Pray for Grace

It's been ages. I am sorry for that. I've had an incredibly hectic and personal year, and just didn't feel it should be shared all over the internet.

I do have lots of exciting news to share (I opened a shop!) and I promise that I will be back soon to tell. In the meantime, if you are wondering what's going on with me your best bet is to either join the Soasa mailing list, sign up here or come find me on Facebook.

For now I leave you with this excellent song that is really worth a close listen.

I take a moment to myself
So I can hear myself
To feel myself
And be real myself
Life's addictions and afflictions
'Cause abrasions from their friction
Sometimes it's easier to live in fiction
I can run, but I can't hide
From the pains that reside down deep inside
There is no pill that can be swallowed
There is no guru that can be followed
There's no escapin' from my own history
Those that I hurt and those that hurt me
I was dead for a million years 'fore I was born and
I'll be dead for a million more after I'm gone
So I live to give somethin' that can live on
Like the way you hum a song when the music's gone
Like the warmth of the sand when the sun goes down
And I'm sittin' with myself, nobody else is around, but

Why must I feel like this today?
I'm a soldier, but afraid sometimes
To face the things that may
Block the sun from shining rays
And fill my life with shades of grey
And still I long to find a way
So today, I pray for grace

Soasa Summer Calendar 2011!

June 12
Beacon Strawberry Festival, Beacon, NY

June 18-19
Clearwater Music Festival, Croton-on-Hudson, NY

June 24-26
Oldsongs Festival of Music and Dance, Altamont, NY

July 2-3
Great American Weekend, Goshen, NY

July 9-10
Shaker Heritage Craft Fair, Albany, NY

July 21-24
GrassRoots Festival of Music and Dance, Trumansburg, NY

July 30-31
Newport Folk Festival, Newport, RI

August 6-7
Newport Jazz Festival, Newport, RI

More events to come! Please feel free to contact me for more information, or join the mailing list to stay up to date!

We get by with a little help from our friends...

The tough job market is hitting close to home all around these days. Several of my friends are out of work and now one of them is faced with the need to move herself and her son out west in order to be closer to family, but they need help! We are mobilizing in force in an effort to help them move and to help raise the necessary funds to make it happen.

I am not a person of means, but I am in a position to help in the following manner:

50% of all orders placed between now and Friday, Feb 5th will be donated to their moving fund. As my way of thanking you for your support all purchases will come with a coupon for $5 off your next order.

Plan ahead! Will you need a Valentine's Day gift? A Mother's Day gift? A birthday present or just a midwinter treat Please consider shopping early and help me help my friend.

I think we all hoped that the effects of the recession would have passed by now, but many of us are still experiencing them every day. It is only by pulling together on a community level that we can really change our experience of this situation.

If you would like to read more about Michelle's story or make a donation directly please visit this link: Plea for Help:  Knitter & Child in Need

Devon, Becky, Tina, Me, Michelle, Little Man

I leave you with this picture and a song from one of my favorite community activists:

This is me. For the past five days I've been working with the temp agency in town to get a gig at a tax prep office. I never wanted to know (or at least read) as much about taxes as I have in the past few days. I'm ready to beat my head against the wall! That said, if you have any questions there's a good chance I can help you.

Book Review: The Thief at the End of the World

So I've been reading quite a bit and I vowed to start writing about it again. It's good practice and it makes it easier to remember what I did and did not enjoy, and why!

Joe Jackson's book The Thief at the End of the World: Rubber, Power, and the Seeds of Empire caught my eye in a huge pile of Advance Reader Copies (seriously, 200) that I picked up a few months ago. I set it aside because I thought it was something my uncle would appreciate, but right before I went to give it to him I decided to take a look at it myself, thinking I wouldn't be interested. Turns out I devoured it in four days.

I could not have anticipated enjoying this book as much as I did. It's history, and it's the history of rubber for goodness sake. How exciting could that be? As it turns out, the history of rubber is totally fascinating, and the gentleman (Henry Wickham) responsible for one of the most globally influential acts of piracy was a big dreamer with a habit of failing at everything he tried. Somehow this makes him both lovable and loathsome as the history of rubber growth and consumption unravels amidst tales his many trials (and few tribulations.) Jackson offers up an interesting mix of economics, politics, science and travelogue in order to give the reader a sense of the whole picture of rubber and the people and places that were consumed by their want for it.

