so this is my very last show for the holidays! i'll be celebrating with shash and heather as they commence their schooling careers and i'll be drinking up some glogg, eating up some cookies & selling some sprout studio wares! please come by and say hi & pick up some cute holiday gifties!
xxx.
hey bay area folks; last two shows of the season; this one is at the independent from 11-4 on saturday -- come on by! drinks, music, good prezzies for the holidays :)
heya! busy-ness in the studio = treats up in the etsy shop! don't forget, free shipping through december 31st in my etsy shop too :) happy monday!!
check them out: sprout studio etsy shop :)
double trouble earrings -- new treats up in my etsy shop :) go scoop them up!
but first, can i tell you how aggravating it is to write an entire blog post with all sorts of links to have it disappear into never never internets land?! *huge sigh*
okay, here we go again..
so, sprout studio goodies will be at craftland in providence - if you are anywhere near, GO! it will be amazing, those gals are super duper & put on a terrific indie craft shopping experience with loads of awesome goodies!
also, i'll be shipping goods out for the nyc bust craftacular (yay, finally got in this year!) my bff kimmie will be working the booth, so definitely say hi to her!!
next up, i'll be doing the bazaar bizarre here in the city, check out the site for all the relevant info!
i'll be doing another mission indie mart in december, at the independent show hall - more info to come on that one.
and last, i think i'll be doing a little home shindig at somebody's house - much more relaxed and chill - i'll let you know more about that one too! if you can, come on out and see me and my sprout studio goodies :)
happy wednesday!
xxx.
do come by; sprout studio will have some goodies to sell! lots of other rad artists will too - i'll be at the opening too :)
come on out & see me in l.a. -- this is going to be an amazing show -- the press has been outstanding! please say hi to me if you visit :)
i've been super busy prepping for this show - lots of new necklaces and finishing touches on vintage bits & bobs and whatnot.
hope to see you there!
xxx.
i mean really - can you feel the excitement; the inspiration - the amazing moment?! i'm still all weepy this morning...i am so proud of our country and so ready for this. so, SO ready. and now, yes, we have a lot ahead of us, but for realz, do we have a good one in there now or what?! :)
the 900 tennessee community building celebrated last night - someone i know named the mister, he celebrated a wee bit too much - funny photos to come. but hey, how often do we get to celebrate a landmark historical hopeful amazing night?!
yes we can, yes we did.
xxx.
go check out some sweet new treats up on my etsy -- perhaps a lovely for a lovely person?
happy monday!
...on top of the little discount i offered earlier, there is now a SALE going on over at sprout studio -- i figure, some peeps might want get their holiday on a little early...
now, if one were a smart cookie, they might just combine that little discount code down there on top of the rad sale items they might toss into their cart & then they'd have themselves a truly great DEAL. IF one were a smart cookie...i'm just sayin' ;)
happy sprout shopping all!
xxx.
i have been feeling so hopeful lately -- more so than i have in such a long, long time. i almost distrust that little bird fluttering around in there that says, "it's okay, you can feel this feeling again -- it's alright to have this bubble up & want this excitement and feel these small little earthquakes or 'what ifs' and imagining the *good* from change that can come..."
2 weeks feels like a long time now to wait - but i really, really am so thrilled at the possibilities & i really, REALLY don't want to be incredulous and totally bummed out like in 2004. so here's to HOPE, CHANGE, freedom & of course, we gotta throw love in there right? :)
have fantastic weekends dears!
yay! a wagon full of pumpkins are a happy site...however, earlier in the day, we had a rather baffling scuffle/exchange at a deadbeat corn maze we tried to go to. it involved popping a squat in a field, & fava beans, & then ended with some jocko dude pulling out a knife (i know WTF???!) & the farmer telling us we needed to leave & jocko dude yelling at us and our friends to "take showers you free loaders" ?? i'm still equally baffled and confused at this whole exchange...i think it seriously involved some strange crappy stereotype about vw bus owners; like we are stinky hippies or something?/! mind you, i was quite presentable as you can see in the photos...but obviously not so to this man. it was kinda crazy.
but we prevailed, went to our soothing and favorite farm and picked up some fab pumpkins to erase the insanity of that weird experience :)
hope your weekends were fantastic, and did not involve potential knife fights in a pumpkin patch!!!!
