Knobby Knees

the long way home ...

2011-10-14T08:10:00.000-07:00

i do think i am quite blessed to be living in the northwest ...

oh sure there are days when i could use a little less "liquid sunshine", but the climate is temperate and the geography ... ah ... now that is what makes living here a blessing ...

yesterday, a friend took me on a tour mere minutes from home ...

i thought i'd share a few photos with you ... something to make the day a bit less drearier and a bit more cheerier ...

have a happy weekend ...

and every once in a while, take the long road home ...

i did it ...

2011-10-11T16:34:00.000-07:00

a few years back, i found a wonderful milk stool at an antique shop in the skagit valley ... it was even painted the most perfect clean white possible ... (i'm thinking perhaps this milk stool had not seen too many barns in its day) ...

for a few years, that lovely stool sat waiting quietly in the corner for the day that she would have a new seat cover ... she waited and she waited ...

and she waited ...

now i'm fairly new to crochet work and i've tried crocheting in the round a few times but each time i did the end result was a floppy flippy piece of fiber that looked more like a beach hat than anything that would lie flat ...

so yesterday's challenge to myself was to crochet my stool a lovely cover ... a lovely flat cover ...

so with trusty hook in hand and two "how to" crochet manuals on my lap, i got to the task ...

it grew and it grew ...

until finally, finally this afternoon, i completed my first flat seat cover ...

and i'm thinking perhaps it was worth the wait ...

"fall back" ...

2011-10-10T12:34:00.000-07:00

i'm not ready for it yet ... the chilly mornings ... and dare i say the dark mornings ... dark dark mornings ... and we have not even had our "fall back" moment yet ... leaves are dropping around me ... it's a misty morning ... missing my instant gas fireplace just a wee bit ...

mondays mean house work for me ... put the house back together after a usually fun albeit busy weekend ... restock the pantry ... and so on and so forth ...

i'm always so happy when friday arrives ... and equally happy to see monday mornings when everyone heads back to school and work ...

so floors have been swept ...

cushions fluffed and back in place ...

washing machine churning away ...

don't ever let anyone tell you that "stay at home" mothers don't work ... i've yet to meet that strange elusive creature called the non-working mother ...

my goals for today: catch up on the happy valley fair registrants and sit down with my trusty crochet hook and finally, once and for all and with great perseverance, learn to crochet someting in the round that actually will lay flat ... i've got a lovely old milk stool, painted just the perfect white, demanding a crochet seat cover ...

so with my trusty dog by my side ...

i'm off to work ...

wishing you a lovely crafty week ...

and, with any luck, tomorrow i shall have a photo of a newly covered milk stool ...

walk, thrift, craft, read, garden ...

2011-10-04T13:37:00.000-07:00

walk, thrift, craft, read, garden ...

and not necessarily in that order ...

but, definitely under the category of "these are a few of my favorite things" ...

after a quick stop to post a heartfelt package ...

i dropped by my bank to resolve yet another card issue ...

not a complete loss though as my journey took me by value village ... very serendipidous i thought ... and most considerate of my bank to be situated quite handily to our local thrift store ...

besides the racks and racks of gaudy halloween costumes, there are treasures to be had ...

and have them i did ... two lovely lambswool sweaters found their way into my cart ...

can't wait to felt them and get to work ...

keep an eye out for new wares showing up daily in the etsy shop ...

and, in the meantime, thanks for dropping by ... always a pleasure to see you ...

and hope the sun is shining where you are ...

it's a perfectly perfect day here in the northwest ...

with fall comes much crafting ...

2011-10-01T15:04:00.000-07:00

'tis truly that season again ...

the season that begins with the letter "c" ...

dare i say it out loud ...

no not THAT season ...

i mean the crafting season of course ...

time to throw open the studio doors ...

oil the sewing machine ... (speaking some kind words to her often helps as well ... she can be a bit cantankerous at times) ... but then who am i to speak ... or write as the case may be ...

so we are decking the halls with scissors and yarn, scraps of fabric and buttons, doilies and vintage cloth ...

ready for whatever the crafty gods might send my way ...

there are some old items with new features ...

gauntlets with lovely crochet edging ...

and some new items ...

so happy fall everyone ...

it's my favorite time of year ... a busy time in the studio and at home ... lots of wonderful veggies popping up in the garden and the rains haven't found us ... yet ...

happy crafting ... is there any other kind ...

silence ...

2011-07-07T12:08:00.000-07:00

there's that old saying about the thundering silence ... and that is what is resonating in my home today ... thundering silence ...

why? you ponder ...

well the cherubs and my groom are off camping ... and i am left home ... home alone ...

just like the movie ...

there were days when i would have crawled across broken glass for such silence ... but as many things in life, now that i have it, i miss the energy active children bring to a household ...

my eldest cherub travels in packs these days ... and so often there are anywhere from three to six additional charges here at brookside ... arriving like locusts to purge the pantry ... they prattle about the property and usually end up in front of a movie with frosty bottles of root beer strewn about the floor and crumpled chip bags rolling about ...

and i wouldn't have it any other way ...

i love emerging from my cozy bed on a sunday morning to see girls like puppies curled up together half on half off the couch ... sighing in their sleep ... waking up all doe-eyed and ravenous ...

this has become my sign that summer is here ... kids curled up like puppies ...

when did kids learn to be so amorous with each other ... they are always saying "i love you" to each other ... hugging and walking arm-in-arm ...

and speaking of kids, i must share some photos of my other two kids ... the two new additions to our home ...

we are now the proud parents of two nygerian goats ... two sweet sisters who have retired from their days of breeding ...

they prance about the pasture ...

with the sweetest of natures ...

they are so very curious ... and playful ...

and now i must move on with my day ...

have a wonderful day yourself ... i am hoping the sun is shining wherever you might find yourself ...

and give your kids a hug ...

cause the silence is thundering here at brookside ...

spring ...

2011-04-07T13:37:00.000-07:00

well, despite the snow last night, yes your eyes are not deceiving you, i did in fact say snow ...

and no you have not turned the pages of your calendar prematurely ...

this is indeedy april ...

so, as i was saying ...

despite the snow last night ...

spring has arrived in sammamish ...

in a big way ...

here's suzanne and i, literally up a tree ...

but well worth the effort ...

to put things into perspective ...

when we did the winter install, we did a few calculations just for fun:

each knit panel required 1600 rows of knitting (created using a manual knitting machine)

each of the six trees required between one and 4 panels to wrap completely

installation took 15 hours with 11 volunteers over two days

we used 68,000 yards of recycled, reclaimed and retired acrylic yarn

this is equal to 38.6 miles or

85 pounds of yarn

...

so, off with the old ...

and on with the new ...

so, mother nature, if you are listening ...

we've done our part ...

it's your turn ...

please send us some sunshine ...

and, if it's not asking too much, please turn up the thermometer just a smidge as well ...

happy knitting ...

like there's any other kind ...

tickled pink ...

2011-03-21T14:06:00.000-07:00

well i'd be a bald-faced liar if i didn't confess to being absolutely tickled pink over the article written and illustrated by seattle times news artist Gabriel Campanario ...

gabi visited our fair city last week ...

he met with my "partner in yarn", suzanne, and i ...

we shared the recent yarn bombing trend with gabi and he asked loads of questions ...

suzanne shared the process of procuring approval for the year-long tree sock project ...

afterwards we retreated to suzanne's studio to show gabi two fiber artists in action ...

suzanne churned out what seemed like miles of knitting on her machine ...

i wound balls of yarn ...

many many balls of yarn ... towers of yarn balls ...

and gabi sketched and painted ...

and the end result was the article "fresh socks may tickle fans, stump critics" ...

thanks gabi for spending the day with us ...

we tried to be on our best behavior but we did warn you ...

now speaking of tickled pink, here's a sneak preview of what's blooming in sammamish for spring ...

think pink ...

the squire ...

2011-03-17T10:20:00.000-07:00

i've taken to calling our dog "the squire" ...

now those of you who know the dog formerly known as Sgt. Pepper can attest to how hard he worked to earn that title of Sgt ... he truly spent much of his day chastising those about him ... barking orders and commands ...

take me for a walk ...

stay away from this yard stranger ...

what are you doing ringing my door bell ...

how dare you sit on my couch ...

do not leave that package on my porch ...

did i say you could walk on that sidewalk in front of my house ...

and on and on it went ...

bark bark bark ...

command command command ...

well ...

can i just say ...

he's a changed dog ...

he struts about the pasture like he's the king of the world ...

every dog has his day ...

eventually ...

dare i say it ...

