On my 60th birthday my friends said, “Elise, welcome back to the 60’s!” What a relief and joy I felt hearing that. I began thinking about what things I had been doing during those troubled times in the late 60’s and early 70’s, that made me feel good about life.
My father had a plant nursery and he and I gardened a lot together. We had a large flower garden and Japanese maple tree nursery in our backyard as well as the nursery on a farm close-by. I wild-crafted herbs and flowers, bought the Fox Fire book series and learned back-to-the-land skills, losing myself entirely to gardens and nature.
I now garden in an organic vegetable and flower farm in the Williams valley. This year I began growing flowers specifically for preserving their beauty in dried flower arrangements and wreaths. Hanging in the Artisan Emporium are wreaths with calendula, lunaria, thyme and other early summer flowers and herbs. Presently hanging in the drying room are many varieties and colors of strawflowers that will soon be added to the display.
As the seasons change into fall and winter, there will be evergreen wreaths with the addition of dried and colorful dried flowers, bringing in the holiday charm and memories of the summer past.
Please come in and feast your eyes on nature’s beauty. As the season’s bring in new added colors, I will spin them into infinite circles. May nature’s circle be unbroken with no beginning and never ending grace and abundance for all.
Ashland Artisan Emporium
1670 Ashland St.
Ashland, OR 97520
(541) 708-0577
