Take an ordinary garden gourd, any size, any shape, sand it until it’s nice and smooth, and then stain it or paint it with any pattern or design you’d like. That’s the word from Janet Bolin of Rutland who is known for her creative skills with things of nature. At the recent Christmas flower show, she displayed examples of gourd art — small ones made into tree ornaments, painted as Santas or snowmen, larger ones into bird houses to add charm to a backyard, and still others into useful containers for flowers or fruit.