arriving in the new world

i've been thinking a lot about emma lousia. my great-great-grandmother who left her wealthy british home in yorkshire, married an irish soldier, and eventually moved to lancelot, ontario - dirt poor farmland.
this is my first piece for emma louisa. i plan on doing more.

i dyed a beautiful piece of linen that robyn sent to me a few weeks ago - dyed it a good solid victorian colour. and added crochet lace that i purchased on etsy and then worked it with embroidery and vintage ric-rac and beads. all from her old world. the restrictions and the comfort of those restrictions. and the crow - the world she ended up in. the cold lonely sound of a single crow. against a clear blue sky, a rocky landscape.

in all that chaos

i've spent the entire weekend painting the spare (soon to be yoga/meditation) room. everything is out of place and the whole house seems to be in chaos. this morning i walked into the room ready to tackle the finishing touches. and saw the early morning light on the newly painted wall. the beautiful, hopeful end of winter light. already this room is giving me a sense of peace.

newfoundlander at heart

a few weeks ago i had the privilege of being asked by by margot at newfoundlander at heart to be a guest blogger. here is the interview.

pretending it isn't happening

we're experiencing one of the biggest storms of the winter today. i'm pretending it isn't happening. it's fairly mild so abigail and i got out for our morning walk in spite of the blizzard. i did a little dyeing and got the pots back inside before they completely filled up with snow.

and i'm continuing my house "fresh-up". re-organizing the spare bedroom by pushing the bed to the wall and turning it into my yoga/meditation room. and giving it a new serene colour.

emily carr sees green

in my mind, some artists will always be associated with certain colours. rembrant brown. van gogh yellow (sunflowers) and ultramarine blue (cafe sky). matisse cobalt (his cut-out jazz figures). and emily carr green.
our little book club just finished reading (and discussing) susan vreeland's "the forest lover". it was wonderful getting back into emily carr's world. in my youth i read all her books. during her lifetime she was known at least as well for her writing as she was for her painting. after reading the "forest lover" i went back to "growing pains" (her most complete autobiography) to hear her voice again.

i'll be adding "the forest lover" to my etsy shop later today.

what's pleasing me now

i've been feeling a little flat lately. that usually happens after a period of extreme activity. when all i want is for things to slow down and let me take a breath. and when they do...
this week i had a healing touch session with a good friend. this always helps. she described my state as being in stasis - like the crest of a wave.
so i've been enjoying this crest.
i've been enjoying the lengthening days and the sunlight pouring into the kitchen in the late afternoon.

the spring flowers i've been buying at the grocery store.

painting the hall.

and this box that arrived late last week from robyn full of inspirational reading and wonderful old textiles. i finished off a little textile piece and have begun another.
i'm enjoying this crest.

the sea, the sky

this time of year i stop going down to the cabin. i prefer comfort. but keith manages to spend time there almost every weekend. he doesn't mind the slide down the 70 snow covered steps. or sitting in the sub zero cabin waiting for it to warm up. and this is his reward...