Saturday, April 27, 2013

Today at the Bakery

 So today was the day I got to try my hand at baking at this cute bakery. It was fun volunteering there today. But nothing went quite as planned.

It has been a long time since I baked in any kitchen, other than my own. And I had forgotten how very much ones kitchen plays into the general outcome of what one makes. I had a whole slew of unexpected problems and outcomes. Everything turned out well in the end, some things very well, and it seemed people liked my things in general. I wish I had had more time to concentrate on making things pretty- not sure if the goal was quantity or if I could have made less and focused more on making things pretty.

We will see what the outcome of this all turns out to be- who knows maybe I will end up working there :) Thanks to those of you who stopped by and said "hi". I appreciated the support of friends.




Thursday, April 25, 2013

Saturday

Perhaps you remember that earlier this year I shared about this lovely new bakery. 





After an interesting talk and the help of a friend it has been arranged that this Saturday, April 27- I will baking there. 

Come enjoy some American goodies :) Or just tell a friend.

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

I Love You Mom

Thank you Mom for wanting me and longing for me to be yours. 

I know the waiting and wondering if you would have me was hard. 

Thank you for putting up with severe morning sickness and carrying me safe in your womb for 9 long months. 

Thank you for choosing to bless me with brothers and a sister, I would not have liked to be an only child. 

Thank you for raising me the best you knew how and sacrificing your time and patience to home-school us. 

Thank you for all the music lessons- I am so glad to have learned to play the piano, violin and to sing. 

Thank you for waking up in the night to listen and pray with me when I had a scary dream.

Thank you for teaching me to cook, and letting me have independence in the kitchen to become a cake decorator. 

Thank you for teaching me to sew and giving me the skills to quilt and sew clothes for my children.

Thank you for teaching me that a real artist knows how to turn a mistake into a masterpiece. 

I love you Mom! 

In honor of my Mom and the Mom each of us loves I am inviting you to share your "I Love You Mom" story. You can post it on your blog, and include the link in the comments of this post.

Or send it to me in an e-mail at silkscarvesbyeli@gmail.com  Those who participate will have their names entered into a drawing to be held May 1st, 2013. The winner will get a coupon for $20.00 off in my store on Etsy. The winner can also choose to have their story posted on my blog here. 

From today until May 1, 2013 you can use the coupon code ILOVEYOUMOM to save %15 on any silk scarf in my shop on Etsy. I know my mom loves silk scarves, and I bet your Mom would love one too. Special orders are also welcome, if you have a favorite quote, or want a special message on  your scarf. 


My beautiful Mom and me.

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

A Year Ago



A year ago our baby boy was born.

The most peaceful of my three births.

He entered this world in water, which to me is now the best form of birth. (Smile)

He has been the most peaceful of our babies as well. Content to sit and watch and be with us.

Lately he has realized he has a voice, and loves shrilly screaming, LOUDLY!

He has also learned to sit and loves scooting around and sitting down to play. Cute.

Happy birthday our sweet boy!

Saturday, April 13, 2013

Learning to Sew

I have a very early memory of learning to sew with my grandma Vivian. My Mom says if my memory is correct I could not have been more than 2.

Ever since I was kid I have been creating something.

I used to make Barbie clothes, even for my tiny little toddler Barbies. I would make gifts for my family too. I am always spontaneous, and not always careful about where I decide to cut out my design. As a kid I remember having my fabric on the bed and cutting out something, but I accidentally cut my Grandma's quilt too. OOPS!

When my little girl was born I remember thinking my dream  had come true. At least that is what my husband said. I had wanted a daughter to sew pretty dresses for and to teach all kinds of feminine, girly things to.

My little girl turns 3 next week, and I still have not sewed her a single dress.

Perhaps it is the fact there is another Baby now. Perhaps it is because I"m just too busy.  . . I don't know.

But I decided she must have a dress and I must finish her baby quilt. Both of the boys had their baby quilts finished in a timely manner. She is nearly 3, and hers is still not finished. EEK!

So I have been sewing lately. The quilt is nearly done. I am putting the binding on. And today I began making a pattern and cutting out a dress for my sweet little girlie. She was fascinated by the idea that I'm making her a dress.

My 4 year old boy was watching me cut fabric and just getting into mischief. So I decided it was time he learned to sew. I cut out a square, drew lines and showed him how to sew a seam. I told him he was going to make a bean bag (he didn't even know what it was). But he enjoyed sewing and I sewed over it with my sewing machine so the beans wouldn't escape. Another good time taking activity was filling it with dried peas. Then I showed him how to sew it shut. He did that part all on his own.

