ArtOut Stockholm: Call to Artists!

ARTOUT STOCKHOLM | CALL FOR ARTISTS

You are invited to participate in ArtOut Stockholm sponsored by the Merchants of Stockholm and Abode Gallery & Design. This is an open invitational creative event Saturday, May 16th, 2015. Artists are asked to register before May 12th. This event is for artists representing a variety of media, styles and artistic outlets.

 

Stockholm Merchants Association welcomes artists to Stockholm, WI through a special event entitled ArtOut Stockholm. Artists are encouraged to set up around town and create artwork inspired by the quaint village of Stockholm and its surrounding scenic landscape. Artists representing a variety of media and styles are welcome to participate including but not limited to sculptors, painters, poets and musicians. Tourists and villagers will be invited to walk around the town and visit with artists. This is a unique outdoor opportunity to be inspired by nature and fellowship with other creatives near beautiful Lake Pepin. Your registration fee covers your box lunch which will be from a local eatery. Artists are invited and encouraged to submit their artwork from the day to be included in a special ArtOut Stockholm Exhibition at local businesses after the event. Works included in the Exhibition will be for sale. This is a special opportunity to show and sell work. Participating artists have the opportunity to win one of three prizes: Best of Show ($100), Spirit of Stockholm ($50) or People’s Choice ($50)!

Where: Join us in beautiful Stockholm, WI.

What: Bring your tools of the trade, set up around town and have a great time creating with other artists in the village.

Why: Because the quaint village of Stockholm is inspirational! Refresh your creativity outdoors!

 

When: Saturday May 16th. Check in: 10:45am. Lunch at one. While artists are encouraged to create as long as they feel inspired the official end time will be 3pm. Awards will be at 3pm. Artwork that artists wish to be considered for the ArtOut Stockholm exhibition should be submitted to Abode Gallery at that time.

Registration: $10.00. Sign up in person at Abode Gallery, or via email amscholz@gmail.com

Pre- Registration is required by or on May 12, 2015. Complete event information and menu options will be sent to you upon registration.

This event is open to all artists. Please feel free to pass along this information to friends.

 

Stockholm Turns Trashy

Our merchants have a great sense of pride for our village. When the prospect of placing regular ol' trash cans around town arose, they got creative. 

For a small town that sees a lot of visitors over the course of a year, garbage cans are a real necessity, helping to keep things picked up and litter contained. But when you're a small village known for your big arts, no ordinary trash receptacle will do. Thus, "trashy art" was born.

Through this project, several local merchants have come forward to adopt a garbage can, transforming each into beautiful works of art. You'll see them scattered about town and we invite visitors to put waste in its place, and at the same time engage with art that's colorful, fun and entertaining.

Next year these artsy trash receptacles will be up for adoption once again, and given a new look. It will be exciting to see how they are transformed from purely practical to functional and fun year after year.

We wish to extend a heartfelt thank you to our Trashy Art sponsors for 2014:

Abode Gallery
Bogus Creek Cafe & Bakery
Flyway Film Festival
Historic Stockholm Hotel
Hugga Bugga

Stockholm Pie Company

41st Annual Stockholm Art Fair - July 19, 2014

The Stockholm Art Fair has earned a reputation as one of the best in the Midwest. An amazing selection of unique art, in a breathtaking setting.

On Saturday, July 19, 2014, we'll once again be welcoming visitors to Stockholm Village Park for the Stockholm Art Fair.

This will be the fair's 41st annual; you can't have that kind of longevity without being top-notch in every way. The views over Lake Pepin are spectacular, but it's the art that takes center stage at this event; Over 100 juried artists with exceptional art including paintings, jewelry, clay, glass, sculpture, fiber, wood, leather, photography and more.

Food vendors entice you with many locally made and unusual offerings such as wood fired pizza, portabella mushroom sandwiches, locally roasted coffee and a variety of food choices! Talented regional musicians perform onstage throughout the day, and there are activities for children as well.

Admission is free... the experience is priceless. Find the full event details here.

New: Stockholm's Market Fridays

Breathtaking lake views with majestic bluffs as the backdrop. Rosy sunrises against turquoise skies. Splashes of color from the flowers and flags along our main drag.

It's a short and fleeting season, which is why we like to take advantage of every opportunity to enjoy the sights and sounds of summer. The addition of Market Fridays to our events schedule is just one example of how we make the most of the sunshine and fresh air.

