This watercolor painting I did was inspired by a Japanese folktale. The story is about an old man married to a less-than-nice woman, and how she maliciously hurts his pet sparrow one day (cuts out its tongue!), causing the sparrow to fly away. When the old man goes in search for the bird, he discovers that the sparrow -- despite its tonguelessness -- can talk, and has a family in the woods that entertain the old man with food, drink and dancing. There is a moral about greed and ... Read more
Monday Outfit: Mini Me Style
Good morning! How was your weekend? We've had a relaxing one full of bike-riding and now we're counting down the days until school starts on September 4th... With that in mind, this week I have a double-feature! Be warned, there are endless photos coming up. But first, let me back up a bit and start from the beginning. A few weeks ago, sweet Yeka of Lollipop Garden Grafts contacted me to see if I would be interested in a sew-along - I'm always up for a fun sew-along, so I heartily ... Read more
Happy Friday + Randomness
Happy Friday! This has been a landmark week, friends. What you see above was, until Tuesday, K's nemesis. M bought this vintage beauty of a bike from the 1960s off of Craigslist last year in the hopes of teaching his rather...athletically-resistant (except when it comes to swimming) daughter how to finally cycle without training wheels. It never happened. It probably doesn't help that it weighs about two tons. Love that sparkly banana seat though... At K's school, bike-riding is ... Read more
Sewing for Me: Tova 1.0
Having gotten over my reluctance to sew the same patterns as everyone else with the Washi, I enthusiastically jumped into trying yet another highly-acclaimed and popular pattern: the Tova Top. There's so much to rave about this pattern. The pieces are superbly drafted, the instruction are very clear, and other than the inset portion which can get tricky at the corners, it's a very easy top to sew up. This has been on my to-sew list forever and I had high hopes of a perfect fit with little to ... Read more
Backyard Art Camp – Wayne Thiebaud
Today, I'm jazzed to talk about art with kids! A while back, I was contacted by Jane of Buzzmills, and she invited me to participate in the awesome Backyard Art Camp series she is co-hosting with Melissa of A Happy Stitch. The idea is simple and brilliant: choose an artist, learn about said artist and work, then create a fun project inspired by the artist in some way with your kid(s). I was immediately in. And knew instantly who I wanted to feature: Wayne Thiebaud. Wayne Thiebaud is an ... Read more