After the Baltimore show and after the alterations and work extras from the show I was beyond pleased to find that I had the luxury of a little break. I had what people dream of, a bit of time to follow my bliss.
Don’t get me wrong, I love making things with beautiful kimono silk. I mean,… How could I not?
But I had a pile of projects that I’d been wanting to get to for years. Simple things, tee-shirts for me, pants, a fuzzy warm sweater, a warm winter coat I made that I have loved and worn until finally the lining gave out. That coat had been hanging in my studio since forever waiting until I had the time to put in new lining. At last I had it! The luxury of time. Such a gift.
New tee-shirts and knit pants. Just for wearing around, nothing fancy.
By the way, the black pants, I wanted a new pair. My first thought, head off to the fabric store. Luckily, in a deep recess of my mind, I had this thought, ‘how about first checking my stash, maybe I already have some black fabric….’
And you know what? I did. Quite a bit.
So,… my advice? Check your stash, you just might already have it.
Besides sewing long neglected projects, I’ve also had time for other adventures. Like a visit to the beautiful Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge, a few miles north of Portland.
The trail starts on a walkway over the train tracks that run next to the refuge,
and follows down into the conserved oak woodlands and wetland habitats.
It’s so beautiful and peaceful, you really feel as though you’ve stepped back in time.
A favorite haunt of birders, this place if full of birds. While walking on the paths, other visitors would pause and ask, ‘what birds have you seen?’
The refuge was established in 1965 to provide a habitat for wildlife, particularly wintering waterfowl. In 2019, in an effort to encourage the native oak trees, 600 douglas fir trees were cut down. For hundreds of years, the native people used fire to open up the forest and encourage the camas plants, a staple of their diet. The oak trees, because of their deep roots, were able to survive the fires and thrived. A bonus, the trees provided acorns, another part of the native peoples diet. When the first europeans arrived, this landscape was open with giant oak trees dominating the land. In recent times and with modern fire suppression policies, douglas firs and other non-native plants slowly grew in and crowded out the oaks. By removing the firs the area was returned to its previous state. For more about this check out the story here.
The stumps are scattered through out the refuge. Now open to sun and without the competition, the thin oaks behind will flourish and grow.
The path winds through some of the older trees, but still not as big as they can get.
It will take a while, decades, but soon they will grow huge, like this survivor, guessed to be about 400 years old.
To give you an idea of how big they can get, my friend stands next to the tree. It looks like she’s behind, but in fact she’s right next to the tree. It’s that big.
So beautiful.
This was a few weeks ago and spring was just getting started here.
Wild currents.
The Osoberry,
and Oregon Grape.
Meanwhile, back here in Portland, spring is here and is in full blast.
My neighbor’s cherry tree from out my window.
No need to go further than my backyard!
Gorgeous!
Just a few feet from my front door, tree peonies, just about to explode.
This one blossom has opened to its full glory.
And what about these beauties! Amazing! From a small, local nursery.
I mean….
Lots of tough stuff going on out in the world, but mother nature is doing her best to keep me distracted and focused on the beauty right here.
Not to mention all my amazingly gorgeous kimono silks, patiently waiting for me to get back at it.
This one below is next up in the queue.
Stay tuned.
I am sending all my wishes for a very happy and beautiful Spring to you and yours.
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