red valentine

i've posted some red items in my shop today in honor of valentines day, which is a week and a half away. {red POMEGRANATE earrings will be added by friday} everything that i put in the shop is already made, so that means items ship out within a day of ordering.

readymade_39

you can imagine the adrenaline that was running through my veins, as i pick-up the new issue of READYMADE magazine at borders this morning {monday} given that i received a call last thursday from someone who had received their issue in the mail and saw our article in it. i waited almost 4 days before seeing it for myself. it is not really that long, considering we waited nearly a year for the Big Chill article to come out in Midwest Home magazine. i suppose that is actually more common, although this READYMADE article was on the super fast track. i got the first call about the possibility of a photo shoot while i was in Chicago - in December - just over 1 month ago!! the photo shoot took place the week after i returned, and it is really quite remarkable that it was printed and distributed as early as January 22nd. a lot of magic happening over at READYMADE! Needless to say, we are "pretty pretty" excited over here, as my old boss from germany used to say. pretty pretty, indeed!

berit torkelson did a{nother} fantastic job writing this article about us. and we had such a fun day spent with the photographer kim cornelison and her husband alfie and crew during the 10-hour photo shoot. i was happy to see their faces on the contributors page {i highlighted them in red} at the back of the magazine ... but wait! who else do i see???? .. a set of eyes {and glasses} i would recognize anywhere .. my friend MARTHA {in grey} from uniform studio!! she wrote a "how-to" article on making scarves out of old sweaters on page 32. pretty pretty perfect!

NORDIC REACH/people/172

slighting ironic that i discovered this article on NORDIC REACH magazine's website the day after OBAMA's inauguration -- because the serendipidous photoshoot took place back in the fall, the day after the OBAMA rally in St.Paul. through a rather strange course of events, i got a call around 10:30am from Ulf, the editor of the magazine, asking if i'd be available for a quick photoshoot at 11:30 that morning. they were making a trip around the midwest looking for people with scandivian roots and my name had been forwarded to him last minute and they had an unexpected 1hour opening -- could i be there? ... SURE! It was great {despite the humidity and the unpleasant effect it had on my hair...} and I had so much fun chatting with Ulf {it was only then, through our conversation, that he made the connection that he had *almost* met my father at an event in michigan - and we marveled at how small the world is} and i have been anxiously waiting to see if i would actually make it to print. {note: i have not officially seen the hard-copy issue...} you can read the story online here. {note: walter mondale is people/170!}

'warm' weather

the warm weather has us back outside! the last snow fall that we had brought light and fluffy snow. it was almost like the white fuzz that is released from the dogwood tree - it took flight when i walked through it. i took my son snowshoeing on the parkway that morning and while playing hide and seek behind trees and shrubs, i got a close-up view of the most magnificent snowflakes i can remember seeing in my life time. not only could i see the 2d pattern, but i was able to perceive the structural making of a flake's 3 dimensional form and it was absolutely breath-taking. i know that no two snow flakes are alike, but it boggles my mind to think about the scale and proportion of that reality.

it's a new day ....

yes, it's a new day ... one that all of us will tell our grandchildren about. "where were you when ..." regardless of our positions, or our beliefs, who we voted for or who we hope for... this day a new president will be sworn into office and he has the task of helping us save our country, our lives - our dreams. i choose to believe in his ability to do so, because i want to believe my own ability to do so, too.


these pictures are ones that were sent to me from just a fraction of the Obama supporters who bought one of my pieces. i had envisioned a collage much larger than this one, because i asked each and everyone of them if they would send a picture, but i guess most people are camera shy.... it is ok. the comments and notes that i received from customers over the past several months have been so nice - it brings me back to the energy at the rally in st.paul ... feeling a part of something that was so much larger than myself. so much larger than anything i've ever experienced. something is happening .... and it is happening TODAY!

i'll be watching the inauguration on tv ... and then heading to the university for the first day of the design workshop that i am teaching at the school of architecture! exciting day, all around!

trying to stay warm...

