and businesses. Thank you, thank you, thank you! See the full album of the day's festivities by clicking here.

 Performers
Fox Richardson
Ian Wagner  & Brian Purwin
AmberLee Clement, Erin Fulton, Evan Wormwood
Robert Finch
Adam Netto & the Zebra Musselz
Sarah Anne Ada
Corey Walts, North Country Idol Champion 2013
The Great Fraud
The Aristocrats
Check out video clips of some of the day's musicians here: Abay.com, Robert J. Finch on YouTube

Artists

Joan Applebaum
Holly Boname
Mike Brown
Nicole Caldwell
Erin Fulton

Sponsors

1000 Island Fitness Center
Charles Garlock and Sons
Crossroads Grocery and Deli
Farm Family Insurance
Jiffy Dumpsters
JK's Roadhouse
Route 37 Building Supply
Savage Taxidermy
Thousand Islands Sun

Vendors

Heath Photography
Wrecordsbymonkey
Peace, Love and Pottery

Raffle tickets for our Weber grill will be available throughout the summer. Tickets are $5/each or three for $10. Contact us if you'd like to enter!

Party Preview

Sculptural art pieces on the festival grounds provide interactive engagement with visitors.

We are soooooo excited for the Better Festival this Saturday! The crew has been keeping busy getting the grounds ready for all the visitors over the weekend. Here's a quick photo tour of what you can expect (or, for those of you who can't make it, what you're missing...):

Signs for campgrounds, entrance, food and drinks tent, and more.

Peas growing like crazy out of the top of a piano outside.

The main garden.

The art barn.

Pathways (and bridge system!) established for campsites.

A newly cleared area next to the Art Barn for games and bouncy castle.

Amphitheater Hill (main stage for bands is deck at right).

Pathways cleared out for exploration.

Amphitheater Hill.

Food and Refreshments Gazebo (roof going up tomorrow!).

Long view

Chickens busily clearing tall brush.

Farm Stand.

For more information about Better Festival 2013, click here.

Win This Weber Grill!

We're raffling off a Weber Genesis stainless-steel grill (retail value $849!) to one lucky person this summer; the funds from which will fuel arts- and sustainability-related outreach in the North Country. This raffle is made possible through a generous donation from Garlock Building Supplies and Design Center in Alexandria Bay, N.Y.

The Fine Print

Raffle tickets are $5 each or three for $10, and will be available at our Better Festival next Saturday, May 25, between the hours of 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. If you can't make the event, this raffle will be ongoing until the drawing Aug. 9. Raffle tickets will be available online via PayPal, or in-person by stopping in at Better Farm. betterArts' board members will also have tickets on-hand throughout the summer.

The Grill

The grill is a Genesis S-310 propane gas grill. It features three stainless steel burners designed to put out up to 38,000 BTUs worth of cooking power. It also features 2 stainless steel work tables that incorporate 3 built-in tool holders apiece, as well as a thermometer that is built into its steel shroud.

• 637 sq. in. of total cooking area offers plenty of grilling space; 507 sq. in. of primary cooking area and 130 sq. in. of warming rack area
• 3 stainless steel main burners with 38,000 BTU-per-hour input are durable and deliver powerful heat and performance
• Grill up to 32 hamburgers at once
• 7 mm diameter stainless steel rod cooking grates designed to cook food evenly and easy-clean up, stainless steel flavorizer bars smoke and sizzle when cooking juices drip down, adding flavor to your meal
• Individual electronic ignition system for quick, relaible startups
• Front mounted thermometer montiors temperature inside your grill
• Front access, porcelain-enameled grease tray with catch pan for easy access and clean up, painted enclosed steel cabinet with stainless steel doors and stainless steel handles
• Two stainless steel work surfaces with integrated tool hooks to allow for easy access to your grilling tools
• Two heavy-duty front locking swivel casters and two heavy-duty back swivel casters
• Enclosed cart discreetly hides your LP tank (tank not included), a precision fuel gauge lets you know exactly where you stand on fuel at all times

For the full schematics, visit the Genesis website by clicking here.

Email us at info@betterfarm.org to enter! Out-of-towners who would like to enter may have the grill shipped to them (cost of shipping the responsibility of the winner).

New Hues

The farm's deck gets a spring makeover.

