Etsy

Hey, this is pretty neat, I just made it to the front page of Etsy! My first time, I think (although there was one other time I had a huge amount of traffic to one of my tees but never did find out the source). I finally figured out how to "capture" one of these pages thanks to my brother who is a little more computer-savvy than me. So for posterity, here it is! (Baby-Grow Organic Hat in the top left corner.) Thanks to Shutter Kate for the selection. I think I'll go check out her other selections now! Happy Boxing Day, all! ~L.

Cha-cha-cha Changes!

Just to announce that I've decided to adjust my prices (for the better) for the time being in light of the change in the Canadian dollar, and also to make way for some changes in my shop in the coming year. Take advantage while you can! I hope to change my focus a little more towards an offering of more children's clothing and fewer accessories. I will still be keeping the favourites, but this will also let me make way for some new fabric options as well. I am really excited about some baby sets that I have coming up along with some new designs in the way of tops and pants for young children - all 100% sustainable of course! As my own two little ones grow it has always been my goal to have my offerings grow and change, while keeping a few signature pieces from each stage. So to new beginnings! Here we go!

Ho ho ho!

Here is a sneak peak at a festive onesie and hat set I made for the upcoming Fine Craft and Design Fair. I hadn't actually planned on making anything festive, but I was fiddling around with one of my hat designs and one thing flowed into another and I couldn't resist doing this little green elf hat. Then I decided to add the onesie to provide the option of a set. When I re-open my shop in the next day or two I will include one of these.

Meanwhile it is a balmy 19 degrees celcius here today when it is normally around zero! I don't know what's going on but it is starting to feel like Christmas in July!

Papa's Harvest

Here is proud Papa (Grand-papa, that is) with little M. preparing some of his apple harvest for the winter. Don't those apples look delicious! He grows these apples in his back yard along with pears, cherries and of course his vegetable garden. When I was growing up we lived for a couple of years on a farm "across the bay" (in Gillams to be exact) where along with being a principal of a high school, he managed to run a small farm. We left there when I was 4 to come back into town but he always kept his farmland, and he uses it to this day to grow and sell Christmas trees locally (despite my mother's best efforts to slow him down). Did I mention that he just celebrated his 75th birthday in September? It is nice to see that my little ones will get to witness this part of his life and to learn what it is to have an appreciation and respect of the land (and what it can offer us if we properly tend it).

Children Behind Our Cotton

Have you ever wondered where the cotton you buy comes from, and under what conditions it was grown in? If you haven't, consider this chilling fact cited in a report titled "The Children behind Our Cotton" by the Environmental Justice Foundation:

'The Children behind Our Cotton’ details the shocking conditions endured by more than an estimated one million children – some as young as five – who work 12-hour days in extremes of hot and cold weather, many suffering physical, verbal and sometimes sexual abuse.

Also . . .

In countries like Uzbekistan and Pakistan, children spray pesticides, commonly used in cotton production but which pose serious health and safety risks. EJF field research in October 2007 in India discovered children in the fields during the spraying season where plants were soaked with chemicals.

“Children were working on cotton plants that had been sprayed with chemicals only moments before, without any protection,” Duncan Copeland, EJF campaigner, says. “Most of the children we interviewed complained of nasty side-effects like fainting and sickness from exposure to pesticides, which is obviously a serious cause for concern in conventional and Bt cotton production.”

I find it really frustrating to walk into a store and to look at a label and find that it is ALMOST NEVER made in the U.S. or Canada, but almost always made in a third world country. Sometimes the manufacturer will try to fool you by printing, Designed in Canada, and then you find another tag that says it was made somewhere else overseas. (And yes, I realize that Made in U.S. or Canada does not necessarily mean that the cotton used to make these garments was not made under such abhorrent conditions - another reason to ask lots of questions!)

To be completely honest with you, up until a year or two ago, I never ever looked at the tag to see where the clothing I bought was made, it never entered my mind to consider it. But things for me have changed considerably.



Why do we import this stuff in the first place without strict guidelines that consider the human cost of our "cheap" goods? I can't help but think it resembles a form of slave labor so that we can buy lots of cheap stuff, much of which we don't really need in the first place. When I pick up a garment and I see that Made in X label, I can't help but think about the other end, and about the potential human cost it took to get in my hands.

