Where this road is leading us.

First I want to thank everyone who has sent good luck our way.

I know this blog has taken a turn towards the negative lately and that isn't really a fair representation of what most of these changes mean for us. Closing the shop was really a choice that I made because I really wanted to spend more time with Alder on his terms. He wasn't made to hangout all day in a shop. I also felt as if I was missing out on so much by being there.

I was right, the last month has been so powerful. I didn't realize how little time I spent focusing on him when I was with him before. Now we have hours to do things together so when there are errands to be run there isn't the feeling of choosing between doing Alder things or Mama things there is time for both. The changes in him were pretty immediate (although they might be coincidental) he's really talking a communicating a lot with new words every day. Also with all the time we have now we can slow down and he does a lot more for himself. Most importantly there are less tears from him and better sleeping.

There are other changes going on that are wonderful as well. Kevin's decision to refocus his practice into a Community Acupuncture clinic, makes sense both for the area we live in as well as our beliefs. Rather than charging 60+ dollars for a visit he will be charging 15-45 sliding scale. The difference in treatment is that the needling focuses on the arms, legs, ear and face. All points that can be accessed without removing clothing. Patients lay in recliners in a communal room where they are free to stay as long as they want. What is missing from these appointments is the 1/2 hr to hour long conversations. He will still have some slots when people can come for full treatments. The point of this sort of clinic is to make acupuncture accessible to more people regardless of what their insurance will cover.

here's a good article also.

So these changes in our life are scary sounding but they really are bringing us closer to what we value and believe in.

train of thought

We're back and life is no clearer than it was before. In the last week we have "tried on" at least eight different possibilities of lives. Instead, I'm sitting here in the coffee shop on the computer trying to figure it all out. What better way of doing that than by asking for ideas.

We are at the point where we realize that our business was not working at the speed that we thought it would. There are a lot of things that need to change in our business plan if we are going to stay here. The only other some-what viable option is to move to Albany, although this is seeming less likely at the moment. This leaves us in the position that we are going to take some time to regroup, get more financially stable, and reconfigure our business.

This all feels a little like defeat but I am trying to look at it more as a pause so that we can come back stronger. Of course the shop is closed for good, a wonderful woman has taken over our lease and is already opening her fabric shop. Because of the nature of the area we live in a regular acupuncture business won't work, people just don't have the money to pay for it. So we have been exploring the idea of opening a community acupuncture clinic, basically the treatments involve less talking and use needles on the arms, legs, and ears only, and the patient is treated in a community room with a bunch of recliners. The advantage is that you can treat up to five people an hour at a much less expensive rate (15- 40 sliding scale). I'll write more tomorrow or Monday about this.

Because of our work experience and our family situation we have decided that Kevin will look for the primary job while I look for something that I can do from home. I've started looking but there is an amazing amount of internet crap that shows up when you look for online jobs. If anyone has any ideas about legitimate resources I would love to hear about them.

Honestly, I really can't wait to feel stable again it is tiring trying to stay happy when you are worrying about how you are going to pay rent and bills. I'm done feeling sorry for myself and am ready to just push through and create our life from real things not just our imagination.

This has turned into much more of a journal entry than I was expecting I'll keep it up here anyway since I really would love any input.

Update

A lot of changes are going on right now, the first is that we have sublet the shop and are closing. Between the economic crunch going on and our own personal feelings about materialism it was hard to really push our products on people. Second we are heading up to Maine next week for an interview with a woman who is starting a community acupuncture clinic in Belfast (Maine). Third we are hoping to stop and talk to another clinic looking for a subcontractor in Portsmouth NH. The two other options we've been working with are: staying in Bennington and getting other jobs while Kevin tries to build the practice, possibly becoming a community clinic, or there is a job in Glens Falls NY, except it's part time for not a lot of money.

If anyone has any input on any of these ideas please share.

Oh yeah I am writing this from my Dad's in New York City where Alder and I am for the week. This all started as a weekend with my aunt and it's turned into an almost three week trip.

SALE!!!

In an effort to start anew in all of our creative activities in our family I decided that part of the process would be to make room for more of our own goods so our shop will be having a sale on all kids toys and clothing this weekend 30% off.

Also everything in my etsy shop is 20% off!!!!

Here's to cohesiveness and beauty!!

to make and set-up

Still no camera. The Garment District Story will be up at the beginning of next week.

Now for our news. We've decided to close the shop for the next week to get all those projects that we keep saying we need to do but are too tired after Alder is asleep. No one comes in during the week except for acupuncture in the weather anyway (acupuncture appointments are still happening).

The problem we're having with the shop is that we set it up for the amount of stuff that we had at the beginning and we have been growing ever since so the stuff looks awful.

So our list of things to do is:

Put in lighting
Add clothing racks
Add housewares section
Set up Alder's play room
Make Bag Display
Frames above the desk and mantle
Shelving for toys
Add a back to window display
Fix up our open easel and open signs
Organize craft and yarn area
Put a resource shelf behind desk for our work

Then there are the other projects:

Silk screen the t-shirts (we have three designs already)
Silk screen Valentine's cards and regular cards
Paint Alders room
Get a mattress for his bed.

