New Relationships…
January 27th, 2012Portland. Food. Food. Portland. The two are intimately entwined, as anyone on the food scene will tell you. Both near and far.
2012 is a momentous year in that I’m treating it as the actual year I’ve arrived in Portland. Don’t get me wrong, I have a wonderful relationship with T and small handful of friends. Yet in a strange way I haven’t been as fully present as I could be. If you’d asked me when I went into surgery February of 2008 I’d have told you I’d be back on top in six months. Cough, cough. Laugh, laugh. I now know better. I’m stronger and wiser for it.
Sooo… I repeat. 2012 is the year I’ve arrived in Portland. It means re-engaging with community. Growing the business. Reconnecting with creativity and discovering new outlets of creativity. Continuing to build on the rich and joyful relationships that I have. Creating new ones. And having fun while doing.
This includes food. Since I rarely do anything halfway I started a cleanse January 1. I signed up for the full throttle Clean Program. No coffee, no wine. I liked that it was not a diet. I didn’t need a diet, just a reboot. Protein Clean shakes in the AM and PM, supplements and a full lunch each day for three weeks. Did I mention the 7-day food pre cleanse? They suggested 5-days, but given my schedule 7 worked best.
I’m three days from the end of a four-week haul! Can I tell you? I’m not sure I’ll ever do it again! At least the full throttle one, maybe just the food one. For the record, I don’t care how healthy almond or coconut milk are for you. After one week. Never again. EVER.
Out of 87 meals, I only slipped 5 times. Wahooo! Two of the three were pretty decent nose dives to the deep end – with decent moderation, the other three consisted of small bites of something I shouldn’t have had in the evening. Can I say. Not bad. I got back on the wagon and kept going. But here’s the thing I learned. I love food and the act of creating meals. Oh, and I love my morning cup of coffee.
You’d think one meal a day was a bit limiting, but surprisingly not. I reconnected with thinking about what that meal consists of and creating healthy meals for my lunch and T’s dinner. For the record, I don’t cook every night. I’m the queen of making one meal last several. I focused on the moods that result in cravings and why. And what to do about them. We’ve tried new recipes, some with overwhelming success and others not so much. And we continue to buy as much locally as we can. It’s been a good experience and great new way to look at food. So ….
To new relationships. I feel like food and 2012 is going to be a good year.
PS: Yes, I’m still on the creative path with the knitting and patterns. More on that later.
Into the New Year
January 6th, 2012The first week of 2012 has been um, not fun. One I hope that is NOT indicative of the year to come.
The household went down for the count the morning after Christmas. A combination of food poisoning and wicked stomach flu (combined) and a chest infection, T with the food poisoning and stomach flu and me with the chest infection. Oh joy! Picked up the stomach flu Monday. Needless to say we had a very quiet New Years. Light dinner and a movie, at home.
Today is the first day I actually feel decent. Good thing as I have to head to Seattle this afternoon for my Nihon Vogue course. And no I did not get as much knitting done as I would have liked, but I make progress.
The first week of detox has been a lot easier than it normally is. Thankfully I only had the caffeine headache Day 2 & 3. I have discovered that I crave sugar when I’m bored. Go figure.
I leave you with a bit of what I have been doing while on the couch. Getting the mood board, fibers, some swatching and sketching as the Spring/Summer designs come together. It’s all about baby steps. Ok, maybe no photos. Files to big and I’m out of time. More next time.
Moving into 2012
December 29th, 2011I always think I’m not ‘big’ on reflection, but I am. Albeit, I prefer looking forward.
2011 has just been, MORE. It’s involved taking risks, personally and professionally. It’s also included working on defining balance in all aspects of my life. All things considered I did OK. Work kicked into a higher gear in 2011. It was good. The growth, personally and professionally was worth it.
That said, 2012 is dedicated to a balanced life. On my terms. I’ll be rolling into 2012 making some hard decisions and taking action on health, work, and relationships. To make it (them) even healthier and continue to pursue what I love.
Health wise, I’m finally getting to a place of strength and endurance. This year I’m setting my outlook to focus on my relationship with food, rediscover my Yoga practice and getting back into Triathlon competition with an Olympic in July and Sprint in October.
Relationship wise, T and I are doing well. Relationships are ever evolving so we’ll continue to work on ours to make it even better in 2012. We’re planning a big trip for sometime this summer. Should be fun.
Work continues to evolve. That’s a good thing. I have it and hope to have more. There is a strategy in place. I have some great people working for me. Wish us luck! I’ll be finishing up a Women’s Executive Series in several months. It’s been fabulous. Both affirming and changing. It’s helped me slowly move back into the local business community, in a fashion that is working for me. 2012 is dedicated to getting to know my local business community through teaching, speaking, attending events and volunteering. I’ll continue to have an outlook that is global in exploration, reach and feel.
My love of making, craft + business is also moving forward. I lost a bit of this in 2011. However, I continue to be inspired by the local and global communities in the textiles world. This is a section of business that I’ve made the conscious decision to dedicate several afternoons a week to being in The Studio where I’ll be committed to teaching, design and creation in yarn, fabric and words. On a personal level I’ll be looking to reconnect with my love of sewing (machine and hand) via exploration of Art Quilts and some summer garments.
I’ll be sharing much of my journey here on the blog, but not all.
Here’s wishing you and yours a healthy and prosperous 2012!
Knitting, swatching, writing, knitting, swatching, writing …
December 23rd, 2011Busy finishing up the writing of three sweaters that go to the test knitter in two weeks. They should be ready for purchase on Ravelry and on the site in early March as PDF’s or kits.
Think weekend casual.
Christmas (a wee bit) late…
December 14th, 2011For years (literally) I’ve been on the hunt for a mannequin that is functional AND attractive. I’ve haunted eBay and Craigslist and even lusted after a Wolf mannequin or two. The latter I used at the Academy of Arts program, but they’ve always left me a bit flat in terms of look. Effective though.
I’ve also perused for vintage mannequins. I love the look of them, but my practical and pragmatic side just could justify the cost of the ones I coveted as I’ve been looking for a working mannequin, in my size, for draping and form as I work on knitting or sewing.
Imagine my joy, absolute by the way, when I stumbled upon this wonderful site when looking for mannequins for a client. Corset Lace Mannequins. Heaven I tell you! OK and a bit pricy. Which my practical side actually will spend, if the item will really be used. I’m of the less is more camp, so invest. I spoke with T and bounced around the idea of the other options, but we both determined something so visible in our home should also be beautiful. Once this discussion was closed I put a plan in action and started saving.
After several emails and patient reply’s from the owner and creator in the last two months I bit the bullet and bought this one. Emma Retro Stand with the white lace up in back and on the black metal stand with rollers. The added bonus is that UK 10/12 is a dead on fit to my measurements.
Photo from Corset Lace Mannequins. Emma Front.
Photo from Corset Lace Mannequins. Emma Back.
It arrives in 28 days. I can’t wait! I have three projects waiting!