FERROUS WHEEL DESIGN is pleased to announce that the popular home décor publication, HGTV Magazine, featured Bozeman’s Ferrous Wheel Design in their current (July/August) issue. The magazine has a circulation of more than 1.25 million.

The article titled, “SHOP THE 50 NIFTY UNITED STATES” takes the reader through state-themed accessories that let you show your home turf pride. Representing Montana is Ferrous Wheel Design’s signature Montana Chalkboard available in Classic School Black and Wood Grain Brown. The chalkboard set includes a  custom eraser, chalk tray, and a colorful array of chalk.

Brian White, Product Developer and Co-Owner says of the article, “We were honored that our Montana chalkboard was chosen to represent Montana. As a fifth generation Montanan, this product line culminates my passion and love of Montana. When designing the piece, we wanted to integrate that rural school board look with a modern twist. The set is a fun gift or terrific way to show your love for Montana.”

FERROUS WHEEL DESIGN, a home décor business, launched in March 2014 on the online commerce site etsy.com. Shortly after, FERROUS WHEEL DESIGN was contacted by an HGTV representative about being featured in the magazine article. Now offering more than forty home décor sculptures and design accessories, FERROUS WHEEL DESIGN products can be found in Bozeman at TART gallery and in Livingston at the BHIVE gallery.  Select sculptures will be on display at the Danforth Gallery in Livingston through July 20 with a launch event this Friday, June 27 from 5:30 – 8:30 pm.

More about Ferrous Wheel Design:  Brian + Suzi White are professional artists and product designers making handmade modern home accessories made of any and all types of recycled metal and wood materials. Products range from faceted metal animal sculptures to reclaimed tractor stools to vertical gardens. Working in conjunction with interior designers and private homeowners, we love to create custom pieces.

The BETCy EFRC was one of only 10 new centers funded in the latest round of grants, which totaled $100 million and drew more than 200 proposals. Another 22 recipients received renewed grants based both on their achievements since the first round five years ago and the quality of their proposals for future research.

Centers selected in the second round are charged with laying the scientific groundwork for fundamental advances in solar energy, electrical energy storage, carbon capture and sequestration, materials and chemistry by design, biosciences, and extreme environments, said U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz when he announced the latest recipients on June 18.

“Today, we are mobilizing some of our most talented scientists to join forces and pursue the discoveries and breakthroughs that will lay the foundation for our nation’s energy future,” Moniz said. “The funding we’re announcing today will help fuel scientific and technological innovation.”

These particular institutions decided to work together because the researchers involved are leaders in the field and have a combination of complementary expertise necessary to accomplish the ambitious goals of the center’s research, Peters said.

Ten years to the day of Alara Jewelry opening its doors in downtown Bozeman, the self-named “Ladies of Alara” invite their customers, friends, and community to celebrate with a full day of activities.

Starting from opening at 10am until closing at 8pm, Alara Jewelry invites everyone to partake in storewide discounts unlike anything the gallery has ever offered.  

“We recognize that our success has everything to do with the warm decade-long welcome the people of Montana have extended to us.  We have not had a storewide, general public sale outside of Crazy Days, and we thought this would be the perfect time to do so,” says Babs Noelle, owner of Alara Jewelry.  Discounts range from 30% with the purchase of one item to 50% for the purchase of three.

There will also be a barbeque from 11am to 2pm for those stopping by, kindly manned by Big Sky Youth Empowerment.  

Noelle adds, “BYEP is Alara’s benefitting nonprofit for the month of July, and this sale will be no exception.  We are excited by the prospect of sharing our sales success with this remarkable nonprofit.”

For those out after work and over the age of 21, a signature cocktail will be served inside the store from 6pm to 8pm.  “We have long prided ourselves on providing a fun and social atmosphere, so of course we want to highlight that during our important milestone shindig,” says Noelle.  “And to provide cutting-edge entertainment during the evening, we are proud to present The Trap Door Project, an innovative dance crew that combines the modern sounds of electronic dance music with the rhythms and energy of live tap dancing.”

