Daisy Janie

quote | sunflowers know best.

The sun's not shining today, but I turned my face to her as much as humanly possible this past weekend. And it's given me some extra mojo to start my week (or Vitamin D, as some would say)!

I spent most of the day Saturday doing some uber-repetitive, labor-intensive yardwork, by myself, with the tunes cranked. It gave me time to get deep inside my head and turn a few things over in new ways. I had a distinct moment of clarity about something that's been weighing on me... and I feel so light all of the sudden! The hard work regarding my mini-epiphany has yet to be done, but sometimes just seeing the path more illuminated is key to a refreshed, positive attitude.

To all the mamas out there, I hope you had an especially joyful day yesterday! Carry it with you as long as you can!

seeing | one of each.

One white blossom and one yellow blossom.

Each on a journey to become a juicy, red strawberry.

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I am having major issues with both Illustrator and typepad image uploads this week, which is why I haven't been posting. The sun is shining brightly today, however, and I'm certain that's going to help me resolve these problems!

a door, a floor, a ceiling & some relays.

Door & floor pics taken outside University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archeology & Anthropology. Man, that door was solid, massive and gorgeous - right down to the rusty handles! Taking a pic was as close as I could get to putting in my pocket and bringing it home. There were 3 pairs of these doors on this facade. M and I were both in awe!

The scallop pattern in the stonework below speaks for itself. After seeing this vast expanse of mesmerizing, perfectly imperfect repetition, I appreciated the comparative & relative ease with which I can assemble and disassemble art and pattern repeats in Illustrator.

Below:
At Starbuck's. A very clever, framed, hanging panel of decorative woodworking (not sure what to call it?). It was about 5' x 5' and made the space a bit more cozy. But, it was a dust collector! Can you see it? Eee-woo, which is DiCintio-speak for "ew".

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We were in Philadelphia yesterday for the Penn Relays - the stadium is across from the Museum. If you've been reading my blog for a bit, you know we love our fitness and running over here! J has fallen right in step in that vein. He loves to run, and I love to watch him run. I love watching any running, really! Nothing but legs and guts.

We saw the high school 4x400s yesterday, including our HS team, as well as the USA vs. the World Women Sprint Medley. USA, Russia, Jamaica, Great Britain. It was a nail biter, but the USA ladies took the medal! Freaking incredible athletes!!!

quote | nature's peace.

Communed with nature this weekend.
And some dear friends.

One brought peace and awe.
One brought laughter and belongingness.

Both were good for my soul.

Life is wonderful.
We are lucky.
I am grateful.

Happy Earth Day to you!

grommets make everything better.

Banged out a couple mending projects from the pile I shared recently. This top and a pair of pants that now has new buttons. I was bummed tho when I tried on the pants b/c they are much snugger than last year at this time! I guess when your buttons pop-off a pair of pants, it's a sign that you need to move the extra-sharp cheddar cheese and cashews from the bottom of your food pyramid.

See my notes below on this top...

The plunging vee-cut in the front of this top did absolutely nothing for me. It has a serged edge, so I didn't think simply stitching the vee together would look right. Grommets! Yay!

I added 5 grommets to both sides of the vee, using a fusible interfacing behind them to stablize the jersey fabric. With thick leather cord, I created a laced effect through the grommets. Added a couple beads that I had on-hand - the only ones with holes wide enough for the leather.

When I tried it on, there was a funny pucker at the bottom of the vee. I just added a dart to that spot - no more pucker.

The first time I installed the grommets, I didn't use interfacing. BIG mistake! I put it through the wash, and all the grommets popped out of their holes. Was kinda funny! I just unthreaded the leather, removed the failed grommets and re-did the whole thing after fusing the interfacing. S'all good now!

field trip to the Rodale Institute - organic pioneers!

Daisy Janie is a business built on a foundation of organic agriculture. Without it, I would have not have any pretty fabrics to offer the quilting industry. Knowing that Daisy Janie stands with a slim handful of like-minded organic fabric pioneers, I think it's beyond cool that a real, honest-to-goodness, holy-smokes, been-doing-this-for-65-years organic pioneer in the broader realm of organic agriculture is just 20 miles down the road from me in Kutztown, PA! A stone's throw!

This noble place is the Rodale Institute. They conduct research on "the best practices of organic agriculture and share our findings with farmers and scientists throughout the world, advocating for policies that support farmers, and educating consumers about how going organic is the healthiest option for people and the planet."

