selling our wares

 A few photos from our day vending at Art in the Park in downtown Asheville. It was such a pretty day!
Unfortunately, it wasn't an amazing sale day for us which can be hard when we are trying to pay the bills; but we did have a  few retailers approach us about carrying our line in their store which feels promising. All in all a bit of a bust, but an enjoyable one! 

dusk

As I sit here in the evening light of our living room the kids are up past bedtime. Gita (7), Lil (4), and Seo (2) are all playing down by the garden together, their giggles rising up from behind the bushes. I love this time of day with the peepers and whip-poor-wills and the little ones' berry stained faces.  Lightning bugs and the sound of our fan running...

Our first successful attempt at growing carrots!

(sometimes) the reality of the walk to the mailbox

"SouleMama: How are your children incorporated into your business?

Kelcey: We have a ½ mile walk to the mailbox, and my kids love to take a walk and be in charge of putting the Seed & Sky orders in the mailbox and raising the flag."

~an excerpt from the sponsor interview with Soulemama a few months ago. 

Pre-walk

I took this photo of Lil with some outgoing Seed & Sky packages in her backpack. I had to laugh when Alex brought back this little video her 3/4 of the way there. It is hard to hear her asking if they are almost there because the sound quality is poor, but her face says it all:

Venus

Venus crossed the sun yesterday evening in North Carolina, and we were prepared to watch the special event with the eclipse sunglasses I ordered online. The sun, however, set behind our mountain just as the transit was beginning so we got the kids in their pajamas and drove the 2 miles to the other side of the mountain to watch the sunset.

It ended up becoming an impromptu tailgate party because our other neighbors had the same idea.  We stayed up past the kids bedtime catching up and watching the tiny speck of Venus when the sun peeked out from the clouds.

 I always appreciate another reminder of the amazing and mysterious universe we live in...

raed al-rawi

Traveler Music 30"x24"

I had the honor of being placed next to painter Raed Al-Rawi when we vended at the LEAF Festival last month. It has taken me a long time to sit down and write about it because I wanted to make sure I captured just how moving it was to be next to his booth all weekend.  He was originally from Iraq, and now he lives in Charlotte with his wife Beth and two twin boys. He spent half of his life in Iraq and half in America. He describes himself on his website as "An American-Iraqi born in Baghdad-Iraq". 

I have never knowingly met someone who grew up in Baghdad. So when Raed told me this part of his story I was struck by the contrast of the image in my head of Baghdad and the gentle man standing in front of me who paints beautiful paintings about connections. Of course I rationally know that Baghdad is infinitely more complex than the limited newspaper-type pictures in my head~ but sometimes in this age of information overload, brains makes sweeping impressions and they stick. 

But now I have some new pictures to broaden my view of that area of the world. Of course, Raed is an American~ but somebody's roots are an important part of the story. And in this case his artwork speaks volumes and is the best kind of ambassador. 

Art can be powerful like that... carrying so many meanings at once. 

 Journey New Morning

 Journey 48"x60"

These were the thoughts that swept through me during that first conversation~ my lasting impression I have from the weekend is of making a new art-friend and appreciating his beautiful paintings. 

Wind 30"x40"

 Door n' Sky 12"x16"

Land 

Find out more about Raed Al-Rawi from his website HERE

(Thanks Raed for letting me share these images!)

sea

Seeing the grandness of the ocean through the kids' eyes.
The simplicity of the beach and waves.

This was the first year Lil embraced the water. She went deeper and deeper in, and when the first wave knocked her down she stood up startled and sputtering. I told her it was called a "Wave tumble" and she wiped away her forming tears and giggled "I got wave tumbled!"
Seo followed her right into the deep swells with no fear.
(Click here to see a perfect Seo moment)

I am feeling really blessed I was able to spend a week by the sea with loved ones.

away...

The Loomers are on a beach vacation!
and I am here to report it has been a WONDERFUL week so far. :)

facebook giveaway

 Photos from the LEAF Festival parade. Isn't that puppet amazing? 

*Make sure you head over to to my Seed & Sky facebook page and "like" my most recent status update to be entered to win one of my new tiny bronze necklaces! (Drawing ends @12pm tomorrow 5/25/12). 

*Also don't forget to "like" my  facebook page while you are there if you haven't already! 

seed & sky news

It is high time I give a Seed & Sky update, don't you think?

Lots of changes and exciting additions have been simmering just below the surface for awhile now. Firstly, I have been working directly with a manufacturer to create two new bezel settings for my bigger necklaces and silver earrings. I had been searching for almost a year to find the setting of my dreams, and I never found it. So I decided to create and invest in exactly what I imagined. I am excited to announce that they will be plated in Rhodium. Rhodium is in the platinum family. It is silver colored, (although not as shiny as silver alloy), hypoallergenic, and extremely tarnish-resistant. It has taken months of tweaking the mold they are making for me, and it is almost complete~ hooray!

and when I say almost complete, that probably means a month or two still!

