Greetings from Afar!

Guess what? I'm finally on summer vacation! For two whole weeks I'll be visiting family and friends throughout various corners of New York State. With a very busy June and July behind, I've happily tucked my unfinished to-do lists into a drawer in my studio where they can wait patiently for me to return. In my haste, I've managed to make an even more important wish list for my summer trip...

Dear Upstate NY,

I'll be visiting you very soon and I'd like to put in my request for 70-89 degree weather with the exception of one dramatic thunderstorm-- no fog needed, we've got that covered in CA. Also, I'd like a roadside ice cream stand for a chocolate vanilla twist, a handful of fireflies dotting about, and a swim in a rather clear lake or at the base of a waterfall.
Thank you for managing this request.

I've tucked a new swim suit, too many books for light travel, a favorite sketchpad, and my camera amidst a suitcase full of warm weather clothes. I promise to take too many photos and share them with you when I return. See you back here on August 30th. xoxo, k.

Letterpress, Oh, Sweet Letterpress.

***

Hi friends,

I want to show you a sneak peak of another project I've been working on this summer. Some of you might remember that I used to work as a teaching assistant in the Book Art Studio at Mills College while finishing my graduate work in poetry. I loved working with the letterpress and bookbinding students to incorporate images and text into paper and fabric projects. I also loved having access to all that gorgeous letterpress equipment including drawers of wood type, stacks of ornamental borders, and an assortment of movable metal type.

So, this summer I was given the opportunity to print alongside a dear letterpress friend and I wholeheartedly leaped at the chance. I've only been able to join her a handful of times, but it's been such a sweet homecoming. Here's a tiny peak at some of the projects I've been designing and printing, complete with an ink stained apron and a bit of afternoon sun.






It's been so satisfying rekindling my love affair with letterpress that I think I need to have regular access to this equipment in my studio life. Perhaps I will remedy this, this fall. I can't imagine a better way to bring in autumn than with some fresh new printmaking kicks. (Okay, so homegrown pumpkins and hand knit scarves and warm apple cider might also be quite nice, I admit.) So, as soon as the prints are done I promise you'll be the first ones to know.

And happy August to you. xoxo, k.

From Orchards, Fields, and Gardens

Hello friends,

The peaches are softening on the tree in our front yard, some are ripening so quickly that we find them at the end of the driveway, nestled against the electric pole before rolling all the way down the hill to meet their fate in traffic. We are gathering them by the bowlful, bringing in brown paper bags full of peaches and then turning to canning, freezing, and baking them into various delightful configurations.

We've had peaches with our meals for several days and I dare say, I am not tired of them yet. The lavender is bursting along the front steps and there is a particularly exciting bramble of blackberries along the back fence. As I said in a recent post, I heart urban gardening and urban foraging too.









I've been working on a few sewing & printing projects that I'll share with you very soon, but I wanted to put together another garden post (full of domestic images from the inside out) to celebrate a book that is now officially on pre-order. Some of you might know the lovely and talented Kerstin Svendsen (aka Shash from MeCozy) who has recently put together this brilliant book From Orchards, Fields, and Gardens: Art and rememberings celebrating sustainable agriculture and good food.

I'm so honored to be included in this celebration of artist as gardeners, homesteaders, and environmentalists. The pages promise to be full of one gorgeous recollection after the next and I'm thrilled to be included with so many wonderful artists and writers. This book promises to be so dang pretty that it's binding just might be gooey with pretty gardening goodness. Yup, just like a ripe mid-summer peach. If you're interested, you can pre-order your copy right here. Happy summer, friends. xoxo, k.

PS--
I made a quick trip to the San Francisco Renegade Craft Fair this weekend and quickly found some favorites: Utilitarian Franchise, Sara Paloma Pottery, Alice Jarry, and Chewing the Cud.