I beg you, to have patience with everything unresolved in your heart
+ to try to love the questions themselves
as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very foreign language.
Don’t search for the answers,
which could not be given to you now,
because you would not be able to live them.
And the point is to live everything.
Live the questions now.
Perhaps then, someday far in the future, you will gradually,
without even noticing it,
live your way into the answer.
~Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet

Noticing the shifting light in this space this morning...and feeling grateful. The upper cabinets are gone. The new window is letting in more light. It feels open + spacious + unencumbered. The project is unfinished, but it is good.

My autumn left little time, mental space or energy for much other than pouring myself into work, so I tackled the organization + function of this space little by little. One weekend, I'd maximize the function of the space under the sink. Another weekend, I'd figure out where the dry food items could live. Each improvement, whether big or small, was felt with great appreciation.

​My thoughts about the organization + function of our kitchen began with the decision that this space would only house items that we use...and that we use to make food. This has been the most important piece of this puzzle. 

A few of the projects tackled that are now functioning well:

• A + F + a narrow rolling cart between the stove + fridge :: spots for different types of dry food 
• B :: a drawer for coffee + tea
• C :: a drawer full of jars
• D :: a shelf that fits where the dishwasher (we never used) lived...now our microwave doesn't take up counter space
• E :: the space under the sink now has spots for cleaning supplies, clean + dirty rags, spent batteries + bulbs, compost, recycling + trash 
• G :: a tray for the toaster that keeps crumbs contained + allows the toaster to be taken out of the cupboard easily when needed
• G :: a bin for the coffee press + grinder which allows them to be taken out of the cupboard + slid back in easily every morning
• F + G :: moving a few things that are not used often to the back + corner of the cabinets
• H :: baking sheets + skillet live in the stove drawer
• I :: a place for an 8 foot long shelf that is being made to hold our dishes + jars full of bulk ingredients (can't wait!)

I actually have a few empty drawers + baskets at the moment which feels really good! 

Love,
​Jane

Surf shops seem to have a special way of partnering with artists + makers. Slowly shaping boards into tools with nuance related to both wave + rider can surely enhances a shaper's ability to appreciate makers of other useful objects. Spending hours in the ocean nudges a surfer's a sense of interconnectedness with nature that can heighten sensitivity toward the resources we consume + use. 

Daydream Surf Shop offers handmade items as varied as surfboards, ceramics, clothing, skincare products + pastries. Their line of clothing is designed, sewn + garment dyed in California. Their tees are made from 100% USA-grown cotton that is knitted in Los Angeles. The sweatshirts are made from organic hemp + cotton.​ (More styles of clothing are on offer as well...including some made from deadstock fabrics + some vintage pieces as well!)

Daydream Surf Shop also sells gorgeous towels that are designed in Costa Mesa, California + made in the USA. I'm sure they would work just as well after a shower as on the beach (says this girl who lives nowhere near a beach).  ;) I would absolutely love to visit this little gem of a shop (and cafe!) in Newport Beach, California!

All lovely photos via Daydream Surf Shop.

Love,
​Jane

It's a serious thing
just to be alive
on this fresh morning
in this broken world.
​~Mary Oliver :: Red Bird

Roberta avoids trends when designing Wilder footwear in hopes of increasing longevity of wear. Integrity was a founding value of the brand which Roberta has interpreted as choosing vegetable tanned leather whenever possible, using recycled paper for packaging + producing in limited quantities in an effort to avoid waste. I like that the styles seem to work throughout the spectrum of casual to more dressy...jeans or shorts to dresses. Wilder footwear are made prioritizing safe work conditions + fair wages in Los Angeles + Brazil.

All lovely photos via Wilder.

A little creativity check-in today...a handmade pillow for a charcoal couch. My thought has been that I would cover our couches with white denim slipcovers...and maybe I will one day. Right now, it's feeling right to embrace the dark of our charcoal couch...which sits in our north facing living room...and to double down with some dark pillows. 

I love any opportunity to dip into my little stash of denim + indigo dyed scraps...zero-waste...meditative stitching...wabi-sabi...boro inspired goodness. One down...one to go.

Love,
Jane

What if optimism is actually what's punk rock?
~Ramtin Arablouei 
via this important listen

Seems like every time I dip into the sewing community, there are new independent pattern makers to be found! So exciting! Thought I'd share a few that have caught my eye lately.

How fun to see that the amazingly talented Daisy Braid has written a book! I have so many cheers for all of these talented makers living their dreams + sharing so much goodness with all of us! Lots more independent sewing pattern makers here.

All lovely photos via links.

Love,
​Jane

It has felt really good to put this project together! From dreams + plans to process + completion...these pants have been a joy to create. 

I decided to purchase Anna Allen's Pomona pants pattern even though I've have made many elastic waisted pants patterns over the years. I was attracted to this pattern's (very) high waistline + the minimal volume around the torso. Both of the leg width variations looked just about right to me as well.

Like I mentioned before, I was interested in white pants. I decided to try both of the pants variations of this pattern in white linen. I like the selection of linens at Ewe Fibers + spent a little time looking at various patterns made up in various fabrics on their website. I would have chosen white Cairo linen (which I used for this project) had it been in stock, but decided to try the (lighter weight) Sahara linen. Ewe Fibers offers volume discounts on fabric + also prints PDF patterns! Woohoo! The pattern was printed on one large sheet of paper which cost $8.10. We don't have a printer (so printing PDF patterns costs anyway) + this way there was no time spent tiling all the papers together. Thrilling!

I really like how these pants turned out! The shapes are perfection, and they are so comfortable. The wide leg is not too wide, and the narrower leg is not so narrow that it catches on the calf. I think the Sahara linen would be a really nice weight for warm weather pants that are not white. These white pants will most likely be at-home pants, since they are a bit sheer. The Cairo linen in white might have been a bit less sheer, and I would love to try that at some point. This project has given me a lot of insight into this pattern, the fabric + my preferences! 

Pattern :: Anna Allen's Pomona Pants 
Versions made :: view A + view B
Fabric :: white Sahara linen from Ewe Fabrics
Modifications :: 1 1/2 inch wide elastic (+ corresponding adjustment with the elastic casing) 

Love,
Jane

My spaces feel best when they are simple + functional. I like the idea of a studio with nothing but a big table + chair in it...a big empty space for my creativity to soar...for big ideas + imaginings to take shape. I like the idea of a bedroom with nothing but a big bed + a minimal light fixture in it...a quiet place for rest + restoration. 

I've been focusing on removing the excess + organizing the necessary in my spaces during these first few weeks of the year. In our bedroom, my partner + I have gone through our clothing considering what is + isn't getting worn, letting some things go, packing some things away + reorganizing what remains. Everything that doesn't belong in the bedroom has been removed, and I'm trying to keep it that way.  :)

I'm also focusing on optimizing function, so we've finally chosen two minimal lamps to make relaxing + reading in bed a bit more enjoyable. I want our spaces to give us a sense of calm + rest, to remind us of who we are and who we have the intention of becoming. A little spot inside of our closet is just such a reminder that is making me quietly happy these days. 

I'm currently loving our bedroom as a reflection of what I can truly love about myself: the simple quiet on the surface makes space for the riot of creativity + imagination vibrating inside.

Love,
Jane