Where’s that list?
December 12, 2014
I find it’s easy to refer back to gifts that I have received and have enjoyed when trying to come up with a gift idea for someone else. While most of them could easily fall into that “stocking stuffer” category budget wise, you’ll hear down the road that their impact was greater than something more extravagant. Really…it’s the small things that make the difference, don’t you think?
A journal or sketch book…always a clean sheet at hand. The perfect place to record a thought, a plan, a sketch, a dream.
Ras el Hanout…Mix up a batch of this Moroccan spice blend from the recipe found here.http://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes/ras-el-hanout While great in meat, vegetable and cous cous recipes, you might include this recipe for Roasted Cauliflower soup to get things started. http://www.kirstenjohnstone.com/2012/10/roast-cauliflower-soup/
Heath holiday tall modern cups…ruby red inside, red suede outside. Peppermint hot chocolate will feel right at home, as would coffee, tea or a fistful of tulips or winterberry. You’ll be thought of with every use.
Clementines, cloves and snow…really. “Winter” fragrance 3 wick candle at Bath and Body Works.
Deerskin gardening gloves…indispensible. Protection for your hands when gardening or to keep in the car in the event you make an unplanned stop at the nursery. I’m never without a pair…or two.
Luxurious yarn in a gift card from Purl Soho, Jimmy Beans Wool or Yarn.com. Who wouldn’t be excited with a gift of cashmere, merino wool or alpaca? And, for the fiber freak…it’s all about the picking. It’s almost like two gifts.
The mini wisk. I received this one as a gift years ago and it’s still in my top 5 favorite utensils.
The “Ropey”…who’s special kid wouldn’t love a new one?
Modern cup photo: Heath Ceramics. All other photos: gp
Santa ?
November 30, 2014
OK , I thought I’d get this in early while everyone else was busy with Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday. Until I find the time to knit ’em up myself, I could love to receive either of these this Christmas. And, it goes without saying…but I’m saying it anyway…I’ve been very good.
It doesn’t get much more simplequietmodern than these charcoal cashmere sweatpants or this sweaterknit blazer, does it?
photos: http://www.jamesperse.com/
47,335,389
November 27, 2014
47,335,389 minutes adds up to ninety years. And, ninety years adds up to one special life. First a daughter and sister…then a wife and mother…and on to grandmother and great-grandmother. Ninety years of loving life, loving children, loving animals…all the while raising a family and working as an RN, early on in the nursery and later in your career in surgery. Add Breast Cancer Survivor to the list and well…what else is there to say? We are all very thankful for you, particularly on this Thanksgiving, which is your 90th birthday. I think 47,335,389 minutes deserves at least 48,000 stitches…each one a different combination of color…coming together in this modern knit to warm you as you plan for your next milestone…100! With more love than you can imagine coming to you today, Happy Birthday Mom, Grandma, Great-Grandma. It’s time for some “bubbly”.
photos:gp
It’s a wrap.
October 11, 2014
Well, actually, it’s a poncho…which is a type of wrap, isn’t it? And, just in time to ward off the Autumn chill. When I realized that I didn’t have enough wool to create a blanket or a throw, this was the simplequietmodern solution… a modified and color blocked version of the Easy Folded Poncho from Churchmouse Yarns and Teas. There you have it. Challenge accepted…challenge completed.
Go here https://simplequietmodern.com/2014/08/17/better-like-this-2/and here
https://simplequietmodern.com/2014/09/19/creative-block/ to get the back story.
The original pattern is available here: http://www.churchmouseyarns.com/
Now that it’s Fall…
October 5, 2014
what’s inspiring you?
top to bottom:
The scale of this burlap weave gives some indication of how tiny this found nest actually is. What might you discover on a walk around your yard or neighborhood? And, if you have an idea as to what small bird called this home, let me know.
The local farm stands are loaded with the seasons bounty. Skip the crowds at the cider mill and pick up an armload of beets, take ’em home and roast ’em up or turn them into a soup for the week ahead.
A chill in the air calls for wool…maybe a cap…maybe in hand dyed Autumn reds.
Starting to collect and recycle packaging materials now will save you from picking up a few tacky rolls of gift wrap closer to the holidays. I’m thinking this expanded kraft paper is going to be the perfect addition to my classic crisp white tissue. It’s looking pretty modern to me.
This Lingham stone always seems to move to a more visible location in the Fall so that I can better enjoy it’s unique natural colorations. A quick spin and edit of your interior accessories will have everything looking new as you start to spend more time inside.
A Coffee Break rose, left to dry to a new kind of beautiful, will continue to add interest throughout the Fall, into Thanksgiving…possibly even Christmas. Start by enjoying then drying them now and they’ll be ready to put into service again when the time comes.
all photos: gp
Creative block…
September 19, 2014
to color block. It could be the simplequietmodern solution to the earlier challenge. A richly textured, richly colored new wool blanket split asymmetrically in two. Let’s see what develops.
What Happened?
September 15, 2014
What’s with the cold snap? It was finally starting to feel like Summer. Mother Nature’s way of getting you to think about whats coming I suppose. That said, I could manage with some similar incarnation of this Armani offering as my Fall/Winter “uniform”. Giorgio Armani…does it get much better?
Photo:http://imgmodels.tumblr.com/post/93114844388/ben-hill-for-giorgio-armani-f-w-2014-lookbook
Better like this?
August 17, 2014
When an unexpected package shows up on your doorstep…well, it’s just the greatest. Intended to cure my homesickness for the West Coast, this “care package” contained some items found by friends on a trip to the desert…a program book from Modernism West, a bit of vintage modern Hawaiiana and a pile of wool yarn that I’m sure was gathered at one of their regular ” picking ” haunts. I could feel the hot desert air the minute I broke open the box. I laughed out loud thinking how much fun we would’ve had if we had all taken that trip together…then laughed some more as I imagined them guessing what would become of these skeins whose palette was clearly…umm…challenging. Well, challenge accepted.
Who knew that a little fuchsia dye and a kettle of hot water would turn that Robin Hood green into this? Yep, better like this.
Or, that the intense green/blue/purple self-striping yarn would turn into this rich charcoal black when cooked up in a bath of dark brown? Oh yeah, now we’re talking. You’ll have to check back to see what happens next.
Sidetracked
July 24, 2014
I thought I was zeroing in on the beginning of something big when I was sidetracked taking a shortcut through the garden center at Home Depot. Could a simple ball of sisal twine slam on the creative breaks and start me turning in another direction. Apparently it can…I’m a sucker for any type of natural cord. You name it…jute, sisal, hemp…I like them all. It wasn’t long before a test swatch was produced and then another…first on its own, then knit together with my homespun newsprint yarn. Stay tuned.
A little inspiration,
June 13, 2014
a little yarn and a little time. The Inspiration?… this modern 1926 textile design by Anni Albers. The yarn?… Berroco’s Modern Cotton. The time?…unbelievably, about 10 days…cast on to bind off. And the result? Exactly as planned…a modern baby blanket that was intentionally “un-pink”.
simplequietmodern 