Every Friday night, through October 24, shops extend their hours into the evening, fresh produce and locally made items are available at the farmers market, free entertainment takes the stage, and visitors enjoy picnics in our gardens.

And thanks to WideSpot Performing Arts Center and generous sponsor merchants, your ticket to good music is paid in advance! Free concerts will be offered as part of our Market Friday schedule. Our upcoming lineup includes:

June 27, 2014
5-7pm
Kyle Fosburgh
Sponsored by The Palate





July 25, 2014
5-7pm
Benjamin Tucker
Sponsored by Abode Gallery




August 29, 2014
5-7pm
Brooke Thoen
Sponsored by Gelly's Pub & Eatery

We invite you to join us for a beautiful evening in the village where creativity abounds. It all takes place in the center of the village in the Arts Garden, just off Spring Street. Watch for the crowds; you can't miss it.

WCCO Crew Visiting Stockholm

UPDATE:

We had an amazing visit with the WCCO TV and WCCO Radio crews during their visit to the area on June 19 and 20. It's always a joy to show off our artsy village and share about the best the West Coast of Wisconsin has to offer.

We realized that some may have been unable to join us for the live broadcasts, and others may have missed the segments when they aired. No worries; follow the links below to see videos of the WCCO TV segments, the audio recording from John Hines' WCCO Radio show, and the WCCO Photo Gallery with candid shots from their visit.

To view TV segments of West Coast of Wisconsin “Goin To The Lake”:

• WCCO Goin' to the Lake Day 1
• WCCO Goin' to the Lake Day 2

To listen to a recording of John Hines’ June 20, 2014 broadcast, click here.

To see WCCO’s Photo Gallery with pictures from their visit, click here.

WCCO Crew Visiting Stockholm

We're excited to be welcoming some special visitors to Stockholm on Thursday, June 19, and Friday, June 20. Mike Binkley, Angela Davis, John Hines, and the rest of the WCCO TV and WCCO Radio crews will be coming to Stockholm for their Goin' to the Lake series!

Throughout the two days, the WCCO-TV cameras will be rolling as Mike and Angela explore all Stockholm and the surrounding area has to offer. On Thursday they’ll be live from downtown Stockholm at 5pm and 6pm, and live from Gelly’s Pub at 10pm!

We want to invite you to take part in the experience if you can! Several of our merchants, like the Bogus Creek Cafe and Bakery, will be extending their hours on Thursday and Friday, bringing in special entertainment and doing whatever they can to contribute to the occasion. You can join us at Gelly's Pub on Thursday night for the 10pm broadcast and be a part of the audience. On Friday morning, John Hines will be broadcasting his live radio show for WCCO Radio in front of Stockholm Pie Company. You can be a part of that crowd, too! 

What does Friday have in store? Well, you'll have to stay tuned to see where they’ll turn up at 5 and 6! They'll be exploring the entire West Coast of Wisconsin, and as you know, there's a lot to see and do in our area. We know they're going to have a great time! If there are any exciting developments, or we receive word about any additional scheduled visits, we'll be sure to alert you with a post on our Facebook page.

If you can't make it to Stockholm for the live broadcasts, we hope you'll watch WCCO News and view the segments at home. And please extend the invitation to your friends; we would love to have them do the same.

Midsommar: Welcoming Summer the Traditional Way

Midsommar is the biggest holiday of the year in Sweden. Join us and celebrate the coming of summer the traditional way. Art, music, food and more.

In 1851 Swedish adventurer Erik Petterson climbed the bluff behind Stockholm, saw Lake Pepin spreading out before him, and declared it the ideal site for a settlement. In the next year he made his first land purchase and two years later, he and his brother Jacob each brought over a party of immigrants. The land along a recess in the shoreline was surveyed, and in 1856 Stockholm was officially born.

In short order, the village became a stopover for Scandinavian immigrants to western Wisconsin as well as a thriving farming center. At its population peak of 280 in 1880, it boasted three general stores, two hardware stores, and two blacksmith shops. In 1886 the railroad connected the village to farms and commercial centers up and down the river.

As the rural population began to dwindle after World War I, the village stayed alive with grain warehousing and brokerage, clamming activity, a commercial fishing operation, ice harvesting for a wide radius of cities, and dealerships in newly mechanized farm machinery.

