Lovely World

gift giving

My daughter is attending her classmate's 9th birthday party this afternoon. I am amazed at the changes that occur for children at this age. They suddenly become so much more independent, and they THINK (scheme, wonder) about things in new and interesting ways. They also take to new hand skills - such as sewing. Following our family's resolution to give handmade gifts this year, Miriam planned out her present and asked me to help on the parts she couldn't do herself. She cut out, machine stitched, and stuffed the above heart pillow and bear all by herself. (For scale, the bear stands about 6 inches). I helped with the face embroidery. I also made the tote bag. The exterior is brown wide-wale corduroy and the lining is a cotton daisy print. Miriam insisted I use the horse fabric for the exterior pocket. I have very little of this drapery-weight vintage fabric, but I was happy to give some up for this gift, as I am quite fond of the birthday girl.

Have a nice weekend everyone.

XX Maribeth

boston

We spent the Memorial Day weekend in Boston. I was quite happy to get out of town and do something different, but I always forget how tiring it can be to travel with children. We all had a great time, but bedtimes were late and meals were not always on time, and that made for cranky kids by the drive home on Monday afternoon.

Above is a drawing I did last night to record the trip. For those of you who have never been to Boston, the Duck Boats are a way to tour around the city. The vehicles are modified military wheeled vehicles that also float on the water. Silly tour guides drive the "boats" on land and then out onto the Charles River for a unique view of the city. We had a great time, as always, at the Museum of Science. On Sunday we watched the Red Sox play the Mets at Fenway Park. A rain delay had us sitting for an extra hour early on in the game, but Boston won 12-5, so it wasn't so bad. "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian" opened this weekend, and we went to see it on Boylston Street. I wasn't sure that they could out-do the first movie, but this was classic comedy and slapstick at its best. A bonus was seeing the trailer for the sixth Harry Potter movie. It looks good, but I think I'll have to re-read the book before seeing it.

menagerie

I have been so busy lately. It is nothing new - every Spring I seem to have more places to go, people to meet, new responsibilities, a busier schedule in general. I feel like the nesting birds around my yard that I have been watching. They are up early and work intently all day. Unfortunately, this means I have not had much time for sewing, and I miss it. I have been brewing ideas for new things to make, and I can't wait to get to them.

The past couple of evenings I have found myself cutting animals out of newspaper. I think I am so desperate to cut into fabric that I will take whatever I can get my hands on. I actually like the textures and colors of the newsprint. I drew the shapes onto one side of the newspaper, cut them out, then and glued them down with the reverse side up. I didn't know what sort of print would show when I flipped them over. I like that the turtles ended up wearing the crossword puzzle.

As usual, I have found inspiration in an old book. I love the title of this one, "Feet and Wings: Among the Beasts and Birds with Uncle Herbert." It was published in 1880. The prints are so lovely. I'll share a couple with you here.

Have a nice holiday weekend everyone.

love this bag

I have been carrying this bag for the past week. It was the first thing I made after the Little Red School House craft show. I made it for myself, and didn't feel any of the rush I had been feeling getting things ready for the sale. It is a nice size, big enough for all my essentials, plus a book and water bottle. But, small enough that I don't feel I am toting around yet another version of the "diaper bag" that seemed to be omnipresent in my life for so long (those of you with kids know exactly what I mean).

The print fabric is from Denyse Schmidt's "Katie Jump Rope" series. I ordered it recently from Sew Mama Sew, an absolutely fabulous place to buy fabric online. I had a small problem with the checkout process, and was relieved to find an incredibly helpful Kristin right there to help me the moment I sent off my email SOS. It is truly to their credit that Sew Mama Sew has created an online fabric shop with the customer service of a shop on Main Street.

And the button on the bag? That is one of the vintage buttons from my mother's stash that I wrote about previously, the stash that has somehow moved in to my house and made itself quite comfortable.

Have a nice day everyone.

french

Bonjour! This weekend the kids and I went to the yard sales about town. Luckily, both of my children like to dig around in the junk looking for treasure, so we had a pleasant time. At a sale at a local church, I came across some old french children's books. The names neatly written in the front of the books told me that they had belonged to a french family in town I have known my whole life. The couple is getting quite elderly and they must have been cleaning house. The books date from the 1950s. My favorite is "La Journee des Tout Petits," a sweet early alphabet, reading, writing, and counting journal.

These two books, "Davy Crockett L'invincible" and "Babar en Balloon" are in fairly good condition for children's books published in the 1950s. I got a chuckle out of reading "Davy Crockett" in french, as he is such an American icon. Our children study french in school, so these books have a certain appeal to our family. I am thankful that they have been able to have this exposure early in childhood.

