The League of NH Craftsmen’s annual ornament for 2015 is Sweet Season, a cast and hand-formed pewter maple sugar tree adorned with a sap bucket. Kristine Lane and Paulette Werger, both juried in metal by the League, created this ornament to celebrate New Hampshire’s spring-time tradition of maple sugaring. Sweet Season ornaments are sold exclusively by the League of NH Craftsmen Fine Craft Galleries (see locations at end of release), the League’s online store (www.nhcrafts.org) and at the Annual League of NH Craftsmen’s Fair, August 1-9, 2015. Each ornament is numbered as one of a limited edition and is signed by the artists. The ornament comes beautifully gift-boxed and sells for $25.
Sweet Season is the League’s 28th annual ornament. “The League’s annual ornament is a great gift and is a popular collectible item,” said Susie Lowe-Stockwell, executive director of the League of NH Craftsmen.
Kristine Lane explains the inspiration for the ornament. “Each year on country roads all over our state, a unique and truly iconic New Hampshire image appears. Majestic sugar maple trees are tapped and adorned with buckets to collect the sweet sap that will produce our famous maple syrup.” She and Werger collaborated on two other ornaments for the League and have also worked together creating one of kind jewelry. They also share a love of nature. “My jewelry reflects my passion for the graceful forms found in nature,” says Lane. Werger creates works of subtle design and intriguing shapes inspired by botanical forms in her garden.
About the Makers
Kristine Lane (Andover, NH) has been working as a studio jeweler for more than 20 years. She studied painting, drawing, and sculpture at Boston University’s two-year Fine Art Core Program, and then discovered a connection to metalsmithing while pursuing a bachelor of fine arts degree in jewelry design at Virginia Commonwealth University (Richmond, VA). “I was hooked instantly to the inherent strength of metal and the associated challenges of working and manipulating it to create delicate forms,” said Lane. She enjoys every aspect of creating a piece of jewelry, from design stage to fabrication. “However, there is no greater gratification in metalsmithing than being told that one of my designs has become a client’s favorite piece of jewelry,” she added.
About the Annual Ornament
The League’s annual ornament is selected by the managers of the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen Fine Craft Galleries, located in Center Sandwich, Concord, Hanover, Hooksett, Littleton, Meredith, Nashua, and North Conway. Major credit cards are accepted for ordering the ornament by telephone from any gallery.
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