After World War II, the flight to the cities and loss of the railroad station nearly took Stockholm off the map. But the beauty and tranquility of the land was not lost on a new generation of visitors. Starting in the 1970’s, artists and urban outsiders began to trickle into the village and surrounding countryside, reviving old storefronts and homes and creating a vibrant cultural life. A new breed of entrepreneurs arrived on their heels, each attuned to the possibilities of a unique merchant community, responsive to the melding of Swedish heritage, natural beauty, and the hum of artistic activity.

We cherish the rich heritage and history of our village and love sharing it with visitors. We invite you to join us Saturday, June 21, and welcome the coming of summer in the traditional way.

Midsommar Festival will feature Swedish folk music, crafting classes, demonstrations in the Stockholm Museum, Swedish dishes in the restaurants and flowers everywhere. The day climaxes with the decoration, parading and raising of the Midsommarstang (Maypole) in the heart of the village. Find more details here.

Visiting Stockholm: Where to stay when you visit

You won't find the usual motels; our lodging options have a historic, creative and artsy vibe, just like our village.

The balmy days of summer are just around the corner. If you're like us, you've been daydreaming about your warm-weather adventures and beginning to plan your summer getaways.

You wouldn't expect a village of our size (just 66 residents at last count), to offer much in the way of lodging options; actually, nothing could be further from the truth.

Our village has six unique establishments that offer a variety of accommodations and amenities for your overnight stay. Plus, Stockholm Village Park offers tent and RV camping, too.

Now, you won't find a Marriott or Hilton here in town, which visitors to our area don't seem to mind one bit. And we're glad because we've always been about a different experience here on the shores of Lake Pepin.

Instead, you'll find a quaint cabin on the lake, suites in a historic inn, a cozy bed and breakfast, and entire vacation home rentals. Depending on whether you're visiting alone, as a couple, or with the family, you will find many options and settings to choose from.

And your overnight stay comes with more than a room; you'll find peace and quiet, fantastic views, quaint shops, and delectable food here. But more importantly, our proprietors all make wonderfully welcoming hosts.

Select the lodging option to best suit your needs and visit. Find more information and direct website links to all of our accommodations here. Find more information on camping in Stockholm Park here.

Cooking Classes Take Your Culinary Experience to a New Level

Good food is always in style. But cooking good food; that's something best left to professionals, right? Not necessarily.

There's been a resurgence in traditional cooking, using fresh, local and high quality ingredients, along with time-honored techniques (in other words, no shortcuts).

Traditional cooking, like Julia Child used to do it, is becoming a lost art. However, there is a way you can keep these traditions alive in your kitchen.

The Palate, Stockholm's little gourmet kitchen store, has added several new cooking classes to their spring calendar.

Each class will be led by well-known regional chefs, whose names you will recognize: Judy Krohn (from Pepin's Harbor View Cafe), Brett Laidlaw (Author of Trout Caviar: Recipes from a Northern Forager), and Chef John Sugimura (Second generation sushi chef).

With class names like, Foods of the Holy Land, Trout Stream Cuisine, and The Ultimate Sushi, you know you’re in for a treat. Classes are limited to just 14 participants, so you won't want to delay in reserving your space; these classes sell out every time. Wine pairings and samples are included in the registration fee.

Get the full details by visiting The Palate's website.

Performance Arts in Stockholm Includes Music & More

At Stockholm's Widespot Performing Arts Center, music, theater, film, community events and enrichment are all part of the mix.

The performing arts have been going strong all winter in Stockholm, and spring is no different; you’ll find the Widespot's schedule to be a refreshing mix of comedy, music, film and classic poetry.

The Mouse that Roared, March 21, 22, 28 & 29, 2014
Stockholm’s second annual community play, The Mouse that Roared opens Friday, March 21, for four performances over two weekends. This will be the Widespot Players’ second community theater production. Described as a, “Hilarious, rib-tickling comedy with a message,” the story revolves around a miniscule, backward country who dares take on the armed might of the United States, hoping to lose…. “But then things happen.” And that’s when you know you’re in for an enjoyable production and some good laughs. Fans of community theater will surely rank this performance among their favorites. Event Info...

Goin’ Coastal, Sunday, April 6, 2014
If past performances are any indication, the third of the live Goin’ Coastal podcast programs is a must-see. Featuring talent from both sides of Lake Pepin, the one-hour live radio variety program delights audiences (and listeners) with sketches, music and special guests. Live-performance attendees experience a unique perspective; actors in and out of character, creative sound effects, and more! Event Info...

