Come Visit the Sunflowers

Come visit our Sunflower Field. It's blooming like crazy! Here's a link to Mapquest to find it. The address is 562 Leyden Road, Greenfield, MA 01301 (note that we don't live at the field so please don't send mail to that address).

If you do plan on coming, give me a heads-up so I can try to be around to say Hi.

And yes, I know the date is wrong - I just wanted to keep this post at the beginning of my blog until the sunflowers stop blooming.

Updates of All Kinds

First of all, thanks to so many of you for the book orders! I really appreciate you thinking of me and my family. I just finished sending all the Paypal bills so if you are looking for yours, check your in-box. I'll keep you updated on when I'm shipping via this blog. And of course, I'll take orders via mail or whenever you're ready!

Julia had her follow-up visit to the surgeon Tuesday. Although we weren’t told anything definitive, we know that Julia’s eyes aren’t infected and that they are healing as can be expected. They are still puffy and there is a lot of blood on the white part of her eye. She also has a bit of discharge from the eye which is normal.

As for success of the operation, it is still too early to tell. The doctor said it takes a while for the brain to adjust to the new alignment. Julia’s brain has been so busy trying to compensate for the inward misalignment that it will take a while to train itself. Julia hasn’t said whether she sees better or worse but the double vision has gone away.

My sister Laurie spoke with a friend of hers in her 40’s who had the same surgery as a child at the exact ages Juila had hers (4 and 9). She said that when she gets tired, her eyes drift and she still walks into things. She also said she has trouble w/ depth perception (we don’t think Julia has any depth perception whatsoever) and she always takes stairs carefully. The good thing is, this woman has had a career, children, and has a Master’s degree from Harvard. Although I could care less about the MS from Harvard, I do worry about my child growing up and living on her own and trying to drive a car. I know these things are natural for any mother to worry about, but I worry extra hard about Julia. I guess if I had other children, they would distract me somewhat from the worry?

But we do have the kittens and they sure are cute. We’re having a lot of luck with finding homes for them. Our friend Marie who is cat crazy too and has more cats than we do, can’t believe we had a litter of 5 red striped kitties. She says they are probably all males - she said she has never heard of a female red cat. Has anyone else? Just wondering. I’m still in awe of their cuteness. They are getting much more friendly and using the litter box some.


The coyotes have been howling and hooping it up like crazy the past week. I wake up every night wondering what the noise is. Last night I thought it was the siren for the nuclear power plant in Vernon, VT going off it was so loud and so odd. Thank goodness it was only the local wildlife. We haven’t lost any sheep up here yet this summer but we worry everyday. The dogs sleep outside so that they will keep the coyotes away from the livestock.

Our cat population has gone down this summer. We haven’t seen Boo-Boo-Boo, Flora, nor Templeton in over eight weeks. We’ll never know what happened to them. But as with cats, there is always a chance they will show up one day. Lily Pons was gone for five weeks and we thought she would never return. But then she did and now we have these cute things. We have yet to name them because it is really hard to tell them all apart.

Lily Pons is the most amazing cat - her natural instincts overwhelm me. This morning I was working on some things in my studio and I had the door open. She crept out the door without her kittens. About a half hour later I heard some odd noises out in the garden. A few minutes later, she dragged in a dead squirrel. She took it upstairs to the kitchen to her kittens. Four of them wanted to nurse but the fifth took that squirrel and growled like crazy and ate it. A good hunter in the making, for sure.

When I first starting visiting Mark’s farm way back when, his mom had a tom-cat named Frenchie. He was the sweetest thing but he was always getting into fights. He would come home beat up with a torn ear or a scratched face, rest up and go back out there again. One day he disappeared and never returned.

Over a and a half year later, a cat that looked like Frenchie appeared at the door. Sure as anything, it was Frenchie. He died two days later. There's a great children's book called The Cat Who Walked Across France. Lovely story about a grey cat and its adventures with wonderful illustrations. Animal mysteries continue to amaze me.

Sunflowers on Colored Backgrounds

A few weeks ago I did something I have been wanting to do for a long time. I went to the hardware store and purchased some masonite 4' x 8' panels. I had the store cut them down to a more manageable size (3' x 4') and took them home in the back of my truckish kind of vehicle. I set them up all around the house and started slapping color on them. I got out all the old paint cans from my basement (let's not go there....) and proceeded to paint 6 different shades on the 6 different boards. Then the fun started. I had colors I was dreaming of in my head but when I get to the fun part, they always change and I go with the paint and what happens.