xxx.
my friend sarah & i split a huge stalk of brussels sprouts too and i picked up a bunch of leeks which went into the delish potato leek soup i made yesterday. and since i can't ever leave a recipe alone, i added a sweet potato in there plus a little butter and some celery - it was soooo good & i'm having it for lunch today!
i like this guy a lot. he's a good one, and a keeper and i'm glad we found each other :)
we are heading down the coast on saturday with a coupla friends to do some pumpkin patch pickin' and have dinner at a tavern in pescadero that's been around since 1892! i love autumn. it's always been my favorite season. on the east coast it's that final relief from those scorchin' summers and out here, i just breathe better. i love cozying up with books and soups and baking & nesting in. it does my heart good. i mean really, how can you beat homemade pumpkin bread with cup of ginger peach tea & a good book?! that's pretty divine.
i hope your weekend is filled with something autumn-ey and that you have a rejuventating time whatever it is you fancy!
xxx.
i'm going to be at the mission indie mart this sunday with loads of other fun vendors! come by and see me and say hi :)
xxx.
this is what you see when you walk into my home and stand in the middle of the room...
we have lots of art making stuff, art, stuff and everything in between :)
we have grand plans for shuffling things around up top on the deck though. it's going to be a library shortly; which i'm insanely excited about. all our books (well, not all, we pared down a lot) from virginia that we've storing are finally going to get some light of day and perusal again. yay!! it's been since 2001 since i've seen some of them...they need some hand holding, some page flipping and some time out in the world :)
i'll post photos when we get closer to said grand plans.
happy wednesday!
xxx.
sometimes i can't believe i'm 34. the mental age doesn't go along with how i feel, how i perceive myself - i suppose this is a good thing.
i'm 3 months into my 34th year and i have a lot to accomplish -- there are definite things i have on "the list" -- i decided one thing i'm going to do is dance this year; and i've signed up at a dance commons and have gone to a coupla classes. i'm truly excited about this! it's so fun to move my body uninhibited and not feel like a total dork :)
another thing i decided is to pick up painting more - i dabble a bit, but i've had some ideas and i'm experimenting - i'll have some wip's i've been working on for several weeks to show you soon.
another -- to go to spain & meander back roads, and not only are the mister and i going to spain, we will be spending 2 whole months in europe this summer - hooray!! i'm so psyched about this. more on where we want to go later.
i like the idea of choosing 34 things to accomplish in my 34th year... baking bread has been on the list for a long time and i finally made 2 whole loaves of challah bread from scratch a few weeks back - yeah, it was pretty divine and yeah, i'll definitely be adding that one into my repertoire.
i also decided i'm going to go to a masseuse once a month as part of my stress reduction & to help manage my IBS. this is really not an accomplishment, as much as an acknowledgment that my health needs to be a priority and i'm taking positive charge of it.
regarding sprout studio, i also decided i'm pushing more for free press and i'm going after that goal. i need to actively market myself more and i've been working on getting my name out there. so far, pretty good - i have a long ways to go though.
there's a lot more on that list, but for now, these are where i'm starting. i think this 34th year will be a grand one...i'm starting out on the right track :)
happy monday!
...a bird in a houseboat of course! because we like to carry our homes with us when we travel (via vw busses) i thought this one appropo. i love it and am glad i scored it - her stuff sells out wicked fast.
...i'm on my own this weekend/week - the mister is on a skateboarding trip in colorado. i've got a stack of about 8 movies to watch and chill out with. that's my thing when he's out of town -- lots of mellow time watching movies and reading and moseying around the studio. that said, i have plans to host game night with shash tomorrow night here - so there will be a big ole cleaning party before that happens. i have farmers market plans, fort funston beach running time with dixie loo dog, and visiting lisa's studio on sunday with ms mati. should be a fun weekend, and i'm sure i'll squeeze that do nothing time in there too :)
have fabulous weekends my friends.
xxx.
a press pick me up - was very thrilled to be on these + some blogs last week. sprout studio has been a wee slow, so this press blast was a welcome change :)
happy first day of autumn to you - always my most favorite season.
xxx.
