She's Ours

So, we did it!

I had cold feet on the way to the bank, I'm not sure why!

Since the sellers did their thing on Friday,

our part of the closing took all of 15 minutes, or maybe 10.

We got lots of new keys.

We went to the house and the Buick was gone!

Which is a Good Thing, since we had no title or clue.

And then we opened door after door and looked

and looked ...

and looked around.

We were so awed that I couldn't bring myself to snap pics, you know?

but gawsh She needs a lot of work!

I put my special violet vase in the window.

Lit sage.

And then started ripping up lineoleum to see what they were hiding!

Yeah, some damage to the wood floors, but nothing so terrible.

And old, dark, kinda interesting tile in the kitchen.

I had planned on marmoleum, 

(look at all those awesome colours!) but then

I might just keep what's there.

I tend to do that.

(Pic from a previous, preliminary inspection!)

Back tomorrow to meet a heating & air dude,

and go to the waterworks and get that turned on.

And then Friday meeting a roofer!

And not-so-suddenly, I want to stitch again.

home again

i'm finally home and decompressing following something really exciting: i filmed a spindling class for craftsy.com!!! it was incredible going to their studios in denver, working with professional producers and video folks, and meeting the genuinely nice people who work there. i can't believe how well they took care of me, from fixing my hair to making me drink water.  the class should be launched in just a couple of weeks!!  i'll keep you posted.

one of the best parts was meeting knitwear designer carol feller who came all the way from ireland to film knitting classes for craftsy! i so enjoyed hanging out in the evenings with carol over local beers, milk and cookies (free at our hotel!) and comparing notes on our days of filming... we even stole a visit to the adorable LYS, fancy tiger craft, and i treated myself to some yarn to make her killybegs cardi. i cast on the last night i was there and knitted all the way home.

and speaking of home... some quickie instagrams ...

my piece "i left my home in georgia" is in the upcoming show curated by the infamous ellen "left eye" schinderman!!!  it's somewhat of a map of my old homeplace which looms large in my memory, the place we left more than three years ago. home is where the needle marks and it is opening june 9th in LA.  yes it is.

in the spirit of jude's boro 2 class, i give you this much-loved apron..

she needs some care and i'll give it. she tears a bit more with each wearing. i'm embracing what i use (although i would prefer to always be dressed as ms. havisham) (although perhaps using and mending could eventually produce the same result!) i've been longing to work more with clothing and recently made an alabama chanin dress that turned out wonderfully well (her patterns are brilliant)... martha beck, in her book "Finding Your Way in a Wild New World" (first spied in India's book stack), refers to those of us searching for new/old ways as "menders" or "wayfinders." i'm trying to hold this idea gently as i find it so powerful and comforting... and clothing myself in it is just the way.

Cindy:s Core

I feel so lucky to have Cindy:s Core sitting here next to me as I stitch. This piece of Cindy:s is going to be featured at the upcoming show at the Hotel Hadley Studios, see the flyer below.

I couldn:t resist photographing Core to show it off here, and for when I have to send it back.. all this heart-full and intricate art work done by our Cindy of Handstories...

flowing

the view from my new home studio window... i'm loving having all my things right there to be gotten into in the wee hours, and my sofa and kitty. i guess i needed to have a studio outside in order to meet people and feel sort of part of something in this area (since we moved here with no real connection, no work, school or church outside the home). and it also made me very aware of my own working style and patterns. and i finally know that having it right here under the same roof works so much better for me. and just as i get everything settled and start to get in a groove, i leave town..

i've just arrived at my parents' place, and am helping them liquidate an estate. it's the estate of a friend of theirs that has passed, a delightful woman, and her daughter. my mum is an antique dealer and appraiser so this is what she does. but i've rarely seen a place like this.... SO MUCH STUFF that one can't even move around. i might be able to take some instagrams if it doesn't feel disrespectful.. so there's very much work but satisfying. and how is it that my 70+ year old parents have so much more energy than i do? sigh.

good thing that late-night stitching always follows me, no matter where i am. a few small bits of my "home" piece which is materializing.

i left my home in georgia

i think the new home studio is going to be productive.
i did more work yesterday than i have in ages.

this is a hard piece for me, my old homeplace.
i could hardly bear to leave it.
i still can't think about it without hurting.
so i'm stitching it.
and the cloth takes it, and holds it and keeps it.

this is just the beginning, and with bits of cloth from cindy and nancy.

ps...i'm going to new hampshire in august to study with india!

embroiderbear for sasha

i'm really happy with how this guy turned out. i hope the recipient loves him too. i wanted him to look a bit like a balancing circus bear or carnival bear... but still somewhat realistic and wild. he's on a vintage embroidered runner, and his body is an applique of part of an old quilt that someone else cut up (i can never classify an old quilt as a 'cutter'! i have a hard enough time even cutting the scraps.) so he's an applique' of patchwork. i guess i'm leading up to making a patchwork beast, where the patches and seams define the boundaries of the animal... i love that idea, but one step at a time.