A brief bio of Lee E. Cart
Lee E. Cart is a freelance writer, weaver, and pattern designer. She writes young adult fiction, children's books, poetry, creative non-fiction essays, and screenplays. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts in creative writing from the University of Maine Farmington and a minor in Spanish.
She taught herself how to weave at the age of sixteen and enjoys creating woolen scarves and blankets and cotton table runners and placemats, which she sells in a variety of shops in Maine and also on Etsy at Maine Wool and Wire.
She is also a pattern designer with a shop on Spoonflower, LeeCartDesign.
She lives in Maine with her husband in the solar-powered post and beam house they designed and built. She is the mother of three sons and two adorable grandchildren.
Her interests include writing, reading, travel--especially to Mexico and Hawaii--studying Spanish, gardening, cooking, and living off-the-grid. Having lived in Mexico as a child, she has a deep connection with the people and various cultures in Mexico, which spurred her to write The Mayan Chronicles.
She taught herself how to weave at the age of sixteen and enjoys creating woolen scarves and blankets and cotton table runners and placemats, which she sells in a variety of shops in Maine and also on Etsy at Maine Wool and Wire.
She is also a pattern designer with a shop on Spoonflower, LeeCartDesign.
She lives in Maine with her husband in the solar-powered post and beam house they designed and built. She is the mother of three sons and two adorable grandchildren.
Her interests include writing, reading, travel--especially to Mexico and Hawaii--studying Spanish, gardening, cooking, and living off-the-grid. Having lived in Mexico as a child, she has a deep connection with the people and various cultures in Mexico, which spurred her to write The Mayan Chronicles.
The many hats Lee has worn...
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The rocky coast of Maine. |
House Construction Worker
She attended the Shelter Institute in Bath, Maine and learned hands-on methods of house construction. She also managed Woodbutcher Tools, the shop associated with the Shelter Institute, which sells wonderful hand tools for builders and
woodworkers.
She helped her parents design and build their house, then moved on to construct several houses and additions of her own with her ex-husband. She enjoyed designing buildings so much that she returned to school and received a certificate in AutoCAD from Kennebec Valley Community College in Fairfield, Maine.
She currently lives in a post and beam home that she designed and built. And she recently completed building a hexagonal tiny house in Downeast Maine, which she enjoys visiting as often as possible. She also manages the office for her oldest son's construction company located in Hawaii.
woodworkers.
She helped her parents design and build their house, then moved on to construct several houses and additions of her own with her ex-husband. She enjoyed designing buildings so much that she returned to school and received a certificate in AutoCAD from Kennebec Valley Community College in Fairfield, Maine.
She currently lives in a post and beam home that she designed and built. And she recently completed building a hexagonal tiny house in Downeast Maine, which she enjoys visiting as often as possible. She also manages the office for her oldest son's construction company located in Hawaii.
Homesteader
She currently lives in an off-the-grid home that she designed and built with her husband. The couple grows an organic garden every year, and Lee cans and freezes as much produce as possible. They use wood heat and cut and split much of the maple and birch they burn off their own land. Years ago, Lee lived with her ex-husband and three young sons about twenty-five miles from the small town of Jackman, Maine. They had solar power, but no telephone and no running water. They used an outhouse, an outdoor shower, and a sauna. Lee cooked year-round on wood stoves, using wood she split by hand, learned to hunt and fish, and to can and preserve foods in the large root cellar.
Weaver and Basket Maker
Lee built a small table loom at the age of fifteen. Her first attempt at weaving was a set of place mats, which her mother
still uses on her dinner table. She loved weaving so much that she saved up money and bought a professional loom--a 48-inch, 8-harness floor loom, which she still has today. Lee has made and sold woolen blankets, hats, scarfs, mittens, and rag rugs at numerous craft fairs in Maine since those early days. She now sells her woven items through a variety of shops in Maine and on Etsy at Maine Wool and Wire.
Another craft she learned was that of basket making. Lee and her ex-husband supported their family by making and selling hand-pounded brown ash and birch bark baskets, hand-forged hunting and fishing knives, and restoring wood and canvas canoes.
still uses on her dinner table. She loved weaving so much that she saved up money and bought a professional loom--a 48-inch, 8-harness floor loom, which she still has today. Lee has made and sold woolen blankets, hats, scarfs, mittens, and rag rugs at numerous craft fairs in Maine since those early days. She now sells her woven items through a variety of shops in Maine and on Etsy at Maine Wool and Wire.
Another craft she learned was that of basket making. Lee and her ex-husband supported their family by making and selling hand-pounded brown ash and birch bark baskets, hand-forged hunting and fishing knives, and restoring wood and canvas canoes.
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Years ago, Lee's mother gave her a sign for the wall that reads "There is a special place in heaven for the mother of three boys." Lee is amazed at how many times she's read that sign and agreed. Mothering three children of either sex is not an
easy task, but many of Lee's friends, who have only girls, say she had the harder sex to deal with. And yet, Lee wouldn't change places with any of them. She is also the grandmother to two amazing grandchildren, a boy and a girl, both of whom keep Lee on her toes, laughing with joy, and filled with love. |