Now That I've Finished Holiday Knitting

Just popping in to quickly show you the result of a custom order a coworker placed with me.  She wanted a very simple cowl and chose her own yarn - an Isaac Mizrahi white acrylic.  Unfortunately, in this photo you can't see the bits of metallic silver thread shot through.

But I liked the cowl so much once she tried it on that I've started another, this one in a fluffy blue/green.  Show you when it's done!

Is It the Season Already?

Holiday commercials are on TV, holiday movies, showing on Lifetime.  I've been getting Black Friday emails for a while.  So I guess it's time to talk gifts, especially since Chanukah is early this year.

In addition to all the great gifts we've always had available at Reef Botanicals (and remember, if you want to do a custom gift basket, fish around the shop and see what you like then message me so we can make some plans!), there are some new things at Fabric of my Mind you should see, that I haven't shown you yet.

The most luxurious is this 100% cashmere scarf.

It's in a great Irish hiking cable knit pattern.

This blue one you see is one I made for Eric, but I'm offering it as a custom order (which means if you want it for the holidays, order as soon as possible!) in any one of these six colors.

There's also this fluffy soft acrylic blue/green/grey cable knit scarf for a more affordable option.

Or there's a great fluffy soft ribbed scarf in apple green.

That ones makes a great set with these green mittens knitted from the same yarn!

Plus, there's lots more photos if you're into decor as gifts... or to update your house for having guests over.

Artist Spotlight: Part Eighty-Two

Remember that awesome book I won?  Well, it's time to tell you some more about her, Andrea of Blue Highways.

She lives with her husband and boxer dog in northeast Ohio, and she does book binding and art full time!  An avid reader, she's always loved books, and now she makes some of the most beautiful ones I've ever seen.

She loves working with different fabrics and papers, and all different types of closures.

She also loves to try different binding techniques, each of which is gorgeous.

Heck, even the innards of her books are beautiful.

So why the name Blue Highways?  According to Andrea, old road maps used to have the back roads, those less traveled, printed in blue.  Those are the roads preferred by her.

Since she also encourages customers to contact her for custom items, working with them on size, fabric, binding, page count, type of paper, and more, be sure to check out her blog for ideas.

So there's this chick...

Andrea, from northeastern Ohio.  I met her at the Handmade Artists Forum, which I've written about here several times.  Andrea herself is an amazingly talented bookbinder who has a shop, Blue Highways.

I've been coveting her hand bound books for quite a while now, and I finally own one!  She was creative and generous enough to start a contest at HAF, involving the Handmade Highlights, with one of her own books as the prize!  I created a Highlight based on my favorite song, Castle Walls by Styx, and had the most commenters, so I won my choice of one of her gorgeous mini journals.

I got it on Saturday and was so enamoured with it that I had to share.  First, her packaging is terrific; each book is wrapped in vintage newspaper with twine.  The newspaper around my book was from 1963 and very interesting to read.

Also included with the book was a pretty notecard with a message to me and a book thong, also made by Andrea.  It was blue cord with blue glass beads, my favorite color!  I knew that Andrea included a complimentary book thong with every book she sold, but had no idea I'd be getting one with a book I'd won.  I thought that was just really sweet.

Once I unwrapped the book, I got to see the fabric I'd chosen in person, these awesome batik sea turtles, of course in blue.

The book's closure is a blue ribbon with dark blue beads on the ends.  The flyleaf is fun and also sea-themed, with pictures of urchins and shells.

The binding, though, is what boggles my mind the most.  The book is hand-threaded in this lovely pattern of thread, that I think is the most beautiful thing.

The care and expertise she puts into these books is evident from front to back.  I'm so glad I got it, and know I'll be buying more in the future.

My first commission!

Someone who saw me knitting it loved Eric's scarf so much that he's commissioned me to make the same exact one for him!  So... my very first knitting sale!

... once it's done.

Shared with:

Blogs I Follow: Melinda Lancaster, Author and Poet

I have this friend, Mel.  She's not fibbing with that "author and poet," either.  She's got a poem hanging in the John F. Kennedy museum in Hyannis, MA.  Her currently-published children's book, Tyler and the Spider, is available on Amazon.  Of course, I've already got three copies of it, one for each nephew (autographed to them), and one for me and Eric.  There are more children's books in the works, and I'll be buying those as well, since her first is great!

Tyler was inspired by her 16-year-old daughter, who's got Rett Syndrome, and therefore occasionally confuses other kids with her inability to behave the same as they do.  In it, Tyler awakes to find himself face-to-face with a spider, about which he's heard terrible things.  Meanwhile, the spider is terrified of Tyler, having heard similarly frightening news about little boys.  Of course, the two realize that their differences are OK and there's nothing to fear.

In addition to her children's books and the poem that is in the JFK museum, Mel takes commissions for personalized poems through her business, DKS Verse.  You can contact her about her poetry and keep up with her travels on her Facebook fan page.

I was able to have Mel write a poem for each of my nephews when they were born.  They're absolutely wonderful.  My sister prefers internet privacy, and Mel used the name of each boy as the first letter of each line of the poems, so I'll only post the one written for my nephew on Eric's side of the family, Zachary Artemus Jensen.

Zeal has no boundries-
     it flies throughout the land
And lightens the dark corners
     in every heart of Man.
Casting off no shadow,
     Hope shines in every soul
Heaven's angels' voices sing-
     welcoming him home.
And they are joined in chorus
     by Tara's Harp and kings
Reaching out from Ireland's shore.
     Now hear the church bells ring.
Yet let the din be quieted
     for here lies a sleeping boy,
And wrapped gently in his mother's arms,
     her heart is filled with joy,
Reaching out, his hand is joined
     by his father's, strong and sure.
Together they will face tomorrow
     with love, sweet and pure.
Each passing day will find a boy
     one step closer to a man,
Making his way, slowly,
     in the best way that he can.
Under God's watchful eye,
     his soul will find its way;
Still, time will seem to fly
     from tomorrow to yesterday.
Just beyond the setting sun,
     The horizon waits for you;
Each day upon your journey there,
     may blessings be many, troubles be few.
Never fear that you may stumble
     nor that you might even fall,
So many loving hands will catch you
     and see you through it all.
Earth holds great promise
     it lies not far ahead
Now, though, just rest easy
     for angels are singing o'er your bed.

See why I wanted these?  She's so incredibly talented!

Want to read some more of her poetry?  Know what she's up to?  Know when her next book is coming out?  Follow her blog.