Save the Date...

... because the new and breath-taking UmberDove 2009 Calendar is right around the corner! You can clap your hand or squeal in merriment because that is what I am doing about it. I'm pouring in the work right now, finishing up all twelve watercolored paintings that form the basis for the twelve calendar months of the year.



Want a sneak peak?





Of course these ones are still in progress, but you are looking at the proud, future months of January, July, December and June (and I'm not telling which is which - got to keep some suspense around here!).

The 2009 Calendar will be officially available for purchase Saturday November 15th through my little shop o' wonders, all ready for giving and getting (did I mention Christmas is a really great time to give an UmberDove calendar?).
And stay tuned in for the Calendar Give Away Kick Off Party which will be happening right here, on this blog, Friday, November 14th (you don't even have to bring anything, just show up, read the post for that day, and leave me a comment and a free calendar could be yours! Now don't you wish you had a calendar to mark that on...).

The Trees and I, we dress alike

Of course this is no surprise because inside this fragile human skin, there is a redwood with bones grown from the detritis of the past, blood pumping in crystalline shades of amber sap. The trees woke me this morning, singing the song of November, a swinging tune to the bright snap of the wind. The maple and I hum to the cherry blossom trees, lulling them to sleep with promises of a winter gifts and a brilliant spring to come. They stretch and grunt in the breeze, snuggling into autumn, bedding down before the snow falls.

We will all sleep well under this warm blanket.

Lodi Part II

On Sunday we took a little family outing to Apple Hill, home of everything one could possibly create from the humble apple.



Here is a list of my consumption for the day (I kid you not).
1) Apple Donut
2) Apple Fritter (well only like a 1/4 of one but it still counts)
3) Apple Cider
4) Samples of Apple jelly and apple butter
5) Turkey sandwich (ok, but I had to eat something else!)
6) Jack Russel Apple Ale (yeah, beer made from barley AND apple juice)
7) Apple crisp
8) Apple pie
9) Last but not least, a Winesap apple dipped in peanut butter
10) A second apple donut

The caramel apple I saved for later.



And now here I am, back home in Sunny Seattle (it actually is today), sleeping off my self-induced sugar-coma. Happy Fall, Friends!

In my sudden (and highly typical) gusts of whirling activity I forgot to tell you all that I was leaving town for the bright lights of Lodi, California (in case you don't know Lodi, which you most probably do not, bright lights is a bit of an overstatement. Ok, not even a bit. A huge overstatement. As in NOTHING is open past 7:00pm. Takes some getting used to when you generally hit up late night happy hours after the moon rises). But it is where I did most of my growing up, and the nostalga of flat fields covered in grapevines and the musky scent of live oaks feels as familiar as a well-loved blanket.

I'm sitting here in the cool and quiet of my parents house but wanted to share a few images of what will always be home.

Tangerines, ripening for Christmas.

Yvette, Queen Silky Chicken.

The biggest jumping spider I have ever seen.

Good ol' Saint Frank watching over the animals.


Feral bunnies in the brambles, greeting me on my evening run.

A collection of cans.

I hope you all find a spot of peace this weekend, in the sun, the snow or the sprinkles.
Mine will be here.

Cheerio,
- Umber

I have a Dream

And in that dream every item in my house (save the really mundane stuff like T.P.) will have been created, willingly, by human hands. I want to strip away the unnecessary clutter, the pointless accumulation of "stuff" (what is that anyways? It just appears and steals my air) and keep only the objects that are marked with a fingerprint and continually bring me to grinning. While this does make my kitchen a treacherous place for doing the dishes, I find so much magic in using / wearing / holding objects that forever retain a slice of their creator's energy and love. It reminds me to appreciate the creator and not just the object.


Breakfast (after a rather rocky start to my day) was as pleasing as could be, warming me up from toes to heart, because *almost* everything here (save my massive mug from the unmentionable Buck with a Star first) passed through my fingers in it's creation.

From the left:
1) Cotton napkin silk screened with my "new growth" print.
2) Blue and turquoise patchwork coasters, my first foray into free-hand "quilting."
3) Brown bowl, thrown, fired and glazed with the far-away-but-close-hearted Ville-ette.
4) Brown plate and bright yellow bowl, thrown, carved, fired and glazed with my soul-friend Ti.
5) Slice of bread, Honey Whole Wheat baked last night in my typical late-night-baking-frenzy.
6) Jams, Raspberry (my own, from last week's final berry crop) on one half and Concord Grape on the other from the kitchen at Plume Gables.
7) Wearing my olive green Swallow t-shirt from Mister Wizbang.

I tell you this really just to share my little joys and to encourage everyone (well before Consumer Season 2008 hits) to look around your home, find something you love that bears the print of it's maker, and give thanks for that person today.