2011-03-16T09:32:00.000-07:00

i awoke this morning, albeit a bit late, to blue skies and i'd be lying if i didn't say my heart gave a little jump for joy ...

but of course in light of what is happening in japan, i shan't complain about our weather ...

as an aside and just to have a "proud mommie moment" to share, my youngest cherub asked his teacher yesterday if he could organize a coin drive at his elementary school for some of the victims of the earthquake in japan ... he has a generous and kind soul he truly does ...

however ...

i think it might be time for ms heart to fill in some of the gaps in the blog ...

looking back, i realized i went from planning for the happy valley arts & crafts fair to NOTHING for weeks ...

and then i leaped right into the brook ...

so if any of you are still listening, let me catch you up on what has been happening in my little corner of the world ...

in december, shortly after the 2nd annual happy valley arts and crafts fair ended -- on a successful note i might add -- my "partner in yarn" and i got to work on a huge knit art installation for our fair city ...

but let me go back even further ...

once upon a time, on a busy corner in our town, there stood 6 beautiful old evergreen trees that reigned over the main street of town ...

however, with progress came a widening of the roads in our fair town and irreparable damage was done to roots of the evergreen trees ...

and so it came to pass that the trees were destined for removal ...

rather than cut the trees to the ground, though, they were left as 20 foot stumps ... not nearly as regal without their evergreen crowns ...

oh there were several suggestions made on what to do with the stumps: remove the stumps, carve the stumps, cut the stumps up for fire wood, etc ...

but my "partner in yarn" came up with a grand idea ...

we'd been mucking about with the idea of covering the trees in knitting as any fiber artist worth their weight in yarn would ...

so she designed a multi-season project, presented it to the city representatives, sought out grant money and, many months later, the trees have been crowned again ...

here are my cherubs helping with the installation of our knit sox ...

now one of the goals of art is to get people talking about art ... and having six, 20-foot stumps in the heart of one's city, covered in knit sox and snowflakes certainly got people talking ...

mostly people loved the sox and their rather dr seussical whimsy ... but there have been dissenting voices as well ... and that's ok too ...

but now with spring time, comes a new season ... and so my partner and i are busy with knitting machines and yarn winders ...

so i've babbled on like my brook for long enough ... and i haven't even gotten out of the month of december yet in catching you all up ...

christmas has come and gone, two family birthdays have been celebrated, i've traveled to the east coast of canada to watch a niece play ringette in the canada games ... and joined a new small group at my church ...

i spent a last birthday with a favorite uncle ...

and moved from my suburban neighborhood to a more pastural property ...

unpacked mountains of boxes ...

painted ...

prayed ... a lot ...

and today i am looking out my kitchen window ...

across the pasture ...

the skies are blue ...

and it's a good life ...

so happy knitting ... is there any other kind? ...

of course if you were privy to some of the knitting machine sessions wherein we knit thousands of rows of knitting at a time, you'd know that sometimes knitting is not always a happy time ... knitting machines jam ... yarn snarls and tangles ... and the air can turn quite blue at times ...

until next time, enjoy your day and do something nice for someone else ...

blogs from the brook ...

2011-03-07T09:45:00.000-08:00

it's been a long time coming ...

years in fact ...

but i finally have my waterfront property ...

now perhaps i should have been a bit more specific ... in my mind, it was a windswept cottage by the sea ...

but with children still in the coop and the need for good schools, we have found our beautiful brookside property to be ideal ... and if you've read Anne of Green Gables (and if not, why not?) then you'll also understand my feelings about living next to a babbling brook ...

we don't have the Haunted Wood she wrote so often about but the howls coming from the pasture certainly feed one's imagination late at night ...

so if you've been wondering where ms. heart has been, i've been packing and purging ... plastering and painting ... getting one house ready for sale and another house ready for living ...

and as of saturday, our old house is sold and the new house ... well the new house is liveable in that everyone has a toothbrush and access to running water ...

now my dear friend linda suggested i post a photo a day ... i'm not sure i am that prolific but i'll definitely share what inspires me ...

as often as i can ...

whether it's a tiny bird bathing in the dirt outside my kitchen window or the wanderings of the lovely white goose that lives down the lane ...

and in the meantime, with prayers and a happy heart, we begin our new journey ... in our new house by the babbling brook ... where i hope we'll live happily ever after ...

or at least until that brook becomes a mosquito nursery and we are forced indoors for the duration ...

have a wonderful day ...

27 days ... plus an hour ...

2010-11-07T10:08:00.000-08:00

oh it was such bliss to wake up, have a tea, look at the sunday paper and still it's only 9:30 in the morning ... of course, two crying cats and a hungry puppy paid no attention to the fall back part of it all ... but it's still nice to have that extra time ...

and here's my little helper trying to squeeze the most out of her sleeping time ...

and in the northwest, it appears as though it will be an extra hour of sunshine which is a lovely reprieve after yesterday's day of heavy grayness ...

so in the studio today, i am putting buttons and flowers on gauntlets and the finishing touches on some scarves ...

the not-just-for-boyfriends boyfriend scarf is really popular ...

now, back to work ... or pleasure ... depending on how you look at things ...

and make the most of your extra hour ...

"fall back" ... music to my ears ...

28 days ...

2010-11-06T19:02:00.000-07:00

early in the week i set a goal for production in the heartfelt studio ...

and,

for the most part,

i accomplished that goal ...

i just have one more blanket to piece together ... but the sweaters have all been washed and fulled and the pieces cut and ironed ... so now it's a matter of sewing it together and embellishing ... the embellishing truly being my favorite part ... when everything just pulls together and the final piece says "uh huh" ...

i have it laid out on the table like so ...

another truly green blanket in that i used upcycled materials only ...

but the sewing will wait for another day ...

today was all about my eldest cherub ... spending time with her, listening to her ...

she's becoming quite the guitar player ... now she's been mastering her Sims skills for quite some time but the guitar is new ... and i don't mean guitar hero ... i mean the real deal ... the acoustic guitar ...

i heard some cold play and some don mclean to mention but a few ...

and we wrapped up a dreary northwest afternoon by watching "julie and julia" ... our favorite scene being the lobster scene ... the live lobsters attempting to break out of the boiling pot of water ...

so i want to leave you with an inspiring proverb from the incredible book "three cups of tea" ...

truly one of my favorite books of all time ...

When it is dark enough, you can see the stars.

29 days ...

2010-11-05T07:52:00.000-07:00

what a gift ...

temperatures in the northwest this past week have been well into the 70s ... even reaching the 80s in seattle one day or so rumor had it ...

abundant sunshine ...

abundant inspiration ...

but what's up with the christmas music on some of the radio stations? ...

can we at least get the skeletons tucked back into the closet where they belong before we have to start worrying about saint nick getting stuck in the chimney ...

outside, my geraniums are still blooming ...

and in the studio, the fiber flowers are in full bloom as well ...

...

now, off to "garden" ...

only 29 days left until the big show ...

deep breaths ... deep breaths ...

30 days ...

2010-11-04T07:07:00.000-07:00

and another one's gone and another one's gone ...

another one bites the dust ...

so 30 days and counting ...

until the Happy Valley Arts & Crafts Fair ...

here's a new style of gauntlet from the heartfelt shop ...

now back to the studio ...

well carpool for orchestra, chores and then back to the studio ...

enjoy your day ...

and be kind ...

31 days ... and counting ...

2010-11-03T12:42:00.000-07:00

the heartfelt studio is abuzz ...

it is a mere 31 days (not counting today) until the 2nd Annual Happy Valley Arts & Crafts Fair ...

so mark your calendars ...

December 4 from 10:00 to 5:00 ...

in the meantime, gauntlets are being set aside for hand-sewing ...

sweaters are drying ...

and i'm trying my hardest not to panic ... just yet ...

after all, sleep is over-rated ...

and there are still 31 days left ...

mondays ...

2010-10-18T10:22:00.000-07:00

a lovely but busy weekend has come to an end ...

it was a great weekend for friends ...

small and tall ...

cherubs were either at sleepovers or had sleepovers ... the house was full of kids who moved through the pantry like a swarm of locusts ... leaving nothing but brownie crumbs and empty chip bags in their wake ...

but it's all good ...

but it couldn't truly be a great weekend without some fiber fun ... friday night began with a meet-up of some of my UW fiber friends ... we enjoyed some Blue C Sushi for dinner and then carried on to a fiber exhibition hosted by former grads of our UW Certificate of Fiber program ...

saturdays ... well ...

saturdays in our household are almost always about soccer ... and this weekend was no exception ... and quite often soccer/autumn in the northwest means layers for warmth and for wet ... but, alas, we have been blessed with the most beautiful fall ... sunny skies and crisp cool air ...

jeff and i had friends in for dinner saturday night ... one of those impromptu events that almost without fail turn out to be the best nights of all ...

the bolognese sauce was simmering in the crock all day long ... it just needed some good friends to truly make it a worthy meal ... so we placed a phone call, put out an extra loaf of crusty bread, added a can of tomatoes to the pasta sauce and presto dinner for 8 rather than 4 ...

now lest it appear that our weekends are all about food ...

we did manage to get in a hike yesterday ... the cherubs were exhausted from their respective busy weekends so we left them home listening to music and playing scrabble ... while we met up with a friend and headed outdoors to hike and take some photos ...

but now, back to reality, the happy valley arts and crafts fair is rapidly approaching ...

and the heartfelt studio should be buzzing with activity ...

scarves and gauntlets, bags and buttons ...

the fiber is flying ...

have a great week ...

aaahhhh ...

2010-10-11T11:51:00.000-07:00

i'm enjoying a lovely quiet monday morning ...

the house was full of kids and friends all weekend ... which i love ... i truly do ... there's nothing i like more than having a house full of laughter ...

but come monday morning, i do enjoy the quiet as well ...

it was the kind of weekend though that "fills you up" ... friday night, my wonderfully talented friend suzanne (check out some of her recent work) was in an art marathon and auction ... there were so many incredibly talented people all under one roof ... and the art ... ahhh ... if only our "final bid" was not so many other people's starting bid ...

and sunday, we enjoyed suzanne's work again and that of so many local artists at the sammamish art fair ... where i picked up this little guy for my garden ... check out denny's yard art at http://www.yardart.homestead.com/ ...

so this morning, i finished painting my dining room ceiling and love love love how fresh that makes the house feel ...

it's one of those gorgeous fall days ... crisp ... sunny ...

the colors are fabulous ...

and last night, the last i saw of my eldest cherub, was when she walked through my bedroom on the quest for a towel and, on her way out, she blew me a kiss and told me to have a good night ...

sigh ... all is well with the world ...

2010-10-06T08:35:00.000-07:00

can it really only be 8:00 in the morning ... really? ...

already we've had one trip to the junior high to drop off eldest cherub for badminton ...

a quick trip to the elementary school to pick up "forgotten" cello ... thus missing carpool this morning which meant another drive to the high school to drop off youngest cherub at orchestra practice ...

a dash into the local grocery store to pick up large quantities of food for the burst of teens coming through the door on this short wednesday ...

really ... 8:00 in the morning? ...

lunches made, dishwasher loaded and running ...

multiple emails sent ...

two new evites in the inbox tended to ...

alas, there are still three hungry pets awaiting breakfast and one doggie wanting his walk ...

and really all i want to do is sit here in my studio and work ...

i've got a few new things up my sleeve ...

i found these beautiful safety pins at a local vintage shop ... can't you see them with lovely felted charms dangling? ...

and, on a more positive note, i did get to see the lovely sun rise this morning ... it's one of those amazing autumn days ... crisp ... sunny ...

enjoy your day ...

i am thankful ...