Honesty Policy

What will 2011 be like?

In writing my 2010 post I realized just how much of last year I failed to document. A lot of it felt too personal, and some of it felt insignificant, but I did learn a lot and writing about things always helps that process. So goal number one will be to blog more. (Isn't it always the same goal over here?)

On a personal front 2011 will be about caring for myself on a holistic level. There is a lot that has been pushed aside for many years and a lot of self-sabotaging habits that I have picked up. Lately I have begun to examine my self and my life and I am working to find where I'm "leaking" energy and find ways to channel myself in a more productive direction, physically, emotionally and financially. I am looking forward to taking on the challenge of meeting myself again and seeing what I am capable of. I certainly have not stopped learning since graduating, and I'm looking forward to sharing with you all some of the exciting and engaging things that I have been reading and contemplating.

Business goals are also challenging, because I am at a point where I need to create another plan, another set of short and longterm goals. Certainly in the near future I will be completing the website. I am also going to be doing some close examination of myself and my own goals, and determining where they may lead the business. I think you will be hearing more about that later. Wherever it ends up there will be more designing and creating. That's a must.

Does anyone have any 2011 goals to share? Any resolutions?

P.s. Apparently I forgot about my 5 year blogiversary. It was in December. Wohoo!

It's always hard to believe another year has come and gone. 2010 was interesting and mostly productive for me, with a few major milestones. I don't think any year is free of stress, and 2010 marks a lot of changes for me with the deteriorating health of some family members and the loss of several others. However the time spent recalling the significance and impact of their lives has brought our family closer and served to remind us all that each day is precious and best spent to the fullest.

I spent much of this past year gathering resources and building forward. I started by finishing off one major project!

I graduated! Done and done!

Graduation granted me the time to really focus on business, and I feel that I made some significant steps forward last year. Jus and I moved a bit south, and I expanded my range out into New Jersey, Long Island and CT. Some of it was successful, some was not. One thing that is very cool is that my new van gave me the freedom to travel and avoid costly hotel stays. My dad and I build a very cool platform in the back, complete with a trapdoor, so that I am able to sleep on an air mattress during my shows. It's so liberating I can't even tell you!

We also built a new website (SoasaDesigns.com) and while it's not really finished it's still a vast improvement on the old one. Sometime this fall I also started selling through Artfire.com and I think that I will be happy with that change in my life.

On a more personal note, this year I grew my first solo vegetable garden! It was an INCREDIBLE experience. I don't know where I'll find land to plant one this year, but I will certainly be trying to find some! If anyone knows a place I could put in a small garden in the Goshen area, please tell me!


2010 was a good year. I have learned and grown more than I expected, and I think that I can make 2011 awesome with a little focus and determination.

Oh hi, it's Black Friday. You could be saving 15% off Soasa!

Bird Charm Necklace

Are you on my Soasa mailing list?
Are you a fan of Soasa on Facebook?

If you answered "yes" to either of these questions, than you already know how you can save 15% off your Soasa purchases this weekend!

If you answered "no", well, what are you waiting for!

The mailing list sign up is here: Soasa Contact
The Facebook fan page is here: SOASA

I hope you will join us!

P.s. I started using Artfire. You can still find some of my stuff on Etsy, but my Artfire shop will be better maintained and have a wider selection as I begin to wean off my Etsy shop.

Birke Baehr on the problems with our food industry

You might have noticed from my last post that I've been thinking a lot about food lately. I've been struggling with the cost of maintaining a healthy, ethical, nutrient-rich diet, especially with student loans looming.

This 11 year old finally said what I needed to hear. "We can pay the farmers, or we can pay the hospitals." Well darn. I guess that 'bout settles it!

Seriously, this guy has so many good points it's pretty hard not to agree with him.




