by Karen Mahoney of
City by the Sea Ceramics
I took a recent trip to the
DeCordova Sculpture Park in Lincoln, MA on one of these gorgeous days we've been having. If you have never been, go! Right now!
It's one of my favorite museums in the area and it's so much fun to wander and discover what they have. It's a perfect art museum for kids, as they are allowed to touch the sculptures outdoors, though no climbing is allowed as tempting as it may be. There's also many visitors that bring their dogs along. It sure beats a walk through the neighborhood any day.
While walking one of the winding paths I came upon
Daniel Ladd maintaining one of his tree sculptures. Watching him manipulate the branches, I figured he was the artist, as it didn't seem like a job for the general landscaping crew. I asked if he was, and he seemed happy that I had made that assumption. Many others had passed, simply looking and moving along. I'm so glad I began speaking with Daniel because he took a few moments to show me exactly what he was up to.
Daniel's sculpture began in 1990. It is 11 elm trees, each bending to a 90 degree angle at a similar height, and growing into the one before it. Daniel said that he comes out 3-5 times a year to maintain the shaping of the tree sculpture.
Daniel cuts through the outer layer of bark, exposing the inside of the branches. He then tightly wraps them together. This time of the year is when it is best to encourage the branch grafting, since the trees are in a heavy growth period the two branches are able to grow into each other and become one. He also uses nails and a putty like substance to help direct the growth.
It was so much fun to see the park and it was especially nice to talk with Daniel Ladd. I plan on taking many more trips to the park, and you can bet I'll be paying special attention to the growth progress of Daniel's work.
Wedding season is just around the corner, and there is plenty of fun details to think about and plan. Here at MaJenta Designs we have a custom order service for hinged gift tin / pill box / mint tins that are created with our delicate and colorful Japanese papers! These tins are great for other special events, occasions, or party too!
These gift tins make fun favors for your guests, and look great displayed as part of the dinner reception table setting as well! Here is how they looked displayed for our own wedding:
The gift tins are perfect for including some tasty trinkets like mints, personalized m&m's, or other small candies! These are fun and functional and the guests can always reuse the tin later as a mint tin or pill box!
We are also excited to offer a brand NEW service which includes the option of purchasing 2 magnets to include inside each tin as well!
Please peruse our Etsy Shop for more details about how to set up your own custom order for your upcoming wedding or event! 
Show season is upon us again. Many handmade artisans take a little break from shows after the winter holiday season. And by break I mean we catch our breath a bit, check to see that our families and friends are still there and then start again with the planning and the making (Spring and summer show applications start showing up in February or so).
