jewels and jules

A quick note

2010-09-02T19:31:00.002-04:00

I just wanted to give a quick heads up that I will be closing the shop over the weekend. I'm not really sure when I'll be able to open it again, I'm hoping that I'll at least have it open with limited stock for the holidays, but I'm not going to promise anything....so make your purchases while you can!

Anyway, I'll be around here. I have a bunch of baby projects that I want to share, as soon as I finish them!

What I've been making lately....

2010-08-03T18:36:00.002-04:00

.....a baby! I know I took the world's longest break from blogging. I never intended to, but this pregnancy has taken a lot more out of me than I expected and Jewelweeds operations have taken a back burner. But I've been doing a good deal of baby related crafting, below is a sneak peak of a play mat in progress. More soon, I promise!

sunday!

2009-12-11T13:34:00.003-05:00

Hope to see you there!

Here are just a few of the vendors who will be there:

ps. I just realized that Divine Studios is just across the street from the Gifted Market, so come on out and make a day of it!

Everyday...

2009-12-09T22:47:00.004-05:00

(here it is so you can actually read it)

In the mad dash toward the holidays, I keep forgetting to post about this. Thanks to the lovely Jan at Poppytalk, my Maple Seed Pod Tea Towel and a couple of (seemingly overgrown compared to the tea towel....) sachets were featured in the December issue of Everyday with Rachael Ray. I think it's still out, I should check.

Thanks Jan!

Also, don't forget tomorrow is the last day for international shipping to arrive by Christmas!

new in the shop

2009-12-07T18:33:00.003-05:00

New things in the shop. I'm really excited about these new styles and colors. There are still a few more that I need to list and I'll try to get to it soon. Christmas shipping deadlines are fast approaching. I would recommend Dec 10th (thursday!) as the last day for international shipments and Dec 17th (next thursday) for domestic. We'll be heading out of town on monday the 21st, so get your orders in!

Now back to the grindstone! Don't forget the Holiday Craft Sale is this Sunday!

sneak peek....

2009-11-30T01:38:00.002-05:00

new designs....come see them at Laundry Night!

I'll have them in the shop soon for those of you who are too far away.

Hope to see you tomorrow, don't forget, we'll be there until 9pm so stop by after work!

Laundry Night! Curated Market

2009-11-24T14:47:00.003-05:00

LAUNDRY NIGHT – curated market, cake walk and esoterica at the washeteria

monday, november 30th from 1 – 9pm

open house gallery

201 mulberry street at spring

new york, new york 10012

1pm & 6pm aromatic attunement (repeat)

4pm cake walk for smiley friends ages 10 and under

curated Market – shopping for tastemakers and nosy neighbors

Jewelry by Dawn

OW Socks – socks are simple cute pets for everyday life to make our feet happy

Jewelweeds – handcrafted sustainable textiles with block printing and hand embroidery

EIEIO Studio – ready-to-wrap currently featured on Oprah's November O List

PubliQueLiving – home accessories, elegance for the design-minded individual

Canopy Verde – modern, earth-friendly bags and totes

Random Acts by Miwako – artist and chef from Oakland. She knits like there's no tomorrow.

UM by Josh Jakus – felt zipper bags, experiential connections between form and function

Sharon Wickham Photographs

KepuCosa – hand knit winter accessories, made from recycled yarn

Healing Crystals – handmade natural jewelry

YOSH olfactory sense – artisanal fragrances. Preview the 2010 Evanescent Collection.

esoterica at the washeteria – air your dirty laundry

Aromatic Attunements - 1pm & 6pm (repeat)

Do you enjoy the sweet smell of success? Do you want to be filthy rich or are you waiting for Prince Charming? We 'll be smelling mood elevating essences and anchoring them with an affirmation to bring your energy into alignment. Join us for guided meditations with aromas lead by Yosh Han, perfumer and clairvoyant. Complimentary aura readings throughout the day.

About the curators:

OW is a seamless Ameba-Unit which started spreading all over the world in 2007. Phototgrapher/Filmmaker Sven Wiederholt is Czar of this unit. His members are located all over the and are ready for the next project. Its projects are currently ranging from film to products. However, OW itself does not know what will happen next. OW will keep transforming, just like an Ameba.

Yosh Han is the creator of YOSH olfactory sense, a boutique fragrance company and consultancy specializing in artisanal perfumes. These fragrances can be found at the most exclusive boutiques including Barneys New York and Takashimaya.

{A note from me, Yosh was one of my bosses (and a dear friend) when I worked at 826 Valencia as a pirate shop keeper and buyer (among other things) who was responsible for such things as Thumbwrestling Tournaments, Icelandic Film Festivals, and the popularization of all things pirate. Let's just say she knows how to put on an event. I hope to see you there! It's open late so stop by after work and get started on your Christmas shopping!}

the process

2009-11-22T19:49:00.003-05:00

(color tests while mixing up big batches of ink)

First of all I need to thank everyone for the well wishes and congratulations from last week. They really warmed my heart! And with that comes apologies to everyone I haven't yet responded to. I will, I promise. My life has been, shall we say—full lately. Illnesses, root canals, deadlines and other assorted dramas have gotten in the way of my organized and thoughtful fall production schedule. For some reason I thought that this year would be the one where I would finally have enough stock made ahead of time so that I wouldn't have to scramble at the last minute. Umm, maybe next year....

On friday, I packed up a big (and heavy) box of goodies to send to Craftland. And have since discovered some muscles I didn't know I had, thanks to the mad dash to the post office 10 blocks away with an awkward 15 lb. box. Ok. I'm a wuss. But, I'm super jealous of Providence peeps who get to actually visit Craftland. If you are anywhere nearby, you should definitely check it out. It's like a magical craft fair that lasts the almost the entire month of December. They have a store too, more here.

I'm experimenting with screenprinting some of my designs. I'll let you know how it goes. I love the maple seed pod tea towels, but boy are they a bitch to print in large quantities. Each pod is printed individually, 9 per towel. Hopefully the screen will work out. I'm a little sad about moving in this direction (if it works out) because I love the imperfections in block printing, the prints always feel so alive to me. They are never exactly the same. We'll see. I think with screenprinting by hand there will be some imperfections too. God, I am such an irrational perfectionist, obsessing about levels of imperfectness. Let's move on.

On monday, November 30th, you can find me at:

LAUNDRY NIGHT – CURATED MARKET, CAKE WALK AND ESOTERICA AT THE WASHETERIA

1 – 9PM

OPEN HOUSE GALLERY

201 MULBERRY STREET AT SPRING

NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10012

More info on that coming soon, mark your calendars!

more than you ever wanted to know

2009-11-09T23:01:00.003-05:00

I'm very honored to be Etsy's Featured Seller! Check it out here. There is also a whole lot of new stuff in the shop for the occasion!

save the date

2009-11-08T23:42:00.002-05:00

Mark your calenders! This is the first craft fair I have confirmed for December, I should be able to let you know about others pretty soon. They'll all be in NYC, but I will have stuff available at Craftland in Providence. (More on that later.)

The Divine sale is really a great one, it's a bit of a hidden gem, not as chaotic as Bust or Renegade and all of the sellers are really excellent. You can see pics from last year here. I hope to see you this year!

*save the date art by the talented Laura Normandin*

New Colors and Styles

2009-10-16T15:58:00.003-04:00

I know that I still haven't shared pictures of our California trip (it's been a busy and crazy autumn so far) but I was so inspired by the colors of the landscapes along Highway 1 that I based the colors of my Fall Collection on them. While we were in CA, we had a chance to stop by the Heath factory store (which deserves it's own post) and I picked up a few of their gorgeous tiles to commemorate the colors of the weeds, soil, hills and water.

