Stitch Rabbit

Around Here - It Is Winter.

Around here, it is quiet. The temperature has dropped and we are waking to an icy world that makes me shiver and crawl back under the blankets until the children start thinking about breakfast or I start thinking about coffee...it's always one of the two. The days are slow to start and we like it like that.

Around here there's been a lot of knitting. Once the kids are in bed you can find me curled up in my spot on the couch under a blanket clickity-clacking away. Gabriel is sure that it is the beginning of his sweater. I assure him that it is in fact a toque, and it is for me -  So back away.

Not that there is any shortage of wool around here...this is my Christmas gift from my parents.

(Thanks Mom and Dad!)

 

Around here there has been a slow cleanup of the holidays, finding room for the new, letting go of the old, hanging and re-arranging (it's a small house, any one item can off-shift the whole balance) Our Christmas decorations are down and what winter decorating is left really mirrors all there is left in the depths of winter. Bare branches and pine cones and a little bit of light.

 

Around here there has been something I don't often find the time for...around here there has been time to write. Time to heat the kettle and sit with a cup of tea, time to think about our future and what it might bring. There has been time to write things down, rather than whip them off the top of my head. Some planning, some mapping, some dreaming...in pen.

The kids have been doing some of their own penning as well..

 

And finally, around here, it is hard-pressed to find me not wearing the Christmas gift I got from Frankie and Charlie...my brand new ladies mack jacket, in red. I can't wait to have a barn to head out to in this.

 

 

Holiday Wrap Up!

Coming back from a peaceful and fulfilling holiday....fulfilling in so many ways. I am SO stoked and so thrilled that..

 

I really truly got done what I SWORE I would do this year. And he was very pleased with the arm warmers, I will snap a picture soon of the finished product. And he has already put in a sweater order from the new book I just got (Men's Knits: 20 New Classics by Erica Knight) I will be writing about this book in the future so check back!

I managed to wrap every single gift in fabric bags this year. The amount of paper and ribbons on Christmas morning was none. Zero. Amazing. And the fabric bags looked so pretty underneath the tree!
 



Almost every gift that we gave our children and eachother was handmade. With love. The kids were over the moon when they came flying into the living room Christmas morning to find this waiting for them..

Gabriel made their treehouse with some beautiful birch pieces he got off a friend, and even sculpted them out some forest furniture. I picked up the gnomes at a great new toy store in Vancouver called Dilly Dally.

My sweet talented husband was very busy because he also made me some great shelves and this beauty..I am starting a wall of handmade things people have given me...this piece has inspired the wall.

(I will post some photos of the shelving once it's hung and some of my favorite things have found a home on them.)

The Christmas baby I had been waiting on came at the perfect time as well.. thanks to the careful timing of the mama and baby in waiting...she had her babe on Christmas Day night...I had just put the babies to bed and had stepped out to a friends when I got the call...a beautiful homebirth on Christmas night, you can't ask for better. Her timing was also perfect because I wasn't looking forward to missing my extended family's annual Boxing Day dinner...so I was very pleased to be heading up to Yale the next day...

Oh yes, and I was VERY thrilled for this:

Because who doesn't want to top off all that festivity and holiday fun with fresh powder and freshly waxed snowboard at the mountain?

 

I've had an incredible holiday this year...we came home today from all the fun to a messy house and a dry Christmas tree and happily, the entire family cleaned up, took the tree down, packed away the decorations and cuddled for the rest of the night. We're all feeling ready to begin again...I've got some sewing in mind that I'd like to start on, Gabe has some more time off and is going to do some work on the house  (new flooring!!) and the kids - well they're pretty busy with all their new things. I'm looking forward to the rest of winter, to spend time on the ski hill, to spend time in the studio and spend time with my family...I can't believe in just a few short months there will be seed planting to think about...

 

The Ghosts of Christmas Past

I've been spending a lot of time thinking about the years before, and about how far we've come in these last five Christmases as a family. When we started out we had nothing! We were so poor! Gabriel and I lived in a tiny apartment with bad furniture and no certainty of our future. I remember our first Christmas together with Frankie I went out and clipped a bunch of curly branches and stuck them in a bucket in our living room as our tree. We decorated it with tiny Chinese lanterns Gabe got off a film job. And that was it. No lights, no music, no baking, no decorating. Gabriel and I were about as domesticated as lions, and we spent our first Christmas with Frankie with our extended families.

