future crafter?

by Laurie May on July 24, 2010

futurecrafter-sm

maybe she’s not so sure about that?

{onesie and “clown pants” (as dubbed by Daddy) both from the lovely Sarah G. — The onesie was made by the fine folks at craftster.org and found at the Boston Bazaar Bizarre (which just so happens to be having a SUMMER show this year, on August 21st. Sure to be totally awesome.)}

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7 things; summer!

by Laurie May on July 21, 2010

I don’t have a lot of time, so I’ll keep it short and sweet. A list will do!

1. turns out I love being a mama. YAY! (not that I doubted that I would, but I’m pretty glad that I do.)

4th
2. a tree fell in our backyard 2 nights ago. crazy, right?

3. my aunt moved her shop to an amazing new space! It’s called Ikonium Studio and it’s at 69 Church Street in Lenox, MA — Go visit! There you will find contemporary and traditional Turkish and American fiber art and craft, amazing Turkish rugs, as well as some fantastic paintings and a few things made by other crafty folks and yours truly.

4. I’m doing a show in 2  weeks! I haven’t really gotten back to work yet (still resisting, enjoying “maternity leave”!) but I have to. Today. The show is sponsored by BerkshireMade; Handmade in the Park, downtown Lee, MA, Saturday August 7, 10am – 4pm.
tomatoes

5. tomatoes! summer! swimming!

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6. I am told our miss Natalie is very “advanced” — large for her age (10 weeks!), but also strong, smiley from day one and super talkative for weeks now. Also sleeping a lot, but I wont get into that, for fear of being stoned by other sleep-deprived mamas.

MomsLillies

7. did I mention summer? With that comes weddings (that we have missed, boo!) and visits from friends and family, barbecues, birthdays of some of my favorite people, craft fairs (I’m only doing one, but you better be visiting lots!), farmer’s markets, tag sales (no, haven’t been to any, but we will), vacations (maybe next year?), and the Berkshire Fringe (starts next week!)!

Yay, Summer!

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here we are

by Laurie May on June 30, 2010

hello from Natalie-land!
All is well here! She is 7 weeks old today! I can hardly believe it. Our darling daughter sleeps At NIGHT (therefore not much during the day, but we can’t really complain about that), smiles so much and is just so beautiful and lovely, even when she’s crying, which is thankfully not that often.
It’s late-ish in the day, and that means I’m super tired… but I promise someday I will be back with more words. For today, I think all I can muster is a photo:
Natalie and Mama 6.30.10

Earlier today, rockin’ the Moby Wrap.

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Welcome to the world, Natalie May!

by Laurie May on May 17, 2010

Natalie002

I just had to pop in and finally announce the arrival of our daughter, Natalie May Coyle!
She came into the wold with an early morning waterbirth at home, with the help of an amazing team of midwives and friends, last Wednesday May 12th at 1:23 am. She has sparkly big eyes and her papa’s brown hair; 8lbs 6oz, 22 inches. She was 13 days late, and is already surprising us with smiles and coos, and gazing back at us from her first moments.

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Natalie003

We are now spending our days and sleepless nights gazing at the adorableness of this starry-eyed little one, mostly in disbelief, really, that we created her. I’m sure I’ll be back soon enough with more stories; I promise I will share some of the story of her birth eventually, which was definitely the most amazing, intense, challenging and profound experience of my life. I must say that I am so beyond happy that we chose to have her at home, and I think a tub full of warm water is a wonderful place to come into the world.

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(we're so in love with this hat from Cloo Gifts Etsy shop)

With lots of blissed out love,
xoxo
Laurie

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grateful for simple pleasures

by Laurie May on April 29, 2010

CameraBag_Photo_1004

needing some distractions…

today is our “due date” — but no real signs of this baby coming our way soon, so I’ve decided I need a little distraction, and I also decided it needs to be positive and send goodness into the universe, so here’s a little grateful list for today, Thursday April 29, 2010, in no particular order:

• the fact that I am about to become a Mama any day now

• having had a healthy and easy pregnancy, the prospect of a healthy and easy birth

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• a gorgeous new nursery and new studio, all ready and waiting to be used

• a green couch!

• the beautiful washer and dryer in our new basement bathroom (and the washer works on hot AND cold water!)

• birds, bears, bunnies and other creatures of spring

• leaves on the trees, even tiny ones

• our Curly Willow tree that has grown from a twig to a 15-foot tree in 4 years

• daffodil bouquets from my hubby

• offers for distraction and fun from friends

• HappyDog’s unbridled passion for squeaky toys

• sea-salt brownies (I KNOW, right?)

