Falling Feathers ~ Fringe AW 2011

.

Today is the beginning of an emergence.
An emergence of Fringe.
My Autumn Winter Collection.

Fall.
Falling.
Falling in love.
Falling Feathers.

Urban prairie
Romance
Color
Embellishment


Stay tuned...
xo





.

Signs...

.

I have a thing for old signs.  
Can you tell?
I took a few snapshots of the old signs we passed
on our way up the mountain.

To be honest,
I didn't have the heart to keep asking Ron
to stop so I could snap pics
of every sign I loved.
 It's a 7 hour drive without stops.
The natives would have become very restless.

So, alas, there are only a sprinkling of the signs
I loved from here to there.

I hope you enjoy them.
I feel each one is special in its own way.
Each one is a true work of art.
Each one has been seen
more times than we can count,
by more sets of eyes than we can count,
for years upon years.

That thought alone makes me happy!

 





I haven't even loaded the photos from our trip that are on Ron's camera yet.
He has the super fancy camera.
I know there are more signs on his because
on our way up the mountain,
I had an epiphany.
About signs.
More on that later....

I have so many more vacation photos to share with you, dear ones!
I hope you won't get sick of them.
I seemed to have taken photos
of a themed nature this year.
I'm actually quite excited about them.

I want them up on my walls,
in all their themed beauty!
Which could be a challenge.
Limited wall space, you see.

Also, I have so many new pieces to share with you, 
aka
Fringe Autumn Winter 2011.

~

In other news,
today was our boy's first day of school.
High school...
9th grade!
*sniff*

~

I feel like I have so much to say to you.
I could go on and on.
Like a long delayed lunch date
with a
beloved friend.
So much to say....

Dear hearts,
Thank you so much for stopping by.
You brighten my days!
xo



.

The meadow...

.

This is the meadow.
The meadow I dream of.
The meadow I love.

I see it twice a year:
on our way up the mountain
and on our way down the mountain.
It's a magical spot on this earth.

~

Well, dear ones,
we made it home from Mammoth!
It was such a wonderful week.

I took 500+ photos.
Yikes!
I'm still sorting through them.
I can't wait to share some of them with you.

Thank you so much for your lovely comments
and well wishes for our trip
on the last post!

It's good to be home.
I hope you are having a beautiful week!

Much love...
xo



.


Have a beautiful weekend...

 .

{A painting of a happy lady graces one of my office walls,
in a place of honor over Ardith's bench.}


Happy Friday, lovely friends!
Man oh man, what a week.

We are getting ready for our yearly road trip to Mammoth.
We leave Sunday for a glorious week.
Words cannot express how much I look forward to this trip.
Mammoth has healing powers.

I will keep in touch
via this blog,
if all things go as planned.
Who knows what adventures are in store for us!
Let's hope there's not a repeat of this...

In the meantime,
have a beautiful weekend!
If you would like to share with me
what your plans are this weekend,
I'd love to know...

My weekend will be a mix of activities.
Fun stuff,
like continuing my work on
a big wood/fiber project,
and then there's the packing for Mammoth,
and the long chore list.
I'd give you the detailed weekend list,
but I don't want to scare you!

In case I've neglected to mention this lately...
Thank you for being you.
xo



.



A golden green meadow...

.


Hello, darling dears.

I'm not one to waste my time
wishing I were elsewhere.
I'm the one who believes in
the here and now.

However.

Some days are
just too blech.
Too stressful.
Too much of
what they shouldn't be.

Like today.
For me.

So (since I don't have a meadow on hand),
I'm going to take a few moments,
close my eyes,
imagine that golden green meadow.
Listen to the birds.
Feel the breeze,
and the warmth of the sun.
Smell the earth.
Ahhhh...
Much better.

I truly hope you're having a beautiful day.
The best of days!
If, by some sad coincidence, you're not,
please come join me
in the meadow.

Much love...
xo



.

Simplest summer salad...

.


This simple salad is a staple in our home.
I make it several times a week.
It's so refreshing,
but best of all,
it takes only about 5 minutes to make.
No oven, no stove top required.

