Anticlastic hoops: My personal favorite style of hoops, Harvest Gold’s Anticlastic hoops are polished smooth, and reflect the light with a brilliant shine. These hoops are elegant and make a stunning gift to any fashion forward person! Coming in styles ranging from classic rounds to ovals, waves, and loop-d-loops, there is an anticlastic hoop to suit everyone’s style.

Our anticlastic hoops can be made with a variety of posts to best suit your needs. The two main styles of posts that we build are basic straight posts, and self-locking posts. Where the synclastic self-locking posts are straight posts that lock into holes in the back tab of the hoop, anticlastic self-locking posts loop directly over the hoop. The curved walls built by the anticlastic style of hammering allow the equally curved post to nestle into the back of the hoop, and guarantees a comfortable and easy wear!

This month on the Harvest Gold Blog is Hoops Month! Hoop earrings are a classic piece of jewelry that will never go out of style, and are a staple in any jewelry lover’s box! Here at Harvest Gold we carry a multitude of hand-forged styles of hoops, ranging from classic synclastic gold hoops to loop-d-loop hoops and even thin, elegant wire hoops. Stay tuned for the rest of September as each week we showcase a different style of hoops! Happy hoop hunting!

Synclastic Hoops: Bill’s hand-hammered synclastic hoops are a favorite amongst customers for their classic shape. Light reflects off the planes left by the hammer, and so they glisten and glow no matter how you wear them! These hoops can be easily dressed up or down and so can transition from daytime casual to evening wear in a snap!

Plus, most of the synclastic hoops have posts that hook back into themselves, and so you will have no backing to fiddle with and the hoop will look like one smooth continuous loop around your ear. And finally, an added plus built into many of the designs is a small tab at the top of the hoop. This tab is where the post is soldered to, and can be customized to suit your ears! Do you have unevenly placed piercings? Or has one piercing hole been stretched? By slight adjustments on where the post is placed on the back of the tab, we can make these earrings sit evenly on your ears. And further, if you dislike the way most hoop earrings sit against your face, we can adjust the angle of the post so that the hoop sits as you like it.

Here at Harvest Gold Gallery we celebrate and enjoy all types of arts and crafts, from all sorts of folks! And one product that we noticed we hardly ever showed online were the little hand-cut magnets that celebrate all things Maine!

These magnets make perfect souvenirs and gifts to remember your time in Lovell. With designs ranging from loons to lighthouses, and lakes to lobsters, there is a pattern and cut here to suit every kitchen fridge … or wherever you like to place your magnets!

Stop by the Gallery to pick one up. Hope to see you soon!

One of the first artists to show at Harvest Gold Gallery, Tom Merriam is also one of the most prolific! An accomplished painter in both acrylics and watercolor, a woodcarver, storybook author, song writer, and storyteller, Merriam is a central figure in the local art scene. His carvings and paintings are now on display at Harvest Gold Gallery, in Center Lovell.

A Maine native, Merriam began carving at the age of 12, and worked in the family business carving log benches. He graduated from the New England Conservatory of Music as a Piano Technician, and began working as a piano repairman and tuner. Continuing to carve in his spare time, Merriam began creating commissioned carvings for local clients. Merriam turned to carving full-time in 1982, when he went to work for a sign company in North Conway, and won six national awards for Dimensional Sign Design.

        A self-taught water colorist, Merriam went on to study under George Carpenter. Carpenter was the last surviving member of the Whiskey Watercolor Association, and he passed many of his techniques on to Merriam. Often beginning his work plein air (working outside, painting what is seen in that moment), Merriam begins by painting small, quick studies of his subject matter. In these studies he captures those variables that swiftly change in the outdoors: the wind, light, and movement of a scene. He then returns to his studio in Bridgton or Portsmouth to complete a larger final piece based off of the study.

Merriam is well known for his miniatures. These paintings range in size from 4” x 4” squares, all the way down to the size of a postage stamp! At one plein air painting session, Merriam showed up to paint with only an Altoids can in hand. He opened it up and used the top as an easel for his tiny paper, and used the bottom section as a palette! Often capturing the likenesses of birds, gardens, or houses in these miniatures, Merriam’s eye-catching watercolor style plus the tiny size of these paintings make them truly unique and fun.

The Lovell Arts and Artisans Fair is just around the corner on August 18th, from 9 AM to 3 PM! Stop by the New Suncook Elementary School to check out dozens of brilliant local artisans and crafts folk! The Fair is a benefit for the local library, Charlotte Hobbs Memorial Library. 

Plus, don't forget to stop by the library's raffle booth at the show! Harvest Gold has donated a handcrafted silver Mountain Moon pendant and chain to the raffle. 

Hope to see you there! 

Harvest Gold Gallery is thrilled to welcome back Diane Scott, an impressionistic painter based out of Conway, New Hampshire! Scott is a master of capturing light and tone within her artwork, making it some of the most captivating work in the Gallery. Her loose brushstrokes coupled with the vibrancy of color in her work brings her subject matter to life, and invites the viewer to sit and contemplate the piece for a while.

