{Nice Day} for a bike ride...

While it was questionable when we looked out the window this morning, it turned out being a perfect day for a bike ride! I just got a new bike- a nice yellow one. The first thing Sayer said when he saw it was, "let George ride it". Yes, it does look a lot like the bike that the man with the yellow hat  has. I have to say, I did think about Curious George when I picked it out... but it wasn't the main reason for my color choice. I had a really strong reaction to the yellow.

One of the main reasons for getting this new bike was so that we could enjoy bike rides with Sayer. Chris & I sold our retro Schwinn cruisers that we got each other when we bought our house (10 yrs ago) and put the money towards something that had gears and would hold a bike seat well. Chris was generous and adopted my old mountain bike that acted as my car in college- it was always a bit too big for me (because I was stubborn & wouldn't get a woman's bike) and it fits him better.  Sayer loves riding on the back of the bike. My dad has a seat on his bike that he & Sayer use often. I guess I wanted in on the action too.

So, Sayer and I took off on a ride today. It wasn't our first ride- we went out with Chris earlier in the week. But this was our first ride, just the two of us, and we had a blast. I actually grew up in the town that I now live in - so today we rode around the same streets that I used to ride on as a kid. We went to my old elementary school and played on the playground. Funny how the streets seemed longer and steeper when I was a smaller. 

I am struggling a bit with the balance between klt:works & life these days so this is just the thing I need. I know it is Fall now but  a little rain never stopped me before. So, my hope is that this is just the beginning of many good bike riding days.... 

{Fabric Friday} drooling over hable...

Have you been to the hable construction site in awhile? I just popped by and reminded myself how much I really love this sister run company.  Look at all of these beautiful hand printed cotton canvas  & linen textiles! 

{handprinted canvas swatches}

{handprinted linen} 

There is so much to see in addition to the fabrics - pillows, totes, prints, storage bins. It's all pretty wonderful. I really enjoyed poking around the site and learning more about the company. I have been following them on twitter & "like" them on facebook, but hadn't visited the site in a few months. I realized that if I love hable construction, then I should share it with my fellow textile enthusiasts. So, happy Fabric Friday! 

{all images via hable construction website}

{Pop-up} genius brochure...

I just spotted this genius advertising pop-up for the Cincinnati based company, SK Textile. How cool would it be to have something like this advertise your product? Yes please! 

via Paperforest

{Good Read} Being loved...

If someone were to ask what children's book influenced me the most, "The Velveteen Rabbit", would have to be in the top 3. It's a book that I think about almost daily in the studio. The idea of "nursery magic" and what makes a toy "real" occupies my mind when I am making things for klt:works. One of my biggest joys is to know that a child has made one of my creations "real". 

From the Velveteen Rabbit: 

"Real isn't how you are made" said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long time, not just to play with , but REALLY loves you, then you become Real....Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real, you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand.

Another book that I recently discovered and think about often, is "Dirty WOW WOW and other love stories". This book tells the stories of 50 transitional love objects. The pictures are great and the stories are really touching. The title page writes, "A tribute to the threadbare companions of childhood". Here are a few of my favorites. 

I tend to like to surround myself with well loved things in the studio. I'm sort of mystified as to what sort of qualities a plush or doll needs to acquire such adoration. I like to think of myself as an elf, making toys or plush for children, pouring in as much magical love dust in as possible. Sayer is my only child study right now, along with remembering what I responded to when I was small. But I watch and take mental notes, hoping that I might get the formula right. Here are some of the well loved, or "real" characters that are in our home right now.

This is my mom's doll from when she was a little girl. It has a mark of red lipstick on the arm from where my mom pretended to give her a shot when she was playing nurse. This doll has always been in my various studios.

This is my old Snoopy doll that I loved. It is one of the only stuffed animals that I still have. I found it stashed away for my "someday child". I need to mend the armpit.... before I give it to Sayer.

And here is Murphy. Our friend Pam gave him to us when she found out about my love of ventriloquist dolls. Murphy has been through a lot and is very real. He hangs out on the bench in our hall.

Gunk gunk, which is now Conk, is my favorite of the bunch. This little slug goes everywhere with Sayer. It was the first slug lovey that I ever made and Sayer has had it now since he was 10 months old. Conk has been through about 100 wash cycles and is definitely as real as it gets.  Did you have a threadbare companion? 

{Flash Back} weekend getaway...

Piling into the car and driving for four hours, over the mountains, to Lake Chelan every summer is a strong childhood memory. The always rotating tapes of the Chipmunks, Pat Benatar, Willie Nelson, & Eddy Rabbit played while my brother and I had to have an ice chest placed between us in the back seat so that we wouldn't poke each other. Somehow our magic slates just didn't occupy us the whole time. When Sayer was born, we started up the tradition again of having a mini summer vacation in Lake Chelan with all of our families together. We just got back yesterday from a long weekend there and I wanted to document and share the nostalgia. 

The first year, we actually stayed in one of the same exact rooms that we stayed in 36 years ago! Nothing had really changed except the painting above the couch was a little more modern (not much though). Since then, we have been staying in a place just a few blocks away from our original hotel. However, Brian (my brother) and I snuck over and tripped through memory lane before the weekend was over. As you see, things don't change that much (these photos are actually taken in the same spots as the original photos).

The Lakeview Drive-In is still one of the first stops once we get to Chelan. Although, they don't serve the hotdogs in the little wiener dog paper packaging anymore, the experience is  still how we remember it. 

The next stop is The Variety Store (used to be Sprouse-Reitz) which looks exactly the same inside as it used to. The three most important purchases used to be, and still are : buckets, inflatable ball (or air mattress), and thongs.

The pool is also one of the first destinations. My glasses still sit on the little table next to the lounge chair... just the beverage has changed.

Renting a ski boat to tube or ski behind was something we used to do almost every year as well. This year, Brian was the only one that jumped in to be towed behind the boat. But we all went along for the ride. Sayer thought it was pretty darn cool to watch. We go off season now, so the water (and weather) isn't quite as warm as what we remember. 

On our way home, we stopped at a little Bavarian inspired town called Leavenworth. It has changed a bit from the 70's and '80's, but not a lot. The whole trip sort of felt like we stepped into a time warp. 

And there you have it- a peek into our  weekend getaway. I love being able to share some of my childhood memories with Chris and Sayer while making new memories as a family. Do you have a traditional vacation spot?

{Music Monday} music & movies...

I'm a big fan of Wes Anderson movies. There is something about his aesthetic that I really enjoy- the colors that he works with, the imagery, & the music that he choses.  Sometimes I find that when I hear a certain song that he has used in a movie, my mind goes right to that scene. I've been listening to a little Velvet Underground with Nico lately, and am particularly fond of "These Days". When I hear it, I always think of this next scene from The Royal Tenenbaums. When I see it now, I notice things like the color of the green stripe on the bus against the browns, the vintage suitcases and the amazing palette.

The Fantastic Mr. Fox is also full of amazing imagery. The pairing of the music with both of these movie scenes is inspiring me in the studio right now. I am loving the small details, characters, palette, and general feel of both of them- not to mention that they both feel like Fall to me. Happy Music Monday!