 

*****

But somewhere in between that winter and next, after the fog of infancy had lifted, we began to grow as a family. We were becoming "us".  We had our own ideas of what holiday celebrating was and the feeling of need to make our own traditions was growing deep inside. We had just moved into a great little apartment on Main, we found ourselves a cute little live tree and made some of our own gifts and our own memories.

 

*****

And then our lives grew again, in so many ways - and we were blessed with a baby on the way. We moved out of the city and into a home where I learned to garden, I started to sew with intentions and began to open up to a much different course in life. One in which home life was our priority. Eating whole foods from our own dirt, making and building as much as we can and consuming as little as we can - these became the benchmarks of our family. Holidays became even more special because we were sewing and building and working away to have a sincere and mindful Christmas.

*****

Last year was a big year for us. It was Charlie's first Christmas and Gabriel asked me to marry him under that tree. We had just moved back into the city so we could be closer to Gabriel's work, and to all our friends. This was a tough time for us, with a brand new baby I wasn't as independent and active as I had grown used to after Frankie. It took me a while to get back into the swing of things, and when I did it went off with a bang. I sewed my wedding, my children's wardrobes, I learned how to knit and something creative and loud burst inside me. It was this year, that I became a very busy rabbit.

 

*****

And now we're here, at this Christmas. We have grown so much in these five years. We've got kids, we've got a house, we both work and create - we've got a lot going on. We started our Christmases without a single decoration for a tree, without lights, without cookies, without traditions and desires. Somehow we've made a lot of special out of nothing. Somehow we've grown from there. Somehow we just keep evolving. I've got my family to thank for my own evolution - without them I don't know. I just don't know. All I do know, it that I am a lucky, lucky woman.

Happy Holidays to everyone, I wish you all peace and love... I might pop in once in a while over the weekend, and you can expect me back in full force (and not so Holiday Emotional) the last week of December.

xoxo,

stitch rabbit

 

Wild In The Streets

What a beautiful evening. We packed the kids up in their mitts and scarves and headed to Commercial Drive for Winter Solstice tonight. I loved every minute of it. Parading down the streets with people holding lanterns and candles, the beautiful sounds of a band of misfits playing in the streets, and the shining eyes of children everywhere. Solstice can be a time of cleansing, a time to celebrate what has past and look froward to what will come. A time for new beginnings. I know that I'm looking forward to letting go of a lot of this years "stuff" and getting closer to where my heart belongs. I'm looking forward to a year of happy handmade work, precious time with my kids and my husband, and surrounding myself with incredible and supportive friends. I'm breathing away the year...putting the memories in my heart and freeing my mind of things that I cannot change.

With a few happy tears in my eyes, what better way to begin again than in a square filled with happy souls howling at the moon to let the light shine in. Happy Solstice Everyone!

 

 

 

On the Eve of Solstice I Wave My White Flag

On the Eve of Solstice holiday making and cheering is in full swing. Gabriel has been busy in the kitchen preparing potluck dishes and Christmas Day meals so the cooking will be minimal later this week. The kids are in bed and I am busy on the couch knitting last minute gift orders of the cowls - my cozy neckwarmers at the Foundation Show have completely sold out! Amazing! It's been a busy week of making and playing here, I've finished off the last of the made gifts and the gift bags, shopped for the others, and even shopped a little for me. (Thanks Baaad Anna's)  Hey, I deserve it. Even though it's essentially for him:

Now that Gabe is finished work until after the holidays I can breathe a sigh of relief. Up until yesterday I was really feeling the pressure of the holidays being all on my shoulders - when he works, he really really works and so any extras like Christmas baking or birthday cakes is usually up to me. Of course, I don't mind - I love the making and sewing and decorating, but it does seem to get to that point every year where I realize that I just won't have the time to make every ornament I've been drooling over on the DIY craft blogs, the baking will go from hoards of cookies to a few select favorites, and once again, I'm not going to have time to construct and sew the men's western shirt I've been attempting to make for "him" year after year after year. Damn, should've started that one in September.

But you have to let go. You have to realize that what you've done is enough, that you've made the holidays special in all the ways you can, that the kids are happy because there's a tree with some things under it and you all have bellies full of food. Nobody's going to notice that you didn't make those adorable little house ornaments this year. They just want you there, happy, stress-free and making the most of these winter memories together. So this is the part where I say - merrily - that I quit. Everything is perfect, just the way it is, no matter what else was left on the list.