P.s. I like Kale chips too. In fact, I'm about to make a batch!

I came across this video while reading Crystal Nelson's Blog.

On Paleo Eating and Tightwadery

I'm not sure how I end up getting myself into these situations, but sometimes I think I'm out to make my life difficult.

The problem is, I'm reading these two books simultaneously, and the result is somewhat confusing. You see, I am reading this book called The Paleo Solution: The Original Human Diet which has presented some convincing and intriguing science about why I should stop eating dairy, legumes and gluten, and instead revert to a paleolithic diet of animal protein and fresh fruits and veggies. Now, believe you me, growing up on a dairy farm, religiously eating whole wheat and lentils, this isn't what I wanted to be convinced of. In fact, I fought quite hard and still find myself twitching at times throughout the day. Never the less, Robb Wolf is one convincing (and funny) dude, so JusPup and I are slowly weening ourselves off these foods in preparation for a full on 30 day trial run in November (all bets are off for Thanksgiving day, though). I know, I know, it's counter to everything I've been taught, but JusPup is down 15 pounds, I'm down 3, and we aren't even totally on the diet yet!

Now, animal protein and fresh plants. Delicious! Healthy! NOT a good paring when in the back of your mind is all the tried and true budget advice from one Amy Dacyczyn (she swears it's pronounced like "decision", who's gonna argue?) of The Complete Tightwad Gazette which happens to be the other book I'm reading. "At every meal include at least one pantry staple" "Bake your own bread at least once a week" and on and on (there really are a lot of good tips in this book)! I love bread! In fact, I just inherited a bread machine! I love pantry staples! Give me rice and lentils any day! Of course, what I've realized is that I also get a tummy full of gas and pain. I sort of thought this was normal...

So, pair my tightwadish tendencies with a fresh-based diet (and a pension for locally, ethically grown) and what do you get? A headache. A budgeting nightmare. OK, that's what I get. (Also, some delicious roast chicken which became roasted acorn squash stuffed with chicken and then became some delicious chicken soup!) What you get is to read about my new adventures in the kitchen, trying to stock a pantry with everything except pantry food, while on a budget, in the soon-to-be-dead of winter.

Do you have a favorite cheap, grain-free, legume-free, dairy-free meal? Please tell me about it! (Also, if you know anyone with a lot of venison on their hands, I want it!)

Yes, these are affiliate links. I realized that a lot of what I write about is books, and thought that I might as well give this a shot. If it skeeves you out, just go to Amazon and search them yourself! I promise I will never speak well of a book that I think sucks. I don't have time for that. I hardly even have time to tell you about the books that I like!!

Flora Necklace - My First Etsy Front Page!

Flora Necklace - Pink, Peach and Yellow Lucite, Antiqued Brass and Silk, originally uploaded by Soasa Designs.

I can hardly believe it, but this little necklace made it to the Etsy Front Page last night as part of this treasury! Of course I missed it, but a fellow member of the treasury managed to track down an archive and sent it to me. Check it out! Much thanks to NoelFales who makes some really killer stuff!

I've been working on coming up with some more cohesive groups of work, and this is part of my new collection called "Flora"

I have been SO busy lately. I hope to share some of the fruits of those labors with you soon! Stay tuned for new work and some exciting news!

I solemnly swear to give you my honest opinion.

Yes, I have started using Amazon affiliate links. I realized that a lot of what I write about is books, and thought that I might as well give this a shot. If it skeeves you out, just go to Amazon and search them yourself! I promise I will never speak well of a book that I think sucks. I don't have time for that. I hardly even have time to tell you about the books that I like!!

Are You My Target Audience?

When I first started selling my jewelry I didn't really think it would ever be something that I did full time. Even after completing my degree, it took a while for the reality to sink in. Jewelry. It's what I do. Somehow in five years it just crept up and became an all-encompassing part of my life.

The problem with starting a business so loosely is that there comes a time when you need to take a major step in order to optimize your time and energy spent branding, marketing, creating, and networking. The difficulty comes when you're not sure what that step is. Because my business has grown so organically over the past 5 years, it's hard to decipher exactly what I need to do next. I'm too close to it.