2010-10-05T15:15:00.000-07:00

well more reason to give thanks today ... and to celebrate ...

yesterday my temporarily retired groom and my eldest cherub were headed to an appointment, i was just about to head out the door to a boy scout meeting when the phone rang ...

"i have been rear-ended--AGAIN" said my groom ...

for those of you in the know, you know that this is the second time for my groom in less than a year ... the first time, his car was written off and we found a two-year old replacement ... same car but all those things we had commented on "oh it would be so nice to have seat warmers" had been taken care of in the newer updated model ... so it was not a complete loss ...

but, alas, aside from a mild case of whiplash, all is well ...

cars can be repaired ...

and clothes washed (eldest cherub was just about to sip from a smoothie when the impact came at which point the smoothie flew from her embrace and coated the interior of the car) ...

and to be honest, with a 14-year old daughter in the household, there are times when i have not been counting my blessings recently ... but last night i was just thankful to have everyone home, safe and sound ...

in one piece ...

so give your loved ones an extra hug tonight ...

and does anyone know where we can find a slightly used Hummer? ...

ps happy birthday mom ... i love you ...

she's back ...

2010-10-04T13:16:00.000-07:00

so my knobby knees were shaking ... although the years have lessened any great risk of the knobby knees doing any damage ... they are considerably less knobby than in days gone by ...

but, not being overly techie or really in the least bit techie (why is it that EVERY time i go to use my Zune, the battery is dead?), i was most distraught to have my laptop "retire" and what my cherubs reassuringly referred to as the "black screen of death" appear ...

i'm accustomed to sitting at my desk in the studio, tapping on an icon and magically what i need appears on the screen ... thanks in part to my temporarily retired groom of course ...not unlike how a tasty warm meal often magically appears on our kitchen table at the end of the day ...

so we headed out last thursday to try and find a new laptop and met with some success ... here we are ... back writing again ... now i'll probably never make great friends with my laptop, but we have reached an agreement of sorts ... i won't make disparaging comments about the laptop, and the "black screen of death" won't visit my doorstep again ... well for a few years anyway ...

so a cup of tea and thee ... that's where i stand or sit now ...

my desk looks something like this ... covered in buttons ...

not to mention the pile of felted sweater sleeves ...

awaiting their turn to be reborn into gauntlets ...

looking ever so pretty ... with a heartfelt flower and a lovely button ...

much nicer than living on an old clothes hanger at value village ... tossed aside just because a tiny hole appeared where some hungry moth took up residence ...

ah i've got my work cut out for me ...

but it is monday and i am working with "new equipment" ... so bear with me ... and hopefully that harrumph noise coming from the bobbin case of my sewing machine is nothing more than some woolly bits gathering ...

have a great day ...

oh dear ...

2010-09-29T09:02:00.000-07:00

my laptop has chosen this very week, in my busiest of all seasons, to retire ...

i hopefully will be back keyboarding by early next week ...

on a positive note, perhaps this means i will be spending more time with my knitting needles ... my crochet hook ... my sewing machine ...

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

"temple grandin" ...

2010-09-27T09:29:00.000-07:00

we had a lovely joyously lazy do-nothing sunday ...

after an extraordinarily fun saturday spent shopping at the local farmer's market followed by some fun in the kitchen resulting in a wonderful salmon dinner with grilled veggies, roast potatoes and fresh blackberries ... all this was made better by sharing it with friends ... from start to finish ...

sigh ...

and now it's monday ... not that i'm complaining ... for the first time in ages, i have the house to myself ... well as much as possible with two felines fighting for the lead role in "Cats" and a naughty doggie running about ... but here are no other human voices ... just the whirl of the washing machine ...

i've looked after some school responsibilities (i have the very big grand important job this year of being the popcorn coordinator--each year our 6th graders go to outdoor ed as a celebration of surviving elementary school and we sell popcorn to help offset the cost of going) ...

i've put a load of laundry in and cleaned up the kitchen ...

and now i am sitting with my tea, enjoying the relative quiet ...

but before warming up the sewing machine and getting to work, i feel compelled to share something with you ... one of the best films i've seen in a long time ... so good that i watched it saturday night with a friend and then again last night, with my groom and cherubs ...

it is called "temple grandin" ... and it's the story of Temple Grandin, Ph.D., the most accomplished and well-known adult with autism in the world ... you must see this incredible movie ...

now ... i hope you have a wonderful monday ...

and rent "temple grandin" ... do it now ... what are you waiting for ... how many truly great movies come along each year? ...

fridays, niddy noddys and orifices ...

2010-09-24T10:36:00.000-07:00

how did it get to be friday ... no seriously ... how DID it get to be friday ...

i was just enthusiastically marvelling about monday ... and voila ... friday ...

what happened to mid-week ...

where did thursday go ... anyone seen tuesday? ...

i know last night sped by because i was in a spinning class ... no not the sweaty gym type of spin class but a spin class as in spinning wheel, fiber, wool ... you know the kind ...

prick your finger on a spindle and fall asleep until the love of your life kisses you to life ...

it was fabulous ... i love spinning ...

have you ever been on a ferry for any length of time and then when you lay down to sleep, the bed rocks like you are still floating ...

last night, my foot kept going up and down, gently, as i was treadling in my sleep ...

spinning dreams i suppose ...

so here's my first effort ...

it's been carded and it's been spun ...

i then removed it from the bobbin to the niddy noddy (how can you not love a craft that has such divine terms as niddy noddy?) ...

it's a bit twisty and in places it appears as though caterpillars have spun cocoons ... but i like it ...

and, out loud in a classroom setting, we get to talk about the "orifice of the spindle" ... really ... i am not making this stuff up ...

so despite my best intentions, here it is friday again ... i hope you have a wonderful weekend ... i hope to spend time feeding roving through the "orifice of the spindle" and i shall try and restrain myself from using the niddy noddy in an inappropriate fashion ...

happy weekend ...

fame and fortune ...

2010-09-23T09:36:00.000-07:00

well it's not all buttons and biscuits in my studio these days ...

there is some real live work being done ...

although i do have to cut things a bit short today as i have two friends coming over for tea this afternoon ... a new friend and an old friend ... my new friend hails from spain and i love listening to her tales from yonder ... my old friend is like that favorite sweater you wrap yourself in on a chilly day ...

anyway, back to the studio ...

i have completed another bag .. it was knit and then gently machine felted ...

...

it's just the prettiest grey-blue wool ... reminiscent of the seattle sky today actually ...

but when i query myself as to why fame and fortune have not sought me out, perhaps a gentle reminder that i am trying to lead a balanced life is required ...

nudge nudge ...

so off for a quick run with my naughty doggie ... and then back to work ...

enjoy your day ... and happy knitting ...

is there any other kind? ...

biscuits 'n buttons ...

2010-09-22T16:08:00.000-07:00

it's been a lovely week (and it's still only wednesday) of friends and good food ...

sunday evening we had a couples book club meeting ... we discussed the book "Lonesome Dove" which i highly recommend ... it's a great read ... not something i would ever have picked up on my own -- cowboys and cattle drives not being my typical reading material ... but this pulitzer prize winner truly earned it's rating as one of america's best novels ...

in keeping with the theme of the book, we had steak and beans, corn bread and parsnips, wild rice and salad ... and, for those of you familiar with the characters, we had Gus's buttermilk biscuits ...

these biscuits, served warm with butter and molasses ... oh my ... there's gotta be a law against them ...

yesterday, i was blessed to have five of my fiber friends from my UW program of last year (who could possibly forget 50 collages in a week for heaven's sake) for dinner and the evening ... we talked sheep and wool, art fairs and weekend outings, new projects and old ...

and today ...

today i had three dear friends for tea and lunch and we talked until time ran out and our "other lives" interfered ... pick ups after school and appointments beckoned ...

now lest you think ms. heart has traded in her knitting needles for a tea pot, i have found a few moments to be in the studio ...

i've made some sweet covered buttons which will find new life as hair bobbies ...

and remember the felted bag of last week, well it's done ...

and so darned pretty ...

... flowery lining ...

and ta da ...

a crocheted strap completes the picture ...

hope you have good friends in your life ...

'cause it can't be all work and no play ...

rattlin' around the studio ...

2010-09-16T09:37:00.000-07:00

"no" ...

my yelp of horror at hearing that my favorite antique shop in north bend is closing ...

ok it was more of a shriek ... but none-the-less ...

for those of you who have not been there, now is your last chance ...

Bad Girls Antiques is closing ... get there before it's too late ... go now ...

so, it seems that even bad girls get tired of selling their wares ... and i wish the proprietor of said antique shop all the best ... she has helped me add some much-needed character to my relatively new home ...

but i digress ... back to the studio ...

today is a work day ...

more gauntlets of course ... 'cause you can never have too many pairs of gauntlets ...

and working on a sweet bag ... for some reason, bags are not a big seller but i still like making them ... sometimes a sweater just jumps off the racks begging to be reborn ...

here's the latest bag in progress ...

my lovely and talented studio assistant hard at work ...

stay tuned to see the final product ... complete with crocheted handle and vintage doilie ... or perhaps i should just add buttons ... maybe a sweet flower ... oh decisions decisions ...

until next time, have a wonderful day ...

sleeping beauty ... or not ...