More to come on the new collection, I've begun listing new things in the shop and will continue to do so in the next few weeks. This collection of sachets are already there.

at the flea tomorrow

2009-10-09T16:48:00.002-04:00

Last minute I know. It's a little last minute for me too. I'll be sharing a tent with the lovely Alison Tauber and her goodies. Come visit us! It's going to be a good Flea day and the subways are not going to be working, so you might as well walk on over....

*I'll be debuting a limited selection of my new colors and styles*

Yellow Monday

2009-09-28T15:17:00.002-04:00

In honor of Poppytalk's Autumn Color Week, I've listed a new sachet color—Mustard! Available in the shop now.

Poppytalk Handmade Market

2009-09-22T15:02:00.004-04:00

I'm back in the Poppytalk Handmade Market. It's always such a wonderfully curated group of artists and this one is no exception. Here are some of my favorites this month:

Repeat's Nasturtium Fat Quarter

I've been a fan of Arounna's work for a long time, and I'm loving her collaboration with Roisin just as much.

My friend Allison Tauber's Foliage Cotton Scarf. It seems like the perfect amount of warmth for this in-between season days.

My love of birch is no secret and I've been coveting this print by Lisa Congdon since seeing the original painting in a sneak peek of her apartment. I would definitely not be disappointed if this ended up in my stocking this Christmas....

Eikcam is new to me, but the combination of beautiful jewelry, ceramics and bits of nature have me hooked.

Oh, and you can check out the Jewelweeds table here.

caught in the act

2009-09-20T19:59:00.003-04:00

I wasn't kidding. Can you see the acorn in his mouth?

(I got my picture downloading issues worked out, but it involved getting a new computer (yay!) but that means a big mess of virtual tidying...bear with me, I have lots of exciting things in the works)

wedding bells

2009-09-15T12:19:00.003-04:00

I've had a number of wedding related custom orders lately. One of my favorites, and something I wish I had thought of for our wedding, is a chuppah printed with a cascade of maple seed pods. I love the tradition of chuppahs—they are a symbol of the new home that a marriage creates. I also love that it is something that can be re-purposed after the wedding. It can be used as a wall hanging, or a tablecloth to be used for anniversaries or special occasions.

I won't be listing more in the shop because it's such a specialized item, but if you are interested, please feel free to get in touch, I'd be happy to collaborate on one for your wedding.

Another great idea that I can't take credit for, is sachets as bridesmaid gifts or favors. Again, feel free to contact me for custom quantities and colors, but please be sure to allow enough time for production. I don't really keep large quantities on hand, but I'm happy to create an order for you.

antique lace

2009-09-14T18:48:00.004-04:00

Some bits of lace that I bought at an antique mall in california. The top piece is a collar that almost perfectly matches a different collar that Tracy and I bought in NY to use as a cuff for her wedding. Someday I'd like to learn how to crochet this kind of lace.

You can see one of the two (!) figs growing on little tree at the bottom of the picture. This excited me beyond belief! I never thought that it would fruit so soon! Oh, and my mother confirms that my great-great grandfather was indeed a fig, olive and date specialist, so it truly in my blood. Now I just need date and olive trees and my heritage collection will be complete, well, those and a greenhouse. Someday...

new design

2009-09-10T13:15:00.002-04:00

Wow, I never meant to be gone so long. And I can't believe that it's already close to the middle of September. Part of the reason I've been so absent is that we took a really lovely and needed trip to California. The main reason for the trip was a dear friends' wedding, but we stayed a bit longer and got to have some adventures on our own. Ben had never been to California, and I hadn't been back since I moved back east, so we had a wonderful time discovering new things and seeing old friends. Part of the reason I haven't posted about it (even though we took about a million pictures) is some really geeky computer data management issues. I have about half a gig left on my computer and I'm too lazy and overwhelmed by it all to figure out a good (and more permanent) system for downloading and storing all those pictures. Boring. Anyway, when we do figure something out, I'll be sure to share because we saw lots of great and inspiring stuff.

In the mean time, I wanted to share my new acorn design which will soon be adorning sachets. I've been wanting to add a third design to the sachet repertoire because three's are much better than two's for a collections sake. The acorn was part of an all-over print design I made last winter that never really went anywhere, so I decided to put it into action on it's own. That, and I was reminded when our frisky squirrel neighbor started to try to bury his acorns in our window boxes again yesterday. Which reminds me that I should go and close the screen that I left open when watering the plants. We've already had an almost squirrel break in, and cats have tried too. But that's a story for another day.

(the print in the pic above is just made with a regular old pigment ink pad, which I use to test the print while I'm carving it, haven't had a chance to print it for real. I like to wait until I have a bunch of stuff to print before breaking out the brayer so I don't waste ink. I'll be sure to show you the real thing soon.)

filed under: things I have no business doing right now...

2009-08-12T00:16:00.005-04:00

I'm almost finished with a largish project, one that unexpectedly took priority over the last week, but I made time to put this little bit of crocheted art together. It really only took about 20 minutes, but it was definitely not something that needed doing. If you know what I mean. But sometimes you need to just do something that makes you feel good.

I got the little crocheted piece a few months ago at the Chelsea flea, and had been hanging onto it, not really sure what what it was it was destined to be, until I saw Laura's post on Design*Sponge a few weeks ago. Don't know why it took me until then to figure that out, I've admired Laura's crocheted pieces for a good long while.

I just stitched it onto a scrap of linen with the aid of a small embroidery hoop and then stretched over one of those mini canvases. The whole thing is only 3" x 3". And it makes me happy.

I've listed more maple seed pod tea towels in the shop. Will have them in mustard as soon as I can take some pics.

Giveaway Winner!

2009-08-03T15:24:00.003-04:00

I had such a good time doing this giveaway! It feels right cleaning out and finding new homes for my goodies. I'll definitely be doing this again soon. Thanks for everyone who participated, it's very exciting to see all your corners of the world.

The winner is G! (look for an email from me, so I can get your address)

Here are some pictures of the stones on the beach at my favorite place in world.

I have a bunch of new projects to share with you soon. Hope everyone is having a good midsummer. Can't believe it's August already. I swear July is the fastest month of the year.

Flea Finds

2009-07-19T18:36:00.002-04:00

and some props I made from this Purl Bee pattern.

projects (for me!)

2009-07-17T14:25:00.002-04:00

Since Renegade, I've been itching to do some sewing for myself. That is one thing about having a craft business, I feel guilty (I just wrote 'quilt-y' by mistake, proves my point exactly) about spending time making things that will not generate income, or if I do have extra time, I'm just plain sick of sewing, printing, etc and just need to get out of the house.

My cousin's wedding a few weeks ago was the perfect opportunity/excuse to make things for myself. I made myself an Alabama Chanin style dress out of some beautiful silk/wool jersey (haven't had a chance to get a good pic, but I'll definitely share them when I do) and this leather clutch. I fell in love with this silvery, soft leather while Jewelweeds shopping at Mood. I certainly had no business pawing through the leather, or the even looking at the silk jerseys, but you know, things happen. I'm usually not one for shiny things, but the silver was so subtle and vintage-y worn. It was really hard to get an accurate picture, it's a little more sandy than it looks in the picture. I kept thinking about the leather, and eventually went back and got it (fyi, the leather is now downstairs at Mood). I cut out the pieces for the purse the night before we left for Boston and sewed it in the car on the way up. Luckily for the clutch (not so much for us) the weather and the traffic was so bad that it took us seven freaking hours to get there. I lined it with some heavier leather that I had to give it more body, the silver leather is quite light and drapey, my sister said that it felt like her puppy's ear which I don't want to think the connection there, but I have a bunch left over and I want to make something that showcases this quality. Maybe something like this.

