Family Pictures

(Nicholi, our first dog, also known as a ham because of his love for people to take his pictures.)

I love my little family. We are two humans and two dogs, and that makes for a wonderful life. So wonderful in fact that I decided we really needed pictures of our little family! I hunted and hunted for a photographer who: 

1) loved animals 

2) took pictures animals and people 

3) who would shoot said pictures at a location of my choice

Too many demands? Well not for Susan Dodd! She runs cool pets and she takes professional pictures of people, and animals at the location of my choosing! (all 3 requirements people!) Not only that my dogs loved her, she was easy going, and it was A LOT of fun! She has a blog, where she puts up a couple pictures from her photo shoots, and wouldn't you know it she put up some of my little family! Please check them out as they are AMAZING! I can not wait to see the rest! And obviously, if you live in the Philly area and want some pictures Susan is a great choice! 

Flickr Favorites

I love color, and I am inspired by it all the time. Whether I'm illustrating, knitting/crocheting, or renovating the house (finished pictures on that little adventure soon!) most every decision I make is rooted in color. What inspires you?

1. bracelet, 2. string quilt, 3. Elins house and studio, 4. Crochet Hexagons & Pentagons

Make sure to hop on over to Mitsy's blog if you'd like to join in on the flickr favorite's madness this week!

And of course, make sure to sign up for my giveaway (only 5 days left!)

Where Am I?

After I saw a post Mitsy did on her blog showing off where all of her work had been shipped off to, I knew that one day I would want to do the same thing. Well that day is today!

Like Mitsy I noticed that the majority of my work has been shipped to new homes in the United States and Canada, but there are just a few dots out there in Europe and Australia. Not wanting them to feel left out a made a world map showcasing those few spots!

Now for the pictures:

The United States and Canada Shot

The World View

ps. Time is running out on my super fun give away! Make sure to sign up for your chance to win!

Knitting and a Ham

I am so pleased to be able to say that I have finally finished up a couple of my many knitting projects! Time for some pictures:

Mitered squares for a communal knitted bessie blanket. I like to call these my mitered square mini army.

How they will look when Amanda has them all seamed together. (I can't wait to see what she does with all of them!)

My very first lace shawl. I'm in love! Too bad it's 100 degrees here and not shawl weather.

And last but not least, the ham (also known as Nicholi) who tried to get in the way of my camera as I took pictures of these knit things this morning. I love him :)

PS. Don't forget to sign up for the GiveAway going on until the end of this month!!

Flickr Favorites (week 14)

I've been so busy this summer. Between long road trips, weddings, showers, birthdays, and home renovations I could really use a vacation! That is just not in the cards right now, so for today I am going going to do one thing.

Knit.  (okay, maybe crochet too)

Hexagon Blanket, Posy Shawl, and Forest Canopy Shawl, today you are my best friends.

1. Hexagon Blanket of Awesomeness, 2. Hand Made Knitting Needles, 3. Koigu, 4. Malabrigo Pollen

Want to help celebrate my birthday AND maybe win something in the process?!! 

Check out my GIVEAWAY going on until August 30th!

Giveaway Time!

That's right! I'm having a birthday celebration giveaway! And not just any ordinary giveaway, this is a two-part, two-shop collaboration giveaway!

The Prizes: First place prize is a print of your choice from my shop (either an 8x10 inch, or 6x6 inch print). Second place is this:

This is a hand sewn/embroidered/beaded ornament similar to the ones found in my mom's shop. This little piggie is awesome, and I should know as I have several sets of these animals adorn my Christmas tree every season!

What You Need to Do: Alright, so if you want your chance at either of these wonderful prizes this is what you have to do. Head on over to my mom's shop (Pine Hill Forest) and leave me a comment letting me know what is your favorite item in her shop. If you want to now, also drop a line in there about which print you'd like from my shop (Cabbages and Kings) should you win first place! (You can also wait and pick on the 30th if you win) Lastly, please include an email or etsy shop address so that I have a way to contact you if you win!

This giveaway is open to everyone under the sun! The winners will be chosen on August 30th, and announced on August 31st. 

Good Luck and Enjoy! 

Special Day

Alright, I've had all sorts of reasons why I have not been blogging recently. I'm going to add another one. Tomorrow is my 25th birthday! To celebrate turning a quarter century old I am going to go up to my hometown and spend the weekend with my family.

We are going to the Corning Museum of Glass to make our own glass ornaments (I chose the flower), though this is actually a birthday present to my grandfather whose birthday is on August 30th. It just so happened that my birthday date worked out as a great time to go!

So no posting for me until Monday. BUT expect a super-awesome-totally-amazing surprise!

(do I hear the sweet sounds of a giveaway!?!!)

