astulabee...

I'm in love with these lanky and oddly lovely animals by Nicole Licht of Astulabee.

Check out more of her work on her website and shop.

Ceramic Cake Toppers

I just picked up all of my ceramic Cake Toppers from being fired. I love the idea of them donning a wedding, birthday, or anniversary cake... or for that matter, just sitting around the house!

See them all in my Etsy Shop

I've been making a bunch of these little pieces... While I used to spend all my time in my ceramics class throwing on the wheel making functional objects, these days I've been hand building, and loving the new projects.

the studio is finally finished

I finally picked up and arranged all of my studio. I'd left a number of boxes of "mystery stuff" laying around... not really wanting to deal with it all, but over the weekend I tackled the project. What a relief! It's all in place. The Fireplace is working (although I've only needed it on one day), all of the supplies are arranged (a place for everything and everything in it's place), the MurphyBed Ironing Board is installed and working (a favorite new item I found) and all the storage around the studio is clean and organized. I think the "nesting phase" is in high gear.

Now I just need to get to sewing... let the fun begin.

Polaroids in the Backyard

Jay and I made a few 4x5 Polaroids of us yesterday (here's the belly shot for all those asking to see how the baby grows)... I pulled out my big view camera after sorting through all of the old film in the frig. I was surprised to find although Polaroid has folded I still had a bit of film left. Gotta Love Polaroid. I know digital is instant gratification, but nothing is like the joy of making a photo and instantly holding a real (utterly beautifully flawed) photograph in your hands.

love for the old hound...

My old dog Jessie... Jay and I have had her for the last 7 of her 14 fine years. She and I have spent this morning out in the yard. She's taken it easy with an extended nap in the sun while I drank my tea. It's been a good Sunday morning.


It's no surprise with my sentimentality for the aging mutt in my care, that I found this fabric by Skinny laMinx irresistible. I would love to make a couple pillows, reupholster a chair, or my whole house in this beautifully designed fabric.
To see more beauties: check out the website.

hello old boy...

Here's another piece I've been working on this week...
This old boy is going off in the mail soon. He's one of the last custom orders I had to finish from the "Special Offer Custom Bear" back in December. I was sent his hat to work into the design and luckily had the perfectly matching blue vest...

what did you do today?

I just finished this lady....

playing with fabric...

When I don't have the time to start a new quilt (which is far more often than not), I find it nearly as satisfying to pull fabric swatches from websites or from my shelves... and begin grouping palettes and patterns. It's free... and without cutting I'm able to enjoy the daydreaming in design and pattern that is quilt-making. Here's today's groups:

all fabrics from Purl Soho

quilt joy...

photo: Roland Bello

A box of cute...

I recently sent a wonderful box of bears and animals to Susan's Store Room... it's been a crazy week, so forgive the lack of original imagery to accompany this post (image below is from Susan's blog which I've embellished with text). Even if you're not looking to shop, you should stop by her beautiful new website. I love the background images which give this website a real sense of place.
Contact Susan's Store Room directly if you'd like to hear more about the new one-of-a-kind pieces. There are a few old worn cuties in there... along with other small but very nice pieces.

Happy Sunday.

Is there anything that more comforting and homey than line dried sheet and clothes? It's finally that time of year again, and while we hung up our clothes line a few weeks ago our clothespin bag was a little worse for wear. I'd bought it at an estate sale a few years ago and loved the design so I remade it in new fabric.
It's a genus pattern, which starts out as a square. The middle of each side is taken in so once it's sewn onto the hook it has four nice openings which are large enough to get a hand in, but not so big that the pins will fall out... I'm sure there has to be some hardware out there similar to this old hook, as I doubt it was made for just this purpose. Ahhh, the ingenuity of necessity.

Finally!

The new Wedding Cake Toppers I've been working on for the last few days are now up in my Esty Shop. I hope to make a couple more next week to add to the shop along with all the Ceramic pieces which are at the kiln being fired.

Even if you're not getting married...
here's a little dose of cute for you today:

new wedding cake toppers...

I've been working on a few pom pom cake toppers which I'll be posting soon! They've been in ridiculously high demand, so I'm feeling the pressure to finish at least a few great ones for my Etsy Shop (plus they're really fun to make, even though they take FOREVER... all those very little parts!)

Hello Goodbye!

All of these good lookers are now on their way to Bear Paths. Goodbye all... safe travels.

New Wall...

I've made a new "inspiration" wall in my studio... It's nice having one whole wall completely covered in this smaller space, while all the other walls are left open and blank. Open and airy, well maybe not so much, but cozy and comfortable. Can't wait until the fireplace is up and working!

hello sunshine...

It's a sunny afternoon here, and I've had a productive day in the studio. Check out this handsome boy I made.

finally.

I'm in the studio working today- Yahhoooo! I've been lucky enough to find a few hours here and there, but finally I have nearly a whole day to get back to doing what I do best. It's been a while, and it feels like a bit of a relief to have so much hard work behind me. Photos to follow soon of the pieces I'm finishing up today.

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY

Sending all the mothers out there (especially my Mama) giant bouquets of the most beautiful flowers to express our appreciation and love... HAPPY MOTHERS DAY MAMAS!

Flowers by Nicolette Camille

a house plant even I can grow

I love having plants inside, but I seem to have a bit of trouble keeping them healthy and happy. I understand, at least I've been told, it's really not all that difficult and just takes a little attention and time, but apparently those are two things I just can't seem to offer my lovely indoor friends. Outside, I fancy myself a bit of a gardener, but inside is clearly a different story. Enter the Oxalis: Hello lovely. I have a variety of these around my house and they've all lived to tell of my lack of consistent watering, attention, and care. They bloom regularly and fairly effortlessly look quite lovely. You can order them online or find them in your local garden store... Highly recommended for those of us with less than green thumbs.

cat cake toppers...

I recently had a bride approach me about wanting a cat cake topper... She said how she wished their cat could be there for the big day. I loved the idea of a simple singular cat holding court atop the weddingcake, approving of the union... Here are two of the pre-glazed pieces. Can't wait to see them all white and glowy once fired.

Once finished these pieces (and many others)
will be listed on my etsy shop.

my evening project

I think I just have a hard time sitting still, which has been difficult since I became pregnant. While I'm exhausted my 10pm I'm still quite awake (most of the time) and feeling like maybe I should get something done. If I had the energy I'd vacuum or put in some laundry, but it seems my energy level has confined my activities to those which can be accomplished on the couch.

Enter my latest undertaking:
the baby blanket.

I've dug though all my old yarn and pulled out all the worsted weight wool, and I'm making the little one a blanket (who doesn't love using something up?). It will be perfect in these cold Minneapolis winters and while not machine washable the feel of the soft wool makes it worth the extra efforts handwashing will entail... Hurray for sedentary projects.


(For those interested, I used 8 needles and 130 stitches across. It's a nice size, bit I think it will be quite large. If I was doing it again, I think around 100 stitches would have been ample on a slightly larger needle making the work a little looser.)
JM