“Calliope’s Castle”

January 27, 2013July 12, 2014thegreensheep 13 Comments

Last May I received an email that started a surprising and rewarding venture toward a blanket like I’d not made before. It opened like this:

“Hi, Joanie – I have an 8-year-old daughter and over the years she has accumulated tons of beautiful wool and cashmere sweaters. When she was four I asked Caroline Unruh to make a patched blanket out of my daughter’s old sweaters and the result was spectacular. I can’t seem to find Caroline now, but I found you! The next batch of outgrown sweaters is ready. Is this something you do? “

Since, as I wrote previously, Caroline Unruh unknowingly gave me my start in sewing with wool, I considered this a huge honor! But there was that little question in the back of my mind: How does such a young girl end up with multiple cashmere sweaters?? I was soon to find out…

The client and I began an email exchange followed up by a phone call, and I learned that this little girl is so fortunate as to have a New York fashion executive for her momma! Ah, the pieces fell into place. I soon received the client’s box. This is corny, but I felt like a youngster on Christmas morning as I opened it. I had never seen so many beautiful sweaters all in one place.

Since I had several custom orders already lined up, I had to put this project on hold for a bit. But my mind was already at work on the puzzle before me: What to do with an entire rainbow of colors? I’m accustomed to working with 1 or 2 centerpiece sweaters provided by a client, but this was completely new territory.

One afternoon as I once again pulled the sweaters from their box and considered how to incorporate as many as possible, I realized that their colors reminded me of the illustrations in a book of poems I read to my daughters when they were little. I got out the book. I got out a couple other children’s books as well for inspiration.

And when I got to this book of Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairy Tales, illustrated by the wonderfully talented Lisbeth Zwerger, the ideas started triggering like explosions in a high-scoring game of Bejeweled. Especially when I saw the page below. For I recalled that Calliope, the young owner of the sweaters, enjoys making things by hand (a girl after my occupational-therapist heart!). And one of those things is CASTLES.

Yes! A fruitful idea! I don’t know if Calliope’s parents chose her name for the Greek muse, but I did feel grateful that some muse had finally tapped me on the shoulder :).

As I worked on the blanket, I frequently recalled my own daughters’ imaginary worlds when they were young — “I wish I could live in the Berenstain Bears’ treehouse!” “Mom, will you build blocks with me? Let’s make a house with a zoo next door.” “I want to live in England someday!” Oh, wait. That’s what Daughter #2 says now.

Guided by a clear idea, I plowed ahead, working out what I saw in my head. It meant I had to devise some new ways of putting the wool pieces together to create the hills and the clouds. Thankfully, I hadn’t promised the completion of the blanket until fall.

I did make the deadline, although admitting to that suggests a certain amount of lameness, doesn’t it, since I didn’t post it until now. Ah, well.

I added Calliope’s initials to the castle doors just before sending the blanket to its new home. For the font, I adapted PR Celtic Narrow by Peter Rempel — appropriate for a castle, I think!

Calliope, I hope you continue to use your imagination for years and years, all through your life. It’s a precious gift we humans have, one we should never outgrow!

“Calliope’s Castle” (86″ x 95″, for a queen bed)

[This is a custom-ordered blanket.]

“Sealed with a Kiss”

December 21, 2012July 12, 2014thegreensheep 3 Comments

When I was a little girl, one of my favorite places to visit was the stationery store. The stationer’s was a precursor of today’s big-box office supply store, but with a much narrower — and more charming! — set of offerings.

One of the best parts was the near-complete lack of plastic packaging for all the delightful gadgets in the store. That meant if I were careful, I could handle them. Bliss.

I hovered over the pencils, pens, notepads, and the stationery. Those papers enchanted me. Printed or embossed, elegant or sweet, they looked fresh and expectant, ready to be filled with a message and mailed to a lucky someone.

I still love the physicality of this. Email is immediate and convenient. But a handwritten letter, packaged up in a sealed envelope, brings so much more of the sender along with it. Discovering it in the mailbox is like being caught off-guard by a surprise party. Opening it is like opening a gift. Is this old-fashioned now?

Natalie (for whom this blanket was made) is a member of my extended family. And in my family there are several people who maintain this gratifying habit of writing letters — I can count them across three generations. Natalie is wonderful in many ways. Yet when this blanket was ordered, what did I think of first? Her gentle notes and letters, so representative of her.

The order was for a throw of pinks and pale oranges, so that’s where I started. And, as usually happens when I make these blankets, an unforeseen opportunity presented itself — this time, the possibility of a postage stamp :).

