Our Fall Collection

Thanksgiving is just over the horizon. Are you ready? What is your centerpiece going to look like? I have a suggestion.

Presenting our newest item! A tradition that dates back to at least the fifth century, Keras amaltheias is the ancient Greek term for the Horn of Plenty: “Horn of Amalthea.” This name directly relates to the Greeks' tale on how this tradition of gratitude came to be.

Cornucopias!

The cornucopia was originally made from the horn of a goat, thus the shape and name, today cornucopias are made from woven baskets, wood or (in this case) clay.

These gorgeous Cornucopia create the feeling of gratitude for all that we have. You will find apples, carrots, corn, eggplant, grapes, pea pods, potatoes, red bell peppers and a myriad of other foodstuffs (some not shown) in these horns. Last Sunday Crow, my mom and I had a good time working on Crow's latest commission. My mom and I worked on the base forms of a lot of smaller pieces while Crow worked on the horns.

A red leaf of fall and some tasty grapes.

Other interesting facts about the cornucopia: 

• The "waffle cone" was named the St. Louis World's Fair's Cornucopia back in 1904 for its conical/horn-like shape.
• There is a mushroom named for its "Horn of Plenty" shape called Craterellus Cornucopiodes, otherwise known as the Black Trumpet. 
• The cornucopia is used today as a symbol on the Peru, Wisconsin and Idaho flags.
• "Cornu" means horn in Latin and "Copia" plenty.

Check out the kernels on the corn!

The details on these horns are some of the best Crow has created to-date.  We've done our best to use foods that are "in-season" or would be traditional in a Grecian cornucopia.

Carrots: My mom made these.

A potato!

For those who are interested in knowing more about the cornucopia, I recommend this site or this one.  If you <insert your favorite search engine here> 'cornucopia' or 'horn of plenty' you will find an over-whelming number of sites with information about this tradition. However, these are the two websites I used for my research.

Keep checking back to see fall / Thanksgiving themed window clings, magnets, clay creations and much more!

The Lemon Bird

The Lemon Tree

My 93-year-old maternal grandpa has a lemon tree in his backyard. I have no idea how old the tree is, however it is probably close to fifty years, if not more. Every Christmas when we visit him for the holidays, we pick lemons off the tree.

Earlier this year my mom visited, and came back with two lemons from his tree. They were withered and dried beyond recognition as lemons. However, as Grandpa observed, one of them looked like a bird. Upon seeing this lemon, I decided to give the lemon back to Grandpa for his birthday. With some modifications of course. Presenting - Lemon Bird!

As it is created from a dried lemon, this bird can probably be considered food art too. The attached eyes are the only modification to the actual lemon.

The Bird.

Lemon Bird close up.

The nest is shaped with a foam cup, strengthened with leather, strips of bark and woven grass. The foliage in and around the nest is both real and artificial. This is a true family project as my mom gathered several of the pieces. The base is cork, scraps from our coasters.

Bird and Nest side-by-side.

Nest Close up

Nest from Above

Neither the actual nest lining nor the bird are glued. I did this to create a further sense of realism, as birds' nests are generally strong structures whose lining is added after the structure is built. And, of course, birds can leave their nests. In theory a non-lemon bird could move in! For now, the Lemon Bird lives there.