more fiber fun ...

it is a terribly wet, grey and dreary day here in the northwest ... and the weather forecast goes something like this "showers followed by rain" ... hmmm ...

however, since i need to be tending my indoor garden not my outdoor garden perhaps it's for the best ...

sunny days and i just can't help myself ... i must be outside ... running or walking, taking the dog for a walk, gardening, reading on the porch, kicking the soccer ball with the kids ...

but dreaming of those sunny days is for naught so i will make the most of being inside ... put the kettle on ... make a hot cuppa ... sit back and knit ... and knit ... and knit ... throw in some crochet ... work on the garden that is blooming before my eyes ...

you are all probably tired of hearing about my project ... but it is consuming me and thus you are all my therapists as i work through the process ... thanks for listening ...

now must get out the knitting needles and get to work ...

for us living in the united states, it's a lovely much-anticipated long weekend ...

so enjoy ...

final days ...

those of you who have been following from the beginning ... thank you for listening ... reading ... commenting ...

you will also know that i've been enrolled in the certificate of fiber arts program through the university of washington ...

it's been quite a journey ...

i've made some wonderful new fiber-loving friends, stretched my creativity, developed a much better sense of this art world, been given advice on where to go from here, learned how to apply for grants to help support my "habit" ...

and yet at the end of the day, i have enjoyed the camraderie of my fellow students most of all ...

you can imagine that in a room full of strong creative women, there can sometimes be fiber flying ... but i think we've all grown to respect each other's work and perspective ... we've shared our lives with each other ... and what inspires us ... we've made discoveries about ourselves along the way ...

one of our fellow students discovered that the lovely dolls she made were actually the friends she did not have as a small child ...

personally i've learned to work bigger and harder than i've ever worked before ... i've done collaborative pieces, i've done public installs, i've made 50 collages in a week and learned to write artist statements and prepare a resume ...

i've become much more disciplined ...

and, despite all the hard work and sleepless nights, there's a part of me that wants to take the program all over again just to see where else i could go ...

but, in the meantime, let me share a few photos of my final piece ... i am not finished ... but it's getting there ...

my piece is call Bloom ... i will have two fiber gardens, one in neutral tones and one in more vibrant colorful tones ... mounted and placed in antique white frames ... these pieces represent for me how my creativity has blossomed in this program ... how i've taken what once was craft for me (making of corsages) and turned those pieces into art ... and that while i might feel like a fremont spirit living in the suburbs, i have to grow where planted ...

and, if you happen to be in the neighborhood, drop by our opening reception for our gallery show aptly titled By Hand ... check out http://www.by-hand.org/ for details ...

and, just for fun, here is my part of a collaborative work done by some of my fellow students ... given the theme of our show, we all had to embellish a glove ... here is my Garden Glove...

but there's be no working in the garden in these gloves ...

it's a tad bit dreary here in the northwest today ... okay it's a whole lot of dreary actually as i hear the rain pouring down the gutters ... but have the best day you can ...

and ...

happy knitting of course ... is there any other kind? ...

best present ever ...

some time ago, my temporarily retired groom gave me the most thoughtful gift ever ...

ah i know what you are thinking--something in the jewelry family or perhaps a fabulous piece of clothing, a trip to the spa ...

but alas these are not the gifts that set my heart aflutter ...

no he found me the best present ever ...

a set of vintage knitting needles ...

could there be a better gift for a fiber lover? ...

than a bouquet of knitting needles? ...

i think not ...

so, happy knitting ... as if there were any other kind ...

and thus it began ...

another collection ...

the past few days i've been sharing some of my collections with you ... collections which, for me, lead to inspiration ...

now we all have our own definition of what luxury items are but for me a luxury is a non-essential item that brings pleasure, comfort and inspiration ...

for me, a luxury item must also be inexpensive because chances are i am going to want two or three or more of them ...

now how can one be so passionate about a book they can't even read? ... sometimes i am not even certain if i am at the beginning or the end of a book ...

perhaps that adds to the intrigue ...

it's actually quite liberating to look at the photos, which can i just say are so stunningly beautiful that sometimes they take my breath away ... and yet so simple as well ...

so here is what the first book led to ...

pick one up for yourself ... and immerse yourself in another craft culture for a moment or two ... and feel blessed that there are creative people throughout the world ...

sharing the collection(s) ...

need i say more ...

wishing you all a lovely weekend ...

my youngest cherub and i are headed out ... we've got our lunch packed, a book on cd, a new game for the DS, nibblie bits, crossword puzzles, a few yarn projects in the knitting bag and a long road ahead ...

no doubt there will be tales to tell upon our return ... 'cause one of my favorite things to collect is good memories ...

see you when i get back ...

and, as always, happy knitting ... is there any other kind ...?

collectivitis ...

i know i can't be the only one out there who suffers from this affliction ...

we all have our thing ...

that thing that we seek out in antique shops ...

upcycle centers and value village ...

garage sales ...

that thing that makes our heart skip a beat when we find it ...