• pre-sliced mangoes and pineapple

• imagining my hubby as a papa — and all the joy he will bring to this little one’s life

• imagining our HappyDog and the little one as best friends; we imagine it is inevitable.

I also want to thank you for holding us in your thoughts today, on our official due date, and for hanging in there with us as we stay patient and wait for the little one to decide when she (or he!) is ready to greet the world. We will of course keep you updated, and will post something here soon after the birth. {But, you know, not too soon. We are planning to take it easy and revel in the beauty of this new life; thanks, I knew you’d understand}

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Still here

by Laurie May on April 5, 2010

Just in case you were wondering….

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36 weeks & 4 days — due April 29; we all can’t wait to meet this (not-so-little) little bean!

36wks4d_04.05.10

Also, it is spring!

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That’s my very first crocus of the year! We planted these bulbs last fall during the big wall-building/porch renovation project, and it seems they like it here. Spring is a little later to arrive here up on the mountain, but it’s happening!

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just bring yourself!

by Laurie May on March 26, 2010

Bring Yourself - Creative Writing E-courses - click here for more info
I don’t usually do stuff like this, but this course just sounds too cool to not tell you about! (course starts April 12th)

The Handmade Writer is an e-course taught by Amy Spencer of Bring Yourself. I do not really consider myself a writer,  but then I have to remind myself that writing a blog post is certainly writing. And an Etsy listing, or even a tweet! If you are thinking of starting a blog, looking for tips on making your writing more expressive, or are just interested in honing your writing skills, I highly recommend you look into this course.

From the Bring Yourself website description of the Handmade Writer:

Take a crafty approach to creative writing and use the fabric of your life to tell your own extraordinary stories.

The Handmade Writer e-course will help you gather together material from every source imaginable. You will learn about the craft of writing and how to sew these fragments together to build your own pieces of creative writing. The e-course has been inspired by the strength of craft communities as well as the impulse to transform everyday finds into something amazing.

“…Handmade Writer is the ideal place to take your writing a bit more seriously and will give you the motivation to find space for it in your busy life. By taking a crafty approach, you will start using material from your world to inspire your writing. You will be amazed by what you can achieve and at the end of the six weeks you will want to keep on writing.”

Sounds kinda great, eh?

(Would love to hear if you sign up and how it goes!)

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slowing down

by Laurie May on March 3, 2010

orangeBrown2_stuffedbird_LaurieCoyleDesigns

Not like you wouldn’t have guessed, but I’m taking a little break from all things web-related. I’m also going to be putting my Etsy shop in vacation mode in the next day or two (meaning it’s closed to new orders, but you can still see things that have been sold, contact me, etc., and you can sign up to be notified when it re-opens), and I’m not sure if I’ll re-activate it before the baby bean is born or not. We’re in the middle of project basement right now, and my entire studio is going to be moving down there in the next week. Since I probably won’t know where anything is or have access to everything for a while, I figured it’d be best to put the shop on hold for a while.

So, if you have any shopping you’ve been meaning to do in the Laurie Coyle Designs Etsy shop, now’s the time to do it! If you order something in the next few days I’ll be sure to include a super special free gift, too! yippee!

As for this blog, I’m just going to let myself off the hook, ok? I miss you, but I also feel bad when I don’t post, and that’s just no good for either of us. So I’m here to officially say that until I get into a routine with the little one, I’ll probalby not be here much. There may be no noticeable difference from the current infrequency, but who knows. I totally love you, though, and appreciate all of your encouragement and kind words and your interest in my work (and life!). It really means a lot to me, and I’ll be sure to keep you updated on baby-progress, as well as any new work that comes out of the new studio. I’m also planning a big before-and-after reveal of the basement space, but the project is definitely not done. Not quite yet. So until then…

xoxox

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Little Birdies

by Laurie May on February 17, 2010

Four Cotton Birdie Sculptures, Laurie Coyle Designs

There are still a few more of these little guys in my Etsy shop. I’m also taking custom orders, which will take 7-10 days to complete, barring any unforseen moving-my-studio-two-floors-away circumstances that pop up.

Also be sure to head over and become a fan of Laurie Coyle Designs on Facebook for a super-sweet discount redeemable through Sunday (Feb. 21) on anything in the shop (you are also eligible if you are already a fan — and thanks!).

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Happy Valentine’s Day!

by Laurie May on February 14, 2010

For my darling dear Valentine, I’m thinking of making you a fancy cake. Like this one:
Kandace H -ow-valentines Cakewrecks

(one of my favorites ever, via Cakewrecks)

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