"it's in the bag"

oh, la, la...clutch.  i love how layering the paints turned out on this garden inspired clutch.  when i'm in the soil, adding plants and seeds to the earth, i am at peace.  this clutch is meant to speak peace and happiness.  

handbag with my signature concentric circles.  some stitching for embellishment creating some flowers, a slight theme.  hope and joy is this bag's unspoken blessing.  each made with love to benefit families who deal with cancer.  we are all touched by cancer through our friends, those in our family, or in our community.  many of the bereavement families i have worked with were families dealing with cancer.  support a great cause through this event: 

it's in the bag silent & live auction 

October 16, 2008 6:30-8:30 p.m.  

For more information or for tickets to the event go to the LINC website.

check out a selection of other bags for auction here.  not all are listed, as there are over 100!

there's something in the air

we have truly loved our CSA with our friends darbi & adam at fertile crescent farm.  thank you, friends!  their posted zucchini crusted pizza is so good!  our own garden has yielded a harvest that we've been proud of.  jo has had his 4 foot square plot in which carrots, radishes of 2 variety, butter peas, and tomatoes have grown.  we're simply blessed to watch life grow.  the caterpillars are always one of my favorite parts of growing our own.  the parsley always takes a beating (why they don't go for the fennel at this house i'll never know), but we're happy to share.  the butterfly garden that i worked on more so this year has kept us watching many winged friend all summer long.  

there's something in the air.  today you can feel the crisp fall winds.  i will enjoy this time of transition as much as when the wind brings those brief moments of warmth coming into spring.  these transitions with temperature always make me want to be outside, whether painting with young friends, tending the earth, or reading a book.  i'm glad to have these moments to truly appreciate what is good and where life grows.  we are rich.  

quilt love

over the summer our journey through grief group completed quilt squares for a quilt.  here's the finished piece.  i wish the picture really conveyed the detail and color of this piece.  we're still working on quilting the piece.  we want many hands to stitch it, blessing those who created each square with each stitch.  oh!  i am so impressed with my group.  you ladies are amazing.  

isn't this quilt beautiful?  it was made by church ladies oh-so-many years ago for hubby's grandparents.  i love seeing it hanging on the wall each time i walk upstairs at their home.  this will be inspiration for me as well as the quilts of gee's bend which i saw on another trip to AL in the Mobile art museum.   i'll be posting some quilt projects that i'm creating for young ones, including my own jo.  

i love quilts and the stories they carry.  they are practical and artistic.  some tell stories -- as both of these do.  stories of hope and joy & love and loss.  

peace.

creative spaces

whew.  what a morning.  i've just sent off two dozen of my morning muffins for a bake sale at VCU Medical Center to support the bereavement programs of the hospital.   my friend Ann asked me to make these and contributed to the supplies.  i love that it's shared work!  and while wrapping each of these i was inspired for project ideas for some of the bereavement groups that i will lead in the next year.  giving spaces can bring creativity.

when writing to the o-so-talented jurianne matter about her beautiful paper boats and banners this weekend, she responded with good things to say about my work, too.  creative spaces bring connection no matter the distance.  

my sermon's theme from sept. 7th around tying knots.  these paper boats are a way of thinking about how things are joined together, especially when you're writing good wishes or blessings on them before folding.  they are a must have.  when they're available in the states for purchase, i'll write about it.  back to the sermon:  i'll be posting a copy of the knot sermon for those who wish to read it on the YCW ning site.  if you are saying, what's YCW? then you'll need to ask me to email it to you if you wish to read it. 

it's beautiful how there are spaces in our lives where we connect with one another.  my creative spaces bring such joy and life into my life.  i do my art for my self--feeding my soul--but i take great joy in sharing that part of myself with others.  i want others to carry home the colors and designs so that they, too, can be fed.  thus, i am meeting you in these creative spaces and sending love your way.  

enjoy some of my concentric circles in this image.  i love them.  love making them so much i added some to a purse for auction.  more to come...  

peace to you this day.  

alas...the craft swap has been postponed.  will post more when i have the new date.  

okay...here's the week

this week has been good. though, i'm sad without my mac. it's in rehab, but hopes to come home as soon as it's repaired. so...i've not been blogging much...or even thinking about it. the show last friday night was great. thanks to those who could come. i have a lot of new work and plant to get it into some of the shops soon! just need to get the mac back for part of that process!

good news, too...there will be a november show that i'll help organize at stir crazy cafe'. we'll have plenty of talented folks with their craft + art to show just in time for holiday shopping! and handmade!

jo has the first time in school tomorrow with the open house. he and i have gone to the playground twice this week, which is very familiar to him anyway...but gets us in the groove of heading to the church. the day school will start up fully on monday. we're teary to see how much he's grown in these 2.5 years. whew!

we (jo & i) went to VCU medical center downtown to lead a session for the unit bereavement coordinators where they made quilt squares through my program. i'm thrilled to piece these together in the coming weeks. and jo did great with our friend ann and running among the group. he has a great paper crane that one kind woman made for him. she was super.

now i'm on to doing some "home work" and preparing a sermon for sunday. all in a week.

peace.