my favourite things: my wonderful mom!

photo of our piano by little rikrak, from a few years ago. age 3

we're back! hope everyone had a wonderful week! little friend & i had a great time march break-ing @ my wonderful mom's. today's post is in honour of her... happy birthday to my amazing mom!

gosh - i just love my mom so much.
she inspires me everyday to be a kinder, more loving, more generous, more thoughtful, more creative soul. i'm so lucky to have her as one of my dearest friends in the world. i'm so honoured that friends & aquaintences alike will often say that she's one of the kindest people they have ever known. and it's true! and she has inspired 1000's of children with the love of music, and with the joy of kindness thru her teaching. she is a brilliant musician, teacher, & is so wholly dedicated to her family that she just shines! she & my wonderful dad always encouraged me in everything i did. at every age. i'm so fortunate! and i gotta say.. whenever i see my mom & little rikrak together, and their immense &, tremendous love for one another, and hilarious antics together... wow. it's one of the best things in the world to me!

i thought i'd share a little moment from our visit together last week to sort of glimpse at what my mom is always like... it's the middle of the night. little rikrak is sleepless with terribly hurty growing pains. he's somewhat inconsolable, poor little thing. many lullabies, rubs, cuddles & warm beanbags later... nothing seems to help. my wonderful mommy is just a fountain of loving wisdom. she has always been the most patient of souls. she quietly goes to the piano, and plays little rikrak's favourite songs, in a lulling and soothing way. instantly.... he calmed down... relaxed, slept. half an hour later, cuddling little rikrak, listening to my amazing mom playing so many of my own favourites in her beautiful beautiful way @ 3 in the morning... i just felt so very very lucky. i really am.

it's that kind of selfless, modest, brilliant problem-solving demeanor that is always brimming over from my mom. folks say i have her smile, and i'm so honoured. what a room-brightening, sad-times-lifting, beautiful smile it is, mom! i love you so much. thanks for everything. always!

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and it's so nice to see you all again. stay tuned for lots of fun here @ the rikrak studio this week. happy monday!

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collections: with laura bucci

i just love seeing what folks are collecting. i guess i kind of feel it tells us just a little bit about what inspires them, what they love, and what they choose to surround themselves with in their home. today, i'm delighted to present the next in the rikrak studio's collections series: 11 & a 1/2 quick questions with a wonderful artist on what they're collecting, (apart from their art supplies! ) hope you'll just love: ceramics: with the wonderful Laura Bucci.

who (are you?) : Laura Bucci doing business as Laura Bucci

what (are you collecting?) : retro/modern and contemporary one-of-kind ceramics

when (did you start?) : about 2 years ago

how (many do you have?) : about 6 different retro ceramics, about 12 one-of-a-kind cups & other pieces

where (do you find them?) : the retro and modern at thrift stores, the contemporary one-of-a-kind at craft shows or craft/artisan shops

where (do you keep them?) : I use them all, so I keep them in the kitchen. The cups are all on a kitchen wall shelf so I can also visually enjoy the collection every day.

what (‘s an interesting story behind one?) : sometimes artists are funny, some look more like artists than others. I bought the small rectangular plate at our annual 'Culture Crawl' (a 3-day event where you visit artists' studios). the artist of this plate was a small, young woman and there she was sitting on a short stool in a little corner, in her super tiny windowless studio with her wares all about her, looking really humble, and selling really cheaply. And I thought, good for her for having this tiny, albeit suffocating little space. You go girl! oh, how I wished I had bought five of those little plates, they all had funny little images on them. So anyway, I can't get this image of the artist out of my head, when I see this plate I really do remember her that way.

what (piece would you like to add?) : Anything that is 'Canadiana'

why (do you love them?) : the retro stuff: I love the memory of a different era during which design took a new direction; the contemporary stuff: it makes me aware of the artist, someone thought about this and created it by hand and it's going to be new to anyone that drinks from the cup

which (one is your favourite?) & why? right now I love my latest find: the blue Medicine Hat cup. I love the colour and most importantly because it is Canadian, it tells me that is was made in celebration of a nursing home, and it has a sense of humour...when you finish your drink, the words "Now back to work" stare up at you

what (else do you collect?) : fridge magnets, religious and native/aboriginal carvings and imagery from all over the world

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thanks so much, Laura!

Laura's beautiful handmade work is simply refreshing & delightful. i've had the joy of seeing her impeccable handiwork up close, and can attest to the beautiful nature & incomparable quality of her talent. she's a multi-talented wonderwoman, mastering numerous arts including crochet, knitting, felting, and her most recent accessories works in natural fabrics are just beautiful! (and she's a great supporter of, and encourager in the handmade community... and remember her beautiful inspiration board? wow!) take a look @ this brilliant pocket cup cozy! fabulous!

