digital experiments.

Spent way too long trying to write on this photo with a doodle effect in Picasa.  Funny that I can make portraits and even write sentences beautifully on my sewing machine and can't do much better than this crappy heart with a computer mouse. The electronic eraser was surprisingly satisfying though, much quicker than a seam ripper.

watch this cute video.

I love this on so many levels. I want my animals to sing for you someday.

playing with the camera

Still practicing taking more interesting photos to document the quickly growing boy and to better represent my work online. Long weekend at the lake and ocean, rainforest with plenty of rain. Things I failed to capture: sailing with my dad, the kids using the binoculars backwards,  s'mores test kitchen: traditional browning on a stick versus the three at once s'mores basket contraption, Franklin and Sophie throwing tiny yellow blossoms onto the late afternoon lake, anemones, banana slugs and barnacles.

Back at home for a minute in the studio, I did start sewing some banana slugs and bears. Feeling a new round of trees and sea creatures coming soon...

will NOT be at market this week...

The beauty of owning your own business is that when family is in from the midwest, berries are ripening and boats are ready to go on the lake, you can take a week off. I'll be back July 28 with more summer camp inspiration, hats galore and maybe even some rainforest inspired plush critters...elk? banana slugs? 
Hope you are enjoying whatever bits of summer you can find too, a cool drink on the front porch after work, a fresh salad in your lunch bag, or a whole week of snuggling in a hammock. It goes so fast...

magical lands

Last night we Stomped the Sunnyland neighborhood. This annual artwalk happens in people's backyards and front lawns. Lots of art hanging from trees, crafts for sale and snacks. It was the perfect opportunity for me to start a blog project featuring my amazing artistic friends in their creative spaces. Christian Anne Smith is a fellow crafty mama juggling day jobs, puppet workshops and her parenting while keeping a sacred space open for her own amazing art.

 

while the boys played in the sandbox tent, I snuck around the wild garden peeking at puppets.

Inside she was showing her fantastic paintings.  Christian creates a world both colorful and dark as all good folktales should be, equal parts dangerous and alluring with plenty of vixens and pirates and striped socks.

 

to see more of her work click here.

summer camp

 Really nice weather and Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom have me feeling the summer camp vibe hard at moth and squirrel. Working with the tshirts has become a natural part of the summer routine, but this year I am really inspired by the possibilities.

The camp arrow is a popular new motif for reverse applique.

When I am sitting at my booth on Saturdays I can't stop braiding tshirt ropes.  Along with necklaces and hatbands for myself, I incorporated them into zipper pouches this week. I even picked up a Love and Money Loom at Goodwill today to try some larger mats.

ocean plait knot started on my new Love and Money Loom

celebrate american made

this mt.rushmore bank, no surprise, made in china.

It's almost America's birthday. And to celebrate, I wanted to share some truly inspiring links to other craftspeople and corporations still working in the United States. These are my heroes. The artists who are continuing traditions or remembering skills nearly lost to globalization and technology. Companies that are raising their prices so they can employ people in their own communities.

Click here for videos from amazing companies handcrafting in the United States. Some are old companies still doing it right and others are upstarts building brands with good old fashioned values. Lots of sexy leather and denim. The web address has the f-bomb in it, but all the clips are so wholesome I cried more than once.
Also here for The American List compiled by A Continuous Lean. This list of stylish goods covers clothing and accessories, bicycles, even lighters and ice cream scoops.

My all time favorite heritage couture Alabama Chanin. Nathalie Chanin sets the bar for business sense and sustainable style. Her books have a beloved spot on my studio bookshelf and her blog is always good for a dose of inspiration and southern hospitality. She makes the clothes I will wear when I am wealthy with cash.

My friend Carol Berry recently turned me on to this amazing Fibershed project. These inspiring folks are working to produce an entire year round wardrobe from within a 150mile radius. The clothes are not just sewn or spun from imported fabric and fibers, but all raw materials are grown in the region. The project cultivates a community of farmers to raise fiber animals, cotton and dye plants, works to preserve or rebuild facilities to  process the fibers into material and educates craftspeople to design and produce garments of quality and style. The photos are lovely and the idea is revolutionary, like the war we are celebrating.

And what would a list of American goods be without some of my hometown favorites? Texture clothing, Spincycle Yarns and everyone at the Farmer's Market. I personally owe a chunk of gratitude to the folks at sustainable connections who lead the nation in local economic revival. Bellingham is a town that understands the importance of shopping locally. People will come back to my booth three weeks in a row waiting for the right hat instead of just buying a hat that will do at Target.

So if you really love America or independence, Spend a little more money the next time you make a purchase and support a business that still supports it's community.