Tree Beanie | Locally Made in Flagstaff, Arizona

On a snowy afternoon, I ventured down a winding highway to catch up with my friend, Tasia, at her family’s cabin. Past the city limits of Flagstaff, Arizona, nestled near the San Francisco Peaks, their property turns into a winter wonderland once the snow season hits. Ponderosa pine trees loom above their cabins, bunkhouse, yurt, and barn, all of which you can actually rent on airbnb. Definitely give them a look if you’re wanting to spend some time in Northern Arizona. I stayed there for one of my first weeks in Flagstaff, when I still wasn’t sure I would officially move to town, and their guest cabin is very cozy! 

As you can imagine, with that much space there is a lot to roam. We ran around with her dogs, Theo and Keli, I got to take a peek at their vintage fire truck, and she showed me the new beanies she had just knitted. Tasia is actually the owner and craftswoman behind Tree Beanie, hand knitted headwear that is locally made in Flagstaff. Since she had just finished so many new beanies, we wanted to take some photos to show them off. If you’re in the area, then you can shop Tree Beanie at Babbitt’s Backcountry. Even if you’re outside of Flag you can still shop Tree Beanie at their Instagram. They make a fun and cozy Christmas gift!

It’s really wonderful to know the person behind the company you are supporting, so here’s a little more about Tasia:

• Why did you choose the name Tree Beanie? My beanies were originally called, "Tasia Beanies", but I didn't like having my name in my brand. So, I tried to think of what I would want my brand to look like. My tree of life tattoo on my shoulder came to mind. It seemed perfect! The tree represents my love for nature. In fact, my mom says that even as a kid I was always happier in the woods. It seemed like a good representation of me.

• What made you start your company? Honestly, I figured out how to make a beanie and I didn't want to stop making them, but I also didn't want to collect a bunch of beanies. At the time, I was working for Babbitt's and the owner is a good friend. He agreed to let me sell them. They have been successful for three seasons so far!

• How do you choose your yarn, the colors, and what patterns you want to create? I just pick colors and yarn that excite me. I love just walking around the yarn aisles until something sticks out to me. My patterns are actually pretty simple. They are usually just a variation of two stitches. I love the puff stitch because it always creates a cozy piece! Recently, I started making ear warmers because a friend requested I make one. Then, my husband Joel suggested I sew a fleece lining into them. The ear warmer has been a big hit this season. Currently, I'm making myself a neck warmer that stretches over my ears and mouth. I will release a photo soon for anyone interested.

• What values help guide your career and company? I'm just doing something I love. It is such a humbling experience to have customers excited about what I make. I hope I can continue to do that! I am also a big supporter of buying handmade products. Handmade products are one-of-a-kind!!! Plus you are supporting a person and not a big corporation!

• What's an accomplishment you are most proud of with Tree Beanie? Right now I'm proud that they are selling and people like wearing what I made. A few months ago my husband and I were in Safeway and I saw someone wearing one of my beanies! It was so cool to see!

• Who are you outside of Tree Beanie? Well, I'm married to a tall, goofy red head! I'm a dog owner of two furry babies. I love rock climbing and spending time in the woods. I also like wearing cozy plaid, wool socks, and my cowgirl boots! Some of my favorite things include, candles, hot chocolate in a big mug, journaling, yarn, the sound of wind in the trees, big monsoon thunder storms, and the first snow of the year!

I also have my very own Tree Beanie hat and it has kept me warm while cross country skiing in Arizona, camping in the Utah winter, taking a chilly morning walk to a hot spring in Canada, and riding boats in Alaska! The striped colors on my beanie remind me of warm desert colors while I am far away from the landscape I grew up in. When the wind is blowing cold and harsh I never feel warm enough without a nice knit hat.  Once I slip one on over my head I instantly feel snug and toasty. Plus, they tame my frizzy curls, keeping them down on my shoulders rather than whipping around my face. Way less tangles involved with a beanie! I wear them on my walks down the windy beach and on any cold morning spent outside. You can see how much I love wearing it below…

Aerial Photography Tips in Wrangell St. Elias National Park & Preserve

While working at Wrangell St. Elias National Park & Preserve this summer, documenting research and cultural events, one of the amazing things I was able to do was a flightseeing tour! If it hadn’t been for my summer job, I don’t think I would have gotten this chance as soon as I did because the flights are a little pricey for me personally at this point in my life. Luckily, our team leader organized schedules for us to fly with an awesome National Park Service pilot over the mountains and glaciers of Wrangell St. Elias!

