barn table lamp

 We are spending a ton of time with my mom at the barn. Once again she is transforming the space and coming up with innovative projects using what she's got on hand from her fascinating collection of  retro and rescued pieces. She had bought several vintage factory molds a while back. She found them visually exciting and wanted to display them or put them to use some how.  And so she did! Two are strung with wire and suspended from the ceiling. Another was retrofitted onto a stool as an end table with benefits.

 step 1: find the perfect stool

 step 2: cut a piece of masonite to size and screw to bottom

Step 3: place mold on top of stool

Note the fabulous cup holders and perfect base for a lamp!

Step 4: Set up a lamp with interesting lighting components like a cage light and an old metal basket.

 

Leave it to my mom!

warmth

It is far too cold. My children are home from school so that I can keep them warm. It is critical that I keep the fire stoked, cookies baked, soup on the stove and crafts on the table. Priorities, right? But when it's this frigid, barn checks are in order, too. It was exactly a year ago in January during a cold spell that the pipes froze at my mom's barn... 

Each time I drop in, my hand instinctively reaches for my iPhone... my second set of eyes that capture the vignettes that mysteriously multiply with each visit. 

pops of color that feel like sunshine... 

bits of history that warm my soul... 

wisps of memories that thaw my bones...

winter bloom

I discovered a most unusual vintage wool blanket at Found. Its bold floral pattern works in reverse on the flip side. Red and cream. Cream and red. Considering I devoted an entire chapter in Reinvention to working with wool blankets, you'd think I would have taken out the shears by now. Poufs, pillows, bags, trivets, scarves... so many possibilities, but it hasn't told me what it wants to be, yet. Here's the thing- it's in pristine condition. Maybe it just wants to be a blanket. The kind of romantic woolen wrap that you throw around your shoulders and run out into the snow to walk amidst the frosted trees. 

Creating magic doesn't always have to involve thread and needle. I need that reminder these days when I'm pulled in every direction- except the door to my studio.  Sometimes weaving a little enchantment into the middle of a busy day is just as transformative as something more tangible. So out I went... tripod trailing through the deep snow. Tiptoeing through the powder, draped in a rosy glow.

What might you do with this vintage blanket if it was in your hands?

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p.s. new post up at honoring hope

feather chair

 I'm starting this week with a wonderful sense of accomplishment, because I tackled a project that had sat on my diy list for an embarrassingly long time. In fact, I literally sat on it for a long time. Undone. This vintage steel folding chair was thrifted a couple of years ago with the thought of recovering the paint splattered vinyl. At some point, it moved out of the garage and into my studio. It's super comfortable and sturdy even with the cushions detached and just a piece of fabric tossed over it to hide its sad state. But come on- enough of that! I told myself that if I didn't fix it by January- it was returning to Salvation Army. So...

 I chose my favorite combination of white and linen. I never tire of it. Fresh, clean, inspiring.

Feathers are my symbol for this chapter, so putting one over my shoulder seemed just right. I used my very own stencil from my book... another satisfying moment!

 I ironed it directly to the freshly upholstered chair, crossing my fingers that the vinyl beneath wouldn't do something crazy.

 But all was well...

 And here I shall happily sit to stitch some hope and magic... indoors, of course!

It's only Monday, what might you tackle this week?

fabric stories

 Too much going on this week for a lot of words... not the time to go too deep. So how about some lovely fabric! We can all rally around that! This vintage canvas was a fantastic score at a garage sale this summer. It was an old tarp that had been lovingly cared for by a country family and used for generations of farm chores only to find its way into my hands.  I think it was waiting for me! I've cut off sections that aren't stained and worn and thoroughly washed and pressed them to be reinvented into something new. I kind of like the stained parts (looks like clean dirt to me) and might save them for my own crafting or possibly to dye! These are custom zipper pouches that have finally made their way to their new homes. I am stitching slowly these days, or should I say in fits and bursts... but I hope to make some more soon, as this canvas might be some of the most delicious fabric I've worked with. Sturdy, soft, and filled with stories of hard work and seasons passing. It suits this romantic quite well. And takes stamps bea-U-tifully!

 And here is a bit of luna love, custom created for a purple lover. I knew I had an old vintage purple zipper in my stash, and I stitched this pouch around it according to her specs.  Her pouch utilizes an old tarp that once hung in my studio... it's infused with tons of creativity and inspiration. Oodles, I tell you!