Flickr Favorites (week 13)

1. Construction Signs, 2. handy men have invaded my home, 3. Construction Work, 4. Construction site HDR

First my posting was lacking because I was sick (I had the flu. Lucky me!) Now my posting has been lacking because we decided it would be TONS of fun to renovate our bathroom and adjoining vanity/powder room. Of course I knew my flicker favorites this week would be all about one thing. C.O.N.S.T.R.U.C.T.I.O.N

I never knew what a powder room was really. But we have one, and  I'd really like to make the most of it particularly because our lovely home only has one full bathroom (the one under construction) and one half bath downstairs. This weird powder room sits between our main bedroom, and the bathroom, and when we started it was about 12sq feet. It was uncomfortable, awkward, had crazy blue carpeting, and in general was a giant eye sore. My solution? Rip out the carpet, and replace it with the wood flooring that is in the rest of the upstairs. Rip out existing sink (from 1872) and tear out the closet and door frame. Slap up a nice coat of paint, install a new sink, and convince grandfather he wants to make us a custom linen cabinet.

The main bathroom wasn't too bad really. Except for the wall paper which consisted of 1800's styled people preforming various farm duties. Oh yes. So I told the husband we would be ripping that out and putting up the same color paint the bathroom as I had chose for the powder room. This was all fine and dandy to him until he realized I also wanted him to help me paint the walls around our skylight a good 12 or so feet up in the air. And folks, WE DID IT!

The bathroom is done, save for putting up some new lighting, and right now my grandparents are here helping me put up new dry wall where the door frame was, and install the wood floor in the powder room. I have taken pictures along each step of this wonderful journey, and promise to show you all of them when it is done. For now here is a just a taste as to what things have looked like: 

The Time has Come. . .

. . . And let me tell you, I didn't want it to. From this day forward all artwork in my Etsy Shop will have a water mark on it. This came after I found out that a "friend" of mine actually stole some of my artwork for personal use. A friend. That got me to thinking that what is really stopping someone who doesn't even know me from doing the same thing. I want to believe that all people are inherently good and would never do it, but the truth is that some people think it is okay. So from now on there will be a barely visible water mark on all of my prints, but of course it will not appear on the purchased work!

In much happier news, you can expect a new animal early next week (and I love him SO much!)  

Have a happy weekend!

(I'm renovating a bathroom/vanity room, so I think you can guess how my weekend will be. ha)

Flickr Favorites (week 12)

1. Life Saver rope macro, 2. Nova scotia light house Cape D'or, 3. New England Coast, 4. Nautical Abstract

This is a really important flickr favorite to me for two reasons. 1. I refrained from any and all yarn related objects. 2. It reminds me of the future.

So I know what you are thinking. Nautical photos remind you of the future? I'll explain: 

When I was a little girl I was convinced that I would one day live in a lighthouse. Not next to one, but in one. I was certain that it could be done, and I would be the one doing it. As I grew older I modified that dream to first living NEXT to a lighthouse, and finally living within view of a lighthouse. (though I must admit, given the chance I'd probably still live right next to one) 

I'm just a coast loving person. Not the hot tropical beaches of the south, but the New England coastal beaches up above. I have long since dreamed of the day when I could wake up smelling the salty sea. In fact about 3.5 years ago my then boyfriend (now husband) and I were gearing up to move from landlocked Pennsylvania to the coast of Connecticut. As soon as I earned that diploma we were heading north! And then it happened. 

We came back from our first vacation together and he got sick. Real sick. And I knew at once what happened. He lost complete use of his kidneys. 

At this point in our lives I lived on one side of the state, and he the other. While I drove the 6 hours to get to his bed side I thought a lot about my future. Our future. I thought about the little things. What kind of new diet would we be eating? How many pills a day will he need? I thought about bigger things. What would life would be like when he needed to get dialysis treatments 3 days a week for a minimum of 3 hours at a time? Will he get even sicker? Will he die? 

And I also knew that our dreams of a life by the sea were gone. He needed to stay with his doctors, and with his job that had flexible enough hours to adapt to his new life. 

And I am happy to report that life is quite good. Three and a half years later he is still waiting for a kidney transplant, but we enjoy local travels, and times with our two puppies. We eat most whatever we like (no pork, or grapefruit though!), and dialysis takes place so early in the morning that I am asleep and unaware of what is going on (him too most often!).

And while our futures as a 24 and 27 year old couple are slightly different from the average person, we often talk of the day when everything will be okay and we will get to live in our house by the sea. And sometimes that is all you need to make it through a difficult time.

Want to play along? Head on over to Mitsy's blog!

Green

You might remember back a few months when I participated in a blue swap on ravelry. Well I enjoyed it so much I decided to have another go, this time with a green swap!

I just received my package from Rachel over in London, and it is fabulous!! She sent me a skein of 100% organic merino wool that reminds me of the ocean and is the softest thing ever! It is from The Yarn Yard which I have heard of, but never tried before. I have a feeling I’ll be hooked on this. She enclosed a fingerless glove pattern made just for this yarn which I will be knitting up as soon as I have a few other projects off the needles.

She also sent me two beautifully illustrated cards, which I adore! She noticed that I am an illustrator by profession and thought I might enjoy some illustrated goods. (which I do!)  She also gave me two beautiful green buttons straight from a button box she inherited from her grandmother, double point needle protectors, a cute green origami peace crane, and a book of “poems on the underground.” 

I especially loved the poem book as it was like a little piece of London being mailed to me, and very very unique. I had been to London back when I was an art student in college and when I saw where my package hailed from it brought back lots of happy memories! Thank you so much Rachel! This was a wonderful package! :)

And now a picture to make you all drool: