Sprucing the Heck out of Friday

Ever since I started blah-blah-blahing about the mess I am making in the front yard, I have patiently worked little by little to transform roughly 1500 sq ft of former grassyland into mulchyland. Its been over a month now since I began the process of killing grass with plastic sheeting, pulling up said plastic (whilst holding my nose), cutting and layering cardboard over the dead sod, shoveling 10,000 lbs of topsoil (one shovel at a time) over that, and finally laying 15 cubic yards of mulch over that (that was me + a shovel too (I am 5lbs lighter and super strong now)).

That blue vintage iron bench would be my cherry on top. The bench is Demacopoulos family vintage, as in, I grew up with it on my back porch. Now its blue. And is inspiring lots of plant choices for the whole garden. A few things that I learned about this process is that you absolutley HAVE to avoid any slits or cracks in your cardboard or by golly those little crabgrass stinkers will creep right though. Though they are weakened though, and easy to pull, but I've gone back in and layered over various spots with more cardboard (take THAT, underground grass crime ring). And if you should run out of cardboard its really fun to go dumpster diving at your local recycling center. I'm not sure its legal. That's the fun part.

I'm sorry that so far I have not offered any real photos of the process. There were scenes of what looked like a cardboard quilt all soaking wet that were such a sight of girl-gone-green satisfaction that I was so close to changing completely out of my mudwoman gear to go and get my camera. But people. It has been some exhausting work. For someone who has been in the habit of running about 8-10 miles a week, I have skipped that all together for the past few weeks to save energy for the shovlin'. (How much more interesting can this post get, right?) Anyway, I knew that I would regret not having those mid progress photos. Sigh. I reserved today, my first full day alone in this house in what seems like a decade to buy a few "bones" ~ as in some small trees/shrubs to position here and there. I am barely scratching the surface of what I hope for all this mulchy happiness to be in a matter of a few years, but I am just really glad to be beginning the fun part. I bought a drooping Blue Spruce (above), two very boisterous Princess Lace Hydrangeas, and four very springy looking late blooming English Laurel bushes. Where's the rest of that garden piggy-bank? How did my whole garden budget get eaten alive by mulch, dirt, and a few prissy plants? Cuss. Anyway. This is to be a gradual process and I am saving most of the planting for late fall and next spring once the layers have marinated.

Now then.

In what-I-do-for-a-living news: I've created a needleworks page that has info about all that stuff, plus a slide show, plus a fancy downloadable look book. I also have the two new patterns sneaking a peek on my sewing page, which are (FINALLY) at the printers. Sheesh. Summer.

In what-the-heck news: I have wasted the past year worrying that my dear daughter could get mugged, lost on the subway, or worse (not really) blow all my money at TopShop, when I should have been worrying about natural disasters like Earthquakes and Hurricanes. In fact almost exactly this time last year I sent her out of the tornado ally of Tennessee to Brooklyn where she was just down the road from a tornado. Now this all could mean one of two things: either I need to get better and more specific about my worrying; or it doesn't pay to worry. Not sure yet. I will report back when I'm 108 years old.

Have a good weekend pals, Anna

Crossing Paths & Visions

There are so many different ways that I want to share how to use the fabrics in this upcoming mini launch that it has nearly rendered me verbally paralyzed (should I just say mute there? speechless? stumped?- see I'm messed up). My heart is beating fast right now, because I am afraid that I'll forget to say something obvious or useful about them and you will be denied the glorious everythingness of this fabric. So lets go through this a little at a time from the beginning. These are what I call Loulouthi Needleworks. They are called Loulouthi because the imagery and the color palettes were derived from my Loulouthi collection. In essence they are no different than any printed cotton that I design, however they are a full 58" wide (wow Anna that's superwide! I know.) But they are called Needleworks, because the artwork printed on the cloth is comprised of tiny little X's.