Our pilot was the amazing, Lynn Ellis, who grew up in the remote Nabesna area and has been flying pretty much his entire life. At the young age of 16 he learned to fly from his father and has been flying ever since.  As you can imagine, Lynn has a lot of intimate knowledge of the land. Growing up in the area has allowed him to create a unique relationship with the expansive landscape of Wrangell St. Elias, meaning a flight with Lynn as your pilot is quite the treat! To top it all off, one of my coworkers who came on the same flight as me grew up near the area and had known Lynn for a while. If it weren’t already special enough to be gliding over all the magnificent rock and ice, I was also extra fortunate to hear all the personal stories and connections these two had to the land. 

This was the first time I had flown over the park and the first time I was able to casually fly in a small plane, but I had previously flown in a small plane for work. They were very fast, business flights though! Those first couple experiences allowed me to be more prepared for this flight, so I’d thought I’d share some tips in case you too find yourself fortunate enough to be soaring over gorgeous scenery and want to capture your experience.

• Packing: Keep your gear minimal and in a small pack! My first time on a small plane was when I was flying from Yakutat to Dry Bay on a real quick, all business kind of flight. We had to shove everything underneath the plane, but of course I wanted my camera and my water bottle (I hate not having access to hydration, ha). I figured it was best to keep it to these two items and hold them in my lap. Turned out, juggling these both in my lap in the tiny front seat of our plane was a little trickier than I had thought! It would have been nicer to have a small bag or pack with me that I could set in my lap and either pull out my water or my camera when I needed. It can be hard to maneuver once your set up in the plane, so it’s nice to have everything right in your lap and contained so it’s not rolling around as the plane moves. On my flightseeing tour, this is what I did and it was a lot easier to coordinate my items.

• Prepping: Prepare your camera ahead of time! Like I mentioned above, it can be pretty hard to maneuver inside small planes. The first flight I went on I didn’t want to move too much since I was in the front seat and could have easily bumped the pilot or buttons! Granted, pilots are professionals and are probably used to this, my way of operating during photography is always to minimize my affect on the experience. I like being a fly on the wall that captures reality as it unfolds and this idea tends to seep into my life even when not on a shoot. However, if your camera already has a full battery, cleared memory cards with lots of room, and a good lens on it, then you won’t have to worry about doing this in flight. Have it all set up before you even climb in that plane and you can fully focus on taking in the view instead.

• Lens: Choose a wide lens or a zoom lens! I’m really stubborn when it comes to using zoom lens. When shooting portraits it’s super easy to stick a 50mm on my camera and move around when I want a different view. Shooting dynamic landscape photos are a little different though (much to past me’s disappointment). A zoom lens can be wonderful when you are limited in movement, but want a variety of views. On my first flight I brought my trusted 50mm, which did get some beautiful shots. Yet, I found myself wanting the chance to move around. Sure, you will fly over a new and exciting view, but you’ll want a different perspective. For this tour I brought my 28mm to 85mm lens. It was great to get variety, which brings me to my next point…

• Switch it up: Video and photo, wide and close, vertical and horizontal, out the window and inside the plane. Get a bunch of different perspectives even if you are hovering above the same area. It’s been really fun for me to look at my photos as a set and see the different views I captured. I also really like creating films, so I made sure to get lots of video from this flight. I was able to use some of the footage in short videos I made for Wrangell St. Elias National Park & Preserve, that hopefully I will be able to share very soon.

• Finally, don’t lean against the plane! I kept finding myself trying to make this work, but any small plane is going to have a lot of vibration. Your video shots will be a lot smoother and your photos will be sharper if you just hold up your camera yourself. No need to rest against the plane.

There’s the advice I’ve collected from my few times in a small plane. I hope they can be useful to you! These images feel a lot different to me than ones from a drone. Shots sourced from both techniques are gorgeous, and of course it’s not always reasonable to fly up in a small plane, but personally, I love the feel. Maybe it’s the memories they bring back or the glassy view from inside the plane. What are your thoughts? Do these shots feel different to you compared to drone shots? Let me know!