I'm Dreaming Of A White Christmas

It's been snowing for days and I'm love'n it. I don't have to drive anywhere now that the shows are over. Derek has been blowing the snow from the driveway and a path to the bird feeders so we can keep those chirpy little birds feed. Bossy bluejays get their feed first and then the chickadees. We have a pair of cardinals and several small woodpeckers rounding out the avian spectrum.



In two days I've been to 3 fabric stores and Romni Wools. I'll be working on a few Christmas presents but mostly I'll be working on a new spring line. Keep watching. I will be writing every Sunday and Wednesday nights and maybe a few more if I can.

Last Show Before Christmas

Holidandy was the name of the show at Alana's Awkward Stage Gallery. Thanks to everyone that came out. I hope next year more people decide to shop local and I don't mean your local Costco. With a little investigation you will find a lot of great handmade gift items in your own community.

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

The snow came and it has stayed. This year we have more snow by early December then we got all last winter. Lets hope that the weather is getting people into the Christmas spirit. Get out there and shop. Preferably locally and from your favourite artist.
Hey..... I can hope.



The bird feeders needed a little work this morning before the little chirpers could enjoy breakfast. But of coarse the squeaky wheel always gets breakfast first so Tyson beat out the birds and enjoyed his bottle while the chickadees sat and waited.



I have said this many times lately but I will say it again I am really excited about getting back to work. I have ideas for new adornments and drawings. New textures, colours and feelings are going to take me into the new year with a smile on my face.

Back Home

It's Tuesday and I am still trying to get caught up on sleep. We had a wonderful time at the big show. Lots of long time customers along with many new acquaintances. Lori, my weekend help, and I had time to get caught up. We usually spend the whole show together but this year Lori decided to take a break. The art nest was the star of our show with about 400 of them going out the door. Thank you little birdies for all of your colourful nests.Ruby Diego (me) sold one of the sterling silver big chain necklaces. Yeah for Ruby! I am really excited to get back to work and...... set up my expanded studio in the attic. The couch and TV will be moving into our bedroom to make room for a large work table in my studio. Now I will be able to get my fabric cutting off the floor and spread it out on a surface where my back won't hurt.

Stay tuned for the new dresses and other fabric pieces......

Someone was happy to see me home!

Third Day

And we are out of our best seller. The "art nest" has been our seller for the past ten years and this is our best year ever with it. I made more than we sold through out the whole show last year and at the end of the third day I only have 2 left. Derek is spending the weekend at the studio making more instead of being at the show. He's not that good at selling anyway, just don't tell him I said that.

First Day of the Show is Over.

First day done.... The first day is always a little scary. You want that first sale to come as quick as possible so you can start breathing again. It has been such a build up with the stress levels running high. At this point you just want to make it through. Having done the show for over 25 years we know the routine. Just be calm and wait. Give some reassurance to the newbies and enjoy your time.

Work, Work , Work

Work is still going fast and furious with only 2 days until the start of the show. For the first time ever the booth is being set up without me. How nice to have a big, strong son to help his Dad. I knew these kids would come in handy one day. My trusty old sewing machine has been making a clunking noise lately but hasn't hasn't skipped a stitch. Like everything else I will fix it "after the show". I have so many felted, cast and crocheted pieces sitting in bowls, laying on the couch, covering the kitchen table and most other horizontal surfaces waiting to be strung into necklaces that Nigel wandered around with his dinner plate last night looking like a lost soul hoping to find a spot to eat. Such is the life of a child who's parent makes art for a living.

Beautiful Day in Montreal

It's another beautiful day here in Montreal. How lucky are we to have glorious weather in mid November. Sitting here in Starbucks I keep thinking about my Dad who 47 years ago was making his way home from Montreal in November but never made it. His plane came down in a blinding snow storm. I wish he too had taken the bus. I'm getting a lot of work done here with the only distraction being listening to some wonderful music. The gala starts at 3pm today so I better head over and get my ticket. Check my website www.rubydiego.ca, I've made lots of additions.