This print is called Crossing Paths and it is essentially a series of borders stretching across from selvage to selvage, each row its own little cast of vignettes, small or large, traditional or splashy. There are 3 color ways of this print. I am sure that I am not the first to print x's on cloth, but when I conceived of the idea about a year ago, I wanted to be sure that the cloth stood on its own as a lovely print design for all kinds of patchwork and sewing, but also serve as a welcome invitation to thread a needle, find a hoop, and sit down to stitch up precious little artworks- for a baby collar, a yoke of a blouse or dress, a hem line, a framed artwork or a block in your next quilt. Or maybe an invitation to take on a lifeswork of a very expansive piece- a full coverlet entirely stitched, a table cloth, a bed skirt....combined with other printed fabrics, and so on. You get it. The above is just a digital copy of the print work.



This is me playing around with the same print. The size of the X's in this cloth compared to evenweave cloth for cross stitching -or something like Aida- are pretty large. I would say that perhaps if you know your cross stitching cloth numbers that these are about equivalent to 8ct, as in 8 X's per linear inch. You can stitch them up just like any cross stitch using either embroidery floss or Pearle cotton. So far I have only used Pearl cottons #8 for these, I just really like how they look and seem about the appropriate thickness without having to separate strands. Another little bonus to them being printed is there is no counting involved, so very little room for error. This makes it both pretty relaxing as well as awesome for kiddos to try out. Every time I come to one of the bolts to cut something off, I find them with some little square roughly cut away, snipped off by one of the girls- its like finding the boxes in your pantry mousechewed, or your hosta leaves caterpillarmunched...only sweeter. (Oh and p.s., a fine embroirdery needle will perform just fine for you, and only pre-wash them before stitching if your item will continue to be washed.)



This is the Visions print which I think of as a collage of all the different styles of cross stitch that I love, forming a field of possibilities to be cut apart, but still a beautiful soft design with vintage sensibilities to be left as a whole cloth for any kind of sewing. I should mention that while the X's are printed in one color or another, that I have stitched using pretty different shades than the X's right over them. In other words, you could alter your thread colors to a great degree from what is underneath and the thickness of your threads will conceal any distracting difference there may be. OH! And having a length of these fabrics is like getting not just fabric to use but also several cross stitch patterns that you could translate into other works, using these prints as a guide.



These are the 3 colorways of Visions framed up. Not stitched. What do you think I am, a factory?

I hope you enjoy these. Much more inspiration to share with them coming soon. They should be shipping to stores in just a few weeks. If you have any questions about using them for stitching I will answer in the comments section. I'm here to help. Not going anywhere. Really. I live here.

xo,Anna

little wings

In a matter of days what has been an extraordinarily good summer will officially change into something that I am going to, for now, optimistically categorize as just late summer. With the four middle children off to their schools since Monday, I have insisted that summer is not quite over yet. Juliana is home still, if only till this weekend, so I trick myself into believing that its not over. Roman will begin a school too, in his own little environment most days with other little ones .... which I am sure will be welcome to his nature, the little-one-of-many boy. I didn't quite wish summer away as I have in the past, exhausted with people, focused on making work work. And shockingly, everything worked out just fine. Every single moment here this warm stretch of 100 days or so, has been made up of the needs, wants, musings, cheer, cries, projects, messes, meals and laughter of so many people. This chorus of bodies has very often been overwhelming, with a business that doesn't seem to know how to slow down during the summer. But I do fear the absence of those bodies, although temporary in most respects, will have me missing the sort of mellifluous chaos, leaving me only to..... me. Who changes every day. And my work. Which changes along with me, and everyone else. Like stringy transparent tendrils swimming the dome of an octopus this way and that. Swish. Has it been a year since I drowned in this sorrow? It has. And those words have, each day, rewritten themselves into some other story. Not one of sadness. I don't know what exactly, but its a novel, and it moves, and grows with no definite stops or starts, and no ending. And while I felt as though I was leaving a cocoon on the other side of the country last year, this year, pardon the typical reference, I really do feel as though she'll be flying on her own there. And I feel lighter. And I imagine she might too. Knowing how this works now. That she goes. Only to come back. Just like Roman trusts that we leave him to be cared for, only for a short time, then we peek around the corner again, and he runs, keeping his eyes on our faces, tripping sometimes, with love and gratitude that we are back, belonging to him. And each of us is made whole because of the other. But gorgeous on our own..... currents of wind, or water, no threat to the strength of us.

photo taken by Juliana on a recent family hike

Today's Challenges

Roman challenge: occupying oneself while most siblings are off to school.
Mom challenge: see above.

