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Wintering & Reflecting

 


Snowy days are the best. Days that make you want to slow down and hang out inside. I can make a cup of tea and knit away the morning. I am looking forward to that this year, as I write this we are getting some much needed snow.

With my studio work mostly being outside, and days getting cooler and darker, usually I have finished up dyeing in October. This year I took a class in November, so I had to get creative and set up an indoor dye studio. I am glad I did, now I can dye all year long, I’m looking forward to the snowy days of January to try out some new ideas.

At the end of the year I try to sit down and think back over the year, what worked, what didn’t work, what do I want more of, what do I want less of. I do this for all the parts of my life not just my studio work. For my studio I know one thing I want more of is gathering together with people. I think we have all had a taste of what its like to be separated from others and long for that connection again. So I will definitely be planning more Indigo Gatherings.

I have a few quotes hanging on the walls of my studio, one is from author Elizabeth Gilbert from her book Big Magic. I printed it out and framed it.

“Let INSPIRATION lead you wherever it wants. For most of history, people made things, and they didn’t make such a big freaking deal out of it.”

One of the things I am going to focus on in the new year is getting out of my own way and letting inspiration lead me wherever it wants. This winter you will find me in my cozy basement studio, looking out on my snow covered little blue shed, not sure what I will be doing but I am set up to dye, knit, spin, and sew. I might also be upstairs in the kitchen baking. One thing is for certain I will have a tea and a treat. My personal fika.

“To truly fika requires a commitment to making time for a break in your day, the creation of a magical moment in the midst of the routine and the mundane.”

-Fika, Anne Brones and Johanna Kindvall

Monthly Fika Recipe

This month I have a few recipes for your fika. First a Norwegian bread, Julekake its a nice holiday bread, not to sweet but perfect with a cup of coffee. The candied orange really makes the bread, I made my own using this method from King Arthur Baking. Trust me your kitchen will smell wonderful. The other recipe is for a Swedish spice cake (Mjuk Pepparkaka). There is a special pan for this, which I happen to have, but it can also be made in a loaf pan. There is the perfect amount of spice and sweetness to this. It is a little milder then a gingerbread and paired very well with my chai latte. Keep Learning. Let me know if you try it and tag me on Instagram. #Fikabake

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