But hey, the good news is we can make a difference collectively! What can we do? EJF suggests:

EJF is also calling upon consumers to demand accountability from their retailers to help put an end to child labour in the world’s cotton fields; to ask questions about where their cotton comes from, and under what conditions it was produced.

To read the full article and judge for yourself, you can follow the following link . . .

http://www.ejfoundation.org/page481.html

Waste Couture: Environmental Impact of the Clothing Industry

Something to think about this Canadian Thanksgiving weekend . . . We can vote for change with the ways we spend our money . . .


worker rests on a factory floor

http://www.ehponline.org/members/2007/115-9/focus.html

Eco Blog: Handmade Naturals

Thanks so much to Hyla for featuring me on her awesome green blog: Eco Blog. You can check out the interview she did with Handmade Naturals here!

Eco Blog: Handmade Naturals

The Lorax

This is a hoot! My sister-in-law is doing a course called the Human Act and the Environment and gave me a heads up on this story by Dr. Seuss! Published in 1971, and never more relevant! Check out the video version - it lasts about 25 minutes . . .

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6650219631867189375

It's been awhile . . .

Wow, life has been busy, it can be hard to keep up with a blog sometimes. But hey, always take time to pause for family, friends, cake and fresh berries! A few big milestones around here family-wise, a family reunion of sorts, and my little Etsy shop has been keeping me quite busy since re-opening in August.

A few pics to recap . . .


For my Dad, the avid fisherman and outdoorsman. I "painted" this cake using a hand-painted box by local artist Shawn O'Hagan for inspiration. (Check out her beautiful hand-knit shawls in her Etsy shop: www.islandsweet.etsy.com)




Fresh from the wild - helping to make the end of summer a little bit sweeter.














Another wacky "mama-made."

Creative Pause

A creative pause for me from posting on my Etsy shop all week, now my kids get their moment in the sun!

Martha Graham

I love this quote . . .

There is a vitality, a life-force, an energy, a quickening
That is translated through you into action.
And because there is only one of you in all of time,
This expression is unique.

And if you block it,
It will never exist through any other medium
And be lost.
The world will not have it.

It is not your business to determine how good it is,
Nor how it compares with other expressions.
It is your business to keep it Yours,
Clearly and directly,
To keep the channel open.

You do not even have to believe in yourself
Or your work.
You have to keep open and aware
Directly to the urges that motivate you.
Keep the channel open.

No artist is pleased.
There is no satisfaction whatever anytime.
There is only a queer, divine dissatisfaction,
A blessed unrest that keeps us marching
and makes us more alive than the others.

New summer dress.

Here is a picture of M. in her new summer tank dress that I designed and made for her using a beautiful organic cotton rib knit. I made it with clean lines to keep it simple and the nature of the fabric allows for easy movement (very important for an active toddler!). I am really happy to be able to help round out M.'s summer wardrobe with a few sustainable additions made by Mama.

Another Layer of Organic Love.

I have had this spool of natural organic cotton thread for months now, sitting somewhat inconspicuously amongst my other threads (can you spot it?) For one reason or another, I just never got around to trying it out. I'm not sure if it was the cost, or the lack of colour options (only natural, black and white are available at this time), or the reconfiguring I knew I would have to do with my machine to make it work the way "regular" thread does. Last night I decided to give it a try, and after a little experimenting I am happy to report that that it sews up beautifully.

Sure, it is not as slick or shiny as its polyester or "regular" cotton counterparts (slick and shiny are over-rated anyhow). What is does have is a natural, understated look with a nice weighty feel about it that I am loving already. And best of all it is made in the US from certified organic cotton and developed in compliance with the new Global Organic Textile Standards.

I do need to do a little more experimenting, but I would say that with perhaps very minor exception, I should be able to integrate this thread into the vast majority of my work.

POSTNOTE: After much, MUCH more experimenting, I have come to the conclusion that this thread WORKS GREAT when cotton thread is called for (with non-stretch stitches on mostly woven fabrics), but does NOT WORK so well with the majority of knits and stretch stitches I use - it is simply too heavy. I am not giving up on this thread, though and absolutely love it in the applications that have worked, and will use it with wovens in the future as I expand!