Tomorrow is our Solstice. My family will be celebrating the return of the light, carrying our candles and lanterns with other families and friends down our city streets, anticipating another year of greatness, of crops and bounty. Winter still has a way to go, but it will pass before we know it and Spring will have arrived.

 

I better start ordering my seeds.

 

 

 

Giveaway Winner Announced!

Once again, thank you to everyone who participated in Giveaway Day, hosted by Sew Mama Sew, and especially a huge thank you to everyone who visited me, took the time to poke around my blog and leave such lovely comments. To answer a few questions that popped up often:

 

I do not have an Etsy shop. I wish I had an Etsy shop. It's on my list, I'd really like to soon, but for now I mostly make to keep or make to give to the lovelies in my life! This may change so check back!

I DO however, sell those cozy cowls...I make them and sell them locally in Vancouver BC. If you are from somewhere else in the world and want one I can do that to! Email me! Thanks for liking them so much!

The photos of Thena in the cowls were taken by a friend and wonderful photographer, Seann Murphey.

I sew on a vintage Pfaff, it was my mama's and I love it entirely. I know I'm far behind in the sewing machine world (no computerized machines here) and I do drool over them..but the Pfaff is my first love. I think I'll be with it until it breaks my heart and goes off to college. I also have a Baby Lock serger on the side, fast and dangerous.

 

Now without further ado, the winner of the Stitch Rabbit Giveaway Day is Sadie Fox Metter! Congratulations Sadie! Thank you everyone for entering to win, and come back and see me soon!

 

 

 

 

 

 

On A Roll and On The Edge

*if you are looking for my Giveaway Day post, simply scroll down to the post below or click here. You still have until 5:00pm (pacific time) December 17th to leave your comment for a chance to win!*

Thank goodness we spread things out a little. Christmas isn't coming in one big bang for us this year. We're spreading out the goodness and cheer over a couple of weeks, with dinners and Solstice and Christmas Day and topping it off with a night of The Nutcracker with four generations of women. So the To Do list doesn't have one deadline. It has many, many forgiving ones. And there is a lot of time to just be together. Good thing. Because I think I'm on the edge, I'm getting a cold and I think it's time to slow it down a little...

I finished off Frankie's Sleepover Pals (instead of lace around their necks I knit them some cozy little cowls and scarves of their very own)! More yarn has come off the sticks! And Charlie's horse-stenciled bean bags are in the works (thanks Footie)

With a sweet pile gifts for the people I love starting to add up, I started wondering how I was going to wrap it all. We've run out of the gigantic roll of brown paper the kids have painted on, which made lovely wrapping, but I'm not interested in any other paper wrapping - I'd much rather use something reusable! I was considering wrapping gifts in scarves and hankerchiefs when much to my pleasure and happiness, Soule Mama herself (one of my favorite blogging mamas) posted about her fabric gift bags today. I've considered them before, but never gotten into it, and her post has convinced me. And so The list has grown longer. I have fabric gift bags to make. They're pretty darn cute.

 

And finally, I really shouldn't be showing you this because I REALLY REALLY want to win this giveaway..but I'm going to blog about one of my favorite bloggers. Mummysam (Samantha Cotterill) is awesome and her book Fanciful Felties is absolutely adorable and totally unique and I am saving my pennies for it or hoping for it under the tree or PRAYING that I win her giveaway...check her out. She's amazing and her fabric makes me want to squeal a little. Okay a lot.

Hope you're all gearing up (or down) for the holidays, spending time with the ones you love and living in peace. In just a few more days my hubby will be done work for a few weeks and we will be hunkering down to eat, drink and be merry.

 

So Much Gratitude.

 

*if you are looking for my Giveaway Day post, simply scroll down to the post below or click here. You still have until 5:00pm (pacific time) December 17th to leave your comment for a chance to win!*

 

I am so completely overwhelmed by the blog love I have received in the past day. I don't normally receive such high volume traffic and it thrills me that there are new eyes and new friends seeing me, reading my posts and posting such lovely comments themselves. Thank you - THANK YOU for all the kind words...you really know how to make a girl blush. I've also had the chance to browse those massive giveaway lists on Sew Mama Sew and have seen some beautiful blogs I may have never had the chance to discover otherwise. It really gives your inspiration some fire to see what other people are doing with their crafty selves.