So just have a little bit of stuff to do in the next week. But first we are going to head to the cabin for a little rest and play. Hopefully the camera will be back soon.

quick post from New York to share love

I'll write about the trip when I get home but I had to share some love I just received. Trish over at C'est Bon has been busy and I feel really amazed that her attentions are going to our shop. Now if I just could get her and that man of hers to come out and visit. Trish we love you, and we have a guest room.

On a Cold and Blustery Day

It is cold and windy out today. I'm in the shop doing inventory and talking to the occasional customer, I can't blame anyone for not wanting to be out today. The UPS man came with a box for me with these fabric in it.

There was also a little button trolling in a box of old buttons from across the street. These are a few of them that haven't made it home yet.
Back to work.

A Week of Making

Zig-zag light wool scarf. This is probably my favorite piece I have ever made, the fabric is so soft and light that I wanted to find a use that would let you see that, so I sewed two sides together so that it would seem somewhat hollow, I added the zig-zag so it would lay flat without completely loosing the hollowness. Now I need to find more of this fabric (it was in a sale bin at a store hours from here).


Just a wool tote with a pocket made from fun Japanese fabric, it's lined in flannel with another pocket on the inside as well.


I got a little creative here, this bag is made of two pieces of wool each that have part of the handle so that they attach at an angle. Because of that the outside material is frayed because there isn't a neat way to hem it without twisting it (not a design I am happy with). The pocket was late night embroidery without a drawing, meaning it's a little strange, the flowers look a little like palm trees.

So that's what I've been up to with those nightly creativity sessions. I have a few more things in the starting phase, as well as a trip to New York a week from now solo (as in two days and three nights of Mama by herself, leaving Alder for the first time). I need a break and I'm going to wander around to shops similar to ours and get ideas, and yes there are a few fabric stores in my plans...possibly a museum as well. But that's week from now.

What Really Should Be Doing Is....

So my last entry was about doing nothing I figured I'd follow it with an entry about all the things I should be doing, to hold myself to them. Things like inventory, or designing the other three t-shirts to print (we're printing them next week), or making more embroidered Valentine's Day cards, or writing next weeks article. If I was really smart I would bring down my cutting board and fabric and cut out and pin bags and pillows. Okay now that I've made the list I'm going to try to show here a little bit of progress on those things in the next few weeks.

It isn't as if I've been completely useless lately. I did get all the stuff to create Alder's room (bedding, paint, ideas, ...). And I've worked all week on a bag for myself (there were some serious brain farts on my part, like forgetting handles). I'm not totally happy with it, it's big enough but it just looks like a pillow case. I think I'm going to start over and use a wool outside with a layer of flannel inside, but I need to use the same out side pieces because the owl fabric is from one place mat I found at a thrift shop. If you think my plans won't work or have any better ideas tell me.

Yarns of Yarn

We drove up to Barton VT yesterday to get yarn from the distributor. It was overwhelming going through the rows of yard (about the size of a small supermarket). Now I'm back at the shop setting it all out in our temporary display.

We Made the Shopping Guide!

We've made the shopping guide this year! Note, even though there is an advertisement for us next to it I did not know they were going to write about us as well!. We must be doing something right!!

Hopes and Dreams

I sat at work today and had lots of ideas about what I wanted to say here. It was a cold day and not a lot of people were out on the street so there was a lot of time to think and do things like sort through another tin of buttons and knit half a hat. But walking home I realized that most of what I wanted to do was complain, except for one thought. So I decided that I want to share with you my secret dream for my future.

This is not necessarily a pragmatic dream but it is where I want to be five or six years from now. It is also something that I have wanted to do in some form for years. I want to live on a small farm where part of the facility is a retreat center. Where we can host health wellness and creativity retreats. I don't mean that we would be constantly assaulted with groups but maybe six weekends a year there could be a group staying with us who would focus on one of those areas. Nothing too new age-y just good for you pauses in life that people don't get very often.

Part of this plan will happen sooner when we open an online version of Seven Mountain (not the acupuncture part). The idea is that we might be making enough money between the three parts of the business that we could afford to hire someone to be at the shop five days a week, leaving me to do the online orders and be with Alder at home on this someday farm.

A lot of this is rooted back in the reasons that I started CITY (creative independent teaching for youth) back in Denver. I don't want to be a teacher, but I want to help connected people, and kids especially, with creativity in a non school setting. I would never want to host classes from city schools or anything like that but I would love to have families from these same schools come together for these weekends.

Of course when Kevin and I talk about this we joke that we would end up renting space out for weddings by default (no I do not want to have destination weddings in my back yard, unless they are willing to get married on the compost pile). But when we talk about our future there is always an aspect of being integrated in the community. I could see renting out the space for very reasonable rates for local groups to use and to donate the space for nonprofits to use.

This is all integrated into our whole life dream that includes educating Alder ourselves in a very rich environment. Rather than searching out bits and pieces of the community of learners I would rather start cultivating it now. Of course it would be nice if I could have a moments rest where I could sit down and introduce him to play-dough (that's on the table for tomorrow).