Roman challenge: balancing a yardstick in the dump bed of a toy truck.
Mom challenge: resisting talking about things like physics with a 2 year old.

Roman challenge: wearing pants.
Mom challenge: finding pants. Roman's pants that is. I found mine.

Roman challenge: finding the nesting cube that fits head the best.
Mom challenge: deciding which family member to send the picture to first (subject line of "blockhead", natch).

Roman challenge: deciding on exact Anna Maria sticker placement for maximum awesomeness.
Mom challenge: trying not to sing at the top of my lungs with Dolly to "I will always love you". (Singing, in general, is a challenge for me.)

over and out, anna & roman
(And from the looks of the photo I would have to add that vacuuming is a challenge.)

Bold Strokes & Fine Stitches

It took me creating a new little embroidery- specifically for a table scarf- to tidy up my dining room, the whole house really, and share some pictures of it with you. I don't remember where I left off in showing the changes that I've made to the mess hall. I know you've likely seen it in its Raindrop blue stages here a few times. I also vaguely recall talking about how I wanted it to be cream colored by thanksgiving one year (didn't happen, it was all I could do to stuff a turkey that year)... and then I still picture these pictures of my boy on crutches sitting against cream walls. Anyway. The curtains are not new, but a patching of two fabrics that I created a few months ago, after deciding that no single fabric was doing the job for me. And I found myself hopping from the one turquoise fabric to another red fabric, deciding on neither, making something out of a whole other piece with some patchwork thingermagiggins across them only to take them down after a few weeks because I was not satisfied. Then back to the turquoise and the red, but together, making a new large striped print out of the two. And I love them. Did you get all that?



The table scarf. Here it is. Small potatoes really in such a large room. I grew up in a house where every table surface or buffet piece had some sort of a scarf, doily that was embroidered, cross-stitched, crocheted or otherwise that presumably protected the table top or gave a centerpiece or some other thing a soft place to rest. I have always loved, tiny details as you may have guessed, yet I am not a tiny, fussy type artist so much as I think in larger strokes of color and form. What I think I have learned on every canvas, whether its one of my fabric collections, a single blouse, a painting or a whole room in my house, is that its the marriage of the two- the bold and the fine- and the language happening between them that pleases me the very most. A balancing act, I guess. Something to react to from across the room, like a stage, as well as something to ponder upon closer inspection, like a walk in the woods.



I may not have every surface of my house clothed (though I have a drawer-full waiting to do the job) but I do always manage when spiffy-ing to place some sort of cloth in the center of our 10-ft farm table and place either fresh flowers of a bowl of fruit. It brings me joy. Its the crossbar on my t and the dot on my i. It just makes it home. In the hopes that some day all of my children will have their own drawer-full of these love layers, I was inspired to begin making my own. Continuing the tradition of works that color my memories of what a house it. But new.



This little Plaid Pods design was inspired by my favorite bouquets as well as my Buoyancy print which is on the reverse side. My friends at Sew4Home asked if I would share an embroidery design with their readers and I was more than happy to let that work and my personal musings come together in this little piece. They just posted the pattern pdf yesterday so go have a look if you're in search of some fine stitches to talk to you. I'll have it on my make page soon too.



I have lots of needleworks news and inspirations to share with you soon as the official launch of the goods is slated for September. I hope you enjoy making this if you choose to.



I also hope that my house will be this clean again someday.

xoxo, Anna

Taking Action

Today I am proud to share my support of Action Kivu with you. If you read me here often, you know that I try not to bug you about causes too much, unless I really feel strongly about them. We- you and I- are so blessed to be a small part of the huge supportive, nurturing, and educational world of creative blogging, belonging to very many caring people. The work that Action Kivu does seeks to offer victims of violence in Eastern Congo a chance at just the tiniest bit of what you and I enjoy every day- learning a trade and getting an education. I won't go on about their work, their website does a better job explaining the intricacies of their struggle, and the urgency of their efforts.