However, in the meantime I am adding an antiqued bronze line to Seed & Sky as well. I am really in love with these little necklaces. They are delicate and pretty, and as small as they are, the image is still crystal clear.
See how tiny they are?

Next up, little matching bronze earrings! 

First thing (roll out of the tent & en-route to find coffee) photo of mother's day at the Lake Eden Arts Festival. 


A storm took out our phone and Internet again this week. Although I have missed some things, I have enjoyed the quietness of being disconnected. I hope you are well wherever you are!
xxx
Kelcey

"we have real warriors in our midst"

You may have already seen this quote this year, but I wanted to share it in case you hadn't because it captures something I have felt for a long time. I didn't know how to put it into words, but I felt it again this morning as I awkwardly said "Happy Mother's Day" to a friend who has been dating a man for years. He has a young daughter, and although my friend isn't technically a "mother" she makes food, deals with tantrums, and tucks the little one into bed at night. After I spoke the words I instantly regretted them, it just felt awkward. But I was getting showered with love and a sleep-in~ why should I feel strange about honoring her too?
For the women in my life who have no birth children of their own but have played a mothering role in my life... or my dear friend who had a miscarriage this year... or friends who would ache to become a mom and are not able to yet for one reason or another... I cherish you:

To those who gave birth this year to their first child—we celebrate with you

To those who lost a child this year – we mourn with you

To those who are in the trenches with little ones every day and wear the badge of food stains – we appreciate you

To those who experienced loss this year through miscarriage, failed adoptions, or running away—we mourn with you

To those who walk the hard path of infertility, fraught with pokes, prods, tears, and disappointment – we walk with you. Forgive us when we say foolish things. We don’t mean to make this harder than it is.

To those who are foster moms, mentor moms, and spiritual moms – we need you

To those who have warm and close relationships with your children – we celebrate with you

To those who have disappointment, heart ache, and distance with your children – we sit with you

To those who lost their mothers this year – we grieve with you

To those who experienced abuse at the hands of your own mother – we acknowledge your experience

To those who lived through driving tests, medical tests, and the overall testing of motherhood – we are better for having you in our midst

To those who will have emptier nests in the upcoming year – we grieve and rejoice with you

And to those who are pregnant with new life, both expected and surprising –we anticipate with you

This Mother’s Day, we walk with you. Mothering is not for the faint of heart and we have real warriors in our midst. We remember you.

source

Happy Mother's Day ♥

Big Love Fest

After I put the kids to bed tonight I ate store-bought rotisserie chicken, salted caramel gelato and wine for dinner.
Yep. and I ate it sitting on the counter...
We vended at the Big Love Festival today (a wonderful big festival in the heart of downtown that features 100% local music, food, and businesses) and Alex stayed later to break down the booth.  The kids stayed with friends all day and I drove home at 7pm just in time to put them to bed.

My new mounted prints & little necklaces debuted today (I will have to show you them both later this week!) and they were a big success. It always feels good when something you have been putting a lot of energy into works out. Overall the day was lovely. It made me proud to live in such a wonderful, wonderful place. A place with such amazing businesses and culture.
A big thank you to everyone who came out and supported us today!

little past

detail of a self portrait 2001 :: mica, map, ink, photography

Another little artwork I found at my friend Caren's last weekend. All those years of not documenting what I created~ and now they show up on friend's walls, unexpected surprises. 

house updates

 I don't know if you have ever noticed the flapping white house-wrap and exposed plywood on the bottom half of our house... but I am happy to report that after 5 years it is finally going to be plastered (!!!) Dave came up to help Alex wrap the house in one more layer of wrap, one layer of black paper (also for protection), and a layer of lathe (basically chain-mail that gets stapled to the wall so the plaster has something to cling to).  Next step is picking out what color plaster we want, and two days of plastering.

Alex also built his first rock retaining wall. See it up there to the left of our house? It's so pretty.


{ the kids love to climb up on the shoe shelf and watch the action }

first show of the season

Alex and I left the kids with my mom, Becca, and Dave this past weekend to participate in the Durham NC Spring Market. It was the first time we have had a childless overnight together since Lili was born! That part felt really fun but also very strange. We stayed with good friends and it was nice to get a deeper glimpse into their lives.

The market itself was just okay. The air conditioning in the our area was inadequate, and the room was very stuffy. Customers were walking into the room, saying "Oh my god, it is hot in here" and turning right around. Traffic was slow and sales were on the slow side too... No matter what though, I always love connecting with other artists living a similar lifestyle, and Durham has a thriving arts scene which was fun to witness. 

The kids barely mentioned our names the whole weekend they were having so much fun!