ABOUT Vermontana
Mandy is a fourth generation Montanan, having lived and played in the heart of many Montana communities throughout her early life. She graduated from Shelby High School, and later received her Bachelors of Science degree in Mathematics from Montana Tech in Butte. Her artistic aspirations developed over the years, after an international Peace Corps tour in Namibia and a couple decades of therapeutic youth work in New England. After spending a couple years rehabilitating a cabin on the outskirts of Monarch, MT in the Little Belt Mountains, Mandy has returned to VT and living on the channel of Lake Bomoseen.
Vermontana was born out of her love for both Montana and Vermont. The beauty of the vast and diverse landscapes of the Big Sky Country and its wonderful people are deep in her roots. The Green Mountains of Vermont have also been her home for more than 20 years, and equally hold her heart. Each Vermontana creation blends both of these worlds.
Production Process
All handcrafted Vermontana products originate from working ropes of Western ranchers and rodeo competitors, and are repurposed and upcycled into unique, beautiful and functional pieces of art.
Fresh authentic lariats after serving a useful life on real working ranches in Montana.
Color variations for each rope are developed during the course of the rope's work life. Ranchers and ropers wrap the lariat around the saddle horn to 'control' the rope. Friction burns unique charcoal characteristics into each lariat, altering the original coloring of the rope, while creating beautiful and unique markings once thoroughly cleaned.
A little worn, but a lot of life left!
The Up-cycling process begins with a thorough cleaning of the recycled ropes. The simple, but labor intensive process involves soaking the ropes, scrubbing the ropes, rinsing the ropes, and repeating this process over and over and over again. The drying process wraps up the preparation phase.
Lariat ropes drying in the sun on my deck in Montana after cleaning.
Each rope is coated in nylon during its original production. Through the melting of the nylon coating, tightly winding of the lariat, and gently bonding each rope layer to that above and below, each original design becomes a sturdy and durable final creation. The majority of products also include the original lariat honda. Production time for each creation varies by design difficulty and size.