Here I am in Montreal

A week before the big show and here am I in Montreal. What on earth am I doing there I can hear you asking. Well.... Leigh-Anne my daughter is singing in a festival and after not being able to accompany her to the last festival in the summer I thought I should go. Parents will do almost anything for their kids. Did I mention the summer festival was in Vienna? That's my excuse for not going. Crazy, that sounds like a perfect reason for going, a month in Europe. I think it really had something to do with not being able to afford it. So..... here I sit in Starbucks crocheting my little heart out. I crocheted during the performance last night after I explained to the woman sitting beside me why I had to work. "I have raised three kids with my art work". She was truly impressed. I didn't mean to impress her it's just the truth and you know I am proud of it.

Keep Working

It's a busy time right now. I am so enthused about all of the work ahead. How wonderful to look forward to work time instead of regretting time spent doing something you don't want to be doing. My studio, according to others, is a little messy these days but that's the way I work. The materials that are inspiring me these days are complete opposites on many levels. On my work table sits a bucket of bronze scrap and beside it is a bowl of cotton crocheted flowers. I like to just look at it and think about the contrasts and similarities. Both materials will be made into jewellery to adorn mine and yours.

Derek's New Garden Pieces

While I have been working in the garden taking plant material out, Derek has been working on pieces to place in the garden. The winter garden is often overlooked, when it is actually the best time to think about those special pieces which give your garden character when the plant material is gone. These new garden pieces have the added element of movement or sound.

Inspiration Comes In Many Forms

I was in Toronto with Cait yesterday and by 1 o'clock we were both famished and looking for something to eat. Cait had been fasting since the night before because of her ultrasound so I figured she was ready to dig into just about anything. Well I was wrong. We marched up and down College Street looking for something that would satisfy my finicky girl. She finally decided that a pizza slice from the store that we past near the beginning of our walk would fit the bill. Looking on the positive side of this indecision it was a beautiful day and we saw a lovely city garden. The gate with the brick posts made a very welcoming entrance. How admirable to place something out there that gives a stranger pleasure as they walk by.

Crocheting

People often ask me if I ever stop working. The answer is no. I love what I do and I do when ever I can. Even if it is just a few minutes while I am waiting for the kettle to boil. My Christmas shows start in a little over a month so I best keep working.

Art Shindig

Yesterday was our second Art Shindig and a good time was had by all. The event ran in conjunction with Cultural Days Canada which was a country wide series of events which involves Canadians in art making endeavors. It was a federal government initiative to promote the arts. We invited a number of our talented artist friends to come and spend a day working on site creating a new work of art. They worked on their own and in collaboration with fellow artists in their favourite medium. We had painters, sculptors, and musicians. We will be doing this again net year for sure!

Tamara Benoit painting violets. Tam is showing her new work in our gallery right now.
Check out http://www.martinhouseart.com/martinhouseart14.htm

A lot of conversation and exchange of ideas.

Christina Luck, painter and sculptor, painted images of some of the participants doing what they do.

Derek Martin and Ray Dillard discussing something and according to Derek "it was that big".

Leslie Winemaker and I are collaborating on a project to create a chandelier. Leslie will make the glass components and I will do the rest. We plan to have the first one ready to show by the Christmas season.

June's New Uniform

I asked June to come over and take a look at my new crocheted linen necklaces and she walked out with what she called her new fall uniform. She put together one of my black dresses, her beret and one of my linen necklaces. Her neighbour told her that she looked very "Chanel".

Blue Dress

I was going through Leigh-Anne's summer pictures with her when I came across this photo of a beautiful blue dress. The dress was hanging in a shop window in Venice. There sitting right beside the dress was a photo of Audrey Hepburn making the window display perfect. The pearl necklaces made me think of the pearl necklaces I am working on. I have poured pearls into a clear plastic tube. My stumbling block right now is how to join the ends of the tubes cleanly and not be clunky looking. Stay tuned for updates on my dilemma.

