A Quick Trip South

Last week was school vacation for Julia so we headed out on an adventure. We went south to visit my Mom and sisters in New Jersey. On Friday, we drove to Philadelphia to visit my niece Olivia who will be graduating from the University of Pennsylvania next month. We figured we had better visit once before she was done. 

I hadn't been to Philadelphia in almost 30 years not counting fly-throughs at the airport. When I was younger, Philadelphia was a common city for my family to visit because we only lived a couple hours away. It is so rich in history. When I was in college at the University of Delaware, I used to take the train up to Philly and spend the day visiting museums on my own. 

Benjamin Franklin in front of College Hall

Olivia has been majoring in art and she gave Julia and I a fantastic tour of their art department. I loved seeing all the tools and studios that are available to the students. It made me yearn for those days of college and long studio hours and massive projects! Below are some of Olivia's inspirational images she had pinned to a wall.

Here are Olivia and Julia in front of one of Olivia's inspiration walls in her studio. 

While in Philly, we were lucky to visit the Barnes Foundation. The building is new and in center city. If you are a follower of the art world, you probably remember the controversy about moving the art collection amassed by Albert Barnes from the original museum in Merion, PA to a new building in Center City. You can read about that here or watch a documentary called The Art of the Steal. 

Head of a Young Girl - Matisse - 1917

The building is beautiful. The trees were just beginning to leaf out and the grounds were beautifully landscaped. Inside the art is displayed exactly the same as it was at the original museum in Merion,PA. The collection is astounding. Each room is set up with paintings set off with other incredible objects including metal objects, antique chests, chairs, and ceramics. There are two floors and by the time we left, my head was spinning. We took the guided tour via an iPod which filled us in on the highlights of the collection. 

Cupboard - 1828 - American

This museum has more the largest collection of Renoir paintings in the world. There are also scads of paintings by Cezanne. I am sharing the work that inspired me the most. All photos were found on the Barnes Foundation website. Check it out to see more of the collection. 

The Postman - VanGogh - 1889

I will definitely visit this collection again if I have the chance. There was so much to see and take in that I know I missed so much. I hope you will go too if you ever end up in Philadelphia. 

Still Life - Van Gogh - 1888

And a special tip if you are taking a young person who may not be too interested in art (I'm talking about you Miss J!) - there is a fun audio tour that kids can listen to that is engaging and introduces young people to art in a very appealing and friendly way! 

Here are some more of my favorite highlights from The Barnes Foundation Museum.

Vase by Jean Renoir, Son of Pierre-Auguste Renoir - 1922

Red Madras HeadDress - Matisse - 1907

Girl with Polka Dot Blouse - Amodeo Modigliani - 1919

Central Park - Charles Prendergast - 1939

Here are Mom and Julia just before we were leaving. That is Mom's new baby Lola in her arms! What a cutie she is. 

Carol Sucloski's Lace Yarn Studio + A Giveaway

Many years ago when I was working the booth for CEY at a Stitches Market, an animated, friendly, and passionate knitter introduced herself as a "fan". This woman was named Carol Sucloski and I will always remember that meeting. I was impressed by her intelligence and humor, and her love for knitting and yarn. I had been in the yarn business for at least 15 years and was defintely jaded. She was just beginning to explore all that it had to offer. She was a lawyer by training and taking time off from her career to raise her 3 children. I think her passion for the law was being supplanted by her passion for knitting and yarn and color. 

Fast forward a few years later to the days of the growing knitting community on the internet.... Carol and I kept in touch. She started a hand dyed yarn business called Black Bunny Fibers and had a very active blog called Go Knit In Your Hat. She did awesome book reviews which I always looked forward to because they were honest and very well written and researched. I was lucky to have 2 of my books reviewed on her site. 

Now it is a few more years later and Carol has become an author of 4 knitting books and many articles for many knitting magazines including Vogue Knitting and Yarn Market News. She is a popular teacher at different knitting events too. Carol and I still keep in touch and so I was happy to see her newest book called Lace Yarn Studio: Garments, Hats, and Fresh Ideas for Lace Weight Yarns which has just been published by Lark Books.  

I will be honest with you all - because that is how I am. Carol has asked me to design for each of her books. They have all featured sock weight or very fine yarns. I have always declined because I personally do not care for knitting with such fine yarn. It's just not for me but I know it is for so many of you knitters out there. Lace weight yarns such as KidSilk Haze (Rowan), Silky Alpaca Lace (CEY), Manos' Lace, and more have incredible yardage and boast gorgeous fiber content. 