Never underestimate the difference a coat of paint can make! A facelift on our outbuildings has breathed new life into an outdated milkhouse, plywood chicken coops, and worn-out wraparound deck.

Any exterior, wood surfaces are at the constant mercy of wind, rain, sun, mildew and insects; but when they're protected by a layer of the right kind of paint, they can resist the damaging effects of all these forces. We were already noticing damage to the chicken coops, which were swelling and chipping with every bit of inclement weather.

The wraparound deck was stained several years ago and needed a touch-up; the tool shed hadn't been touched in ages; and the chicken coops, though new construction, were in desperate need of a good coat of paint.

We used a semi-solid stain for the deck and classic, red barn paint for the outbuildings. Here are a couple before shots of the tool shed and coops:

... and a couple "action shots":

... and the finished product!

 

Many thanks to volunteers Holly Boname, Adam McBath, Jackson Pittman, and Aaron Youngs for all their hard work!

May 2013 Newsletter

Better Farm News - May 2013: • Better Festival Saturday, May 25 • Recent projects at Better Farm • Latest Community Outreach Initiatives • Better Farm and betterArts Summer Workshop Schedule   Hello, Friends of Better Farm! Our open house is just nine days away, and we can barely contain our excitement. The annual "Better Festival" is our opportunity to spread the word about the work we're doing, promote local artists, performers, and businesses, let the public take a peek at our gardens and grounds, and to help betterArts, our sister non-profit arts outreach organization, raise vital funds to fuel art- and music-related workshops, education, and events in 2013. This year's festival will feature a gallery filled with work by local artists, two music stages and eight acts throughout the day, vendors offering on-site portraits, handmade jewelry, clothing, and other goods, games for all ages, a bouncy castle, camping, and a refreshments and food tent. More information is below; as well as contact information if you'd like to reserve a campsite ahead of time. On the other side of that event is June 1; the start of our our FOURTH summer in business! We'll be welcoming people from as far as Serbia and as close as Grass Lake; from both coasts in the United States, and many states in between. Our residents will be arriving to gardens that are four times the size they were in 2010; an aquaponics garden, a series of raised herb beds, a new fruit orchard, 26 very loveable chickens, a fully renovated Art Barn, and a calendar filled with field trips, workshops, and community service projects. Stay tuned to our blog to follow their journeys! It was June 15, 2009, when I began my own journey at Better Farm; and it is so gratifying to near that anniversary and see how far this great experiment has come. I would personally like to thank you all of you for making this living lab a roaring success.   I hope to see you at our open house May 25! Be sure to visit www.betterfarm.org to stay up-to-date on all things Better. Until next time, better be. Nicole Caldwell Executive Director and Co-Founder Better Farm   --- Better Festival 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, May 25 For music set times, lists of vendors and artists, and camping information, visit the event website: www.betterarts.org/open-house-2013 --- Recent Projects at Better Farm With the bulk of major renovations at the farm complete, this spring has been all about fine-tuning the property and seeking out new, creative opportunities for Better Farm and betterArts. Here are some of the projects we've embarked on: Recycling for Charities — Now you can help the environment and support betterArts in one fell swoop simply by sending in your old cell phones, iPods, iPads, and other electronics to Recycling for Charities. How this partnership works is simple: First, you collect your old wireless cell phones, PDA's, iPods, or digital cameras. Then, select betterArts from the list of charities on Recycling for Charities' website. A donation is then made on your behalf for each mobile phone, PDA, iPod or digital camera you collect. To complete the process, simply print out the shipping label directly from Recycling for Charities' website. Affix the label to your box, pack your collected donations, and ship! Visit www.recyclingforcharities.com for more information. Better Farm Children's Book Now Available! — Starry the Fawn, written and illustrated by former intern Amanda Treco, is more than a dozen pages that tell the story of Star Wars, an orphaned fawn rescued and raised by the people at Better Farm in 2012. The cost of $12 includes shipping anywhere in the Continental United States. A portion of all proceeds will go toward sustainability education initiatives and art outreach at Better Farm. Click here to order. Roadside Installation: The Doors — Keep your eyes peeled as you drive by Better Farm! Artist-in-Residence Mike Brown has been working on an ongoing series of paintings on doors for several years now; culminating this week in their installation throughout the property at Better Farm. The brightly colored doors can be seen along the outskirts of the property; dotting the treeline, punctuating hillsides. There may be up to a dozen by the time the installation is complete. Work Begins on New Art Barn Ceiling — Thanks to donations from Focal Point Custom Framing and Fort Drum, Better Farm's Art Barn is about to have a gallery ceiling fittingly made entirely out of upcycled picture frames. It's a lesson in upcycling, but more than that we like to think of it as a very literal intersection between art and sustainability. In return for keeping hundreds of old picture frames out of burn pits or landfills, we get to use them to create a thing of beauty—and a thought-provoking thing at that. Click here to see updates on our blog. Bird Habitat Installation — In a nod to our founder Steve Caldwell (an avid birder), and thanks to some gifts of birdhouses from local friends, we're sporting a serious bird village at Better Farm.We have almost a dozen birdhouses we keep up and manage for our feathered tenants—including a gorgeous bluebird house given to us last year by the New York State Bluebird