Del Rio Grande 0318

MARCH 2018

BUT FIRST...

COFFEE For a neighborhood roaster, timing is everything

WOOD WIZARD Air Force vet brings new life to used wood

MAN OF STEEL Metalworker welds intricate characters

MARCH 2018

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FROM THE EDITOR

An homage to makers PUBLISHER Sandra Castillo EDITOR Karen Gleason CREATIVE DIRECTOR Megan Tackett WRITERS AND PHOTOGRAPHERS Brian Argabright Karen Gleason Adriana Ibarra Megan Tackett Eva-Maria Smith ADVERTISING Kim Dupill Ashley Lopez Albert Treviño PRODUCTION Jorge Alarcon Roland Cardenas Adriana Ibarra EDITORIAL karen.gleason@delrionewsherald.com 830-775-1551, Ext. 247 ADVERTISING ashley.lopez@delrionewsherald.com 830-775-1551, Ext. 250 STORY IDEAS karen.gleason@delrionewsherald.com

2205 North Bedell Avenue • Del Rio, TX 78840 delrionewsherald.com Del Rio Grande is published by the Del Rio News-Herald.

No portion may be reproduced in whole or in part by any means, including electronic retrieval systems, without written permission of the publisher. Editorial content does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the publisher of this magazine.

Editorial and advertising does not constitute advice but is considered informative.

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GRANDE / MARCH 2018

I’ve always admired makers, whom I think of as anyone described as “crafty” or “handy” or “mechanically inclined.”

I married a maker: Michael G., with whom I will celebrate my 36th anniversary this month, is one of the handiest people I know.

He’s an aircraft mechanic by trade, but he is also an excellent woodworker, having made several beautiful bookcases for me over the long years of our marriage. Two years ago, he moved in with his father in San Antonio in part so he could help his dad renovate a small house the family owns on the city’s southwest side.

Mike taught himself how to do a lot of the work inside the house and transformed it from a run-down, poorly maintained vacant box to a delightful little residence full of creative, thoughtful grace notes.

Likewise, I admire all of the makers in this month’s issue.

Nancy O’Brien and I have been close friends for years, and I have long been a fan of her extraordinary ceramic work. I was surprised and delighted when she took up crocheting, first to create part of an extraordinary coral reef exhibit at The Firehouse and then to make her whimsical little Tiffins.

I met Natalie Granatelli, owner of Branelli Coffee Company, at one of the Del Rio Community Garden’s Mini Farmers Markets last summer and instantly fell in love with her coffee.

I now start every day with a cup of her rich Brazilian, as in the photo above.

Elisa Fernandez is a delightful young woman I also met at a local market, this one inside the Casa De La Cultura some years ago. I have bought and used her soap and consider it to be on a par with anything out there.

There is a lot of talent and drive in Del Rio, and we hope you enjoy the work and stories of the local makers we featured in this issue.

Enjoy!

Karen Gleason Grande Editor

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CONTENTS

MARCH 2018

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Keep busy this month at these local events.

Eric Harristhal of Dos Pistolas Metalworks creates wonders from his home garage.

CALENDAR

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COMING CLEAN

MAN OF STEEL

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Del Rio native Elisa Fernandez uses natural oils and herbs in her sudsy creations.

GRANDE PICKS

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Make something memorable with our monthly picks.

BUT FIRST... COFFEE Self-taught coffee roaster Natalie Granatelli crafts perfect batches of beans.

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TAWNY PORT

RECIPE

Local vintner ferments Val Verde Winery’s most popular pour.

Homemade gluten free chocolate chip scones from scratch.

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COCKTAIL Learn how to handcraft the Gold Rush cocktail.

FASHION SHOOT Fresh textures and hues are showcased among Val Verde Winery’s vines.

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CLOSET CONFIDENTIAL Take a peek inside Paola Holguin’s closet and creative process.

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WOOD WIZARD An Air Force vet crafts home furnishings from repurposed wood.

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CROCHETED CUTENESS Council for the Arts Director Nancy O’Brien crochets cuddly stuffed creatures.

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LAST LOOK Grande’s creative director wraps up this issue.

On the cover: Natalie Granatelli began her Del Rio coffee roasting company, Branelli Coffee, in August 2017. The Purdue University graduate roasts her beans at her White Feather Trail home and sells the finished product at local markets and events.

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MARCH CALENDAR

Keep busy this month at these fun local events

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BATTLE AT THE BORDER CHEER AND DANCE COMPETITION Del Rio High School 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Bring It On meets reality as Del Rio High School hosts this MCDA competition. $10 admission for general public.

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SPRING BREAK WITH KEVIN FOWLER Gorzugis 2101 Dodson Ave. 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Welcome the springtime with country artist Kevin Fowler as he performs live at Gorzugis.

