ON.....S L O W posting, LIFE, and a short video on stitching stems.

Here we are..... four months later and I am just getting around to posting again.  I really don't know what to say ~ One would think that I wasn't a routine person, which I very much am.  The trouble is, I have found it oddly difficult to incorporate blog writing into that routine.  SO, I shall pop in when I can, regardless of whether it is morning, afternoon or evening, and hopefully there will be someone out there wishing to read what I have to say and, if there isn't.....  at least I am writing and sharing :)

Today in Vermont we have heavy rain and storms forecasted.  This morning, I woke, made myself a cup of coffee and, regardless of the downpour, Oliver and I made our way to the front porch.  The rain was so heavy that Oliver refused to step off the porch and, who can blame him.  We stayed, me rocking and listening to the wind and rain as it washed away our driveway, once again, and Oliver sniffing around the porch trying to discover the origin of the animal that stole two large pieces of homemade bread, I had left out yesterday afternoon for the birds to enjoy.   We didn't stay long, the fire needed tending, the house needed tidying and Oliver was clamoring for his breakfast.   A few hours later, I made my way back out to the porch with my stitching.  The rain calmed down a bit, as the birds finally began to sing and move out of the shelter of our newly open leaves.   Oh, how I love to listen to the Robins ~ their song is one of my favorites!

I must be off now ~ much to do on this rainy day, but before I go, I wanted to share a very quick little video of the way I stitch floral stems.  As most of you know, I typically like to represent stems with Weeks Dye Works Kohl floss and an embroidery stem stitch, but I am finding that it doesn't always fit a particular piece, so I am forcing myself to do as our beloved Maggie B does, with wool and the ladder stitch.   I had a heck of a time getting the rhythm of this stitch when I first attempted it years ago.  Thankfully, a couple years ago, I was able to attend a workshop, in Salem, MA, with Maggie and  was able to see her do it in person which finally made it click for me.  I am definitely a visual learner which is most likely the reason my patterns are SO VERY WORDY and full of photos and sketches lol...I write them for the other visual learners out there...hoping I can write and show them enough, so it makes sense :).  Anyway, I hope the short little video helps you, should you need a bit of a visual :).

Until next time friends.  Be Well, Be Joyful, Be Kind. hugs to all, Doreen

~Home Again ` Home Again ~ Jiggety Jig~

 

Hello again my friends and welcome back to my original blog which I started back in...oh my heavens, 2012...  This is where I should have stayed, rather than flittering off to other "lands" only to find they did not suit me.  This is so much more personal...easily worked and maintained and best of all, easily personalized for a look and feel that is all ...ME.  

As I go forward, I am not going to commit to being here at any given time ~ I will just pop in and post when I have something to say. The brief time "off" I have taken, over Christmas and New Years .... a bit of WINTERING if you will....has taught me an important lesson.  I need quiet!  In an age where we are constantly told to be ON, I need to turn myself OFF...or should I say away (as often as my work allows).  Away from schedules, daily to-do's...posting here, posting there, oh, and don't forget here.....  Keeping yourself in the public eye is A LOT OF WORK....finding the right photo, coming up with something to say....it all takes away from the process of actually creating.  You reach a point when keeping yourself ion everyone's radar becomes a full-time job and your window for quiet contemplation to come up with new ideas becomes smaller and smaller.  I need the day to day routine of tidying my house, while classical music plays, baking bread.... the kneading, stretching and folding so meditative that this is where my ideas form, my sketchbook and a cup of coffee in the afternoons, hearing the fire snap and pop, and stitching in the evenings.   I shall become a bit smaller in this online world ~ simply posting, updating, etc. etc.....when I truly have something to share.  

AT HOME TODAY ~ we have lovely sunshine and a mild 33* with a few snow showers on the way.  The last few days have been bizarre weather-wise, with 6" of snow falling on Sunday and then high winds and rain taking over Tuesday evening, stealing away most of our snow.  The winds were so bad in the wee hours Tuesday, neither Mark nor I slept.  They were bashing against the house with crazy force, coming from all directions (which was truly unsettling).  When the sun rose everything on the front porch was bashed about, chairs were on the ground, everything soaked through with rain, blankets, chair cushions and pine boughs littered the front lawn along with countless branches and a few limbs.  In our woods there are a couple tree's down and throughout our little village, many trees fell... power was out for thousands.  Oddly, our power remained on.  Quite unexpected as we have lost our power in far calmer storms.  We have another storm, of the same rain and wind, moving in Friday night into Saturday.... :(   Over the past several days, while this crazy weather bashed about, I have been busy baking and cooking.... Hamburger Soup, Peanut Butter Fudge (I should not make that again as I ate FAR too much of it), Baked Chicken, Sweet Potatoe Casserole and Cheddar Biscuits and last night, Chicken and Dumplings .... AS WELL AS, sketching, writing and stitching.  

I HAVE FINALLY begun the stitching on the project I will be teaching at the Big Blue House Spring Retreat in Tennessee.  CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS.  I am afraid I cannot share details or sneak peeks of this project.

