2017 Sunshine Coast Art Crawl Starts Tomorrow, October 20

The Sunshine Coast Art Crawl 2017 Starts Tomorrow
October 20- 22 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM

The 2017 Sunshine Coast Art Crawl consist of 144 locations: the Sunshine Coast rich in talent! Although I've been making my creations for about 25 years, this will be just my 3rd year participating in the art crawl, as I did not have suitable studio space before moving to our new home.

The Art Crawl is a wonderfully exciting event to participate in, with an estimated 500 people visitings my studio last year. Despite a rather gloomy weather forecast, I hope for another fun weekend this year. I have improved lighting in my studio, so cloudy skies do not concern me as much as  they would have.

Hope to see you at Coast Chimes, 535 Woodland Avenue, Gibsons, BC (map below). 604-229-5560. Be sure to pick up the Art Crawl brochure-- there are no shortage of great places to visit!

Home on the Sunshine Coast, Good to be Back

Beach, Gibsons BC, Canada

After a short camping trip into the interior of British Columbia, as lovely as it was, I am reminded on returning to the Sunshine Coast just how lucky we are to live here. I have been back and forth across Canada, and through much of the USA, and the Sunshine Coast is awfully hard to beat.

We had a long, dusty trip home, much of it on gravel roads. That back country is wild and awesome. But an afternoon reading on the beach back home, swimming, and maybe a short snooze, is just about perfect.

This picture was taken near Granthams Landing, which is just steps from the small town of Gibsons. There was no one else on this section of beach. And the water was super clear, and warm.

If you visit the Sunshine Coast, try to leave time to visit Coast Chimes. You can see some real west coast works of art, perfect for gifts.

Gibsons, BC, Sunshine Coast, Canada

Looking Back at My
Summer Afternoon Swimming Beach
Gibsons, BC, Canada

As a self-employed artist, one thing I learned very early is that discipline is important. It is all too easy to get sloppy, start later, finish earlier, read one more chapter. Then you end up not getting things done that need to be done, and it all slides downhill from there.

Before going to sleep at night, I typically make a little list in my head of what I will start with the following morning, what I will accomplish during the day. It helps a lot for getting going in the morning, and for sticking to it during the day. If I fall short of accomplishing all that is on that list, it's not the end of the world, but I feel a bit bad and resolve to work harder the next day. This works really well for me.

During the summer, Gibsons / the Sunshine Coast is the place to be. Not too hot, but hot enough to have a swim that feels great. Blue skies. It is very tempting to take a lot of time off. And I do take some time-- everyone deserves some holiday! But the summer is also the time where I do a lot of my main work, because the wood I work with is dry, the glass can be handled more easily, and there is a long list of things needing to be finished before the October Sunshine Coast Art Crawl, and Christmas rush.

The way I handle the urge to toss everything and spend the day at the ocean reading and swimming is to make that list in my head, and finish it before taking off. But almost every nice day, I do walk down to the local sandy beach (10 minutes stroll, and just happens to be one of the nicest ones on the Coast). It is a wonderful incentive to work hard and finish up: a treat, and it doesn't cost a dime.

If visiting Vancouver, or Vancouver Island, I highly recommend you take a side trip to the Sunshine Coast. Enjoy the slower life style, pick up a Purple Banner Guide of artists' studios and galleries (available on the ferries and in the tourists' bureaus). Make sure to drop by Coast Chimes (directions)-- I'm here everyday working (except for when I am down having a swim!) and would love to show you what I do.

Hiking, Sunshine Coast, BC

Hiking on the Sunshine Coast
Gibsons, BC, Canada

The Sunshine Coast, BC, Canada is rich in hiking adventures. The picture above is from the Mount Elphinstone trail, an estimated 6 hour round trip route. My wife and I did not push too hard, and managed to complete it in about 4 hours, including a lunch break at the top enjoying the view. It is one of the more beautiful hikes out of a very long list of gorgeous hikes I have undertaken on the Coast, but also, no doubt about it, one of the more strenuous.  In fact, I was not wearing very good shoes, just slip ons, and coming down was so steep that my toes constantly banged forward hitting and now, about a year later, I still have two black toenails! Such a beautiful trail, a little pain is nothing.

From Langdale through Gibsons, Roberts Creek, Sechelt, and on up to Pender Harbour (and beyond, to Powell River) there are hundreds, if not thousands, of short to long hikes, full of stunning scenery, and the likely hood of seeing some interesting wildlife, too (i.e., bears).

