shawls/ giant scarves for summer

I got around to photographing four Wave shawls / giant scarves today. I've been meaning to list some new pieces in my Etsy shop for a while, but with moving, juggling many things, and the crappy weather, it didn't happen until today. I've posted four of my shawls /giant scarves in my Etsy shop and I'm really happy with how the photos turned out using our new digs as a backdrop. The peeling paint and fire escape on our back deck work really well to contrast against the colour of the scarf....and as always, the black of my clothing (yes, I am my own model) makes the colour pop.

a measure of time

The sun has finally come out over the past few days and the leaves are loving it. Our backyard landscape is slowly changing as the sky that was previously etched with branches fills up with green. I can't quite believe it's the end of May. I fly to London, England on Thursday with my dear friend Mille for our dear friend Valerie's wedding. Val is from PEI but has been living in the UK for a good while now with her partner Dave and their son Reuben (who just turned 1 year old). This will be the first time I have traveled outside of Canada in almost 11 years, the first time Mille and I have traveled together despite a friendship that spans half our lives, and the first time I've visited Val in her London life. The whole trip is very exciting, and yet very surreal - so many other things have been occupying my mind lately with our move and all the changes that go with that...but adventure awaits and I am thrilled. I've started a list of everything I need to do in London (the Tate Modern, the V & A, the Handweavers Studio and Gallery) while trying to leave plenty of time for things to unfold in a relaxing vacation kind of way.

So, spring brings change, weddings, and my parents' anniversary. On Friday night, Damien and I shared a wonderful meal out with my parents who are celebrating their 30th anniversary this year (May 20th is the date they were married). They are getting ready for a big change in their lives. They just sold their downtown Charlottetown home of 16 years, and bought a house close to PEI's north shore, about 30 minutes outside of town. They will be living the country life and I am so excited for this next chapter in their lives.

the swing of things

The rainy wet weather has continued. I think it's supposed to break later this week, finally. We've been in Charlottetown for over two weeks now, and we've only seen what our new apartment looks like in the morning sunshine ONCE...

Despite the damp, we happily have radiators in our new home, perfect for drying wet clothes and freshly dyed scarves. This is my first batch of scarves woven and dyed in our new place. I no longer have a basement with a big porcelain sink anymore (like in Halifax), so until the weather clears up and I can do my dyeing out on the deck, I have to scrub down our kitchen sink and counter when dyeing time comes around.


On Saturday, Damien and I went out to visit his parents just outside of Charlottetown. His mom Nancy joined us for an epic 8 kilometre walk/hike down on a piece of land called Crown Point that extends behind their house to the shores of the Northumberland Strait. Damp, but so beautiful, especially when we finally arrived at the beach, probably untouched by other people since last summer.

back to work

Over the last few days, I've gotten some warps wound and my loom set up for a small production run of narrow Wave scarves. After a week of settling in to our new home, I've been itching to get into a routine again. And since I still haven't heard about the scheduling of my french exams (the last step in the lengthy application process for that Parks Canada contract I've talked about in previous posts), I'm just proceeding with business as usual. Which means it's time to build up scarf inventory for potential summer shows. Happy in my new studio space, I just wish the sun would shine after days and days of rainy, gray weather.

moved

Hard to believe we've been on PEI for almost a week now. We pulled into Charlottetown with our UHaul last Saturday, exhausted. We pulled out our mattress, slept in our new apartment and then unloaded the truck the next morning with the help of mine and Damien's parents. Since then, each day has blended in with the next as we unpacked and settled in to our new home.

When we first arrived, we were scared that all our stuff wouldn't fit. We had only seen photos of the apartment before and reconfiguring a new space to fit our needs always seems daunting at first. And we have been used to having a basement to store extra stuff at our place in Halifax. But, as we've found a place for everything, it is all coming together and we're feeling pretty excited about our new home. We have a big deck and a lovely backyard and lots of lovely natural light, and we both have studio spaces. I will have to find a home for my giant Cranbrook loom, maybe get in touch with the PEI Weaver's Guild again and see if they will let me set it up in their studio space at an old convent here in downtown Charlottetown.

Living room with big bright bay windows, and door to back deck.

Lovely neighborhood of backyards.

Damien's studio.

Kitchen with lots of cupboard space and high ceilings.

And thanks to the generosity of Damien's parents, we even have a car. I need to practice the clutch and gears, but we have wheels! Life is good.....