17 BORDER BASS BATTLE Amistad National Recreation Area 7:30 a.m.

Rudy’s Country Store & Bar-B-Q sponsors and the Del Rio Chamber of Commerce hosts this second annual fishing contest.

17 CULTURE CHALK Casa de la Cultura 302 Cantu St. Noon to 6 p.m.

The Casa family will host this free community art event, transforming the beautiful Plazita streets into colorful murals.

24 BFCU’S 6TH ANNUAL GOLF TOURNAMENT FOR SCHOLARSHIPS San Felipe Golf Course - 1524 E Highway 90 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Work on your short game at BFCU’s Annual Golf Tournament, which has provided more than $90,000 in scholarships to deserving students and teachers since its 2013 creation.

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GRANDE / MARCH 2018

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GRANDE / MARCH 2018

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Coming Clean Story by KAREN GLEASON; photos by KAREN GLEASON and contributed by ELISA FERNANDEZ

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You might think the best advertisement for a soap would be frothy lather or a delightful smell, and while Elisa Fernandez’s Magnolia Street Soap Mill soaps provide both of these, the soap’s best selling point is Fernandez herself.

Fernandez, a native of Del Rio, created Magnolia Street Soap Mill three years ago.

“I named the company for Magnolia Street in south Del Rio, my greatgrandfather’s neighborhood. My great-grandfather has an adobe house on Magnolia Street. My parents had redone it right before the Flood of ’98, and it got flooded.

“So when I was coming up with names for the business, that just stuck with me because I thought of the flood. I also used to work for the News-Herald as a newspaper girl. That was one of my first jobs, and I would ride my bike and throw papers at people’s houses, so I said, I have to name it after that place,” she said.

Fernandez said the impetus to start the company was born when a friend stationed in Del Rio couldn’t find a particular type of soap he wanted in any local shop.

Fernandez said she’d just lost her job, and an uncle who owned a trucking business kept asking her if she had any ideas for starting her own business.

“I thought about party rentals and jewelry, but everyone has that here already, so I said, ‘The soap might work for that,’ so that’s how I started doing soap,” Fernandez said.

“My first several batches looked like cheese,” she remembered with a laugh.

Fernandez said it took her several months to fine-tune her soapmaking process.

“When I started, it was all YouTube videos, going to the library and checking out books about essential oils, base oils and just plain trial and error. There have been times that the crockpot has overflowed because I wasn’t checking on it constantly or the heat was too high.

I was really scared about using the lye at first because you have to wear long sleeves, pants, gloves, a mask and goggles, and I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m totally going to burn myself or poison myself.’ But it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be,” she said.

Early on, she gifted some of her soap to Grace and John Lissner, the owners of Gracie’s Finds, a local antique and curiosities shop, and John Lissner liked the soap.

“So he asked if I could make him some for his store,” she said.

Fernandez sells her soaps mainly at a monthly craft market downtown.

She formerly sold her soaps at both Gracie’s Finds and Tula’s but said she has had to cut back.

Fernandez said the scale of the business right now is exactly where she wants it.

“I just want to have it as a local item, and go to the markets because I love talking to people, and just keep it here within the area,” she said.

Fernandez makes about 16 bars of soap per batch and between 60 and 80 bars per month.

Fernandez said the most difficult part of the business is finding the time to “cook” batches of her natural, plant-based soaps.

“I work full time, and I also have a daughter, so just finding the time to make it is the hardest part for me,” she said.

Fernandez said testing new fragrances and colors and hearing people’s feedback are among the things she enjoys most.

Fernandez’s line of soaps now include the following: • Lavender, made with lavender essential oil, Dead Sea clay, dried lavender buds; • Rose Clay, made with rose clay powder; • Ylang-Ylang, made with patchouli and bergamot essential oil; • May Chang, which has olive leaf powder and Litsea cubeba essential oil; • Peppermint, which contains bentonite clay and peppermint essential oil; and

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• Carbon Bar, which contains activated charcoal, orange, cedarwood and fern needle essential oils.

Fernandez begins a batch of soap with a mixture of oils – coconut, olive, palm and castor – which she heats in a crockpot set on her sturdy workstation, locallymade by wood craftsman Rene Vela of repurposed pallet wood.

A mixture of lye and water added to the warm oil mixture helps it saponify – a term that means attaining a soap-like texture and consistency.

After donning protective gear, Fernandez adds the lye and water mixture to the oils and begins blending all of the liquids with a handheld immersion blender.

Fernandez said it takes about two hours to make a single batch.

After mixing the oils, lye and water thoroughly and completely, she adds her other ingredients, including the essential oils.

“It takes about an hour to ‘cook’ everything, then I let it cool down a bit before I add the essential oil,” she said.

If the essential oils are added while the mixture is too hot, she said, the oils and their rich scent will evaporate.

After the blending is completed, she continues mixing, this time with a rubber spatula.

As she works the spatula through the mixture, its consistency begins to change, first resembling applesauce, then thick oatmeal, then mashed potatoes.