2010-09-14T10:15:00.000-07:00

well i really was going to go for a walk this morning before getting to work ...

but that was before i woke up at 2:39 a.m. unable to sleep ...

what caused this "sleeping beauty" moment ... alas it was not a kiss from my true love that caused me to awaken with a start ... my true love, my temporarily retired groom was actually sleeping quite soundly beside me ... while i, la belle au bois dormant, leaped to my feet ...

wondering how it was that i had not heard a darned thing from my daughter's junior high school ... when i am typically bombarded with so many messages in my "inbox" that i have considered, in brief moments of insanity, hurlng my laptop into the pond in our back yard ... but not wanting to frighten the goldfish residing there i have resisted ... for now ...

upon further investigation, i realized that some time over the past month i had received an email or two or three that the school is using yet another new system and i had to sign in and confirm my password and email address ...

so there i was at 2:39 in the a.m. trying to figure things out ...

and, in case there was any doubt in your mind at all, i am MUCH better with a crochet hook and a pair of knitting needles than i am with all things electronic ...

MUCH better ...

and i'm ok with that ...

so here i sit with my pile of gauntlets waiting to be sewn ...

a finished cuff at my side ...

and a new day ahead ...

and i have already advised my groom that if he comes upon me sleeping in my studio, a simple kiss will wake me from my slumber ...

so, have a lovely day and let's make:

sometimes the flap just doesn't close ...

2010-09-13T07:52:00.000-07:00

my friend julie said these words at our most recent book club meeting ... "sometimes the flap just doesn't close" ... i had to laugh, out loud ... really loud ... 'cause it touched my funny bone ...

and i got thinking about how that is really an observation about life and how we sometimes get ourselves into a wee spot of trouble at times ...

because that darned "flap just doesn't close" ...

i am guilty of this myself on several occasions ...

quite often in dealings with my adolescent daughter ...

(whom incidentally i adore although that seems to be a one-way street these days but i know one day, hopefully in the not too distant future, i shall be tolerated once again) ...

ah but this is not one of those "how to parent" blogs or i would have been shut down long ago ...

the sky is brightening outside my studio window ...

the colors of fall are stunning ...

and the slugs have kindly left me a plant or two in my garden ...

i've added some color to my front door with a sweet pansy and a fiber mushroom ... having a welcoming front entrance always makes me happy ...

it's a relatively warm day in the northwest ...

and my loyal doggie is by my side ...

so hopefully i can keep my flap closed today ... unless i am making kind comments ... and we'll make it to the end of the day with a happy heart ...

now must turn my attentions to my sewing machine and crochet hook ...

the fall "show" season is upon us and the shop shelves are bare ...

enjoy your day ... and keep your flap closed ...

(and just so you know, julie was actually talking internal gastrointestinal issues) ...

happy crafting ...

happy saturday ...

2010-09-11T10:13:00.000-07:00

i'm just about to sit down and have my breakfast ... a lovely bowl of organic blueberries topped with a dollop, just a wee one, of fresh whipped cream ...

hope your day is as sweet as mine ...

twelve things i love about jake on his twelfth birthday ...

2010-09-10T09:34:00.000-07:00

twelve ...

it's a significant number in our house today ...

today is my youngest cherub's birthday ...

he turns twelve today ...

twelve years ago, on his nanny's birthday, he entered the world without a whole lot of fuss ...

at 4:41 pm ...

weighing in at 8 lbs 6 oz ...

his sister infamously said "i love my little brother, what's that guys name again?" ...

jake entered the world smiling ...

and things haven't changed ...

so today's blog is for jake ...

twelve things i love about jake on his twelfth birthday (in no particular order):

1. he holds the door for people

2. he loves babies

3. his piano playing brings tears to my eyes

4. he likes to craft with me

5. he flosses his teeth without prompting

6. he loves his cats and dog

7. he does his chores without prompting and without arguing

8. he chose, at age 8, to be a vegetarian and he's held fast to that ever since

9. he loves dark chocolate

10. he likes to grocery shop with me

11. he will still blow kisses to me on his way to school

12. he is kind to girls.

jake, you are a gift to our family ...

and i love you ...

xoxo

Mom

cure for a dreary day ...

2010-09-09T08:44:00.000-07:00

it's a bit dreary here in the northwest ... but brightened by the fact that today i shall be off with some very lovely friends on an urban hike ... we shall be traipsing through the historical queen anne area of seattle ...

years ago, a group of us formed the "hiker chicks" and we've been romping the forests and fields of the northwest ... but today we are leaving behind our hiking boots and instead putting on our fancy "keens" and heading into the city ...

seattle here we come ...

but i shall leave you with a sneak peak at the crocheted cuff i spoke of yesterday ... still in the works but coming along charmingly ... with my limited photography skills, the photos are a bit dark ... but perhaps that's because outside it still seems like midnight rather than mid-morning ...

i am fondly calling this my "bird on a wire" cuff ... and hopefully it will be one in a series ...

until tomorrow, have a lovely day ...

and if you see a number of ladies in the queen anne area, one possibly crocheting as she walks, give a wave ...

tea with a friend ...

2010-09-08T12:29:00.000-07:00

oh i was going to get right to work this morning ...

but the best laid plans and all ...

one of my sweet neighbors called to invite me for tea ... and in this hectic world, that does not happen all that often or perhaps not as often as i would like ... never one to turn down such an invite, i grabbed my crochet pouch and headed out the door ...

i must share a photo of my newest favorite crochet pouch which i picked up on a recent trip to the great white north aka canada ...

and the equally adorable other side ...

how sweet is that? ... it's from the japanese designer Shinzi Katoh who's motto is:

We design various kinds of products with many happy thoughts. We hope they make people happy!

well i don't know about you, but that sweet little bag makes me plenty happy and brings a smile to my face every time i retrieve it ... mission accomplished Shinzi and thank you for that ...

but fancy that ... me getting sidetracked by a cute accessory ...

where was i ...

oh yes ...

i was avoiding work by sharing a cuppa with a friend ...

well i make no apology for that ...

let me get sidetracked even moreso ...

yesterday i took my sweet cherub to the eye doctor for a fitting for contacts ...

while we were there, an elderly gentleman came in with a pair of glasses and the lens had popped out ... he very kindly asked if they could fix the screw that had come out ... "yes" he was advised that could be done but it would just take a few moments ... the gentleman said that was just fine and he'd step next door for a coffee ...

well perhaps fifteen minutes later, he came back and, upon opening the door he said "i am the one with the loose screw" ... at which point i burst out into laughter thanking my lucky stars that i had just barely swallowed my own sip of coffee or i dare say there would have been more than a loose screw to work on ...

we truly all need to laugh more and share a cup of tea with a friend on a wet fall day ...

so now i can get to work ... but i'll do it with a smile on my face thinking about a man with a screw loose and a friend with a hot cup of tea ...

and hopefully i'll soon have some crocheted cuffs to share with you ... i actually did crochet the base for one whilst having tea ...

and now just need to work on accessorizing it ... perhaps some old buttons and a bit of lace ... maybe some scraps of fabric ...

in the meantime, have a great day ...

and happy knitting ...

is there any other kind? ...

land of oz ...

2010-09-07T11:29:00.000-07:00

kids are back at school and our regular scheduled programming has commenced once again ...

there was a two-month summer interruption ...

we took time off for family reunions and trips to the beach, a much-needed hiatus in lake chelan, a camping trip to the skagit valley area ...

and at 48 years young, what i know about myself is that i really really REALLY work much better with some structure in my life ... don't get me wrong ... i love summer and hanging out with the kids at the lake, going for bike rides, family vacations, movie nights and picnics at the park ... BUT ... i do love back-to-school time and some routine to my days ...

so i've clicked my heels three times and here i am, back in the heartfelt studio ...

i've been playing with some driftwood we picked up on our adventures this summer ...

i wrapped the driftwood in a beautiful wool and then added some heartfelt flowers and a sweet button of course ... i think it's quite pretty ... i have many many pieces of driftwood gathered over the summer ... not to mention multiple pieces of sea glass and pottery ... i'm like a crow ... can't pass by a bright, shiny object on the ground without picking it up ...

anyway, a busy day ahead ... so ms heart had best get her ducks in a row and get to work ...

have a great day and here's my own personal motto which i hope you'll take to heart ...

and so it goes ...

2010-08-21T14:54:00.000-07:00

hello readers ...

i'm back ...

somewhat altered, but i'm back ...

here in ms. heart's fiber world, like in most people's worlds, we have our good days and our bad days ... days we wished would never end and days that never end ...

the fiber hit the proverbial fan a few weeks back and i'm just now feeling creative and in need of some fiber therapy ... so thank you for not giving up on me ... but the hands can't write what the heart can't feel ...

but life goes on ... and i'm adjusting to my new "norm" ...

so this is not a blog about self-pity ...

it's a place to be creative and share that with you ...

so ...

fiber ...

right ...

we were talking fiber ...

and spinning ... the spinning related to fiber not as in "out of control" ...

in an earlier blog, i shared with you the fact that my fiber family had grown by one with the welcome addition of a spinning wheel ...

i finally had an opportunity to take a class at the fabulous weaving works in seattle and today i took it for a spin, so to speak ...

here's what the fiber looked like before ...

rather like dolly parton stopped by to visit and left one of her infamous wigs behind ...

and here's my very first wool, still on the bobbin ...

but spun nonetheless ...

bit closer ...

i know it's all twisty and not at all what you would purchase in a shop but under the watchful eye of one of my helpers ...

i'll get better ...

and it really is great therapy ... well mostly ...

and i can hardly wait to take a project from beginning to end ...

now if i could only convince my family that we would make great farmers ... there's an alpaca farm for sale nearby calling my name ...

after the reunion ...

