flew the coop

 It happens from time to time.  I'm not sure if it's because of the change in energy in the house, the added responsibility of having 6 bodies in the house all day instead of just two, or what but my focus, my art "mojo" has flown the coop.

When it happens it causes me great stress.  Not only is creating what keeps me whole and reasonably sane, but I have deadlines to meet, commitments to keep, and my income (as modest as it may be) contributes directly to keeping our household fed.  There is no good time for me to be unable to create, but yet here we are.

 

I've been down this road enough times to know that the best thing for me to do is set down the fiber and do something else non-art related, even if that seems counter-intuitive.

So for the next few days (or however long it takes) I'll be re-potting some geraniums, weeding the garden, tending to the sick guinea in the barn, maybe go out looking for some mushrooms, but I won't be working until this brain of mine decides to cooperate.  With lots of luck it will return with a flourish and I'll be right back in the middle of all these stones.  Or something new.  Who knows.

Have a great weekend, everyone.  See you soon.

campfire cooking with the kids

 

My kids are now on summer vacation which lends a different energy to the house.  Or rather, LOTS of energy to the house.  Since spending lots of time outside is what makes them happiest (and the tiredest at the end of the day) I thought we'd take our meal-making outdoors too.

 

We gathered up our ingredients for a hobo stew,

 

put them in foil,

 

seasoned well,

 

and headed out to the fire with our foil packets and bannock bread wrapped on sticks.  Declaring oneself "King Bread Stick", optional. (dressing yourself in multiple patterns also optional)

 

I nestled the foil packets down into the hot coals with a set of tongs while the kids baked their biscuits until they were golden brown and cooked through.

 

About 10 minutes later they ate their hearty stew and biscuit in the grass.

 

 They loved being able to make their own lunch and made dinner too (panfish, asparagus, and sweet potatoes, yum!).  I knew we were on to something good when one of them exclaimed "I can't wait to do this with broccoli!"

I imagine we'll be cooking on the fire at every given opportunity.  We'll be the family that constantly smells of woodsmoke but that's okay, I think we're gaining much more than an aroma from this.

Happy Wednesday, all.  I hope today is memorable.

shop update today

 

Just a reminder that the little mushrooms in spice jars and 4 stones (I finished this one yesterday) will be on sale today in my shop at 11am Central Time.

If you'd share the word, I'd be so grateful.

Though there might be thunderstorms tonight, right now the sun is out, the ducks are paddling, the chickens are pecking, and I'm clutching a hot cup of tea.  I see the leaves on my crabapple are really starting to pop.  The lilacs should be blooming soon.  It's a fine start to the day.

Hope yours is off to a good start too.

a whole bunch of mushrooms coming to the shop

 

I've finished with my little mushrooms in spice jars for now.  8 will be for sale in my shop tomorrow morning.  Each of these little guys have been made of wool that I needle-felted and were tucked into a small vintage spice jar and given a special handmade wood stopper.  Each is unique, with different finishing touches.

 

There will 3 stones in my shop tomorrow as well.  I had hoped to have more work done but it seems that the gardening chores have kept me busier than I anticipated.

If you're interested, I'll be putting up the listings for these pieces today and they'll go live at 11am Central Time tomorrow, Wed. May 29th.

my shop

Have a great day, everyone!

tippity toppity toe

 

I love these kinds of mornings.  We were all up and outdoors early, each of us working on our own projects.  Except, of course, the teenager who is likely to rise at the crack of noon.  With the threat of more rain on the way, I think we all wanted to take advantage of today's sun.

 

I've been wanting to put a little tic tac toe game (or tippity toppity toe, as my daughter calls it) on this stump for a while now, so that was my project.  (As you might be able to tell, my yard has had plenty of rain lately)

 

A few quick swipes of paint and the kids were off and playing.

 

The boys even gave their sister a turn but as you can see, she cheats.

The stump sits right outside of my gazebo where pea plants are slowly reaching up towards the metal and twine.  I'm hoping they grow to cover it soon and give us built-in snacks.  (I shall call it my pea palace)  I think it's going to be a lovely little place to sit and watch the kids play.

I hope you are all enjoying this weekend too.

a couple more

For those who were checking in here, I've just put a few more small stones in my shop.

here

little stones, a little fun

 

The rain we've had the past few days has given me a break from working in the garden.  While the skies drip I've been stitching and felting in my little workroom.  I've finished some work that will be in the next shop update (coming soon) and have started on my next edition for the Art-o-mat.  Rumor has it that they're completely out of my work.

 I got an email the other day from Colleen letting me know that while she was visiting the Smithsonian, she checked the Art-o-mat there.  The machine was being re-stocked at the time and although they did have my stones, they were out.  She was sweet enough to snap this pic for me though and send it to me.