Gasland II, Saturday, April 12, 2014
GASLAND PART II, which premiered at the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival, shows how the stakes have been raised on all sides in one of the most important environmental issues facing our nation today. In this explosive follow-up to his Oscar®-nominated film GASLAND, filmmaker Josh Fox takes a deeper, broader look at the dangers of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, the controversial method of extracting natural gas and oil. The free showing is co-sponsored by Maiden Rock Concerned Citizens and Lake Pepin Partners in Preservation. Event Info...

Food for Thought: Shakes on the Lake, Saturday, April 25, 2014
Shakes on the Lake is an ode to the Bard. Celebrating the birthday of the English poet, playwright and author, look for a great evening of all things wonderfully Shakespeare. The event kicks off with a potluck, followed by an engaging program. As is the annual tradition; bring a favorite dish to pass. Event Info...

As always, a complete listing of events, show dates, times and tickets can be found on the Widespot Performing Arts Center's brand new and updated website.

There's Nothing Like Springtime in Stockholm

We're kicking off spring in Stockholm this weekend and we would love for you to join us.

There may still be ice on Lake Pepin, but spring is coming; we can feel it. The signs are all around us. The snowbanks are disappearing, the birds are singing, the eagles are nesting, the robins are regulars once again, and the crocus are just starting to peek out, as if to check in on weather conditions.

And the crocus aren’t the only ones... our little village is coming alive with merchants and visitors. We’ve been working hard all week, cleaning the winter off our storefronts and stocking newly arrived goods in our stores, not to mention filling our event calendar with unique, fun and interesting events and activities we think you’re really going to enjoy.

And, if you can make it for a visit this weekend, you're in luck!

This Saturday, March 15, at 4:00pm, the entire village will be taking part in the Annual Gelly’s Pub St. Patty’s Day parade. Most visitors, and many locals, don’t realize how far back this tradition goes. The parade was a regular and well-attended event for many, many years (except a few dark ones when it didn’t take place; no one can remember quite why). Thankfully Gelly’s picked up the torch and is keeping the tradition alive.

A caravan of wagons, floats, decorated cars, farm machinery, fire engines, and street performers. We'll be going around the block twice! Wear your green and join us for the festivities. Gelly’s is offering Irish food all afternoon, and Garrigan’s Quarrel and Midlife Cryslers will be preforming.

Several other village businesses will be having special events and promotions, too. Our newest lodging establishment, Historic Stockholm Hotel, will open to the public for self-guided tours from 10-5pm to celebrate their opening. The proprietors have been working hard on renovations and will be accepting guests beginning on April 1, 2014. This will be a wonderful opportunity to meet them, tour the rooms and see the accommodations and amenities.

Sandy's Clothing and Art, Stockholm's swanky fashion and art boutique, kicks off the season with expanded hours, new merchandise, and a special spring promotion for Saturday only. In celebration of Stockholm's Irish weekend, they will be offering 10-40% off purchases; pick your clover to reveal your discount!

We hope you can come for a visit sometime soon (maybe even this weekend). There's nothing like springtime in Stockholm.

Drive through a winter wonderland…

Enhance your family’s enjoyment of the holiday season by taking a drive through a winter wonderland to Stockholm.  The snowfall a couple days ago has brushed our picturesque setting with a fresh coating of white.  Enjoy the breath-taking winter artistry as you follow the Great River Road.  Discover the works of talented local artists as you browse through our shops.  Find unique items and refreshing treats.

The next couple days are predicted to be warmer.  Take the opportunity to have a fun family outing in Stockholm.

We’d love to see you again,
Stockholm Merchants  

Make a new tradition…

My name is Carstens Smith, and I coordinate classes  at  Ingebretsen’s.  I also teach at a small private college in the Cities.  Sometimes these dual lives intersect as happened recently when I was chatting with one of my students after class. She told me about a major upset in her family.  They had thought that, as a teenager, Grandmother had brought her beloved Swedish pancake recipe to America clutched tightly in her hands when she arrived.  Much to their dismay, they just discovered the recipe was not from a treasured scrap of paper with an ancestor’s cryptic directions.  All these years, Grandmother had been using a recipe she found in a Betty Crocker cookbook.