I'm going to use these boards to use to take photos on. Although the distressed, colorwash thing has been around for ever, I still like it. All kinds of objects look nice on washed backgrounds and lots of times, the background just fades away and give a nice soft feeling and a hint of the color. I even let Julia get in on the action because neatness doesn't count with the technique. I dunk wads of paper towels (Bounty is best for this) or old turkish towels if I have them into thinned paint (I just add water). Then I rub it around on the board - unevenly and messily - and let it dry. I stand back. If I like it, I stop. If not, I just keep adding colors until I do. Julia and I both had lots of fun and I got some new tools for my blog and future photo shoots for future books. The flat panels can be stored along the walls of my studio and won't get in the way too much. I can set them as backgrounds along a wall I have used in photos too often or I can lay something down on them for close-ups.

These photos are of some of our sunflowers. I like how each background gives a different mood to the flowers.

This lupine blue/periwinkle board is a classic combination with yellow sunflowers.


This chartreuse background almost matches some of the tones in the flower but it gives a bright and happy feeling.


This aqua board contrasts nicely against the orangey tones of many of the sunflowers.


This hot-pink background speaks happiness. I bet you know who painted this one - the Princess of Pink!


This rather somber background started as a greyish taupe, then morphed into aqua and ended up a nice wintery bluish green shade. The sunflowers look more autumnal against this background.


Which combination do you like the best?

About to be Busy

I am about to be very busy. I knew it was going to happen and I have been looking forward to it. I didn't want to think too much about it because we were trying to get through summer, sunflowers (which aren't over yet) and Julia's surgery.

I've heard it from the publicity people over at Storey that yes, Kristin Knits will be shipping from their warehouse on October 10th. (As you and I know, stuff happens so keep posted to this blog, for the actual date, in case it is different.)

Way back when, I wrote about the different steps to making a book -- here and here and here and here. It all seems so long ago.... But it does seem that yes, there really will be a hardcover book and within three weeks.

I'm going on the road to promote it a bit. You can see the schedule so far at the left on my blog. I know there will be other events and classes added, mostly in New England, but this is it for this moment in time.

In addition, you can now order Kristin Knits from me directly via my website. There is a link on this page for my order form. If this all seems to cumbersome to you (I have to then send you an invoice to pay on paypal), just send me $24.95 plus $4.99 shipping and handling - to total $29.94. My paypal account is knATkristinnicholasDOTcom. I'll send you the book just as soon as I receive it. Make sure you include your mailing address and the name you want the book signed to (otherwise I will just sign it generically). Keep checking my blog to see when I am shipping! Remember, it won't be for at least three weeks.

You can also order via snail mail with my printable order form. My PO Box is on the Order Form.

I will also ship overseas gladly. This will take another step though - me (and Julia) going to the post office (after school) to calculate the extra overseas postage. For international orders, please specify surface or air mail and don't send me any money via paypal, wait until I have figured the extra postage. I will send a Paypal invoice to you.

As you have probably gleaned from this here blog, making money as a craft book author is not easy, nor very profitable. My family and I appreciate every order we get for each and every book! Thanks!

Here's a sneak peek of a really cute pair of fingerless gloves that are in the book. Everyone I show these gloves to just loves them. Check out the "Books" page on my website - there are some more "sneak peeks" there too!

Thank you

Thanks to everyone who sent us notes and well wishes for Julia's surgery. It went okay although all of Friday was a rough day. We are trying to keep her distracted so that she doesn't notice her scratchy eyes. They are still swollen and a little bloody looking so it is hard to tell how well it worked. We go back to Boston on Tuesday for a follow-up visit so we should know more then. I'll let you know.

Again, thanks for the good vibes being sent Julia's way. It means a lot to all of us.

Sunflowers and Scarecrows and Surgery

We literally grow thousands of sunflowers in our field on Leyden Road in Greenfield. This year we planted about 15 varieties. Not exactly we, but The Farmer. If We counted on Me to make a successful crop, we wouldn’t have much. The Farmer has the talent and determination and dedication and vision to a project and a piece of earth to make it happen.

