#021 in Portrait and Blogged Again.

It's a little over a week after vacation, and I've managed to get the kids back to school and have nailed down some semblance of normalcy.  Which is good.  After a long and tiring summer of swim lessons, multiple trips across the continent to see Grandma/Grandpa/Grannie, daily kid wrangling and fight monitoring, I am (very nearly) sane again.  Or at least as close as I can be to sane (obviously).

Which means I can get back to Pebbles and making music.  Which is what keeps me sane in the first place.

And, I've been thinking, "Gee!  I really need to post something lovely on the blog..." but haven't done much in the way of Pebbles since I came home, blah blah blah, when BOOM! the lovely Alicia over at Posie Gets Cozy posts another set of lovely photographs.  One of which features one of my Pebbles. 

Miss Alicia takes the most gorgeous still-life pictures of her world and home. If you haven't visited, I suggest you do, and hurry. Because your eyes will thank you.

Alicia had ordered one of the original "Japan" Tsunami Relief Pebbles that I offered last year, and it has found it's way into her pictures ever since.  Every time I see that little Pebble in one of her achingly beautiful photos my heart does a little happy dance.  People have occasionally commented--- "What IS that?", etc, and she very recently linked to this blog and my etsy shop so that people could see where they came from.

And just like that.... my etsy shop, which hadn't made a sale in over a month, had a bunch of new orders. 

And so, today, I welcome some new friends and want publicly thank Alicia for helping new faces to find me.  She's a good soul, she is.  Once upon a time, hobos had a set of symbols/code they would chalk or paint on a fence or building to note what sort of help another might find (or not).  When I think of Alicia, "Kindhearted Woman" comes to mind.  Because I'm pretty sure she is.  And if this were pre-1940's America, there would be a sweet 'lil kitty drawn in chalk on her back door.  Go see her. 

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The other thing that made me smile from ear to ear was the picture you see today. 

Look familiar? 

It's Pebble Number 021 from my last post -- made in for the Do Art Daily Show in February, and left very recently on the the beach in the Sunset Beach neighborhood of Treasure Island, Florida.  Sterling picked it up and signed the guestbook before I even got the photos posted. 

Yesterday, I received an unexpected email from Sterling with the above Pebble Portrait attached. 

REALLY?  How awesome is THAT???  I never imagined one of them would sit for a portrait....

Hi,

It's us again (the people who found no. 21). We love love love your pebble and everyone who comes to visit is intrigued and 'curious' about it. So we just wanted to send you a little thank you... a pebble portrait.

(You are free to put the picture on your blog or wherever if you so desire.)

THANKS A MILLION (again)!

-Sterling

There is so much good in the world.  Keep your eyes open.

LOVEonBob!

I have a friend from college who has devoted her life to helping others. She and her family of five spend their days traveling and helping others based out of the family's "LOVEcan"-- A semi-trailer that they have turned into a home and a traveling ministry for good. She and I may differ on religious views, but my heart of hearts mirrors hers.

Even while following a different path, we both end up at the same place.

Her latest blog post details how she met Bob- an elderly gentleman, who needs some help reclaiming his home from the elements of time and economy. My friend has partnered with LeeBuildersCare so that Bob can continue to live in his home, make his daily visits to his wife in a nursing home and generally lend a hand.

Don't let Bob be forgotten.

Read the LOVEcan "What About Bob?" story.

Donate HERE.
(please write "LOVEonBob" on your PayPal donation so that it can be applied directly to his building fund)

Show Bob some LOVE!

/Julianna

Pebbles for Jane...

Remember the amazing thing where a very nice woman sent me her vintage thread collection? 

And she asked for nothing in return, but a few pebbles made for her to remember her relatives by.

I'm hideously embarrassed that it has taken me so long to complete this task, but at loooong last... I've finally done it.  Jane, I'm so sorry that it has taken me so long. 

In the original shipment, Jane had set aside a grouping of a few of her favorite threads, and requested that I use those, if possible, in her collection.  It WAS possible, and I did, with one small problem:

While I was photographing this essay, the above happened.  Old thread.... very thin thread... and while breakage happened several times as I was *making* them, I didn't expect that the addition of a camera would be the final straw for sweet little blue.  So, drat.  I really liked that one.  Boo-Hiss.  :(

But! There are survivors!  And, I'm actually posting this as the pebbles go into the Mail, so Jane hasn't even seen them yet... here's a preview, Miss Jane! I hope Hope HOPE you like them!

