Spring Sale- Scarf Prices Are Going Up May 1

We’ve been sewing and ironing like crazy to get ready for the Simsbury Flea and Smorgasbord Show. It’s next Saturday, (rain or shine) April 27, from 9-5. The show is one day only and I’d love to see you there but if you can’t make it, no worries, scarves in stock today and ordered before May 1, will be sold for the current price of $42.00. After May 1, the new price will be $44.95. SORRY- THIS SALE IS OVER!! Peony Heaven Takes Planning Spring is the time for fertilizing some plants. Today, it was time for the peonies. Having
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Spring is Sprung

Sedum (aka Stonecrop) is a beautiful succulent that appears in early Spring (that’s today in Litchfield). I recently posted a new scarf design and asked people to guess what plant I drew the green from. Sedum!  An unusual shaped succulent that spans the length of our growing season in New England. Sedum is a hardy, perennial addition to a sunny garden. There are both tall and creeping varieties. Mine get pretty tall- up to 2.5 feet and leggy. One might choose a creeping variety for a more tidy garden. It’s early Spring in Connecticut and the usual suspects are slowly
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Your Home Can Be Your Personal Art Place

 “Artists are picky people. The objects they live with — furniture, artifacts, ceramics, works by other artists — are usually carefully chosen, and they look it.”* My parents were both ceramicists, clay their primary medium. They engendered in us a certain mysterious connection between creativity and nature. Potters surround themselves with organic materials including plants. As children, we were in the garden daily in warm weather, playing and raising flowers and vegetables. Bennington Pottery, Bennington, Vermont Last week we visited Bennington Pottery in Vermont, a business that put its town on the map and employed many local residents for years.
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They’re Baaack!

They’re Baaack! The skunk cabbage are here. And more coming. One of my favorite signs of spring. I just have to write about them every year! It’s not just their color and shape. Or the fact that they’re pioneers, early adaptors. Or perhaps it’s their undeniable motherly qualities against all odds and threat of inclement weather. Interestingly, skunk cabbage also reminds me of the work of the artist Henry Spencer Moore- a celebrated English sculptor known for his monumental semi- abstract bronze sculptures. An artist my dad was a big fan of. Read more here about the story of incredible
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It’s Sewing Time Again

I love sewing. It brings quiet. It helps one make connections with personal history. My mother and sisters taught me to sew many years ago. Exploring all kinds of fabric, texture and colors. My passion for the arts began in a fabric store looking for prints, lace and thread for doll clothes. Followed by patterns and zippers for my own clothes. And then, sewing special dresses for my daughter too! The sensation of peace often emerges as a welcome consequence of handwork. Sewing can allow one to move forward in an ordered fashion- without undue haste. In this way, it
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Mardi Gras

Mardi Gras is a tradition that dates back thousands of years to pagan celebrations of spring and fertility. Christian leaders decided to incorporate many popular pagan traditions in a new way. In this case, the craziness got condensed into “Fat Tuesday,” a single day before the period of 40 days of fasting and penance between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday. In 1857, a secret society of New Orleans businessmen called the Mistick Krewe of Comus organized a torch-lit procession with marching bands and rolling floats. This set the tone for future public celebrations that continue today in 2019- known as
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Flowers Galore

Flowers are the number one reason this gardener gardens. Of course, the number one flower for any mom is her daughter. In this photo, Bridget is shown modeling our new scarf Caroline, named after a great lady, Caroline Ferriday. We’ve created a tradition where I finish a couple new scarves and snag Bridget to pose for them in exchange for coffee on me. It’s been no small feat convincing my dear photophobic daughter to help out but it’s been fun!  This year’s garden efforts will include enriching existing beds and improving all blooms. We began last fall with a general
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New Scarves Incoming

Wintertime is design time as the garden sleeps. Happily, I’ve been busy and we have three new scarves ready to order – Caroline, Mardi Gras, and The Blues. Another one is just back, Laura. Waiting for stitching. As thoughts turn to garden, I thought a couple links might prove helpful. Every year at this time I find a need to check again when that last frost might be passing through. Here is it again. And some thoughts about what to do when that happens! How about starting seeds indoors? I found this funky site. I heard this young man’s voice
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Life in Black and White

I will die a colorist. At the same time. In the beginning, an artist has to deny her creative self and start simply. It’s part of any learning process, regardless of vocation. The markers are everywhere. How often have you heard the words “Baby steps; One day at a time; or First things first?” In art school, Drawing 101 begins with charcoal and a still life. Fast forward. One lens used in the new film Roma cost in the neighborhood of $80,000. Film director Alfonso Cuaron did NOT get there overnight.  Roma lead actress, Yalitza Aparicio is new to acting
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Where Do Colors Come From?

Having worked in color all my life, I’ve never been intimidated by its use. Add to that an obsession with fairy tales and well, we’re off! I remember when a very successful decorator, on seeing my brightly colored pillows in NYC became vexed with me. “Too much color! Didn’t I know, color is intended for walls-as ART?” I admit it, I’m a little color crazed. But why does art have to be limited to walls? Overtime, I came to see a certain wisdom in her comments. Color, is challenging to integrate, and color carries with it, certain moods, which further
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