Mid-Summer SALE & GIVEAWAY!

2009-07-17T13:53:00.002-04:00

In honor of the fact that we are actually having summer weather here in Brooklyn, and my birthday next week, and I'm on a purging kick, Jewelweeds is having a Mid-Summer Sale!

I've been listing many new products in the shop, and to make room for these, I've put a whole bunch of my older items on big sale, quite a few are as much 50% off. The sale will go through August 1st, so get 'em while you can!

And the GIVEAWAY! Also in the spirit of purging and making room for new stuff, I've put together a summery giveaway. It includes: A hand-quilted vintage linen cabbage rose Clutch; Linen Sprig Napkins in ruby red (set of 2), an Organic Lavender Sachet also in ruby red, Linden Berry linen coasters (set of 2) all tucked into a cotton Jewelweeds tote. All together is it a $91.00 value (saying that feels pretty used-salesman...eek!) To enter, please leave a comment here before August 1st, I'll announce the winner on Monday August 3rd!

ps. even if you don't win, you can still purchase the Clutch and the Coasters on sale in the shop...

The fruits of Brooklyn

2009-07-01T15:10:00.002-04:00

I've been itching to get a fig tree ever since we got our little meyer lemon, and finally we did! I can't wait for it to bear fruit, fresh figs are so yummy, especially with a little blue cheese or prosciutto, or grilled with honey...

I noticed this mature fig tree (below) on our block a year or two ago, and on a recent trip to the post office was inspired to document other fruits growing on our block. It doesn't seem as though anyone is caring for it, there were many unripe fruits on the ground (I hope some critters are enjoying them at least!). Undoubtedly, this plant was brought to Brooklyn as a cutting by Italian immigrants. My mom is sure that her grandfather did this, his father was employed by the Italian government to help farmers in Mexico grow olives before he brought the family from Sicily to Brooklyn, so he was surely passionate about agriculture. I wish I knew more about this part of my family history. My mom has some documentation, but it a lot of the stories have faded.

Cherry trees down the block that were planted about 30 years ago when the neighborhood was pretty blighted. A man who helped plant all the trees noticed me taking pictures and filled me in on a little bit of the history. I bit of a sad story involving a murdered friend, but it spurred some rejuvenation and I'm grateful for the outcome because we now have so many mature trees which do provide a slight respite from the summer heat (if we ever get any...)

And finally, the mulberry trees in our front yard. It's such a shame that most of these berries go to waste, my dad suggested that I bake a mulberry pie, but we've been away so much in June that I haven't had a chance. I'd like to try to make a jam, anyone have a good recipe?

summer of quilting

2009-06-19T14:26:00.002-04:00

I currently have two quilts in the works, and several in my head, not to mention plans to expand the Jewelweeds quilt line up. I've been thinking a lot about technique lately, I'm mostly self-taught, but I do have some genetic predisposition to quilting, my grandmother is a master quilter, so some learning was through osmosis. My grandmother turned 89 (89 is the new 70!) on monday and we went to visit my grandparents to celebrate and I was sent home with these great quilting books. She highly recommends the blue one on top, and after a quick glimpse, I'd have to agree. It's very straight forward and thorough and has plenty of "process" photos. It's written by Michael James and I have no idea if it's still in print, but I'd recommend checking ebay if you are even remotely thinking about quilting.

I've finally gotten some of the new things in the shop. I've been fighting the dismal weather for any speck of natural light (I live in Brooklyn, not Seattle, hello!) so it's taking me much longer than I'd like to get the shop fully updated. Please be patient. The napkins are 90% there and I'll be tackling tea towels next, but first I've got to get out of the house while the sun is out before I the cabin fever totally gets to me!

recovering....

2009-06-09T00:29:00.003-04:00

we are exhausted! but we had a great weekend at Renegade. It was great meeting lots of internet-y and blog-y folks. I wish I had had more time to explore, I only had a chance to pop into a few booths, but what I did see was pretty great. More to come, too tired for coherency....

ps. I'll be posting lots of the new stuff from Renegade in the etsy store this week. Check back here for updates.

sneak peak

2009-06-03T14:53:00.004-04:00

A quick peak at my first real screenprinting project: (I love gocco, but that doesn't really count) TOTE BAGS! They are special for Renegade, and will be free with a $50+ purchase or for the very reasonable price of $4. Get 'em while they last!

(The design is my rendition of Autumn Flowering Clematis, one of my favorite flowers. You may notice a resemblance to the Clematis Leaf tea towel...)

renegade prep

2009-06-02T02:08:00.002-04:00

the apartment is a mess, I have a head cold/allergies, emails are not being answered, but the preparations for Renegade soldier on. I'm really excited about some of the new things debuting at Renegade, the weather is set to cooperate, hope to see you there!

Front page

2009-05-19T03:04:00.002-04:00

A lizziefish alerted me that my maple seed pod onesie had drifted onto the front page yesterday. Along with a number of other favorite and coveted items...I've been thinking about shrugs lately. We have a few weddings to go this summer, and I'm inevitably chilly in a fancy dress on breezy summers night. But I digress. I finally got the rest of the onesies washed and with any luck they'll be printed by the end of the week. So look out for new sizes and colors. There may also be a surprise new/old design, but I don't know if it's realistic that it will be done before Renegade. We'll see.

Succulent Quilt! (part 3)

2009-05-18T02:38:00.004-04:00

Here's the quilt all finished! There is a pretty good amount of space in between each plant, but don't worry, they will fill out.

Here's the quilt about two weeks later. As you can see, all of them really blossomed and expanded. Also, many of them have little 'antennae' that I think will bloom soon. It's really amazing how much they've changed in such a short time. The colors, shapes, height. I didn't really notice it until I started putting this post together. They've totally opened up!

It's important in the beginning to water it more than you normally would water succulents. They need to get well established before they can tolerate their normal dry conditions. After planting, we stuck ours in the tub on top of a paint roller tray, so the water would drain out the bottom. You can also make little feet out of cork or something so that your box won't sit directly on whatever surface it's on. This is something I didn't think about, but it's important because you can't hang up your quilt right away. You need to give it a few weeks to settle first. We still haven't hung ours yet, but truthfully, it's just as stunning on a table as it is on wall.

The next succulent project is a wreath...stay tuned!

Succulent Quilt! (part 2)

2009-05-18T01:44:00.003-04:00

(apologies for the picture quality in this section, we started this project a little too late in the afternoon for good natural light...)

The next step is to make the second layer of screen. This layer will go on top of the soil and contain it from the top. Cut a piece of screen about two inches bigger than your box in both directions. Fold one inch over on each side so that you have a box-like shape. Make sure that it fits inside of the box. It shouldn't fit over it like a lid, but in it. The folded over edges will fit in between the soil and the sides of the box. Set the screen aside for now.

Mix a batch of potting soil into the box. We couldn't find a cactus or succulent mix, but you can make your own, either with sand or perlite/vermiculite. This also helps with drainage, it prevents the soil from getting compacted. I have a feeling that perlite or vermiculite is a better choice for this project because I suspect that sand might fall through the screen. Don't put too much soil in the box, maybe about half as much as you think you'll need. The plugs will displace a good deal and you don't want the soil to overflow.