Once all of the ingredients are combined and the mixture has reached the exact consistency Fernandez looks for, she piles spatulas full of the mixture into a plastic-lined wooden mold.

The molds are allowed to sit, cool and set for about a day. Then Fernandez transfers the large block of soap into another wood frame and uses notched guides on the side of the mold to cut the soap into individual pieces.

Fernandez’s hot-process method of making soap doesn’t give the soaps a smooth, factory-made sameness.

Instead, the soaps have a raw and rustic look to them, but they lather well and smell wonderful, filling a hot shower or bath with the rich scents of the essential oils used in their making. •

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But first...

Coffee

For a local coffee roaster, timing is everything Story and photos by MEGAN TACKETT

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GRANDE / MARCH 2018

Natalie Granatelli began roasting coffee from home in August 2016. She sells her coffee at community markets in Del Rio and neighboring cities.

Starting the morning with a cup of coffee is a daily ritual for many. It provides an early energy boost and warm comfort. For one Del Rio resident, coffee is a culture, a process and, in the past year, a lucrative pursuit.

Branelli Coffee Co. owner Natalie Granatelli began roasting coffee beans from her home on White Feather Trail in April 2017. Since then, more than 200 customers enjoy her product locally and across the country.

Her passion stemmed from her family’s coffee drinking tradition in her home state of Indiana. Her love for the flavor-packed bean only intensified after regularly visiting roasters while living in Washington state.

Granatelli said she’d pick local roasters’ brains to learn more about the process and

to figure out how she could do it on her own.

“There’s an insane amount to know about coffee,” Granatelli said. “It’s a lot like wine.

People talk about how they can taste the different notes and with coffee it’s the exact same.”

When Granatelli’s family moved to Del Rio in August 2016, her husband, Joe, developed a prototype coffee roaster from a popcorn maker and a springform pan and began roasting beans at home. Since then, she has upgraded to a commercial roaster, which allows her to produce a higher volume from each batch.

Granatelli purchases beans from countries like Brazil, Guatemala, Ethiopia and Colombia, and each country has a specific flavor and roast profile.“When you drink African beans, you’re going to pick up

more berry notes,” she said. “Guatemalan beans give you more spicy notes.”

Granatelli must roast each batch at a specific temperature and for a specific amount of time, depending on where it originated, to achieve the perfect flavor when the coffee is eventually brewed.

Colombian beans are nutty and Indonesian beans, like Granatelli’s Sumatran, are earthy.

“Nothing is automatic about it,” Granatelli said. “It’s really important you monitor the temperature and don’t let the temperature get away from you. If it gets 15 degrees hotter or colder it can really affect the flavor profile.”

Although each region’s roasting specifications vary, the process remains similar, she said. Once the proper

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temperature is reached, Granatelli places the beans in the roasting drum that rotates the beans so they cook evenly. She waits until she hear the “first crack,” which indicates where the beans are in the roasting process.

“If you rush it, you might pick up one flavor in the bean but you’re not going to get any depth to it,” Granatelli said.

“With my beans, I want you to be able to pick up prominent flavors from the aroma to the aftertaste.”

Lighter roasts, Granatelli said, are pulled just before the “second crack.”

Once the medium and darker roast beans reach “second crack” she knows the roasting process is almost complete.

She pulls the drum from the roaster, dumps the beans in a shallow mesh crate and gently stirs the beans as a fan blows away the bean’s chaff, a light, papery substance that heat removes from the beans.

As she roasts, Granatelli’s three-yearold daughter, Brynn, runs around the yard with their dogs, Lucy and Belle.

Brynn occasionally interrupts to insert her preschool knowledge, but is mostly

courteous of her mother’s job.

Granatelli makes the process look easy, but the slightest error can compromise the entire batch, and she refuses to sell a sub-par product. She playfully jokes that Joe is currently banned from roasting after recently under-roasting a Colombian batch.

Granatelli emphasizes the emotional reward she feels when customers praise her hand-made product. As her customers sip her coffee each morning, in a way, she’s enjoying it alongside with them. •

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Chocolate Chip Scones Story and photo by BONITA SANTILLAN

Ingredients: • 2 cups gluten-free allpurpose flour • 1/4 cup white sugar • 1 tablespoon baking powder • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold • 1 1/4 cup chocolate chips • 3/4 cup sour cream • 1 large egg • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (Optional: 2 tablespoons unsalted butter and 2 tablespoon white sugar)

Directions:

T

hese chocolate chip scones are a hit for both kids and adults because you can’t ever go wrong with chocolate chips!

Over the years, Del Rio has made it easier to have a gluten-free lifestyle. The local grocery stores now carry a few gluten-free all-purpose flour brands along with ready-made pastries and snacks. However, the price can add up over time. If you choose to bake at home instead of splurging on ready-made desserts, you will save quite a bit.

