P.S.

 Twill be nice to have really long conversations down the road. Thanks for sharing xxoo

reaching the border

 Here's a pretty photo from Horseneck Beach that will make a nice decorative border on a textile, and so it seems like a good one on which to end this blog. The bee's knees was began as a way to show my aesthetic, things I found beautiful and interesting in the world. Then another layer was added to reach someone specific, and it made me feel good and creative to post for him, it was a fun way to love and share. The real world, however, needs less borders and more mates! It's fine to look but so necessary to engage all the senses in your discoveries. Thanks for reading!

new words for old characters

strings attached

 If you're good at twiddling your thumbs then you can make a cat's cradle, and if you can make a cat's cradle then you're someone I want my cat to meet! She's very particular about with whom she gets along, smell and body language probably being key factors. I recommend l'eau de poulet, soft socks and baby talk in soft whispers. 

baby buds

 ...have an even more pleasing shape

how i hope

 

sounds about now

 Only a few times in life if ever does one experience the Magicicada septendecim, the fascinating seventeen year cicada. They have appeared in the northeast US though not in my area yet; the ones above were sent from Maryland.  Cicadas are a bit like introverts, spending so long alone then emerging for the big party only to sneak off behind the bushes with their sole mate! Amazing how strong the desire to drive them from their underground holes, the natural need to be together and extend life. I don't know much about the magical science behind their unusual lives, but here is a bit of the process showing how one exits its exoskeleton baring new wings and soft skin that turns into a new protective cover. I did experience the Brood X cicada before in Chicago, and it sounded like a deafening battle of Star Trek phasers. If they come out near me in MA, this time I will definitely save the old bodies and top them with Santa Claus hats for Christmas gifts!

library liberation

Tomorrow our excellent town library will open again with normal hours for the first time since Covid began. I got to go in today, though, and use a computer and get some movies which got me very excited about returning to the bountiful supply of inspiration it holds. It's a neat building with a lot of history, a friendly staff and good taste in supplying unusual media.

a new studio surfaces

South Coast Surface Design on Union Street in New Bedford has some neat fabrics, garments and "lumitecture" designed by local artists. Owner Adrian Burke has workshops, a fabric and wallpaper printing service, and she makes things herself as well. She's very generous to share her space and help other artists make and show their work. Adrian is also very welcoming in person, so it's worth stopping in to see what's going on and what creations might inspire you, too. 

Alyn Carlson

Leslie Goldstein

 Laura McCarthy and Harry Umen

raspberry butter cashew bless you

 

Bubble bubble boil and-- delicious!

paradise summer place

I was thinking about The Barn even before I got home, how dark the wood was before it all got whitewashed, the exposed beams in the top of the playroom, how it smelled good even if a bit musty. Playing cribbage and bocce, walks to the rocky beach and the adults' cocktail parties are wonderful childhood memories, even remembering ants in the kitchen makes me smile.  My grandparents were warm hosts, and the way everyone felt about being there in the summer made The Barn a favorite destination. The painting was done by my Grammie Hazel, and it's a beautiful likeness to the actual home.

free for the right mouse

I found this shell on the beach and it reminds me of the hat Minnie Pearl wore on The Beverly Hillbillies, minus the price tag.

the man with the butterfly tattoo

Papillon is one of the greatest books I've ever read. I don't read a lot of books because it's rare that an author's voice hooks me from the beginning. I saw the movie starring Steve McQueen when I was very young, and it made a big impression on me with intense scenes of comraderie with lepers and fellow convicts, nevermind daring jumps off cliffs into the sea.

The book is even more exciting! At the age of 25, Henri Charriere was accused of a murder he didn't commit. Sent from France to French Guiana, escaping horrid prison conditions and dangerous island penal colonies, battling the prison system and the sea, Papillon's struggle took thirteen years until he was finally free to live his life in peace. 

smells of spring

This lilac looks like it was made to stick your nose into, and if you do right now, it smells heavenly!

 

winning skin

 In the last few years I've been introduced to a bunch of skin products I wish I'd known about long ago. Below are very brief descriptions, but there is much more information about their properties available on health, beauty and manufacturers' websites.

Manuka honey is very expensive but is said to have all sorts of health benefits when used both internally and topically. It is completely natural, anti-bacterial, and reduces inflammation to heal skin. You can put it on and let it soak in for fifteen minutes to an hour, then rinse with warm water. 

Rosehip oil hydrates, moisturizes and heals skin, and seems to loosen dirt and blackheads from pores. Leave it on for five to fifteen minutes, then wash off with a cleanser. 

Annmarie Aloe Herb Cleanser is the best one I've ever experienced. It has fruit oils but is still very gentle on sensitive skin and doesn't have any nasty smell. 

There is some debate about the safety of long term use of witch hazel. Some contain a lot of alcohol but it can be a good toner after washing to get the last bits of dirt from pores and shrink them. It also moisturizers, and I've read it's like a tall glass of lemonade for thirsty skin.

A little of Annmarie's Anti-aging Serum goes a long way. It says to use before your moisturizer, but I use it as one because it has a nice light feeling on your skin, not suffocating like a lot of moisturizers. 

Slightly heavier but still very comfortable and silky is Sircuitskin's Day Care moisturizer. I like the little bit of tint it adds to the color of my face and the protective feeling it gives. For wintertime, Surcuitskin has a wonderful thicker moisturizer, Supernatural-A restorative retinoid creme, not pictured here.

astronaut adventures

Yes you can see I have a thing for starry skies, so much so that this rocket is ready to launch!

sing song stars

 When the wind blows and pear blossoms fly,

 they look like stars in the night sky.

outside

Spring is surely here so if you want to get the picture before they fall apart, snap soon!

 

I love you know who plain and simple

But it's not simple at all how we got here.

Still glad we made it, to begin again.

Happy Arbor Day

 

 Thanks to Bask for the free spruces!

delicate details

 

snail sox

 Fun lovely socks from xhilaration knit with at least 30% Repreve polyester made from recycled plastic bottles.

The Kiss

 

net loss

I design wovens and knits, so I appreciate the natural beauty of the net structure this seed is wrapped up in. As its coat is shedding it still makes a case for the seed as the seed tries to get planted.

spring digs

Reverence Church Thrift Store in 

New Bedford is a hidden gem!

 

earth day

 elegant ecosystem

no nose 4 today!

illustration by Mervyn Peake

Sing a song of sixpence, 

A pocket full of rye,

Four and twenty blackbirds

Baked in a pie.

When the pie was opened

The birds began to sing—

Wasn't that a dainty dish

To set before the king?

The king was in the counting-house

Counting out his money,

The queen was in the parlor

Eating bread and honey,

The maid was in the garden

Hanging out the clothes.

Along came a blackbird

And pecked off her nose.

 

And shortly after that,

there came a little wren,

As she sat upon a chair,

and put it on again.

 

 

a mug must be mugged

Do you go digging through an overabundance of mugs to find the one that's right for you each day?

couldn't find the i

but it's a great h for the natural alphabet

twind mills

one of a kind place

This museum...

is really cool inside and out. The Fuller Craft Museum in Brockton, MA has interesting exhibits and a lovely gift shop in a pretty wooded setting on a lake which actually comes into the building plan, almost rising over the terrace. I like close up views of textures and patterns in uncommon materials, so you'll have to go there to see the larger objects. It's a nice way to spend an afternoon with a friend.