While family members were pointing fingers at one another for creating a mythology around the recipe, the student was sad.  She thought that without the recipe her family had no authentic traditions. I disagreed. They did have a tradition, gathering together regularly to eat Swedish pancakes made from a Betty Crocker recipe.  Really, did they need more back story behind the ritual than that?  In addition, the tradition now had another layer of narrative, the supposed vs. the real history.  They could add this humorous assumption into the story to tell future generations while they enjoy the pancakes.

At Ingebretsen’s we are dedicated to keeping tradition and heritage alive.  We also believe that each generation contributes its own meaning and signature to those traditions. We are all free to add new activities and rituals and to modify those that we inherit.  We encourage you to add a new food to the Christmas Eve dinner simply because you like it, or, if you are from a family that does not have a special Christmas Eve dinner, have one this year. If your family hasn’t sat around the dining table and made ornaments together, you can do that with your children. Choose the tradition you want to follow and make it yours.

Discover wonderful Christmas craft and cookbooks at Ingebretsen’s to guide you in creating your own traditions.  You can find many of the foods and materials that you will need, too.  Whether your Christmas traditions involve brewing a Christmas ale from a recipe handed down in the family since 1532 or a second annual sledding party followed by Swedish pancakes from a (gasp!) mix, enjoy.  (Scroll down to find the recipe.)

Start a tradition this year with our first annual Stockholm Festival of Lights this Saturday, December 21.  Bring your family to the Village Hall and create a luminary.  Come any time from noon on.  We will be placing these luminaries around the village during the afternoon.  Meet St. Lucia who will be strolling around Stockholm wearing her  winter white dress and electric candle crown.  Stop by Gelly’s Pub for saffron and cardamom buns in the afternoon and enjoy the Sue Orfield Band from 3 - 5.  Attend the lighting of the wheel of fire after dark at the Sidespot. 

God Jul!

We’d love to see you again,

Carstens, Diane, and Cindy

Celebrate the season of light with us...

At Ingebretsen’s, we love the Swedish celebration of light this time of year.  In anticipation of Christmas, virtually every window in Swedish homes, apartments, and businesses has a star or electric candelabra to shine throughout the Christmas season and bring light into the dark days.  The effect is magical.  A part of Swedes’ Advent celebration, a candle is also lit on each of the four Advent Sundays.

We love St. Lucia Day, December 13, too.  The name Lucia means “light.”   During the Middle Ages, the Swedes were suffering through a severe famine.  According to legend, on December 13 a ship glowing with light appeared on Lake Vannern in Sweden carrying a woman dressed in white with a glow around her head. The ship brought desperately-needed food to the people and then quietly sailed away.  The Swedes dubbed the woman in white St. Lucia, who was actually an Italian saint, and ever since celebrated her during the darkest part of the year.

Many families who celebrate the day have their eldest daughter wake early and wear a white gown with a red sash and a crown of candles on her head.  She serves the rest of the family coffee and Lussekatter (Lucia buns).  While her younger brothers and sisters may act as her attendants, everyone becomes involved by singing traditional Lucia songs.

Whatever their origins, today’s festivities are lovely, light-filled, and an opportunity for family and friends to spend time together.  Mothers can now buy Lucia crowns with electric candles for the safety their daughters in white.  Although some Swedish-Americans prefer to host parties later in the day, they continue the tradition of coffee and Lussekatter.  In this season of sharing, we are making our favorite Lussekatter recipe available for you.  Go here to receive it.  

We invite you to stop by Ingebretsen’s this weekend and celebrate light with us.  Find out more about St. Lucia Day.  Bring your family.  Learn about St. Lucia together.

We ‘d love to see you again,

Diane and staff

Ingebretsen’s av Stockholm

Celebrate a Country Christmas this weekend…

This weekend come to Stockholm and celebrate a Country Christmas throughout the village.  We missed the weather mess this week.  Highway 35 is dry, and our sidewalks are clear.  See our new Festival of Lights decorations, illuminating and accentuating spaces and individual shops.  Enjoy a free horse-drawn wagon ride.  Take home goodies from the bake sale at Stockholm Museum.  Visit Santa who will be in Stockholm all day.