and i'd hazard a guess that most of us have more than one thing that we collect ...

over the next few days, i'll share some of my collections ... but lest i become the featured 'hoarder' on a reality show, i'll not reveal all my secrets at once ...

in the meantime, here is a photo that will give you a bit of insight into one of my habits ...

this one is very special to me ... it was given to me by my sister ... and made by my grandmother ...

have a lovely day ... and if anyone has a cure for "collectivits", please keep it to yourself ...

spring showers bring may flowers ...

i truly love this time of year ... the garden is bursting with life ...

i had my tea this morning sitting in the garden amidst the croaking of a nearby frog ...

the bees were busy collecting pollen and my sweet hummingbirds were zipping in and out of the yard ...

one of my favorite plants is the columbine ... i love that they self-seed and pop up in the most unusual places ...

here are a few favorites from my garden ...

and not to be outdone ...

the iris are in full bloom ...

hope you have a chance to spend some time in your garden this weekend ...

the too perfect day ...

there is nothing i love more than a road trip on a beautiful sunny day so imagine how my heart raced when my temporarily retired groom said these words to me yesterday morning "why don't we skip the workout and go for a drive--it's a beautiful day" ...

gasp ...

am i dreaming? ...

road trip ...

leave early ...

just the two of us ...

in the sunshine ...

stop at one of my favorite antique shops ...

have lunch at a little cafe ...

gasp again ...

that blur was me dashing to the car ... grabbing nothing but a pair of knitting needles and some yarn (naturally) ...

first stop--the incredible "farm to market bakery/cafe" in edison ...

the owner's 3-year old daughter, stella, was helping her mom plant a vegetable garden ...

we had the most delicious peanut soup ...

ok i can't lie ...

we also shared a huckleberry scone made with local organic eggs and cream ...

jim, the cafe's owner, sent us down the street to an amazing bakery aptly called the breadfarm ...

"yes" a resounding "yes" we also dig the local farmers ...

but wait it gets better ...

jim sold to me for the low low price of $1/pound a bag of rhubarb for stewing ...

and if that's not enough, we headed to one of my favorite antique shops ...

"midway house antiques and retro interiors" where i found two shelving units already painted bright white and ready to go into my soon-to-be-newly-renovated studio ...

ken, the shop's owner, was cracking walnuts and he gave me a bag from his tree ...

so, home we came, with our treasures ...

fresh rhubarb, walnuts, loaves of bread, carful of antique shelves, bellies full of fabulous homebaked food ...

would someone please tell me why oh why you would ever choose to give up bread? ...

so after a wonderful day spent in the country with my groom ... laden with treasures from the land ...

i couldn't help but think that this was turning out to be "the too perfect day" ...

a fiber garden gets planted ...

well another assignment for our fiber arts class ...

actually this is a biggie ...

our pièce de résistance ...

the one that will get hung in the gallery for our exhibition ...

i am bringing together all that i love ...

i love wool,

i love knitting and crochet,

 i love knitting and crocheting flowers,

 i love old buttons and old lace,

my heart skips a beat when i find an old doilie at value village or an antique shop, and

i love to garden ...

so i got out my tools ...

i worked the "soil" and prepared the "beds" ...

i have been knitting and crocheting flowers in neutral tones for weeks ...

i knit some twisty bits ...

and i planted the first flower ...

it's not finished yet but i'll let you know when the garden is in full bloom ...

aided by the sunshine, i've been busy as a beaver in the greenhouse today ...

happy mothers day ...

if you aren't one, you had one ...

so happy mothers day ...

and if these photos don't evoke a feeling of motherhood, i don't know what does ...

we had lunch at a fabulous restaurant on chuckanut drive called the rhododendron cafe (http://rhodycafe.com/) ... if you live anywhere near the seattle area, do yourself a favor and have lunch there one day ... and be sure to take time to enjoy the scenic drive ...

outside in a lovely old rhody, the robins had built a nest and four sweet babies hatched two weeks ago ...

we had the privelege of sharing a few moments with them ...

doesn't get much sweeter than that ... 

happy mothers day ...

weekend fun ...

the cherubs and i, along with some friends, spent a lovely weekend past working on some crafty projects ...

so i thought i'd share a few with you ...

my eldest cherub loves clay ... she makes the most amazing diminutive little dragons and such ... here are but a few examples ...

and here's the dragon living quarters ... complete with fridge, stove and bed ...

here's a little guy that i needle felted ...

and the youngest cherub was busy at the knitting machine ...

all-in-all, a fun time ... and NO ELECTRONICS which makes mamma very happy ...

and when mamma is happy ...

the whole family is happy ...

enjoy your day ...

the "office" of a knitter ...

i was driving through town at "rush hour" yesterday (and trust me when i tell you there was no "rushing" happening on the streets leading to nearby redmond) ...

as i was driving, i got to thinking about how fortunate i am that my briefcase looks like this:

the manual i refer to the most looks like this:

and my latest project looks like this:

happy knitting ...

is there any other kind? ...