I’ve discovered a wonderful vehicle that brings together my love for books and offers a way to showcase some of my photography. Making this book for my friend’s birthday was so much fun I cannot even describe! Now that it’s been delivered, I’m eagerly on to to the next one!!!  (The photo on the right is the back cover.)

size: 7″ x 7″
pages: 40
format: hardcover with paper dust jacket
Go here to download your own copy of the software and get going with your own book! Pricing, size and formats are all there, too.

It’s irrefutable. I am a multi-color — and make that bright tones, please — kind of gal. A jumble of colors equates happiness to me. This is never more evident than when selecting favorite photos through the flickr photo community. Assembling a select few into a mosaic simply adds to the fun. Enjoy!

1. sumbrellas II, 2. valentine buttons012, 3. Babette Blanket yarn!, 4. sweet birds, 5. Beija-flor Tesoura (Eupetomena macroura) - Swallow-tailed Hummingbird 16-02-2008 077, 6. felted granny bag :: fruit stripe, 7. #228, 8. Electric Flowers, 9. felt rose

Created with fd’s Flickr Toys.

How can I free up space in the yarn stash and do something earth-friendly, too? Modular knitting! If you missed the earlier pics, this is the Log Cabin pattern from Mason-Dixon Knitting by Kay Gardiner and Ann Shayne. Modular knitting lends itself to scraps of all lengths and colors. This project has worked well for Knitting Nite with my friends, too, because it’s hard to make a mistake. So there’s no ripping out once I’ve gotten home, after too much chatting and not enough paying attention! This will be a doll blanket for one of my niece’s baby dolls, and it’s almost ready for a crocheted border. I promise final photos with its new owner!

This pattern, from the Summer08 cover of Vogue Knitting mag, has the perfect combination of easy-to-remember and requires-concentration stitches. Perfect for a relaxing Sunday afternoon and unplugging from the world. The 100% organically grown cotton yarn is called Skinny Dyed by Blue Sky Alpacas. The texture and color have a soft deliciousness that spur me on to finish quickly! I can’t wait to wear it.  Any suggestions for buttons?

Several months ago I received a call from a Girl Scout leader who’d gotten my name from the local library. She was looking for a published author to come speak to her troop, some of whom are aspiring writers. Simply getting the referral is the result of what I call my very minimal version of grassroots marketing. Every time there’s been a Local Author event at the library, I’ve said, “Yes!” to the invitation to participate. Not great for sales but a low-budget publicity opportunity.

I love a chance to share my knowledge and experience, and if it serves to help others get their work published, all the better.

So on Friday evening I stood before a small group of up-and-coming writers and artists and shared my story.  I brought along the original notebook for organizing the very beginnings of “Eating Clean”, color transparencies from the cover shoot, press releases, newspaper articles, favorite resource books from my office shelf, the vision board for my “Safe Harbor” manuscript, and lots of lessons learned the hard way.

The girls shared a bit about their own creative pursuits and seemed eager to see their work in print. I told them about my new favorite internet place, Blurb.com, where it is possible to create your own book and order just a single copy or put the title up for POD (print on demand) sale in the Blurb Bookstore.

Giving the talk was great fun and I look forward to sharing again next month, when I’ll be showing my power point presentation, “My Online Adventure of Marketing Eating Clean”, to the Nashua chapter of BPW.

When I saw this absolutely delicious roll-up of fat quarters in the window at the Portsmouth Fabric Company, I knew I’d found just what I wanted for my kitchen windows. Kaffe Fassett’s polka dots come in eight different color stories.

So I’ve been cutting …

… and sewing.

 Back to the sewing machine …

We so enjoy each other’s company that our writing group elected to add “field trips” to our regularly scheduled get-togethers. We chose Currier Museum of Art in Manchester, NH, as our first field trip destination. This painting by Lilla Cabot Perry (1848-1933), titled “The Black Hat”, really caught my eye. How lucky that the museum gift shop had cards of the painting for sale. I think I’ll frame this card and hang it in a spot where I can admire her often.

The museum’s cafe was airy and filled with natural light. It was so pleasant, we were amongst the last to leave! After enjoying sandwiches and storytelling that have continued on forever, it seemed, we piled back into the car freshly inspired and eager to set a date for our next outing.

The Artist Dates in “The Artist’s Way” are intended as solo jaunts, but I like this new spin on seeking out inspiration and finding new perspective. By the way, for those of you who are Julia Cameron fans, she is presenting at Kripalu in western Massachusetts, in May. Here’s the link. Maybe I’ll see you there!

An iron maiden awaits spring and the promise of an urn full of blossoms.

click here to see the entire urn.

One of my favorite blogs to follow is this one by Loretta, a modern-day wonder woman whose day job as attorney could not be further afield than her artful avocations. A regular columnist for the magazine Cloth Paper Scissors, she also teaches workshops at Tinsel Trading in NYC. The online photos of this place look like a crafter’s heaven-on-earth and a prominent blurb on the home page declares it as “Martha Stewart’s favorite store”. So I can only imagine what fun one could have browsing through color and texture of all kinds there! Last week Loretta taught an “Inspiration Deck” class. Although I couldn’t attend, I thought I’d try making my own at home.

When Trudie, aka The Recess Lady, sets up for a Recess for Grownups session, she always includes a framed t-shirt from the Strong Museum of Play. On it you will find words like happiness, discovery, understanding and tolerance, just a handful of the results of play. Words from this list, plus a few of my own, seemed like a good place to start my Inspiration Deck. I imagine carrying a happy bundle of collaged 3×5 cards, wrapped with a rubber band or in a zip-lock plastic baggie, ready for contemplation in my tote bag, while waiting in line at a store or something. Bet they’ll be a fabulous conversation-starter, too! Loretta’s first recommendation, I’ve just learned, is to completely cover the white space. oops! Like anything and everything else, this, too, is a process. Bet the 20th one will look way different than these first three.

Here’s Trudie the Recess Lady demonstrating her hula-hooping skills, complete with birthday tiara! Pardon the blur - she moves fast! And would you believe the woman can walk across the room while doing this?! Yes, it’s true. Another inspiration!