What could be more fitting?

With much love for you, Natalie, and with gratefulness for the way that you are ♥ — here is “Sealed with a Kiss.”

“Sealed with a Kiss” (57″ x 76″)

This is a custom-made blanket.

“Butterflies for Momma”

November 24, 2012July 18, 2014thegreensheep 3 Comments

As promised, here is the companion to the blanket I posted yesterday. (Read more about “Peace” here.) These blankets are Christmas gifts for a pair of sisters from a third sister, Maureen. Don’t tell! These were ordered and designed in remembrance of their mom.

So finally, here is “Butterflies for Momma” :

The assignment: two different blankets for two different sisters but each meaningful in its own right. I was put to the test again! But as always happens, the sweaters and the colors and the wool itself all guided me with their ever-surprising capability to inspire.

For this blanket, Maureen had told me that butterflies remind this particular sister of her mother’s presence. And then Maureen said, “You can make it colorful!” Was this the kind of colorful she had in mind? I’m not sure! But I do believe it’s full of color and light and tranquility too. Here the border hints of a trellis or an arbor, a pleasant place from which to watch these delightful flitting creatures.

My hope and prayer is that both of these blankets can bring wonderful thoughts of a wonderful woman to mind for two very special sisters.

“Butterflies for Momma” (60″ x 76″)

(This blanket is not available for sale.)

“Peace”

November 23, 2012July 18, 2014thegreensheep 3 Comments

I have a sneak peek for you. These two blankets are actually Christmas gifts, not yet in the hands of the recipients. But Maureen, who ordered them for her sisters, feels certain those sisters will never discover them here. On my blog. In this teensy corner of the big blogging world. That’s good; I’d hate to spoil the secret ;)

Both blankets were thoughtfully custom-ordered and designed in honor of the women’s mother, who passed away several years ago. I’ll post one today and the next tomorrow. Let me introduce you to “Peace”:

“Peace” started when Maureen handed me two of her mom’s sweaters: the orange wool and the bold Nordic-looking striped wool. I admit that initially I wasn’t sure what to do with these two dissimilar sweaters. Hmmm…

The tans helped to pull them together. But it was when I added in the blue that I suddenly felt as if I had been transported to a porch at a lake-side cabin — a silent spectator to the wonder of creatures going about their beautiful, mysterious lives. The blanket came together easily after that.

The inset border feels to me like the frame of the porch or possibly of a picture window. This blanket’s mate also has that same “frame” — and its theme, although carried out with a very different sensibility, also depicts some marvels of nature. It’ll be here tomorrow, so please come back for another visit!

“Peace” (60″ x 76″)

(This blanket is not available for sale.)

“The Spruce Tree”

November 2, 2012July 12, 2014thegreensheep 2 Comments

A blanket isn’t really safe in my hands until, well, until it’s out of my hands. Exhibit A:

I created “Asleep in the Meadow“ with a summer sun in the sky. It was light and airy.

As I pulled it out now, with thin autumn light at the windows, I had a completely different vision. I had to follow through. Let me introduce “The Spruce Tree.”

Evergreens have been a frequent backdrop in my life. I grew up in the foothills of the San Bernardino Mountains where we’d go sledding every winter – under the pines.

As a teenage counselor at summer camp, on another California mountain, the butterscotch scent of Jeffrey Pines intoxicated me.

Here in northern Illinois, a stately blue spruce on the corner of our house silently protects us in inclement weather. This blanket is in honor of all these lovely trees.

“The Spruce Tree” ( 54″ x 68″)

This blanket is no longer for sale.

“Pumpkin Patch”

October 30, 2012July 12, 2014thegreensheep 2 Comments

I’ve seen some crazy lovely pumpkins this fall. These sat at the back door of the Wisconsin B&B where Elder Daughter and I stayed on a weekend art studio tour:

The pumpkin in the lower corner looked like it had empty peanut shells stuck all over it. But it didn’t.

And these colorful rows of pumpkins were at an apple orchard my Hub and I stopped at in northern Door County while camping at the end of September:

Gorgeous gourds.

All of these colors inspired my new blanket, “Pumpkin Patch.” (I’ll be bringing it to this weekend’s holiday open house!)

I had this blanket, minus its appliques, along for the college campus modeling session:

This is Younger Daughter, above, studiously observing the boys’ apartment building and, below, meandering in the garden. What are we paying for again?? Just kidding.