Knitting with these kinds of lace yarns is incredibly reasonable price wise because they will occupy a lot of your knitting time. Although the cost of the yarn may be high per ball, a project can take many hours so the cost per hour of enjoyment is very low. When I heard about Carol's new book Lace Yarn Studio featuring different projects using lace yarn, I jumped at the chance to feature it here. 

Lace Yarn Studio begins with all you need to know about knitting with lace weight and fingering yarns. Needles to use, gauge, working with coned yarns which are typically used for weaving and knitting machines, fiber content, tips, blocking, yarn substitution, and more. The book is set up by number of skeins needed for a project. The amazing thing about working with lace weight yarns is some projects will call for a very small needle size. But then there are those which will use a needle much larger to create a lacey-airy project. There is a lot of versatility with lace weight yarns and Carol shows many beautiful projects. 

I love these delicate cabled very long fingerless gloves with a ruched edging design above.

This beautiful cabled mini cowl is made of Kidsilk Haze in a lovely purple color. Stunning. 

This scarf is a bit more "lace traditional" in its styling. It has a lace column edging and a lace diamond pattern that grows out of the columns. Very pretty.  

This scarf design features hand-dyed lace yarn in two colors. This is an interesting way to use up odds and ends of yarns you can't bear to throw away or perhaps have not bought enough of. The green edging is knit vertically and then the main part of the shawl uses stitches that are picked up along the very long edge to create the larger brown section. You could make it larger and turn it into a pretty shawl to wear during the cooler days of summer.  

This shawl uses a pretty stitch created with a lifted stitch to make floats of yarn giving a lovely texture to the finished fabric.  

Lace weight yarns can also create a fabric which is more typically thought of as machine knit or ready to wear weight. Look at this incredible skirt above which has beads added in the knitting. Can you imagine the drape and hand it has? Pure luxury knit in coned Colrain Lace (50% merino, 50% tencel from Webs). 

Lace Yarn Studio isn't all about the accessories. This very practical cardigan features some pleats for shaping. It is definitely a design that can move from day to evening and is incredibly versatile. 

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So here is what I have for you all today. Lark Books, Carol's publisher, has donated two copies of Lace Yarn Studio. Two of you will be lucky to win this beautiful new book! Check out Carol's website where she sells her lovely yarns. 
Here's how you enter......

Answer the following question in the comments: Tell me if you like knitting with fine yarns and why OR 
tell me what weight yarn you prefer to knit with and why. 

For this contest there will be 2 lucky winners!
Contest ends Monday April 27th at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. US Residents only. 

AS ALWAYS - PLEASE LEAVE AN EASY WAY TO GET A HOLD OF YOU - EMAIL, RAV, BLOGGER ID. US Residents only.

Contest is over. Congrats to Lynette and Mary Kate. The book will be shipped to you once I receive your Post Office Mailing Address. 

Asparagus Valley + The Potter's Trail - This Weekend

I just got off the phone with my friend Donna. She and her husband are innkeepers at a local B&B called House on the Hill. Donna and I are both small business owners and frequently talk about our businesses, the local area, what is going on...... We both LOVE where we live, LOVE all the fantastic people around our area, LOVE the incredible natural beauty we get to experience every day. I frequently recommend Donna's B&B to people who are coming to visit our area and they are never disappointed. 

Donna is a great supporter of artists such as me. Her B&B's walls feature local art and she features locally raised produce when possible. We both have a mutual friend named Lucy Fagella. Lucy and her potter colleagues have a twice yearly event called The Asparagus Valley Pottery Trail. Several different potters open up their studios to the public and sell their wares. The potters are located up and down our gorgeous valley from Northampton to Northfield. The spring event is this weekend April 25/26. 

You can purchase incredible handmade pottery at nine different studios. Each studio is also hosting a "guest potter." There will be all kinds of styles of pottery available. Our friend Lucy makes gorgeous work. I especially like these pouring batter bowls. 

Lucy has a stop action video on making an Asparagus Tray on Instagram here. 

Donna McGee of Hadley is another favorite potter friend. You have probably noticed her work in many of the photos in my book Crafting A Colorful Home. You can see some of her vases on the top of our corner cupboard below. I love her illustrative style. Her work frequently features flowers, chairs, chickens, cows, geraniums, and scenes out her window. 

Photo by Rikki Snyder from Crafting a Colorful Home

Molly Cantor of Shelburne makes beautiful carved ceramics - sometimes in black and white like the sunflower platter below and sometimes with added colors. She says the technique - called sgraffito - is similar to making a linoleum cut block. I love this look.

If you are local - check out The Asparagus Valley Potters Trail. Here is the website for further information. It is a nice day out in a beautiful part of New England. This coming Saturday and Sunday April 25/26. You can follow them on Facebook here. 