These chocolate chip scones are easy to make and take less than 15 minutes to bake. The trick is to use cold butter for shredding. This will create a flakier texture — similar to pie crusts.

You don’t have to miss out on yummy desserts with a gluten-free lifestyle!

Bon appétit!

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GRANDE / MARCH 2018

Preheat oven to 450ºF. Prepare a baking sheet with paper lining or non-stick spray.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Shred cold butter using a cheese grater into the flour mixture. Mix using a fork to create a crumby texture.

In a medium bowl, whisk together egg, sour cream and vanilla extract. Slowly add to flour mixture and mix until combined. Once incorporated, roll dough into a ball.

On a floured counter or tabletop, shape dough into a 1-inch thick circle, about 8 inches round. Cut dough into 8 wedges and place onto prepared baking sheet.

Bake for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown.

(Optional) Melt 2 tablespoons of butter and smother onto top of scones. Sprinkle sugar as added topping.)

For more gluten-free recipes, visit bonitappetit.com

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Autumn’s Arts GRANDE / OCTOBER

2017

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We are looking for men and women to model in future issues of the magazine.

If you are interested, send photos and contact information to Megan Tackett at the following email: megan.tackett@delrionewsherald.com or call 830-775-1551.

For story and photo ideas, email Karen Gleason at the following: karen.gleason@delrionewsherald.com

GRANDE / MARCH 2018

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Handmade

Gold Rush Recipe by MEGAN TACKETT; photo by KAREN GLEASON

An exceptional handcrafted cocktail starts with authentic ingredients. This month, we use Anita Monroe’s honey from rescued bees as the smooth sweetness that ties together this tempting concoction, a Gold Rush. Add a splash of Maker’s Mark whisky (Because it’s the makers issue of course), a squeeze of lemon and enjoy.

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Ingredients

Honey simple syrup Whisky, try Maker’s Mark One whole lemon Ice cube, preferably large cubed Rocks glass

Honey syrup method

Mix equal parts honey and hot water Stir contents well until dissolved Allow to cool before use

Cocktail method

Pour one tablespoon of honey syrup into rocks glass Pour 1.5 ounces of whisky over syrup Squeeze half of lemon into glass Stir ingredients for one minute until dissolved Drop large cube in glass Garnish with lemon twist and enjoy

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Man of Steel Story and photos by KAREN GLEASON

Eric Harristhal crafted this stainless steel interpretation of “Doorknob,” the jolly, joking character from the movie “Alice in Wonderland.”

Y

ou’ve got to look twice at some of Eric Harristhal’s creations before you realize they’re made

of metal.

Harristhal crafts the playful – and sometimes unsettling – pieces in his Dos Pistolas Metalworks shop just north of Del Rio. Harristhal is originally from Minnesota.

He was born Ely, Minn., and spent his growing-up years in Duluth, Minn., in the heart of that state’s Iron Range and North Woods country.

“I applied for a job with the U.S. Border Patrol, which is what brought me

Maybe you shouldn’t turn your back on Eric Harristhal’s “Stitches,” an unsettling character he made of stainless steel in his Dos Pistolas Metalworks workshop.

to Texas. When they offered me a job, I had to Google the two locations that they offered me, which were Brackettville and Carrizo Springs. Of course my wife and I hadn’t heard of either of them,” Harristhal said with a laugh.

What was it like to move from the country’s northern border to its southern boundary?

“It was total culture shock,” he said.

Harristhal and his wife Charista, also from Minnesota, have lived in Del Rio for nine years, but they are preparing to move again. By the time you read this, they will be making their way to a new home in

Tucson, Ariz.

Harristhal said he began working with metal after looking for a typically Texas barbecue grill.

“Something very popular around here is barbecue or cooking out, so I thought I’d try and get into it, so I went to look at a barbecue pit, and it was over $600.

I was like, ‘I’m not going to spend that kind of money; I bet I could make one.’ I’d never welded a day in my life, but I went on Craigslist and bought a used, broken welder for $175.

“I replaced the cord on it, and I plugged it in and it worked, and I taught myself

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Two examples of metalworker Eric Harristhal’s “Dread Head” series: At left Dread Head #1 “Mesh,” and at right, Dread Head #2 “Classic Dread Head.”

“Scarred Heart,” an original metal piece by Del Rio metalworker Eric Harristhal speaks of wounds endured.

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In “Poison Apple,” Eric Harristhal has incorporated a human skull and drips of poison into the shape of a fateful fruit.

Del Rio metalworker Eric Harristhal, left, his 15-month-old daughter Scarlet and his wife Charista. The Harristhals have lived in Del Rio for about nine years and are right in the middle of a move to Tucson, Ariz., where Eric said he’ll continue working in metal.

how to weld. I built a barbecue pit and after that I thought maybe I could make something cool to look at too, and it started right then,” Harristhal remembered.

He began teaching himself how to work metal and eventually upgraded his equipment.