Be prepared to be wowed, but also be prepared. Know where you are going, tell someone where you are going, and when you plan to be back, dress appropriately (don't wear crummy slip ons for mountain hikes!). I know from early hiking days, a step off the trail, a little turn around, and you can get very lost, very fast. Most trails are well marked, but some certainly are not!

When visiting the Sunshine Coast, pick up the Purple Banner guide of artists' studios and galleries, because the Coast is also full of serious talent. Lots of fun to stop in and visit the art scene. You can certainly stop by Coast Chimes, and see wind chimes like you never imagined (also enjoy a unique house and urban food garden).

What to Do, Gibsons, British Columbia

Natural Pacific Driftwood Wind Chime
5 Large Copper Chimes
Handcrafted by Coast Chimes

I love natural driftwood, and the huge piece forming the wind chime pictured above is gorgeous. It is naturally silver-colored, from the salt water and from the sun bleaching. It goes perfectly with the 5 antiqued copper chimes, with their beach stone clapper / striker.

I do ship large works like this, although it is the sort of chime I honestly hope someone will stop by and buy locally. Coast Chimes is open 7 days a week, and if you are able to drop by I am sure you will enjoy seeing the workshop and touring the gallery. You will also enjoy a considerable discount from the website prices! Gibsons, BC, is an awesome town, and the Sunshine Coast, BC, is an amazing place to visit.

All the works in my gallery are also viewable on my website. So why not visit my site, and if you can drop by, I'll be happy to see you, and otherwise ordering from my website is easy. Visit the website Coast Chime, or the Gallery Coast Chimes.

Sunshine Coast, BC, Gibsons

View of Snow Covered Coastal Mountains
From Gibsons, BC, Sunshine Coast, Canada

Most of my yearly sales are online, and about half of those sales are for Christmas: pre-Christmas is a very busy time for Coast Chimes. So I didn't much mind that the skies were grey, the clouds dumping rain during November and early December. But what a treat to have those skies clear and the local mountains snow dusted for this quieter, post-Christmas period! Most of the packing and shipping is done, and I have time to head out, take long walks, and enjoy the scenery.

I walk along the beach, and dream up new ideas for the weeks ahead, when I plan to devote time to creating new works to replenish my stock.

I see these mountains, this ocean, the beach, the trees, and feel so grateful to live here. Of course, I am also pleased to be able to retrieve many fine natural resources from the shoreline-- the stones, the driftwood, the sea glass. From this nature I get my inspiration and lots of my materials. What a pleasure!

Beautiful Gibsons BC, Canada

Lovely Light and A Rainbow, Near Gibsons, BC, Canada

People often ask me where I get the inspiration for my wind chimes and sun catchers. I think I could just show them this picture I took yesterday afternoon. Truly, I am fortunate to live in such a beautiful place.

This picture is snapped with an iPod touch, just a few steps down the street from my house. There was just one thing wrong with the afternoon— the tide was a foot too high and we all got wet feet walking to town! No one minded, as it was all just too beautiful to even notice.

These are the beaches where I collect the beach stones and driftwood that play such a significant role in the making of my wind chimes and sun catchers. I am grateful for the light, the scenery, and for the raw materials. Having traveled to so many different places, I know that it is not always possible to just pick up neat raw materials. You can see how I use beach stones and driftwood by visiting my website: Coast Chimes

The Snow goes On and On and...

The view out my packing room window. Since I mostly work outside in unheated spaces, it is really not the least bit tempting to go out there and get to work. It is pretty, though, and very nice hiking weather. I have more pictures, including recent ones of the cold snowy landscape, in a slide show on my website: Click here to see pictures of the Roberts Creek, Sunshine Coast area.

This has been a very cool, wet, snowy winter so far, for this area. Most years, it might snow once or twice, and that usually melts within a few days. Then usually it's back to pretty bearable temperatures. Not this year.

We have lived on the Sunshine Coast, British Columbia for thirteen years now, and I never have seen the snow hanging around this long. It's not a lot; but it's there. Not only does this make it too uncomfortable to do much work, but the white background is not ideal for taking pictures of my work. So things are kind of on hold.

Now I'm starting to run out of chimes, though, so whether I like it or not, and whether it warms up or not, I will soon have to go out and there. I am really hoping for some warmer weather!

Here is my dog Yukon, who has the right idea these days.