Weekend Sewing

My mother, more commonly known as Nana around here, arrived this weekend to spend a little "girl time" with Carys and I. Frank and Jasper went camping up in the mountains, so we spread out here at home...leaving Nana's sewing machine set up on our kitchen table for the whole weekend we went to work, with fabrics strewn about and patterns being cut on the floor.

Nana loves to sew, and is always throwing around ideas of things that she can make for the kids. I help her with designing patterns and with fabric and color choices, we make a good team. The big project that we finished over the weekend was this gorgeous Kimono for Carys. The fabric is from an apron that I got years ago at Ikea, because I loved the fabric, I think that we put it to the perfect re-purposing.

Once Carys put on the finished Kimono it inspired lots of dancing, one dance involved waving a tissue, I imagine that could be because she saw me blowing my nose all weekend as I have been under the weather.

To make Carys's Kimono we modified a pattern for a baby kimono that we found in Heather Ross's Weekend Sewing: More Than 40 Projects and Ideas for Inspired Stitching. This book is full of fun projects that can be done in a weekend or less, my mom and I already have a few more projects from the book in the works...including an amazing Obi belt for me.

Also on my sewing agenda, I am making another flip doll, this time as a Christmas gift for my baby niece. You will, of course, be the first to see how it turns out!

Island Beneath the Sea: a giveaway

Island Beneath the Sea: A Novel

Having been a huge longtime fan of author Isabel Allende, this book had been at the top of my reading list since it came out. I was finally able to read it on our recent road trip and within the first few pages I was completely drawn in. I literally read it cover to cover in 3 days (Thanks to all those hours in the car with the kids listening to books on tape!). It was one of those books where I just had to keep reading, even into the night, to see what would happen and when it ended I still wished that there were another 50 pages to really find out what the characters did after wards!


Tomorrow is my birthday, and in the spirit of celebration I am giving away my copy of Island Beneath the Sea. All you need to do to enter is answer one simple question: Which of my prints is your favorite? I'd love to know. Go to my shop to chose and leave the answer in your comment.
I'll close the comments and choose a winner at random on Friday morning.
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*Congratulations to Valentina, she was selected by the random number generator as the book winner*
Thanks so much to everyone that entered!!

Soul Dancer

Soul Dancer

I just finished this painting, and I am loving the COLORS that are coming out in the work right now. Spring time how I love you! It is as if a riotous rumba has happened on my painting palette and in my paintings in progress. I have been looking at Indian textiles and patterns, and thinking of exotic far away steamy lands while also rereading Eat Pray Love before bed each night, which is really just fueling my fire. This is one of my favorite books, I love following along on the author's journey of self discovery. The realizations that she has about herself along the way, as well as how she is able to articulate them in her writing, astound me. In the "pray" section of the book, while she is at an ashram in India, she talks about her Meditation practice in such a straightforward and simple way, which I am fascinated by as she is really talking about the depths of her soul. The way she describes the state of deep meditation that she attains makes me think of a soul dancing. A Soul Dancer. Prints of this new painting are available here in my shop.
I am so excited for the Eat Pray Love movie to be released later on this year, the movie looks so great in this trailer!


Thank you to Mimi Bird for mentioning my print Haven as one of her Friday Favorites today on her sweet blog.
Happy Weekending to you! I'll be posting another installment of our "before and after" home series soon!