Every adult stopping by Alara will receive a chance to win a cruise package.  An additional cruise package will be awarded to the Alara customer who brings by the oldest custom piece crafted by Noelle.

Alara Jewelry is located at 42 W. Main Street in downtown Bozeman.  Their 10th Anniversary Shindig takes place on July 17th from 10am to 8pm.

The thrill of Bobcat football will be supplanted by giggles and family fun for one night this summer, when Montana State Athletics hosts Movie Night with the Bobcats on Tuesday, July 29. The event is free of charge.
 
The 2013 Disney movie Monsters University, an animated hit featuring the voices of Billy Crystal, John Goodman and Steve Buscemi, plays on the Bobcat Stadium video board beginning at 7 pm with gates opening at 6 pm. All seating (except ADA access) is on the field so fans are encouraged to bring blankets, but chairs of all kinds are prohibited for the event that MSU Director of Athletics Peter Fields called "a thank you to our fans."
 
"Movies under the stars is a great tradition in our community and we're happy to welcome families into Bobcat Stadium for a night of fun," said MSU Director of Athletics Peter Fields. "We know kids of all ages will enjoy this movie, and it's a great chance for anyone who doesn't normally have the opportunity to attend football games to enjoy this facility."
 
Gates open at 6 pm on July 29. Popcorn and water will be available in the stadium, but no outside food or beverages are allowed into the stadium for protection of the turf field. Fans may use the social media hashtag #bobcatmovienight.
 
#GoCatsGo

The town of Ennis is launching a new music festival dubbed Moods of the Madison the third weekend of July, and with headliners like Buddy Guy and Grand Funk Railroad, this venture is likely to be a barnburner.

The festival will be held within walking distance (just under a mile) from town, just north of Madison Foods on the west side of Highway 287. It has been organized by Tate Chamberlin and Chamberlin Productions of Bozeman, in conjunction with community leaders in Ennis, who are hoping a successful debut festival will make Moods of the Madison an annual summer event. And so far, it’s looking good: by July 7, there was no hotel/motel lodging left available in the Ennis area on July 18 and 19, when the festival takes place.

“We’re so excited,” said Chris Gentry of Madison Foods, which is helping to sponsor the event. “We’re looking for a big crowd...and hoping to bring many of those folks into Ennis as well.”

Moods of the Madison kicks off at noon on Friday, July 18, when access opens to the festival grounds and vendors, and to the adjacent campgrounds. The music starts on the main stage at 5:30 with the folk/rock sounds of Hollow Wood, a six-piece Indie band out of Boise, Idaho. Another Indie folk-rock band out of Deland, Florida, Roadkill Ghost Choir, hits the main stage at 6:45. From 8:00-9:00 the instrumental band Toubab Krewe will make the Madison Valley echo with the sounds of both Africa and America, specifically the music of Mali with a twist of the Southern United States added in. And Friday night’s headliner, Grand Funk Railroad, hitting the main stage at 9:30, should prove to be “some kind of wonderful.”

Though the music doesn’t start on the main stage until Saturday afternoon, other on-site events like an obstacle course, a “kids’ zone,” and more, will be featured at the festival. And there’s lots to see and do in Ennis, including dining (I strongly recommend the jerky at Deemo’s Meat Shop), shopping, or just sightseeing in this great little mountain town.Event sponsor Madison Foods is sure to be busy with campers looking to beef up their breakfast, lunch and dinner menus, refill their coolers, and get some snacks (and they have killer jerky, too!). The nearby Madison River and Ennis Lake will be beckoning bathers, floaters and fisherfolk alike, and there’s also plenty of hiking and history in the area.

At 4:30 pm, Trap Door Project hits the main stage. This Missoula-based dance group combines electronic dance music and tap dancing for an energizing and innovative live show. They are followed at 5:15 by the Molotov Quintet, an acoustic flamenco group who blend jazz with hip-hop, Latin, Middle Eastern, and Eastern European folk music. At 6:00 Bozeman’s own Booze Hounds hit the main stage, belting out originals and covers with the best of them. The Booze Hounds will be joined onstage at Moods of the Madison by Tom Rhodes, a well-loved Bozeman rocker of John Colter Band fame. They will be followed up at 7:00 by another Bozeman band with a John Colter Band connection of sorts, Golden Grenade, a trio featuring the late Tex Tucker’s (another John Colter Band founder, and Bozeman singer-songwriter extraordinaire) son Dustin Tucker on guitar and vocals. At 8:15, Screen Door Porch will entertain the crowd with their Wyoming-inspired Americana music. Buddy Guy, with his legendary, award-winning blues sound, will hit the main stage about a quarter to ten, and rock the crowd until the end.

