winter ice

words and photographs by kristen bach

storefront

photograph by rebecca wood

shed

someone told me where to find this old shed. it was under some pecan trees a little ways out of town.

it was like a miniature salt box, but so tiny. it could have been a stable, but the porcelain door knob made it seem more like a home. maybe it was a combo. anyway, i couldn't get past the briars to look in the open window in back, so i'll just have to keep wondering...

photographs by rebecca wood

rusted sign

photograph by kristen bach

mill in sheffield alabama

we recently road tripped to alabama with florence and muscle shoals as our destination.  one day we headed out of town to a small town called sheffield, alabama. it appeared that sheffield was an old railroad and industry town filled with tons of deserted factories and buildings to explore.  one building that caught my eye....all of the way across town was this mill.  it is an active lumber mill that was covered with tin with the most beautiful patina. 
enjoy!

photographs and words by kristen bach

fern

photograph by kristin karch

hellebores

photographs by rinne allen

rust

photograph by kristen bach

dyeing with acorns

today's post is more of a woods to the craft table.  lately, i have been doing a lot of natural dyeing for a project that i have been working on.  this past week i tried dyeing with acorns.  i dyed some wooden beads, but I bet fabric would look lovely too.

ingredients:
1 cup of foraged acorns
1 cup of water
1 cup of white vinegar
rusty nails or other rusty objects

directions
-in a jar, soak your rusty objects in the white vinegar
-let objects soak for 3 days or longer
-soak your acorns in the water for 3 days or longer
-after soaking is complete....heat up acorns and water in a saucepan (add a little more water if necessary)
-remove rusty objects from vinegar and add to acorn mixture
-add what you are wanting to dye and let soak for 5 minutes
-remove the items that you have dyed and rinse and dry

***if you are dyeing fabric or something large you can double or triple recipe

photo and tutorial by kristen bach

hidden

photograph by kristin karch

thailand: textures

in bangkok, we made a day trip to the grand palace and wat pho. the breathtaking sculpture, gilding, and mosaic work on these thai temples rivals the grand cathedrals of europe. with the high numbers of tourists that visit every day, it made me happy to see workers actively restoring bits of the place while we were there.  

words and photographs by kristin karch

white spider lillies

photograph by kristin karch

thailand: khao sok national park

khao sok national park in southern thailand is a hidden gem that i am thankful to have experienced. the park is home to the oldest evergreen rainforest in the world, as well as dense caves, emerald green lakes, and massive limestone cliffs. the park rangers live in these floating shacks for a couple weeks each month and commute by bamboo raft, complete with a diesel motor rigged onto the back.

golden hour

photograph by kristin karch

thailand: chiang mai region

the city of chiang mai is very unique in comparison to the rest of thailand. it was the capital of the kingdom of lan na, which was once its own country seperate from thailand. not only was cooler weather refreshing up north, but the people and the culture had an air of warmth and friendliness that made this city a joy to explore. 

words and photographs by kristin karch

banana leaves

photograph by kristin karch

thailand: orchids of chiang mai

visiting this orchid farm was a twist of fate and made up one of my favorite days in thailand. some friends and i rented motor bikes and hit off for the country side in search of orchids, waterfalls, and rice fields. the fast paced and hectic traffic ended up seperating me from the others, so i rode for about 30 kilometers before i stopped at this orchid farm to figure out if i was on the right track. with the help of wifi, i was reunited with my friends and was able to explore this beautiful orchid farm. i was surprised to see that all the orchids were grown by aeration because of the naturally humid and warm climate. 

words and photographs by kristin karch

thai gold

photograph by kristin karch

thailand: street food and markets

i recently went on an adventure to thailand where i was lucky to explore the northern, central, and southern regions. i was amazed at the plentiful amount of fresh meat, fruit, and vegetables you could find just about everywhere. some of the best food i ate was right off the street, from men and women with a makeshift charcoal grill and some unidentifiable meat. the top image as well as some others were from the khlong lat mayon floating market, which was a delight to see and to taste. 

words and photographs by kristin karch

hydrangea

photograph by rinne allen