Hello Everyone!  We are having a very wet spring up here in Northern California.  Perfect for  hitting the trails amongst the redwood trees and visiting bookstores.   I also have been renovating the house with my husband, sewing quilts,  playing and making things in my atelier with paper and paint, not to mention spending a LOT of time with the kitties.  Let me share some of these winter tales with you.

Painting The Walls

Current state of my atelier

All the walls of our lovely house are covered with panels and wallpaper.  My husband and I have started removing all of those wall coverings.  Then there’s repairing and patching the walls, and finally, priming and painting.  We are currently working on my room.   I have everything set up so I can continue to work without disruption.  I can’t wait to show you around once it’s all done.

Sewing Garden Path Quilt-top

The Garden Path quilt-top is FINISHED!!  I just need to add borders to it and then it will be ready for quilting.  I designed and wrote the patterns for the flower blocks and created the layout.  I am happy to say that it looks exactly as I had envisioned it.

Hitting The Redwood Trails

Please click on the image thumbnails to see the photos –

We were away a lot last year.  My little kitties tend to miss us a lot when we are away.  So this year, I skipped the trip to the redwood forests 300 miles north of us and stayed home.  However, I am lucky to live only an hour away from Muir Woods, which is also a redwood forest.   I had not been there during this time of year before.  

We usually end up hiking anywhere between 5-7 miles.  The trails are moderately challenging with uphill climbs.  They are also full of roots which makes it hard to navigate.  During the February hike, I twisted my left foot pretty badly.  It is better now.  At least, it’s well enough for me to be able to go on another trail hike last Sunday with adequate caution.  With all the rain this year, the creeks are flowing beautifully.   Milkmaids are usually the first wildflowers to bloom in the woods.   Last Sunday I found Trilliums starting to bloom along the lower parts of the trail as well.   It really is magical in the forest.

…and The Bookstore

I also went to the bookstore an inordinate number of times and added on to an already tottering pile of books in the home library.  Barnes and Noble hosts a book drive during the holidays.  We have been participating for over a decade.  Every year, we browse through the children’s section and purchase a stack of new books, which then gets distributed to underprivileged children.  It is a huge part of my winter break.

Playing Music

My husband always gives me a few art supplies for my birthdays.  Along with a book on how to draw swords, I also got a  Chinese flute called Dizi this year.  The flute is made of bamboo, which resonates with a very beautiful sound.

Please click on the image thumbnails to see the photos –

I am very happy to welcome it to my music instrument family.  In case you are wondering, I have never played a flute before.   I mostly play the violin and the piano.  I occasionally tinker with the guitar if a song calls for it.   I am excited about learning how to play a wind instrument.  First of all, I need to get used to making a consistent sound without feeling dizzy!

Bamboo is very prone to cracking, so the flute is bunking with my violin.  The case has a hygrometer in it, so I can monitor the humidity.    Tavish also loves to bunk in there.  Here is a picture of  him sleeping inside my violin case. He not only sleeps but also snores while I play the violin only a couple of feet away from him.   No idea how he does it; the violin at close quarters is very LOUD. 

Making Gifts

I drew this little scene from a very favorite road of ours up north at the Redwood NP.  It is super twisty and narrow, and often a tight fit for cars through pairs of redwood trees on the road.  I used this drawing as a cover for a book that I made for my husband as his birthday gift.  I will save that story for another day.

Designing And Binding Books

 I mix my own adhesive for the binding.  I made so many books that I ran out of  the adhesive that I had made.  I experimented with and improved upon processes as I made these books.   I also painted and block printed new book covers.   I can’t wait to share them with you over the next few weeks.  Some will be available in my shop with new cover art, as well as new binding styles and paper.

The Girl And Her Cat Books

Spending time together

I have been steadily working on the Girl and Her Cat stories.  This girl, by the way, was very happy with her decision to stay home with her kitties.

As much as I love wildflowers, I, for one, is not looking forward to spring as it limits my time outside and fresh air completely due to severe allergies.   So, needless to say winter is a happy time for me and it was a good break.  Today’s post was more of a sampling platter.  I hope to share details over the next few weeks.   Thanks so much, everyone, for staying with me and a hearty welcome to my new visitors.  I hope to continue to bring more inspiration and write posts that make you smile.

Until next time,
-Soma

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