 

I was thinking, since many of us don't live near an Art-o-mat, I would offer up a very limited edition of small pebbles in my shop today.  I'll put up a total of 10, five this morning, and five later this evening.  They'll be a surprise, just as if you were kerplunking them out of the Art-o-mat, and will be in these little muslin bags.  These are smaller versions of my stones, all around an inch or so long.

Anyway, I hope you find it fun.  And can I ask if you would only purchase one, so more people get a chance at them?  Thank you all.  Have a wonderful day.

wordless Wednesday

freakish

The weather is supposed to be freakishly warm today, hitting almost 90.  Now, 90 is an odd thing where I am, but odder still when you look outside and there are still snowbanks by the garage and ice tsunamis blowing off the lake.

Speaking of freakish things...

 I had been soaking a cotton t-shirt in some soy milk to prep it for dyeing and somehow forgot about it.  Until it started to smell funky, then I said "oh yeah!"  At which I put it outside.  And forgot about it.  It sat in a crumpled up lump, only partially rinsed of its soy.  When I remembered it (again) and picked it up I noticed that it had splotches of a gorgeous royal blue.

I found a thick patch of it and the blue appeared to be a mold or fungus or slime of some kind, but I'm not sure.  It left imprints on the fabric where it had been folded up and the layers touched.  How cool is that? 

 I have no idea if this fungus mold thing will degrade the quality of the fibers, or even if I can get the stench out.  I do know I plan to fold it back up and see it if will keep producing color.  

Just maybe a little further from the house...

 Hope your day is interesting too.

gliding

 

 Last night as I was making dinner, my husband was outside taking down a dead oak next to our driveway.  It had been dead for a few years and was starting to drop limbs, so it was time for it to go.  When he dropped it with the chainsaw it shattered in to pieces, it was that dead.  When it hit, shredded bark material was littered on the ground.  He wasn't immediately sure of what it was but then a little flying squirrel crawled out of the remains of the tree and began to look around.

A nest.  A flying squirrel's nest.

My youngest boy came running in the house shouting "Mom!  A sugar glider!  With BABIES!"

 

 I grabbed my camera and approached my brood, who was standing stock still about 15 feet away from the downed tree.  We watched as the momma flying squirrel picked up one of her tiny fuzzy babies in her mouth and walked over to the nearest pine, seemingly unsure of what she was doing.

 

 

Suddenly she was off, running up the tree, this giant tree well over 60' tall, with that baby in her mouth.  I wondered aloud if she had another nest in that tree but she kept running, fast as can be, to the very top of the tree and without hesitating...leapt.

 

 

We watched as she glided through the air some 100 feet across the driveway to the trees on the other side of the barn, with the baby in her mouth.  It was awesome.  And by that I don't mean in the flip way of speaking like when we talk about shoes or sandwiches, I mean I was quite literally awestruck.  And a little teary-eyed.

There was still one little baby on the ground so I pushed some of the bedding material over him to help keep him warm and pushed part of the hollow log over him to block the wind in the hope that his momma would come for him too.  And when I checked on him this morning it looked like she had.

A wonderful day to all of you.  Glide on.

more spice jars and spring has arrived!

 

The collection of specimens in spice jars is growing.

  

6 now, all lined up.

 

I thought I might have a shop update at the end of this week but I think I'm going to push it back a little.  I want to have a decent amount of work finished so there's enough to "go around" so to speak.  I know some of you have tried but haven't been able to get a piece yet because they sell out pretty quickly, so hopefully if there's more work in there, your chances will be better.  As an artist, selling out quickly is a wonderful problem to have, but I can't help but feel bad when I get emails from people who wanted a piece and couldn't get one.

In other news, spring has finally arrived!  Our snow banks are almost gone and I'm spending as much time outside as I can, even if it means needling while watching the chickens, guineas, and ducks (and one dog) scratch the earth.

 

  

Have a wonderful day, all.

 

the Art-o-mat stones have landed

 

Rumor has it, my Art-o-mat stones have made their way to the Visual Arts Center in Richmond, Virginia.  If any of you are in the area and happen to see it, I'd love to hear.  And if you're so bold as to snap a pic and share it with me, it would probably make my whole day.

Speaking of stones, I've finished a few and they, along with the tiny terrariums and a few other pieces, will be in my shop sometime next week.  I'll be sure to post beforehand, with the exact day and time.  It looks like it will be a chilly weekend here (but without all the snow that my neighbors to the south got, thank goodness) so there should be plenty of time for stitching.  Who knows what else might work its way out through my hands.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!