clouds on the horizon

i've been trying to get myself in the habit of doing one or two cloud pieces a day, as i rebuild my collection.
yesterday, the sky was bright and blue,


and the pieces on my work-table seemed to reflect that:


today, on the other hand, the sky was grey and dark,


and i found myself drawn to darker color fabrics:


i'm really excited about this growing collection of clouds... i still want to do several more, so i won't have any finished work for a couple weeks, probably, but i look forward to creating some new groupings for my etsy shop and to take with me to the spring fairs.

in other news, my house is mildly infested with lady bugs; it has been for the past month or so. but i don't mind, i kind of like it just fine and leave them be.
ladybugs seem to like silver-lined cloud pieces, too:


and my plants (which is good for them!):


and this one seems to like my milkglass vase collection. "she" just kept going round and round the rim of this one:


cute, eh? (we've also got stink-bugs, though - and those, i do mind. they've not been getting the kind treatment that the ladybugs have gotten. i get great satisfaction from lifting each stinkbug i find onto a piece of paper and then flinging it out the door or window, all the while muttering to it how it's just lived its last moments in luxury. "you're not welcome here -- goodbye!" i like to sternly say to them as i kick them out. i haven't seen one all day though - maybe i got rid of them all!)

and lastly, so that i leave you on a sweet note and not a stinky one, here's a recipe i highly recommend:


home made cinnamon raisin bread from the "martha stewart baking handbook." (this recipe here is a teeny bit different - but probably just as easy and delicious- i halved the recipe to just make one loaf.) man oh mighty, this stuff is good! if you're looking for weekend baking project, here's one to try!
have a good one, friends. and remember, if you're in los angeles, go to the opening party of "these friends three" at THIS tonight! (see below) ciao!

sparkle and shine

Inspired by this wonderful feedback;


"I have been desirous of one of these cloud embroideries for years, so I was very happy to be able to purchase this little collection. It looks just perfect in a corner of my new house."
(big smiles from me -- i love my etsy customers!)

I've been spending this cloudy week stitching up a new batch of clouds (among other projects):


i recently found this EVER so light blue aida cloth in my collection -- i have no idea where it came from or what this color is called, but i love it for these clouds. the color is SO subtle that the silver lining jumps out much more prominently than with the other colors i use. usually i prefer the subtle lining, like a little surprise that you see after you see the cloud (just like the metaphor), but i'm really liking these ones.



i've got packed-full days of things to do and people to see tomorrow and friday, but i expect to have some new clouds, including a grouping or two, in the shop next week.
have a great rest of your week/weekend!

clouds up (in the shops)

i got such wonderful feedback for my silver-lined clouds at renegade brooklyn this year and i heard over and over again, "you don't have these in your shop often, do you?" and it made me realize, darnit, i should be better at putting clouds in the shops!
so i did.

there's this lovely grouping - an instant collection:


and then, for those wanting to start out small there's this guy:


and this one:


and this one:


here's hoping that your weekend is full of blue skies and fluffy white clouds and pleasant surprises. xo.

shine like it does...

i've gotten quite a few requests for silver-lined clouds lately (were they featured somewhere and i missed it?) and so i've started a new batch:


dang i do love making these clouds and their silver linings:


since i had the silver floss out, i got started on another series/group that i've been wanting and meaning to do for a while. here's the first:


shiny crowns. ooooooh. i had done a whole bunch of these a loooong time ago -- like a year and a half ago. and i found them all as i was packing the studio. those ones were done in the metallic embroidery floss, like this one, but they were all really tiny. i didnt like any of them so i just threw them out.... since then i've found many far-better crown patterns. i'll probably do a few more. i think a grouping of these - different crowns, different sizes, slightly different background colors, but all with the shiny floss - would look cool as a little collection. more to come.

ooh you've got blue skies...ooh you've got graaaay skies

by request - i've added some of the silver-lined clouds to my shops.

this one is all gift-boxed up and ready to go:


it's listed on my bigcartel shop. see it/get it here.

this wee little one is gift-boxed, too:


it's on etsy. here.

this set of three is up on the big cartel shop. here.



and then there's this one - which i just did with a much thicker silver-lining:


i particularly like this detail shot:


it's up on etsy. here.

creating a cloudy forecast...

...for portsmouth, new hampshire


as the clouds gather here for another round of snowy weather, i'm packing up a selection of my silver-lined clouds to send to the ellO gallery for inclusion in their upcoming show. i'm super-excited and flattered to have been invited -- my very first time being a part of a gallery show! i'll definitely be posting more details in the weeks to come.

"she had dust on her hands from the sky...

... she said i touched a cloud."*

FIN_AL_LY i finished this set of clouds.


it's a custom order -- two four-inch pieces and one five-incher, with the potential to add on to the collection.
i had to get new fabric specifically for this order and let me tell you, finding really really wonderful blues in aida cloth is not as easy as one might think! there are lots of blues out there, but so many were too this, or too that... this one was just right (really quite lovely, actually) but it is a smaller grid-count size than i usually work with -- and i hadnt anticipated that... smaller grid-size = more stitches...
however, the pieces are now complete, and i really do love them. i'm happy with the way they turned out. i think they work well together. fingers are crossed that valerie likes them and, if she does, poof! they are out in the mail today.



(update - she likes them! she really, really likes them!)

*(chez-sucre-chez, referencing ride, referencing salinger)

blue skies

here's what happened this morning:


i can't seem to stop; it's another group/series of little clouds. these one are on muted sky-blue backgrounds.
the sky actually looked like this when i awoke at five-thirty this morning -- pretty pale (not yet bright) blue with white fluffy clouds. i wasn't awake enough to think to take a photo of the view outside my bedroom window -- that would have been really good.