Check out the special happenings this Saturday:

The Palate will have Mrs. Claus at her workshop;
Ingebretsen’s will be offering treats and Scandinavian artists’ demonstrations;
Black Cat Farmstead will be decorated in Little House style and offers a free ornament-making workshop;
A Sense of Place will feature a winter book signing;
Stockholm Pie Company will have “pie flight” tastings and specially-made Swedish tea rings, fruit cakes, holiday cookies, and holiday gift baskets;
Stockholm General will have wine tastings, delectable samples, and special holiday gifts baskets;
TanysHus owner and international lighting designer John A. Myklebust, iesna, aia, will be in The Flat above Ingebretsen’s to answer your lighting questions;
Abode will feature Lucy Elliot, Richard Erickson, Mary Logue and other guest artists for you to meet, greet, and sign their works;
Maiden Rock Winery and Cidery will be hosting the annual Medieval Feast and Wassailing of the Apple Trees;

Later in the day
Widespot Performing Arts Center will be featuring the annual Hot Flashes Christmas show starting at 7 p.m.; 
Gelly’s will have The Sue Orfield Band featuring Sue on the saxophone from 8 - 11 p.m.

Discover extraordinary gifts in the shops.  Immerse yourself in the spirit of the season through the decorations, the aromas, and the excitement of the holidays. 

We’d love to see you again,
Stockholm Merchants    

We thank you…

We thank you for being our guest at Stockholm.  We thank you for shopping at our stores, staying at our lodgings, and savoring the fare at our eateries.  We thank you for enjoying our creations, sipping our beverages, and attending our events.  We thank you for reading these e-mails and continuing your interest in Stockholm.

We wish you and your family a happy Thanksgiving. 

We invite you to celebrate Small Business Saturday with us this weekend.  Bring your family to experience Stockholm’s small town charm.  Park on the street.  Find one-of-a-kind gifts.  Stroll through the village and browse the stores at a leisurely pace.

We’d love to see you again,
Stockholm Merchants 

You are invited to our Medieval Feast and Wassailing of the Apple Trees…

When you hear about wassailing, likely you think of caroling.  Well, another type of wassailing exists, orchard-visiting wassailing.  An ancient custom that originated in the cider-producing region of western England, orchard-wassailing awakens the apple trees and chases away the evil spirits.  This is accomplished by making a great deal of noise by singing, shouting, and banging on pots, pans, and drums. 

Today, this custom of blessing the crops and singing to good health is being practiced once again in western England, parts of North America, and here at Maiden Rock Cidery and Winery.  We invite you to join us for our Medieval Feast and Wassailing of the Apple Trees Saturday, December 7, from 5 - 9 p.m.  We will have an authentic medieval five-course feast and special Wassail beverages prepared and served by staff in medieval attire.  Our menu gives you the choice of roasted wild boar or giant smoked turkey legs and several kinds of Wassail drinks.

We are excited to welcome the Minneapolis-based group, The Laughing Hearts, to lead us in our celebration  With twenty plus years experience in revelry and interactive theater with the Renaissance Festival circuit, these ladies are multi-talented Celtic/Medieval/Renaissance musicians featuring didgeridoo, doumbaek, hand percussion, mandolin, bodhran, bagpipes, whistles, flute, guitar, harmonica, and vocal performances.  They bring a jolly good season to any Wassailer looking to bring forth a joyful noise!

Toast the apple trees with us.  Since seating is limited, we recommend you make your reservations early.  Today is good.  Tickets for adults are $50, and children under 12 are $25.  Groups of six or more are $40 for adults and $15 for children 12 and under.  Click here to register online or call (715) 448-3502.  Find more information on our Medieval Feast and Wassailing of the Apple Trees here.

We’d love to have you Wassail with us!
Herdie, Carol, and Staff
Maiden Rock Winery & Cidery    

Enjoy the lights of John’s inspiration this season…

When my husband John and I moved back to the Midwest from Pasadena, California, in 2012, we were attracted to the natural beauty and historical significance of Stockholm.  We bought TansyHus, built in 1904 by John Lindgren, the village blacksmith.  We employed our experience and talents to turn the house that sits proudly on a hill well away from busy Highway 35 into a relaxing vacation rental. 