I got to be a productive little rabbit today with the finishing of the many projects I've had strewn about the house...oh the holidays. I got some knitted lovelies off the needles and got to run some fabric through the sewing machine.

I even managed to get a little bit more done on Frankie's Sleepover Pals tonight...they've been a long time coming, partly because they look so cute peeking out of the basket they've been sitting in.

 

With most of my projects in their finishing stages, I came across this really cool stencil I thrifted awhile back and thought "Why not? Why not start a new project? How about a gift! A gift with a deadline!"

I want to use it for something for my little man, Charlie but I'm having trouble deciding on what...I don't really want to do clothes because he's one and a half and he doesn't care...so I thought I could construct some sort of toy that I could use the stencil with...any suggestions?

 

 

 

Giveaway Day Has Arrived!

I know why you're here....you wanna get yer self something good and crafty! Welcome to Giveaway Day hosted by Sew Mama Sew! I hope you enjoy  browsing some (or all) of the beautiful blogs and shops giving away their pretty little somethings! To view the masterlists of all the participants just click on the Giveaway Day button in my sidebar.

If you have never been here before then Welcome! Stitch Rabbit is the blog of one busy mama with two kids and not enough time to sew. I make a lot of crafty stuff, post often and write about children, fabric choices, sewing and love. Here at Stitch Rabbit you have the chance to win one lovely cozy hand knit cowl made with love, by me. All you have to do is leave your comment at the end of this post and you're in it to win it! I will be picking the winner at random by 5:00 PM (pacific time) on December 17th and I will ship internationally.

Below are some pictures of just a few of the knitted cozies that I make and sell, modelled by the lovely Thena. If you would like to hear more from me then remember to subscribe to my blog! Good luck everyone!

 

Giveaway Day with Sew Mama Sew!

I'm pleased and proud to take part in Giveaway Day hosted by Sew Mama Sew starting on Monday December 13th!

On Giveaway Day everyone with a shop or blog can give something away. Sew Mama Sew creates a masterlist of all the crafty people participating on their website and leaves the list up for several days to give all of you readers time to browse the blogs and sites and enter to win some lovely somethings! So come back tomorrow to see what I am giving away, leave your comment and check out the many other blogs and shops doing the same! Good luck!

The Reason For The Season

It's feeling pretty festive here. I try not to gush too much about the Holidays, I know it makes some of my friends kind of barfy. But I've got to be me. I wanna craft the wreath and craft the ornaments and knit my little heart out all winter long. I'm coming out of the Christmas closet. I even listen to Christmas music. Straight up. I do. But it's vintage Christmas music, so that's cool, right?

We got our tree, Charlie Brown style as per usual. (Always rooting for the underdog) Gabe and I set it up that night while the kids were sleeping. I hung the lights and the two of us sat on the couch with a glass of wine and talked about our life, our growing family and all of the growing traditions that we hold dear to us each year. It was nice, staring off at that big bare tree with just a few pretty lights...I couldn't wait to decorate it with my kids.

But I forgot to close the lid on the tree decoration box. And Frankie gets up before us. She usually shuts the door behind her, so that Charlie doesn't escape from our sleeping bed, but not this morning. I swear, they weren't up for more than ten minutes before us, and the living room was, well....decorated. They pulled out every single ornament, garland and precious tiny Christmas keepsake from that box and draped the entire living room, tree and window sills in their own holiday cheer. Adorable. And chaotic.

Thankfully I wasn't the first adult out of bed and Gabe got the big surprise. You want to know the cutest part? Frankie stood back, looked at all that they had accomplished, and declared:

"We better take all these down before Mama wakes up. She'll want to decorate too."

And they did. And I had the best morning (re)decorating with my very beautiful family.

 

 

Crowns For Kings and Queens

Around here playing dress up is a serious affair. By the time my eyes are peeking out from under the covers most mornings Frankie has already ripped off her pyjamas and has adorned herself in the most luxurious of dresses, capes, bracelets and pearls, fancy gloves and a crown perched on her pretty little messy-haired head. Charlie is right behind her, often showcasing his stunning sunglasses collection or favorite hat (fedora, flyer's cap or my personal favorite, the old lady flower hat).