We visited on Saturday for the first time, and I'm pretty sure I was vibrating as we drove into the parking lot. 333 acres dedicated to what I believe in - to what is at the core of my being - to the one message we strive to pass along to our son: good health & well-being starts with one's daily sustenance, and that nourishment should be as clean and as in harmony with nature as possible.

Rodale Institute
website | facebook | twitter | youtube

On Saturday, the Rodale Institute held their first annual organic tulip festival. They planted beds of thousands of tulips all over the farm, and you could meander around and pick your own (bulb and all) to take home and plant. Did, did and done!

Above:
They also had workshops on composting and straw bale gardening as well as a cold crop sale of started veggie plants, among other things. We bought a coupla straw bales to try it out! We also picked out a bunch of interesting lettuces, kales and chards. Yum!

We wandered around the farm, and they have examples of garden plots and other ideas one might consider in their gardening or farming.

Below:
Plant a garden for something specific using various veggies and herbs.

Above:
A living roof. And simple veggie markers.

Below:
Root cellar! They only had to dig down about 4 feet b/c the pile above ground allows for the headroom and space needed.

knitting | beginner's homework.

Allowing myself to be bombarded by beautiful images, art and hand-crafted projects for so many years has taken its toll. I feel empowered and motivated to do things I never, ever thought I would want to! Knitting is a prime example. I have a vase full of my grandma's needles, but I was very indifferent about learning the craft. For quite a while now, my friend Betz has been a huge source of knitting inspiration, from her personal projects, to her organic fabric line Stitch, to her patterns, and our random conversations. Recently, I felt like I was going to burst if I didn't learn how to knit!

I started a beginner's knitting class at my local yarn shop, Yarn Gallery. I'm only 2 classes in and have nothing to show but these 2 assignments, but I can already feel my fingers getting twitchy for the next project to try! I haven't mastered knitting and talking just yet, and I have a long way to go to get consistent stitches! Heck, just keeping stitches from dropping by accident will be nice! But, man, I love the possibility!

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sewing | tech cover made from repurposed feedsack.

J and I whipped, whipped, whipped out this tech cover for M's birthday on Friday. In like 30 minutes, from choosing which feedsack to done! M's wallet is made from a repurposed moneybag by Rikkianne at chakrapennywhistle. In the spirit of black shoes / black belt or brown shoes / brown belt, now M's accessories coordinate! He's one hip dude ('coursin I already knew that...).

Here are some of the other feedsacks we considered. Love the Guaranteed Analysis above!

A few years ago, our block and the block behind us had a group garage sale. (We live in an old neighborhood, and all the garages are detached from the homes and accessible via a shared alley.) I wandered down the alley to say hi to my neighbors and see what other fun things they had for sale. This sweet, older woman, who lives behind us and whom I had never met, had her garage stacked top-to-bottom with bins of every kind of old linen, sheet or textile you could imagine! She sets up at antique shops and such. I had no clue! I bought these feedsacks from her, and I haven't seen her since. :(

mending pile.

I don't know which I like less: the fact that there's mending to be done or the fact that there's a pile of it. Ugh. Actually, I think the fact that I've spent good money on clothing I'm not able to wear is what really irks me. I had stashed these fixer-uppers in various places and didn't realize til today it was a full-on stack of stuff!

I need to fix wear-n-tear, improper fit from the start, and puffy sleeves. Yes, puffy sleeves get a mention allll their own! They like to stand out that way! (Just wait'll the next episode of Smash - my seamripper and I will begin the first step of dealing with them!)

Below:
This is the one that stumps me the most. These are sleeves to a sweatshirt - the circumference is 21"! The edges were simply turned under the width of 1/4" elastic, and they were way too short for me. I took out the stitch and elastic. I bought 1-1/4" width - now I have to figure out how to re-attach a new cuff with the wider elastic. - so that it will kinda blend. Any ideas?

seeing | what sunlight gets ya.

A bonanza of blossoms on this sand cherry this year! I re-planted it to a more sunny location in our yard last summer, and she seems much happier here. Her twin sister is still in the shade, and she's all spindly and sparse and gnarly. I guess what I think is plenty of sunlight is not always what the tree people think is plenty of sunlight. It happens...

I have to tell you I just sat and stared and stared at these blossoms today. It almost doesn't seem fair that I can walk out my back door and be treated to such simple, perfect beauty. I don't know why I framed it in terms of fairness ... but that's what I thought.