But I will go on about my friend Alissa a bit. Alissa has done all of us a beautiful service, by bringing us a simple, and painless way to help Action Kivu. It isn't often that you have the chance to support a cause that is both vitally necessary and also transparent in its efforts. While giving to really a large organization for a worthy cause that you believe in is a good thing, I am sometimes left with a small nagging question about how my offering will be used.... and hope that its how I would choose for it to be used. There is a bit of surrender that has to happen- from your bank account, but also your will. That's why you can take not just pride but also joy in helping out this cause because it is a genuine need, an uncomplicated approach and shared with us through Alissa, who is as passionate about this program as she is vigorous in her appeal. She is a good egg.

Please, even if you are only able to give the smallest amount, visit this post on Alissa's blog to learn about how you can give, and at the same time put your name in the running for amazingly lovely prizes donated from some of Alissa's pals in craftyland. (After having thrown my own name in a few of those runnings, please know that I would only dilute my chances to win if I really cared about this cause!) And if you cannot offer anything now, please share with your family and friends.

Our own Sunshine & Flowers Baby Quilt is one of the possible prizes in the running. I am also bulking up the loot by offering a free pattern to every winner in each category. I am so honored to be a very small part of Alissa's good work. I am going to rest my thoughts on the hand stitches in that quilt- the ones made in a safe, loving environment- and dream that the same will be possible for every woman and child who is affected by the violence that we hope and pray will end.

with love and thanks, Anna Maria

Seriously, now.

How am I supposed to work under these kind of conditions?

I suffer.

Do you see how I suffer?

Slurping summer through a straw here until its all gone.

xo,Anna

photo by Juliana

Interview with an(other) Intern, Part II

Thank you so much for all the kind birthday wishes, and also for the bit of commiserating regarding age and the disbelief of such. But I gotta say, looking back over so much in my life, its a wonder I'm not 79. My age shock doesn't lie in wishing it were different, its just that I am amazed how life goes by, its so surreal and almost intangible.... no other words. I wouldn't trade places with any twenty year old, though, that I can say for sure. But speaking of, I am so glad you enjoyed my chat with Anna. She was blushing through the whole thing, it was kind of fun to torture the intern (that's the whole point right?).

Well I've corralled Crista, my other intern, to answer some of the same and some different questions. This is sweet Crista above wearing my new almost printed pattern, the Painted Portrait Blouse & Dress- wuuhhhl obviously she's just wearing the blouse version not the dress too. I like explaining obvious things like that, because it gives me typing practice. The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. Anyway, the moment I said hullo to her for the first time, I asked her to model this blouse in the same breath. We had been on the hunt for a fair girl for the next pattern cover, and we had no idea that she would just walk right in. But she did. And I am glad for many reasons.

