Happy Holidays!

I hope all of you have a happy holiday and a happy new year!

Homemade Gifts

Happy Winter Solstice!

April Vollmer, Winter Solstice 

With Christmas 4 days away and maybe some of you staring at a skein of yarn you intended to knit or an empty canvas you intended to paint, here are a few last minute handmade gift ideas you can whip up pretty quickly:

1) DIY Wedding Ornaments

Two of my good friends whom I have known for a very long time have a great blog, wearetheolivers.com and I thought that this was a great gift idea!

photo:wearetheolivers.com

2) Snow Globes

Every year I intend to make a snow globe..this year I have all of the components - jars, glycerin, cute vintage japanese deer ...all on my kitchen table..staring at me, just waiting to be be transformed into a stocking stuffer...

photo: marthastewart.com

3) DIY Coffee Syrup

I think making something like this is such a great present...it is so easy to cook up a big batch of syrup for coffee or alcoholic drinks (even ice cream! mmm) and bottle the syrup up in cute jars or bottles.

photo: abeautifulmess.com

A few recipes for syrups around the web:

Ginger Simple Syrup (I made this for the studio warming party, we added a dash of it to prosecco)

Lavender 

Vanilla, Raspberry, Coconut, Caramel

The possibilities are endless....Postprohibition is a good reference.

(I also thought these little lace flower pots on their list were so cute! Would also be so perfect for a wedding or just everyday... )

photo:abeautifulmess.com

4) Printable Treat Bags

These are cute and simple and of course you can design your own or just click on the free download

photo: ohhappyday.com

5) Homemade Peppermint Play Dough

For the little (or the big!) ones in your life - whip up a batch of homemade peppermint play dough! 

photo:theidearoom.net

Happy Crafting!

Barbara Keal: Remnants of a Dream

Yesterday I went to the Anthropologie in Rockefeller Center to see the Barbara Keal exhibit "Remnants of a Dream" in the gallery that is housed in the retail store. I must admit I always forget that this Anthropologie location has a gallery and after seeing the exhibit yesterday I decided to keep better tabs on what is being shown there. I had read about Barbara Keal just recently for the first time in Selvedge magazine-one of my all time favorites for inspiration. The write up mentioned she had an installation up until the end of the year in the gallery, so I made a point to go see it before I head off for the holidays. When I got to the store I was delighted by the installation in front of me that transformed the small gallery space into a fantastical and magical wooden workshop, transporting me a million miles out of the hustle and bustle of Rockefeller Center holiday shopping.

Honestly, I wanted to crawl into one of her pieces and live in this little cabin forever. The felted pieces, constructed of sustainably sourced sheep and alpaca fleece from local farms, were haunting, elegant and rustic all at the same time. Individually the pieces would have been completely breathtaking on their own had they been displayed in a more traditional gallery sense - but her work displayed in collaboration with her husband, Richard Keal, was pure magic. Richard Keal is a woodworker who is inspired by "spontaneous twists and bulbous knots of untouched wood" all collected in East Sussex, UK where the couple and their children reside.

 In addition to the felted pieces and woodwork, the show also included some of Barbara's vocal and ceramic work.

If you are in the New York area in the next week or so I would highly recommend going to check out for yourself.

For more information on Barbara and Richard Keal:

http://www.barbarakeal.com
http://www.kealwork.co.uk

Photo: www.barbarakeal.com

Studio 39

I mentioned in the last post that I had gotten a studio space in the late summer. Since then I have been busy painting the floor, building shelves and painting old furniture to set up the space for sewing, natural dyeing, weaving (winter goal!) and painting.  The building I am in, Screwball Spaces, has almost 100 resident artists and 80 studio spaces and a gallery. So far I have really enjoyed the community it has provided. Last week the building held a holiday sale and a group show in our gallery so I opened my studio and had a studio warming party.

 

 

The turnout was great and it was so nice to share what I had been up to all of these months. Along with working on the space, I have been experimenting with working on designing a pattern for a cloth doll. I have been really interested in heirloom toys and the idea of creating something special that can be passed down through generations. After months of tweaking and experimenting I finished my first prototype. She is made of natural linen, stuffed with Lancaster wool and hand embroidered with linen and silk thread. Her hair is made of wool and her clothes are a combination of new Japanese cotton, antique buttons, an old wool sweater and antique lace. Her arms and legs are button jointed using wooden buttons from this great website based out of Vermont, Compostable Goods .  They sell some natural yarns and notions as well as eco-friendly household products, toys and even bio-compostable golf tees! :-) I stained the buttons with black walnut and attached them using a strong upholstery thread. I have already started my next one and am looking forward to really diving into it after the holidays.