“I’ve taught myself everything. I’ve never taken a single class,” he said.

Asked how he had learned, Harristhal grinned and said, “YouTube.”

Harristhal said he could have continued making barbecue pits, but decided to go in a different, more artful, direction.

“To me, I like the creativity of the art pieces. I like doing things that I like. I don’t like to take custom orders from people, and if I did barbecue pits, 100 percent of it would be custom orders. I just make what I like, and it’s not my full-time job, so if nobody wants it, I’ll keep it,” Harristhal said.

Harristhal said his favorite aspect of

metalworking is that he can lose himself completely in the making.

“I can go out there in the garage and start and lose the whole day. It’s not work to me. I just enjoy it,” he said.

Harristhal said he has considered becoming a full-time metalworker, but has put that dream on hold – at least for a while.

“I have a stable job with benefits and a oneyear-old little girl right now, and I don’t want to take the risk right now, the possibility of failure,” he said with a shrug.

“That’ll be my retirement, doing metalwork,” he added.

Harristhal said he has not yet gotten tired of working in metal.

“I go out there without even a plan, and I just start to put pieces together, and I make it up as I go, to be honest, and it will turn into a robot or an odd-looking guy,” he said.

Harristhal has created a series of heads whose name, Dread Head, he has

copyrighted.

“At first, I would heat up steel cable and form it for their hair, like dreadlocks, so I sort of started calling them Dread Heads, and the name just kind of stuck,” Harristhal said.

“Ninety-nine percent of the things I do are TIG-welded and most of it is stainless steel,” he said.

“The most popular tools that I use are a TIG welder, plasma cutters, angle-grinders.

Everything I use, aside from the plasma cutter, you could get at The Home Depot,” Harristhal said. “I don’t have any fancy metal shop tools.”

He said he sells his work through his web site, www.dospistolasmetalworks.com, through his Facebook page and through his Etsy shop.

“Ninety-nine percent of my business is through Instagram, though,” Harristhal said.

His Instagram account is @ dospistolasmetalworks. •

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29

Grande Picks

Make something special this month with these hand-picked finds.

Make your life a little easier with an organizational calendar kit from Marshalls.

Learn to make a classic cocktail with this Tommy Bahama set from Marshalls.

Make someone’s day with a fresh, beautiful flower bouquet from HEB.

Test your culinary skills and make something delicious this month. Find these cookbooks at Russell’s True Value.

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The best cookies are homemade in Del Rio. Find Happy Homemaker cookies at the next local farmers market.

Skip the Blue Bell and try your hand at homemade ice cream.

Set available at Russell’s True Value.

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Tawny Port Val Verde Winery’s

Story and photo by MEGAN TACKETT

Members of the Qualia family behind Val Verde Winery are arguably the most prominent makers in Del Rio. At any given time, the winery produces 12 wine varieties, both red and white, sweet and dry. Out of all these styles, however, it’s their tawny port that earns them the most recognition.

“The tawny port is what we’re most known for,” fourth-generation vintner Michael Qualia said. “It’s just been a favorite from the get-go.”

Tommy Qualia, the winery’s third generation vintner, originally created the award-winning Don Luis Tawny Port on a whim in 1982, said Michael Qualia, Tommy’s son. Michael said the port was named after a nickname given to his grandfather, Louis Qualia.

“It’s a name of respect, like a very successful businessman,” Michael said.

The port, Michael said, looks and tastes like a traditional port with its brownish-burgundy hue and buttery, nutty flavors.The wine, made from lenoir grapes grown at the winery, is fortified with brandy from a family operation in Arkansas, to give it that signature robust taste.

Much of the Qualias’ operation is focused on creating tawny port, Michael said. Six of the vineyard’s 13 acres are dedicated to producing the lenoir crop, and 90 percent of that crop goes into the tawny port, he said.

The other acreage contains the blanc du bois grape and areas where the soil is currently rehabilitating Each bottle of Don Luis is blended with lenoir crops from different years, Michael said, which is why each bottle is labeled with a number rather than a year.

Recently, the winery bottled its16th batch.

“The very first bottling was not numbered,” Michael said. “And when they did the next one for whatever reason they decided to call it blend number two. Then three or four years later when they did it again they called it blend number three.”

The Qualia vintners recently created the Shaman Tawny Port, a lighter, younger rendition of their popular Don Luis wine. In the past 15 years, Michael says more and more Texas wineries are producing a port or a similar red dessert wine.

Although the winery’s customers love the lenoirbased Don Luis port, Michael said their single variety lenoir has also gained popularity in the past few years, indicating to vintner that more lenoir vines are necessary to keep up with production.

“Production is up in the vineyard,” Michael said.

“It’s giving us a few more options.”