When the sunflowers start blooming, it is up to me to try to re-coup some of the money we put into this wacky but beautiful project. We drag the haywagon down to the spot. I paint signs to attract customers. I pick buckets of flowers and then we wait.


We build some pseudo- scarecrows to attract attention. They certainly are cute, aren’t they? I raid our closets and then go to the Salvation Army to find extra stuff. This year, we built a family of three, like we are. Friends have said they resemble us. Me, I just think they are fun. And we’re not exactly trying to scare off the birds. After all, the plants are for them too.

We're going to Boston to NEMC extremely early Friday morning. Julia is having surgery on her eyes to help correct her strabismus. This is a common problem with children with hydrocephalus. Correcting the problem with surgery should be helpful for her immediately. She has had the surgery once before about five years ago. Although it isn't long nor is it an overnight thing, it is still dangerous as any surgery is. And this time, she knows she is having surgery (unlike the last time), and she is terrified. We're just hoping it will help her vision and her coordination between the eye muscles and her brain. We tried some holistic approaches many years ago but they were quite useless for Julia. The first time she had this surgery, she started reading book covers the following day. It was quite amazing. We'll see what happens this time. Julia's doctor is at New England Medical Center's Eye Center and his name is Dr. Mitchell Strominger. If anyone else out there is having similar problems with their child's vision, I highly recommend him. He has a good way with children.

Sunflowers and Visitors

We escaped the frost so the sunflowers will continue. Depending upon how you feel about them, it's either good or bad. I've just heard it will be 90 degrees on Saturday so it sounds like I have at least a week more picking. Another week of making homes more beautiful.... There are some plants which are just starting to bloom so late in the season but that's good. Some of the plants are looking mighty tired.


So how about this? Someone took me up on my invitation to visit the Sunflower Field. Marcy, aka Marcy Habetrot, met Julia and I this afternoon for a tour of the sunflower field and a visit. How fun. Marcy carried the flowers while I picked. And we talked and talked….. Thanks so much Marcy for coming to our funny little world! See you at Fibertwist! After Marcy left, a young woman and her daughter and Mom came by. She looked oddly familiar. Yes, she was a knitter and yes, I probably had met her before.

Sunflowers and knitting - bringing the world together!

Look what we found

Friday night we finally found what we have been looking for......


Can you see them all? There are five kittens - all orange striped. Three with white on them and two all orange stripey. We're still in shock! They are about four to five weeks old. Their momma LilyPons is doing a wonderful job. Julia is going to work on socializing them, along with help from the doggies and other cats. Lots of little hissing going on around here. But pretty cute to say the least.


Kind of fitting to have the orange kittens at orange sunflower time, isn't it?

Sunflower Season

We’re big into Sunflower Season here. This past weekend, there was a music festival called Wormtown just down the road from our Sunflower Field at Camp Keewanee. Everyone seemed to arrive on Friday and leave on Sunday. To say it was good for the sunflower selling business is to be blunt.

People around here tend to take the sunflowers for granted – driving by and remarking to themselves how beautiful they are. (That's what I imagine.) Actually, they rush by, not having the time to stop and pick up a bunch or two. The people from Wormtown were different. Hoards (okay, maybe not hoards on your block, but on our block we consider it hoards) of youngish music loving adults stopped and purchased sunflowers. What fun to be rewarded for our beauty with a bit of cash-o-la.


And speaking of cash…. I wish I had a dollar for everyone who stopped to take a photo. Oh, how great would that be. …… Not exactly rich, but at least be able to contribute to a meal. I don’t mind if people take photos, but common courtesy would be to ask, wouldn’t you agree? And then maybe buy a sunflower. I guess I now know how photogenic peasants feel in Mexico or Guatemala? If I ever go there, I will be sure to give the peasants some money.

I’ve been talking with a few photographer friends the past few days and they kept remarking to me how beautiful and magical the light is just before sunrise. Now me, I’m not a morning person to say the least. But I decided to bite the bullet and get up before dawn and see what all the fuss was about.

Okay, I admit, I have learned something. It is beautiful at that time of day. The light is similar to sunset but different. I took photos for two mornings before the sun had risen and the sunflowers truly do seem magical. Unfortunately, my photos do not do the scene justice.