John had a concern about the village, though.  As an architect and international lighting designer, John had an affinity for light.  To his dismay, he found Stockholm chilly and dark.  After dark during winter, he marveled at the village’s beauty.  The snowlight reflected off the shop windows and created a picturesque scene. This prompted him to think of a way to replicate the light and enhance it all through the village.  On his nightly walks through the village with Bernadette, our golden doodle, and Charlie, our terrier mix, he began to imagine a Festival of Lights.  He envisioned all the stores embellished with similar white icicle lights.  He would give each building individual attention and situate the lights to complement its architectural details.  Dubbing the production TheFestival of Lights, John presented his inspiration to the merchants, and they embraced it enthusiastically with money and encouragement.

When you visit Stockholm this winter season, you will see the results of John’s inspiration, nearly 1,000’ of energy efficient LED lights operating from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. daily.  Notice the pine trees and other common area features that will also be illuminated, accentuating spaces and individual shop keepers‘seasonal decorations.   Take the opportunity on Saturday, December 7, to talk with John, iesna, aia, from 1:00 – 5:00 p.m. about lighting.  He will be in The Flat above Ingebretsens .   You can enjoy Swedish treats and wassail at the same time. 

We will culminate our first annual Festival of Lights on December 21, the winter solstice.  The program is being designed in collaboration with Mykelbust+Sears, the designers of Stockholm’s Fire & Art 2007-2009.  We’ll give you more details on the event later. 

Light is “that quality or tool by which we have gained almost all the knowledge we have about our universe.”  Jean Houston, author of Mystical Dogs in animals as guides to our inner life.  Enjoy the lights of Stockholm this season.

We’d love to see you again,

John and Sandra Mykelbust

owners and managers,

TansyHus, a Vacation Rental in Stockholm   

Visit a restored house from Laura Ingalls Wilder’s grandparents homestead site…

In the spring of 2012, my husband Stanton and I, who are sculptors, had the opportunity to save an early pioneer house by moving it from a neighbor’s land to ours. The house, built on a site homesteaded by Laura Ingalls Wilder’s grandparents in the nineteenth century, had been vacant for years and was in a state of disrepair.  “There were holes in the roof,” recounts my husband Stanton.  “The building was still sound enough to be salvaged, but I felt this was its last chance.” 

We moved the house.  You can see a picture of the move here.  The small house was framed on a sill of hand-hewn logs.  We placed the house on a new foundation, stabilized it structurally, and gave it a new roof.

We incorporated both traditional and contemporary elements in the building’s restoration.  We added root cellar space into the new foundation to store harvest from the small farm which is part of our Myklebust+Sears studio. We warmed a walk-out lower level of the building with in-floor heat and in 2012 installed a solar array to power the area.  We keep an antique Scandinavian frame loom there.

In addition to our sculptures, Stanton and I raise sheep at Black Cat Farmstead.  From their wool, we handspin Myklebust’s yarns, using several looms and a variety of spinning wheels and fiber tools, both antique and contemporary.  We are using the house as a store to sell these yarns.  See them here.  We have also created a workspace and teaching venue in the house for traditional fiber arts.  Though most of my career has been involved in the production of large-scale sculptures for public spaces, I’ve had a long-standing interest in fiber and textile work.  Moving our studio here to rural Pepin County presented an opportunity to more deeply explore this aspect of my artistic production.  I have also set aside part of the little house as a gallery to feature work by local artists and am changing these exhibits regularly.

By last summer, we had the house ready to welcome visitors as the Black Cat Farmstead Fiber Studio and Farm Store.  We invite you to stop by.  We open the studio to the public May through Country Christmas weekend, December 7 - 8, and all year by appointment.  When you visit the studio, expect to find a wide range of activities taking place, including fiber preparation, handspinning, weaving, and spinning wheel repair.  You will likely encounter at least one of the studio’s namesake felines.  Black is the favorite color for cats here at our farm and at the neighbor’s place.  Before we moved the little house, feral black cats used the old cellar as a shelter.  I like to imagine that they may be the descendants of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s cat, Black Susan. 

Stanton and I wanted to restore and re-use of the little house and incorporate it into the working landscape of our studio to connect both the past and the future  We were happy to have the opportunity to save a piece of local history.  The house is a living example of how people who arrived here a hundred and fifty years ago lived and worked.  It’s a great place to create.  Our site is like a big laboratory, where we can experiment with new ideas related to sculpture, plantings, and landscapes.

We hope you visit soon.

We'd love to meet you,
Andrea Myklebust and Stanton Sears
Black Cat Farmstead Fiber Studio & Farm Store