Laura also crafts gorgeous wallets, purses, cuffs & more!
be sure to visit her lovely lovely shop and blog.

ah... delightful & refreshing, indeed. thanks so much, Laura!
wishing you all a delightful & refreshing weekend.

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with thanks

you folks are so sweet! i mean it!
thanks for your daily fun comments (i read each and every one... and usually go clicking along your links to visit your fun wepages & sites! what talented readers the rikrakstudio has! :)

....what fun blogging is! now... i'm really bad @ being tagged, and passing tags along. that's always been the case! but i very much appreciate all the sweeties who have honoured me with fun web awards... so it's high time i say thanks! in lieu of tagging forward, i hope you don't mind that i'd like to feature these sweeties instead!

thanks first to artmind, who kindly sent along the proximiade award, for being "an exceedingly charming blog!" ... how sweet, nicey! thank you!

next, thank so much to new york memos who tagged me for fun random things!

lastly, thanks to 2 lovelies who sent me a Kreativ Blogger award! that's so nice of you sweeties!

to the lovely nancy of nancywallis designs,

& to we blog artists (winner of my giveaway - woohoo!) ... many thanks... it's an honour!

so... the latter 3 awards asked for 6-7 things i love / or random things. so i hope you don't mind that i've put them all together into one little list:

7 random things i love!

1. i adore blue sky mornings & rainy afternoons.
2. i love playing @ the park with my little sweetie.
3. i can't get enough of 80's dance parties in the living room.
4. i apparently talk really fast (& i kinda love it! ;)
5. i love staying up late, talking with dear friends.
6. i'm obsessed with taking photographs & looking @ others beautiful photos.
7. i'm addicted to playing board games & talking games. (oh my poor poor family!)


so thanks again, nicies!
what fun it is to meet a whole new community of fun folks in bloggerville! thanks so much to everyone who's stopped by the rikrakstudio to visit! yesterday, i put together a little treasury about my appreciation for those blogging superstars out there! you can find it here!

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lastly, this with thanks goes out to the wonderful fawn & forest, who is featuring rikrak as a forest find this month! i'm so very very honoured! and the whole process of working with the lovely, brilliant folks @ fawn & forest has been a delight!
thanks so much, nicies!

happy thursday, wonderfolk! thanks.

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what i'm working on: eco.art

oh gosh. i'm a lucky lady. thanks so much to all of the well-wishing nicies last week who encouraged me in my little new project shyness! what great cheerleaders you all are! i really appreciate it.

well.. here we go! i've launched the first few pieces, as part of my new eco. art series titled . the handmade week . : 35 original, one.of.a.kind vintage fabric & paper stitch collages.

this little project brings together some of my crazy loves in life: days + shapes + scraps = rikrak joy! first, i'll admit it: i'm in love with the days of the week. i've always been fascinated by days, and always felt as though each day of the week has it's own little family of characteristics, ways of being, and tones. ever feel like that? and i'm in love with geometric shapes... *sigh* ... and you might already know of my obsession with vintage fabrics scraps. this project is a reunion of those loves.

in . the handmade week ., there are 7 different repurposed colour-way families, incorporating meaningful & beautiful little scraps of some of my favourite vintage fabrics i've collected over the years. each collage is 3-dimensional, textured & layered. the works are stitched onto museum quality Arches Infinity papers. here's a glimpse @ monday & thursday:

above. from the family : mondays :

one thursday , from the rikrak series . a handmade week .

two mondays , from the rikrak series . a handmade week .

stay tuned for more!
and thanks again, nicies! special thanks to my wonderful wonderful brother for inspiring it from the beginning! isn't trying something new refreshing (and challenging!)?

