hillary

Amateur: anachronist, poet, seamstress, artist, photographer, wife, mother (my daughter is four). I love making things: in the sewing room, in the kitchen, in the garden, in vivo. I think of myself as the kind of person who travels, but I don't. Dilettante (most often in the best sense, but occasionally in the worst). I love vintage of almost every era, quirky stuff, zakka, natural fibers, sewing and office supplies, seeds for the garden, yarn, books, tiny objects.

I'm a tea person, not so much a coffee person. I like the whole ritual of tea: the pot, the leaves unfurling, the honey and lemon or milk and sugar. The spoon, the cup. The cozy.

I always prefer a handmade thing over a storebought thing, a thrifted item over a new one, but I understand this takes more time and effort!

I own a handcraft-based business making children's items and lingerie that keeps me very busy. I love creating every day, and I love to support other people engaged in creative pursuits as their livelihood.

I enjoy sewing, knitting, embroidery, felting (needle felting and hollow felting), dollmaking and toymaking. I'm not a scrapbooker but I do like ephemera, especially vintage stuff.

Everything is Illuminated, City of Lost Children, Amelie, The Princess Bride, Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead

I like most things by Queneau and his Oulipo friends, Modern poets, children's books, nonfiction books especially about toymaking and handcrafts. I also like vintage books about etiquette, deportment, and grooming.

I collect 50's-70's paper dolls and fashion magazines, Blythe dolls and Japanese toys, old shadowboxes, vintage aprons, fabrics. I like mid-century Modern furniture and design, with a little bit of earthy-crunchy Bohemian thrown in.

I like a lot of colors, especially: greens of all kinds, brown, red, black, grey, turquoise. And basically every other color can be beautiful in the right context.

Motifs I like: birds, trees, apples, hedgehogs, matroyshkas, leaves, mushrooms, dachshunds, bicycles, umbrellas, did I mention birds? I don't especially like: camo, nautical stuff, Disneyana.

I like to taste: nibby or dark chocolate, herbal teas, toffee, lemony or citrus flavored things, salty/sour things. I like to smell: clean/modern scents, food-related smells except vanilla, quirky/unusual scents. I do not like gardenia anything!

In general I'm not picky so please don't feel limited by these lists...I put them in my profile to be inspirational, not restrictive.