we are going on our 4th day of frigid {FRIGID} weather and in minnesota {where people like to talk about the weather anyway} it really is the hot topic of conversation this week. they say what doesn't kill you makes you stronger -- that makes us a strong bunch of people! there are so many technically amazing articles of clothing one can buy these days that keep you warm without feeling like the little brother on The Christmas Story. thank goodness for innovation in fabrics! but one proven technique is the basic act of layering. i bought some black washable wool yarn and realized once i got home that it was much thicker than the yarn recommended for socks. but i didn't let that get in the way of my obsession with knitting socks. i made myself these "house booties" that are intended to wear over a normal pair of socks. i work in the basement and despite the fireplace and the carpet tiles, my feet get cold from the concrete floor. these work beautifully!! i am nearly done with a matching pair for my son - for the times that he comes down and works next to me.

eshelman pottery

paul eshelman of eshelman pottery is one of the artists that i met at the one of a kind show in chicago. i was drawn into his booth by the simple and graceful forms and solid matte glazes. {after speaking to him for a while, i learned he went to RISD.} the black glaze was undoubtedly my favorite and the reveal of the red unglazed stoneware sealed the deal for me - a lovely balance of modern and organic! i purchased one of these espresso cups for my husband. he uses it everyday and says it fits him perfectly. i'm not able to make direct links to different items on his site (look under gallery) but - i also loved the large casserole, the oval cups & tumblers, the boat bowls and the bump bowls......... all in black, of course! he is offering 10% off and free shipping during the months of january and february. oh, that is so tempting!

a day of snow

last night my husband and son and i spent an hour outside, shoveling the new snow from our patio and driveway. i took this photo (by the light of our garage light) because i knew i'd forget in the morning to capture the perfect puffy-ness of the snow on top of our garden pots and the lovely wave that is created between the pots. i love fresh snow because of these things. i can't speak for other minnesotans - but i think that it speaks of my "minnesotaness" when i say that i love to shovel! there is something entirely gratifying about clearing a sidewalk and making a clean and orderly line along both edges - something instantly gratifying about the line that slowly moves down the driveway marking my progress. it is a bit like mowing the grass in the summer. {have i mentioned this before??} i've always said that if i needed to stop doing what i was doing, i could be one of the people who drives the big lawn mowers on golf courses, or on the parkway ... or along the interstate. i could do that........ at least for a while

more....

right before christmas, i got a call from my mom telling me that the article in the new WALKER magazine was really nice. i didn't realize it was out and was antsy to see it! due to the mayhem before the holiday, i didn't see it until i got to their house for christmas and i couldn't hold back my smile. what a lovely gift! growing-up on the iron range in northern minnesota, i remember hearing stories about how my dad travelled from the rural farmlands to the big twin cities for the state basketball tournament and how he ditched the games to go to the WALKER Art Center. so as a young child, 'that museum in the big city' was so highly regarded that it nearly gained myth-status. it maintains this status to this day {because it lives up to the myth} and despite the fact that i have been selling there for over 1 year. it is often easy to take advantages of the brilliant resources and assets that exist in the place that you live, kind of like a parent or the people you see everyday. but i continue to pinch myself and be grateful, particularly when my face is in their magazine!

the lovely women with me are alice roche {on my left} and amy torello {on my right}

"down" time

where does one start after the long stretch of "holiday" ... it is sunday night and tomorrow should be my first real day back in our routine, but the winter storm of sickness has hit and means my son will home again tomorrow {this time his grandmother is the one who is sick.} it makes me think about the concept of "down time" and what that really means in my world. i'm not sure if i should blame it on my own personality, or if it is a result of being a homeowner or even more so because i am a wife/mother, but i find it hard to do nothing. it might be that i fear one moment of doing nothing could result in a long period of doing nothing, or simply that in my mind there is always something to be done. if i sit down, my mind floods with a mental list of all the things i could be doing or should be doing ... or i begin to rationalize with myself, "if i am going to sit and watch this movie with everyone i should at least knit while doing so." this rational helped me produce a few handmade christmas gifts that i couldn't more proud of: SOCKS for my husband, my brother and my son. i learned to knit {basic knit and pearl} when i was an exchange student in finland back in 1995 and have knit many flat things: a blanket and scarves {some of which have never been completed} as well as some simple hats knit in the round. my live-in knitting coach {finnish house-mate} found a simple sock pattern for me and ... I FOLLOWED IT!!! and then made my own adjustments to the pattern and tried a shorter pair and then a scaled-down pair. i even made a tiny pair for a friend's 8 month old. pretty fun and very exhilarating ..................... and relaxing during my down time.