That's what I appreciate most about fabric... more than the prints and the patterns, I love the stories woven in. I know... you've heard me say it quite a few times. Wink. Wink.

Be well!

lace and eggs

 This weekend we'll be dying a dozen or so eggs in our typical child-focused fashion. But I've been craving a different kind of decorating, as well. I hoped for a few very simple eggs that didn't disguise the shell's natural pigment (which would be especially lovely for blue and green eggs, but brown were what we had). After blowing out three, I wrapped them in lace ribbons. I tried several different widths, but the thinner was by far the best way to go. One was a remnant of an old pillow case, the other a vintage find, and the blue is my new French ribbon from Sonia.

A few stitches to the back attached the two ends in place and a dot of glue keeps it from sliding off.

Pretty*Simple*Easy

Here are two other alternatives to dying that you might enjoy:
spice eggs from Ella
crocheted eggs from Anne 

What are your favorite egg decorating techniques and traditions? I'd love to hear...

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feathered find

Birds continue to offer endless inspiration... not just in my designs, but in the every day moments of sitings as the come and go. My children are equally delighted by spotting and identifying who's out back or on our walks. My son's endless fascination with flight is not reserved only for airplanes and my daughter is known for her feather magic. If there's a feather to be found, she's certain to be the one to stumble upon it. When my mother and I were working on her crate wall, I discovered this vintage lotto game among her vast game collection. I squealed. Wouldn't you? She gave it to me for whatever might strike my fancy.

Isn't it beautiful!? I thought you'd find some inspiration from these old illustrations, too. I can't decide what to do with it- tuck it away for playing by the fire (deep in winter) when we're missing our feathered friends or display it some how for everyone to enjoy. What would you do?

The Barn Crate Wall

I've been wanting to share this barn project with you for over a month. It was a spontaneous makeover my mother and I threw together right before she had to return to her teaching job in California. Do you remember those fantastic crates she hauled home from Madison Bouckville? They sat on her front porch until the forecast of Irene intensified, and we had no choice but to bring them in (letting one remain). There's always a need for storage in her little barn, but wall space is hard to come by between the radiators and the many windows. And then the light bulb moment happened. I had never been completely satisfied with the bathroom divider and its many iterations over the last year. You can read more about it here, or just take a quick refresher peek of the previous photos.

So, those crates were configured into a dividing wall. Two vertically and one horizontally across the top.The wooden crates seems to grow right out of the old barn floor. It's sturdier and little less busy then other versions. Still fun and wild, but since this is the first thing you see upon coming upstairs, it's nice to let the eyes have a moment to take everything in.

A little ledge was left on one side. Nice for rotating displays, since the afternoon sun hits it like a spotlight.

One side is wall, and the other... a bank of shelves in her bathroom/closet. We had fun filling it up, but it's still evolving.

See that toilet paper, laugh if you will, but that's my favorite part of the entire makeover! Since this shelf is close to the toilet, we could have continued to just have baskets of tp. While we were pondering this, my mom noted that the top shelf was wobbly. "It needs a little shim..." I said as I wandered over to the studio for something to temporarily do the trick. That's when I spotted the "kill two birds with one stone" (what an awful saying that is!) wooden spool thingy we had gotten together years before.

It formed the perfect "shim" and tp holder! Don't you love those moments? I love "playing" with my mom. STILL.

I sure hope my kids will enjoy playing with me when they grow up, too.

crate-full

Happy Monday friends! Popping in to show you just why I was so excited about those crates my mother brought back from Madison Bouckville. There are a lot of them, no? I love to stack crates for shelves... these are already built as shelves! They were selling them for so little that she filled the back of her tiny pickup truck. She didn't get much else... this was the gold. We've been cleaning them off and looking for new ways to get organized over at the barn. Who doesn't need more shelves?

The typography is, of course, what I love most. It's clue to the past. The history of these crates is steeped in a local wool slipper business that I found fascinating. You can read about it right here. My mom discovered some old writing in one of them... someone's notes scrawled in pencil. I ran my fingers over the indented lines trying to transport myself back to 1919, if only for a moment. It was the same time of year as right now... wonder if the person who wrote it felt the fall chill in the air like I do today... maybe they did and hoped for more slipper sales!

My mom also picked up a few very old cigar boxes. They're striking aren't they?



And I had had one big wish... a large frying pan for all the cooking this bountiful season inspires. Thanks mom, it's a beauty!