So I made a portable art studio for working in front of the teevee late at night while watching season two of True Blood on DVD. Season three started last Sunday ... yipee!

I've been making greeting cards using the vintage ephemera I picked up recently at an antique store. The image of the Golden Gate Bridge is the back of an old playing card. I like using the actual vintage item rather than making color copies because it gives the card more texture and more character.

The outcome: A diagonal dish cloth that, to my surprise, I enjoyed knitting very much.

The unexpected benefit: So much enjoyment knitting the first one that I created a second, smaller cloth in white with a red crocheted border.

The next challenge: Knitting an item from a new pattern that I have never tried before.

I spent some time last weekend creating art for the Mad Tea Party on June 26th and scribbling down ideas for my post on that day. It's been so long since I read Alice in Wonderland that I had to google "mad hatter" and "march hare" to refresh my memory.

These are little books I made with handmade paper and antique maps, savings passbook pages, playing cards, and more. They are 3.5 x 2.5", the same size as an artist trading card (ATC).

I was going to gesso and collage the pages, and then add my own words, but I love the look and feel of the papers as they are so I decided to leave them
unadorned for now.

This is my June ATC for my swap group-- the theme is "ocean." I wanted to do something different this month, so I used watercolor paints for the background and stamped the reeds. It is titled "Under the Sea."

This pima/silk Frog Tree yarn is the latest addition to my out-of-control stash. I couldn't resist buying it when I was in Mendocino last month because I love that little village so much and yarn is the perfect souvenir. Sometimes I think I like buying yarn more than I like knitting with it. The big gray hunk in the background is 650 yards of alpaca I bought from my sister. Some day I hope to make a lacy shawl with it.

Thank you to Debbie at Strings of Purls for awarding me the Beautiful Blogger Award!
I will have to share ten things about myself soon.

Lots of ♥,
Stacy

On Monday I got out and hiked in the hills near my home. It felt so good! I had to move very slowly because I'm not used to walking uphill anymore, but it was easier than expected. There were a few quail out and about, along with lots of little brown birds that I couldn't identify. I thought I heard an owl hooting in a small valley, but it might have been kids playing around and I was too tired to go up an incline to check it out. This deer greeted me at the end of the hike. I'm hoping to go back this weekend if it isn't too hot.