Au revoir et a bientot!

paintings

I was so happy to find these paintings hanging in our dining room when I woke up this past Mothers' Day morning. The painter, Russ Potak, had a booth opposite mine at the recent craft sale. I spent a lot of time gazing over at the paintings, and really liked his quiet, domestic meditations on coffee, bread, and wine. I briefly pointed them out to my husband, but had no idea he would secretly buy them and surprise me the next morning.

I bought this small painting on board myself. I love the whimsical cat and kite, and Russ told me the setting is the outer Cape. We spend two weeks every summer on the outer Cape, in Wellfleet, and I have an enormous soft spot for that place.

I discovered that Russ Potak has an Etsy store, if you are interested in checking out his very affordable, excellent work.

dandelion

The dandelions have been so lovely this Spring. It is difficult for me to believe that some folks view dandelions as a nuisance weed. Our green lawn is dotted by these bright yellow heads, as well as the purple of violets and white of wild strawberries. Children seem to know best. My daughter and her friends have been busy making crowns and necklaces by weaving the dandelions together. They see the flower as a golden beauty worthy of royalty.

I was inspired enough by the dandelion's presence to make this collage. I used paper cut from an old magazine. I also spent some time looking up the flower in the many flower guides I have collected over the years. I thought this illustration in the "MacMillan Wild Flower Book" by Hylander and Johnston was particularly pretty. The book was published in 1954, and I found it second hand at a book sale fundraiser.

One of the best parts of the book is that it contains someone's four-leaf clover collection. Each one is pressed and carefully wrapped in plastic. I can only imagine whose keen eye found these lucky clovers.

craft sale

I spent Saturday at the Little Red School House Craft Sale. You can see my table in the above photo. I was selling my dolls, bags, purses, zipper pouches, and baby quilts. I was pleased with how my table looked, including a vase of lilacs and bleeding heart that my daughter picked for me that morning. I enjoyed talking with folks about my work, and meeting some of the other crafters. Some of the experienced craft-show-crafters told me that they didn't feel that this show was well-attended. I was pleased to sell what I did, and have already had two folks email me to purchase some dolls. Making connections and getting your work out into the community can be a challenge, and I felt that this show helped me do that.

Here is a view of the embroidered "Lovely World Handmade" sign I made for the table. Next to it is a basket of my new business cards.

I'm looking ahead to other sale possibilities. The Berkshires is a busy place in the summer, with many tourists visiting the area for the art, theater, music, and dance festivals that occur here. There will certainly be opportunities to take advantage of.

fern

The fiddleheads are emerging from their winter slumber. Our local food co-op has them for sale, and there are plenty for the picking in the woods about the house. You can boil or steam them, then toss with olive oil or butter and salt and pepper to make a quick green for the eating. They are not a regular part of our diet, but my husband likes to tell about eating fiddleheads and other edible wild greens while low on food during his thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail. It's hard to believe that those greens gave him many calories to carry on with his hike, but there is a certain romance in imagining him foraging for his food.

I found this bright green, delicate fern growing along the shady side of the house. It inspired a small embroidery on some blue linen. This rectangle may become part of a handbag. I'm not sure yet.

farm fair

We spent the better part of Saturday at the "Sheep to Shawl" fair sponsored by our local Williamstown Rural Lands Foundation. The foundation's headquarters are housed on an old dairy farm, and the kids love to run and play all about the land. This fair offered much more than sheep and the production of wool yarns. Local farmers, crafters, woodworkers, and the like offered diverse demonstrations and hand-on activities. These lovely llamas were a favorite of mine.

We were all fascinated by the dog herding demonstration. These working collies manage sheep out in the field by following a series of whistles from the farmer. I found the dogs smart and beautiful, but learned that they make terrible pets. They are a breed that needs to work, and they can be very nervous and obsessive as a family pet.

My kids had a great time simply playing around the pond. Frogs, salamanders, water, and mud make a cocktail that is irresistible to most children. Here is Miriam showing off her big catch.

I would say the farm animal petting area was Adam's favorite. I loved watching how gentle he and his little friends were with the animals. I know in my heart that immersing our children in the world of living things allows them to develop whole hearts and minds. How is it that we have gotten removed from living close to the land and natural rhythms? Many of you may have read Richard Louv's "Last Child in the Woods." If you haven't, it is a thought provoking meditation on the ways in which the lack of nature in children's lives is linked to the rise in childhood obesity, attention deficit disorder, depression, and other malaise. It is definitely worth a read. You can also check out his website, Children and Nature Network.