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great green-ies: team ecoetsy (& a FREE gift!)

greening.... i find it exciting and hopeful that while there sure are lots of terrible things going on to pollute & harm our planet, there are so many wonderful folks doing fabulous things to help make the world a greener, healthier place! so, the rikrak studio is happy to feature great green-ies : snapshots of amazing, inspiring. eco-forward-thinking folks from all sorts of fields and paths in the greening movement. some inspire by greening at home, or in their business; in their art or the larger world, or on many levels at once! i've asked each green-ie to suggest an easy eco-idea or tip we might all be able to add to our daily lives. today i'm honoured to present the next in this series!

if there is anything possibly better then an amazing person who dedicates their works to eco.forward greening, it's gotta be a group of individuals dedicating themselves to greening! and today's great greenie is just that... a green green group!

the Eco Etsy street team is a global group of handmade artisans dedicated to practicing and spreading the word about reducing, reusing & recycling. Team "EcoEtsy is open to sellers who try to waste less in the process of creating, selling, packaging and shipping, and to encourage buyers to do their part as well." the team runs an insightful (and very popular!) blog, that is filled with fabulous tips, tutorials, ideas, & green features.

i'm so proud to be a member team eco.etsy. it's a vibrant, busy, ALIVE group of folks who are passionate, and talented! so if you haven't already, be sure to search for the term "teamecoetsy" when you're shopping on Etsy!

and lastly, all this month, until march 31st, various team members are participating in MARCH MADNESS: Free & Green : where you'll receive a FREE GIFT with purchase from each shop. read more here! (i'm excited to be one of the participants!)


and for a fabulous array of green tips & tutorials, just subscribe to the EcoEtsy blog....

you'll find great ideas like this one, by Leatherwood Designs on precycling

or this tip on bringing your own by betternbefore

or this solid shampoo tip by kootsac

to name some recent posts!

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so happy greening, in our own lives, and in the goodies we bring into our homes!
have a green day!

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happy birthday, mr. rikrak!

typewriter birthday card by OnPaper

march is a very special month in the rikrak home. it marks birthdays for two of my best friends in the world... the charming mr. rikrak , & mommy rikrak (my wonderful mom!)

today is my fun-loving, poem-writing, super-creative, superdaddy, brilliantly-minded, prof-extraordinaire, cute hubby's birthday.

i'm so lucky to have my best friend as my partner, and for so many adventurous years now!

so happy birthday, sweetie.
you inspire me to be a more thoughtful soul, a more dedicated listener & to challenge my ideas in wonderful ways.
you're wonderful.

happy birthday, love!

(you should see how very cutely little rikrak decorated the house for the occasion! adorable little daddy drawings, handmade *streamers* & fun little signs! love it!)

(ps: here's a blatant plug: here's his 1st book: it's great! go buy it! hint hint!)

muybridge's horse: a poem in three phases by rob winger

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greatest hits: with oktak

what inspires you artistically & creatively? what would those inspirations look like visually? in this fun series, (please see the others here) ... i’ve invited some wonderful artists to share with us 4 images of inspiration in their artistic life, something of an interview in images! the guidelines were basically this: choose 4 visuals (something like your creative-stimuli *greatest hits!*) that you feel most inspires & expresses your art or craft today. for some, it might be a person, place or thing; a material; a pattern; a colour; a sound or song, etc. it might be a photograph, a drawing, a scan, etc. i’ve tried to leave it a bit open-ended so that we might better glimpse into these artists' motivations and their amazing, raw talent! today i’m delighted to present the next in the series "greatest hits*:


*swoon* .. everything about the handmade work of oktak just makes me *swoon-worthy.*

a favourite of many many an etsyian, Aki (of the brilliant label oktak) crafts beautiful handmade bags & frame purses that are a true delight to the senses. who wouldn't want one of those impeccably made, gorgeous & luxurious fabrics in hand? i just love oktak's beautiful sense of style, the perfect way she uses colour & light & pattern in her work, and the simple, classic contemporary style she inspires every handmaker to strive toward.

and ... she's a delight, too! so warm & friendly & modest. so I asked Aki, a Tokyoite living in Manhattan, designer extraordinaire & wonderful mommy, to share with us what inspires her beautiful beautiful work. in her own words, here are 4 images that inspire her...

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A Japanese iris, taken in a garden in Tokyo: Nature because I believe it's the source of inspiration for everything humans make, conscious or not.

My kids' art. Because they aren't afraid to create what they want, and their art is so alive and unique. "It took me 4 years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child"
- Pablo Picasso.

Little girl kimono: My grand-mother made this gorgeous silk kimono for my mother's 3rd birthday - it was handed down to me and then to my daughter. I am very much influenced by the Japanese aesthetic of using beautiful (and often shocking) fabric for the lining.

Mid-century art & illustration. These are works by Jim Flora and Mary Blair. Just because I love art from this era.


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beautiful. thanks so much, aki.
for a delightful stroll, visit oktak's beautiful shop.

ahh... delightful! and have a bright & beautiful weekend, lovelies.
(ps: thanks for all of your wonderfully warm well-wishes yesterday about the new rikrak works! your comments are so very very much appreciated.)

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