Fortunately for the community and wine connoisseurs across Texas, Val Verde Winery and the Qualia vintners, some of Del Rio’s oldest makers, won’t be going anywhere anytime soon. •

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33

Fashion Meets

Flourish Buffalo Girls garments subtly shine at Val Verde Winery Photos by Eva-Maria Smith Styling by Megan Tackett

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Cameron wears a dusty pink dress with a white lace shrug.

Annie wears a basic white shirt with a white lace shrug.

Cameron goes barefoot in a pink embroidered dress.

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Annie wears an embroidered, denim-textured dress with a delicate silver necklace.

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Cameron wears a long-sleeved cross front mint green top.

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Annie wears a gray sleeveless turtleneck sweater dress.

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Cameron wears a long-sleeved cross front mint green top with a white lace shrug.

Annie and Cameron enjoy a glass of rosĂŠ at Val Verde Winery, wearing fashions from Buffalo Girls.

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Paola works on an embroidery piece for her business “Corazon de Melon,” in earrings she designed.

CLOSET CONFIDENTIAL PAOLA HOLGUIN Story and photos by ADRIANA IBARRA

Editor’s note: With an ecclectic style stemming from films like “Amelie,” years in Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico and music from The Strokes, Del Rioan Paola Holguin brings together a style all her own. She runs a business, Corazon de Melon, that features hand-made products with a loving Hispanic influence.

Fashion Inspiration

Thrifty Fashionista

There are a few YouTube vloggers I look up to for inspiration. The main one right now is Madeline de la Rosa. I like a more bright and approachable friendly look.

I also am inspired by the film “Amelie” with Audrey Tautou. I like how her character is feminine but modest, and I like that her inner beauty shines through.

Recently I don’t do much shopping at fashion stores. I like to go through the clothes at the thrift stores downtown.

There are so many neat items to choose from. I really enjoy the more “southwest” look so I incorporate the New Mexico and Boho kind of vibe to my everyday style.

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Buttons like these can be worn on just about anything! They go well with jean jackets and backpacks.

Style Evolution When I was in middle school, the whole “scene” style was big.

Everyone had these bright colors and crazy hair. When I moved to Monterrey, however, I needed to figure out who I was and how I was going to present myself. I saw a lot of the people there who didn’t stick to a certain fashion style. They were confident and expressed themselves in their fashion choices. I dressed really “hippie” at the time, but now that I’m a mom I’m dressing a little more feminine and grownup. I want to dress my age even though I do bring out my band tees. I love them so much.

I made these earrings to go with my more “Southwest” outfits, they are a great little accent piece.

Cultural Fashions I was born in Mexico, and Spanish is my first language, so most of what I bring into my style and products is more old school Mexican mom sayings. I like to incorporate them in a funny and relatable way so when people pass my booth they’ll have a good laugh. I want to share how I grew up with other people.

Style Icon My biggest style icon would have to be Julian Casablancas from The Strokes. I love his confidence on stage. When he’s doing what he loves, he turns on his confidence and I admire that about him. I try to incorporate their music into my style as well.

Paola poses in a band t-shirt and jeans, one of her more comfortable outfits.

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My Hoops Currently, my favorite piece of jewelry would have to be my hoops. I love hoops so much and I never thought I would. I feel so confident in them and now they’re my go-to.

My hoop earrings make me feel confident and empowered.

Sneaks and Jeans I love my Levi jeans with a band tee and my white ugly nurse shoes. It’s just so comfortable to wear, and I like to be comfortable.

Accessories Standing in front of a mural in the south Del Rio neighborhood, Paola shines in a feminine lemon print dress.

I recently started accessorizing and I like how put together it makes my outfits. Accessories really make your outfit come together and elevate a look.

Corazon de Melon

I actually found these boots at Walmart. I thought they were really cute and inexpensive.

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These are great for a sunny day. They aren’t too dark and they protect my eyes just enough.

I had a business before called Claire de Lune but after doing that for a while it wasn’t really my style. Claire de Lune was more pop culture based, and I didn’t feel as connected to it as I wanted to be. Later I saw how all this Mexican art was coming up more and people were really enjoying it and embracing Hispanic culture. So, I decided to revamp my business with a friend of mine and create Corazon de Melon. •

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U.S. Air Force vet Jason Kidd, owner of Del Rio’s Creative Pallet Designs, in his north Del Rio studio. Kidd uses a variety of discarded and scrap wood to bring to life new designs, including furniture, wall hangings and tribute pieces.

Wood Wizard

Story by BRIAN ARGABRIGHT: photos by BRIAN ARGABRIGHT & MEGAN TACKETT

F

or Jason Kidd, one man’s trash is another man’s art.

Kidd, the man behind Creative Pallet Designs by Kidd, is a firm believer in sustainability, meaning that the thing you may no longer have a use for today could be the perfect thing to revitalize or reinvigorate your everyday life.

Kidd, who retired from the United States Air Force after a lengthy career in security forces, spends much of his time now on his art. In this case, it’s working with wood.