Basket Making Workshop

On Saturday September 18, 2010 Martin House Garden Art in Barrie, Ontario is holding a basket making workshop. Leslie Songer-Terry, a well established basket maker from Gravenhurst, will be leading the Market Basket fun day. You will learn how to prepare the reed, weave and finish with exacting detail. Everyone will go home with a basket similar to the one in the picture. The cost is $85.00 which includes your materials and a light lunch. The workshop starts at 9:30am and finishes around 4:30pm. Call or email me to grab a spot. 705-722-6535 or tmartin@martinhouseart.com Group limited to 8.

Working On Ideas

Crocheting is something I learned as a kid and it has given my a lot of joy for years. Here is a picture of a crocheted medallion. I have been scanning them and looking at them as an image on paper. I am taking a very tactile object and removing one of the most desirable properties. Just something to think about.

OK... Now I'M Going To Start !!!

What I mean is I have been procrastinating about starting work for the Christmas season. I have talked about everything, (going to the cottage etc.) except inspirations for new work. So I set myself up looking at some new fashion mags and I came away with a few notable things that came up again and again. The first being leopard print. I remember when my daughter was 7 all she wanted was leopard print. Leopard print what? So for Christmas she got a Posh Spice doll in a leopard print dress and a leopard print throw blanket. So here we are again celebrating that beautiful cats colouring. The second thing that kept showing up was fringe. It's more then just a biker chick or cowgirl's embellishment.

Cottage Weekend

Derek and I got to do what thousands of people do every weekend during the summer. We sat in our car for four and a half hours while we made our way to the cottage. My sister's cottage that is. It was beautiful at the cottage. Very inspiring. The whole family is going to try to get there next year. How can people stand all that driving? We have been pretty lucky living and working where we do for 23 years. Look out the front door and there now is a subdivision where a barn and cattle use to be, but look out the back and all we see are fields, trees, ducks, rabbits and a heron rookery. Yes lucky us!

August 13th, Happy Birthday to Me

It's been a good day. A breakfast meeting with my favourite breakfast buddy followed by a wander through my local wool shop where of coarse I found some yarn that needed to come home with me. It is a variegated silk which I will crochet into the new necklace/scarf design. The day finished with dinner with friends and then time to crochet that new birthday yarn. I don't know anyone else who can so excited over a ball of yarn.

Working On A New Piece

I have been crocheting all afternoon and evening, not including time off for making dinner, walking the crying baby and showing my son where the tall weeds are that he had to cut down. How could he not see them? When I have a new item I tend to bug everyone in the house with "what do you think of this". I will make a few changes and start over again "what do you think of this now". I have three girls here with very different tastes. With input from all three and a shrug from the guys I feel confident in the new piece.

It's Hot In My Studio

My studio is on the top floor of our house. It sounds like we have a big house and that it is very grand, me being on the top floor. In reality we live in a little bungalow and I am in the attic space. Years ago when we had to have our roof replaced because it leaked like a sieve our builder asked if we would like to take the walls up a little higher and create some extra space. We jumped at the idea seeing that we lived in 700 square feet. Did I mention we have 3 kids and a dog? Anyway...... you all know hot air rises and there is no air conditioning in this house. It's hot in my studio!

A Day on Georgian Bay

Derek and I participated in a show at the Iron City Fishing Club this past Friday. We met the caretaker and his helper at the Moon River marina where we loaded up the barge and headed over to the island. It was a beautiful boat ride, the sun was shining and we had help waiting for us at the dock. Harley, the senior student employee, was there to encourage her juniors to get busy and pitch in. The student employees have all grown up vacationing on the island. The cottages have been pasted down from parent to child since the late 1800's. Not much changes on the island except for upkeep and that is where we come in. The sale is a fundraiser with a percentage of the sales going to the club.