FOR MMH

My sister is one of my best friends. She's good at a lot of things I'm not - she's organized, she's patient, she stays calm under pressure, she can get things done. I think she's confident and I know she's super talented with her hands, thoughtful in her decisions and supreme in her ability to nurture and help things to grow. She takes care of others and tells it like it is. She sees things other people don't. She's smart and kind, critical and clever and I love her.

Up until last year we wrote a blog together, Persuasion, which I constantly miss working on. It was just such a nice way to connect, to see what each other were up to. Maybe someday we will be able to work on it together again.

And yesterday was her birthday, happy birthday Mary, so I sent her out two things in the post.

I made her a special version of the Eshe top, my favourite piece from the Spring collection & the one I wear the most. I love it in this black and white printed silk I bought in New York last February and hope it will feel breezy and lovely against her skin through temperate Vancouver summers.

Second, I made her a necklace out of delicate curb chain which glints gold and black in the light.

Happy birthday MMH, you are beloved.

STARRY HEAVENS

The hand-dyed and stitched star chart my sister made me for christmas. I finally had a chance to put it up in the studio this week, it sits with my other treasures above my cutting table. Can you find Ursa Minor?

WEEKENDING

My weekend started with this delightful little package which arrived Friday afternoon from sweet Dara of H E R E W I T H M E. An unexpected treat, it contained a beautiful pair of copper chain and glass bead drop earrings. So pretty, so appreciated, a lovely sort of pick-me up on a cloudy sort of afternoon.

Saturday I bought a new (old) glass juicer at the St. Michel Flea Market because I've needed one for so long and $3 can't be beat. It reflects like a jewel in the sunshine. I'm going to make something with limes this week, maybe listen to some calypso. King Sparrow, as it happens, also can't be beat.

Sunday Morning R made pancakes, his particular specialty, and I ate them between bouts of receipt tallying for taxes. Something I never knew before moving to Quebec? Maple syrup is cheap out here dudes! We buy one of these 540ml tins from our local market every couple weeks for $7, no biggie. Each tin is even labeled with the name of the sugarbush where it was tapped so you can see exactly where your syrup comes from. I will never pay exorbitant prices for maple products ever again because it turns out MAPLE SYRUP DOES GROW ON TREES.

Pancake goggles? WHY NOT!

SAGE CIRCLES

I'm the kindof person who takes forever to finish a project, and usually it's just the very last step in the process that trips me up. I'm that girl who buys all the materials to make jam but somehow never gets around to purchasing the jars. I'll cut plant clippings for friends that sit in cups of water for years awaiting soil. I'll sew an entire shirt for myself and fail to add buttonholes for 6 months. I have two quilt projects on the go which likely won't see completion soon, unless I'm suddenly bedridden for the next half-year. I am bad, OK?

I am also very bad at getting-it-together in a timely fashion to take, edit & post photos of items I've made. Ditto for adding new items to my shop. And though I'm trying to change this, little by little, taking the final step and making things available to the public is not one of my personal strengths.

Today, though, I am breaking the cycle and adding a new dress to my shop. The result of work I did months ago, my hand-dyed, tie front dress is now up on Etsy. This piece is made from a lovely woven linen/rayon blend and hand tie-dyed a beautiful minty-sage green. It is available in sizes S, M & L, just one of each. For more information visit *here*, and for more photos see below.

Also, thanks for all your lovely comments about the new line, as well as some nice shout-outs on the interwebs: Display Magazine & Anja. xoxo, it's much appreciated.

OLD FRIENDS

Hey, remember this guy? He sat in my shop for a grand total of 30 hours before going on a little adventure and only now is he back in my hands and happily lounging in Etsy-land.

This is what he looks like when I wear him, happily resting on my shoulder as we get to know one another again. See how I'm growing out my hair and it looks like there's a rug on the back of my neck? Well, that's fun too.

Here's what he looks like from the front and the back, just a nice little bag with a good attitude and a sense of purpose, what a fella.

Do you want him for your own? Send me an email, maybe I'll give you a 20% discount code, maybe I'm just feeling generous today. Maybe you need a good, reliable bag in your life. Maybe this is the one for you, I dunno, but *here's* where to find him just in case.

PRETTY PRETTY

Beautiful brass and copper jewellery by talented artist & friend Dara Humniski. I own and adore one of her brass band necklaces and am complimented whenever I wear it. My sister also has a pair of her drop earrings, which I covet.

For more photos, as well as images of her intricate, evocative drawings, head to her website, www.darahumniski.com. Jewellery is available in her online shop, H E R E W I T H M E.

A WEALTH OF NEWS

First things first: a happy, delicious, delightful, joyous and fun-filled new year to all. My resolution is to buy more nice things for myself - sounds counter intuitive, right? To me it makes perfect sense though: I know I'm gonna want things over the coming year, I know I'm gonna need things, and I'm working with limited funds so it's important to make every purchase count. I want to fill my life with beautiful items to eat, wear, furnish, embellish and share; I want to love every new thing that comes into my life and I want no waste. This means no cheap shoes, crummy undies, gas station wine, ikea quick-fixes or toss-away novels. I don't mean that everything must be expensive & hard to attain, it just has to be right, beloved and/or necessary. And it means I have to treat myself sometimes too, something miserly me has never been good at.

Second, I FINALLY have a website set up for Ursa Minor. One long, identity-less, internet-deprived year later *ursaminorstudio.com* is now alive and active for your visiting pleasure. It's just a simple homebase for information about the line, contact details, stockists and the first place you'll be able to find images & info about current/upcoming collections. Yes! Collections! I actually design full collections of clothing! Which brings me to point three....

Spring! I've been taunting you with these images for a while now I know, always saying I'm going to post them and never following through. I guess I just needed everything else to come together before going ahead and putting myself out there for all to see. Well it's finally time, I've no more excuses, and images of Ursa Minor Spring 2012 can be found on the new website under 'collections'. Just click left or right on the images to scroll backwards or forwards through the pieces. For those in the know, this is my first collection since leaving my former baby, Nokomis, two and a half years ago. It feels like big deal for me, though not at the same time, just a natural progression that took longer than expected.

Minna Dress

Hana Dress

Sachi Dress

Eshe Blouse, Ayo Skirt

Mari Tank, Suze Pants

Vega Blazer

I was lucky to work with some great ladies on the photoshoot. My friend Francesa Tallone photographed the collection, working entirely in film. Funny and surprising how nerve-racking film photography has become (for me) in this age of digital images, but Francesca is a total pro and perfectly achieved that lazy, lost-summer feel I craved for the shoot. Check out her website, www.patternclash.com, to see more of her amazing work - I think 'The New Angular' is my current favourite, though I'm biased and like them all. I also had some amazing models to help me out, gorgeous clever girls who gave up a whole summer afternoon to make me look good. I owe a huge thank-you to Danielle St Amour and Deragh Campbell, super talented ladies involved in amazing projects such as this, and this. Thank you, thank you, I still owe you.

And though this month sees me guts-deep in sewing, I should have all these pieces in my *new online shop* by mid-February. Etsy lovers, not to fear - I will continue to sell made-to-order items on Etsy for the foreseeable future.

Thanks for sharing with me, see you soon.

NEW YEAR

New thoughts, new goals, new life & new posts to come. So many things to think about and do.