Christmas Greetings: Hello!

I'm visiting my parents for Christmas, and have been avoiding my computer and social media for the past week. Lovely! But I thought I'd post something on my blog today to say Merry Christmas and Merry Everything all-over-the-place.

I've been working on a quilt since I've been down here. Like, marathon sewing all day with Law and Order on in the background. My fabulous Mum is helping, by ironing and advising.

I think I have 1/3 of the quilt pieced. Back to work.

This quilt started long ago, when I happened upon a ziplock bag of cut squares in an antique store in Murray, Kentucky. The material spans decades, and there are many many individual patterned pieces. I have since accumulated material from numerous sources...some I've been hanging onto for a long time, and some has recently been acquired to finish this project. I'm having a blast, and am determined to finish it while I'm here!

That yellow piece is one of my favorites.

It is all (seemingly) random squares, approximately 2 1/2", and I'm planning on tying it rather than quilting it. My mom and I made a little quilt when I was in 4th grade as a school project; that is the extent of my quilting experience prior to this monster.

Speaking of monsters, my big grey cat came along for Christmas! We had a not-exactly-fun drive down to Texas, via Jackson, Tennessee. Like 14 hours. Alfred was in rough shape.

Alfred and I have our morning coffee on the road in Tennessee.

Poor creature. But I never anticipated how happy he'd be at my parents, and what a good house-guest he'd be. He even likes my big brother! And everyone likes Alfred! And my Dad had a good time rigging up a way for my cat to access the best perch in the house: 

Spoiled rotten by my parents. I'm not sure he'll want to leave.

 I'm having a lovely time, and plan on continuing to keep my computer off in the coming days. After New Years I'll be going to California to visit more family and friends...Alfred will be staying here.

 Hope you all are well-rested and happy, and enjoying time, and people, and snow if ya got it. Love!

This is what I do. Often.

A friend was having trouble folding paper without getting weird little creases. Words failing, (as they often do) I offered this as a suggestion.

It is a mirror image. It is so weird watching your hands do what they so often are doing.

what?

Anywhere: this is what's happening.

I'm visiting a brand new little redheaded person this week. I'm very fond of my little goddaughter. She's very neat.

Also neat is this funny girl, who I am rather more comfortable with then the newborn...


cold and rain.

and quiet.

and thinking.

and reading.

and the internet:

I've had a flickr account for some time, and it has been entirely neglected for two years. In an ongoing effort to pull myself together, I plan on getting back into the habit of posting pictures there. Check it out.

The past few days I have been picking over these blog posts, via Etsy.

Speaking of Etsy, lately I have had time to browse and explore, which has resulted in a lot of good discoveries. i made a treasury, which I haven't done in I-don't-know-how-long.



These happened, and more in progress...

June Gloom in May

I've been to the Observatory twice in the past two days. I took this picture in February, but it suits this post, and the weather outside, and my mood. And yeah, I'm listening to the soundtrack of "a Charlie Brown Christmas" in May....so what!?

My work is on the walls at Intelligentsia, and will be up for a month or two. If you're in the neighborhood, take a peek. I'll post some pictures soon for your enjoyment.

The next few weeks I will be preparing for my show at Henry Road in Studio City. Henry Road is a great little store....an interesting and eclectic selection of things for the home, gifts, art, and they have a fantastically wonderful book about treehouses. There will be an opening reception the day before I leave town for Maine, Thursday June 12. I'll keep you updated as developments develop.

ALSO making plans for my installation that will be a part of the "Print Matter(s)" exhibition at Studio Channel Islands Art Center Galleries. Very excited about this. There will be no picture frames involved.

In my spare time, I'll be brushing up my bookbinding skills in the coming weeks.

That's all.

Ferriswheel Friday.

Today's Ferriswheel is one of mine: here's a detail of a piece listed for sale in my shop. That's a lavender ferriswheel printed on tea-bag material. Etching and lots of stitching...

I also wanted to tell the world about my dear friend Ann. We recently got to catch up at SGC, over some drinks and some collaborative drawings. She's in her first year of graduate school, and she's making some great work. Who thinks Ann should open an Etsy shop? I do! Here's a table full of her pretty sherbet-colored ghosts and waxy paper doilies:


A good, busy week. Lots of new drawings in my shop. Please take a look, and if you like the work, or like what I do, or like me....by all means, let me know. Does that sound needy? oops...


(This is the cover from my thesis installation guest book...)

Observations.

I never thought I would start a blog.

Here's what happened today: I went to the post office, grabbed some coffee and a donut, and then impulsively drove up to the Griffith Observatory. The last time I visited was about a year ago, when I was out west at Christmastime. That was just after the reopening of the Observatory, and it was packed. Today it was delightfully empty, and I spent several hours appreciating the views and the quiet.

I enjoyed a cup of Earl Grey from "The Café at the End of the Universe", while watching crows perch on treetops as the sun went down, and the traffic helicopters came up. It was truly enchanting.

So why am I starting this blog? A number of reasons, but the reason I have started it now is this: normally when I have particularly significant encounters with birds or sky, I share the news of such adventures with my best friend/special fellow, Sam.

But he's in Morocco.

Mostly this blog will address my creative pursuits and interesting finds, with the occasional random show-and-tell.