Don’t miss this debut event that seems certain to become an Ennis mainstay. General admission ticket prices range from $50-$75, and VIP tickets for Moods of the Madison, which include a fully furnished VIP lounge with complimentary beer and viewing platform, are $100. Tickets are available at Cactus Records in Bozeman, Madison Foods in Ennis, and Headframe Spirits in Butte. Camping located conveniently adjacent to the venue is $5 per person, and that price covers camping from 3:00 on Friday, July 18, to noon on Sunday, July 20. Vendors onsite at the festival will be offering food and beverages as well as arts and crafts, and access to the vendors and the kids zone will be open to the public free of charge all weekend.

For more information on Moods of the Madison, find moodsofthemadison.com online. Ennis is ready for a festival! Are you? See you on the Madison!

As part of its mission to help revitalize American small business by empowering entrepreneurs on the ground, MBAs Across America has selected Bozeman as one of it's six stops for one of eight teams traveling the country this summer.  Team "Grussle" comprised of MBA candidates from Ann Arbor and Berkeley (http://mbaxamerica.com/rosshass-business-school/) will make six stops this summer. The first of which is to spend this week at Sola Cafe and Red Tractor Pizza in Bozeman, Montana. For more information visit:

The team, comprised of four 2nd year MBAs will focus an entire week working to help craft sustainable and profitable growth and expansion plans for Sola Cafe and Red Tractor Pizza.

MBAs Across America is a nonprofit organization which takes MBA's summer internship aspirations on the road and out of the cubicle. The team members are inspired to serve small business owners with their expertise.

"The MBAXA team wants to help the people doing the real work of running a business. Their enthusiasm is palpable. These are not your stereotypical MBAs (whatever that might mean). The group is full of intelligent curiosity woven with a strong desire to make a difference. What a treasure and a gift to spend a week with my new advisors and friends."   -Tiffany Lach, owner, Sola Cafe and Red Tractor Pizza, Bozeman, Montana

For further information about the team, the organization and their stop in Bozeman, please visit: http://mbaxamerica.com/

A guide to help Montanans detect, monitor and control Japanese beetles is now available from Montana State University Extension.

Prior to 2013, the Japanese beetle was established in a small area of Billings, but had not spread. In 2013, it was introduced into seven municipalities through shipments of infested nursery stock, said insect diagnostician Laurie Kerzicnik.

The larvae are pests of turf grass. Lawns with yellow patches might indicate an infestation. The adults feed on more than 300 plants, but they prefer roses, apple, grape, cherry, raspberry and linden.  They also eat field crops, vegetables and ornamental bushes.

Japanese beetle larvae, also known as grubs, are about one inch long when they mature. They are off-white, have a C-shaped body and three pairs of legs.

Japanese beetle adults can be half an inch long. They have a metallic green, oval body with bronzed outer wings. They have five small tufts of white hair along the sides of their abdomen and two more patches protruding from the last segment of their abdomen.

A variety of approaches are available to control Japanese beetles, Kerzicnik said. Montanans can use insecticides or plant resistant species, such as lilacs, spruce and the common chokecherry. They can use biological controls, which include parasites, nematodes, fungi or other organisms.

For more information about the Japanese beetle, including its life cycle, behavior, susceptible plants, and control methods, Montanans can request an MSU Extension MontGuide by visiting the online store at http://store.msuextension.org/Products/Japanese-Beetle__MT201404AG.aspx or emailing orderpubs@montana.edu. The MontGuide was written by Kerzicnik and MSU Extension Horticulture Associate Specialist Toby Day. It is a June 14 publication numbered MT201404AG.