Now that you have the soil in, start arranging your succulents. I started out having them on a grid, but later made the placement a little more random. Flora's are very grid-like, which works very nicely, but at this scale random worked better. Just set them on top of the soil, you'll be moving them before they get planted.

The next step is to take your screen top and set it gently over your succulents. Using a sharpie, mark circles over each plant. Once you have it all marked, use wire snips or heavy kitchen shears (no fabric scissors!) to cut an "x" in each circle. Remember you can always make the hole bigger, but not smaller. Fold the flaps down so that you have a semi-smooth opening. You'll want the plugs to fit pretty snuggly in these holes, too big and dirt (and possible the whole plant) will fall out if you hang it up.

Once all the holes are made, take all the plants out, and set them aside arranged in approximately the same way so that you'll be able to get them back in the right arrangement. Slide the screen into the box, making sure that you have soil contained in the flaps on the sides. I pinched a little lip and stapled the screen to the sides, just for added protection. With you finger, start digging holes in the soil and setting the plugs in. The top of the plug should fit just under the screen, you can use adjacent holes to push the soil in around it. Make any holes bigger that need to be, and try to keep the soil under screen as much as possible.

...the finishing touches and the final product in the next post...

Succulent Quilt! (part 1)

2009-05-18T00:51:00.005-04:00

I've always had a thing for succulents, but I was blown away a few weeks ago when I saw Flora Grubb's amazing vertical succulent quilt. It's been around the blogs, and don't remember where I first saw it, but it totally stuck with me. If you haven't seen it, you must check it out.

Soon after I saw it, I happened into a florist/antique shop in the neighborhood. A strange little disorganized spot that sometimes has a few gems hiding amid the rumble. Stuck out in their backyard were a few flats of echeveria plugs. I scooped up a whole bunch of them, not knowing exactly what I'd do with them, just too good to pass up! I brought them home and Ben and I schemed about how to go about making our own little succulent quilt.

We started off with this wine box that we found on street a while ago. It's a small one, the kind that a fancy wine gift would be in. The important thing is that it's not too deep. This one is about 4" deep.

Here are our lovely echeverias, I wish I knew the names of the varieties. If anyone knows, please let me know. You can also use bigger clumps of succulents. I've actually never seen them sold separately in plugs like this. Usually they are in larger pots and all clumped together. You can gently separate them. (I'll talk more about this in my second succulent tutorial...coming soon!)

We drilled lots of holes in the bottom for good drainage. Drainage is very important with succulents, they are desert-type plants that would usually grow in sand and rocks.

For even better drainage, we stapled a layer of crumpled up aluminum screening to the bottom of the box. This ensures that the bottom of the box won't get soggy and that the soil won't fall out of the holes. This was important to us, as we don't really have any outdoor space to hang this up (where a little dirt doesn't matter), so we want to keep the soil as contained as possible.

....continued in part 2....

New Quilt

2009-05-07T12:10:00.002-04:00

I finally finished the Turquoise Branch Quilt, I started it so long ago and got a bit sidetracked with many other projects. But I love how it turned out, and am almost hoping that I don't sell it because I love it so much. It actually looks really good in our living room, the colors go perfectly with a painting that our friend Dave did that hangs above our couch. I've listed it as a baby quilt, but it's big enough to use as a lap quilt, perfect for cool spring nights. More info about it in the Jewelweeds etsy shop. I've also added a few more baby items. Also, slowly updating the new items from the weekend's craft fair, if the light will cooperate!

I have some really cool tutorials coming up in the next few days featuring my other obsession—succulents!

Don't forget Mother's Day!

2009-05-01T12:10:00.003-04:00

I just wanted to share this beautiful emailer that Ben made. And a reminder about the Brooklyn Lyceum Craft Market this weekend, don't forget that Mother's Day is May 10th!

this weekend

2009-04-28T02:19:00.005-04:00

I've been so busy preparing for this craft fair that I haven't had time to post about it! Lots of new stuff, new items, some old items in new colorways, and plenty of old favorites.

The best part is that everything for sale is less than 30 bucks!

BROOKLYN LYCEUM CRAFT MARKET: ANTI-DEPRESSION SESSION

11am-6pm Saturday and Sunday
227 4th Avenue, between Union and President Streets, Park Slope

R train at Union St, in Park Slope. We are right atop the station.

15 minutes from Lower Manhattan

www.bkcraftcentral.com

Hope you can make it!

ps. don't forget Mother's Day is right around the corner!

didn't mean to be gone so long

2009-04-22T02:38:00.003-04:00

We went to Milwaukee over Easter weekend to visit Ben's family, and I've been trying to catch up on work since and so the poor old blog has been a little neglected. Spring (and summer) are shaping up to be pretty busy and I've been juggling priorities and deadlines. It didn't help that I got a little obsessed the idea of matching luggage for the trip and spent more time than I probably should have working through more of that Hable fabric. I'm really pleased with the results, but of course have not had a chance to take pictures, but I will, promise.

In the mean time you can enjoy these pictures I took from the plane coming home. The clouds were pretty spectacular which almost made up for the fact that the flight was delayed about 4 hours due to fog in Newark. Lame.

The "ground" you see here is all cloud. It always amazes me how solid-looking some clouds can be.

(Check out the new bug to the right -->, listing fairs and markets Jewelweeds will be participating in, more info soon!)

cheese!

2009-04-08T18:07:00.004-04:00

I finally got around to making some homemade ricotta last week. I used this kit that my dad gave me a year or two ago. It was super easy (ok, yes I know that ricotta is the easiest cheese you could possibly make, but still...) and I really want to explore more cheese making. I'd really love to take a class here, and find a source for large amounts of not ultra-pasteurized milk! The ricotta was made with really yummy Thistle Hill milk, but it's a bit pricey for the amount of cheese it yields. Also I have to find more uses for all the leftover whey. I made buttermilk waffles, which were good, but how many waffles can a person eat? I know that may be a silly question for some, but really, it's a lot of whey!

I forgot to get a picture of the final product, too busy nibbling, but it ended up in these delicious calzones. We had been making all sorts of calzones with the light whole wheat recipe from Artisan Bread in 5, but have had to take a bit of a break as our stupid oven has revolted and the needed parts must be special ordered. So far we've been too hungry to have any leftovers, but I'm really into the idea of freezing and then having them for lunches, or crazy day dinners.

cheery flowers

2009-03-31T15:01:00.003-04:00

I needed a little cheering up yesterday, so I treated myself to some ruffle-y ranunculus, seeded eucalyptus, and two kinds of daffodils. It seems so simple, but flowers really do help. And I've been really into all the different types of eucalyptus, I have three here now. Hopefully they will show up in some designs soon!

the handmade artist

2009-03-24T20:03:00.002-04:00

I blogged about my new designs over at the Poppytalk Handmade Artist. Check it out, it's a great way to get the inside scoop on the latest from this very talented group!

new in the shop

2009-03-23T14:49:00.004-04:00

A new line of designs that combine block printing with embroidery. I've been wanting to integrate the poppies with some of my simpler block printed designs for a while now. I did a little bit of it with the maple seed pod quilt, but I wanted to take it a step further. I had done a bunch of one of a kind embroidered pillows a few years ago and they were very well received, but I wanted to make something that was a little bit better suited to multiples. These are the first batch of them, there will be more styles coming in the next few months.

Another area I've wanted to explore is art (I'm not really sure how to describe these, the word "art" is not very descriptive). Personally I'm very much into beautiful and useful items, but we've been doing a bit of nesting and so I've been thinking a lot about hanging and arranging art and photographs, and thus these were born. They will be in the shop shortly.

quilt in progress

2009-03-22T19:22:00.004-04:00

A new quilt I've been working on. You can see the turquoise obsession continues. I really enjoy hand quilting, but I really need to look into machine quilting so that some quilts are a bit more accessible.

