Summertime Rolls

This summer has been pretty hot and heavy in my neck of the woods. Record breaking heat, sun, lots of projects...I can't get enough! I thought it was time for a catch up post before the leaves start turning.



Out and About
This summer I did two projects for Portland Center Stage. The folks behind the scenes were dreamy to work with, the kind of client that really spoils you. I got to do two show images for their stellar season. I had a lot of fun pushing some of the techniques I've developed over the past few years. It was a really great job.Thanks, PCS!


Food for Thought
We recently went on a little beachy getaway with some dear friends, and fellow lovers of all foodstuffs. I wanted to make some delicious appetizers to munch on in the evenings. I was flipping through my vintage Betty Crocker cookbook for some inspiration when the "Moss Ball" recipe caught my eye. I love working in themes, and this recipe was fitting as we were headed towards the ocean, where real Moss Balls or Aegagropila linnaei, actually grow. So here's the Moss Ball: a homemade cheese ball made of cream cheese, blue cheese, sharp cheddar, pecans, and rolled into fresh parsley. Cheesy, yes? Delicious? Definitely



Off the Hook
My sweet friend and our nanny for the past year, is going off to Denmark to study for a few months. Lucky girl! I wanted to make her a practical and compact going away gift , something cozy (or hygge as the Danes would say) that she could wrap around herself when she was missing her friends and home. I searched far and wide for a pattern that was not old-ladyish, and would compress down enough to be used as a scarf. Enter the Cappuccino Lace Wrap by Etsian "Crocheteria". I was instantly drawn to the graphic stitch. It felt more modern to me than other lace patterns I'd found. As I was blocking it, I was thinking about all the things our Supernanny might see and do in Denmark. Of course my thoughts went to food and all the great Havarti that she's probably going to eat. Then I looked down at my creamy white, lacy creation, and deemed it the "The Havarti Hug Wrap".




In My Ears
I maxed out my old playlist with 72 of my favorite tunes over the last year, so it is time to start a new one. Here are a few songs I'm listening to a lot of lately. I love the sound and lyrics in Chinese Translation, by M.Ward. Plus the video is Illustrated in a really sweet style, which makes me love it even more. I heard a cover this week of "Tomorrow Never Knows" by the Helio Sequence. I really liked it, but the original is hard to beat. I remember getting Revolver for my 16th birthday. I poured over this song, and the album's cover art. "Funeral" is an older Band of Horses tune, I just love the sound of it - all those haunting "oooohs"! "Moorestown" is another Sun Kil Moon song I could just put on repeat (along with nearly every other song by these guys). Sometimes being a mom to a toddler can feel like a line from this Grand Master Flash song "It's like a jungle sometimes it makes me wonder / How I keep from going under". I'm not sure what to say about "Pure Morning" except that I like it. The lyrics from Bjork's song "all is full of love" struck me when I saw a video of her live performance of the song, beautiful! The Harvey Danger cover of "Save it For Later" is getting a lot of airtime in my town this month, and I just really love the sound of it. And finally, I just had to throw in one of my old Jane's Addiction favorites - to match the title of this post.