Candace and A Trip to Alaska with Mountain Heather

Mountain Heather's hats along with some others for sale at Spirit Mountain Artworks in 

Chitina, Alaska

"Are there any in my size?" Candace wonders.

Where's Kim?

Candace is looking for me at the Tanana Valley Farmers Market which I had ditched out on that day because of cool temps and wind.

Candace went on a fishing trip to Chitina where Heather went dip-netting for Copper River red salmon. I heard she didn't want to get her hands slimy so she stayed tucked away.

She doesn't mind posing with the filets though as they match her lovely hair.

A view of Mount Hayes from south of my home  in Delta on the Richardson Highway.

A view of the Alaska Range can be seen from

Mountain Heather's "off the grid" home that she shares with her husband, stepson and several dogs near Murphy Dome outside of Fairbanks. They're growing a fabulous garden up there in the hills that fills the freezer for a good part of the winter.  

Wild Irises in the evening glow of solstice.

Heather is  multi-talented. These are cabinets she designed on AutoCad for her family's cabinet shop Dreamworks Cabinetry where she also lends her skills.

I was in Arizona when my friend Heather heard about Candace's travel plans. She asked me if I thought it would be too boring for her to visit her. It worked out that she arrived here in time for some good fishing and Solstice.

 Heather's business is Mountain Heather Creations and she has made quite a business of it selling hats for every season that bear the outline appliqued mountains and sun or moon on  fleece or cotton. You can see her popular warm fleece hats sported on folks in Alaska almost anywhere you go.

Heather is one of my dearest friends that I met while doing some of my first shows when I started out on my lampworking and jewelry making forays. She was a bit of a veteran  by then and had a lot of tips for a new seller like me. I think our first show together was mid-winter (and -30 degrees F outside. That's -34 Celsius!) at bazaar at a school in North Pole. We didn't get much business and I've since learned that school bazaars are not the way to go for me. We did get a lot of time to visit and make a trade.  I traded a necklace for one of her hats. Both styles have been long discontinued by each of us.

She doesn't do as many shows anymore but prefers to wholesale to shops or sell through her website. You can view her Flickr photostream here. or become a fan of Mountain Heather on Facebook.

She has a special line of hats at the UAF (University of Alaska Fairbanks) Museum that feature the exact outline of the Alaska Range.