And Happy Spring!

blushing

2009-03-19T01:03:00.004-04:00

Two beautiful front pages this week. Loving all the turquoise.

poppytalk favs

2009-03-17T18:36:00.004-04:00

Procrastinating and browsing the new Poppytalk Handmade Market. You can see the jewelweeds gallery here.

Can you tell I'm really ready for spring to arrive?

wallpaper and pirate dogs

2009-03-16T14:34:00.003-04:00

I spend a few days last week at my parents' house readying their bathroom for new wallpaper and taking care of their dog, Casper who has a broken leg and subsequently diagnosed with bone cancer. He's doing well, he just needed to have a little bit of company while my parents were at work during the day.

As much as I hated the process of stripping the old wallpaper, there is something beautiful about the patched wall underneath. My father would probably disagree, (plaster walls in old houses are a beast to care for and repair, hence the wallpaper) but I like seeing the history preserved in the walls.

The birds there are very well fed.

The pirate dog himself. He really didn't want his picture taken (too busy barking at cars, pedestrians, air) but I snuck this one. The reason he is a pirate dog is because his lost an eye a few years ago to glaucoma and now with the broken leg, he has a peg leg of sorts. We really wanted to get him an eye patch and hat, but he has little patience for that. (It might have something to do with my sister dressing him up as a soccer mom when back in the day....don't ask, there is really no explanation.)

Poppytalk Handmade!

2009-03-15T21:53:00.003-04:00

Starting tomorrow morning, you can find Jewelweeds in the Poppytalk Handmade Market!

a few new things

2009-03-12T13:14:00.004-04:00

new designs and colorways now in the shop. more coming soon!

I am loving having an extra hour of day light. It just changes everything, spring is finally on it's way.

front page

2009-03-06T17:28:00.002-05:00

I love that everything was found using using the search term "seed pod."

wrappings

2009-03-06T16:30:00.003-05:00

bagels

2009-03-03T15:06:00.004-05:00

Some bagels I made last night. From this book. (I know everyone has raved about this for a while now, but it really truly is awesome and life changing, it's all about the simple pleasures these days.) This was my second try and much better. The first tasted good, but were not nearly as good looking. I think I figured out where I went wrong. Don't poke the holes until after they've risen and boil them in a pot not in deep saute pan. Also it didn't hurt that I finally bought a pizza peel so now bread and pizza in our house will have a nice crispy underside. I went a little nuts with the bread baking last month and bought a 25 lb. bag of flour from King Arthur so there might be quite a few carbohydrate based posts around these parts. I've got the beginnings of whole wheat sandwich bread in the fridge now.

my customers are very wise

2009-02-26T20:17:00.003-05:00

I recently got two requests for customized tea towels, and I was amazed that both were requests that I'd been ruminating about (procrastinating) for a while. So it was nice to get a kick in butt to get moving. The first request (above) was for a tea towel with sprigs in green. Why I haven't done this before, who the heck knows, sometimes I just get a little tunnel vision and only think about certain designs in a certain way. But for this I had no excuse because I've done the sprigs in green on aprons. Oh, to understand how my brain works. I'll have more like this in the shop soon.

The other request was for a tea towel with maple seed pods. I printed it yesterday and just need to hem and photograph it and I'll have that in the shop soon too. There are a few other new designs/products in the works too. More on them is forthcoming.

Some scenes of printing. I love how the pattern is transfered onto the roller after the block has been inked.

flea market finds

2009-02-24T02:56:00.003-05:00

Last weekend I met Celine and her crew at the Chelsea garage flea market. I didn't get there until pretty late in the day so I didn't have a ton of time, but I did find a few bits and bobs. I didn't really capture it very well in this picture but the little crocheted square is incredibly intricate and delicate. I have no idea what I'll use it for, it really seems like it should be made into some decadent doll accessory. But it really making me want to learn how to crochet like that.

I'm really excited about these scissors too. I've never seen another like this. Of course there are all sorts of contemporary plastic Fiskars with scallop blades, but I like these so much better! Plus, they weren't dull! It's such a pain to get pinking shears sharpened, I can't imagine it will be easy finding someone to do these. Oh well, I'm not exactly sure what I'll be using them for anyway....

scenes from this week (and last...)

2009-02-20T16:40:00.008-05:00

this week kind of got away from me. I did something really odd to my back and couldn't get out of bed for a day and a half, so some of these pics are more aged than the others.

New designs. Currently being tested in our living room.

New Hable tie backs. I've only been promising to make tie backs for about two years now...Got the fabric from their sample sale last year with the intention to recover our couch, but B didn't like it so much, so I've been trying to find ways to use up all the fabric. Look for more projects featuring 'beads' soon. (Was sad to learn the Hable is closing their store this month)

Blooms. I just realized that I post pictures of my plants the way some people post pictures of their pets and children. Hmm, let's try not to analyze this too much...

the storque loves tea towels

2009-02-19T02:42:00.003-05:00

I've been meaning to post about this for a few days, but our internet has been really wonky. It seems to be back now (knock on wood), but yeah, the storque hearts jewelweeds! Thanks goes to Elizabeth of FlyingRhymes for organizing, writing and pushing us to produce some wonderful pictures.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Queen Ann's Lace (one of my favorite wildflowers...) by Inleaf

Blue Chrysanthemums by Flowerpress

Manuka Floral Print by shakyisles

Please take a minute and check out the rest of designs featured in the article here.

moody blues

2009-02-13T03:15:00.003-05:00

Just a few random pics, been busy a some projects for the apartment and new designs, but it's been too dark and cloudy to photograph, not to mention photo taking would require some serious tidying.

shop update

2009-02-08T20:56:00.004-05:00

I keep forgetting to mention that I've been updating the Jewelweeds shop. I've been trying to add a few things a day, so if there was something you might have spied at one of holiday fairs, it should be up soon. Or shoot me an email and tell be to get on it...also keep an eye out for some new stuff...

all over print experiments

2009-02-04T15:55:00.005-05:00

My first foray into all over printing. Started in Lena's textile stamping class. It still needs some work and I have a few ideas about how to improve the results. Thanks Lena!

winter

2009-02-04T15:20:00.003-05:00

To me a dusting of snow helps make winter more bearable. B thinks I'm crazy, but I think that if it's going to be bitter cold, it should also snow. Of course not having to drive anywhere or even shovel the sidewalk helps this. I'm sure I'll feel differently when we have to deal with those annoyances. But a little sprinkling of beauty really helps in the doldrums of mid-winter. So do paperwhites.

thanks Etsy Admin!

2009-02-03T17:24:00.003-05:00

I thought this year would be better...

