Megablog

I know I've gone AWOL. Life has been keeping me busy, and it won't really settle until I return from visiting family for the holidays. So here's a month's or better worth of things I need to catch up to date...

Santa's Land at the Queen Ka'ahumanu Center - the turtle with the fuzzy red hat reminds me of my logo for the holidays

One of the few pics of me - here with my sister Dana at Makena Beach

Here's Ana'ole - turtle 4 - the hatchling that I named in the contest at the Maui Ocean Center

A sea urchin spiny thingy

One of my hats on display in the gift shop at the Maui Ocean Center

A puffer fish. He's endearingly cute but was about 18"-24" long and has sharp spines on his body that spike out pin cushion-like when he inflates himself

Just a peaceful beach shot

This place has been around since the creation of the islands. It's an institution in Wailuku

They serve onion rings - tempura style - at a chinese restaurant

Sweet and Sour Chicken with Chow Fun noodles. These noodles are actually sliced like carrot sticks and made from potato dough - YUM!

An offering at the Home Maid Bakery shop

Lunch at Leoda's in Olowalu - Spicy (fresh) tuna salad on thier bread with tomato and butter lettuce. Served in a metal pie tin lined with brown paper

Some of the best fries I have ever had! With an aioli - and ketchup of course

Dana's lunch was Fried Mac and Cheese with a marinara - we both had leftovers...

On the road leading to mine, I see a long neck serpent in the grass

Wild lilikoi (passion fruit) flower

The serpent again

This is how my hats were displayed in the booth for the Haleakala Waldorf Holiday Faire. We had a great location - on an end, at the bottom of a hill and by the second entrance to the event - that really helped with traffic 

The hats are all my fabrics - Surf's Up, Seal Pups, Mermaids of Hana Bay, Hibiscus - and the pillow cases - Cotton Couture, Shell Dot and Gingerbreadtown

Mac and Cheese with Peas, please! Red pepper flakes and Kiawe smoked Hawaiian sea salt. The background is Siren Song - color Rainbow

Grilled Shell-on Shrimp  skewered on fresh Rosemary twigs

The morning of October 15 - my mother's birthday 

Comfort food for lunch - when it rains there is quite a damp chill in Haiku and a lunch like this hits the spot!

Rooster Rumble

This wasn't too violent just two roosters plucking the feathers out of one another - but what a display!

These are boneless version of the  bone in ribs I made when Dana was here. Both were preseasoned with the smoked sea salt and crushed black pepper. Next I smoked them over macadamia nut wood then glazed them with Maui Brewing Company Root Beer Bar-B-Que sauce. Last they cooked slowly to dry them out a bit like chinese roast pork.

 Another ornate rooster and hen

One of several gingerbread boy doll fronts drying before construction

A Long Overdue Post: Sea Turtles, Seal Pups and Humpback Whales

This is a quilt made by Suzy Aguirre, of Maui. I have never met her but I do know her sister-in-law Bernadette, who is employed by the USPS as the mail carrier working my postal route. Over the years, I have had bolts of fabric sent parcel post, wrapped in clear shipping plastic. We connected one day when a bolt of my "Surf's Up!" sea turtle fabric arrived. She explained that the honu (sea turtle) had a special meaning for her. It seemed, each time while at the shore, a sea turtle would appear... a sign that was a reminder of her one son, a twin, whom had passed away - swept out to sea by a rogue wave while fishing on the rocks. And if that wasn't enough, several years later she lost her other son who was distraught at the loss of his twin brother.

I gave Bernadette the three fabrics - turtles, seals and whales - and in turn, Suzy made this quilt as a dedication to her two boys.

It's a wonderfully executed quilt, and these pictures really do not do it justice. I am touched that I could be a part of this...

If you look closely you will note the quilting is also in the shape of sea turtles

Water Babies

Sea Lions, and Turtles, and Whales (and Dolphins...) Oh, My!

One of my best selling prints, the baby sea turtle (or honu in Hawai'an) Surf's Up!, was reintroduced by Michael Miller Fabrics a couple of years ago as a part of their 10th year Anniversary celebration. It's still going strong, and we decided to make a group of it by adding a few more designs in an aquatic and endangered species theme. The latest addition to the seal pups, sea turtles, and humpback whales is Dolphin Babies. This is a sneak peak of this print and it will start to be shown by the Michael Miller sales reps the beginning of next month. I hope you like Dolphin Babies as much as I do! 

Seal Pups (DC5001-Ocean)

Surf's Up! (DC2019-Aqua)

A Whale of a Tale (DC4958-Ocean)

Dolphin Babies (DC5449-Seafoam)

In addition, a dolphin, seal pup and sea turtle figure is available as a machine embroidery through The Needlework Factory. The three images, along with a penguin, iguana, walrus and harp seal are all on the WATER BABIES disc. They will also be available as an individual download. Please check back SOON!