“I don’t consider myself a woodworker.

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I’m more of a wood artist,” Kidd said. “I don’t do furniture. I create things that promote sustainability. Basically, I take wood and give it a whole new meaning.”

His workshop is his garage, but it isn’t your typical workspace. It’s more of a testament to his belief that everything can be repurposed. His storage cabinet was an abandoned wooden closet he found. His work bench was reconstructed from older pieces of wood. Even the sawdust that collects from his various projects is turned into mulch that helps make his lawn soft

and retain moisture.

Kidd said his reputation as someone who can turn trash into treasure led to some interesting finds on his front lawn.

He said people often leave pallets or other discarded wood pieces out for him to use in the various pieces he creates. The pile of wood he uses to create with features wood from old ammo crates, old drawers, wood from barns and wood from pallets.

The side of his house is buffered by a stack of pallets. He knocks on various pieces and can tell you the type of wood they are

Left, wood scraps pieced together surround an aluminum cross. The backing of the piece is made from an old cedar fence. Center, Kidd’s tribute to Texas lawmen, crafted from scrap wood. Pallets are reborn as the perfect accent for a man cave or backyard barbecue kitchen.

All of the furniture in Kidd’s bedroom are made of repurposed pallet wood, including the headboard, side table and hope chest.

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Jason Kidd has created a variety of Texas-themed pieces and has participated in a number of local markets.

Kidd’s Love the USA tribute is made of wood scraps affixed to a wooden ground.

Kidd’s furniture, including this hope chest, are made of repurposed wood, and their designs are clean, simple and oriented to function.

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A display case for the home or office features LED lighting and three display platforms.

constructed from and the kinds of things he can create from them. Discovering hard-to-find wood among the pallets is a joy because Kidd said he can turn those into some really exciting projects.

Kidd first came to Del Rio in 2008, but his family is originally from Eagle Pass.

They moved to the Midwest and that led to him growing up in small towns.

Eventually his family called Indiana home and that’s where he grew up before joining the Air Force and seeing the world.

All of Kidd’s pieces are unique. He doesn’t make the same thing twice. Even if two pieces look similar, Kidd said he is always adding something different that makes each piece stand on its own.

“I didn’t want everyone to have the exact same thing, so I add little things here and there. One piece that features the U.S. map may have the Great Lakes, one piece might not. One piece might have a gouge or a mark in one spot and the next won’t. They may look the same, but they aren’t,” Kidd said.

While Kidd does sell his pieces, he doesn’t take orders from customers. And because of that, there is no time frame on when a Kidd original will be completed.

His projects get written down on an erasable white board and are tackled as time allows. For Kidd, life always comes first.

“I’m a dad first, so my first priority is my son. I deal with God and with my kid and then we’ll see what comes after,” Kidd said.

Kidd has also donated much of his work to various businesses and people in the community. It’s his way of giving back to those folks who have supported him in his endeavors. He’s even offered to help people who may want to get into working with wood and who are looking for a way to start.

Currently, Kidd has focused on a line of pieces inspired by the phrase, “Make America Love Again.” Kidd said it’s an idea that he feels the country has lost touch with, especially in recent times.

“We need to get back to those ideals of love and caring and empathy for one another,” Kidd said. “Love means a lot. I love my work, and I hope it comes across in everything I do.” •

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An elephant, a bear and lion are among several different types of animals Nancy O’Brien crochets and sells on her web site tiffinshandmade.com

Crocheted Cuteness Story and photos by KAREN GLEASON

N

ancy O’Brien collects rare words the way some people collect matchbooks or

postcards.

In addition to rare words, O’Brien gathers archaic terms, bits of the language that have fallen by the literary wayside.

She used one of those words – tiffin – to name the company she launched last year to sell the soft, colorful, playful

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animals she crochets.

“A ‘tiffin’ in England is a kind of snack lunch. They have tiffin pails where they take their lunch to work with them, but I just really like the word. It’s a whimsy word. In America it means nothing, there is no connection to ‘tiffin,’” she said. “Archaic words, obsolete words, words with odd meanings, they fascinate me. They make me laugh, and ‘tiffin’ was one of those words.”

O’Brien is the executive director of the Del Rio Council for the Arts and its Firehouse Gallery. She describes herself as “an artisan of ceramics,” a medium she worked in for many years.

“I started taking classes at the Firehouse from Susan Ridgeway in 1987, and my life was situated so that when my kids got a little older they went to daycare and then they were in school, and I was able to spend a lot of time in

Nancy O’Brien, executive director of the Del Rio Council for the Arts and an accomplished “artisan of ceramics,” took up crocheting in 2015 to create parts of an exhibit in which local fiber artists knitted and crocheted a coral reef and its attendant creatures. After the exhibit, she continued crocheting, creating whimsical soft animals called “Tiffins.”