bossy: How old are you?
interny:21
bossy: (Runs to get a bottle of wine) Is it easy to be 21?
interny: Most days. How much of this do you actually type? (sees typing) Whhaaahh? I'm so embarrassed already, uhh, red faces are contagious....(mmm, thats good (referring to her glass of wine)) I do have occasional bank account panic, or a hard day due to lack of sleep, you know from being 21.
bossy: You're a student. Where are you studying, what are you studying, and what impression do you have about how important your degree is to your life's work?
interny: O'More College of Design (I'm totally friends with Anna-I really do think she is the best, not just saying that)and I'm studying fashion. It remains to be seen, and this topic--education- is currently up for debate among my friends, how important it is....I love to learn, so ultimately, I'm not concerned with a piece of paper as long as I keep learning and growing at O'More. My dad seems to think that the piece of paper is a good idea.
bossy: What else do you consider an education, besides school or what single thing in life so far has taught you the most?
interny: I think at this point in my life, just watching and observing, doing my alterations job at a dry cleaners, my time here with you, just watching how a business works, and how I fit into that....learning about women's roles... its all so important to me. Growing up without a mom (she died when I was 9) there have always been my aunts, grandma, various mentors, in big and small ways. But being a woman, what that means, and ......I dunno, I can't even pick an ice cream flavor....its hard to say what one thing has influenced me. This past year alone has been a big deal, trying to carve out my own space, where I live, where I work, where I study, that everything be intentional.... so I guess just the process of becoming my own person has taught me a lot.
bossy: Picture yourself in 10 years -what-- you'll be like 14 then, right? What else do you picture yourself to be? Besides 14.
interny: I'll be drinking more wine (snicker). Man, 10 years, hmm. I can't wait to be 31... I've been wearing pencil skirts since I was 10, so finally I think I'll be dressing my age. As a really little kid I was a fighter, I wasn't afraid to talk back....I thought of bmw's, being a lawyer, (pencil skirts).... But now....I still see cities, but I see myself using that fighter instinct for good, for helping women, giving them a voice and empowering them with skills.
bossy: So how do you see that pairing itself with fashion design?
interny: Good question, sometimes I don't know. But my voice of reason tells me that I could use both my nature and my skills to do something wonderful and good. I'd like to empower women with sewing skills, and hopefully employ them too, to create a line of cute, and affordable clothing, that was created by women who are earning a real living for their work and not taken advantage of.
bossy: When I responded to your first several emails, did you believe me when I said that I was waiting for the right time to bring in an intern, or did you think I was feeding you a line?
interny: No way. I wanted to believe it, because I like you so much. But whenever I hear of other people getting internships, they have to show up, be persistent, beat doors down, etc. I figured I could either be annoying or forgotten.
bossy: You were neither. Do you have any take-away thought/lesson/idea/regret from your time here?
interny: I wanted to see how you do this, and I did. I learned that even though there are screaming babies at times (okay maybe just once, I expected more), that you really can have it all. The way that you write and communicate is exactly like you are. Which is cool. But really, the happiness and success that you have experienced is not by accident. You are careful with your children, careful with your time and energy. You are driven. It's been especially important for me to talk about business decisions with you-- even if I may never be faced with the same choices. I admire your thoughtfulness. (She had to leave while I typed this. You should know that. Also, she's not perfect and wouldn't claim to be. If I remember right, she wasn't even sure how to sew a buttonhole on her machine. That gives me hope.)
bossy: Did anything surprise you about this place/house/studio/chaos after your first visit? You can say that my house was a mess or whatever.
interny: Yes, it was a total mess. I walked up to the door, saw shoes, packages, toys, and more packages, and I figured I had the right house. I think I expected something more pristine, and then I opened the door and two little kind faces greeted me, led me to you and on the way I saw the most beautiful colors and prints, but everything was a little off, the rugs were askew, the pillows were on the floor, there was sort of stuff everywhere, really lived-in...... and you never apologized. Which I loved.
bossy: Are you in love? Loving me doesn't count.
interny: Just with you. I just wasted part of my summer on love, so no.
bossy: Does that matter?
interny: I feel that I want to share with someone, but realistically that's not now.....I want to take care of myself and the rest will work out.
bossy: Did you have fun taking Isabela out for sushi today?
interny: It was closed! Biggest bummer ever, she was so sad. For weeks she's been asking me: "Did you ask my mom about taking me for sushi?" I was like do I need to create a permission slip?... anyway we went to Five Guys.
bossy: And did you know that you would have to do horrible things like that if you worked here?
interny: What? That's the best part, new friends. She's a gem.
bossy: Is there anything else you would like for these kind interwebual people to know about you or your time here?
interny: I know you won't type this but you are funny in real life too.
bossy: I just typed it, stupid.
interny: Also, you're a jerk.
bossy: I wuvoo.
interny: (blank stare)
bossy: I said I wuvoo.
interny: I wuvoo too, damnit!
bossy: Hey there's kids in here.
interny: (internal gasp, notices typing) Can you curse on your blog?
bossy: You need another glass of wine.

That was fun. I'll show up again here sometime next week, once I get just a bit more caught up. I've been wanting to share some stories behind the talented designers in my Visiting Artist's pool, spill my official Janome news, introduce you formally to my new sewing patterns, show some other needleworks projects on the horizon and just get back to plain old life snippets here. Sound good?

I'm hoping you are well, xo, Anna

Interview with an Intern, Part I

The above are recent portraits that Eleni and Isabela did of me and for me. I am entirely flattered by both. I turned 39 on Sunday. I did not turn 40. But still. I haven't blinked since then. I am stunned at how life goes by. I should still be about 12, in my book. I am in no state to write today about me or anything related to me, really. I am befuddled. Flabbergasted. Confused. Floored. Not only that, I'm even 39. Please someone older than 63 tell me shut up and enjoy it.