Two days of rising before sunrise and stomping around in the very cold dew really did make me respect what good photographers do to “get the picture.” Timing and training, practice and a good eye are everything. I also know I don’t want to be a photographer. I just don't have that eye for light that I know it takes a professional photographer be successful. And the equipment? Oh, it really takes something to learn how to work it all. My hacking around with these blog pictures is good enough for me. But enjoy our sunflowers (and my lousy photos) at sunrise.

The Sweetness of Ellen

Ellen Edson is a local songwriter and singer. I met her through Julia when she was the Early Childhood Coordinator for our local school district. Ellen used to sing with the children at Julia's child care program before she went to school, along with other things. Ellen has gone on to become the Principal of one of our district's schools.

Ellen approached me last year to do some artwork for her new CD. She gave me a preview CD and Julia and I listened to it to see what it would inspire artwise. The only stipulation she gave me was that the name of the CD would be "The Sweetness of You" and that somewhere in the illustration, there should be strawberries and blueberries. I came up with six different ideas for the artwork and sent them to her. Luckily, we both agreed on the one which we thought set the tone for the CD - a little chick sitting upon a hen.

I did the artwork and threw in some extra spot art. I gave it to Ellen at the end of last summer. Then I waited. It took awhile but the CD is finally released. Here's the link to it if you're interested in children's music. Trust me - you will love it. Ellen's voice is so melodic and the instruments beautifully played. We played it in the car constantly for days on end.

Thanks for the vote of confidence Ellen and for asking me to do the artwork! It's really exciting to see my artwork on an official CD!

A Sunflower Hat

There's a new book out called Folk Style from Interweave Press by Mags Kandis of Mission Falls fame. I've known Mags professionally for about ten years. I met her in Canada at a big "Stitches" type show - can't remember the name of that show now. I taught a class and she was in it. She was delightful but definitely over-qualified for my class.

While I was on my "child sabbatical" Mags started Mission Falls. I watched from the sidelines and admired the things she was doing. I even used her 1824 Cotton in Knitting for Baby. Lovely yarn, that textured cotton.

Fast forward to last year and Mags was editing Folk Style. She asked if I would contribute something and I said yes. The due date came and went. I was in over my head with a million things, not including the sunflowers I had to cut and pick and stock our little stand with. I couldn't let her down and so I did what I could think of at that moment -- I knit a sunflower hat. I was really happy with the hat I made and sent it off just in time. The shape of the hat was inspired by some ethnic costume books in my library that I often reach for when I need a jumping off point for a project. The shape looks great on lots of different shape faces.

I was thrilled when I received my copy of Folk Style last week. It is a lovely collection of projects in beautiful colors. It's quite creative - I'm happy that people are starting to think beyond the knitting box. There's quite a bit of embroidery and felting.

I was also delighted with the photos of my sunflower hat. There are four of them (that's what happens when your project is rather easy and they don't need to use a lot of type). The model is Pam Allen's lovely daughter Caitlin who makes the hat look so cute. You can probably make this hat in a couple nights - definitely a possibility for holiday gifts. Great job Mags!

Blooming Beauties

When we left for Maine, there were three rows of sunflowers blooming. We were gone just a week and came home to a field full of colorful flowers. They're just so incredibly beautiful, aren't they? It never ceases to amaze me that something so beautiful and large can grow from such a tiny little seed.


We're rushing to set up our little self-serve wagon. I've been re-painting signs that peeled over the winter. And this year we're hoping to build three scarecrows. And then there's the flowers to pick. I don't have much time for anything else. The season is short and so I've got to do it while they're beautiful and sellable.

If you want to come visit our sunflower field, the address is 562 Leyden Road, Greenfield, MA 01301. Chances are, you might catch me there somewhere in the field, a bunch of flowers in hand. Please park on the side of the driveway so the neighbors we share the common drive with can get to their homes. The field should be looking good for at least two weeks. We'll have pumpkins (we hope) in a few weeks too.

Fair Time

It's been "fair time" here in Franklin County, Massachusetts. The Franklin County Agricultural Society has been holding the annual fair for 159 years. I have always loved going to the fair. When I was a kid, my sisters and I were in a 4-H club my mother led in Morris County, NJ. We spent entire summers making things to enter in the fair. Visiting the fair makes me nostalgic for those days.