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Del Rioan Nancy O’Brien begins work on another Tiffin. O’Brien said she began crocheting the charming soft animals when her granddaughter asked her to make one.

the studio. A friend, Teda Richter, and I left the Firehouse, got our own wheels, got our own kiln and worked out of her garage for a long time,” O’Brien said.

“Teda worked at the old Hallmark store in the mall, and we got to sell our stuff there. It was do it, get it out of there and put it in the store,” O’Brien recalled.

She continued creating ceramics until about five years ago.

“Really I stopped because I had to start working full time. And now I still work full time, and close to a pottery wheel,” O’Brien said with a laugh.

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O’Brien said she believes she will return to creating ceramics one day.

“In the meantime, I’ve got to keep busy, so I’m making crocheted animals,” she said.

O’Brien began crocheting the whimsical soft animals she calls Tiffins in late 2016.

“At the Firehouse, we’d had a crochet exhibit called ‘A Hyperbolic Coral Reef,’ which showed a year ago last November.

I actually learned to crochet because of that, because we made different sections of the coral reef, and we filled the whole gallery with that.

“I worked on that solidly for a yearand-a-half, crocheting with 35 other people in town to make the exhibit, and when that was over, I found that I had gotten used to having something to do with my hands. My granddaughter was staying here just after the exhibit, and I came across a book that had some patterns of stuffed animals in it, and I thought they would be pretty cool to make,” O’Brien said.

O’Brien’s granddaughter, Addy, began looking through the book – “Edward’s Menagerie,” by English fiber artist Kerry Lord – and asked O’Brien

Brightly colored skeins of 100 percent wool yarns wait to be transformed into colorful, charming soft animals called “Tiffins,” created and sold by Del Rioan Nancy O’Brien.

to make her a bat depicted in the book.

“I didn’t want to make a bat, but I offered to make her something else, so I made her a rabbit,” O’Brien said, “And a flamingo. The flamingo I’ve since told them to throw away, because when you’re first making something you’re taking shortcuts, not really reading the pattern, and it was pretty much of a disaster. I still haven’t made her a bat.”

O’Brien works with 100 percent wool yarn, noting the yarn “is very sturdy, so you can love the Tiffin as much as you want to.”

O’Brien said it takes between eight

and nine hours to create each Tiffin.

The weight of the yarn she uses determines the size of the animal. A bulky weight yarn allows her to make the animal bigger. Smaller ones are made with a worsted-weight yarn, she said.

O’Brien has crafted sheep, elephants, hippos, rhinos, giraffes, lions, horses, bears, monkeys, foxes, squirrels and cats.

The soft little animals get their shape from the crocheted pattern and hypoallergenic fiberfill.

Why did she keep making Tiffins

after creating the first one?

“They’re just so darn cute!” she said.

O’Brien said when she realized she would have to have a name for the web site on which she sells the crocheted animals, she turned to her treasuretrove of unusual words.

“I wanted it to be called tiffins something,” she said, and so Tiffins Handmade was born – and made.

O’Brien’s creations can be viewed on her web site, www.tiffinshandmade. com •

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Last Look

Hi readers! Thanks for picking up our March “makers” issue. We had fun chatting with some of the community’s creators to learn the backstory about our favorite local products.

Given Del Rio’s relatively small population, it might surprise you to discover how many innovative makers live within the city limits.

This month, we made friends with a few of these crafty individuals to hear more about what they make and what factors into their creative process.

Lately Karen and I have been freaky mentally insync. Like, finishing each other’s sentences in-sync. This month, we both wanted the design to include a punchy color and I arbitrarily chose coral. We also incorporated gray, navy and sage, which I’ve been oddly obsessed with, throughout the layout.

Coincidentally enough, Natalie Granatelli, Branelli Coffee Co. owner, was wearing our exact color scheme when I met with her as she roasted a batch of Colombian coffee beans. From my perspective as a business reporter for the News-Herald, Natalie’s story is a perfect example that proves how Del Rio is a great place to develop a passion into a successful small business.

One of Del Rio’s oldest and most successful makers, the Qualia family vintners behind Val Verde Winery, was kind enough to explain the secrets behind their popular Don Luis tawny port and also allowed us to stage our fashion shoot on their grounds. Our fashion photographer this month, Eva-Maria Smith, captured stunning images and we can’t wait to work with her again.

All of the makers featured in this issue sell their commodities either online or at local markets around town. If you’re interested, I encourage you to reach out to any of them via Facebook to learn more about their products. Thanks for reading. See you in April.

Sincerely, Megan Tackett Creative Director

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• Natalie Granatelli laughs as her daughter, Brynn, explains the coffee smells like “Colombian.”

• Coffee and rosé come together at the Val Verde Winery fashion shoot.

• Megan carries everyone’s shoes after posing Cameron Galindo during the fashion shoot.

• Granatelli’s foster dog, Jewels, reaches for a cookie while Granatelli’s back is turned.

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