(Did you know that the Pioneer Valley is also called Asparagus Valley? In our valley, it is said that the finest asparagus in the world is grown. It is sometimes called Hadley Grass for the town of Hadley. You can read a fantastic article from Saveur Magazine by our neighbor David Nussbaum here. I cannot wait for this year's asparagus - it is so unbelievably good.) 

Waiting Patiently for the Grass to Grow

It is the middle of April. The snow is gone. Mud season was not so bad this year. Considering all the snow we got, it was surprising how fast it all went away. The light is so much stronger now and the sun higher in the sky every day. The grass has really not started to grow. The sheep are desperate to eat their greens. I think once one little blade pops up, they are there to harvest it. It won't be long until the grass is growing like crazy - probably mid May. The Farmer will then be mad to harvest it for hay. I better get some work out of him before he disappears with his tractor until October! 

There is very little shade for the sheep because the trees have not leafed out yet. It will be a few weeks for that. They find little bits of shade along the densely wooded sections of the pasture and along fence lines where the shadows are heavier. It hasn't been too hot yet and I am thankful for that. Sometimes in New England we go from freezing cold to the uncomfortable days of 80 degrees and more. Right now we are having a nice stretch of spring weather - warm during the day (70 or so) and almost freezing in the evenings. We love to have a fire in the woodstove in the evenings and this weather is affording that. 

The Farmer's Market Season starts on Saturday. It is a long stretch outdoors until Thanksgiving. Must get the product ready to go, check the tent, clean the freezers and the sheds in case anyone dares to come here to buy meat. Have the markets started in your part of the world yet? 

Today I am sharing some photos from around the farm. Enjoy your Thursday everyone! 

Sunflower Crewel Embroidery - Preview 2

This is the second in a series of sunflower inspiration for a crewel work embroidery piece. I began this piece last year, during the summer Farmers Market in Northampton. See the first post here. 

The second sunflower I stitched was inspired by the Sungold and Greenburst varieties. I have been growing Sungolds for years. They are long season flowers - taking 90 to 110 days to mature. The stalks are covered with blooms. The Greenburst Sunflower was new to me last year and I am definitely going to plant them again. They are similar to Sungold but are quick to bloom. On both of these varieties, there will be a huge top flower and smaller branching flowers below. Some people call these very fluffy sunflowers Van Gogh Sunflowers as Vincent loved to paint them and helped to make sunflowers the iconic flowers they have become today. 

Sungold Sunflower

Greenburst Sunflower

This sunflower was really fun to stitch. I blended different colors of yellow and gold to give a natural shaded look to the flower. I used turkeywork stitch for the fluffy outer ring. It is a looped stitch which I then cut to mimic the fluffy sunflowers.

Isn't the sculptural quality of the turkeywork beautiful?

For the petals, I chose Needleweaving to approximate the long thin petals. I love this stitch because it is so sculptural and again - a fun stitch to do. 

For the center, I blended two colors of green to resemble the center of the Greenburst sunflower and worked French knots to resemble the small bits of this pretty sunflower. 

This flower was so much fun to make. I used the Crewel Wool Thread that is available on my website here. The background fabric is pure linen which is also available on my website in 10 beautiful colors. All Crewel Embroidery is fun - I must admit. Although not all my work is as representative of nature, this project was. As I stitched each week, I couldn't believe the number of passerby's who stopped to chat - telling me about someone in their lives who used to stitch and embroider. Stitching in public is a good thing to do because it causes people to stop, chat, and remember. And maybe I can cause the person to pick up a needle and thread too. 

I hope your week goes great. Have you heard about this study? It connects the crafts and art to good health later in life. Cool.

I teach Crewel Embroidery on-line on Craftsy - link for 50% off on my sidebar. I am also offering an advanced Crewel Embroidery Class here at the farm in August. Info here.) 

Family, A Cookbook, Tears + A Project for You to Do

How's your week going? Mine is zipping by. It is still very cold and there is barely a touch of green. The ground is covered with ice and it looks white. The yearlings are continuing to lamb and we have about 40 lambs in the pasture in front of our Farmhouse.

How do you like the new blog header? It is a photo by Rikki Snyder taken during the shoot for my new book Crafting a Colorful Home. I wrote about the Seller's Cabinet which I painted bright orange on this post. I love this photo - it includes a photo of my Grandmother Frieda and the Family Cookbook we wrote together in the early 1980's. I was the editor and she was the author. Guess this book thing goes way back with me - self-publishing before most people did it. 

Over the Easter weekend, we were lucky to see some of my extended family. Only 4 of Julia's cousins made the day. They are growing up and scattering far and wide and finding their way. Ohhhh, I wish them all the luck in the world. I hope they know how much I love them all. I can't wait to see what they do with themselves. 

