Clo-vogue

Nothing like neglecting your blog for months at a time! It must mean I have been busy, so something pretty major must have happened to give me the sudden need to post something. Clovis got a shout-out in Vogue Knitting!

After writing about knitting sweaters for Clovis in a wonderful collection edited by Ann Hood, Knitting Yarns, I was urged by a friend to create a kit. Her beautiful, hand-dyed yarn, and Clovis' fashion sense.

This is not the first time Clovis has made the pages of the national press! When Knitting Yarns was reviewed in People Magazine, Clovis got a shout-out.

  No dog deserves it more!

Clovis Cards!

Check these out! I am thrilled that the AS220 Community Printshop have included my beloved Clovis Cards as part of their fundraiser. The Printshop is a great, community-focused organization. All are welcome. There are classes, outreach, education, community, artmaking, and no judgments. Just support and encouragement for your desire to create. That is why I love it there so much, and why it has become such an important part of my life in Providence.

"Gratitude" coming off the press!

Clovis as a French engraving--it can be all yours!

So I am doubly proud to both have my work hang on the walls beside the work of so many great artists--and to know that all the proceeds from the sale of the work will go to support this important community institution. I would love it if you would participate, too.

You'll get a set of four cards, letterpress printed by hand by me on 118lb 100% cotton (tree-free) paper, along with matching envelopes, wrapped in satin ribbon and protected in a cellophane sleeve--for only $15! And the Printshop will get some well-earned love and support. Indulge here!

Clovis says, "Thank you!"

Reunions

I went to Breckenridge, Colorado, this weekend to meet up with a group of friends from high school. We all graduated from A&M Consolidated High School in College Station, Texas (JENNY) in 1989. We have kept in touch. This weekend was an amazing affirmation of the bond we share from that experience--and it blows me away to think that we still care about each other so much and want so much to remain connected that we would all gather together twenty-five years on. We laughed, we cried, we told stories, and we talked about our lives today. We got to know each other again. We built more memories that we will laugh about in years to come. Amazing.

Our communal table 2015.

Here we are (many of us) back in the day

At a high school football game.

Graduating.

Some mountain top fun.

King of the Mountain!

Oops!

And we were guided by the amazing Dr. Nancy McKinley of the
Wilkes University Creative Writing MFA Program!

It was great to see their faces, but I was also so happy to get back to this face.

Little pig in blankets.

Sundoggy.

Happy reunion face.

Knit-Wit

Gabby the Yorkie got this gorgeous blue cable-knit from her mom this Christmas! The pattern is from the Clovis Dog Sweater Knitting Kit--the Seadog Cable-Knit Sweater. Oh, yes, you can make one, too!

I'm going to be teaching this pattern on Sunday, January 25th, from 10-2 at The Wilson Collective in Portsmouth, Rhode Island. If you are in the area, please drop by to say hi, or sign up for the class here!

Here is a pic of Clovis in his version of this beautiful sweater.

Here he is in gray!

And me in a gray turtleneck to match! We like to wear matching outfits.

And here is the sweater set that started it all. Where does Clovis end and I begin? Indeed, I do not know.

Mid-Cape Highway

I've been to the Cape again and thought I'd throw up some pics from the visit!

First, a daybed from an antiques mall in New Bedford.

Second, another beautiful winter sunset from Herring Cove Beach in Provincetown.

Third, a walk in the beautiful, hidden cedar swamps of Provincetown.

Third-b, another photo from that walk.

And finally, Clovis.

Home Furnishings

A friend gave me an enormous box of fancy fabric scraps. Velvets, toiles, floral prints. So I've been making lots of crazy things. In particular, the Magic Story Bag has been a big focus. I've made one for myself and several writer-friends who teach. A great way to create story by pulling random things, buttons, pictures, phrases, from the bag.

Here's the most recent and by far the fanciest.

Lined with a strong red floral print--it helps the magic!

And I needed a new cellphone case/wallet. My current one, a fancy leather "book", is in tatters. So I went to town with the fabric scraps and made a replacement! Feeling very DIY.

Here's Clovis having a good laugh the other morning.

Winter Sunsets

Cape Cod has beautiful sunsets year round, but give me a winter sunset any day. They are the most dramatically beautiful and often have the most intense colors. Here is an example, taken Saturday evening...

Feeding Frenzy

Here is a video of Clovis demanding treats. Treat time begins at 7:30pm, but Clovis has been pushing it earlier and earlier. He is manifesting his need for treats, which made me curious, so I asked, "Clovis, do you want treats?"

Falling Leaves

A quick one here, just one picture, but one that I think is a beauty. Taken last weekend at the 1693 Arnold House, a stone-ender, in Lincoln, Rhode Island. This is one of the historic homes managed by Historic New England, a great organization that preserves the culture and history of the region.

Letterpress and Barbecue

Admittedly, these two things do not go together. But I have neglected details of my summer progress--and I am a recent convert to the magic and beauty of letterpress. First, business, then, food.

I can't say enough good things about local arts institution AS220. They are the heart of the Providence arts community and provide resources and opportunities to so many people. I took a letterpress class there with Lois Harada, an amazing artist and printer. Thus, a new phase of printmaking has begun! I am doing the 4 Moods in 4 Colors Clovis cards on letterpress--and have a new one--gratitude!

Here is the press, ready to start on a bunch of "attention" cards in red.

Here they are coming off the press!

I am also playing with type--and some fundamental truths.

Some gratitude cards, packaged and ready to go.

Now, on to barbecue. I made a dedicated effort to visit as many barbecue joints as I could on my swing South this summer. First, in Nashville, I went to Jack's Barbecue, one of my favorites. They have a barbecue sauce bar, covering the barbecue sauce territory from the sweet tomato-based sauces of Kansas City to the hot mustard sauce of South Carolina. Delicious.

When I was in Decatur, Alabama, I had to make time for famous Big Bob Gibson's barbecue. I got ribs and pork. Definitely worth the time!

In Huntsville, I tried a new hole-in-the-wall, Granville's--they come with corn cakes and had the best mac-and-cheese and green beans.

And I stopped by my regular favorite, Dave Gibson's barbecue (no relation to the Decatur Gibson's apparently) at Bob Wallace and Jordan Lane. Great fried okra and hush puppies.

And finally, when I made it to Tuscaloosa, I had to make a pilgrimage stop at famous Dreamland Barbecue. Nothing but beef ribs here--and so delicious.

I got to spend a good amount of time in Provincetown this August and September as well. On a boat ride in the harbor, my friend and I came across this giant sunfish lolling around. We named him (her?) Sunny.