I DID have to take a few liberties with the thread choices, as a few of Jane's set-aside threads were too brittle.  I solved this by combining some of the thinner threads and making new colors in the same spectrum.  You can see this in the Green/Teal/Blue pebbles above.

I ended up using the entire spool of the blue/white/yellow thread (top, middle pebble), so that wasn't available to pose for pictures....

But I DO love that little spring green one in the background - and even though it wasn't specifically one that Jane had asked for, I thought it went nicely with the batch as a whole... so it's all hers as well.

And what ISN'T shown here is a small collection of un-covered pebbles that are included in the package. 

Jane had seen some of my arrangements with both covered and un-covered stones, and liked the way it looked.  So, I'm sending both kinds of stones as apparently ocean-smoothed pebbles aren't so much available in Kansas. :)

And I still have all of this loveliness to play with.... YAY!

So, a huge THANK YOU to my friend for both the thoughtfulness and the patience.  I'm not sure I deserve either of those things these days, which makes it all the more special.

/Julianna

The World According to Pia

Photo by Pia from The World According To Pia

Last night, as I was performing my evening ritual of catching up on my favorite blogs, I was stunned and amazed to see one of my absolute favoritest blogs ever blogging about MOI!

Wow!

The backstory on this is that I found the darling Miss Pia by chance, when she was featured on "Blogs of Note" awhile back. I don't always check those out, but I'm so glad I did in this case... I immediately fell in love with her photo essays about life in Sweden, her little "loaf dog", an obsession for the types of shoes I wish I had more of, all things baked and delectable, a penchant for castles and meadows and other assorted bits of loveliness.

In short, the one blog I look forward to reading every evening, even if only a picture of the loaf dog sunning in the backyard or a photo of whatever adorable pair of shoes she wore today.

A few weeks ago, she had a sweet little giveaway, and somehow or other, my name was pulled. As a little thank you, I sent a few pebbles her way.

Well. Gee. Didn't expect such a gorgeous write up about it, but here it is.

The World According to Pia- it's a pretty sweet ol' world after all, and it just gets smaller and smaller by the minute. I love that.

Overflowing Bowls

So, we've talked about "The Nest" before - more than once, I'm sure. 

Last night, a dear, dear friend came for dinner - I had been watching her daughter while she endured the most horrendous thing I can think of.

Chemo. 

F*&%#ing Chemo.  Yeah.  I know.

BUT!  She came for dinner and to hear how her daughter had fared during her three days away, a day that entailed not only the last day of school for said daughter, but also a pizza party and a Mexican Fiesta at her after-school program.  It was a quite a wild couple of days for a 7-year old.  And we aren't even talking about the two-day sleepover at MY house with MY kids.  That was entertainment in and of itself.  Oh, boy.

She came to dinner!  I got to FEED her (the sort of thing that makes my Italian heart positively SING), and I got to see her for more than 5 minutes, which is about the extent of how long I've seen her since the Big F*&%#ing "C" reared it's Ugly, Foul head at her AGAIN (That's right.  I said AGAIN.  See why I'm SWEARING????).

So she came.  And we talked and we talked and we talked.  We did NOT, however mention the horrible-ness.  No.  We did NOT.  She and her husband (who is also lovely, by the way) stayed for three whole hours... that's THREE WHOLE HOURS that I got to bask in her beautiful sunshine self, albeit a little clouded at the moment, but STILL.  I could SEE it.

She's the one I wrote this song about.  Listen.  It's lovely.  As she is.

SO. 

-Grilled Tilapia brushed with melted butter, parsley and lemon.
-Fresh Green Beans from my Wee Garden (and a few Yellow Wax Beans) with Garlic and Olive Oil
-a simple Cucumber Salad (also from the Wee Garden) with Pineapple Vinegar, Celery Seed and  Tomatoes
-toasted Bruschetta with Olive Oil, Pecorino Cheese and fresh basil and tomatoes
-Cut Apples (Suffice to say there is a least ONE simple, cut up apple at every meal I serve.  It just IS that way.  It's probably my mother's fault.)
-Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream with some Sprouts Market brand Vanilla Wafers.  Because I just ran out of steam...

And my friend.

Happiness.

OH WAIT.  I forgot what I was writing about....

So, my friend came last night, and I cleaned up the NEST.  That's why.

