Projectland

Learning how to make a Sami bracelet

Last week I had the opportunity to learn how to make a Sami bracelet. For years I had admired my neighbor Lynette's Sami bracelets. So when she told me her cousin Laurie who had made the bracelets for her was going to be in town in a few weeks and would be more than happy to have a small class on how to make them, I jumped at the chance! I find them just the perfect mix of handmade yet polished.

Below are the steps in pictures. The materials are tin thread, Reindeer leather, and a shed Reindeer antler button. Laurie special ordered the supplies from Sweden. Interrupted only by a delicious cup of hot chocolate and some butter cookies, we got down to work and as is typical when working hard on learning a new skill, the four of us fell silent. We worked for two hours and I left with my bracelet only about half done. I stitched the tin-braid down, closed up the leather in the back of the bracelet and sewed in the braid button loop and the button on the next day.

I love my bracelet and am trying to find a couple of hours of un-interrupted time... (huh?) so I can start another one, or two or twenty...

 

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Managing February

It's February, not April that should be named the "cruelest" month. I usually find it so hard to get through without getting depressed at not seeing green leaves on the trees or hearing birds singing. But this year it has not been so hard. Maybe its because it started out with a very enjoyable afternoon at Binth, where I have been working part time, attending a Letter Writers Alliance social. It is very inspiring and satisfying to be creative with a bunch of other people also being creative. The fact that it has been sunny and occasionally even warm, has also been a check in the plus column of February.

 

I think I was supposed to write a letter, but inspired by green jello's blog, I made a valentine boat instead, and gave it to my sweetheart of 20+ years.

Working at Binth part time has been so rewarding. I enjoy the space, the beautiful Binth paper goods and design, but of course it's the people there I enjoy the most. When I started there, Suzanna asked if I wanted to bring in my paper mache birds to try and sell. I had been working for months to make an "alphabet" of birds and I had completed it. But I wasn't sure what to do with them once they were finished. I wanted to initially make a book, but it just was not coming together for me: is it a kids book or one for adults? Is it a story book or an ABC book? Is it for people who want accuracy in their bird models or don't mind a little creative interpretation? Too many questions for this frazzled mom-mind. Really, the important thing to me was that I had gotten from A to Z. Literally. So I brought the birds in to Binth because they were not getting any younger sitting in my basement studio, and to everyone's surprise, they were snapped up by bird fans! I have been making more birds, but also started teaching paper mache bird painting workshops.  I make the paper mache "blank" birds, then bring paints, brushes, bird ID books and start up the "Chirp USA" app on the ipad so we can listen to different birds songs while we paint. I have really enjoyed getting to know fellow birders and crafters at these workshops, and I had no idea there were so many bird fanatics out there! If you are interested....check here to see when another workshop will be held.

 

One of the other things that has made this winter more manageable is that I've managed to fit in a few lunches here and there with friends. One of the more interesting meals was shared with one of my best friends, Bonnie from Goods and Heroes . We were at Ba Le enjoying sandwiches and when we were done with lunch, of course I was craving something sweet. I was in luck because in the cooler were packages of flourescent green, orange and purple rice.  (I picked purple because it reminded me of Easter and springtime and the other two colors were just too other-worldly...) I don't know its name, but it is made with coconut milk and has a topping of coconut, sugar, peanuts and sesame seeds. Yum!

The next food adventure was with Fumika Yamamoto, who Bonnie by chance discovered was interested in teaching Japanese cooking classes. Bonnie wrote about our experience here and so did Fumika here.  So, I won't repeat the event, but just share the pictures from my camera that morning.

The ingredients!

The mountains of deliciousness!

And the final dish "Okonomiyaki in the Hiroshima style".

February, you truely are not soooo bad.

New York City

In January when the temperatures were in the 20's and I was feeling cooped up, I schemed a girls trip in June somewhere else in the country. My husband has taken skiing and biking trips over the past few years and I saw how refreshed and renewed he was after he came back home. For this getaway weekend, I wanted culture, food, inspiration, and the feeling of having no schedule. I narrowed it down to two cities: New Orleans or NYC.  Then I read that there was a Maira Kalman show at the Jewish museum in NY and that cinched the deal.

I talked to two friends, Bonnie and Patti about going and the three of us made plans. We bought plane tickets and my friend Bonnie said, "I have some friends who are always happy to have guests". Skip and Kathy, friends of Bonnie's in laws, live near 92nd and Lexington. They are wonderful people, so gracious and warm. Sharing not only their huge by NY standards apartment, but also maps, guidebooks and their own favorite places in Manhattan. I am inspired by their generosity.

Staying with Skip and Kathy in their home made me fall in love with New York City. When we were younger and just married, we cat-sat for a month for artist Janet Fish in her soho apartment. I remember feeling intimidated by such a big city, and unsure of what exactly I wanted to do and see. Subsequent visits to NYC were always short and usually just in and out to see a show. This trip was different. For one thing the weather was perfect and the three of us all like to do and see the same kinds of things. We had no agenda other than a few key places we wanted to see: The Maira Kalman show, the Highline park, Purl, and Moomah cafe. The rest of our time was spent ambling around and ducking into food shops or inspiring stores. Two surprise highlights of the trip for me were Central Park, and Russ and Daughters appetizer shop.

Here is a list of where we went in order:

Culinary books and letters bookshop

Metropolitan Museum rooftop patio bar

Cafe d'Alsace restaurant

Moomah  cafe

Chinatown

Purl Soho fabric and yarn 

Jewish Museum's Maira Kalman show

Gentleman Farmer restaurant

Jonah Shimmel Knish bakery

Russ and Daughters appetizers

The Highline park

Fishs Eddy shop

ABC carpet and home design mecca

Central Park Loeb boathouse

The trip helped to remind me of two things: be grateful for friendship and celebrate it, and be generous to strangers the way Skip and Kathy were to us.

As a final note; I am looking forward to summer here in Chicago! I'm going to try and make headway on lots of those projects I have started. Until then I continue to be content with being "inspired by distraction".  (paraphrasing from the Maira Kalman show!)

There's lots more NYC trip pictures on my flickr page.

Rambutan on Canal

  Artwork at Moomah cafe

Genius idea and shop from 1914

The Highline Park

Hydrangea in Central Park