All of these dreams are starting though, we are going to use some of the walls at Seven Mountain as a gallery sometimes and we are having our first artists show in January, Patti Williams and her 50 paintings. Like a garden this dream needs a lot of gentle tending.

I hope you all out there have your own dreams to nurture.

warmly,
Stacey

Settling into the Shop

We are all still trying to learn how life with a shop is going to be like. Alder has about three or four hours in him that he's okay there if we give him attention and food. Hopefully over the next month we can figure out how to make a space for him at the store so that it feels homey.


Here he is modeling one of Dream Child Studio's Felt Crowns


This outfit is 100% thrift store, I'm still not sure why people buy new clothing unless it's handmade goodness.

By the way my banner was tweaked for me by Erin, it looks so much better now.

The Shop

Here are some pictures of the shop and the beautiful work that people have done for it.

The Market Girls in the suitcase are made by Miguette. The balls are by Kwan. The Owls are by Lorigamai. Amanda made the crowns, which are selling fast. The little pouches in the front are kits that I made 'Two on an Adventure' they come with two clothes pins, scrap fabric for clothes, yarn for hair and a little journal to record the adventure that the two go on, I'm going to put some of these on sale in my etsy shop as well as some of the other pieces I've made since the weather doesn't look go for shoppers on the street.


These wonderful pins and hair clips are made by Julie.


These are a few totes that I made,as well as a pillow.


The light doesn't show how cool these little outfits are that Erin made.

Well that's some of the shop right now. There is more stuff coming in every day and an entire yarn section that hasn't even been ordered yet.

Opening Day

I'm tired. The day went well as could be expected since it was a frigid 14 degrees. Hardly anyone was walking around, only a few dedicated souls. But some did come and they did buy things, so I guess we have a shop. We also met some great people who *just stopped by to support us* both friends and others.

Only thing I realized when we opened is that we need more product in the shop. So if any of you has a favorite crafter or etsy shop to suggest that would be great.

We have a website too www.sevenmountainvt.com it's pretty rudimentary but it's a start. I'll post pictures on Monday.

Before the Opening Part Two (sewing)

Here are a few of the project that I have been making for the shop for Saturday, there are plenty more but they are all ready down there.

My first pillow sham I got to play with lots of stitches with Erroll for this.


These little bags have two doll clothespins, scrap fabric and yarn, and a little blank book. I'm calling them Two on an Adventure, you get to make the dolls and then write or draw about the adventure they take.

This is the Button Up Clutch, I'm still a little intimidated by button holes so the vintage button and ribbon is my solution.


And this, this is my baby. Here are my blue elephants finally realized. This is also my first completed quilt (unless you count the one I did in sixth grade). I'm still working out how to get everything to line up.

Before the Opening Part One

Here are some before pictures of the shop. I can't actually believe that it is going to resemble a store on Saturday.

Busy busy busy

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Mine was all I could have asked for family good food and great conversation. Of course I feel sort of guilty of exhausting my aunt for the few days prior with Alder (I forgot just how much energy he has).

The holiday started with the send off parade for the US Capital Christmas tree and ended with breakfast at the Creamery with my parents. There was snow, fog, rain, sunshine, and some amazing wind.

This week is busy we open the store next Saturday so I'm not sure how much writing I'll get in. However Travels in Paradise is up and running again with a new article and photo format, we stopped doing the gear reviews (none of us really cared about the stuff). Anyway, I have two articles up (Experiencing the Natural World with Kids & Camping on Hermit Island)and another one tomorrow. I'm going to try to post pictures on the store progress this week, sort of before pictures and after ones as well.


Papa and Alder at the Parade

The Capital Tree


Alder's First Snow of the Year

The Offical List
Cooking Ahead of Time

Alder Dancing in the Kitchen
And Rocking By the Fireplace
And Finally Playing With Aunt Amanda

Meet Erroll

So the other day I posted this picture of my sewing machine. Little did I know that the old horse was about to go into a quick decline. First I noticed the fabric wasn't moving smoothly, then the bobbin winder stopped working, then the feed dogs began to move unevenly and finally the electric began to cut out at random moments. After it's last seizure we bowed our heads and said good bye.

With so much to get done for the shop we needed a new machine, and quickly. So I headed up to Rutland, yes I had to go fifty miles for a machine. And this what I came home with:


I've named him Erroll, he's a Viking 775 that was 'previously loved' by a woman who upgraded for one of those really high tech models. I'm already in love. Who knew you could actually listen to the radio while you sewed. He's strong and does so much more than our old machine.

What I Did with my Morning

That's where I spent my morning. My other job, Travels in Paradise, is relaunching the website tomorrow and they wanted another article. So I ducked out to a coffee shop a few towns away to write. It's exciting, this new site is focused on the articles and we've removed the gear reviews. I think we're planning on have new articles up on th 15th and 30 every month.

I think it's amazing how things are coming together like they are. Right now working consists of writing, making things, and interacting with some amazing women who are making the products that we are going to sell. Amanda, Julie, Zoe, Eva, Kwan, Natalie, Julia, Cheryl, Erin, Cheryl, Lori, Carol, Marissa, Bettina, and Valerie. So far we have actually used etsy to find most of our producers.