Success! First sewing lesson accomplished. Bean bag done! And lots of new games to play that boys love with bean bags!


Friday, April 12, 2013

Twistables

When we were in the States I found these. 
They reminded me of my childhood. 
I haven't seen these since I was a kid. 
I remember having them and drawing babies with them. 
I couldn't have been more than 7 years old. 
But I remember thinking I drew such wonderful babies. 
I wish I could see those childhood masterpieces now. 
It would be funny to see how my childhood perception of being a great artist matched up to the way I remember and if they agreed. 

What is something that reminds you of being a kid?

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Little House

When I was a kid we used to watch "Little House on the Prairie." I have always enjoyed that show. And was happy when my sister gave me the first two seasons as Christmas gift.

Today I finally got around to watching the first episode. I love the good, true morals. I like the strong emphasis on family and working hard. The theology of the parson could use some correction at times, but at least even the youngest child is singing along in church :)

Charles sure does remind me of my brother A. Strong, determined, a man of his word, capable of doing anything for his family and willing to work both day and night. Wow, I admire my brother. But these two sure are stubborn :)

In this episode Laura wore a yellow bonnet made from the same fabric of a favorite dress I used to have. I have always loved long, pretty dresses. And thanks to my grandma I had many of those growing up, many of which were made for her daughters when they were young.

Charles playing the fiddle reminds me of my other brother. There is something so nice about the sound a fiddle in the house. Sure glad he learned how to play that thing. I hope he doesn't soon forget.

Interesting how the things we grew up watching have somehow woven cords of harmony in the people we have become. I see that now like I never did before. . . 

Looking forward to more pleasant moments watching this as I sew or paint. . .

What do you do when you multi-task? 


Severe Eczema

My 2 year old has suffered from eczema, or severe atopic dermatitis for the last year or so. The severity of it comes and goes, but right now it is worse than ever before. Her poor little hand, arms, and wrists are sore and red.

We have been to dermatologists and allergy doctors. Even the patch tests with various foods were all negative- thus proving she has no food allergies.

We have used all kinds of ointments, oils, lotions, etc.

But NOTHING is working.

Her hands are so raw, I put socks on them at night to keep her from scratching.

I feel like we are tumbling hopelessly in a spiral of irritated skin, endless lakes of ointments and doctors. I know not where to turn next, different doctors, different ointments. . .

Every doctor says the cause cannot be precisely pinned.

What am I to do? My poor sweet little daughter?!

Yet, I hope in God, and believe He will bring healing in some form.

And in the midst of confusion as a Mom and hopeless feelings of despair. Wishing I could crawl into the laps of my own parents and hide my head from the world of trying to make choices and decisions I don't understand, I know that God IS good.

And so I give thanks:

  • my daughter is happy, when her hands aren't bothering her. 
  • my kids play nicely together
  • spring is in coming, and sunshine is in abundance.
  • for uplifting music to encourage. 
  • for friends and prayers



Wednesday, April 10, 2013

A Latvian Tribute

My latest scarf, I love the result.


Sweets for the Sweet

 A gift for a dear friend. Hope she enjoyed them as much as I loved making them.

Friday, April 5, 2013

Featured Artist- Zita



Today I have the great pleasure of introducing you to a fellow silk artist Zita. Her shop is full of color, creative photography and life! Enjoy her story!

About you

My name is Zita Rutkauskiene, I am from Lithuania. I am a mother of two, a grandmother of one, a wife and a cat owner. I live with my husband Bronius, who is also an artist. We have a cat Knutas who enjoys art and chewing my paintbrushes. I originally trained to be an artist-restorer and worked in many churches restoring their altar paintings. However, my passion found its way into smaller-scale paintings and, more recently, silk painting.

Why silk painting? 

I discovered silk painting rather by accident. A friend of a friend contacted me a few years ago asking if I could help her learn some silk painting. She knew I was an artist but I was mainly working in the medium of fresco (painting in watercolour) at the time. She said she would buy all the necessary materials and I would just have to help her paint to start with. I thought that it would be quite interesting to learn a new technique for me (prior to that, I had not done silk painting), so of course I said yes. And so I actually ended up enjoying silk painting so much that I decided to explore it more seriously and now I only paint on silk. I am quite happy because silk painting technique allows me to work at home, in my own kitchen. Which means I can balance my family and work life better than before.