2010-08-08T09:48:00.000-07:00

i've been traveling with my family ...

to the east coast of canada where we have our roots ...

both of my parents were born in nova scotia and we trace our family back to the ship hector which left scotland and arrived on the shores of nova scotia in pictou county after months at sea ... in 1773 ...

here we are strolling on the boardwalk in halifax, nova scotia ...

i love these canada post mail boxes ...

here's a typical street in halifax ...

and a typical scene at the hotel pool ...

we were on the east coast of canada to gather for our very first family reunion ... no weddings or funerals ... just because ...

all but one hard-working nephew were able to make it ... we missed you nick ...

we met up with mom at the macleod cottages where the weather was perfect, the ocean was warm and the beach was sandy ... we shared dinners and bonfires on the beach, stories and laughs ...

here's mom with 9 of her grandchildren ...

i know dad was looking down on us all and smiling ...

so hope you are spending some time with your family this summer ...

and happy knitting ...

signs of summer ...

2010-07-14T09:06:00.000-07:00

it was truly one of those perfect northwest days yesterday ... sunny ... light breeze ...

i spent a few hours in my garden, planting and weeding ... as you can see, my rose of sharon is very happy this year ...

and what is summer without napping kids and cats? ...

some say it's a dog life but i think miss millie smiling above would disagree ... it's definitely a cat's life for her ...

so, enjoy your day ...

sneak in a nap ...

happy knitting as always ...

and, before we say adieu, yes i have been working on those unfinished projects, as promised ... here's the first of many ...

my "hello betty" corsage ...

dare i say it out loud ...

2010-07-12T10:10:00.000-07:00

we weren't sure it was coming ...

had those lovely days we enjoyed but forgotten about in winter and spring really just been an early summer ...

but then it arrived ...

with record-setting heat ...

summer in seattle ...

we welcome you with open arms ... arms still pale from what felt like endless overcast days ... when i swore i could reach up and touch the clouds looming overhead ...

but we look ahead and not back ...

and what is up ms heart's short sleeves these days? ...

i have titled this "my summer of unfinished projects" ...

i have a lovely antique dresser that i found at one of my favorite shops in duvall (tuxedos it is called for those of you who love to rummage around like i do) ...

it came just as you see it ... with lovely glass knobs ... i lined the drawers with some beautiful paper ...

and it was ready to hold treasures ...

i have a drawer that holds works in progress and this is the drawer that i hope to empty by summer's end ...

there's a pair of socks, a crochet market bag, pairs of guantlets ... to name but a few ...

and let me not forget the shroud ... the shroud is a project that has traveled near and far with me ... a simple knit two, purl two afghan that i fondly call "the shroud" because i joke that i'll be dead by the time i finish it ...

it's a lovely fisherman's yarn ... and i think i have about one foot of knitting left to go and then i plan to crochet something lovely around the outside ...

so wish me luck ... i'll keep you posted on projects as they get checked off the "to do" list ...

and, in the meantime, happy knitting everyone ...

after the break ...

2010-07-11T18:13:00.000-07:00

ms heart and her knobby knees took a wee break after the By Hand show was over ... to pause a moment or two and reconnect with friends and family ... it's been such a frenzy of activity here in the fiber hive that i felt a hard-earned break was necessary ...

but before we move on, i thought i'd best share my final works with you ...

these are the two pieces i made for the opening of our gallery show ...

the grand finale of the certificate of fiber arts program ...

the piece de resistance ...

ok i'll stop now ... you get the picture ...

they were framed in vintage frames, discovered in the "back room" of one of my favorite antique shops ... other than a bit of elbow grease and murphys oil, there was no work needed on the frames and they were a mere $10 each ... i think they are perfect ...

so life has resumed ... around the knobby knees household ...

kids finished school ...

in our household that can only mean one thing ...

NO RULES DAY ...

the day most anticipated in our household, next to Christmas ...

a day when the cherubs go to bed after dinner, set their alarms and arise long before the rooster crows ... they can play xbox, watch tv, be on the computer, do whatever they like ... inside our home ... as long as no one gets hurt ...

the day gets off with a bang ...

one needs a lot of sugar to keep fueled for 24 hours of no rules ... so the kids place their orders ahead of time ... this year the request was for butter tarts and fudge, chocolate cake and brownies and a good helping of ice-cream ... clemantines and mangoes made it on the list too ...

the table has been set ...

let the games begin ...

needless to say, after twenty-four hours of no rules, the next day is pretty much a wash as well ...

so we waited a few days to head out on our first adventure ...

i'll tell you more about our summer adventures later ...

for now, ms heart must do a bit of work in her studio ... it's been sadly neglected ...

Bernie, my trusty sewing machine sits quietly in the corner waiting for her turn to shine ...

and i've recently added to the family ... i bought a spinning wheel from one of my fiber friends ... along with the spinning wheel, came lots of lovely fibers to work with ...

so more fiber tales to come ...

in the meantime, enjoy the sunshine and ...

happy knitting ...

more fiber fun ...

2010-05-28T11:42:00.000-07:00

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 ...

2010-05-26T08:33:00.000-07:00

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 ...

2010-05-25T11:07:00.000-07:00

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 ...

2010-05-24T18:21:00.000-07:00

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) ...

2010-05-21T08:11:00.000-07:00

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 ...

2010-05-19T01:13:00.000-07:00

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 ...

2010-05-15T09:18:00.000-07:00

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 ...

2010-05-14T17:05:00.000-07:00

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 ...

2010-05-11T11:30:00.000-07:00

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 ...

2010-05-09T19:15:00.000-07:00

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 ...

2010-05-07T09:18:00.000-07:00

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 ...

2010-05-05T08:50:00.000-07:00

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? ...

more public art ...

2010-04-29T08:06:00.000-07:00

i love that "yarn bombing" brings art to the masses ... out in public ... no cost to viewers, no harm to structures ... it's all good ...

my morning ritual involves tea, reading blogs that inspire me and sometimes writing my own ...

so yesterday i was so excited when i came across an announcement about a special project ... a call for participants in a yarn bombing project at the textile museum of canada ... working with the museum, the fabulous Alisa McRonald (http://fibreperson.blogspot.com/) is organizing a crew to transform the front of the museum in time for its annual Yardage Sale ...

no limits other than size ...

so here's my piece ... i shall pop it in the mail today ...

and in more detail ...

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

and here's the proof ...

2010-04-28T15:56:00.000-07:00

that perhaps there is a whole lot of crazy going on in my fiber world right now ...

i have a project in mind involving lots and lots and lots of white fiber ...

crocheting my version of old doilie patterns ...

so if you don't hear from me for a while, you'll know why ...

happy knitting ... and crochet ...

collaborative art ...

2010-04-27T10:07:00.000-07:00

you know it's going to be a good day when you have to move your laptop because the glare from the sun is making your screen unreadable ...

today in my fiber world, i'm going to share with you the collaborative piece of art we did on the weekend ...

we, being myself and two fellow students, diane and suzanne ...

our assignment was to "create a collaborative project in a group of 3 to 7 people, carry out this project and document the outcome through images, evidence and reflection" ... okay so we actually exceeded expectation on the size of the group but how can more people in a collaborative piece be wrong? ...

my fiber friend suzanne came up with the idea of using some concrete blocks at our city hall as "posts" in a giant weaving/crochet project ...

so we gathered all our cream and white yarns in the hopes that, in the end, we'd have a piece that looked like a giant doillie ...

here comes suzanne's husband with the buckets of cream yarn ...

we thought we'd set up the framework of the piece and then invite others to join in the fun ...

here's diane leaping across hazardous yarns ...

before we knew it we had many many children and adults participating ...

we had brandon and sam, maddie and christer, jake and sneha, elizabeth, spencer and olivia, simon and kiera, just to name a few ...

we had young children, adults, brothers and sisters, and mulitple generations from the same family ...

the plaza became a very lively place with comments like:

"what a great way to make friends" (two little girls who were under our web);

"I hope this stays up all summer";

"what a great idea";

"thank you for doing this";

"it was so unique to be part of an art creation--thank you for letting us be part of it";

"that was fun";

and, my personal favorite

"watching you through the window of the library, we thought you were crazy but it turned out awesome".

...

here's the end result, not so much a doillie as an intricate web ...

which got more interesting as we folded it over and over again ...

until all that remained was ...

happy knitting ... and let's hope this is not the last collaborative assignment we have 'cause it was way too much fun ...

yarn bombing and other weekend activities ...

2010-04-26T15:53:00.000-07:00

it was a perfectly lovely day yesterday in the city of sammamish ...

perfect for some yarn bombing ... (and yes that is an oxymoron) ...

part of my installation ...

and some of suzanne's work ...

so ...

why do we love yarn bombing? ...

it takes something inanimate and brings it to life

it does not harm what it touches

it is not permanent

when yarn bombing, all colors match

we are making a positive contribution to global warming

no pattern needed

merges installation art and street art

it is unexpected

we can use recycled materials

and it makes people smile ...

but let's back up ...

why? ...

as part of our certificate of fiber arts program, we had to install a piece of our work, in a public place, for six hours ...

with the cooperation of our city hall,

and with inspiration from the fabulous book Yarn Bombing by Mandy Moore and Leanne Prain, we decided to "hit" some of the structures in the commons area ...

our first course of action, being the green knitters that we are, was to visit as many value village shops as possible in one day, buying up lovely bags of yarn and beautiful afghans to unravel ... we spent a day on the couch pulling apart blankets, scarves, sweaters, etc. ... all this while watching the series "Dexter" which, for those of you who haven't seen it, is about a serial killer who works as a blood forensics consultant with the police ... go figure ...

we then sat down with our knitting machines, and we loaded the machines, we whisked that carriage back and forth, we cursed every once in a while when we forgot to set the tension properly, we laughed, we drank lots of tea, and we knit 'til we bled ...

all in the name of art ...

and tomorrow i'll share the story of my favorite part of the day -- our collaborative art installation ... which we achieved with the help of local children and their willing parents ...

'til then ... happy knitting ... is there any other kind? ...