In doing so, I realized that oh, heavens, yes, I need to take some photos and get those pebbles posted on my etsy shop, because they are seriously about to overflow the bowl.... see for yourself.  I'm thinking of grouping them and selling them as sets of 3 or 5...

What do you think?




Look!  It's (sorta) CLEAN!




I really need  prettier bowl... or two... Although they would have to
be UBER special to complete with those lil' baby faces behind them...





I've moved from double crochet stitched to half-double crochet on this batch.
They are much more elegant and all-around nicer-looking than what I've been offering.
Takes longer.  Will cost more.  But so worth it. 
Probably won't be putting any of these on the beach, though...



/Julianna

The Nest

You've seen me mention it before in passing. I'm a little embarrassed about it, and yet I love it.

Welcome to the "Nest" that lives beside my place on the sofa.

This is where small bits of thread ends are (sometimes) gathered in a small bowl. I'll be honest though... More often, they are just left strewn where they fell.

It's a place that is constantly evolving, littered with design ideas, mis-starts, mis-fits and works in progress.

It's a place that beckons me to sit and pick up my scratched up needles (I crochet on ROCKS, for Pete's Sake), as long as it's not too messy, in which case, I'll happily ignore it for awhile (at least until visitors are coming, and my mid-western upbringing requires that I put it all away, and we can start again, tomorrow).

(Note to self: Remember to give S. those crochet books from the library...)

Today, I made 5 pebbles, some for my friend who sent the thread, and some to sell at Buena Creek Gardens:

It's getting to the "too messy" stage, right now, in fact, but I think I'll ignore it at least until tomorrow.

Might be able to get one more good day out of it before I have to force myself into cleaning mode.

And I'm wondering... Do you have one, too?


/Julianna

A Parcel from the Past

I am SO remiss in posting this lovely and precious thing... Sometimes life gets in the way of what I'd rather be doing.... Doctors Appointments for the young Master (he's doing SO WELL! No Heart Caths this year! Yay, TEAM!), Cleaning for the imminent arrival of my mother (my mother puts Martha to shame... it's TRUE), A slew of cupcakes and a 4th birthday party for Miss Thing, etc, etc, etc...

Remember this?

A very thoughtful and kind woman found me on Etsy and thought that maybe I could use her vintage thread collection, as she was no longer able to use it herself, and hated the thought of it just ending up in the garbage somewhere.   It is the collection of two dear ladies, and my friend even included samples of the ladies' work. Oh! So Cool!

Anyway, I couldn't help myself. 

In the midst of all my planning, list writing, cleaning, and the picking up/dropping off of small people, I spent about an hour photographing the box of lovelies, drooling over their variegations, their paper bindings, labels, wooden spools and price tags (15 cents!).  And then....

Well... then, reality hit me. 

My mother was arriving the very next day, and Holy Hannah, was my house ever a mess. 

It really was. 

So with a sad, sad heart, I very neatly re-packed the thread, and put it back in the box.  But, I left the open box on the table so that I could enjoy it for a few days.  I'll have you know that a postal box of vintage thread looks very nice with a bouquet of Alstroemeria from the garden.

I actually kept a bitty spool out and put it in my "nest"-- you know... that place beside the couch where the thread and pebbles live? Yeah.  That "Nest".  I've mentioned it before-- And I picked up that bitty spool later that night and I made a bitty curious pebble.  But I broke the thread at the very end, because I was pulling it too tight.  But!  I have since had success with another bitty pebble and another bitty spool and will post that very soon. 

Enjoy the thread riot...




A peek of pink/white tatted lace (upper left) and the purple edging of a
handkerchief swatch just below... Samples from the past...



Pebbles & Tea in San Clemente

I'm exhausted at the moment, but I promised myself that I'd get this posted today, and so I shall.

Why so tired, you ask? Well, the short version is that my Mother (The Saint) is visiting. Saint? Yeah. Saint Nanina. Patron Saint of Children and Nurses and those in need of a little kindness and a baked good or two or six. She's your girl. You'd be lucky just to lay your eyes on her. It's kind of a lot to live up to. And she is constantly moving and doing Good Things. Anyway. She's here.

And that makes me tired. In a good way.

But! I had a chance to see one of my favorite people today... The woman who is responsible for the fact that I married my college Philosophy Professor (I didn't just fall in love... She PUSHED me into that rabbit hole, truly she did-- it's all her fault)... A remarkable woman, who also oozes with the Milk of Human Kindness and generosity and inner and outer beauty...