What inspires your paintings?

I am really inspired by everyday life, dreams and animals. Plants are also very inspiring with their shapes and colours and very often my silk scarves reflect that. I have always loved nature and its natural rhythms and cycles. When I paint, I can feel a certain mood and it usually manifests in a theme of my painting – for example at the moment I am working on spring colour palette and butterfly, bird shapes. As the nature prepares for new birth, so are my silk paintings reflecting a new season.

 
What is one of your favorite silk painting you have done?

One of my favourite silk paintings I have done is this particular silk scarf called ‘Yellow Floral Motives’. It is my recent work and is available on etsy.com. I really like this piece because it represents vibrant colours of spring and sunshine – something I am really looking forward to after a very long winter. I also think that wearing bright coloured clothes, especially yellow and green, makes me feel refreshed, inspired and energetic. I hope everyone can feel these positive vibes looking at this silk scarf. I particularly love the flowery ornaments and some bright blue showing – like a piece of clear blue summer sky.



What are your favorite type of silk, dyes, resist, etc.

My favourite types of silk are chiffon and habotai. I love the light, thin texture of chiffon and I enjoy the slightly thicker, smooth surface of habotai. All of my silk I order directly from a silk factory in China. It is where silk originally came from. I usually order larger quantities and it takes a while to receive the parcels, however the quality of the silk is better than buying locally, so it is really worth it.

In terms of paint and resist, I use Javana brand. I purchase their products from my local arts shop.

How you balance work, life, family and your art?

I believe that if you love what you do, you find the way to do it. I have always worked since I had children and I managed to find time to look after them and create art. It is not easy, and sometimes it is actually very hard when your work is at home – it is difficult to find the reason to leave house and get some fresh air and refresh your mind. But it is doable – as long as there is a will, there is a way.

How have you found your niche selling online?

I do not have any recipes of online selling success – I just do what I like. There is a niche for everyone. There will be a buyer if you sell what you enjoy creating.

What is something fun/interesting about yourself that you would like to share with our readers?

I have a cat who is quite a large gentleman and he usually is a big inspiration to me. However, sometimes he likes to chew my brushes or drink paint water. There were a couple of times when he actually damaged my silk painting by chewing on it. After that incident we made an agreement that he would behave better. It has been working so far!



 Please share a tip to help other silk artists or beginners in this art.

What I have learned through experience of painting on silk for a few years is that different textures and thickness really make your finished piece convey a different message and thus require different approach. For example, chiffon being very thin, does not require a lot of paint and is really see through – which means that the colours would not be very bright and clear on it, especially held in the daylight or near the window. However, for chiffon silk scarves, the colours would still show when the scarf is tied around the neck or folded (a couple of layers of chiffon really does the trick!). Habotai, on the other hand, is thicker, it is nice and soft. Habotai is very nice to paint on as it absorbs the paint well and the colours stay very intense and bright. Also the silk itself gives a bit of shine, so it looks quite luxurious.

I love working on both – chiffon and habotai – but I do different drawings, use different technique of painting and choose certain colours for each type of silk to make sure I get the wanted effect.

Another tip I could share with you is that you should wash the silk in cold/warm water before painting. When it is dry, then it will be better to paint on and the colours will be more intense and bright. Usually in the factories silk is covered in a micro layer of glue, which you can wash off before painting to get a nicer finish.


Thanks so much Zita for sharing your story with us. You can find her here:

Etsy


Thursday, April 4, 2013

It Is Finished

The holidays are gone.   The 4 day weekend is past. The eggs are eaten. The surprises past. 

YET

The work HE did. The words HE spoke. The price HE paid remains. 

He said, "It is finished" 

He breathed his last and paid a price HE did not owe! 

WHY? 

Because of HIS great love for you, and me, and every person who would walk this earth. 



This week we read a portion of the story of Holy week every day with the kids and did all kinds of activities to make it come alive for them. 


 Washing Daddy's feet.


 Drawing sins



 Nailing our sins to the cross to represent Jesus dying for our sins.



Making resurrection rolls to remember Jesus is no longer dead. 

HE IS ALIVE! 


How did you celebrate Easter?




Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Latvian Bacon Rolls

Want to make something very yummy, and very Latvian?! Try these delicious Latvian piragi. Click on the photo to take you to my recipe blog. 

What special foods did you make for Easter?