2010-04-23T08:46:00.000-07:00

ah ... the days are getting longer, there's a burst of color in my garden ...

the bleeding heart is drawing hummingbirds to the yard and the bird feeder is drawing squirrels ... squirrels who defy gravity in their attempts to leap from the roof onto the feeder ... scattering seeds everywhere ...

while some things are just springing to life, others are coming to an end ...

i have just 7 weeks left in my fiber arts program ... 7 weeks, 3 major projects, a gallery showing, resumes and artist's statements to write and rewrite, photos to submit, biographies to prepare, ...

this week's assignment is to produce and install a public piece of art ...

my fellow knitting friend, Suzanne, and i have worked with our local city hall and we will be installing some large knit pieces in the commons area ... large sometimes in size but also in quantity ...

my task? ...

knit 48 pieces to cover posts running on either side of the driveway/parking lot of sammamish city hall ...

at this point, you are probably thinking "my goodness did you knit 'til you bled?" ...

a valid question ...

alas, no ... ms heart delved into the heartfelt funds and bought herself a knitting machine ...

all set up and ready to knit ...

here's the first of 48 pieces ...

so all is well in my fiber world ... and hope it's the same in your world ...

and if you happen to be anywhere near city hall in sammamish this weekend, and you notice a deluge of color on the horizon ... it's not recent boy scout plantings ... in fact it's our first big public install ...

now back to my other life ...

making lunches, cleaning kitchens, walking the dog, soccer practice, karate lessons, piano, homework (mine and theirs), grocery shopping, costco runs, cutting the grass, doing the laundry, doctor appointments, volunteer jobs, post office runs, keeping up with my own running and workout routine, etc ...

... so glad i'm not a "working mother" ...

hmmmm ...

2010-03-30T11:38:00.000-07:00

"A friend is a gift you give yourself."

Robert Louis Stevenson

i'm counting my blessings in the form of friends today ...

i have just returned from a 10-day trip home to ontario ... normally i have two children and a groom in tow but this time i was traveling solo ...

had a wonderful time with, in no particular order: karen-anne, diane, denise, joanne, cathy, sherrie, karen and sharon ... how lucky am i ...

martinis, bellinis, wine and good food ...

we laughed until our cheeks hurt--denise, joanne and cathy ...

and knowing that the plane goes in both directions, perhaps i'll have some visitors in the near future ...

i love you all ...

thanks for the memories ...

2010-03-16T11:30:00.000-07:00

creativity is happening today ... but not in the studio ...

rather i've had a hankering for some domesticity and please believe me when i tell you that this does not happen often ...

the washing machine is going full tilt ...

the dishwasher just finished it's cycle ...

a pot of homemade chicken soup for the soul is bubbling on the cooktop ...

and homemade chocolate chip cookies are baking in the oven ...

no artificial color, no corn syrup, no soy products ... just fresh homemade chocolate chip cookies ...

why this need to be working at "home" ... ?

well we had some excitement on the homefront yesterday when my recently temporarily retired groom was in a car accident ... he was on his way to pick up our firstborn at school ... she'd been sick during english class and needed to come home ...

the story ends well ... no one was injured despite there being 3 cars involved ...

we give thanks that jeff and the other drivers walked away from this accident ...

the woman that caused the accident had a wee baby on board ... the baby slept through the entire accident ... more thanks given ...

'cause as many of you know, "those" phone calls often don't have a happy ending ...

love you jeff ...

and for laurie and tom and suzanne who always seem to be there when needed, i have some cookies for you ...

2010-03-11T10:20:00.000-08:00

a rainy wet day today in the northwest ...

which would be typical of the northwest in winter if we ever had a typical northwest winter ...

i've been living here eight winters now and every year it seems i hear the comment "oh this isn't typical" ...

this comment is usually preceded by "unusually heavy rains causing flooding" or "unusually heavy snowfall causing road closures" or "unusally heavy rainfall causing mudslides" ...

you get the picture ...

and have any of us forgotten the winter storm with "unusually high winds" that left us stranded without power for days on end ...

i have discovered though that for accurate weather forecasting, a trek to Ace Hardware is a must ... those men know their seasons and have been able to predict for me a looonnnnnggg winter well in advance ...

just my little tip for the day ...

this year we've been blessed with "unusually sunny and warm" winter days, early blooms and light spirits ...

and i'm feeling rather put out that it's raining today ...

but perhaps it means i should spend the day catching up on my "other life" ... maybe making a meal that doesn't come out of a box with microwave instructions ...

yesterday, our sweet daughter was off skiing for the afternoon while our youngest cherub was receiving his yellow belt in karate ... he and his friend are training together and i must say that they are doing very well and receiving many complimentary words from their sensai ...

i'm proud of both boys for working hard and reaching the next level ...

in the meantime, get outside and enjoy the beauty of nature ... rain or shine ...

here are the cherry trees outside the university of washington's school of art ...

once the blossoms start dropping, it's like a lovely pink rain ...

have a wonderful day ...

i'm off to spackle and touch up walls today ... and maybe even prepare a decent meal ...

ah ... the return of the knobby knees ...

2010-03-10T14:12:00.000-08:00

good afternoon dear friends ... and thank you for sharing part of your day with me ...

it's been a while since we sat and chatted ...

i've been on an art rollercoaster lately ...

i've just wrapped up the final project for our second course in the certificate of fiber arts program at university of washington ...

and while it's been a demanding quarter, who would not want to enter these doors given the opportunity ...

i must say that i've been blessed by beautiful university campuses ... i attended acadia university in the 80s which is in the annapolis valley in nova scotia and wow what a breathtaking campus it is as well ...

at the same time, i'm training for a half marathon (along with my recently temporarily retired groom), my first in a few years, and so life has become a series of juggling acts ...

with the household chores being the ball that gets dropped most frequently ...

but i'm ok with that ...

well i'm ok with that until forced to use paper towel bits for toilet paper and then i know it's time for a quick trip to that big box shop nearby ...

$347 later ...

i have enough of that toilet paper that it shall be willed to my children ...

so here's my final piece from my second quarter class ... entited "17,568 Stitches in a Knit Life" in which i knit a stitch for every day of my life and used different patterns to reflect changes in my life ...

it turned out quite well i think although need to work on the mounting ... but limited to cork board in class ...

thankfully it is an "unfinished" piece as i'm not dead yet and hope to not be dead for quite some time ...

thanks for sticking around ... i promise more later ...

i am on "desserts" tonight for my bunko group so must go work on that ... a platter of sweets and some strawberries are on the menu tonight ...

enjoy your day ... and tell your children you love them ...

and if i happen to not make it another day, would someone please cast off my knit piece? ...

thanks ...

the many hats we wear ...

2010-01-30T15:18:00.000-08:00

oh what shall i write about when my course is completed? ...

working on my various class projects opens the stream of thought on so many topics ...

this week's project is to design and create 5 pieces of wearable art and each one must also be a self-portrait ...

which got me thinking about the many hats we wear ...

most of us are spread so thinly ... we wear many hats within one day ... on any given day, we are mother, friend, daughter, partner, teacher, chauffer, chef, neighbor ... just to name a few ...

some of these hats feel way too large ... the teaching hat springs to mind ... teaching our children often makes me think i should take that hat off immediately and put on a jestor hat instead ...

there is our creative hat which we sometimes want to tear from our heads (like for instance when we are assigned FIFTY collages in one week) ... but it is often this hat through which we express our feelings and touch those around us ...

is your hat balanced firmly on your head or can the slightest change blow it off ...

if i designed a hat with all these components, what would it look like ... do i change my hat often ... is my hat battered and bruised from being worn too long or not cared for ...

ah ... the many hats we wear ...

perhaps that's why i always feel so compelled to knit and create hats ... they are like a tea cozy for the soul ...

keeping the warmth in ...

where oh where have you been ...

2010-01-23T18:55:00.000-08:00

i can hear you now "where have you been ms heart?" ...

let me just say that this night class of mine, while pushing me to places i haven't been before, is very demanding ... so my humble apologies to those of you still paying attention ... but FIFTY collages in 7 days (yes indeed you did hear correctly--FIFTY) really took its toll ...

so, as i sit down to write, my recently temporarily retired husband and eldest cherub are having a nerf gun war ... my youngest cherub is off to a sleepover ... and finally i have a moment to myself to sit and catch up with you all ...

but first i must share some cute photos with you ... cute cat photos ... even better ...

how can you not love a sweet cat ...

so what's new in my world? ...

well we had a lovely trip to whistler over the long weekend past to celebrate my eldest cherub's birthday ... it was a fun-filled time of great skiing, fabulous dining, playtime in the pool and strolls around the village ...

other than that, i am working working working on homework for my certificate of fiber arts program ... we have started a new session and our instructor is very engaging and informational but also demanding ...

so let's talk about FIFTY collages in 7 days ...

our challenge was to create FIFTY collages of at least 7" x 7" and of course we were given a set of guidelines etc ...

here's what mine looked like mid-working phase ...

in my collages, i chose to tell the story of an upcycled sweater from original purchase, to deposit in the goodwill bin, thrifted by ms heart, fulled by ms heart and upcycled into something new and lovely ...

so i was pretty much done with glue and paper and cutting and pasting ...

our next major project is to create 5 wearable art pieces ...

so far, i have crafted an upcycled bag from recycled bags ... you'll rcognize some of the labels ... the sweet owl came from a bartell's bag way back during halloween ... he's been waiting a long time to be reborn ...

and now, since a nasty cold seems to be making it's way through the household, i shall make myself an EmergenC drink and sit with my knitting needles and a cat or two ...

'til next time ... enjoy your weekend ...

it's raining cats and dogs ...