Dress up, pretend play, imaginative play, whatever you call it, it's an important - I'd say vital part of learning. The kids get to be everyone or anything they want to be. They are so creative with the  personalities they create, the stories they weave into their play, the direction they give eachother and to me to get involved with the story (though not before the first cup of coffee - golden rule.) Some days Frankie spends the entire day in costume, parading around the house, Charlie in tow. I love working away listening to the stories that go along with their pretend play. Amazing.

 

The dress up box has a well-rounded collection of costumes, hats, scarves, jewelry, animal ears and capes. But the hit, the staple in most dress up is the dress up crown. They love them. The first one I made was for Frankie for her birthday a few years ago. I've made a few more since then, all from felt, and all of them have lasted almost daily play. And they make great gifts for the special little children in your life. I've made a few for some special children in our life, to be mailed away tomorrow...

 

Sunday Afternoon at Got Craft?

What a great Sunday. Woke up late, cuddled on the couch with the kids and a cappuccino, and then the whole family got bundled up and headed to Commercial Drive for the GotCraft? Fair. Love this show. Saw a lot of great vendors, really well-made product and came away with some inspiration in my pocket.

Frankie toured the tables with me and picked up some free swag. She was pretty stoked. Perfect Sunday.

 

Here is a peek at some of the many amazing tables I got to browse:

 

Miranda McMurray of Hudsonny makes adorable things. Her pincushions were so cure and I love LOVE the wood grain fabric she used for her gnomes. Apparently it's a hard find. The search is on.

 

Shima Itabashi of Him Creations makes adorable felted everything. I loved her penguins!

 

Banoo's table was awesome. Her stuff is really lovely and she has great fabric choices for her wallets.

 

Banoo's neighboor had some really great stuff too, Rosewood N' Rook. Her drawings on wooden boxes are what caught my eye.

 

Aja Billas' work is ceramics, something I know nothing about, except that I like it. Her stuff is very clean looking, and she has really interesting shapes in her collection. Plus her kid is super cute ;) Hi Aja!

 

And of course, Spool of Thread was their doing their usual crafty business. Today's project was pinwheels. All materials provided, just sit down and craft your little heart out. Love their shop.

 

Great show, but I have to say, the best part was having my daughter sidekick-it with me. She's really growing up. I'm not chasing her down the aisles, telling her not to touch or dishing out the mega snacks just to get her through it. She's really interested in what other people are doing, what other people are making. Plus she was extra good in the anticipation of hot chocolate, cappuccinos and raspberry bars afterwards.

 

 

Mama Needs A Night Out

You know I spend most of my nights home with my kids, the hours at night for knitting and stitching.
And I love it. I really do.
But once apon a time I was a staple on the dance floor. And I miss this part of me. It doesn't get to come out as often as I wish.
But tonight I am me, before my kids. I am iPod, skytrain, good show, good friends. Alone in the city. I like it. Just me.

These Are a Few of My Favorite Things...

I though I'd share with you what has been happening around our house the past few days. With rain, rain and more rain and not a snowflake in sight it isn't hard to convince me we need to stay indoors and craft and play all day long. Whenever there is a dry moment I chase the kids outside into the cold, but there hasn't been a lot of dry out there. No body's complaining though, with all the glue and sparkles, snacks and winter treats in the warm cozy house, we're making all the winter fun you can have.

 

I made this wreath with Frankie. I'm actually really surprised at how much she was able to do. We wrapped a wire wreath frame in burlap (in hindsight, a foam wreath would've looked fuller, but I have issues with buying styrofoam) The burlap was cut in strips approximately four inches wide. Then we wrapped scrap plaid shirt remnants that I had rolled into a ball meant for a tiny rag rug (that will happen one day, I swear) Anyways, the strips came in super handy today so we wrapped the wreath in that. 

The fabric flowers were the most time consuming part, and I suffered some glue gun fingers along the way so, be careful, okay guys? I grabbed the flower idea from this tutorial here and made a few with the burlap and a few with an upholstery fabric scrap I have kicking around. GLued the flowers and some pine cones to the wreath, wanted a little something more and came up with the framed words hanging in the middle. The frames were left over from our wedding invitations but you could make your own or have none at all. You could also string a line from one side to the other in the middle of the wreath and tiny clothespin your words to it. I've seen that a few times and it looks super cute.

Plus this is what I wish for every year, all year long, for all of us, everywhere.

 

I'd like to make a more outdoorsy wreath for our front door - any suggestions? I'd like to go more nature-themed...