there is something about the last week of the year. it's always a special week for me. this year i am relaxed and motivated, determined to get my house organized like it once was before i spent every second in the studio. i'm staying away from the studio this week and putting all my energy into our house. i'm anxious to create the warmth of a gathering space in our kitchen again. the comfort and dreaminess of a kitchen is a special thing. and my kitchen has lost that lately. and the 'blue room' has become that room that collects everything we don't have a spot for. and there's been alot of that over the past few years. i'll be moving things around, donating and discarding and scrubbing and getting my house back.

yesterday was the most lovely day with both our families. in the morning we headed to my parents in the country, opened gifts and had a wonderful vegetarian christmas dinner, before coming back into town for more gifts and a second dinner (with turkey this time)with tom's family and little 6 week old baby luca. we came home after midnight marveling at how fortunate we are to have such amazing families.
but really, our christmas was this morning. boxing day is always our christmas with flynn and jee. we usually go to their place and have a lovely visit, opening gifts and sharing in all the kid excitement. but this morning sheila had an appointment and norm had the flu, so the plans changed. she dropped the boys off with us, complete with a laundry basket full of christmas gifts. flynn lugged in his electric guitar and amp that santa brought him. and the fun began. flynn played christmas songs. and rock and roll songs. and the muppets 'rainbow connection'. tom played too and jee grabbed a drum and started playing 'rumpa pum pum'.
they had recorded a book for us....'charlie brown's christmas' for tom and me. and 'twas the night before christmas' for my parents. of course i was teary-eyed. and they were as excited when we opened our presents as when they opened theirs. flynn has become so wise and adult-like that it was wonderful to see his face explode in childish thrill at the lego pod-racer. and jee, the little actor, wore his super-hero cape and knight cape with great aplomb.
but when they all settled around the fire to watch tom's new star wars blu-ray, specifically the pod race scene from the phantom menace....for some reason, that was my favorite moment. so familiar and soft and relaxed....flynn wrapped up in edgar like he always ends up being. and jee climbing on tom's lap, making sure we all knew that he knew all about annikin eventually becoming darth vader. these boys that i love so desperately seem to always fall back on watching star wars in some form...their very happiest times together. and they let me share it with them.

tom has always wanted a la-z-boy. and i have never wanted one. ever. we have a leather armchair and ottoman that has grown perfectly aged and i always thought it was comfortable and beautiful and perfect. but this year tom began talking about a la-z-boy again. in earnest. and so the negotiations began. i wanted to not hate it. i hoped i would like it. but i had to not hate it. and it needed to be absolutely completely comfortable for tom.....no compromising on that one. so we started looking. it would be his christmas gift. i had in mind a leather armchair similar to the one we have that had the hidden 'benefit' of being a recliner. we tried several, and although i would have 'not hated' several of them, tom didn't find them super comfortable. and then we found this oak, craftsman styled chair. i didn't love it and didn't hate it. but i did like it. tom loved it. it was definitely the most comfortable for him. so we ordered it. and although they had given us a delivery time of january, it arrived yesterday morning and sits in it's spot like it's always been a part of our home. now i love it. and tom loves it even more. my theory of a natural flow of choosing pieces that work for the individuals in the home rather than the decor of the home has worked once again. nothing in our home is of a particular style or color scheme. but it all surrounds us with love and makes a beautiful home.
merry merry christmas!

what a day! i woke up sore and tired and overwhelmed with exhaustion. but i still had work in the studio. and i also had a shift to work at the bookstore. i wasn't sure how i could do it all. but as usually happens, i pushed through and the kinks started to work out. i have spent the last months kickin' it in the studio, but entirely neglecting my house. i had hoped to get some time cleaning and christmasizing our happy little house, but i just couldn't get to it before it was time to leave for the bookstore.
however, the most beautiful thing happened when i arrived at the bookstore. christmas was waiting for me in the secret santa box. the most beautiful centerpiece of evergreens and pears, candles and even a precious little bird. i couldn't believe it was for me. amanda works on cash with me. we don't have much time overlapping our shifts, but enough to have short visits and learn little things about each other. she must have learned that i love beautiful things, because she chose this magnificent gift for me. i brought home christmas tonight. thank you lovely amanda!

there is a new sweetness blooming from the studio. since tracy and trisha have started working with me in the space, it has transformed. a wonderful energy radiates and the gentle soothing scent of beeswax swings in the air. and i'm falling for it hard. i feel myself thinking about beeswax when i have other matters that should be filling my mind. the scent, the hue, the fascinating varied ways it can be used. tracy's encaustic pieces, made from layers of melted and pigmented wax on salvaged boards or panels, are gripping and subtle and infused with the scent of honey. this owl is just one example of her work. tracy gets her wax locally, from a man who is passionate about the goodness in the wax. and he transforms the beeswax he obtains from a local beekeeper into candles that i fell instantly in love with. tracy and her friend laurie were selling the candles from laurie's home, offering them at a great price as wonderful gifts. i spent every dollar in my wallet on candles at the candle party, and when i got home and started imaging how i was going to wrap them and give them as gifts to my friends, i felt i should have them in the shop for others to give as well. so i gave a few away, burned one and put the rest in the shop.
i learned that they are made by a man who has recently come to canada from tibet. and he has a beautiful soul. there is apparently a series of waiting periods in the process of making these candles. and he takes this time as a meditative prayer time, with the intention of infusing the candles in goodness. you can breathe the goodness in the candles. and they send a fresh clean healing energy into the air as they burn.
so we feel fortunate to have tracy's melting wax permeating our space. and the lovely images that come from it. and the candles. and who knows what will come in the new year (the endless possibilities in my collage work won't stop niggling at me)
come to the our last minute studio open house/sale tomorrow, wednesday december 21st from 3 until 8. at 55 mowat avenue, steps from the lake, in beautiful portsmouth village. come breathe a little beeswax.

the fine detail of a life can so easily get overlooked for the larger drama. but the tiny stories sometimes intrigue me more than the great ones. the tales of woe and wonder are expected to make you gasp and beg for more details. but a little story that soothes and makes me dream myself into it, i like it. like the little group of four geese who just flew past my window and made my heart leap a little. they made my groggy morning with their silent glide past my window. and now the morning sky has changed from a monotonous still gray to a vibrant pink and blue collection of thick clouds lit from behind, moving quickly with the wind. and then as i watch, the shapes flatten, changing clouds to sky. so the separation is removed and i just see a flat glow of pink suede. morning stillness and the luxury of noticing.....
today i'll prepare totebags and napkins for our wednesday afternoon/evening sale. swing by and finish your list with a few last minute gifts and enjoy the verve that is our little studio. wednesday the 21st from 3 until 8.....we will be there to welcome you at 55 mowat avenue in portsmouth village.

waking up far too early. the night silences echoing around the room. i finally came downstairs and stared at the tv for a couple hours. and now i'm almost ready to go back to bed. i'm yawning which is both good and a little annoying. maybe an hour of sleep will find me before i need to get ready to head to the bookstore to work 5 hours, finish my shopping and hopefully have energy left to come home and sew late into the night.
this week on wednesday the 21st we are opening the studio for a last minute event from 3 until 8. come by after work and pick up amazing gifts for the special people in your life. 55 mowat avenue in beautiful portsmouth village!