Even though fall doesn’t ‘officially’ begin until September 21st Labor Day always marks the beginning of autumn for me. I am ready to put summer behind and embrace the fall – for me the season of football, oversized sweaters, hearty meals eaten fireside, and lots of reading. Here are a few of the books I am looking forward to reading before the arrival of winter…
I can’t pinpoint when my love of fairs began but it started at a very early age. Community fairs, school fairs, county fairs, state fairs – I love them all. While each style of fair is unique all fairs have things in common, including entertainment, contests, rides, pageants, games of chance and food… Continue reading “Greasy gears on a carnival ride…”→
I spent a lot of time last week exploring ‘all things eclipse’ prior to viewing the big show on Monday, along with preparing for a one-day geneticists meeting, planning a water conservation art installation for September, and driving to Indianapolis and Mobile to help my children get settled into their new apartments and another year of college. What little free time I had left was spent watching pre-season football (Go Eagles!) and web-surfing. Here are a few things which captured the totality of my attention (and hopefully yours as well).
On August 21st everyone in the US will, weather permitting, experience some part of the total eclipse of the sun. Here in Nashville, we are expecting 500,000 visitors to join us residents in watching the totality, which is expected to be a two-hour show from start to finish.
Since I forgot to buy glasses I plan on going old-school and make my own out of a Lucky Charms box. If you purchased glasses check to make sure they are ISO12312-2:2015 solar glassesto avoid damage to your eyes. There are a lot of fakes out there (in our area, a local school district and college just destroyed thousands of dollars of non-ISO solar glasses purchased by accident).
I’ve been spending a lot of time checking out NASA’s Eclipse101exploring all things eclipse. You can find interactive maps and eclipse activities, enter the eclipse quilt design contest, learn about eye safety and even watch the live feed on August 21st.
Check out astrophysicist (and my sewing buddy) Natalie Hinkel explain why she loves space, the stars, punk rock, and drinking. Her enthusiasm is infectious (and is partly to blame for my own eclipse excitement)!
Did you know the Monday’s eclipse has been nicknamed the ‘Great American Eclipse’ because it will cross through the United States and no other country. Check out more fun eclipse facts and indulge in some sweet planet lollipops at the same time.
I wish I had some little ones to share the eclipse viewing with. If I did, I would get them ready for the big event with a game of Solar Bingoor by reading Dr. Seuss’s There’s No Place Like Space (sadly, minus Pluto).
Special events deserve to be remembered with special art. To commemorate the event I plan on buying a t-shirt and poster (or two) from artist, astronomer, and night sky ambassador Dr. Tyler Nordgren at Space Art Travel Bureau.
Finally, I am going to keep Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon on rotation as I watch the eclipse in all of its epic totality. I can’t think of a more perfectly suited opus to accompany the earth and sun as they perform their eclipse duet.
How about you? Are you psyched about the eclipse? Will you watch? Do you have any special eclipse viewing plans? I’d love to know…
I just returned from a lovely holiday where I did nothing but hang out with my family, sharing meals, conversation, competitive Scrabble games, and binge watching TV (I’m looking at you S4 The Great British Baking Show).
When I purchased my flights I had not realized that the return portion was with a carrier that charged for the ticket AND for the seat, overhead bin, checked baggage and in flight snacks. Hell, I was ready to bring along a roll of toilet paper in case they charged for using the loo.
Inspired by Project 333 and ‘33 articles of clothing=25,176 different outfits‘ (not to mention my ‘everything has an up-charge’ flight’) I packed a super light carry-on with my clothes and a tote bag with my books, laptop, and drawing tablet. Surprisingly, I had plenty of outfit options – and relaxing activities – to get me through the week.
I am intrigued by Project 33 and think I am going to give it a try once fall arrives. How about you? Could you survive with only 33 items (including clothing, accessories, jewelry, outerwear and shoes)? Let me know if you want to try along with me…
I recently changed jobs and now get to work around and with art every day. I’ve always been good at incorporating my own graphic and stylistic sensibilities into whatever project I am working on but its been many years since art was truly part of my day-to-day responsibilities. I’m not going to lie: it feels a little like a treat each time I open my office door and realize I get to spend the day surrounded by drawings, paintings, photographs, and sculpture… Continue reading “I could make a transformation…”→
It’s been some time since I made a ‘9 at a time’ book purchase. I’ve been relying on my local library to satisfy my reading needs, often with limited success. If you use your library then you can relate – the shelves don’t always offer the books you’d like to read, so you make ‘will do’ choices which aren’t always as engaging as the cover art and book flap accolades led you to believe.
Thanks to a very thoughtful – and completely unexpected- thank you Amazon gift card I just placed an order for nine books that I hope will take me through the dog days of summer and keep me from playing library ‘book roulette’ until the fall.
How about you? Do you prefer buying or borrowing books? What are you reading now? What are you looking forward to reading in the next few months. I’d love to know…
I no longer plant my own vegetable garden (thank you deer!) but it hardly matters since I have access to three different farmer’s market close to my home from May through October. I love to wander the stands and load up on corn, tomatoes, herbs, eggs, melons, and baked goods. One of my favorite things to make with my fresh veggies is a summer vegetable tart….. Continue reading “My sweet potato pie…”→
A few weeks ago, I attended the Porter Flea Summer Market Preview Sale. Porter Flea started a few years ago as a way to showcase the millennial craftsmen (and women) moving to Nashville. I’m a crafty fox and spend a lot of my daydreaming moments trying to come up with ways to market and sell what I make, so I am always curious to see what other people are making – and asking – for their products… Continue reading “Got a pocket full of dreams…”→
Tools of the [sewing] tradeI have started to teach 6 co-workers, who range in age from 26-40, how to sew. We meet each Friday afternoon and spend a few hours sharing lunch, chatting, and discussing all things sewing. Three are novice seamstresses and the others rank somewhere along the beginner spectrum. I’ve been sewing for as long as I can remember so I had to really think back to what my grandmother and mother taught me, and combine that with what I learned during my fashion design training to create my own ‘learn to sew’ series. In other words, always begin with the baby steps.
The first baby step will be to assemble a basic sewing kit, which will come in handy whether one ends up sewing or not. I’ve suggest visiting JoAnn or Walmart or surfing Amazon to purchase the following:
Sewing shears (dedicated to fabric, ribbon and thread ONLY)
Thread (start with the basics – black, white, brown, red, blue, and beige/yellow)
A containerto hold it all (any old tin, box, or tupperware will do initially)
Over the summer my plan is to teach the group hand sewing stitches and techniques, sewing machine use and maintenance, fabric and pattern skills, and help the group with their first sewing projects (which include a pillow/comforter set for a doll, making a throw pillow cover with a zipper, a full skirt, and a table runner).
Are you a sewer? What sorts of things do you like to make? Do you have any tips or wisdom I can pass along to my sewing circle? I’d love to know…
The Grey Goddess 