2009-02-02T23:56:00.003-05:00

I was really trying to be a better blogger this year, so far, not so much. But I will turn it around, promise. Anyway here are some delicious pics of homemade ravioli. We borrowed our friend Dylan's awesome camera (we are in luuuve) for a project I'll share more about soon, but while we had the camera, we took pictures of things like ravioli. Hungry?

and to be fair

2009-01-05T17:40:00.005-05:00

Some pictures from the Divine Studio sale. New displays here too. Sachets and Celine's gorgeous cards and flip books on the cupcake tower my dad made for the wedding. Also the birch stumps that we used with infusion jars for lemonade etc. The new signage was my first foray into freezer paper stencils and it was awesome and so fun to do. I had Ben print out the logo directly on the paper and then I cut it all out with an x-acto. The cutting took up the bulk of the time for the entire project, but even that it only took about an hour and a half, including drying time. My favorite part about the freezer paper is that you can accurately place the negative space pieces without having those stencil lines that normally hold those little pieces, and make things look distinctly 'stencil-ly.' I'm also intrigued by the ephemeral nature of this type of stencil. For the most part you can only use them once. Of course there are ways to be careful and use images that aren't so delicate so that you might be able to use a stencil more than once. But I really like the idea of a-of-a-kind print. Look for more of this come spring.

happy new year

2009-01-05T17:10:00.002-05:00

A few pics from the Craftacular. I had a lot of fun making the new display items. The sachet tree is now serving as our makeshift christmas tree (if you can even say that, it's solely decorated with candy canes) and I have plans to transform the leftover pieces of birch (aprons are hanging on birch 'coat rack'. It's a little hard to see in these pictures, sorry) into a floor lamp. One of many home projects I hope to accomplish in the next month or so. I'll be sure to post about it if I ever get around to it!

We got almost all of the materials from the flower district. The 'tree' is a manzanita branch that I set into a milk carton with plaster of paris. I put into the sap bucket on top of a can to bring it to the right height and then stuffed balled up newspaper over the top of the plaster and topped it off with sheet moss. I like that I can take it apart if I need to use the sap bucket again, but I'll probably try to keep it together for now. Luckily Ben doesn't mind that our current decorating scheme is highly reminiscent of a Jewelweeds craft fair table...

frontpagers

2008-12-29T17:52:00.003-05:00

Lizzie brought this to my attention, of course I missed it, but luckily there are some hard working folks who collect screenshots of (almost) all of the Etsy front pages. Check it out here.

I'm going to be spending the next few days photographing and posting some of the new items from the craft shows, but if there is something you had your eye on and don't see it posted, please feel free to shoot me an email and I'll get on it!

I hope everyone has a peaceful and prosperous new year.

Divine Studio Holiday Sale

2008-12-10T00:23:00.006-05:00

Here's the poster for the Divine Studio Sale, hope to see you there! (or at Bust!)

(click on the image to see it larger)

for the 14th

2008-12-08T14:04:00.004-05:00

A few lovelies that will be available for sale on the 14th.

And a few of the lovelies keeping me company in the studio.

I might be crazy

2008-12-05T21:57:00.007-05:00

Forget about 'might' it's undeniable. Jewelweeds will be overly represented in the NYC craft fair scene on December 14th. You can find us here:

Bust Magazine's Holiday Craftacular

The Metropolitan Pavilion

125 West 18th Street

New York, NY

10:00am —7:30 pm

*please note that the date and place is different than Bust originally advertised*

More info here.

and

Holiday Craft Sale at Divine Studios

Divine Studios NYC

21 East 4th Street at Lafayette

Suite 605

New York, NY

11:00-6:00pm

*Vendors include Laura Normandin, Marcie McGoldrick, Lena Corwin, Alyssa Ettinger, Lotta Jansdotter, Moontree Letterpress and many more.*

honeymoon

2008-11-10T17:14:00.002-05:00

We took a last minute honeymoon for a few days in Montauk and a few days in apple picking country. Unfortunately I completely forgot to bring my camera to Montauk, but it was absolutely beautiful. Not swimming weather, but that meant that we had the hotel almost completely to ourselves which was very nice.
Luckily I remembered to pack the camera when we went upstate. However the only pictures I took were in the car on the way up. You can see the daytime moon behind the tree in last picture. One amazing thing that I didn't get any pictures of was a family of bears (yes, bears) crossing the road in Sterling Forest. It was breathtaking, in a slightly scary way and as a great observation of the natural world.

the road to victory

2008-11-10T16:44:00.008-05:00

A little late in posting this, we were just a bit hung over wednesday morning.... I wish that I remembered to bring my camera when we went to our friend's house to watch the results, the mood on the street was quite amazing. Lena captured here.

VOTE!!!

2008-11-04T13:04:00.000-05:00

the (not real) flowers

2008-11-03T22:39:00.006-05:00

I just found these pictures on my camera, they were tests for the personal flowers. I have to say that I liked the tests a little better than the real thing. I just used greenery from around the house, the one above uses a few sprigs of the fern in the studio (the name of which escapes me at the moment) and the one below showcases my lovely sweet bay leaves. I had planned to harvest greenery from the yard at the house, but I ran out of time to really find anything good. Most of the greens had leaves that were way out of scale for boutonnieres, and by the time I got to do them, it was less than two hours before go time and I still hadn't even gotten the curlers in my hair.

This is what I wanted to do for the mothers' corsages (my mother insisted on a wrist corsage...) but then my mother balked at the idea of a red dahlia with her gold/cream dress, so I ended up doing them in ivory dahlias with matching grosgrain ribbon, in my humble opinion, not quite as nice, but still quite beautiful. Hopefully I'll have pro pictures soon, but it might be awhile as our lovely Liz is organizing a human rights conference in Kenya.

All the flowers (real and otherwise) are from Lebak Flower Farm. They don't have a website, but they are at the Grand Army Plaza Greenmarket on saturdays (although I'm not sure how many more weekends they'll be around for the winter) more on them to come.

a few wedding details

2008-11-03T22:24:00.004-05:00

The bridesmaids dresses. J. Crew on sale, $39.99 (oh yeah!). I made the belts, flowers from Tinsel Trading, ribbons from—I don't remember—I bought about 100 yards of different ribbon at the last minute because I was worried that we'd need extra stuff to decorate with. I think we probably used about 10 yards total. But I'm sure I'll find plenty of uses for it in the future. You can never have too much ribbon.

{please ignore the massive clutter in the background of the first picture. I'd love to say that we've totally tackled the snarl of wedding-era clutter, but the truth is we are not even close. We have done a lot of moving stuff around, and we switched our bedroom to the front room so we don't have to sleep and wake up in the bat cave—i digress, please just hold up your fingers around the dress, so that you aren't assaulted by the chaos!}

i'm still here

2008-10-13T23:24:00.005-04:00

Apologies for the long absence. Many things have happened since I last posted, most importantly (and the real reason I haven't been posting) Ben and I got married. It's amazing how much time weddings absorb. The wedding was just over two weeks ago and I'm just now starting to feel recovered. We did nearly everything ourselves, I'll be sharing some of those projects soon. But I wanted to acknowledge all the great blog mentions Jewelweeds has gotten in the past few months. Sorry that I wasn't able to do this sooner, I really appreciate all the lovely things you've all said about my products. It's great to be getting such wonderful feedback.

Little Love Blue is run by Cary Walker, who lives in Brooklyn and I suspect we've crossed paths before without knowing it. Her little creatures are so charming, I have a feeling that some of the little people I know will be unwrapping them come holiday season. Cary does a shopping list feature on her blog that she included my linen runner in, the theme of which was natural beauty.

Scoutie Girl is a great indie shopping blog that is new to me, but is now a daily read. Jan has wonderful taste (if i do say so myself!) and it was great to be featured alongside some of my favorite designers. Jan is also a brilliant textile designer and sells her fabrics on Etsy shop Daisy Janie. And I'm just realizing now that her fabric was also part of Cary's shopping list, what a fun coincidence!

Perennial favorite, Poppytalk gave a wonderful birthday present and featured my little room on their Poppytalk Handmade Market Studio Spaces series. The handmade market has been great for me, I highly recommend it for anyone looking to get more exposure. Blogger is being a pain with uploading images, but you can see pictures of the studio here. (and no, it's not always that neat...)