...well, my umbrella sk8 board deck! one of them is hanging out at lisa & rena's rare device store - i know she is very happy to be up there! i stole this photo from lisa's photo stream :) very thrilled to have my piece in their store!!
woke up, hallelujah, it's a smidgie cooler in the bay area, i can see the fog rolling in over twin peaks -- it's about time, i have been frying over here in dogpatch. i went for my once-a-week jog (new running shoes; yay!) with loo dog. it's just me & her. the mister has gone up north to make a CLF (campmobile liberation front) drop off of a vw bus to a new owner. a new family in the fold.
i decided upon return from the jog, to ring up my momma & bake something yummy. hello buttermilk blueberry scones with molasses from my martha cookbook - why have i never seen you nor baked you before? you are quite delicious. i think i'll have another since i already demolished the one in this photo. yum.
and now it's ny times reading time. loo dog is snoozing in the sun and i'm ready to peruse my paper before i gotta hit that mile long sprout studio to do list - uh oh, it's already 12:19?! well, it's sunday ;)
& lastly, i have myself a nice cold tall "florine morris" to drink. heard of the arnold palmer? well, i dubbed my own after my grandmother. we didn't drink lemonade & iced tea, we drank orange juice & iced tea with my grammie growing up in the summer in virginia. so now i make myself a "florine morris" when it gets sweltering. cool & refreshing. any ole tea will do, this happens to be ginger peach, with oj. mmmm....perfect.
have a good sunday loves!
xxx.
what i did accomplish--
*making the homemade sauce, making fieryeyed's challah bread (totally dee-lish and i'm definitely making it again), packaged up sprout studio orders & did an extremely mini clean in the studio, had picnic is *esprit* park, not dolores, got a little derailed...no mime troupe... yes on the book club meeting to talk about the book that was not my favorite...i did rest a little, but that cold is still hanging out.
errr....nope (moved to the next weekend agenda!):
*pot up new clover plant & succulent plant
*make fried green tomatoes from my poor tomato plants that just aren't liking the SF fog
*put away all my recently thrifted vintage wardrobe scores & do a major haul out of the stuffed closet
*go for a hike with dixie loo dog
hope your weekends were fab & your week equally so.
xxx.
ah yes...the older i get, the more i believe this... (the wiser i'm becoming)
on the agenda for the 3 day weekend:
*make homemade sauce with 9 lbs of tomatoes, basil, eggplant & squashes from the market
*make fieryeyed's challah bread
*package up sprout studio orders & do a mini clean
*pot up new clover plant & succulent plant
*make fried green tomatoes from my poor tomato plants that just aren't liking the SF fog
*have a picnic in dolores park & see the SF mime troupe
*put away all my recently thrifted vintage wardrobe scores & do a major haul out of the stuffed closet
*go for a hike with dixie loo dog
*book club meeting to talk about the sucky book (don't read "be near me" no fun -- an official phhtthgfffff.....
*rest up, because those little grubby peeps gave me a cold on my first week back - they are true germaholics those kiddos!
what's on your weekend agenda?
...& semi-relaxed & ready to go. we had a really fabulous time. i'll be posting more photos and a few stories over the next week or so. however, school started back this week and the students come back tomorrow - so i'm just oh, a wee bit crazy!
i'm so happy though to be back in san francisco, i just love my pretty city so very much.
kisses to everyone. i've missed posting here.
...when life says... i can be difficult, pesky, frustrating, fickle, sad, stressful, painful, crabby, cranky, & most of all heartbreaking...
...i say, i need to hibernate...which entails: lots of quiet time for me -- sitting on the bench the mister built with new plants peeking out & drink my ginger peach tea (favorite ever. ever ever.) puttering around the studio half heartedly cleaning up & possibly thinking about new ideas. baking cookies & cooking meals. spoiling dixie loo dog. crawling up into the bean bag chair and listening to endless youtubes of antony & cocorosie. reading, reading, reading. eating dark chocolate. buying flowers, tending my plants, and doing some healthy staring into the clouds...... & lots of thinking. & trying to regain that balance when life swings her mood down into the dark...
i'm a true cancer at heart. i'm not much of a spiller but to close friends - it's hard for me to trust and be super open until you've stuck around a little and my poor little cancer self can crack open a bit -- but tomorrow i go to see 2 of my favorite girlies -- to chat, to drink cocktails, and to sort out some life mess through being amongst each other. i'm super thankful for these ladies i've know almost since i moved here in 2001.
i leave for portland on tuesday for the pickathon with this lovely gal. we didn't think we'd have any time this summer to actually clear our heads and get out - through some rather upsetting circumstances, we actually are leaving -- which is the most needed thing in the world right now. we need the coast, sunsets, dixie on the beach & a cozy blanket wrapped around the 2 of us - a little snug cocoon...& when we come back mid august perhaps i'll be ready to peek back out and chase after that light again...
