Tag: Handcrafted in United States

ASL Pewter Foundry – A Working Pewter Studio Where Tom and Pat Hooper Keep Colonial Metalworking Alive A working pewter foundry in Missouri’s oldest town sounds improbable until you remember that Sainte Geneviève has always been a place where history isn’t just preserved but practiced. At 183 South 3rd Street, Tom and Patricia Hooper have spent nearly 40 years creating museum-quality pewter pieces using techniques that colonial craftspeople would recognize—casting molten tin alloy into antique molds, spinning flat pewter discs on an 1873 water-powered lathe (now electrified), and welding handles onto tankards with micro-torch precision. This isn’t a demonstration for tourists watching behind ropes. This is an active studio where you can commission custom pieces, watch the Hoopers work, learn the chemistry and history of the tin-based alloy that graced America’s founding families’ tables, and leave with functional heirlooms made by hands that understand centuries-old craft traditions. The work has earned White House recognition (Pat and Tom visited during George W. Bush’s administration, meeting First Lady Laura Bush), appeared in HBO’s John Adams miniseries starring Paul Giamatti, and attracted collectors who recognize that genuinely handcrafted American pewter—100% lead-free, made using antique tools and traditional methods—has become exceptionally rare in an Read more…

Rust Artisan Shop – It’s All About the Ambiance, Baby! At 173 North Main Street in downtown Ste. Genevieve, Rust Artisan Shop transforms Missouri’s surplus corrugated tin into luminaries and lights that cast perfect shadowed images onto walls and ceilings. Owner Sam and her team of local artisans have created a gallery where recycled materials become art—corrugated tin salvaged from old barns and buildings finds new life as functional sculpture. The shop’s tagline says it simply: “At Rust, we make stuff from recycled products.” Featured in Missouri Life magazine, this Main Street mainstay represents the kind of authentic, locally-rooted creativity that makes Ste. Genevieve’s shopping scene distinctive. As one visitor noted: “We purchased several pieces from the shop to remember this awesome spot. Love, love, love!” Recycled Relics and Artisan Craft Rust Artisan Shop specializes in the “Recycled Relics” line—products made entirely from reclaimed and donated materials. The signature pieces are tin luminaries and lampshades crafted from old corrugated tin, creating distinctive lighting that projects intricate patterns. Candle holders, ornaments, and signs emerge from scraps that might otherwise end up in landfills. The philosophy centers on utilizing Missouri’s abundant supply of vintage corrugated tin from deteriorating barns, sheds, and agricultural Read more…

Sassafras Creek Originals – Where Early American Life Directory Craftsmen Create Heirloom Quality in an 1850 General Store At 311 St. Marys Road in the heart of Sainte Geneviève’s historic district, Sassafras Creek Originals occupies the circa 1850 Brooks House—a two-story brick building transformed into colonial-era general store where owner Kandye Mahurin (selected for Early American Life Magazine’s Directory of Traditional American Craftsmen eight consecutive years) and fellow Directory-juried artisans showcase hand-crafted Colonial/Primitive Early American folk art that meets museum-curator standards for authenticity, scholarship, and period-appropriate materials and techniques. This isn’t a shop selling colonial-style imports from overseas factories—Sassafras Creek’s rigorous quality standard requires that at least 75% of merchandise is American-made, with vendors carefully selected from the prestigious Early American Life Directory, ensuring every game board, bandbox, redware plate, woven coverlet, piece of tinware, and folk art creation represents genuine traditional craftsmanship using period materials, tools, and techniques that curators at Colonial Williamsburg, living history museums, and motion picture producers rely on for authentic period pieces. Step inside rooms arranged like an old-time general store and discover heirloom-quality handcrafts preserving American artisan traditions rapidly disappearing in the digital age. The Early American Life Directory: Museum-Quality Standard Sassafras Creek Originals’ Read more…