Thanks for the dance!

Clearly all of you had a great time getting your groove on for a snow dance, because it worked. Thank you!

I just got back from our backcountry yurt trip over in the Tobacco Root mountains - 4 days of great snow, fantastic company, and some good ol' time in the wilderness. Thanks to the Montana Backcountry Adventures folks for keeping this yurt up and running!  Here's the tour...

First off, home base yurt. Of course, it wouldn't be a trip to the backcountry yurt without some wood chopping. And a dog to gnaw on all the wood chips....

You already know of my love for wood stoves, so I can't help but show off this beauty that lives at the yurt. She's even got the side car that you can fill up with snow to make warm water for dish washing. I imagine that if you were a real pioneer woman, this handy contraption would be a high priority on your pioneer husband's to do list.

The real point of the yurt ski trip, though, is the ski part, so there was lots of that too. Hard work going up...

pays off with lots of fantastic turns, almost captured on film!

And along to keep us entertained, was our trusty powder hound. Here he is scouting his fresh line. I can tell you that he does a lot of straight-lining and is always getting face shots. He's a real snow junky like that.

What an adventure!

Also, since this blog of course includes belt buckle talk, I'd just like to warn you. When you return to the truck after a long ski out from a yurt, and the temperature last night was well below zero, and the current temperature is probably not too far above zero, and you are pulling your change of clothes out of the truck and putting them on, you should probably tuck in your shirt. Because that belt buckle is cold!

The belt buckle to match this snowy trip? Or course, ...

Now, back to work!

Snow Dance

I'm starting some running around for an upcoming backcountry skiing trip in the Tobacco Root mountains just west of us. Can't wait! In preparation, I'm also asking all of you to do a snow dance.

What? You want the snow for your own ski runs? That's okay, just add the Tobacco Roots into the chant you've already got going.

What? You don't want snow because then you have to shovel it? Well, send it here!

Because we are dreaming of more of this...

and this...

and this...

Thanks for shaking your booty for snow!

Why Buckles?

Buckles, huh? When there are so many great things to make out there, why choose buckles? Well...

I've always loved to make things by hand. Several years ago I thought what better way to try my hand at a handmade business (sorry, couldn't help that one) than jewelry, right? So I made jewelry...

Jewelry for my sister-in-law's wedding...

Jewelry to sell at the summer market...

And making jewelry was good, and I liked it and as best I can tell other people liked it to. But here is the thing - I don't actually wear jewelry. Well, I do, but only the same jewelry every single days for years. Here's the run down...

The blue lapis ring goes on my right hand and was given to me about 10 years ago by my high school (and still) best friend. She made it in a college class.
The other set of rings are pretty obvious - my simple engagement ring and the single wedding band Mr. Moon surprised me with at our wedding. These go in the usual spot.

 

Then there's the necklace Mr. Moon gave me about 6 years ago. It was the first sign of true love and the only time I'm not wearing it is when the leather string breaks.

And the three "sleeper" earrings - 2 in the left ear, one in the right. I think I can safety say I've been wearing these for more than 15 years.

 

And, of course, the nose ring. I got this on my 18th birthday at "Mom's Body Shop" in San Francisco, and nothing has changed since.

 So, as you can see, I have a wonderful, but very, very stagnant, relationship with a few particular pieces of jewelry, and it really ends there. (Unless it's a really fancy wedding, but that doesn't happen too often around these parts.)

And here is the other problem. I'm not really a girly-girl. I don't wear make-up, I don't own hair products, and I'd rather climb a peak than go to the mall. Also, I don't really wear dresses. My power suit? It's pants and a jacket. So where does that leave me? Belt Buckles!! I could wear the heck out of belt buckles!

Belt buckles are...

• practical (needed to keep my belt on to keep my pants on)
• have personality - of all sorts
• do not get in the way when I have to lug some wood into the house

Belt buckles with salmon shirts...

Belt buckles with brown shirts...

Belt buckles with jeans and black...

So when I'm making belt buckles, that means that I can make a million things that I want to wear. And that is a good time!

Ode to the Wood Stove!

I know this is not particularly "on topic", but I just can't help myself. Sometimes some things require shouting from the mountain tops, whatever odd topic it is.

Weather really rules the day here in Big Sky. Summer means great hikes in the morning and finding shelter for the afternoon thunder and lightning storm. Fall and spring mean mud, mud, and mud. Did I mention mud? And winter is all about snow. Once we have snow on the ground, it's here to stay. Winter is really more than 6 months long. If you're like me and love to ski in all forms, winter is a thumbs up season. Not to mention that all that darkness at night is good for productive craftiness. Unfortunately, snow requires freezing temps, and I'm a cold-blooded woman (not emotionally, but ice-cube-toes-and-fingers wise  :)  ). Thankfully, there is one invention that keeps the winter cold outside and makes the inside feel permanently warm and cozy...

The wood stove!!

Mr. Moon and I moved to Big Sky in 2008 and first-thing-first (well, after painting the walls something besides primer white) was ripping out the lame, no-heat-producing stove insert we had (how satisfying!) and installing a winning wood stove. And let me tell you, this was 100% the best decision we could have made. First off, we figured out it would pay for itself in 2 years, thanks to our expensive electric heat. 2 years?! Wow! Wait, wait, I just realized that means we already did it. That just cannot be beat. Second, we get to have a fire everyday. Translation: heat, warmth, heat, warmth, t-shirts in the house!

16 outside? That's like the tropics! Fortunately, it still does its job at -20  :)

It's true that the fire doesn't make itself and you have to cut kindling and cut wood and build the fire and keep it going. Admittedly, I was a little scared of this before we took the leap. But the truth? With the right tools (and a wood-cutting husband), it is not hard. If it was "wood stove + build fire" versus "electric heat + no work" in the ring together - wood stove + build fire wins every time.

Required for successful wood stove heating.

And the payoff? A happy family of warm furry animals and somewhere for me to bask to keep my blood warm. Every day!

If I was Pee Wee Herman, I would marry the wood stove instead of the fruit salad. Just saying...

Your Brain on Spring

Admittedly, it is still very much the middle of winter here in Big Sky. In fact, after a beautiful backcountry ski yesterday we are crossing our fingers that the many inches of snow in our forecast really will fall over the next 5 days. It appear, however, that everyone is not in the same boat and spring is on the brain!

In fact, this Midnight Bloom buckle...

appears to be putting its spring-inducing fever powers to work. Luckily, its had some help in these two fantastic Etsy treasuries. I love that they both make me think of spring, yet are so different. Just clicking on the titles will take you to the real thing, where you can explore all the colorful and life-affirming creations included. Enjoy your spring tour!

                      Rainbow BRITE Baby

 

Dreaming of Spring...on the coldest day of winter!