October News from the Farm
Color-rific Days
Hello Colorful Friends……
Oh my oh my - we are into it now - that color-rific time of year here in western Massachusetts. This morning, I drove north through our little border town into Vermont, passing Weatherhead Hollow in Guilford.
As I drove, more and more color appeared. Beautiful blue sky, lofty pillow-like clouds, maples and more turning orange, yellow, gold, and red. It’s a glorious time to be alive here in New England.
Gardening season is pretty much over here. I’m waiting for the first frost which will put an end to flower harvesting and bouquet making. I cannot say my garden was very successful this year but there is always next year. The sunflowers were fewer than normal due to some critters eating many of the seedlings - including the ones I replanted. Here is a short (1 minute) video of the blooms.
I’ve been spending many hours in my little pottery studio beside by garden in anticipation of holiday sales both at our Leyden Glen Lamb Market Stand at the Amherst Farmers Market (where I am every Saturday from 8-1:30) and hopefully (fingers crossed) on my website. My pottery studio is not heated, nor does it have water and since clay, which is full of water, freezes, the remaining days I have to throw pottery on my wheel are very numbered. When that happens, I will move all the bone dry work inside to my basement studio mess and paint paint paint away - and then fire it all up in my kiln. Lots more busy-ness to come.
The sheep are still all out grazing in pastures near and far. Soon, they will all be gathered up and moved back to their winter barns. Shearing will happen in November and then lambs will begin to arrive in late December/early January. And so, the years go round and round.
A few weeks ago, my friend Linda and I took a trip to Beauport in Gloucester, Massachusetts. I have been trying to get there for several years now and finally it happened. Beauport (aka the Sleeper-McCann House) is a home that was built by Henry Davis Sleeper early in the 1900’s. It is now owned by Historic New England and is a National Historic Landmark. It is a 40 room stone house built right beside (actually on top of the rocks) the Atlantic Ocean. Sleeper is considered by many as one of the first Interior Decorators. He was a good friend of Isabella Stewart Gardner along with many other notables of the early 20th century including Henry F. Du Pont who asked for Sleeper’s assistance in designing parts of his Winterthur Estate. He was an incredible collector of all kinds of art, ceramics, needlework, hooked rugs, You can learn more about this incredible home HERE.
I have added lots of photos I took onto my Instagram account. You can find them HERE (1) and HERE (2) and HERE (3) and HERE (4). I am definitely going back because there was so much to see and absorb and a one hour tour just wasn’t enough. Here are a couple photos from the trip. The sheer number of rooflines going this way and that is truly miraculous. You could never get permits for this type of construction now. How lucky that the house and all its contents were given to Historic New England by the second owner Helena Woolworth McCann’s children in 1942 to preserve it for us to see.
Since many of you live too far from New England to visit Beauport, check out this virtual tour which walks you through the 40 rooms. Technology is astounding, isn’t it? Here is a good article from Frederic Magazine about Beauport and Sleeper.
As the cold and cozy season edges in on us, I can feel the knitting and crocheting bug beginning to descend. What about you? Are you going to the NY Sheep and Wool Festival? Have a great time if you are. If you are looking for some new projects, I’ve included a few links to some of my PDF patterns at the end of this newsletter.
Now for today’s links……
• I enjoyed this very interesting article from the NYTimes about the renegade artists - including Judy Chicago - living close to Taos, NM. Read it here (not behind a paywall).
• Reading the aforementioned article reminded me of Judy Chicago’s The Dinner Party. When I went to University of Delaware, my Fiber Art Professor Vera Kaminski introduced us to her seminal work which explored the role of women artists throughout history. You can listen to a very interesting podcast with Judy (she’s 85 now) and Debbie Millman HERE.
•This is our new favorite Brownie Recipe. Julia has made it 5 times so far. Very delicious and easy. No mixer, tiny pan, delicious. Thank you Cathy!
• Have you heard of the “color drenching” trend? It’s all about floor to ceiling color in interiors and you can see some lovely examples here.
• An interesting development……. Webs has been sold again. Webs and its parent company Love Crafts (which acquired Webs in 2020) has been sold to Missouri Star Quilt Company. Read about it here. In the past, I have taught for Webs which has been based in Northampton MA for decades. Most recently, I have created projects and done videos for Missouri Star’s Yarn Division which was called One Big Happy Yarn Company. I look forward to seeing what Missouri Star does with Webs and wish them the best.
• Ruth Reich (restaurant critic, author and former editor of Gourmet Magazine) has produced a new documentary called Food and Country. From the website: Through her eyes, we get to know the humanity and struggle behind the food we eat. As Reichl says: “How we grow and make our food shows us our values – as a nation and as human beings.” Watch the trailer here. Begins streaming on October 22. We watched an early sneak peek and it was excellent. Being in the food business (that’s what farming is), so many of the stories of the farmers rang true. Americans do not know how lucky they have it. Although everyone is complaining about high food prices, Americans spend the least on food consumed at home. You can find an interesting comparison here.
Thanks for reading. I hope you will get outside to enjoy the autumn color. If you are local, I would love to see you at the Amherst Farmers Market. I will not be there this Saturday the 19th but I will be there every Saturday until just before Thanksgiving.
Kristin Nicholas
P.S. It’s knitting season again. If you are looking for a new project - check out my website where I have many many PDF Downloads available HERE. The Best Friends Pullover is one of my favorites. Also available on my Ravelry Store HERE.
And what about this adorable Many Hearts Blanket???? So cute. Pattern available here.
And of course, as the holidays approach, you might be looking for a new Christmas Stocking Pattern. Here’s my best selling “Kristin’s Creative Christmas Stocking” Collection. Pattern available HERE and also in my Ravelry Shop HERE
I enjoyed reading your newsletter. Thanks for sharing about Beauport. I will add it to my bucket list.
Always love your Newsletters and the pictures are stunning. I was lucky enough to see the original Judy Chicago Dinner Party at the San Francisco Modern Art Museum. I can still picture it!