Lets concentrate on someone else. Today I am interviewing one of my humble interns, Anna Johnson. That's her above slaving away. She is cute and spunky and smart and wonderful to be around. She pronounces her name like most Annas and not like me (Aw-na) so I thought that would avoid confusion. Or I thought we could call her by her first two initials but her name is Anna Michelle so that doesn't work. Sometimes I just call her Bob. I have a real way with people. I asked her stuff. And she's here to answer. Now to our conversation.

bossy: How old are you?
interny:19
bossy: Why aren't you 39?
interny: Why aren't I 39? Lets see, oh, goodness (internal squeak) I was just born in the wrong decade...?
bossy: Is it easy to be 19? (I wouldn't know I was a mother by then. And that was 20 years ago, my memory is fading. Am I still talking about myself?)
interny: Yes and No (as far as answering the real question in there).
bossy: What's the yes and what's the no?
interny: The yes is its great knowing what lies ahead and how many opportunities are yet to come. The no is when people meet you for the first time and you make a wise impression on them, they seem to want to take it back when they learn how old (young) you are.
bossy: So you're a student, where are you studying, what are you studying, and what impression do you have about how important your degree is to your life's work?
interny: Ooooooh. Are you ready for this paragraph? I am a fashion design major at O'More College of Design, in Franklin, Tn. Although I love my school, love how much I've learned, love how much I'm going to learn still, I don't think that in the present economy a degree will guarantee me anything. So in the long run, I look at it as a great opportunity to gain knowledge (those are my English AP words) and make connections. Not to mention that I love all the people that I've met there.
bossy: So then you are thinking of college as an experience as much as it is an education, right?
interny: Yes. College is what you make of it.
bossy: Smart girl, what do you hope your life's work is? Dream of all dreams? Describe it for me.
interny: That's something I struggle with on a daily basis....I'd like to be able to say at the end of my life that I have spent my days doing the things that I love, whether its photography, painting, designing or whatever, I hope I can look back on my body of work and not see it as work, but rather what I had a passion for. It might mean that I have to choose only one of those (or none of those) to make ends meet, or build a career, but as long as the bill-paying work doesn't overshadow finding enjoyment in what I do, then I will have lived the dream.
bossy: Would you like to tell the folks how we met?
interny: (Snicker.) Oh Dear. Umm. Well, like many people probably reading this post, I regularly follow your blog. Then I happened to see you in public and recognize you not by your face but by the crocheted sweater you had blogged about a few days before. I decided I had to overcome the embarrassment of recognizing your wardrobe, and introduce myself, because I knew I would regret it if I didn't.....(laughs shamefully).
bossy: What have you learned from the past two months during your sheer delight of being here once a week (please say something)?
interny: I learned that you drink coffee all day long. And that it is actually possible to achieve the balance of spending time with your family as well as being a crazy busy designer. Also its possible to be a designer and not live in LA or NYC. If you have the talent then you can work from wherever you are. As long as you have coffee.
bossy: (wipes tear from last answer) Did anything surprise you about this place/house/studio/chaos after your first few visits? Honesty time.
interny: As a regular reader of your blog I did have an idea of what to expect coming to your home studio. But I have been impressed by how relaxing it actually is around here, I didn't expect that working amongst six kids could be such a calm environment. I guess I am surprised to see how much everyone is on the same team, and helps out.
bossy: Are you in love? Loving me doesn't count.
interny: Oh, gosh, am I in love? No.
bossy: Does that matter?
interny: Oh gosh. Can of worms. I thinks its very important to love the people you've been blessed with and to make it known how much you care about them, whether its your family or friends, or anyone. So as for the significant other...if that person showed up I would welcome it, but I wouldn't say I'm on a mission.
bossy: Is there anything else you would like for these kind interwebual people to know about you or your time here?
interny: I love the amazing life and amazing opportunities I've been given and my time here with Anna Maria falls into both of those categories.
bossy: I wuvoo.
interny: I wuvoo too.

Hope you enjoyed our chat, more on Thursday with my other intern, Crista.

xo, Anna