My niece Olivia is graduating university this year. Olivia has been majoring in Art and she had to build a website for her portfolio. You can see it here. Julia, my Mom, and I are planning a visit to Philadelphia in a few weeks to visit her over spring break.

A few weeks ago, Olivia asked me about her Great Grandmother Frieda Roessler Nicholas who I wrote the Family Cookbook with. She was beginning work on a big project and had some thoughts and questions for me. I told her I had an audio tape of Gram and that she might like to listen to it. I had to find it - that took a few hours! And then I had to figure out how to digitally tape it (I used Garageband but don't ask me how I got it to work!). I didn't know what Olivia would do with the tape or how she would use it in her project. When my sister Laurie sent me the link to Livvie's website, I found this animated video. 

Olivia used a photo of Gram as a young girl from the cookbook (it is low quality - it was xeroxed!). She did stop motion embroidery and added other little bits of embroidery and drawing. She added audio of Gram beating her Christmas Stollen. At the end, there is audio of me and Gram talking. Fantastic job Olivia. Do you notice the embroidered flames? 

As I was digitally taping the audio of me and Gram talking from the squeaky tape on an old tape recorder, it brought me back to the day I was with Gram. I wanted to have an oral history of her life. We started out the day with her making her Christmas Stollen so that I would have a clue of how to make it. Then, while the dough was rising, I asked her questions about her life. 

I remember this day as if it were yesterday (it was 35 years ago). We sat on her sunporch at her house at 13 Conger Street on her Lloyd loom wicker furniture which she had paid me to recover the 13 cushions as a way to earn some money. Gram recounted her life in Germany, coming to America when she was ten years old, her courtship with her husband Archie (who I never knew because he died before my Mom and Dad ever met), and her life in Dover, NJ. It was a cold November day with gray skies. I remember this because the Family Cookbook was a Christmas Gift for my Gram's Grandchildren. I wanted to include current photos of Gram. I took two rolls of black and white film as Gram talked and baked. For the life of me now I cannot find them. They are here somewhere, I hope. 

Friend Roessler Nicholas + Her Christmas Stollen

This past Easter weekend, my sisters, Mom, and my nieces were talking about the Cookbook Project. I was unemployed, looking for work after graduating with my Masters Degree in Textiles from Colorado State University. I was back living with my parents, not knowing what I would do with my life. It was an awkward time in my life - when I was trying to find my way. The economy was totally awful and there was no work for an unexperienced, over-educated young woman. It was that time when I was a young adult but didn't have anything of my own - no job, no career, no home - my life was in limbo. 

I needed something to do with my time. Gram was 81, still living in her own home, still cooking, baking, sewing, quilting, and gardening. Gram had always been such a huge part of our lives and was a huge influence on me personally. She was in the process of crocheting her 8 grandchildren each a Single Crochet Ripple Afghan in 100% wool yarn. Can you imagine crocheting 8 of them when you are 80? That is the kind of woman she was - taking a task and carrying through on it. Besides the Single Crochet Ripple Afghans, she also made things to sell at the Church Fair - jelly, dried flower arrangements, and handmade things. 

I cannot believe my good fortune to have had a role model like Gram in my life. As I listened to her speak on the old cassette tape as Garageband was recording, I couldn't help but tear up - with happiness that I had this slice of her still with me - the memories, the example of a life well lived -- it is totally precious and an inspiration for any age I am.

Frieda Roessler Nicholas - My Paternal Grandmother

This past Easter weekend, I encouraged my nieces to do a similar thing with their surviving Grandparents. To tape a conversation, to take photos, to spend a good long day with their Grandparents - doing nothing in particular but recording and photographing. I could do this same thing with my mom but I really think that a grandparent/grandchild relationship is so different. I think that Gram shared things with me that she would never have shared with her son, my Dad. I don't know if the girls will get their acts together to do such a thing but I will keep encouraging them.

I write this here on my blog so that perhaps you too might do a special project with an older or younger person you treasure. Perhaps stitch a quilt, embroider a pillowcase (or set of pillowcases), teach a grandchild or child to knit or embroider, write a cookbook together, tape a conversation about their/your life. None of these things cost much to do - mostly it is finding the time to do it, organizing the project, and getting a willing participant. There are lifelong lessons and opportunities that can disappear in a flash when a special person is no longer around. 

Seize the summer months that are upcoming. Take time now to plan your special project of making and creating if you have the opportunity. You will be happy you did. And I hope you will tell me about the project if you do it!

I am still taking orders for my new book Crafting a Colorful Home. You can purchase signed copies on my website for $27.95. I am still offering FREE Freight and a set of Kristin Postcards. Check it out here.