Graceland

Yesterday I took M. and her brother to a local walking trail and pond to feed the swans. I brought along the new camera for a test run and to get a snap of the first of the summer outfits I have been working on for M. I made this jumper using one of my absolute favourite organic cotton prints by Harmony Art called "Graceland." This is the first real outfit I have sewn for her and I have to say that I am quite pleased!

The Insectarium

On Thursday it was overcast and threatening rain, so it seemed like a good day to head to the insectarium. B. had been asking for a while. The butterfly pavilion and fish pond were quite beautiful. Besides butterflies, we also saw honeybees, tarantulas, grasshoppers, cockroaches (I know!), walking sticks, a leaf bug, beetles, centipedes and more. I am careful not to share any sense of "ew" when B. asks me about the critters he discovers (whether at the insectarium or in the back yard). He truly thinks they are all fascinating. He picks a worm up off the ground just as someone would pick a puppy up to admire it. I hope he always has this sense of awe about his world.

The Beach

It was perfect beach weather today, sunny and mid 20's with a nice breeze. So after our "picnic lunch" on the patio we packed up and headed out, the whole family. I think this was the first time we brought M. to the beach. As a baby she would put everything in her mouth, so an afternoon of trying to keep her from eating sand probably didn't seem that appealing last summer.

M. absolutely loved it, as did her brother. "Bath!" she would say as she waded out into the cool water. As B. played with his tractor and made "sand art," M. would walk along the shoreline, exploring and picking up leaves and rocks as she went. "Cookie!" she said once, when she picked up a chunky rock, and then proceded to put it to her mouth. "No, M! Not a cookie, a rock! Yuck!" I told her.

"Rock," she mused as she studied her find a little closer. "Hello, Rock!" she cheerily replied, and then chucked it into the water.

M. greets all kinds of inanimate objects this way, it is quite funny to me. "What's that?" she says, when she points to something in a book or a magazine. "That's a dinosaur, M." "Hello, dino-house!" she replies, as if to say, "Welcome to my world!"

Move over, Herb!

Okay, yesterday the choice became glaringly obvious when Daddy came down over the stairs with little M. dressed for the day in this pattern combo. Looking at this pattern combo on screen now, lit the way it is, it almost looks kind of pretty in a bold, devil-may-care kind of way. Granted I am all for thinking outside of the box when it comes to typical pretty clothes for little girls, but this number looked a little too Herb Tarlek for my liking.
So needless to say I will be turning my attention for the next little while to working on little M.'s wardrobe. Here is a sneak peak of an appliqué that I sewed for her last night on a brown organic tee using some of my organic fabric stash.
I hope to soon have one posted like this in my shop (just waiting on the new camera and the right opportunity!)

Cosmetic Pesticides - Let's ban 'em!

Some days I feel a little more "eco-geek" than "eco-chic", but I think the times they are a changing! Today I just read something in our local paper that got me all revved up. A St. John's teacher has started an advocacy and lobby group for the ban of cosmetic pesticides in Newfoundland and Labrador, saying it's not just the environment that's at stake - it's the children. This is an issue I feel quite strongly about, and have in fact written our provincial government on, but of course with most issues strength comes in numbers. I am so glad that someone is spearheading this issue. The teacher, Jennifer Scurlock is collecting e-mail addresses, and is hoping to hold a meeting of all those interested in the near future. If any other residents of our fair province would like to join Scurlock's lobby group, you can do so by e-mailing her at nl_ban_group@yahoo.ca. Pass it on! I am going to go e-mail her right now! Woo hoo, Jennifer!

If you live elsewhere in Canada and want to take action in your province - Ontario and Quebec are already leading the way - click on the following link: http://www.davidsuzuki.org/NatureChallenge/GardenContest/Take_Action.asp

Where to begin.

I have always loved this time of year, when the whole summer is before you, filled with possibility. The lilacs are in bloom, the garden is filled with flowers, and the kids spend much of their playtime outside. "Swing, swing!" little M. insists every time we step outside the door.
I am hoping this summer will be a productive one for me creatively. I have got a backlog of projects that need to be photographed and posted on my Etsy site. I have a few more ideas I would like to see come to fruition, and I also want to focus a little more on making some things for my own two little ones. I am not sure in what order all of this will happen in, but as a friend of mine back in Labrador City would often say, "All in good time."