(at the workbench) : a new place for a blog...

a little announcement: I've moved my blog over to Wordpress. You can find it over here:   a beautiful new home for my blog here!

(at the workbench) - i will follow

I love unexpected discovery (especially happy ones like this) and how old unwanted, forgotten thing can find a new home in a different time...

in a nondescript box, a collection of what must have been the much loved work of an avid naturalist, I came across the tracks of many a wild animal careful cast ....

perhaps on many a quiet, still morning, their hidden travels were in this way recorded to be saved for future times. What could have been an ephemeral moment has turned into a careful study of woodland creatures native to these parts.

I imagine now, that I am following in their tracks. They are more silent than i can ever be and this tiny muskrat's paw nearly missed from my sight is no longer.

And in a rare moment, I can now see this badger's menacing claws from a safe distance and find a place in our nature corner...

 how strange to think the foot steps of a mountain lion can find its place among  all the things we find and gather on our very own walks through the years...

ps. I have made several sets available through my workshop here ... among the tracks available (many of which are available as front hind print sets) are: antelope, elk, mountain lion, muskrat, spotted skunk, weasel, badger, cottontail and jack rabbit and of course mr badger!

(at the workbench) - toadstools and other fairytales

still waiting for spring here, maybe you are too? i don't know how it's always something of  a revelation when the snow and ice melt away to see the earth below again. as if i landed on a completely different world... so as the waiting,  the starts and stops of this current ice age ever slowly move us towards spring,   here's a little peek of some work in progress.





















i am imaging all the little things yet to be an unearthed when mud season really returns, when the river's waters begin to roar and rush and when our silent part of the world turns wild again with the sound of the returning birds and wildlife.


with this set of toadstools, i've decided to make them into pendants like the one above and think i just might make a few other pretty little wild things while i'm at it!

(at the workbench) - mycology

almost there.  out of this very deep and snowy-white winter hibernation...eager to discover what's been hidden below the surface.... ready to emerge ....

here are some nature studies I've been working on this past week. almost wild grown morel mushrooms that have sprouted up from my workbench...with still a few more that are yet to appear out in the coming days ....

(at the workbench) - amulet

something new/new i've been working on alongside my rock collection: amulets....

made from some beautiful off-cuts from other projects on my workbench... in native cherry, walnut and maple



wooden crystals and minerals, hand-sawn, faceted, sanded and polished smooth like any gemstone ...  (a few other pretty piece that will be coming along soon as well!)

(at the workbench) - rock collection

this is what's new this week:

lots and lots of new wooden crystals, minerals and rocks for your rock collections... they're all handmade from native cherry, walnut, maple, butternut and basswood, as well as, reclaimed mahogany (and a few other beautiful wood species I've been fortunate enough to come across!) ... they're individually hand-sawn, facetted, fine sanded and finally finished and protected with my shop blend of pure beeswax wood polish

i've put together several different sets in my shop today ...you can find the newest rock collections here ... happy weekend!!!

(this moment) - watchtower

{this moment - Inspired by Soulemama. A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment.} 

(glimpses) - outbreak

be warned! dandelion outbreak in progress ... in a day or so with a a bit rain and lots of beautiful sunshine,  the dandelions have swept through the field as we had our backs turned....































spring certainly is in full force now and this is just what we had been waiting for....



































 and it hasn't taken long for the maples and birches to follow...all at once, all is racing forward now...

































in the studio, a long overdue reorganization and tidying has started ...


i've started with the easier bit, while I figure out best to re-situate workshop machinery and work surfaces

and a little something different I've been working on some pottery and ceramics pieces over the last few months...

a carved ceramic tile with a very proud stallion against starry night sky ... just a sketch of some ideas for new projects I hope to be working on for the fall :) 

some of hand thrown bowls that have been fired once and awaiting glazing and second firing (I was in a rush this day, so managed to take some very fuzzy pictures!)

the first set that I made that have come home with me and are getting used at dinner regularly:)


 well I guess that's it for now ...hope you are having a great week!

(glimpses) - and still a bit more....

we still are settling in after our move with bits of progress between busy days ....  these stray packets of seeds were a happy find in a recently opened box...

while last summer, there was no room to start a garden, his year it's with a lot of excitement that there will be a garden to take care of...

though this is how yesterday morning looked, after a day of constant rain ... Again, a white world and nearly half a foot of snow. The difference of a day ....

spring certainly hasn't had an easy time of it this year...   in the foreground the daffodils emerged nearly overnight when last wednesday the "last" of the winter snow had dissolved into the earth... with less than a week of a full thaw, the newest emerging shoots find themselves in a winter-inspired land ...

this young robin (I think) is wondering to himself this morning also, where it's all gone? ... how have all the puddles have turned to ice again and when will the earth turn soft and brown ?

 not long we both hope...it's time to start the garden!

(glimpses) - here at last

very monotone I know, but as you can see the snow and ice are gone. In its place,  a beautiful muddy brownness is all around us. (yes, I mean it!...a lot of us here have been longing to see the earth revealed again color or not )

 some quick first time explores nestled in to such an overly busy week....

and the first bits of color emerge (see that little bit of purple)... a very welcoming sight!

meanwhile while I learn which roads to stay clear of ...I'll take care not to get stuck in the mud!