And only 5 ingredients:
cucumbers
tomatoes
rice vinegar
sea salt
cracked black pepper.

I stir well,
cover and refrigerate.
Let it sit for a bit in the fridge
to allow the flavors to blend.
Added bonus:
the colors look pretty.

Try it, you'll like it!
*wink*



Much love...
xo

P.S. A special hello to a lovely new friend, Debbie.



.

Coffee with the girls (and one guy)...

.


I've spent the wee hours of this morning
sipping coffee and
dressing these delightful ladies.
There's a guy in there too...
he must be covered up by the girls.

They all look quite different now.
Warm and cozy.
Urban chic.
Rustic prairie.
Couture.

All of them have something in common.
They're very Fringe-esque.
I love them.
*so excited*

Happy Friday,
darling dears!

May your weekend be
a little slice of heaven!

Much love...
xo



.
.


At this moment,
I'm working outside
on another glorious day
in southern California.




.

Personalized Fringe...

.

This has been the summer of custom orders at Fringe.
I've been quite surprised by them.
Some from brand new, delightful clients.
One from a cherished client of more than 3 years.

I know that in the handmade world
custom orders can sometimes inspire apprehension.
Some artists have unpleasant experiences.

I have to say,
I've been the luckiest girl.
My custom order clients
are exceptional
and very, very special.

I love to create a piece
that has a specific purpose.
Usually for an occasion,
it adds a twist to my usual process
of creating.

It's an honor for me
to be chosen as the one to create
such a personal, important piece.

I find the most rewarding part of a custom order
to be the friendships I have formed.
Yarn can truly weave a friendship.

Here are some examples of
what I've been working on
the past few weeks.

Out of these creations,
relationships were formed
feelings were shared
hearts swelled
smiles grew.



Lipstick red luxury shrug with
two creamy rose brooches.
Butter soft yarn.


Vintage glass beads
embellish these rose brooches.


Two extra oversized cowls.


One of my circle brooches.



Made with love.


What I'm currently working on.
This yarn is being transformed into a luxury shrug.
It will be accompanied by two rose brooches.
In red, with spring green leaves.


I still found time to work on this little tidbit.
It's going to be a gift for a dear friend.
Is it possible to have a dear friend whom you've never met?
Absolutely!
Here, I'm working with
vintage cotton thread and a vintage hook.


This is going to be a new luxury piece for the shop.
Wait until you see the brooch I'm going to make for it!
Yippee!

So there you have it, dear ones.
I haven't been goofing off.
I've been working like a fiend, actually.

When there are custom orders,
it's not so easy to list new items in my shop.
As always,
I have a long, long list
of future projects.
Now all I need to do is
figure out how to make time stand still...

I hope you're having a beautiful day
in your little corner of the world!
Much love...
xo



.

Just a lovely little evening....

.

The other night, my two fellas took me out to dinner.
We went to our favorite little local restaurant.

It's a fish market/restaurant.
Nothing fried on the menu.
Besides the delicious, grilled fresh fish,
they make sinfully delicious parmesan mashed potatoes,
and your choice of summer vegetables steamed
or fresh strawberries.
Not to mention the hot-out-of-the-oven
sourdough rolls with whipped butter.
Mouthwatering!

We had a perfect table with a view.


The place is always packed.
It's a rustic, casual atmosphere.
Fish tanks,
big old hooks, ropes
and...

beware of the dark corners...


My two fellas...
*sniff*


After dinner,
we paused to admire a cool car
in the parking lot.
Our boy will be 15 this fall.
He's very excited to start driving.
I'm NOT ready!


The drive home at dusk...



In case you were wondering...
We didn't skip dessert.
It was waiting for us when we returned home.

~

Thank you for visiting, dear friends.
Your thoughts and comments are appreciated...
more than you know.

xo

pssst...Happy Birthday, UJ! xoxo



.

.

Just a little somethin' somethin' that makes me smile...
{look at the expression on the blue heeler dog's face}
I hope it makes you smile too.



And thank you, dear friends,
for being you.
xo



.