Society. In April, we added to that arsenal with two large houses made from slab wood by a craftsman in Gouverneur, N.Y., and four bluebird houses made by a neighbor. Rustic Wood Carpentry — A friend of Better Farm stopped in last month with a truck bed filled with logs and a chainsaw. Two hours later, we had four benches perfect for campfire-sitting or enjoying music from the top of the hill behind the Art Barn. Here's a great spring project for those of you who are comfortable wielding a chainsaw—click here for full instructions. Better Orchard — We wrote back in March about all the fruit trees we ordered to create a small orchard on Better Farm's property. Most of those trees have now arrived! We've been very busy getting the cherries, apricots, paw paws, kiwis, and more in the ground. And we're thrilled to report everything is doing extremely well! Tree-Planting Initiative — We burn our own wood in Better Farm's wood stove all winter long, gleaning much of the fuel from standing-dead trees on the property. To replenish what's been taken—and to encourage cleaner air in general, we've kicked off a strong tree-planting campaign on Better Farm in 2013. To date, we've planted a dozen box elders, 50 white spruces, 10 pines, more than two dozen lilac bushes, and the aforementioned fruit orchard. --- Latest Community Outreach Initiatives We've been very busy in our community in order to bring the arts and sustainability education to the public. Here's a rundown of those efforts in recent months: Seed-Starting in Redwood's Community Greenhouse — Better Farm, in partnership with Hearts for Youth and the Redwood Neighborhood Association, on April 13 invited all ages to plant provided organic, non-GMO seeds in the community greenhouse. Thompson Park Zoo Earth Day Event — New York State's Thompson Park Zoo on Saturday hosted an Earth Day event that brought together several North Country organizations to deliver an eco-friendly message to zoo visitors throughout the day. The Better Farm and betterArts crew braved the absurdly winter-like day (hail and all) for a few hours to work on an arts 'n' crafts project with kids, distribute information about our upcoming open house and fundraiser, and educate the public about the sustainability outreach we're doing in the community. Click here to see photos! Mustard Seed Natural Market Event — Better Farm and betterArts on May 4 shared information about upcoming programming, sustainability education, and arts outreach with the community—while doing arts 'n' crafts with children—at the Mustard Seed Natural Market's Seventh Annual Earth Day Event. The event featured free samples, eco-friendly and handmade items for sale, product giveaways, fresh food, and local exhibitors. Better Farm had a table set up at the event all day, with activities for kids sponsored by betterArts. In addition, the Mustard Seed ran a Recycling for Charities drive to benefit betterArts. Electronics donated will be recycled—and will support betterArts initiatives in the community. Hamlet-Wide Clean-up — Better Farm teamed up with the Redwood Neighborhood Association again this year to pick up trash along Redwood's main thoroughfare in an annual effort to beautify the hamlet. Participants bagged and sorted garbage and recyclables found along the main thoroughfare of the hamlet's downtown. This year marked the lowest amount of trash picked up—meaning there were fewer people littering throughout the year, and a bigger ongoing effort among residents to keep things looking great. --- Better Farm and betterArts Summer Workshop Schedule Our list of summer workshops is beginning to come together. There is a suggested $10 donation for scheduled workshops to cover costs of basic materials, ingredients, and any associated instructor fees. Unless otherwise noted, we will provide all necessary materials at the workshop. Be sure to visit www.betterfarm.org/upcoming-workshops for updated information! Here's what we've got planned so far: June 15/Beneficial Bugs and Insect Hotels— Gardens, chemically fertilized lawns, and a lack of dead wood in suburban/urban areas mean less and less habitat for wild bees, spiders, and ladybugs. You can combat this issue by creating an "insect hotel" to attract beneficial insects (read: pollinators and pest controllers) to your yard and garden. Learn how construct an insect hotel utilizing items you can find around your house and in your yard. Students will learn all of the above, and then try their hands at actual construction of an insect hotel. Instructor: Nicole Caldwell June 22/Sauna Construction — Instructor: Bob Laisdell June 29/Drumming Circle— Drum-making— July 1, 2/Poetry— Instructors: The Line Assembly Poetry Group July 6/Creative Upcycling and the Art of Transforming Junk — Each student will bring an old, tired furniture or clothing piece to transform into something else that is functional. From sketches to the final product, instructor Stephanie DeJoseph of La Mia Designs will help students visualize, create, transform, and finalize an upcycled piece. Encouraged materials (anyone without the following is not excluded from attending): one piece to upcycle, sewing machine, fabric scraps, old clothing, small furniture pieces. Ages 15 and up Intro to Video Editing — Learn the basics of video editing. Those without video cameras may use their iPhones! Instructor: Holly Boname Yoga for Kids Intro to Violin Songwriting Workshop with Monica Behan —This workshop for ages 15+ will explore the art of songwriting with one of the North Country's most well-established and respected singer-songwriters, Monica Behan of Clayton. Behan's music blends folk, blues and jazz into memorable pop melodies that reflect the harmonic nature of who she is on and off the stage. She entered the world of songwriting at the age of seven when she began translating the visions of her whimsical world outdoors and feelings inside onto the piano to create the miniature melodic tales that continue to characterize her songs. Instructor: Monica Behan, http://www.monicabehan.com Canning Connect with us: Website Facebook Blog Merch Share this email: Contact Us: Better Farm 31060 Cottage Hill Road Redwood, NY 13679 315-482-2536 info@betterfarm.org view email in browser | unsubscribe | update your profile | forward to a friend

