01.27.08
(1850’s American) Japanese Fan Quilt
I bought this quilt top from an antique shop in Okanogan, WA about a year ago. It was an intense experience; the proprietor had been hanging on to this quilt for decades and she cried when I bought it. She might have been an extraordinary salesperson or an extraordinary actor, but she said not everything in her shop was for sale (very French, non?) and she told me she only sold it to me because of my reaction when I saw it–it was immediate, fervent love upon first sight. I’ll be sending these pictures to her, since I promised I would when I found a place to hang it.
A little history: these early fan quilts are silk scraps on a black silk background and were influenced by Japanese design when Japan opened for trade with the West in 1854. Mine is is fairly good shape, although the silk is quite fragile by now. (And though it looks like there’s a bright light on it in the first pic, never fear–there is a window above it, but the light doesn’t shine directly onto the fabric.)
Sussing out sustainability
No doubt it’s the doing of Michael Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma, but I’ve got sustainability on the brain. Not done with the book yet, and no really stellar thoughts of my own, but here are two interesting sites:
Windward is a fascinating WA community founded on sustainable practices.
2Good2Toss is a WA state online materials exchange that I just discovered!
01.26.08
Stacked garden-rock sculptures
I’m not done with the new mantel yet (nice wiring running behind the rocks, eh?) but I really love these rock people. I’ve seen others before, either outdoors on a larger scale, or polished as art pieces, and I love the zen simplicity. I’ve been digging up rocks around the property to amend (!) the soil just in front of the mailbox. (Truly opposite of amending garden soil, as the nice loam becomes a true bog in the rainy winter.) So in my rock-collecting, I found a few that were flat on one side, suitable for a base for one of these wee sculptures.
01.22.08
A visit to the aquarium
We spent Monday at the Seattle aquarium, which has had quite a renovation since our last visit. Beautifully done!
The kids were very taken with the diver in the impressive 120,000 gallon tank. I was very taken with the wolf eel who wound his way around the diver’s arms and body, curious and playful, clearly interacting as an intelligent being. He seemed to love being stroked and petted–like nothing so much as a puppy.
I liked the small exhibit of Chihuly glass:
The otters were captivating as always:
Seattle sparkles on a sunny day.
01.17.08
Cello lesson #9
Today was my first lesson of the new year. Most of what I’m doing at this point, four months into lessons, is learning to switch positions smoothly and figuring out how to play the same note on different strings.I began working on the 3rd Suzuki book today, learning Lully’s Gavotte (and a little history about Louis XIV along the way) and working through Boccherini’s Minuet (I always hear Bobby McFerrin’s rendition of this a la Paper Music).
After spending some time on the internet cello society site, on the cellist by night forum, I realize that I’ve really lucked out with such a great teacher! Everything people were mentioning as good qualities in a teacher, C. F. has. He’s definitely an accomplished cellist, and he plays for me so I can see how his hands move (both bow arm and fingering with left hand). Listening, I become enthralled and motivated by how utterly beautiful the cello can sound. At the same time, he doesn’t seem a bit bored by focusing on these very elementary exercises that I’m learning. He’s very encouraging and complimentary–I’m lucky to have found someone who is inspiring and yet not removed or remote, nor utterly intimidating to play duets with!
Window seat update
Ikea’s floor cushions (size 28×28″) ended up being my choice. Five of them across just fit, and since we were overstuffing the covers, they’re nice and firm. I really liked the zippered 26×26″ covers and I went with soft white–no, listen!–because I can toss them in the wash, see?
01.15.08
First thoughts of the day: William Stafford
(Uh, except for: Not morning already! Nooo. Bed so warm, body so tired…)
William Stafford was a writer’s writer. Profoundly prolific, he believed in trusting the thought that came to him in the morning, writing it out, and following it to fruition. Thursday would have been his 94th birthday, and I’ve been hearing about poetry readings and celebrations all over the Northwest (and in fact, all over the world).Driving back from Poulsbo yesterday, I was listening to an NPR story about Stafford that reminded me of how much I love his work, his style and subject matter (ordinary life, nature).
One of my much read, much loved collection of poems is a small volume he co-edited for BYU, Modern Poetry of Western America. Though I’m lucky enough to have met a couple of the poets it features, I feel I’ve met them all. Stafford worked with an amazing cohort, one that figured prominently in my high school and university education. I’m quite out of the loop just now, but someday I’ll jump back in–and the past couple of days have made me excited about what’s going on in the Northwest world of writing.
01.10.08
A new knitter!
One of S’s Christmas presents was a session of knitting classes with her beloved teacher, Miss B, who also happens to teach knitting at Churchmouse Yarns and Teas.
After ducking through the rain and making our way along the sidewalk, Churchmouse was a lovely haven of refined and cozy smells, sights, and sounds. A recording of Gregorian chant (reminded me of that tape I had back in high school that I just about wore out, called Chant) wound its quiet way among the colorful displays of yarn, silks, thread, buttons, teas, and finished sweaters, scarves, capes, and hats.
The shop smelled just vaguely of the spicy fruity darkness of tea, and they had oodles of canisters of loose tea along the back shelves. There’s also gorgeous tea sets and English biscuits and lots of this-and-thats to temp a weak wallet.
S. was eager to pick out her skein of yarn (green because she thought her Emily doll would like it) and get started learning how to cast on and start her first project. Once she got home, she eagerly picked it back up.
01.09.08
Window seat project
Our south-facing living room window, which is set into the wall a bit, seemed a good candidate for a window seat–so we built one over the past 2 weeks.
First we pried the baseboard off.
Then we built a frame.
And covered it in birch plywood.
Then, we added some very simple trim and stained it a dark walnut, using Minwax gel stain. We sprayed on 2 polyurethane coats of varnish.
Since there’s a furnace register under the windowseat, it’s a toasty place to sit and and read or think. Of course, there’s still the cushions to decide about–I’m not done with that part yet!
01.04.08
Cross-your-fingers hydrangea project
This afternoon I finally pruned back our very leggy hydrangea. It has a habit of growing out over the walkway, ambushing folks on the way to the front door with its wet, floppy flower heads. I think I’ve got it to a manageable point, and I’ll stake the rest back a bit.
I’ve got a gardening book here that says hydrangea cuttings will root from winter hardwood, so I thought I’d give it a try.
First, I washed out a couple of pots with a bleach solution.
Next, I filled them with a 50-50 mixture of peat moss and perlite.
Then, I trimmed the stems right below a leaf node and poked them into the rooting mixture.
Now, says my book, keep it reasonably moist, wait several months, and see what roots.
Okay.
I love hydrangea blossoms, even the winter ones that look like old women’s hands with age spots and visible veins. Especially those ones.