Okay ~ I must be off.  I've a fire to tend and stitching to do.  Enjoy the day friends.  See you soon.  Doreen

Farewell June

Greetings my friends.  Tis dark and cloudy here in Vermont as the sound of thunder rolls in through our open windows.  Tis been a day of changing weather in our little spot on the map.  One moment we've sun shining down warmly and air that is warm and muggy and the next we've a cold gust of wind, black skies, thunder rolling through the clouds and a sudden down pour that leaves the yard dotted with swimming holes.  Just a short while ago, I  had just finished opening all the windows, turning off the lights and turning on the fans when I had to go back around, close them down, shut off the fans and turn on the lights. I actually feel like the entire month of June has been a month of back and fourths.  Just as we had really settled in, and gotten use to the  "stay home, stay safe" way of life they began telling everyone to go ahead, get out and about, live life as you did before, go back to your life..all is well.  Now, they are thinking that isn't the case.   I know many folks are anxious to jump back into the quicker pace of life before the pandemic but I must tell you, I am not.  I enjoy the quieter roads, the lack of crowds, the clearer skies, the quieter life.  The removal of  the "pressure" to be out and about, living, doing, GOING. Over the past several months, I am so much more relaxed, creative, centered.  There's time now.... TIME to do the projects that were always put aside, time to relax and sit on the porch without quilt, time to just be.  I realize this isn't the case for everyone and in no way do I mean to diminish that (my prayers to everyone struggling) but I also feel compelled to acknowledge the fact that for some of us..this has been okay and perhaps even GOOD, and that's okay :).   For us, (Mark and I) it's been a great time to just be together and concentrate on our own little spot on the map.    Our vegetable gardens are flourishing, as are the pumpkin patches (we have three now..I LOVE it) we put in four blueberry bushes (which are doing amazingly well)  we've made home improvements, and plans for even bigger ones down the road.   I've learned new skills.....sourdough bread baking and sewing my own clothes (two things I've long wanted to learn and master) etc. etc.   Of course, we've also had our trials..... missing the kids (thank goodness we can see them now), nervousness over the state of the world, frightened awareness when you finally do go into a grocery store (taking all the proper precautions) only to see the shelves half bare (and people NOT taking precautions) AND fear for the health of family, friends and ourselves (thankfully we've all been healthy)...but we go on, because we must and the way I look at it is, if we all step up, embrace what we've been given to deal with,  do what needs doing, make the best of a situation, do what we should, take responsibility for ourselves, look out for others and do what's right...well, this world would be a far, FAR better place for all of us.  . But I won't lecture.... Because, I must be off....

Tis time to take a batch of biscuits out of the oven (strawberry shortcake tonight) and to make sure the rain has not blown in too badly as we had another torrential downpour as I was writing this post.  

 FAREWELL JUNE ~ May July be full of promise and wonder.

 Until next time my friends, Be well ~Doreen

 

Perhaps......

 

 “In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer, and that makes me happy. For it says that no matter how hard the world pushes against me, within me, there’s something stronger – something better, pushing right back.” Albert Camus 

Charles Daniel Ward - The Progress of Spring, 1905

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  If what we are going through right now,   is not a wake-up call for us to SLOW DOWN, SHOP SMALL & STAY LOCAL...I truly do not know what one is. We are EVER SO FORTUNATE right now, to have within our reach, an abundance of local farms, farm stands, small shops, breweries, bakeries, nurseries and ways in which to maintain our stay at~home mandate, but that is not the case everywhere. Growth & change are goode but equally important is keeping the small, family-owned and run shops.  We need our farms, small towns, and villages, now more than ever.

 WE NEED BALANCE.

I don't have all the answers, in fact, I might not have any answers but I do know a few things.  

**We need the big & THE SMALL.....  We need larger grocery stores however, we do NOT need one every ten miles because that is what kills the small, local ones.  We need, as a society, to be willing to travel thirty or forty miles to do our "big" shopping.

This same thing can be applied to everything we have, as a society, right now.  Our fast-paced, hurry up,  I need everything quick, will be the end of us if we are not more mindful and careful.  We need both the small and the large, the quick and the slow.  We need balance!!!  

We are getting a taste right now of what can happen when things come grinding to a halt in our world...  Can we survive on just technology, the quick, the big the far-reaching.  NO, we can not & perhaps we should what is happening right now and let it be a warning!!!  

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OH MY GOODNESS my friends, I apologize.   I decided to start blogging again to put a little encouragement out there, a little light in a dark time...... I had no intention of this, my return post, being a lecture of sorts.  I promise it will not be the case on a regular basis.   But, I am hoping, that when we make our way out of all of this, and we will, we remain mindful and, hopefully, be a part of the reason it doesn't happen again.

I'll be back, in a day or two, with a positive note, some lovely thoughts and goode things to share :).  Until then, I hope you are all staying healthy and your struggles are few.  Hugs to all of you, Doreen