A friend of mine is starting up a new business (Stellar Sunshine Hoops) and I have a blast troubleshooting and coming up with ideas for her, but I can't always do that for myself. I really miss being at that stage where every step was a big one.

I mentioned earlier this week that one major project I have going on is my new website. It's finally much more in line with how I've always envisioned it but the research and development of it has led me to wonder about my focus. Up until now I've been sort of "throwing mud at a wall". Spread my work around and see who likes it, what sticks. This year has been especially experimental because I have so many new events going on and a lot of them have been complete failures.

What it comes down to is this. I have to finally ask the question "who is my target audience?" Who do I have something to say to? Who's life can I improve? Who's questions can I answer?

I need your help!

Why do you read my blog (or tweets, or facebook updates)?

What is it about me that interests you?

If you're a fan of my jewelry, why?

You can e-mail me your answers (robinmsills [@] gmail [.] com), or leave them in the comments. I'd really appreciate it if you'd take a minute to get back to me on this.

I think I pissed blogger off...

It's been so long since I wrote a proper post that I think Blogger is mad at me. I wrote up a nice one for your guys, but then everything possible went wrong with formating and stuff just broke.

Here's the gist of it. I took a break, and then I had too much news to share, but none of it seemed worthy of a big "I'm back!" kind of post. So I didn't blog for about 8 months.

So here's a little photo representation of my life since January:

I graduated! (With highest honors. I am a nerd. Thanks for listening. I'm done bragging now.)

I started spinning again. Sort of.

I grew my first solo garden!

I processed a total of 7.5lbs of basil into pesto for my freezer.

I had a blast at Mountain Jam, Oldsongs, and GrassRoots music festivals!

I got a "new" van! A '93 Dodge Caravan! I pimped it out so that I can sleep in it when I have far away events. It is totally dope. That's a Buzz Lightyear air mattress, by the way.

Most of all, I've cooked and eaten lots of delicious food in my HUGE kitchen in my new apartment.

I also went to Cape Cod a couple times, I've been traveling all over the place selling jewelry, I'm working on a new website, I build an awesome hookah for a final project, I did some nice ceramics work, I've been hula hooping again, and I have some beautiful new designs up on Etsy!

Hi! If you made it to the end, thanks for looking! I promise that my upcoming posts won't be this nutty.

Fall Calendar!

I swear I will get back to actually blogging sometime soon. Here's why I never have time:

September 19 Van Houten Avenue Street Fair, Clifton, NJ
September 21-23 Fall Northeast Art & Craft Show, Empire State Plaza, Albany, NY
September 26 Haverstraw Street Festival, Haverstraw, NY
October 2 Hudson High School Craft and Home Expo, Hudson, NY
October 3 Warwick AppleFest, Warwick, NY
October 9-10 Warren Fall Festival, Warren, CT (one of my favorites!)
October 23-24 Connecticut Renaissance Faire, Hebron, CT
October 26-27 Thanksgiving Northeast Art & Craft Show, Empire State Plaza, Albany, NY

I have some new and beautiful designs on Etsy, if you are interested! (SoasaDesigns)

Also, stay tuned because my new website should be up and running sometime in the next week or two!!

ANOTHER Updated Calendar!

This should be final, but of course, you never know!

June 25-27 Oldsongs Festival of Music and Dance, Altamont, NY
July 18 Nyack Street Fair, Nyack, NY
July 23-25 GrassRoots Festival of Music and Dance, Trumansburg, NY
August 5-8 WOOL, Lake George, NY
August 28-29 Old Bethpage Village Craft and Gift Show, Old Bethpage, LI, NY
September 4-5 Eisenhower Park Craft and Gift Show, East Meadow, LI, NY
September 11-12 Bayville Waterside Craft and Gift Show, Bayville, LI, NY
September 25-26 Merrick Annual Fall Festival, Merrick, LI, NY

Some changes to the schedule...