More to come later. Thanks again for all your support.

there's still time...

2008-07-26T22:08:00.003-04:00

to catch Jewelweeds in the Poppytalk Handmade Market. The "Home Sweet Home" markets runs through August 8th. Come check it out.

in the blink of an eye

2008-07-26T21:38:00.003-04:00

July has been a complete whirlwind, lots of visiting with family, a few panic attacks about the wedding being only two months away, and lots to do before then. Luckily some of this craziness took me here:

There's a pattern in here somewhere:

accidental red, white & blue

2008-07-04T14:40:00.003-04:00

Breakfast a few weeks ago. Nothing beats fresh strawberries that are red all the way through. They actually taste the way strawberries are meant to taste like. They make summer in the city a little bit more bearable.

swatch swap

2008-06-11T16:43:00.003-04:00

Jesse is organizing a handprinted swatch swap. I'm excited to see what everyone comes up with. I've really been enjoying printing with linocuts, I love the tactile-ness of the stamps themselves. Making them is just as fun as printing. The swap will give me an excuse to get some of the designs that have been floating around in head down on paper/fabric!

*photo courtesy of Jezzeblog

news

2008-06-09T13:27:00.004-04:00

We're trying not to melt here in brooklyn, and not really succeeding, I must say. As I write this, my laptop is scarily hot. Almost too hot to type. I better turn this baby off and forget about all the work that needs to be done. In addition to work that requires the service of my trusty laptop, I have a great deal of ironing to be done. Why does it always turn out that when you have tons of ironing to do, that must be done before you can do any other work, there is a massive heat wave? Why?

In non-heat wave related news, there are some new items in the Etsy shop. It's stuff I've been working on for some time, but for some reason it's taken me a while to get the shop updated. But it's there now!

Jewelweeds is also a part of the Poppytalk Handmade Market for June. The theme is "Here Comes the Sun!" and I think the new poppy pillows and bags are a perfect fit.

some sadness

2008-06-06T18:02:00.003-04:00

I just read the most devastating and true column. I didn't realize that I missed Judith Warner, I guess I really did. There's not too much to say about, you really just have to read it for yourself. I've never kept my views on the state of feminism (or much else for that matter) under wraps, and I've endured much derision as a result, so it was such a breathe of fresh air to know that there are intelligent people out there who are also able to see this ugliness in the zeitgeist. I was very encouraged by a vast majority of positive comments about this column. I have to say that is a little scary at this moment of the world to be at the front door of starting a family, I worry a lot about how hard it will be to raise girls and boys in a 'Sex and the City,' 'Hillary Nutcracker' world. How do you instill in children the importance of civic involvement if the civics are throughly and doggedly uncivilized?

If you need any more proof of this, please watch this.

I would also like to point out that Belva Lockwood, my great-aunt, at least six generations back, is undoubtedly whirlpooling in her grave.

growing & cooking

2008-06-04T22:54:00.004-04:00

The beginnings of some yummy beans (and rice) featuring window-grown bay leaves. We got too hungry to take pictures of the finished product, but it was good. You can see the Sweet Bay in action at the far left of the bottom picture. I think we have broken the record for amount of plants crammed into one window. It took quite of bit of arranging and re-arranging, but we did it and it makes both of us really happy.

beginning, middle, end

2008-06-04T22:38:00.003-04:00

First rhubarb pie of the season (and a bit of a delay in posting...) and a little bit of show and tell for my latest ebay finds. A lovely set of robin's egg blue vintage pyrex bowls and a set of silverplate serving utensils. More to come soon! (I've been experiencing a little bit of an ebay problem lately....)

good green news

2008-05-14T19:47:00.003-04:00

This morning I went on a tour of the wholesale flower markets. It was a one time BBG class and it was wonderful. I'd been very curious (and fully intimidated) about the markets since my FIT days when I traipsed through the heart of it every day. Anyway the tour was a lovely whirlwind, I don't think I've totally processed it yet. But I did learn a lot, most importantly we learned about a few stores that will sell to individuals. Another great thing was that the teacher, Nancy Kitchen, offered to help/advise on flowers for the wedding. I'm still hoping to use Lebak Flower Farm, but in case it doesn't work out it's good to know what the alternatives are.

Some other good news; Mood now carries organic cotton knits and twills, as well as some bamboo and hemp knits. Not really anything that will work for current Jewelweeds products, but someday. Hopefully if enough people ask, they will start sourcing more sustainable fabrics. It's nice to have a resource for these that I can actually touch! There are more and more companies selling online, but I really need to touch stuff. Swatches really don't do it for me, you can't see how it drapes and many times fabrics look and feel totally different when uncut. I can't really explain it, but somehow you don't get the full essence of the fiber.

Also, Daytona is trying to cut back on using so many plastic bags. It used to be that even the smallest piece of ribbon got put in a small plastic bag and the ladies would mark the yardage and price right on it so there was no way around getting plastic from them. But today, I was escorted to the cash register so that she could just tell the owner how much to charge me. And she asked if she could just put my stuff in a bag I already had. And, and they had a sign on the counter asking customers to bring their own bags! Progress!

plant sale and a new project

2008-05-06T19:52:00.006-04:00

A few new beauties to add to our survivors. Hopefully we can get a new window box soon! The pea crate on the right has lasted much longer than expected, I think this would have been it's 3th summer. Can that be right? The most exciting new plant is a Sweet Bay. I've wanted one for a while now. I love the idea of just picking your bay leaves off the tree and putting them directly into your soup. I hope it does well in a container for for now, maybe someday we can plant it in a garden...

I love how the lavender looks next to the chive blossoms.

I've finally got to doing some block printing this weekend. I've been meaning to get to this for so long! Hopefully that means I'll have some new stuff in the shop soon....

a little rant

2008-05-03T16:44:00.004-04:00

I promise that this will not become a wedding blog, but I couldn't keep this to myself. Also it's not totally wedding related, it's just how I came this unfortunate information. I was about to purchase some paper lanterns for the wedding on the Pearl River website (despite my nothing from China decree, well, let's make that a less from China decree, because honestly it's almost impossible, especially when labeling is so bad in this country, but that's a whole other topic) and I decided to take a look at their ceramics. Soon how we never have enough bowls, so I figured I'd get a few to match the ones we already have. Well, apparently we've been eating out of lead-laced "decorative only" bowls. ARGHHHH! I bought a set of these (along with a matching teapot) when I lived in San Francisco and was totally broke and shopping at the dollar stores.

This has unleashed a great fury of obsessive behavior (no surprise to anyone who knows me) to figure out the safest options for anything and everything that has anything to do with anything I put in my mouth. My father recently freaked me out by telling me that the beautiful yellow fiestaware bowl that I love and is the only thing big enough to handle dough for two loaves of bread, may have lead in the glaze. I did a little internet research and the results were inconclusive for yellow. I did however discover that you can buy a lead testing kit here. So I think that's what I'll do.

So all this takes me back to why I'm freaking out about this in the first place. I've been trying to put together our wedding registry, and this put a kink in the works. That's not true, I would have freaked out anyway, but the idea of creating this nest of stuff that will be with you and see you through all sorts of Thanksgivings, bake sales and the nourishment of your future family really kicked me over the edge.

