roses

I just needed to look at flowers today. It's been so gray here this week. I took these pictures of roses from my little garden back on June 3, 2009. That means only about three months until they are back blooming again. I can't wait! Have a good weekend.

seeds, nuts and grains

It's pouring rain here, a good morning for cooking. I like keeping snacks around the house that have seeds, nuts and whole grains. They fill me up, have lots of protein, and I try to sneak them into my children's diet as well. Sometimes successfully, sometimes not.

So this morning, I made granola. I love this recipe and make it all the time. It's not too sweet , just nutty, wholesome and delicious as cereal or on top of plain yogurt.

Then toasted tamari sunflower seeds. I got this recipe from my mom who puts them in salads. Really easy, really good.

Then maple glazed walnuts. I got this recipe from 3191. Again, easy and good. Dangerously good. I have to limit myself to just a few at a time now, because the first time I made them, I ate almost the whole batch myself.

Today I'm listening to Contra and Graceland. Cheery, melodic music.

bits and pieces

Orange bits from Little Byrd Vintage.

Blue bit from the sale bin at Anthropologie

Tulips from my mom. Thanks, Mom!

Knitting bits. It's this vest, or it will be.

Paper bits.

Today is my day to get organized after a week of school vacation with the children. It's nice and sunny here, not warm though. Have a good day!

brooklyn apartment no. 2

My cousin and his wife live here. This apartment is so light and sunny and overlooks Sunset Park. I'm going to make them some pillows to go on that beautiful blue couch!

Our trip to New York was short and sweet. We ate lots of good food, took long subway rides to Manhattan, did tons of walking. Among other things, we visited MOMA, made it to the Fjallraven store, the Empire State Building (well, Charlie and Will did, not me and Lucy), and Prospect Park in Brooklyn.

I really wanted to make it to Purl Soho and Makie on this trip, but it didn't happen. Which gives me a good reason to go back soon.

brooklyn apartment no. 1

I'm back! This week is school vacation for my kids and we zipped down to New York for a long weekend to stay with my cousin and his wife who live in Brooklyn. They own two apartments overlooking Sunset Park, one where they live, and one they use as a music studio and a crash pad for any lucky family members who come to visit.

I'm always inspired by other people's houses, so here are a few shots of apartment no. 1 where we stayed. I love this place. It's small, cozy, charming and very liveable. My kids were ready to stay for the long haul! I'll post apartment no. 2 later this week.

Also, thank you for your kind comments on the cowl. Some of you have asked for the pattern and I will post it later this week as well.

More on New York tomorrow too!

love

I love that I finally finished this cowl. Or is it actually a cowl? I'm thinking it's really kind of a shrug. At any rate, I love wearing it, and have been all week.

Hope there's lots of love floating around for all of you this weekend, whether you celebrate Valentine's Day or not. I'll be spending it with my kids and husband, we're off on a little adventure. No place warm, so don't even start to get jealous! I'll be back on Wednesday.

I just added two scarves to my shop. One is jaunty, one is elegant.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo to all!

changing and adding

So, I'm changing around my shop! After much deliberation about the pro's and con's I decided to switch my Etsy Shop to Big Cartel. Mostly because I really like the way I can make the shop look on my own. Also, I feel as though most of my customers come to my shop from my blog (thank you lovely supportive blog readers) or from other blogs (thank you lovely supportive bloggers), not from searches on Etsy, soooo......that's the reason for the change! I'm still going to keep the Etsy shop up for a while in case you want to look there for feedback or see what's been sold.

I hope you will like the look of the new shop. I will be adding things in the coming weeks, and as usual, will be announcing shop updates here on my blog.

I've just added these bride and groom clothespeg dolls to the new shop.

Wouldn't they be cute as a wedding gift? Maybe some clever person could even figure out how to put them atop a wedding cake!

pillows

Tartan and velvet on the shelf finally became pillows for my living room this weekend. See that blue and grey yarn? It's going to start becoming a vest. I finally finished that crazy cowl I was telling you about. Photos coming soon.

almost 10

In two weeks she'll be ten. She's got so many interests now: playing the piano, writing, drawing, swimming, reading, the school musical. Sometimes she's moody, sometimes she's sweet. In her face I can see a little glimpse of who she will be in ten more years. But right now I don't want her to grow up too fast.

***

I'll be wearing these things this spring! Still months away, but I have to dream.

dress: Calypso

scarf: J.Crew

shoes: Dolce Vita

bag: me (bags on sale 'till the end of next week, then some changes in the shop)

Have a good weekend.

just a dusting

Just a dusting of snow fell yesterday. Last week grey skies threatened to undo me. But yesterday, the snowy grey day didn't bother me at all. It must be because it's finally February.

Sometimes I think about painting the outside of my house all white, even the trim.

10 things

I was tagged by Tricia of Luminosity to reveal 10 little known facts about me. Here goes!

1. I grew up in the country side of New Hampshire. I know how to make maple syrup, identify wild animal tracks in the snow, ride my bike up a mountain, find wintergreen leaves in the forest, and build a woodpile. Now I live in the city, go figure.

2. I like cold weather sports. I was the captain of the nordic ski team in high school.

3. I come from a family of artists and craftspeople. Woodworkers, painters, weavers, bookbinders, musicians, pattern makers, timber framers are all part of my family history. Most of my family came to America from the British Isles, except for my mother's grandfather who came from Romania.

4. If I could eat Asian food everyday I would. My favorite is to go down to Chinatown for dim sum. Close second is the Japanese soup place near my house.

5. For ten years I worked in a college library. I can catalog books, manuscripts, and autograph letters according to the Dewey Decimal System.

6. Sometimes I like to listen to AC/DC, but mostly I don't.

7. I have visited the island in Indonesia where the Komodo dragons live. I was terrified I might actually see one. I did see one, and was terrified.

8. I never wear the color red. It just doesn't suit me.

9. High heeled shoes, never. High heeled boots, often.

10. I wish I spoke French.

last weekend in january

Got some new house plants. Their tropical vibe is making me happy on cold days. Cake making and knitting were accomplished this weekend. Chocolate raspberry cake recipe is here. Made great progress on the cowl. I'm going to be wearing it in the not too distant future, I think. Fiddling around with pretty silk fabric, inspired by these photos from Korean Vogue. Last, a corner of my living room, sporting a new plant as well. Cyclamen. Never tried one before, but I liked the white blossoms.

I'm happy it's February.