GOURD-GEOUS HOW ONE MAN CREATED A BUSINESS TURNING VEGETABLES INTO HOME DÉCOR WRITTEN BY Cori Laatsch PHOTOS COURTESY OF Meadowbrooke Gourds Meadowbrooke Gourds is located on a 200-acre farm at the foot of the Blue Mountains near Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Ben Bear, Meadowbrooke’s founder, started growing gourds and sold them as decoration with his produce business. Ben realized that what did not sell would not rot like his other crops. In 1993, Ben started using his carpentry tools to create designs in the gourds. Just two years later, Meadowbrooke Gourds was born with just five employees working out of tractor trailers and a shed. In 1996, the business outgrew that temporary space and moved to the farm outside of Carlisle, PA. There are several events throughout the year that bring in large crowds. Create Your Own is done three times a year, where customers can create their own gourds and dye, burn, paint and accessorize them. In April, the Spring Festival hosts the Annual Gourd Egg Hunt. They hide 2,000 gourd eggs along with 21 prize eggs, and usually around 400 people attend each hunt. They also host a Summer Celebration and Sunflower Festival where they sell at a discounted price the products that didn’t pass quality control. There are also food trucks and art vendors. Holiday TOP, LEFT: Quite a few of the accessories added to the gourds, like the hats, pipes and bowties, are all crafted on site just like the gourds. Snowmen are a popular design choice that are offered every year around Christmas. LEFT: Some gourds have a small hole in the back to place a light bulb.The gourds look great lit up, especially these jack-o’-lanterns, but they are ammable. Flames should not be put in or near any gourds. TOP, RIGHT: Choosing innovative designs at the farm is a daunting task.While the ideas can come from anywhere or anyone, the crew prefers to look at a mockup of each design idea before deciding what to craft. Some designs need a little tweaking to give them that Meadowbrooke look. Décor 20 Holiday Décor | 2022 Artistry
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDI3NTMw