But first, a little sweet story. A friend and I went to Lebanon earlier this week. We had lunch at Three Tomatoes on the green. As we circled the green looking for a place to park, we passed this purple van vending homemade cupcakes. Outside were two little tables with chairs, adorned with bouquets of sweet smelling lilacs. A dad and his little girl were sitting at one of the tables and two women were ordering from the window. We almost abandoned our lunch plans but we came to our senses and decided we would check it out for dessert. So after some yummy crusty bread and signature tomato soup for me and delicious creamy chicken and garlic soup for my friend, we headed out for the purple van.
The cupcakes are made by two ladies each morning and they stay on the green until they sell out. My friend chose “Midnight”, a chocolate cupcake filled with chocolate mousse and topped with chocolate frosting and cocoa. I chose “I Spy”, a chocolate cupcake with bright blue icing topped with one each of small candies such as a gummy bear, a skittle, half a small chocolate bar, etc. They offered several other varieties including a peanut butter confection, one with coconut, and a strawberry one. We both agreed that ours were wonderful and a lovely finish to our lunch.
This little “under the sea” piece started out in a workshop. I was frustrated that day with the method the instructor was teaching. I didn’t get very far but I had all the basic elements cut and one fish fused down. She had wonderful scraps for us to use and I managed to find some good ones. I brought the piece home at the end of the day and set it aside, torn between doing it my way versus her way. It languished on my cutting table for a year. Every time I came across it I kept thinking that it was a fun piece and I should finish it but couldn’t seem to abandon the “you need to do it this way” methods.
The little yarn shop where I volunteer recently posted a fiber challenge. The theme? Under the Sea. I really wasn’t very inspired. I made some origami fish for the window display and actually thought I might try to make a fabulous and very complicated origami carp for my official entry. But I needed thinner paper, cut to a certain size, and what I had wasn’t big enough. As life would have it, the day before the deadline I stumbled on this piece yet again. It was already planned out, lots of the design work was done, it was relatively small and I might be able to pull it off. I quickly abandoned the methods that had been prescribed that I could no longer remember and set to work my way. And it was fun. As I worked, I became more inspired to add other motifs to fill out the design. Now it hangs in the shop window with all the other entries. If you’re in the area in the next few weeks, stop by and vote for your favorite.
Mountain Vistas 