Field Day

Field Day is the reason I walked away from the traditional "9 to 5." Well, not Field Day specifically, but for the opportunity to be a part of my boys' daylight hours. It was the best decision I've ever made and am incredibly grateful that I had that choice to make.

I've finally struck a balance . . . something that I know all of us working Moms have struggled with at some point. For me, it's not exactly a "balance," but more of a harmonious approach to work and life. I can continue to immerse myself in a cloud of creative while simultaneously packing lunches and painting Field Day shirts. I love that women are beginning to embrace the fact that the dual responsibilities of work and caretaker no longer have to be exclusive of one another.

Don't get me wrong. It doesn't mean that life is easy. Most days it's crazy. But it's my crazy and I love it.  

I like how designer, writer, curator Ellen Lupton shares that her "big interest now is how design relates to everyday situations, from making your bed to raising your kids. Design is a form of thought and action, as well as an approach to creativity." (from Women of Design by Gomaz-Palacio and Vit, page 125)

Paper + Tea

I've always had a love affair with paper. I think most designers probably do. I used to make paper, taking scraps and blending them with water to create pulp. I would collect petals and leaves or buy fragrant flecks of lavender and sprinkle them like a garnish onto the pulp before baking it into a sheet of pure perfection.

When I recently decided to lay down my squares of linen and revisit paper as the basis of my needlework, it was like coming home. Having just finished my first paper + thread "Yellow Series," I was ready to begin my first large original piece, which included tea-staining (one of those lightbulb ideas that came to me while I was supposed to have been sleeping). 

I've tea-stained cross-stitched linen and paper to give it an antique appearance, yet I had never used tea as a wash (like you would watercolor) until now. I absolutely love the way the natural pigment puddles on the paper creating layers of neutral tone-on-tone texture. Then layer subtle lines of white thread with billowy, frayed edges, and well, it's love at first sight. 

This is the first result of my Paper + Tea series. Delicious.