Mike Metsack and his partner Keith Dagnall started raising goats as pets in 2014. After much trial and error Keith discovered the perfect recipe for their goats milk soap and in August 2016 Hy-Hope Soap was born! Since then their product line has grown to not only include soap but also “Whole Milk Whole body Lotions” and Lip Balms with more products on the way.
Hy-Hope is a true small batch producer. They even make all of their soap molds so each bar is soap is truly unique.
Dorothy (Dot) Drobney is a retired educator, from Willington, who has a passion for nature and travel photography. Having closed her photo studio and a small gallery/gift shop, she is now free to travel both locally and internationally, and is very excited to see what comes next!
Kathy has been mastering the art of quilling since 2018. As an acrylic painter for most of her life, she found a new passion the multidimensional art of quilling, and has even started combining the acrylic painting and quilling together to create some fun multimedia art. Stop by and see at A Summer’s Palette, she’ll be working on a piece, or join her group on Facebook.
The Central Connecticut Woodturners will be holding a free Pen Turning Event on Saturday February 15th, 2025, from 10-2:00 at Knowlton Memorial Hall/Babcock Library, 25 Pompey Hollow Road, Ashford, CT. Mark your Calendars and bring a friend : The club supplies all materials, and will guide you in turning your own pen, which will be yours to keep! There will be a sign-up sheet when you come in. You do not need to be an Arts Council member to participate. A wood carver will also be present to enjoy. Local members of the CCW club Joanne Mann and Dan Merlo of Eastford CT will be leading this event. Kindly offered to us by Dan Merlo, an Arts Council Member.
John is a potter who creates usable art inspired by nature. He is continually delving into new color schemes and design styles that borrow from the past while expanding creative boundaries. Find his work on Facebook or use the QR code below.
Jane Rackliffe is a fused glass artist from Ashford, Connecticut and North Port, Florida. She is currently teaching fused glass in Florida and enjoys her studios in both locations year round. Her work can be view on her website, and is currently on display at the Moon and the Monocle in Willington, CT.
Mark works in laser designs on wood glass and other items. He creates unique gifts such as glassware, kitchen items, coasters, window art. You can purchase through his website, Creative Mark Engraving.
Steve Gerling has been doing relief woodcarving since the mid-1970’s. He has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from UConn, with a major in sculpture. After school, he was drawn to the additional challenges of relief carving. Not only did an object have to be sculpted but it had to be skillfully distorted
in scale, perspective, and space to create an image convincing to the viewer.
Traditionally, most relief work was intended as decoration or embellishment to works of architecture or fine cabinetry. Steve chooses to make the carving the primary object. While much of the work were objects of fine woodworking, using them as a utilitarian frame, the main focus of attention has always been the carving.
After retiring from a Mechanical Engineering career in 2009, I began my art journey with drawing and painting classes with a number of local instructors. I dabbled in pastel, oil, and colored pencil, but my preferred medium is watercolor, and my works are usually in the traditional realistic style. I belong to a number of art groups and am grateful for the many friends and acquaintances that art has brought my way. Sometimes I do commissions, everything from fighter jets to homesteads to puppy portraits and anything in between. Currently I teach watercolor at the Windsor Locks Senior Center.
“The Vermonter,” traveling northbound over the Warehouse Point railroad bridge.
Medium: Watercolor
Size: 20 x 26
“Wave Watchers,” a scene on a Florida beach.
Medium: Watercolor
Size: 23 x 19
Price: $250
“Somethin’ Fishy,” a work boat returning with the day’s catch.
Medium: Watercolor
Size: 26 x 21
Price: $300
“The Art Show”
Medium: Watercolor
Size: 14 x 18, framed
Price: $270
“Old Dogs,” buddies on Crane Beach in Ipswich MA.
Medium: Colored Pencil & Watercolor
Size: 14 x 17
Price: $500
“The Ocean Calls,”
Medium: Watercolor
Size: 16 x 20, framed
Price: $300
“Glory Days,” a Lockheed Super Constellation in Lufthansa markings.
Medium: Watercolor
Size: 39 x 14
Price: $400
To purchase originals or prints, please contact Joe directly.
Click on a pic above to see slideshow.
Sold Works by Joe Burger:
The Central Connecticut Woodturners will be holding a free Pen Turning Event on Saturday February 4th, 2023, from 10-2:00 at Knowlton Memorial Hall/Babcock Library, 25 Pompey Hollow Road, Ashford, CT. Mark your Calendars and bring a friend : The club supplies all materials, and will guide you in turning your own pen, which will be yours to keep!
There will be a sign-up sheet when you come in.
You do not need to be an Arts Council member to participate. A wood carver will also be present to enjoy.
Local members of the CCW club Joanne Mann and Dan Merlo of Eastford CT will be leading this event. Kindly offered to us by Dan Merlo, an Arts Council Member.
