This morning it was a horizontal battle of clouds versus sun.
The sun was trying to come up, but the clouds were quickly encroaching
and covering the horizon. Nonetheless, the “sun-less sun-rise” was still quite beautiful.
And if the WARM spring weather never gets here, I’ll keep wearing layers like this morning!

We barely finished the tour, and immediately started driving home. It was early
evening and the sun was behind us. Dramatically lighting everything along the way.
The trees. The rock formations. The clouds. Picture perfect… until…

We were driving south on the expressway when all of a sudden… red lights!!!
Lines of red lights all the way to the horizon. Not a good sign. Never a good sign.
So we decided to get off the expressway and try taking a different route. Good idea?
It was beautiful. Nice scenery. And the traffic was moving. So we thought we were
doing well. Until we suddenly realized that we really didn’t know where we were.

At one point, we turned to get on a different “more-well-known” road…
and it turned into a ferry launch! Yes, we actually took a ferry to get home tonight!!!
However, we had to wait for a couple “round-trips” before we could get on the boat.

Okay, so the drive home took longer than expected. But we made the best of it
and I got to spend plenty of quality time with my parents. Including celebrating
Mother’s Day a week early – as I will be in Minnesota again next weekend for the
St. Croix River Valley Pottery Tour.

Today the weather was a little better… so we head out for Day Two of the art tour.
We thought he had hit all of the far-away ones yesterday, and today would be quicker.
Somehow we were wrong, and we were racing the clock towards the end of the day.
The rolling hills, river views and majestic bluffs were beautiful today. As well as
a lot of the artwork. We spent the entire day today finishing the tour.

We saw several artists, all different mediums and skill levels. Some in their homes.
Some in huge loft spaces. Some in a small town. Others off in the rolling hills of Iowa.
Mosaics, pottery, stained glass, painting, jewelry, watercolors and more!
Oh yeah, and we found some homemade pie for lunch. All was right in the world.

My favorite stop today was…
Joel Sampson of Copper Crane Pottery makes these really great fountains, ikebana
bowls and pieces for garden & home. He’s “devised” this great system for a great fountain
that looks like a wet, slippery orb sitting on a beautiful wood table. No pool. No pond.
Just this magical fountain on the table. He also has a nice Japanese inspired fountain that
my parents were very interested in. They’re still considering one for their front garden area!

And as if his studio & pottery weren’t enough… I was also infatuated with the old barn
buildings on his property. You know how I love rusty metal… and weathered barn board
isn’t too far behind. So when I saw these really great barn structures all over, I was so excited.
And here are just a few of them…

Love the little window at the top… and the lichen-covered boards!

Textures, colors, stories… and more textures…

Look… it’s a wagon wheel…
– okay, how many of you just giggled and thought “Schoolhouse Rock”???

Again, for more information about the Bluff Country Studio Art Tour, click here.