Shown is a bracelet made by local businesswoman Annie Robinson, owner of Annie’s Southfork Silverworks.

To hear the story of Lo and Ro Lip Products is like listening to the story of two born entrepreneurs. Lo and Ro are Lauren McBurney and Annie Rose Miller, both 14, who have had everything from a lemonade stand to a used-clothing boutique and jewelry business before settling on the idea for their current business venture of making their line of lip balms.

Through trial and error, they have two types of lip balms — an original and a line that is tinted and scented. All are made with natural and organic ingredients, and all are made — painstakingly — by hand. The tinted line is comprised of six lip balms — the Mountain Balms — each a different color and each named for the six mountains of Wallowa County. The red lip balm is, of course, named for Ruby Peak. The others are Sacajawea, Chief Joseph, Matterhorn, Sawtooth and Bonneville.

“Wallowa County is in the lip balm,” and people can connect with the mountains, they explained. They want people to think of Wallowa County when they use the Mountain Balms.

The balms contain coconut oil, beeswax, essential oils, shea butter and other ingredients. They said their goal was to develop a product that was organic and natural, perfect for the lips and that would prevent chapping. This took them approximately two to three years. It took one year just to perfect the recipe.

Lo and Ro lip balms can be found in stores around Wallowa County and are available through Genuine Wallowa County and GWC Provisions online stores. One of the things they say they are especially proud of is that they were contacted by the stores where their lip balm is featured.

“Something we’re pretty proud of. Every store we’re in, they’ve come to us,” McBurney said.

They also want people to know they are grateful to the help and advice they have received from other people and other businesses.

Although they are young, Lo and Ro have already learned the meaning of philanthropy and what it means to give back to their communities. Last year, they donated half of the proceeds from the sale of their lip balm to a member of their school community who was in need. It is something they both say they are “super proud of.”

“We put our hearts into our lip balm,” Miller said.

It shows.

Jewelry abounds on the Southfork

Annie Robinson, artisan jewelry maker and owner of Annie’s Southfork Silverworks, has been collecting shells, stones, and beads her whole life, and eventually taught herself the art of silversmithing.

“I like to use stones and shells that catch the eye, which I believe is the inherent function of jewelry. My philosophy is make what I think is beautiful, adhering to my inner design sense and someone else will hopefully find it beautiful, too,” she said.

Her journey to artisan jewelry maker has taken her to many parts of the world. She spent a semester in Africa working with Maasai women’s beadwork groups and fair-trade cooperatives in Central and South America. She said she became interested in crafts and artisan cooperatives as a way to help people in developing countries, especially women market their crafts and build economic self-sufficiency. In the mid-1990s, she needed a way to support herself and that is when she started to make and market her own jewelry.

“I’m kind of astonished I managed to make it my livelihood and support myself ever since,” she said.

Robinson has collected many materials from her travels including from international gem shows, but also uses ancient Roman glass from Afghanistan, shells from Polynesia, pearls from the Far East, Russian lacquer painting from St. Petersburg, silver, gold and semi-precious stones.

“It is great fun combining them all into something someone can wear,” she said.

Her jewelry is available online through Genuine Wallowa County. She also sells at the Wallowa County Farmers Market, the Josephy Center for Arts and Culture, the Wild Carrot and the Bookloft. She also participates in many holiday bazaars and local craft fairs.

Robinson is passionate about supporting other artisans in selling their crafts. She encourages and promotes the farmers market as a business incubator, as a way to help develop and highlight small businesses in the area.

“As a small, woman-owned business that helps support my family, I like to encourage others who make a craft, to grow and develop their business. It is very satisfying to work for yourself, making something that you love,” she said.

Beading becomes business

Mikailah Thompson is a Nez Perce tribal member who has been beading since she was 10 years old. She learned her craft from her grandmother, Chloe Halfmoon. She stressed that beadwork is an art form important in many tribal communities.

She did not start to do beadwork consistently until 2013.

“Beadwork is meant to be passed down from one generation to the next. I hope my work will have the same presence as it does today, years from now,” she said.

It’s more than just jewelry or accessories, she explained.

“Many of us have beadwork our great-grandparents or our ancestors had,” she said. “When you receive it, it’s supposed to last for generations and continue to be passed down. And this is one of the key reasons I am as passionate as I am about my work.”

She describes her style as contemporary. Her beadwork is primarily artwork, which she says extends beyond traditional regalia pieces. In addition to bead accessories such as hats, bags and jewelry, she also creates wall canvas.

“It’s not something you see every day,” she said.

Thompson uses primarily seed beads. Seed beads are small beads. But she said she likes to use anything that really stands out to her.

“From there, I try to incorporate it into my work. Brass and shell discs are also something I frequently use in a majority of my pieces. It’s my way of incorporating my Nimiipuu people and what we traditionally used when creating,” she said.

Beading is an art form that dates back centuries. Since beadwork is such an intricate art form, given that it is all done by hand, Thompson believes it is a luxury to own, learn and understand where each piece comes from.

“I always say, each bead tells a story. And hopefully my story will last long after me through my work.”

Thompson established herself as a business and a full-time artist this year. Her artwork can be found for purchase on Genuine Wallowa County at www.genuinewalloacounty.com.

Love for goats takes off

Wendy McCullough fell in love with goats long before she started making the soap and started the business that is known today as Sally B Farms.

It all started in 2006 when she returned to Wallowa County to find the family property in a state of disarray and disrepair — barbed wire, rocks, wood, fencing and equipment covered the ground. Along with 4 feet of tall grass and weeds, it all made for an impossibility for any equipment to get in and clear everything away.

The answer? Rent some goats. The goats ate down the weeds and grass so that machinery could remove the debris.

McCullough said after visiting the goats at least twice a day, she bought seven of them. By 2009, she had added to her herd due to the birth of several goat kids. She credits good friend and “goat mentor,” Debbie Gilbert, with years of help and guidance as she learned the goat raising business. McCullough said it took approximately eight years before she felt comfortable handling most situations by herself, which had been her overall goal to start.

She was offered a lot of advice on what to do with her goats — everything from grazing to cheese making to meat — before she settled on soap making. After researching, buying some equipment and ingredients she was in the soap business.

The name of her business is Goat Gourmet. In addition to goat milk soap, she sells goat meat.

“Eighty percent of the world eats yummy goat meat. It is nutritious, delicious and easy to prepare,” she said. Her goats are a Boer and Texmaster cross. The Texmaster is a goat developed in Texas for its meat.

In addition to soap, she also makes lip balm and salve. Her products can be purchased in Joseph at David Brunkow’s Made in Wallowa County and the Sheep Shed, The Bookloft and Ruby Peak in Enterprise and in La Grande and Baker City at Bella’s. She also sells at the Wallowa County Farmer’s Market and at several holiday markets. Her products are also available online at www.sallybfarms.com.

She has also partnered with Stangel Bison to produce a product called Buffagoat. It is a combination of buffalo tallow and goat milk and some other oils.

“It makes an incredible bar of soap,” McCullough said.

The soap is sold by Marta and Theresa Stangel at farmers markets in Hood River and Wallowa County as well as the Pendleton Round-Up.

Of her business philosophy, McCullough says, “make a good product, work hard at it, make sure the customer comes first and have fun with it.”