This year, Julia and I rode on her 4-H Club's float along with the other kids and some parents, a few chickens, a lamb, a calf and a bunny. We had the best time riding down the center of town waving to people we knew and didn't know. I took photos of it but unfortunately my memory card has evaporated from my camera????

This year I entered a sunflower floral arrangement and several needlework and knitted pieces. I have never entered needlework in the fair thinking I had an unfair advantage but this year, I thought I would get into the spirit of the thing and show others what is made here in Franklin County. The sheer number of people who travel through the exhibits is astounding and I was hoping to increase the interest in the needlearts by showing my projects.


The needlework, quilts, flowers, fruits, and vegetables are all displayed in an amazing round barn type building that is 100 years old called "The Round House." Quilts line the upper story and tall sunflowers are in pots around the posts. The giant pumpkins continually amaze me.


Here's a photo of The Farmer, Julia and my mom next to the winning "tall" sunflower. Tall? What about enormous. The thing was almost up to the rafters at 12 feet 8 inches. Julia entered a flower arrangement and a little vase she made and was excited with the ribbons she got and the check for $3.75. I'm hoping she liked seeing her things on display and will think about putting some projects next year.

I'm sure that if you live in the rural United States, you too are visiting your local fair at this time of year. I love the feeling I get by looking at all the different entries and seeing the community come together to produce a great event. It's also great to spread the word about a particular hobby or activity which you would like others to try. And what a nice feeling to participate in a tradition that has been going on for so long. I can't help but to think about how important the fair used to be in this agricultural region of Massachusetts. Even in this rural area, so many people aren't in tune with farming and rural life. This fair makes it evident that there are many people still involved in hobbies that were so important 100 years ago.

Inspiration from Friends

Visiting Sally's house is so much fun for all of us. Her home is full of decades of creativity. It has been in her family for several generations and the mark of everyone is here. The walls are decorated with little watercolors done by Sally as a child. Sally's mom's was an oil painter and her paintings fill the walls. Several of their friends were and are artists and everyone who visits leaves a painting to add to the creative chaos. I remember The Farmer's comment about the place after our first visit. He said it was the most perfect house in the world - cozy, creative, layered, and perfectly situated. It is also a place you never want to leave - just what every home should be but most never are. I strive for this feeling in our home but I honestly think it takes generations of the same related people living in a home to make it really happen.

On my first visit, I brought a piece of handmade Damariscotta pottery as a housegift. I didn't really know Sally or her dad and so it was just a guess that they would like the pottery. Luckily she did. Here are some other pieces she has collected over the years. They look beautiful with zinnias in them.

I met Sally through knitting originally and we quickly discovered we had many more things in common including love of fabric and art, Scotland and England, India, color and much more. A few years ago, we visited Charleston Farmhouse (the creative home of Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant) and Monk’s House (the home of Virginia and Leonard Woolf) together along with a few days antiquing and shopping in London. What a great trip. It was the first year Julia was born and I really needed a break from all the hospital and doctor visits. My wonderful Mom came and helped out with Julia and I had five days away. How lucky I am to have such a great friend and to have taken such a great trip with her.

Sally's house is where I discovered I could paint pictures (that is pictures beyond grammar school). Here’s a photo of the first painting I ever did in my adult life many years ago. Our mutual friends Yola and George who are official artists were visiting and Yola suggested I try to paint a picture of the fish we were going to eat for dinner. I did this painting using gouache with her encouragement and I left it with Sally because she liked it. She found a fabulous tramp art frame for it. After that experience, I have painted lots more in both gouache and oils. I have Yola, George and Sally to thank for egging me on and telling me they liked my work.


On another visit, I did some decorative painting on Sally’s walls to cover up some nasty leaks that had ruined the wallpaper. She cleaned up the walls before I arrived and put on the base coat of light turquoise. I painted the overblown flowers and leaves using artist acrylics. So nice to have a friend to let you experiment.


Now when I visit, I try to bring something I make to give as a house gift. One year I brought these embroidered and handpainted pillows. You may recognize the vermicular motif I wrote about a few months ago. I also made a dotted version to match. The fabric was a blue linen.