Do any of you have a special toy that has been passed down through your family?

Um...hello.

Yes, I am alive and well.... but writing to you with my tail between my legs since it has been (as you can clearly see).... 6 months since my last post.

Time seems to be moving so quickly lately! Over the summer I moved into a studio space in Red Hook, Brooklyn -more on that later. I travelled to Portland, Oregon to visit my mom and to Seattle for a good friends wedding. Then came September,  I was so absorbed and enjoying Fall that I didn't even notice the months flying by. It was a perfect well rounded Fall that involved The Rhinebeck Sheep and Wool Festival, alpaca farms and exploring the most lovely Hudson Valley. I was working on the studio and some freelance projects and eating anything and everything pumpkin. Then, all of a sudden, it was somehow Thanksgiving and now here we are - 2 weeks before Christmas and heading into winter (for those of you in the Northern Hemisphere). Since winter is (I think), the best time for hunkering down with a cup of tea and a handmade project,  I thought, you know what.... I am going to brush the dust off of this blog that is still so young and spend the winter with you all chatting about art, crafts and delicious libations and edibles.

I would love to see what all of you are making this December!

Happy Summer Solstice!

"In the midst of winter I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer."
~ Albert Camus

Merry Summer Solstice (to those of you in the Northern Hemisphere)! I hope everyone is having a magical day filled with creativity and midsummer celebrating. The summer solstice to me brings to mind bonfires, dancing, eating delicious food the summer has to offer and flower head wreaths. I think this pretty video by The Honey Trees is a lovely solstice-y kind of day song. The beautiful headpiece towards the end was made by wedding accessory extraordinaire Myra Kim of Twigs and Honey.

What are your plans on this summer eve?

On the Road...

Apologies for the dry spell my dear and faithful readers. I have been traveling through the south and midwest collecting treasures and visiting loved ones. Stay tuned for regular posts next week!

Unfortunately I am not traveling in this much style, but here are some dreamy photographs to inspire you and get you ready for summer travels....

Bog Berry Dryer Balls

Spring is here and along with garden planting, cute cotton dresses and being able to drink iced coffee comes spring cleaning. Bog Berry Dryer Balls can help you out with checking "live more green" off of your spring to-do list. These beautiful wool balls are handmade from freshly carded locally sourced wool from Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

(wool that has been needle felted, before wet felting)

The colored sets come in your choice of bright or earthy shades and are made with wool purchased from an eco-friendly company in Maine.

set of ocean wool dryer balls

Not only are dryer balls functional but they look beautiful in a jar or a bowl when they are not being used. When they are being used, these eco-friendly balls will cut your dryer time down and you will never need to buy dryer sheets again! Functional, beautiful and handmade. Doesn't get much better than that. The best part about dryer balls from Bog Berry that sets them apart from other dryer balls, is that they are not made from yarn like most balls out there in dryer ball land. BB Balls are lovingly needle felted with 100% wool and then wet felted. This process takes longer to make, but what you end up with is a beautiful quality handmade product that will last forever (unless your dog is like mine and steals and hides them - but they will turn up eventually). Luckily, you get a set of 6 per order.
A perfect gift for Mothers Day (AND Fathers Day!). While you are shopping you can also pick up a tin of herbal tea, a set of seed bombs, a hand-carved necklace and even an elf cloak for the wee ones in your life! Sounds like a one stop shop.

http://www.bogberrydryerballs.com/

star seed bombs

Hillary Fayle's Embroidered Leaves

I received the Spring 2012 issue of Fiber Art Now in the mail the other day. I was so excited to see the photo of Hillary Fayle's embroidered leaves gracing the cover and couldn't wait to find out more about these beautiful works of art. Fayle studied embroidery at the Manchester Metropolitan University in Manchester, England. Passionate for environmental conservation, she began working with leaves after being surrounded and inspired by the beauty of nature at a summer camp she was working at shortly after returning home from her studies in England.

" I generally try to use renewable, sustainable and environmentally friendly materials for my art, so this was an obvious choice. I feel that the delicate yet elaborate stitching reflects the intricate patterns and incredible detail found in the natural world."

The leaves are coated in a non-toxic preservative so they are protected and are able to be stitched on without tearing, as well as retaining their color. Her stitches are inspired by traditional methods of joinery that she adapts and makes variations of, as well as using the actual traditional stitches.

She also makes these incredible leaf cuttings utilizing a more illustrative approach:

Aren't these amazing?

I would love a collection of these delicate and beautiful leaves behind glass. I am excited to see more of Hillary's work and where else it takes her.

For more information and photographs visit http://hillaryfayle.wordpress.com/lovestitching/

*All photographs on this post are from http://hillaryfayle.wordpress.com/lovestitching/