I've moved! New blog address.


My new website + blog is emilyneuburger.com.  Please visit me there!

If you have this site bookmarked in a blog reader, you'll want to switch to emilyneuburger.com.

Thanks, and see you in my new space!

xo emily

treasured

Each Wednesday I post about some sort of treasure I found during the past week. It might be thrifted or found on a walk or whispered in my ear or discovered on a dark shelf in the basement. Something. Anything that makes me feel lucky and thankful. It doesn't necessarily have to make its way home with me - it just has to be noticed. The idea is for it to cost very little and feel very big. After all, this isn't about acquiring new things; it is about paying better attention to the world around me.

If you discovered a treasure this week (a new friend, a snow fairy, a fancy dish at the thrift store, a bird's nest) please do share it, as well as any links, in the comments section below.

*****

the sound

 {Monday}
painting and remembering


a f t e r


After the gusty winds and steady rains,
after a long day of popcorn and smoothies and fancy dresses and books,
we put our boots on
and went outside.

 
 
 
 
We feel lucky to have a dry home and electricity.  My heart is with anyone who suffered from the storm -- especially my northern neighbors in Franklin county, Massachusetts and Vermont.

xo e

friday news

{ studio news }

For those of you who read my blog from a reader, you may not have noticed that I did some organizing and tidying up around these parts.   I've added some nifty new tabs at the top, which includes a page on the workshops I'm offering this fall and a selection of easy to find tutorials.


I've also been organizing (and moving) my home studio space.  I'll share pictures in the coming days, but for now I'll give you a glimpse of some drawers in my new craft cupboard. With its endless little pockets of storage, it is making my craft organizing such a breeze. I got it at the thrift store.  I watched the price get lower and lower, and after almost a month of visiting it, we became the proud owners.  I love it so.

I've also added a few new treasured treats to my Etsy shop.  This rare vintage mixing bowl is one my most recent favorites finds.


{ workshop news }

My workshops are filling up nicely, and I'm busy ordering supplies and planning. As I mentioned on my workshop page awhile back,  I'm offering a $10.00 discount to those who register before September 1st.  And, yikes!, there are only five days left in August.

 { other little bits }

Isn't this the cutest little hair accessory sewing project?  
I am deeply in love with this artist's floral collection (via Katy Elliot).
This little burlap pencil bag makes me smile. (via Crafty Crow)

xox e

treasured


This photo was taken as we walked the gravel road at sunset in Newfield, NY.  

When we reached the top of the hill some sort of medium sized animal leaped in front of me and then ran behind the barn.  It kind of squealed/shrieked as it went.  I wasn't looking in its direction when it first made its move, so I didn't see many features.  I feel like it was fox.  Others think coyote.  It was definitely a moment/noise/blur to remember. 

package

I'm back after an unexpected week long blog break.  I hadn't planned on it, but with all of our house organizing, kid play dates, grown-up chatting and whatnot,  the week zipped by with minimal amount of computer time. I am so happy writing here in this space, but it did feel quite nice to have a little quiet time away. 

I'm thinking that this week, I'll share bits and pieces of what my last week had to offer.  First up is this simple little felt square and hemp twine decoration.  I was packing up a box full of Story Stones to send to a customer and decided to use a little 100% wool felt square with some hemp twine as a way to add warmth to the box.  It was a super easy (in my head I just said "wicked easy" because of my NH college days) way to add a little pop to the package.

 

Is everyone trying to cram last minute summer fun into these next few weeks?  We've already been to the town pool twice and we have plans to drive to the coast mid-week.  I'm totally clinging.

oxo
e

p.s. Have you NH folks see this?  It is so spring 2010, I know.  Tom and I kind of like it as much (if not more) than the Jay Z original.  How is that for a geeky confession?

summer stay

These are some photos from our time visiting our dear friends Kel and Joe in New Hampshire.  It was one of the hottest weekends in July, which meant lots of cool dips in the lake down the road, quiet reading in front of the fan, on the spot summery white sangria, and (of course) home brew from the kegerator. 