Better Farm is an education center and artists' retreat founded in 1970 on the principles of the Better Theory—a belief that every experience brings with it an opportunity for exponential personal growth. Through educational workshops, artist residencies, work-shares, and an ongoing commitment to sustainable living and community outreach, we strive to apply the Better Theory to all our endeavors while offering the curious an opportunity to expand, grow, and flourish. Copyright (C) 2013 Better Farm All rights reserved.

Progress on Frame Ceiling

We blogged recently about a ceiling design for Better Farm's Art Barn that will utilize donated, discarded frames. We "broke ground" on the project a couple of weeks ago, and have already used up the frames given to us by Fort Drum and Focal Point Frames. Here's how we went about the work:

Firstly, it's important to always keep your end-goal in sight:

This photo from the New York Times is of a ceiling created out of discarded picture frames by Dan Phillips of Phoenix Commotion.

1. Line up all matched frames in a row.

 

 2. Using a power nailer, connect corner pieces.
3. Use a chop saw to shorten sides to fit between ceiling beams.

4. Begin the laborious task of power-nailing the frames to the ceiling...

Got some frames you can donate to the cause? Email info@betterarts.org to help out!

Finding Inspiration on the Open Road

Bunk-house inspiration in Gettysburg, Penn.

Travel gives you new eyes; allows you to see more, gain some powerful time for reflection, and acquire some new inspiration. This past weekend was no exception, as I hit the road (and sky) for treks through Gettysburg, Penn., Miami, Fla., Key Biscayne, Fla., and Charlotte, N.C.

Here's a picture tour of some inspiration I gleaned from the trip and hope to apply some incarnation of to Better Farm:


GETTYSBURG, PA
Drummer Boy Camping Resort 
Inspiration for future bunk house at Better Farm

COCONUT GROVE, MIAMI, FL
Garden Inspiration 

Outdoor eating in a secret garden.

Claw tub planter growing fresh herbs and flowers.

Flowers growing out of the trunks of trees. (Miami, FL)

AT A HOUSE FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT BUILT
MIAMI, FL
Garden and grounds (and future attached greenhouse) inspiration

Koi pond.

Gravel footpaths through foresty landscaping.

Chandelier by Dale Chihuly

Stepping stones through a fish and turtle pond.

Outdoor aviary.

Outdoor shower/patio area.