Growing up in Hawai‘i I rarely wore socks. Slippers, yes. Barefoot, yes. The only socks I ever wore were in tennis shoes, and my feet rebelled every moment.
However, my move to Oregon has made it clear that snow and ice were not compatible with either bare feet or slippers. At least not with my feet. I wear slippers or sandals barefoot as long as I can stand it, but eventually, the cold wins out. Continue reading
Well, today our daughters treated my husband and me to a Brunch cruise on the Portland Spirit for my birthday, his birthday (next week) and Father’s Day. It was a 2-hour cruise up the Willamette River, on a beautiful Portland, Oregon afternoon, sunny and warm. Continue reading
Yeah, yeah, yeah…. eh! Weah stay Part Two anden!!
Well, before I had a chance to finish that, along came the opportunity to take another class with Nancy Lee Chong, this time in Hawaiian Quilt Design. Actually, the class is part of a 3-day one, but as I’ve already taken the rest of the classes from her, I’m going to concentrate on just the principles of design this time. Continue reading
Well, if only I had all the time in the world and didn’t have to work! My creative energy seems to have taken a different path for awhile. I was with a group of my wahine friends, knitting away on a blanket that I’m making, which contains my very first handspinning (from my own sheep!) and knitting efforts. Continue reading
Oh wow. The class with Nancy Lee Chong was fantastic! I was a great enabler and encouraged my friends Susie and Julie to take the plunge too. The class was held at A Common Thread quilt store in Lake Oswego, a wonderful place filled with absolutely wonderful fabrics.
Nancy is an awesome teacher! She’s friendly, informative and extremely knowledgeable. She made learning fun, and had all kinds of tip and techniques to show us, so that by the end of the weekend we all had a working knowledge of how to begin our quilts. Continue reading
I love my name! It sings to me when I say it or hear it… singing to me of my island home, of ku‘u one hānau. Singing of the cool trade winds, the rainbows in Mānoa Valley where I was born and raised, of the scent of flowers, the sounds of pidgin, the ono grindz, the Hawaiian music. I love that back home everyone knows how to pronounce it! Continue reading
I’ve kinda put my quilting project on hold, and have been concentrating on my beadwork, knowing that this coming weekend (August 21-22) I’ll be lucky enough to be taking a class from Nancy Chong, one of the premiere Hawaiian quilting teachers around. I’m leaving here on Thursday night so that I can be in Philomath first thing Friday morning. Continue reading
I thought I’d come out the winner this week. And I did, sorta. Eventually. I got my new fabric all washed and ready and started cutting. Unfortunately, I musta been half asleep at the time, because I cut it wrong and had to go back to the fabric store yet again! Sheesh! Fabric 6, Mokihana O. Continue reading
In order to survive my grueling work schedule (7 days a week, sometimes 12-hour days), I decided to begin making a Hawaiian quilted pillow. Every Tuesday I attend a group where the focus in on our creativity; I’ve done beadwork and handspinning there, but for the summer decided to start doing some Hawaiian quilting, which I’ve been wanting to do for many years. Each woman brings what she wants to work on, so there is considerable freedom and variety in what kind of projects make their way out to the log cabin in the Oregon woods. Continue reading
What a night! I got to go hear Willie K and Amy Hanaiali‘i Gilliom at the Oregon Zoo Summer Concert series. It was wonderful. We went with 2 of our friends, and sat on the lawn area of the zoo, surrounded by hundred-year old fir forests, barn swallows darting over our heads, while the half moon rose lazily in the sky. Continue reading
A Mānoa Girl's Bloggie 