We ate from the garden with a side of the best oatmeal bread in the entire world.  There was something so perfectly sweet about this particular summer adventure. The combination of the garden and catching up with people we love in days filled with possibility made it a true vacation. We scrapped plans to find a restaurant and picnicked with Indian food at the ocean.  I'm sure these three days will be a big part of what flashes in my mind when I think back to this long, steamy summer.
 b e r r y    b u c k e t s
h a n d    c a r v e d   h o m e    b r e w   t a p s    {cozies knit by Kel}

We left our friends feeling filled and nourished with all good things.

xo e

treasured

Each Wednesday I post about some sort of treasure I found during the past week. It might be thrifted or found on a walk or whispered in my ear or discovered on a dark shelf in the basement. Something. Anything that makes me feel lucky and thankful. It doesn't necessarily have to make its way home with me - it just has to be noticed. The idea is for it to cost very little and feel very big. After all, this isn't about acquiring new things; it is about paying better attention to the world around me.

If you discovered a treasure this week (a new friend, a snow fairy, a fancy dish at the thrift store, a bird's nest) please do share it, as well as any links, in the comments section below.

*****
Our dear friends gave Chick a sweet little plum tree just after she was born.  It sat at their house during our move, and by the end of that autumn, it was barely alive with no leaves on it at all.  I remember sitting on their pavement steps, digging my nail into a branch unveiling a bit of green deep in the center.  In that green core, I saw a bit of hope,  and I was determined to make it healthy again.  For the past five or so years, we've given it compost and mulch and love.  Last year it flowered, but didn't produce fruit, and we were pretty sure it wasn't going to be a fruit bearing tree.  At first,  I was, admittedly, a bit disappointed, and I told the girls that what we have is an ornamental plum tree.  It is enough, though, - I remember thinking - just to have our almost dead tree have its deep green leaves arrive each season.

And, then kapow! This summer, our little friend decided to grow five plump, purple jewels.  They are the juiciest, sweetest snacks imaginable, and we are savoring each one.  These plums make me think about expectations and waiting and unexpected gifts.  It is kind of ridiculous that I was so surprised that our plum tree gave us plums.  Ah hem.   But, I was.  And, I think it is because I had stopped wanting anything from it -- except for what it was.  I had decided that a little green tree was enough for us.

I am reminded to be present in as many moments as possible during our days and to find beauty in what is -- instead of focusing on what could be.  This, I think, makes life's surprise treasures so much sweeter.


 xo e

Hey, you two.

 
Penguin meet Piggy.
Piggy meet Penguin. 
Now, go play.


(a special order Story Stone set)

xo e

treasured

Each Wednesday I post about some sort of treasure I found during the past week. It might be thrifted or found on a walk or whispered in my ear or discovered on a dark shelf in the basement. Something. Anything that makes me feel lucky and thankful. It doesn't necessarily have to make its way home with me - it just has to be noticed. The idea is for it to cost very little and feel very big. After all, this isn't about acquiring new things; it is about paying better attention to the world around me.

If you discovered a treasure this week (a new friend, a snow fairy, a fancy dish at the thrift store, a bird's nest) please do share it, as well as any links, in the comments section below.

*****

sunfish

Nature Printing :: fern

When you're printing with kids, it is nice to play around with using bright, punchy colors for natural prints.  Here, we used a bright red with the slightest tinge of orange.  I think we'll use turquoise and maybe a deep orange next time.  This fern might actually turn bright red in the fall, which would make us fortune telling printers.  Wouldn't you say?
 
Coat the fern with a thin layer of paint, lay it on the paper, cover with a clean piece of paper, and gently roll the brayerover the outer, clean paper.  You can reuse your fern many times before you move on to a new one and, perhaps, a new color.
Happy fern printing to you!

xo e