What's New Archive: October 2009

So what does an artist do on her day off? She takes herself on a field trip! One of my hobbies is knitting, and one of my favorite things to do is to scout out new types and colors of yarn. When the ladies of my knitting group suggested a road trip to ThreadBear, a Lansing, MI yarn shop, I was ready to go. These hand-dyed yarns are luscious to feel, and the displays are awesome—just row after row of beautiful colors in a shop the size of my whole house. Just what an artist needs to see to get inspired! There are some unusual color combinations—ones I might want to try in a painting some time!

The weekend before that my husband and I went to an open house at Sundown Alpaca Ranch near Onaway, MI. These little guys have so much character—just look at the fancy hairdo! The fur on his body had been sheared not too long ago, and will soon be spun into yarn that will make someone a warm winter sweater. The natural colors of alpaca yarns are a strong contrast to the brightly-dyed yarns at your local yarn shop. I like both kinds, and look forward to knitting with them on those chilly evenings that will soon come.

Field trips like these are just what we all need every once in a while to see something different, or to see something we see often in a new way. And now it’s back to work for me: more small paintings and a commissioned house portrait—a log cabin on Lake Huron.

October 5, 2009

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