random ramblings

The past two weeks have gone by in a blur as I finished up a large order for Terrain. Even though I am excited about the work and love how everything turned out, it was an enormous undertaking for me, and it left me feeling a bit guilty for abandoning other aspects of my life.

In the meantime I realized that over 5000 kind individuals now favor my shop on etsy. No. 5000 was MonkiVintage, which is a great little vintage store with beautiful well priced items, stunningly photographed. 5000 is a big number. Thanks to all of you!

large metal L, from MonkiVintage

Lastly, I have a blogger question. Everyday I run across new wonderful blogs, and I have a long list of old time favorites, but I have yet to come up with a good way to keep up with everyone. I know I can seek out blogs I follow through my dashboard, but it still requires logging in and I just don't do it often enough. Do you have ideas for how to easily get updated when there are new posts on your favorite blogs?

I wish everyone a wonderful week ahead!

hard to resist

Even though I am in the midst of this big production crunch, I took some time off this weekend for a dye pot experiment. Since fresh leaves are so scarce now I wanted to try to create a resist print using leaflets from the evergreen nandina shrub (thank you India for the suggestion). For the dye color I mixed hibiscus tea and red onion skins, fully expecting a wine color, or pale maroon. Instead I got the most beautiful dark brown color, especially on the wool fabric (below). I love surprises.

I had mixed results with the resist prints. It worked well on the fabric near the surface, but I realized that I don't know how to get the dye color to penetrate the bundles to create the contrast deeper inside... But that is what I love about this process — there is always something new to learn, and frequently the  results are still quite magical. In this case I was amazed by the deep color, and the soft suggestions of the leaves. And those string marks are pretty cool. Happy valentines day everyone. Spread the love...

back in business

After some pondering and serious planning I have decided to return to the wholesale market this spring. I am excited about the prospect of offering the inleaf line to a larger audience and to connect with store and gallery owners across the country. I am starting small with just a few pieces, created in a sustainable and eco friendly manner using the best natural materials and quality craftsmanship. The collection will grow as the weather turns warmer allowing for more leaf printing and dyeing.

I am looking for retail partners who appreciate the unique and handmade quality of my work. If you are a store or gallery owner I welcome you to browse my online line sheet or contact me directly with any requests. I want to extend a thank you to o' suzannah and terrain, two wonderful stores who already are representing my work!

time flies

blooms everywhere, loved this garden and work brought along  

for idle times.

We are back from our adventure. It was a wonderful time filled with sunshine, friendship, delicious food, and beautiful vistas and experiences. San Francisco is a magical place and the weather was perfect. I can't thank you enough for your ideas and suggestions. I managed to fit in a few, but need to go back for more lengthy excursions. Here are but a handfuls of glimpses from our trip.

even the expected was spectacular. loved dining overlooking the pacific on our last night.

wandering the neighborhoods is one of my favorite things to do

 in any city.

we did see some amazing art. pier 24 photo exhibit and the de young museum were two  favorites.

can't travel without making a few acquisitions. linen cord, silk ribbon, and vintage kimono remnants from britex. the pleated linen zip pouch was a gift from my dear friend Carol of yorktown road whom i met up with for coffee. thank you.