...i know i will be...i just need a little time. :)
xxx.
a total success is what the renegade fair out here in sf was. and such a good time between my two good friends, christine and mati & her man hugh. met lots of sweet people and listened to one amazing marching band - mucca pazza. go see them if you are in chicago anytime! thanks for coming out and saying hey to me :)
summer update/news: well, the out of town west coast tour hasn't quite happened, some major crazies have been happening in our world, but we are hoping for at least 2 weeks of down time...yet to be determined.
in the meantime, it will still be quiet here in the sprout blog world as our upside down world tries to right itself. it's been a bit of a crap ride here lately. good vibes are encouraged :)
xxx.
i hope everyone is planning on attending the renegade craft fair in SF! it's gonna be loads of fun with lots of "heavy hitters" in the craft world coming. i'm going to be in between my awesome friend christine, of the christinehaynes label, and my other lovely friend, mati (& her mister hugh) of the suspectshoppe! come say hi to all of us!!!
i haven't had loads of things to say, so i'm just going to stay kinda hush over here. hope all is well in your land.
xxx.
tomorrow tomorrow tomorrow!! (& sunday!) we are hoping & knowing those crazy thunderstorms are going to bypass williamsburg, brooklyn allllll together :)
it's very strange to have all my goodies out there without me, but go by and say hi to my bff kimmie!
...and here are my latest inspirationals. love me some flickr quilt. i'll be making a din din of pasta with pumpkin sage sauce & enjoying a wee glass of white wine this evening. spent all day with my 2 sprout interns - and tell me again why i haven't employed interns before?? (oh right, because they go to school during the school year too!) but how awesome is this...come by at 10am, stamp, sticker, cut, paste sprout studio madness for a few hours while chatting high school girlie talk and eating homemade pumpkin bread & tea (courtesy of sprout mistress herself). then, off for a very european 2+ hour lunch at outside italian restaurant piccino in the neighborhood with amazing blue bottle mocha's to send us on our way. back to sprout headquarters for more stamping, stuffing, boxing, stickering madness...send interns off with trade sprout jewelry of their choice. successful day yes? oh yes! :) i'll be having them over again soon i'm sure!
just saying a quickie hello...i want to be nappy napping like said dog-dog dixie loo below...i still think it kinda quizzical that it remains in the 60's in SF during the summer sometimes. i don't like heat & humidity like back in southeastern virginia, lord knows i wilt, but sometimes a little bit more warmy sun would be nice...
friday is the last day of school for me - hoorah! i'm busy busy busy with closing down everything for the summer, plus gearing up for renegade craft in brooklyn (i'm mailing everything to brooklyn - my bff is running my booth!) and for RCF SF too...and then some leisurely lolling time...
(but really, when will my brain ever stop whirring with ideas for *this great idea* and an idea for *this book to read* and an idea for *this art thing to pursue* and an idea for *this yummy thing to try to make* and an idea for...you get the idea...)
anyone see the new "sex & the city" movie yet? i have a girlie day next saturday planned with pedi's, dinner, vino, and *the* movie - sooo fun. i shamelessly love that series. and i've heard rave reviews on the movie! yay!
happy monday!
this is what i want to be doing. a lot of. but not quite yet. one more week of push...
...on my sprout studio site and my etsy site - scoop up some stuff quick like, because things will be going OFF sale after may! :)
& have yourself a fabulous memorial day weekend, i will be trying to take it easy whilst doing some sprout time.
xxx.
...these birdies are flying away to the renegade show here in SF in july...
also, there are some choice birdies on sale for may at my etsy shop!
been slogging through end of school world. i'll pop up eventually, hopefully :)
quick news in the meantime: ...the mister is outta town for a bit on a mission, the doggie is sick (nothing like waking up to sick dog at 2:30 am, poor loo dog), my foot is still hurting from a silly running strain, (contributing to my sluggish feeling since i'm not walking home right now, bleh), i did get some pr work done this weekend (although, dunno if i'll see fruition from any of it), having first ever book club meeting soon at my place (yay), bought tickets to the portland pickathon for august (i think this lovely gal is going to be in attendance with us!), and generally trying to get ready for summer :)
more later - i still haven't shared my kiddo's art show photos yet, i'm so behind - sigh, sigh, sigh!