2010-01-11T11:54:00.000-08:00

well it's a wet drizzly day in seattle--the likes of which we haven't seen for a long time ...

only the birds are truly happy today as they flitter about the back yard from feeder to feeder, knowing that the neighborhood cats are sleeping ... they can splash in the puddles to their hearts content ... knowing no furred creature would hazard a trek outdoors today ...

after a lovely weekend ...

i am knee deep in felted sweaters and collages ... my stomach lurches every time i wander past the dining room ... the dining room table looks like a paper shredder lost its mind and regurgitated the past years worth of offerings ...

even the floor is beginning to take on the appearance of a printing house floor ...

despite being 39 collages deep in a requisitie set of 50, i'm still not quite sure exactly where i'm headed with mine ...

but, in the meantime, i keep cutting and pasting, flipping through old magazines and art books ...

and the dishes keep piling up, the laundry is calling out from the hampers ...

pets are feeling unloved, workouts are being skipped ...

emails are being ignored ...

meals are haphazard ...

hair is limp and lifeless ...

no wonder artists have that slightly wonky off-kilter personality ...

their fingers are glued together, they are wearing yesterday's bloomers and they are surrounded by starving dependants ...

maybe in my next life, i'll come back as a cat ...

makin' biscuits ... (warning--don't read if you are dieting) ...

2010-01-09T18:52:00.000-08:00

is there anything better than homemade lemon curd served up with a wee spoonful of homemade strawberry jam (thanks mom) dolloped onto a slightly warm homemade buttermilk biscuit ...

if there is, i don't know what it is ...

here are a few photos from a fun-filled day with a wee friend who came to stay for the day and made my day ...

the 'joy of cooking' always at the ready ...

whisking the eggs and sugar ...

squeezing the lemons ...

cutting the biscuits ...

ah ... time for tea ... (and no you can NEVER be too old for a tea party) ...

and if that wasn't sweet enough, we squeezed in some sewing time as well ...

and her mom thinks she owes me ...

but the truth be told, i think i'm the one who is indebted ...

thanks K ...

i'm just sayin' ...

2010-01-07T22:34:00.000-08:00

it's been a long day, filled with inspiration, a dose of desperation and a tiny bit of consideration ...

i've been working on my fifty collages for night class ... yes you heard right, fifty ... not fifteen ... i suppose we are taking this course to expand our creative selves but sleepless nights don't necessarily lend themselves to expansion of creativity ...

all that said, i'm about twenty percent (dear god) there ... here's a photo of a few of the pieces in my series ...

and a close up of one of fifty (well one day in the near future hopefully there will be fifty) ...

my concept is to take a look at a "found object" like perhaps a sweater ... found at value village ... how did it go from a treasured piece to a discarded piece ... was it too large, too small, did it get a hole, did it just not "work" anymore ...

let's hope at the end of it all, it makes some sense ...

in the meantime, for inspiration, i found myself at, can you guess where? ...

ah, right on the first try ... there's nothing like pawing through the shelves and racks of value village to find inspiration ... and a beautiful crocheted creamy throw ...

so, back to the cutting board, literally, not to mention the glue stick and sewing machine and, if you don't hear from ms heart for a few days, you'll know that i'm in the study cutting and pasting and praying ... a lot of praying ...

oh and you might be wondering about that consideration part, well that's a story for another day ... but it involves one sweet 11-year old boy who always sees the good ...

whatever possessed me ...

2010-01-05T23:46:00.000-08:00

to think that i could seriously keep up a blog, maintain my household, work on my certificate of fiber arts, coordinate craft sales, make christmas happen, stay in relatively good shape ... etc ... but i think i did a pretty good job ...

so let's take a wee peek at some of the highlights from 2009:

amy turned the magical 13

beth turned, gasp, 47

jake learned to knit

jake and i flew to monterey to visit friends

along with some friends, our family spent a week on san juan island

i bravely put some items in my etsy shop

i had my first sale on etsy

i put more things in my etsy shop

the kids and i flew to ontario and then to prince edward island and spent a blissful two weeks with my sister

jake turned 11

i returned to school for my certificate of fiber arts

jeff turned more than 11

i started planning the happy valley arts and crafts fair

i began a blog

i created more and more

jeff retired temporarily but hasn't really stopped working although he now has time for nerf gun wars with his wife and children

and so on

and so forth ...

it's been a good year ...

but alas a new year has begun ...

and by now, a few of you have probably broken resolutions ... i wisely made my resolution to not make any resolutions and i'm doing extremely well so far ... there is a chance that this might be the one year that i actually do not break my resolution(s) ...

but while my knobby knees are still shaking from a busy fall 2009, i wish you

all the best for 2010 ...

the four food groups ...

2009-12-21T09:13:00.000-08:00

yesterday was so lovely and warm ... i worked in the garden a bit (hmmmm if you are raking in december, can you still call it your FALL clean up?) and had to strip down to a single layer because it was so warm ... i think we chose wisely in not putting up our lights a few weeks ago in the freezing cold ...

and hopefully all that rain is dumping snow in the mountains as we are hoping to ski tomorrow ...

my recently temporarily retired groom has been such a help this season ... trimming the tree, putting up lights, mixing martinis ... oh he makes the best cranberry martini ... and a pretty decent coffee one too ...

i suppose, given the weather on the east coast, we should be thankful for power ...

so the house is looking lovely and cozy and we've done a bit of baking ... and some lovely handmade garland found it's way into the shop this year and onto our tree ...

if you must must must have some for your very own tree, it's quite a fun and easy project to do ... i just chopped up bits of felted sweater remnants into one inch (doesn't need to be precise) pieces, warmed up the sewing machine and just fed piece after piece through until i had 5 foot lengths ... they look so pretty on the tree ... AND the dog won't eat them ... that popcorn garland is just not safe in a house with two cats and a perpetually hungry dog ...

this little fellow found his way into my heart and house ... and he was in the FREE bin ... remember my blog about FREE ... how i can't possibly resist a FREE sign ... well now you can see why ...

who could possibly give this little guy away ...

could he be any sweeter? ...

well the skating yesterday was a big hit and after some dinner and drinks we sat down with our friends to watch the movie "Elf" ... now there is nothing better than "Elf" to get you in the holiday spirit ... one of my favorite lines is the one about the four food groups--candy, candy canes, candy corn and syrup ...

so must be off now ... the elves need to be busy in the workshop today ... i have a special baby blanket to make for Aric (shhh ... it's a surprise) ...

so enjoy your day and do something nice for someone else ...

deck the halls ...

2009-12-20T10:11:00.000-08:00

well we've finally got our christmas tree up ... we went out for breakfast yesterday and then headed to a local tree farm where we got to choose from a huge variety of trees in a range of prices ... i'd have to say it's one of our best trees yet ... jake was pleased because this year the tree did not fall on him as it was being felled ... but that's a story for another day ...

so we put on the christmas music, hauled the boxes of decorations out of the attic and got to trimming the tree ...

i love opening the boxes and thinking about the person that gave us a particular ornament ... or reliving a "moment" ... like the lovely pink "Baby Girl's First Christmas" ball given to us by nanny the year amy was born ... amy who is now almost 14 ... or all the lovely ornaments about friendship given to me by my dear friend karen-anne ... we've got the american christmas decoration given to us by sherrie for our first year living in the united states ...

well at some point in the afternoon, jeff and jake left for a birthday party ... and ...

perhaps you heard me scream ...

inevitably a new real tree from the tree farm brings with it a few friends ... or perhaps the "friend" caught a ride in with one of the pets ... but ... doesn't matter ...

i'm not particularly fond of spiders and i know many of you faithful followers feel the same ... so when i picked up a rug covered in tree needles to shake it out the back door and found an 8-legged friend dangling from the under side of my arm, you can understand how my screams shattered vintage balls on the tree ...

are you familiar with the giant house spider ... giant ... GIANT house spider ... well it lives in and around buildings waiting patiently for some poor unsuspecting soul to open a door ... and it doesn't matter how it got in ... what matters is the GIANT part ...

i screamed and ran for the vacuum, shaking uncontrollably the entire time ... i turned it on and gently guided my daughter to where the beast had scurried ... and when i say gently, it went something like this ... in a very loud commanding (screaming) voice ...

"amy did you get it amy point it closer amy make sure it got sucked up amy amy is it gone amy don't point it at me!" ...

ok you are probably getting the picture now ... me hysterically jumping up and down and amy trying not to laugh and trying to keep the vacuum hose straight and and and ... like something out of an "I Love Lucy" show ...

anyway, my mom tells me i should be pleased because spiders like clean homes and not dirty ones ... but i think that's rather like telling the bride on her special day that the pouring rain brings good luck ...

alas, the house is in the christmas spirit now ... the table has been set with a vintage tablecloth i found for a steal on ebay ...

i've been in the kitchen making some festive treats ... with the help of trader joes gingerbread mix ...

but the best part is spending time with friends ...

we had our "canadian" dinner on friday night, a christmas party last night and this afternoon we are off skating with friends ... we'll come back here and warm up the cider, put on a pot of soup ... share some laughs ...

hope you are enjoying the season ... spending time with family and friends ...

but keep the doors and windows locked up tight ... those GIANT house spiders are always looking for a way in ...

today i met a lady ...

2009-12-16T17:32:00.000-08:00

a beautiful lady ...

she inspired me so ...

she had called a few days earlier to order some gauntlets after having lunch with a friend who was wearing a pair ...

she arrived on my doorstep in baseball cap and jeans ...

she had an inner glow ...

she told me she had undergone chemotherapy and showed me her beautiful short brown hair with a bit of wave to it ...

she arrived on my doorstep in her baseball cap and with her wonderful smile and optimism ... and she inspired me so much with her bravery and beauty ... and her hope ...

and i hope she has many more years ahead of her to guide her two daughters ... but she inspired me to enjoy this day ... this day that is a gift ... and she'll probably never know how she inspired me ... but she did ...

(and Anna, have a wonderful Maui Christmas) ...

if you bake it ...

