While She Naps

small bird 6

I treated myself to this delicious piece of brown linen the other day and made this sixth small bird.

I like that she is looking down.  I am always looking down when I walk, especially when I walk outside.  Usually  this is for the best because I find and pick up things that interest me - bits of wood and rusted metal and beads, sometimes even money. 

Several years ago, though, Charlie and I were walking on a gay beach in Provincetown, MA (we were actually on our honeymoon and a bit lost), and after walking  for several minutes Charlie asked if I'd seen all those naked men back there.  But no!  I was looking at the sand of course and missed the crowd of naked guys.  I guess I should look up sometimes.  You never know what you're missing.

for Softies II

I've finished the two toys and patterns for Softies II and they are on their way to Australia. I just have to work on the fabric credits now.  I like that the two toys have similar attributes - a piece of the same fabric, jointed legs, vintage buttons, some raw edges.  These are both fun and satisfying softie projects and I hope that people will really make them and enjoy them.

Thank you for all of the well wishes for Roxanne.  Her cut is nearly all healed up now and just a bit tender when we touch it.  It turned out to be a great adventure for her!

Saturday morning we woke up to a freezing cold house.  Our furnace had not been working properly overnight, but fortunately we got it going again, if only temporarily, until it can be fixed later this week.  We ended up lighting a fire in the fireplace first thing in the morning and it was so nice. Why don't we ever do that?   

And the most exciting new for me and Charlie was the arrival of this French press thermal coffee carafe.  The best coffee, and it stays really hot.  Thank you to our friends Carla and David for making us coffee this way last weekend.

Mississippi Kite and a trip to the emergency room

I made this bird, my version of a Mississippi Kite, for an upcoming show with the theme of kites at The Trunk Space, a gallery in Phoenix.  When I was brainstorming what to make for this show I put "kite" into Google images and on the first screen saw these wonderful raptors called kites.  I did a bit of research to see which kind of kite might be seen in Arizona and that is how I picked the Mississippi kite.

Thank you to Camilla Taylor for showing the folks at Trunk Space images of work which led to the invitation to be part of this show.

We had an eventful afternoon yesterday.  I took Roxanne and Stella to the mall's new playspace where, during an especially vigorous game of hide-and-go-seek, Roxanne ran into a wall and got a big gash on her scalp.  Lots of blood all over the place - heads sure bleed a lot! 

She had a trip to the emergency room in the ambulance and then got five staples in her head. They gave her all kinds of toys to bring home and she feels like it was the best time ever.  This morning her head seemed to not hurt at all and she is off to school today to tell everyone about her adventure. It is pretty heartbreaking to see your baby bleeding on the floor.  I'm so glad she is okay.

My wool stuffing from West Earl Woolen Mill came in yesterday!  It looks so fluffy, but I've heard that it will stuff firmly, too. I'm hoping that all of my soft sculptures will be stuffed with wool now. 

wading bird #5

I need to order Kona cotton several yards at a time. I keep buying half yard or quarter yard pieces and using them up as soon as they come in the door.  And I'm getting ready to finally order some wool stuffing.  My 10 lbs. of Buffalo Batt Superfluff are nearly gone now and I think it is time to make the move to wool.  I'm excited about this. I think when you're making sculpture it makes sense to use the higher quality material, and I use less stuffing now that I'm not making toy after toy.

This week I'm finishing the patterns for Softies II and beginning a project for an exciting show that will open mid-February. 

snow bird

A new bird. Her wings are made from tiny hands.  The painting in the background is by Brigid McCabe.

And a little owl from my sketchbook. I like his face.

 

owl 2 and an award

My little sister, Rachel, was visiting us from D.C. these past few days and it was so great to see her.  We immediately started thinking up projects for her new gocco and drooling over the big package of Sizzix paddle punches that just arrived.  My sister and I used to craft together all the time when we were kids and I really miss her now that we live so far away.

While she was here I was patiently sewing many tiny wing feathers onto this owl, and he is finally complete tonight.  His head is rotated much more than the the other owl and his feathers are a different shape. Here is a wing detail from this owl.

When I took a few steps back to look him over the other day I realized that he bears a strong resemblance to the very first original soft toy I designed, back in May of 2005. Do you see it?  That was so funny to me.  I guess I still see owls the same way, but now I can interpret them in fabric with more complexity.

Saturday was the closing of Beyond the Book at the Honan-Allston Branch of the Boston Public Library.  It was a fun show and I was so excited to learn that this piece

had won the Librarian's Choice Distinctive Merit Award.  How nice!