If anyone has any suggestions for bake ware, I'd love to hear them. I think I've found some good options for cookware (All-Clad and Le Creuset, which I wanted anyway, lucky me!), but everything in the baking sections have some sort of non-stick finish or are made of aluminum. I just wish they specified what kind of non-stick it was. ARGH.....

rhubarb

2008-04-23T18:29:00.002-04:00

This past weekend we took a little road trip to visit the house where the wedding will be held. We brought along my mother and Rachel, our lovely caterer. She wanted to come see the kitchen and get the lay of the land, and we wanted to do some measuring and figure out some more detailed logistics. The house was even better than we remembered it and Ben and I congratulated each other for finding such a great spot. (We won't mention that I found it on The Knot....) Hopefully Ben will be able to finish off the website he is building for the owner of the house soon, I'll keep you posted on that.

I also want to give a shout out to Rachel, whom we've connived into catering our wedding, something that she doesn't usually do, which I do not blame her for at all! Her company Particular Events, has charming new website which you should check out, especially if you are in the market for an awesome caterer for your next dinner party, picnic, or gallery opening. Rachel is also one of only a few people who worship rhubarb as much as I do. She's got a blog post all about it, complete with a simple and delicious recipe. Speaking of which I still have a few cups of rhubarb in my freezer that I put up last summer. I think I must make a pie. I'm excited about preserving more food this summer, it was really nice being about to dig into the freezer and pull out something fresh (well, you know what I mean) I've learned a lot too of what not to do this year. Invest in better freezer bags, or better yet find something non-plastic in which to freeze in. Any ideas? I would also like to learn more about canning. And get a deep freeze!

Poppytalk Handmade!

2008-04-14T00:21:00.003-04:00

Come visit Jewelweeds at the Poppytalk Handmade Market! This month it's a Mother's Day and Kid's theme. Thanks to Jan and Earl making it all happen.

see you there!

74 degrees at bbg

2008-04-11T02:38:00.004-04:00

mini quilt

2008-04-08T23:43:00.002-04:00

I've been itching to start on quilt for a while now. More nesting I suppose. I really wanted to make a new one for our bed, but this little temptation happened first. I actually have quite a few pieces pieced (does that make any sense?) for a larger one, but half way through I decided that I wanted it to be more monochromatic, so now I have pieces for half of two quilts. A while back, my friend Lora was doing a little spring cleaning and gave me a bunch of quilt cotton that she never got around to making. So the instant gratification fiend in me devised this little number for her daughter. It's not perfect, and at first I really didn't like the color combination (I do now) but it's really nice to have one quilt, even a mini quilt under my belt.

new goodies in the shop

2008-03-20T20:19:00.003-04:00

These sachets happened while procrastinating on a pillow project. I did all of the leaf prints last summer and they had just been sitting around since then. I thought that I might use them to make a patchwork pillow front, but I've been needing to make a lavender sachet for myself (ah, the joys of insomnia) and so these were born. Of course I still haven't made one for myself yet.

signs of spring

2008-03-11T13:58:00.003-04:00

At least on the inside...the view from 'the studio.' My easter cactus decided that it would again be a spring baby. I got it about a year ago in full bloom, so I assumed it was of the easter variety. But then it bloomed this past christmas time, which I attributed to the fact that it is literally 80 degrees in here any time the heat is on. Which noisily happens almost all day. One other reason to buy a house...being in control of your carbon footprint. But then, in the last few weeks it has bloomed again. The cyclomen, on the other hand has been not blooming as well as it should. At first I thought it was because I had accidently watered it once over it's root ball, but I only did it once, so now my best guess is that it's heat and lack of humidity. Most of the flowers have died and the few that remain are small and hidden within the foliage.

These everlasting blooms will soon be adorning some pillows that will be available in the shop before long. The round ones at the sides are part of my poppy obsession, but now I think they look a little more like anemones, either way I like them, and they are fun to make. I do them mostly freehand, just a quick outline of the outer circle and stem in pencil and embroider away.

spring fever

2008-03-01T00:29:00.005-05:00

I've been having some crazy spring cravings lately and have been completely obsessed with flowers...poppies, anemones, and anything yellow. I've been loving Sarah of Saipua's recent posts and they have been partially sating these cravings, check out her beautiful poppies here. I'm hoping that the flower vendors will be back at the Grand Army farmer's market soon. I did see my first crocus this season the other day so there is hope, even though it is snowing now. March is always the month I am least patient with...here's t0 it going by quickly so we can get to the real spring.

Flowers are my favorite part of wedding planning. When I get irritated by many frustrating details, which happens too frickin' much in my humble opinion, looking at flower arrangements are one thing that makes me happy again. Ariella is a huge inspiration. I love how wabi sabi natural her stuff is.

New flower-related projects of my own coming about soon...

photo via saipua.blogspot.com

2008-02-27T22:46:00.003-05:00

Ben gave me lovely robin's egg blue iPod for Christmas this year and a few weeks ago I made a little home for it. Since it's so light and small and has a flash drive I figured it didn't really need padding. It's really just a little leather envelope. One thing that I didn't account for is that once you unplug the headphones (earbuds...I hate that word) it automatically stops. If I could stand the white iPod earbuds, I'd be able to slide the case down, but these have a corner thing so I just stick it in upside down. Once I figure this out, I should have these babies in the etsy shop.

my winged neighbors

2008-02-25T23:45:00.000-05:00

Some of the ladies that congregate in the mulberry trees outside my workroom window. Nothing like the bird show my parents have, but it's still nice to have a little bit of wild in Brooklyn. My mother suggested putting up a feeder for them, but I'm nervous that the neighborhood cats would make that a dangerous proposition. A week or so ago we came home to find one of the black cats lounging in the branches a la the cheshire cat. Usually they run when you get close (believe me I've tried...) but this guy held his ground. I'm afraid that a bird feeder would just serve as cat bait.

a good new distraction

2008-02-19T18:39:00.000-05:00

A new little spot for me to organize my thoughts and catalog my craft projects and new Jewelweeds items. I've been very inspired by the ladies (and gentlemen) of the crafty blog world so here's my jump into the fray!

Recently I was helping my mom do a little cleaning in my parent's basement and came across bags of thread that belonged to my grandmother.

Here is part of the collection:

I've been itching to make a quilt for a while now and I think finding this cache of thread gave me the final push. More about that soon.

jewels and jules

A quick note

What I've been making lately....

sunday!

Everyday...

new in the shop

sneak peek....

Laundry Night! Curated Market

the process

more than you ever wanted to know

save the date

New Colors and Styles

at the flea tomorrow

Yellow Monday

Poppytalk Handmade Market

caught in the act

wedding bells

antique lace

new design

filed under: things I have no business doing right now...

Giveaway Winner!

Flea Finds

projects (for me!)

Mid-Summer SALE & GIVEAWAY!

The fruits of Brooklyn

summer of quilting

recovering....

sneak peak

renegade prep

Front page

Succulent Quilt! (part 3)

Succulent Quilt! (part 2)

Succulent Quilt! (part 1)

New Quilt

Don't forget Mother's Day!

this weekend

didn't mean to be gone so long

cheese!

cheery flowers

the handmade artist

new in the shop

quilt in progress

*blushing*

poppytalk favs

wallpaper and pirate dogs

Poppytalk Handmade!

a few new things

front page

wrappings

bagels

my customers are very wise

flea market finds

scenes from this week (and last...)

the storque loves tea towels

moody blues

shop update

all over print experiments

winter

thanks Etsy Admin!

I thought this year would be better...

and to be fair

happy new year

frontpagers

Divine Studio Holiday Sale

for the 14th

I might be crazy

honeymoon

the road to victory

VOTE!!!

the (not real) flowers

a few wedding details

i'm still here

there's still time...

in the blink of an eye

accidental red, white & blue

swatch swap

news

some sadness

growing & cooking

beginning, middle, end

blushing