(I'm surrounded by greatness today)

...SHE was also in town, and I had the great fortune of meeting her for tea and conversation at the pier in San Clemente.

So we had tea. And little bowls of fruit. And while we chatted, I crocheted a Curious Pebble. And together, after the tea and a few more cents in the Parking Meter, we went pebbling.

There's an art to this pebbling business, as I'm discovering. I did my darndest to "plant" today's pebble in the path of a sweet tiny princess in a rainbow striped bathing suit... And I hope Hope HOPE that Tiny Princess found the hot-pink pebble and showed it to her mother.

It was a lovely day.

And then I went shopping for shoes and didn't find any. On the other hand, I did somehow manage to come home with several shopping bags of summer-y clothes to replace the ones that I managed to destroy with bleach, paint and assorted holes last summer. I'm sure I'll do the same again this summer. But for now, I have several new shirts that are a bit nicer than the ones I usually wear.

In any case, here are the pictures from today's Pebbling.... Enjoy.

Oh, and if YOU found Ms. Hot Pink in San Clemente today, sign the guestbook and tell us about it!

DONATION MADE!

Well!  All this month, I've been working toward the biggest donation I could make through the sales of the Japan Tsunami Curious Pebble... I'm tired, but very, very happy! 

I took a screen print of the listing before I changed it... This particular style was so popular that I decided to keep it in the store as a custom order.  So, you might note that the current listing has changed  from what you see above, as this was the last day of my fundraising. 

And already, I'm asking myself, but why stop? 

But I think it's time to move on. 

And so, THANK YOU to everyone who helped me to make that donation possible.  I could not have done it without you, and I'm thrilled that I could make something worthwhile and worthy and for a good cause.  And if it happens to look pretty on your desk, then so be it. 

Thank you!
Julianna

Another Amazing and Beautiful Thing

This morning, I found this lovely, lovely note waiting for me in my Etsy Conversations :

Hi--


I've been following your progress, and I love the covered rocks you are creating. It is so good of you to help the effort in Japan, and I'm glad so many are helping you in that.

I have a fair amount of crochet (and what I think was used for tatting as well) thread that once belonged to my late husband's grandmother and great-grandmother. They were both quite productive in the crochet department, especially during the Depression and the war years of the 40"s. Before the estate sale was held, I latched onto this collection, with no idea why--I just didn't want to see it sold. I have no intention now of using it myself, due to problems with tendonitis,and am to the "purging" stage, so I would like to offer this stash to you for your own use. There are many different colors, many of them variegated, about 3 dozen or so small spools. I will ship them to you at my cost, and you are free to use them as you like. The only request I would have is that you create one or two for me as a rememberance of these special ladies. Please let me know if you are interested, and if so, send me your mailing address, and I will get them off to you. I would love to know all this thread won't someday end up in a trash bin somewhere.

Best of luck in your relief efforts----Jane

Of course, I immediately replied that YES, I would adore being the caretaker of such a wonderful stash, and that I would promise-promise to put it to good, beachy, treasure hunting-use.  I was thrilled. 

Then, Jane responded with some even more sweet information:

I'm so glad you got back to me so quickly, and can use the thread for your projects. For whatever reason, this batch of thread has been on my mind quite a bit lately (what to do with it all???), so when I saw your work through rosylittlethings, I thought, There! My husband's great-grandmother has been gone since the 60's--long before I came into the family--and his grandmother passed away in 1994, so I've had all this thread since then, stored away in my sewing room. The covered rock appeals to me because my dad, who passed a year ago, was a "rock hound," and was constantly finding unusual ones. I now have his "collection," and my grandchildren love to look through them and remember their great-grandpa. I've always had a fascination for rocks as well, especially heart-shaped ones. [Where Jane lives] is completely land-locked, and I think the smooth beach stones you use are so pretty.

Yes, you may post the conversation on your blog. I've been reading it, and I think leaving your stones where people can find them is such a great idea. How neat to find one in a place you would least expect to....

...By the way, my daughter's name is Julie Ann, and one of your stones will go to her as well. Must be a sign you should have this thread. You've made my day, too!

Jane

I am already envisioning a whole line of vintage thread pebbles...

And, of COURSE Miss Jane will be given a whole collectionof pebbles, and I even noted that she might send a few of her father's collected rocks, in case that they need a sweater of their own... Two memories, one stone, you know...

Thank you SO much, my new friend--- you have completely Made My Day.