...maybe i just need an early cocktail - a gin & tonic with extra lime will do just fine - ha!
more soon lovelies.
xxx.
i love lots.
whilst walking around the CCA exhibit i found this in a wee back corner. had to snap it. i'm making the final push toward the end of school - the kids are ready to be out, as am i. i am ready to have some days of respite, some days of traveling, some days of sprout studio focus, some days of art making focus, some leisurely days of reading & lolling. (i wonder the root of the word, lolling...)
anyhow sweet poppets,
hope your weeks are starting off right, with lots to love :)
xxx.
...i'm having a sale over at the sprout studio site; lots of treats marked down; some just for the month of may! also for all of may, my ceramic good luck birds on my etsy site are only $18! does someone need a good luck pick me up? a little lucky belly rub to the bird will bring that special certain someone some extra charm :) scoot on over and have a birdie fly away to a needed home!
xxx.
the inspiration never ceases to amaze me. it's so dreamy to have all these favorites in one place...it calms me to look at them and makes me very, very happy :)
we turned 12 on april 27th! 7 married, 12 all together :) yay!
...in 1997 (which is this photo) we took our first cross country road trip together in the original nellie vw bus - it was my first time west past chicago and i fell in LOVE. (well, with the mister & the traveling!) this is on the west coast up in oregon - i adore the west coast and especially the oregon coast - so rugged & breathtaking.
we never thought we'd end up out here in SF, but we moved here right after we got married in 2001. and we are still hanging on :) our ongoing dilemma is just how does one stay put in one of the most expensive, amazing cities in america on two artists salaries? (plus the art educator/free lance photo salary which really doesn't add up to a whole heck of a lot!!!) any tips on that? ;) do share!
i gave the mister a few little card and art treats for the a. day; i'll share them a bit later. on monday, we both had the day off, so we went down to the monterey bay aquarium - we had never been. i have a thing with zoos and aquariums and i'm sure you can imagine all my distraught captivity political thoughts that go swirling around in my brain (you did know didn't you, that my life's agenda was going to be to work with dolphins during my formative youth years?! oh yes, up until my senior year when i took a.p. oceanography and one - "we have to dissect what?" - i quickly became the 'illustrator' in the group. and then two - "we have to do what kind of math?" DRAT! i HATE math. boo hoo hoo....off to be an artist ;) i guess....sigh....as i curl up and read madeleine l'engle's -- a ring of endless of light"
for the umpteenth time and get lost in vicky's dolphin & boy world...)
so, yes, i have a thing for the sea animals too. it wasn't as disheartening as it could have been, and i did LOVE the jellies, but it's kind of hard to look at big fish & sharks swimming round and round and round and round...wouldn't you go crazy too?! oh, the penguins & sea otters were pretty darn rad also...
the drive down was beauteous & we had a fun time together...here's to many more years ahead for us! :) hoorah!
the other news is i'm finally finished with my k-8 students art show - the hugest event of the year that i put on - PHEW. i'll post photos soon. it's also the most rewarding night of the year for me :)
off to catch up on my sorely neglected sprout studio business; i have lots of updating to do. i've made scores of new glass necklaces just waiting to be posted - check them out in the next week or so.
happy wednesdsay lovies! (or muffins as mati likes to say...OR, i'm kinda fond of "poppet" myself!)
xxx.
i hosted a dinner pARTy on saturday night with some lovely bay area art ladies & bloggers. i've "known" some of these women for quite some time via their work & blogs, and have hung out with a few of them when time allows!
it was a super evening with lots of great chatter, musings, art talk, humorous conversation, and general good fun. i hope to do it again soon with them all :)
in attendance: diana, kelly rae, mati, shash, annie, lisa (ms dixie loo, my mister, a longtime friend and photo professor, & diana's niece.
yesterday was a great day of roaming the south bay salt marsh trails, and having a veggie Q with some friends.
hope your weekends were equally full of fun!
xxx.