An impressionistic painter, Scott moved from Canada to New England and became a full-time painter in 1996. Scott received her BFA from Herts College of Art and Design in St Albans, England in 1985. She continued on to study at the North River Arts Society under John Kilroy for six years. She has taught various workshops to demonstrate her distinctive style of oils. Her extensive list of accolades includes Juror’s Awards from the Cape Cod Art Association and Best Marine Painting awards from the North River Arts Society.

Scott says that her paintings “take on a life of their own” during the creation process. Often beginning her work plein air (outside, painting what is seen at that moment), Scott tries to get a good base of form and color, and understanding of the movement of the subject matter. Once this is done, she takes her work inside to finish it up! This is where the piece comes to life through Scott’s use of rich color and painterly brush strokes. Trying to attain photo-realism limits the impact a painting can have on a viewer, Scott argues. In getting lost in replicating exact details, you can lose the feelings and memories that the art should be able to convey.

While Scott will forever love painting landscapes, she has said that she has been drawn to portraiture lately. “I used to paint figures all the time, and I loved it! There are so many subtle lights and shadows in the skin and on the curves of the body,” Scott says, “It is a fantastic challenge to paint the human form!”

Scott has attended and painted at two previous Plein Air Paint Outs at Harvest Gold this summer, and her last subject matter was a man who had stopped by to watch her work. Working in layers upon layers of oil paint, Scott built up reds, pinks, yellows, creams, and browns to capture the man’s face stunningly. “When I come back on the 11th, I don’t know what I might paint,” Scott said, “I am going to walk on over, and paint whatever captures my eye. I like that art is spontaneous like that!”

Hello from Harvest Gold!

  Just the other day, Jan from Four Winds Farm wondered into our gallery to share her lovely little creations with us. She felts wool from her sheep onto Shea's Soap in its own washcloth. Not only are all the ingredients all natural and homegrown, they save lives.

  Jan and Shea practice compassionate farming, meaning they save the lives of sheep and other animals by buying them before they go to the butchers and giving them a life they deserve. Sadly, they don't have enough room for every singe one, so they find good safe homes for the boys so they can live a long healthy life. 

  Jan has been very loving and caring towards animals her whole life.

           "I grew up having a special love for animals and art.  As a child, every summer was spent at my family's camp on Sebago Lake.  I was thrilled when my husband's career brought us and our two children to live in Maine full time.

     I began teaching at an elementary school in 1999.  There I met two coworkers who introduced me to fiber arts.  After exploring this art form, I found it was perfect for me.  It combines art, animals, and teaching in one endeavor!  By 2002 I had my first sheep.

     I currently live on a small farm in Gorham, Maine with my husband, a small flock of sheep, three miniature horses, chickens, guineas, an Australian Shepherd, two cats, and a German Angora rabbit.  With the last name of Winsor and since we are a family of four we named our farm Four Winds Farm.

     I studied education and art in Massachusetts and received a Bachelor of Science Degree from Framingham State College.

     I am now a full time fiber artist." 

Visit the website below to learn more about them and come into the gallery to check out these amazing soaps!

https://www.fourwindsfarmmaine.com/

More contact information:

Instagram: fourwindsfarmmaine

Facebook: Four Winds Farm Maine

Like Heliodors and Emeralds, Aquamarine is part of the Beryl family of gemstones. Aquamarine is easily recognizable for its unique pale blue color. The name Aquamarine is derived from the Latin aqua marina, meaning sea water. Associated with truth and clarity, the aquamarine is a strong crystal for healing and for organizing the body and mind.

One of the most commonly found beryls, aquamarine can be found all over the world, with slight color variations from region to region. The color blue has often represented wisdom and enlightenment throughout human history from the modern Abrahamic religions to Ancient Egypt. The blueness of the stone, coupled with aquamarine's often unblemished clarity, has resulted in the idea that aquamarine represents and inspires truth and clarity, and as such often can make the wearer more in tune with their emotions and thoughts. This makes aquamarine a soothing and healing stone, which can help you keep a clear head even in stressful situations.

Aquamarine is believed to inspire truth and understanding in relationships as well. The ancient Romans would exchange gifts of aquamarine between lovers in order to maintain focus on trust and growth as a couple rather than on lust. Aquamarine will help you tune in to your partner's emotions, and so they won't even have to say a word for you to know how they are feeling. Aquamarine will also imbue you with tolerance and understanding so that you will not be easily offended, angered, or annoyed.

   
In non-romantic situations, aquamarine can be given as a token of protection from harmful thoughts or a disorderly and unhappy mind. Aquamarine is said to have a strong healing nature as well, and is thus good for mothers, children, and pregnant women to ward against complications like illness or injury.

Aquamarine is a truly lovely gemstone, and the color has always reminded me of seawaves breaking along a rocky shoreline, or the early morning sky. Stop by Harvest Gold to inquire about a piece made in local aquamarine!