metal an aged, antique copper- like appearance, with a variation in colors. Zawada’s entrance into the metalsmithing business came at
a time when she most wanted a career change. With a special needs child whom she and her husband adopted after Zawada’s own children were grown, she desired a schedule more flexible than her position with the school district allowed. Flipping through a catalog of her husband’s, a welder by trade, Zawada spotted an image of a plasma cutter, the technology used to cut designs into metal, and the idea hatched.
“It works out great because if I need something welded,
he’s right next door. Or if he needs a design in a fence, I can help him with that.” Another of Zawada’s specialties is the headstone. One deceased man loved riding horses and always had his dog with him, so Zawada designed his headstone accordingly, with an image of a man on his mare, his dog by his side.
Whether a personalized head- stone, bed made of lodge pole pine, an armoire with conchos, and antler hand pulls, what makes these arti- sans’ work so treasured is that they
bring into domestic life the expression of the wild west. We can never get enough of it.
To learn more about these artisans, visit their Web sites: Mike Roth, www.bearpawdesigns.com Jim Swanson, www.antlerchandeliers.com Karen Kreek, www.karenkreek.com Chris Pemberton, www.montanaartisancenter.com, or echobasinwoodworks@hotmail.com Becky Zawada, www.beckyscreativemetalworks.com
Kate Hove is a freelance writer out of Lew- iston, Idaho, and holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. See her blog at www.kmhove.wordpress.com.
www.distinctlymontana.com
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