This year I made a pair of pillowcases for a bed. I embroidered the name of the cottage and added a cat (there is always a resident feline) and some lupines. They were a hit, thank goodness.


That's it for the Maine adventures this year. We're on to other things here as life is quickly speeding by.

Mainely Color

Mainely color, mainely Maine, mainely schmainely - it's all good and inspiring. From the notes I have gotten from you all, it sounds like so many of you have had the same delicious experience of visiting an island in Maine. I think it's not really about what island - it's about the ferry and the divorce from the mainland that makes a vacation on a Maine island just so special. It really does let you forget about deadlines and everything that needs to be done that isn't getting done.

Here are some beautiful shots that I find so inspiring for working with color.

I love the colors in the old truck outside my friend's home. The rusty fenders, the teal paint - it just settles into the Maine landscape so harmoniously.


The maple trees outside the back door and all over the island were dropping these wacky looking leaves. They probably had some kind of blight but to me it was a design of some kind waiting to happen.


I didn't know what these funny looking birds were. I have never seen them in such abundance. They are cormorants and boy can they dive and catch the fish. They also take a great photo and their dark black color looks lovely against rocks and the blue sea.


Seaweed, teal ocean, rocks, evergreen trees and blue sky - what a study in blues and green.


The tide was coming into these rocks and pooling around - the charcoal color was glistening.


We went on a misguided adventure looking for an old quarry. We never found it but the moss and lichen growing on the rocks was amazing.


I love the wild roses found all over the island. I've tried to grow them here but they never quite succeed.


I spent most of my free time working on a granny square afghan. Here's the fruits of my labors.


The yarn is Julia, of course. I grabbed a size G crochet hook on the way out the door and just started. Totally mindless and fun hours spent mixing the colors together. I'll write more about it some other day.

See See See the Seaweed

The first time I ever went to our island in Maine, I was astounded by the colors there. Most astonishing was the seaweed I saw along the rocks on the shores. I was just bowled over. Call it kelp, bracken, chartreuse or whatever nasty name you want to call it - I am just crazy over it. Lay it down next to the teal blue ocean and it makes me want to sit there all day looking at it. But then the tide comes in and it disappears.


Of course seaweed comes in many colors, shapes and sizes. It's amazing stuff. Who was to think that all piled together in an ocean mess it could be so visually pleasing. This bunch was drying on a beach while the tide was out. If I had styled it, I would have messed it up. Nature is such a fabulous artist.


On another beach, we watched this bunch of weed go in and out with the tide. The cold froth of the ocean reminds me of lace. The delicate branching of the seaweed would make a lovely design for an embroidered pillow.


Lastly, I grabbed a little assortment of weed from a different beach and dragged it home to the cottage. I soaked it overnight so it wouldn't dry out and waited for the perfect moment. These five different kinds of seaweed are so lovely to look at. On the pinkish marble slab, their shapes echo the veins in the marble below.


I made these plates for my friend Sally who owns the house we stay at. They're my own interpretation of seaweed in some of my bright colors. It's fun to visit my art and say hello to it in other people's homes. It's also nice that my plates have such a beautiful wall and home to live on and in.

Vacation, What Vacation? Where Did It Go?

We are back from a wonderful visit to an island off the coast of Maine. We spent six days of doing nothing, reading,

eating with friends, visiting various beaches, watching dogs chase sticks,

painting a quick picture and eating lobster and mussels freshly plucked from the ocean in front of the home we stayed in.

The Farmer and I have been visiting this particular island and friend since 1987. After a 40 minute ferry ride, all our cares slip away. Island life doesn’t seem to have changed since we first visited except that a few of the roads are now paved and the ferry holds 15 cars instead of 10.

This year there was a brand new although very small grocery store. Some years, there isn’t a store. We always load up the car with groceries before we leave home. It’s hard to decide what you are going to eat a week ahead but it seems to work out. And if all else fails, it’s a short walk down to the ocean to collect mussels which are particular favorites of mine. This is the beach we pluck the mussels from.

A visit to the lobster coop yields some mighty fresh and amazing lobsters for dinner, lobster salad and lobster chowder.


More in a couple days. Things are quite crazy busy here and so it’s going to be difficult to post too much. I knew the "summertime feeling" would evaporate in a blink of an eye and it surely has this week.