LOOKING TO THE EAST

Vibrant sunrises cast a glow on the cold lands. Cold brings out new colors as the frost changes the essence of plant life. "Red Sunset" is a painting on fabric created with multiple layers of transparent washes. It is from my text "Kitchen Table Magic - Vol. 1., Dying, Painting and Overdying." Available for now in places where I teach.

November brought the mists back when the rains came. Patches of sunlight on the mountainsides revealed soft greys mixed with pale burnished golds - the color of a mountain lynx, if you have ever been fortunate enough to see such a beautiful and elusive creature. It is written the Divine Sparks are hidden everywhere.....

and perhaps the first place to look is your own inner resources and hidden glades.

A COLORFUL TRADITION

Part of this year's offering from
the abundant garden is the sunflower.
Beauty in color & with a head full
of seeds for birds and men. Bees
love this flower which loves the sun.
The sunflower has been part of the
gardens at the Folk School for
a time so long as to be always included-
like greens and red, ripe tomatoes.
The quilting, piecing and sewing for
this year's festival banner was done by
my friend, Nancy Hinds of Louisana.
Featuring a center panel batik with
hand stamping along the pieced borders. See this in the community room also known as the dance hall,
at the Folk School.
May your Fall season be golden with the sights of traditonal colors and the joy of abundant harvests from both earth based and psychic gardens.

KITCHEN TABLE MAGIC

Summer of Dreams, Summer of great bounty! Gardens in mountain country this season have been lush with cukes, tomatoes, new squash & even russion kale. A garden turns into a jungle of all stages of ripening and that's the bounty side of the story. In the midst of being lost in time there is plenty for drifting, dreaming and enjoying being in the wind. Ski season has long been open on Lake Chatuge and is now winding down. The water has been so still at times in the late afternoons that you can fly through the clouds with a dazzling rainbow spray!
My first textile design book called, Kitchen Table Magic - Vol. 1
is now available. It a guide to earth friendly Painting, Dying and Overdying Techniques on fabric. It's on a CD in 5 chapters with hyper-links, includes 34 images and full instructions in a total of 57 pages. So far, sold in places where I teach. The full set will include 4 Volumes to cover all the various line, printing and stamping processes for image and pattern. The fabric here is a double overdye with salt. One of the fabric techniques explained to give you the magic to explore your own creative ideas!
Summer is a great time to be lazy sometimes - just have fun with it - and that too is part of the creative process ...............
Peace and Lov everybody!!

I R I S

dEAR Iris,
Your velvet splendor makes my heart leap for joy! Your beauty is so fleeting & so tranquil at the same time. It reminds me to take this in and enjoy it NOW...... Becaz when I turn around again - it will have flown.
Original watercolor hand sewn onto printed fabric. Prints available for $35.
See Morning Song In Brasstown, NC for more information.

APRIL'S FLOWERS

The glorys of April fill every sense! The feel of the wind in my hair thrills me, and I'm not even outside - I'm in the house on a windows open day! After the immediate barrenness of Winter, Spring seems like a Dream! Everything wild and cultivated takes on color, texture, sound , and smells - - truly more than the senses can contain! Anywhere you go in the mountains the new green color is heading up the slopes. Flowers of every sort call to the bees to begin the ancient honey making journey. Look carefully at these peach blooms and you will see the 5 pointed star around the center. This is where the precious nectar is gathered; as we too can gather our inner resources from the Divine within.

THE VERY EDGE OF WINTER

Up above freezing at night and with many singing birds we approached and passed the Spring Equinox. Every year I'm so glad I get to experience this again. It was a bitter cold winter and many of the mountain old-timers are saying, "it's the coldest one they can ever remember." All I know for sure is: Spring seems grander every day, in contrast to the rigors of winter. I walk around my yard to see familiar flowers and plants emerging; and a few newcomers here & there. Sometimes things appear dead, even for years, only to mysteriously start to grow. These are the things I often love the best. You see, our lives often do imitate nature....................

FOLLOW YOUR HEART

Living the life of my dreams in the mountains is where my heart leads me. "It's a beauty of a day " and/or there is beauty in every day. Thanks to all the people, places and creations, all my relations, that bring me so much love and joy! "Follow" is a hand-colored silkscreen printed on commercially woven upholstery fabric. Price; $ 175. Others like this available at Morning Song in Brasstown, NC.
Lov & Peace EveryBody > Juli

THE WOODS

It's been said that "revelation is Encounter's purest form."
That's what I thought when I saw poison ivy vines draped with snow as they swirled up this tree. The same thing can be there for years.... so what does it take for us to gain a new viewpoint, to see that which we could not see before? If we pretend that snow represents purity, as in a clean slate, then it's presence on the landscape merely covers all items excepting the singular elements. The details of form and foliage, mental & visual clutter seamlessly blend into one crystalline state. When the world goes white this way, the One form- one Color is pure white, the color of light - which contains all colors. The paradox is: the One contains the All, just as the singular elements form the One.

THE PRESENT SNOW

The snow that came in the night a few days ago, lingered to float on the iceberg winds during the day. It almost looks like I am living in the middle of the beach, surrounded by so much whiteness. However, you know that it is cold when your boots start freezing to the doormat while you're still wearing them! Everything moves slower & seems to take longer in this kind of weather. You can definetly lose your Good Time over it - if you're not careful. So you have a mental choice to make: to focus on the places you can't go in the car (anywhere) & work that can't get done...OR have a Good Time in the beauty of the moment. My friend Marjorie says, "Well, I'v already spent this much money - so I might as well enjoy it."

If Mother Nature showed up as a larger presence in your life today I hope you'll let yourself go to enjoy the blessings brought your way and all the things you can still do. As for me, I won't be dashing through 8 inches of snow - I'll be plodding along "smiling from my head down to my feet!">