2009-12-14T08:33:00.000-08:00

they will come ...

this weekend we were consumed with baking ... or perhaps we consumed a lot of baking (oh thank goodness i'm off to the gym this morning) ...

jake and i made a cake for his cub scout cake walk ... he's recently taken up karate and so he wanted to inspire other kids to do the same ... he made a white belt cake with a black stripe (which means the wearer of the white belt is ready to test and hopefully advance) ...

sweet and simple ...

here's the pastry chef with his piece de resistance ...

it was a "delicious cake" according to the recipe with yummy buttery icing on top ... and did i mention homemade ...

well lucky jake's number came up first on the cake walk draw which meant he had the choice of ANY cake his heart desired ... so naturally he went straight for the safeway cake with oreos ...

meanwhile back at the house ...

while my recently temporarily retired groom was traveling to the great white north also known as canada for business and pleasure ...

the kids and i carried on ... with the usual weekly activities ...

there was some chilly fun when nearby ponds froze over and amy and friends were able to slide around on them ...

yesterday, i put on some christmas music, lit the candles and made some of my favorite cookies from childhood ... the scotch cakes ...

we made circles and rectangles using mom's old cookie cutters ...

don't they look delicious ...

amy had a friend over and they added the icing and sprinkles ... it took me a while as a mom to figure out that this is the part the kids enjoyed the most ... not the baking but the decorating ...

we are counting down the days to when school gets out ... and until santa arrives ... it will be lovely to take the kids skiing and skating and we may even brave the tubing hills ...

hope you are enjoying the season with friends and family ... and that your holiday season is as sweet as ours has been ...

next thing on the list ... tree and lights on the house ...

and did someone say "christmas cards" ...

where are those little elves ...

2009-12-11T08:28:00.000-08:00

this is the time of year when we could all use some little helpful elves ... to work while we sleep ... but alas those little elves are probably in hiding, trying to keep themselves warm as the temperatures plummet in the northwest ... but on a bright note, don't these cold days bring the most beautiful cloudless skies and sunshine ...

kids are counting down ... until school gets out and santa arrives ...

i'm counting down too ... but on a completely different level ...

packages are arriving from canada and beyond ...

my dining room has been turned into a mecca of wrapping ...

but day-to-day stuff still carries on ...

tonight jake and i have a cake walk to attend ... last night we made a cake and, according to the recipe book, it was titled "delicious cake" ... we set aside a bit of batter to make cupcakes and i think both amy and jake would agree that the cake is aptly titled ... delicious it was ... jake wants to make it a karate cake ... we'll work on that ... dark chocolate sprinkles for the black stripe on the white belt ... he's recently taken up the sport at karate west and is really enjoying it ...

amy is wrapping up projects at school and excitedly making plans with friends for over the break ... one plan is to spend a whole day watching horror films and eating popcorn ... nothing says christmas like some scary flicks and popcorn ...

jeff is still in toronto wrapping up some matters regarding his dad's estate and visiting with friends and family ...

and i must say that each year, as this season is upon us, while i miss being with my whole family for christmas, i am also so thankful for them and for my friends and all the good that is in my life but i do also try to remember that not everyone will be celebrating the season this year ... i can't imagine that there will be a whole lot of joy in the homes of the police officers that were murdered in seattle this year ... or in the homes of all those people who have lost their jobs this past year ... or the homes where sickness is a part of life ... or for the people who don't actually have homes ...

so perhaps take some time to try and make someone else's life better over the holidays ... help out your local foodbank, donate toys, etc ... and hug your families close ... there's more to christmas than bright lights and pretty decorations ...

and here's my hope for you today ...

and may you make someone else's day "merry and bright" ...

santa hats ...

2009-12-09T20:37:00.000-08:00

and other signs of christmas ...

well the tree's not chosen ...

and the house isn't lit ...

the cookies aren't baked yet ...

and the gingerbread house is still a dream ...

but there are some sure signs of christmas in the newfeld household ...

kids are sporting santa hats ...

the advent calendar has more open windows than closed ...

and we've received our first christmas card ...

(thanks Dawn) ...

hope you are enjoying the season, no matter what your celebrations might be ...

happy valley arts & crafts fair ... first annual ...

2009-12-08T11:03:00.000-08:00

i would be remiss if i did not share some sentiments with you regarding the recent, first annual (hopefully) happy valley arts & crafts fair ...

how many years have i been thinking about having a craft fair on a grander scale ... too many ... and i finally met someone willing to take a chance with me, kim suver of the fabulous me & e line of clothing ... could there be a better partner? ...

let me start by saying how beautiful the valley was on a gorgeous december morning ... here's what i saw at 7:00 a.m. from the porch of the happy valley grange ...

and looking in the other direction ...

there was a higher hand at play here than my own i have to say ...

friday night set up allowed vendors an opportunity for a more relaxed start to a craft fair, well as relaxed as these things ever are ...

special thanks to alison cook for so kindly offering her advice to kim and i over the past few months and to the crafty person who knit and "yarn bombed" our happy valley sign on 202 ...

thank you to all the attendees who chose handmade goods ... and supported their local artists and crafters ...

and a heart felt thank you to all vendors who participated in the craft fair, it's been a heck of a ride but the first annual Happy Valley Arts & Crafts Fair was a smashing success ...

THANK YOU ...

'tis the season ... or is it ...

2009-12-06T23:51:00.000-08:00

is it just me or does the whole christmas season start way too early?

before the thanksgiving turkey carcass has hit the simmering water, the christmas trees are up and the houses are lit like an airport runway ...

so needless to say, i am feeling a bit behind in all the christmas preparations ...

but i'm okay with that ...

i think i might just have to go with the minimalist style this year ...

in the meantime, i had a friend say once that she enjoyed sitting with a cup of tea and having a knobby knees read and i've been thinking that i've been quite tardy in the writing department ... so i decided to put the decorations away for later (there's always later) and catch up with you here ...

have i lost you all yet ...perhaps it's not too late and i can win you back ...

stay tuned ... for more blogs ... rejoice fellow tea drinkers ... we shall spend more time together now that craft fairs are behind us ...

corsages are adorning jean jackets and purses throughout the northwest as we speak ...

the scarves are down to a scant few ...

and there can be nary a hand in the northwest not sporting a pair of gauntlets ...

'cause i know the heartfelt shelves are bare ...

but you know me, the knitting needles won't be idle for long ...

so in the meantime, put the kettle on and let's spend some time together ...

christmas is still 19 days away ...

there's been a blip in the blogging ...

2009-11-24T10:39:00.000-08:00

i seem to have so much on my mind these days and yet so little time to actually take a moment to write things down ...

so, today, i am sitting here in front of my laptop pondering the day ... wondering how i shall possibly get all the "to do" items done and moved to the "to done" list ...

but knowing i will ...

kids have half days this week ... so i am ever thankful that my groom has recently temporarily retired so he can help out ... doesn't matter what i have on my plate work wise, the family has needs as well ... thank heavens they do their own laundry or we might be getting "calls" from concerned community members ...

my secret weapon, the costco quiche, cannot be overrated as a fabulous back-up dinner ... even the somewhat particular teenager in the house is happy when quiche is on the menu ... and the vegetarian in the family is happy with all that non-meat protein ...

we leave tomorrow for a family thanksgiving trip ... we are staying at one of our favorite spots, the alta crystal resort near crystal mountain, outside of enumclaw ... it's not a fancy place by any means but it is a wonderful family spot ... with lots of family activities ... skiing nearby ... hiking on location ... and a heated outdoor pool ... what is more fun than rolling in the snow and then doing a cannon ball into the steaming pool ... okay sitting in the hot tub and watching this is way more fun in my book ...

i took my wee doggie out for a walk on this grey drizzly morning and must say was considerably cheered to see someone had "tagged" the path behind my house with a very pretty and colorful bird nest ... does anyone recognize this lovely treasure? ...

the garden is soggy and wet this time of year and pleading for a wee bit of raking and barking but there are still some bright spots to be found ...

i love my stained glass window art in the garden ...

and the fish always lend a bit of color as they come up to feed ...

but what has really been keeping ms heart busy these days is preparing for the upcoming, first (annual--hopfully) happy valley arts & crafts fair ...

i've been working on scarves ...

the bits and pieces cut and ready for sewing ...

i've been thinking of making a heartfelt banner for years and finally took the time to put one together ...

and the gauntlets are getting ready to keep hands warm ...

sharing space with the cushions ...

we've been distributing postcards and posters to as many people as we can ...

it's been a really busy but fun ride this autumn ...

between organizing the craft fair, working on my own pieces, trying to stay on top of homework for night school ...

but i would not be telling the truth if i didn't say i am going to be happy to tuck the sewing machine away for a night or two and focus on my family and some good books and bad magazines for a few days ...

so ms heart is wishing you all a very happy thanksgiving ...

and i'll try to be more diligent about keeping up with the blog ...

but probably not until after december 5 ...

falling for fall ...

2009-11-12T11:35:00.000-08:00

people keep telling me it's fall here in the northwest ... and the calendar would certainly attest to that ...

the days are shorter and the nights longer ...

halloween has come and gone ... and left behind just added inches ...

the papers are abuzz with retail news given the upcoming, oh i can't say it but you know what season is quickly approaching ... but please don't make me say that "c" word out loud ...

this morning there was even a touch of frost on the ground ...

but the display of color in my garden just makes me so happy ...

the dahlias are still blooming ...

and even the geraniums are not giving up ...

and wherever you live, whether you have snow rain or year-round sunshine ...

enjoy your day ...

now back to the studio ... felted sweaters are awaiting ...

a few bloggy moments ...

2009-11-10T16:38:00.000-08:00

it's almost time to head off to night school ...

i finally finished my homework after deciding the first piece i did wasn't going to quite make the grade, even though we aren't getting graded ... thankfully ...

here's the before shot:

and the after shot ...

and today's fabulous fiber project is:

a woven cloth from a torn up anthropologie catalogue ...

so not sure i'd sport either of those cloths at my next party but we are definitely "picking up the rock to see what crawls out" ... and that was our professor's goal with the class ...

i think she might have created a monster here at the heartfelt studio ...