Unfortunately I had to drop the two shows on Long Island in June. One was canceled and the other is the weekend of my brother's high school graduation! I could not miss that! I have added an event in Rockland County in July, and I am looking at a few others as well. I am also looking at a market in Middletown, NY, and I will probably make an appearance or two at the Hillsdale Farmers Market.

This is the schedule as of now, but I am unsure of whether I will be at Falcon Ridge or GrassRoots this year. I will let you know as soon as I do!

June 25-27 Oldsongs Festival of Music and Dance, Altamont, NY
July 18 Nyack Street Fair, Nyack, NY
July 23-25 Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, Hillsdale, NY
August 5-8 WOOL, Lake George, NY


Sorry for any confusion, I will try and keep everyone in the loop!

Spring and Summer 2010!

I'm sorry I've been off the map for so long. It's been a hectic few months. I can't believe it's already time to get back into it! I'm graduating in just 4 weeks and I can't wait to really dig into this year of events! This list isn't final, but it's what I have so far.

April 24 Clermont Sheep and Wool Festival, Clermont, NY
May 1 Beltane Festival, New Paltz, NY
June 5-6 Bayville Waterside Festival, Bayville, Long Island, NY
June 12-13 Old Bethpage Village, Old Bethpage, Long Island, NY
June 25-27 Oldsongs Festival of Music and Dance, Altamont, NY
July 23-25 Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, Hillsdale, NY
August 5-8 WOOL, Lake George, NY

There will be more events beginning in September.

Sheepish...

Last Thursday morning was the Wonderful Things Annual Sale, dubbed the O'Dark Sale by my friend Tina because of how early she has to get up to get there. The deal is, if you're at the door at 7am you get a stamp and everything is 40% off for the day. 8am means 30%, and 9 is good for 20%. What this means is that she was up at 5:30 I was up at 4:30. Lest you think she and I are the only crazy ones, there was a line of 20+ people at that door at 7. Tina has some great photos in her post about the event and you should check it out! This year it was just she and I, and we were super quick. Tina needed to be at work, a solid 45 minutes away, by 9:45. We really wanted breakfast. We made it with time to spare! We were in the door, through the shop, and in line to pay by 7:35!

I set myself a budget based on how much money I had awarded myself for exercising (if you're on Ravelry you should check out the Exer-stashers group) and then totally blew it. Oops. I tell myself it's alright because this is the last yarn shopping I'm doing until Rhinebeck. I may allow myself one skein at Clermont, but really. This is the year of stash knitting. I will be keeping track of how much I knit up, an I do aim for a big number.

Anyhow, enough babble. Here are the goodies:

6 skeins of Cascade 220 in Walnut Heather

Miraculously, I was the very first person at the 220 wall...I think this helped our speed because last year it was a mess!


Pagewood Farm Chugiak in Chocolate

I didn't even hesitate when I saw this color. I snapped it up. Then I realized it was the same yarn I was using for a pair of socks! Yarn I happened to buy at the sale last year. If there was any doubt in my mind that I wanted it, that sealed the deal.


Cherry Tree Hill Supersock Select in Java

This was a bit of a strange color choice for me, but you can't deny its beauty, and I've wanted to try Cherry Tree Hill for a while and see what all the fuss is about. Tina loved it too (though not so much the mustard colors I kept hurling at her.)


Cleckheaton Country Silk 8ply in 3 Colors

This was my downfall. I found it in the orphanage (the last of or discontinued yarns go there) and I couldn't resist. It's merino with silk tweed!! What's not to love!! Plus the colors are undeniably fun. Until this point I was pretty much sticking to my budget. I think I'm going to make some crazy colorwork slippers with them.

A new year....

This year I'm not exactly making resolutions. There are some things I'd like to achieve, but I'm going to let it happen naturally, rather than strapping myself down with a solid list of dates, deadlines, and waist measurements. Some things I want to pay more attention to include my health (all around, not just my weight) and my general fabulousness. I have resolved to pay more attention to how I present myself.

This might be a bit of a half-assed post. Sorry about that! I'm to busy living already!

Last year I participated off and on in Project Spectrum and I found it inspiring and eye-opening. I will definitely be taking part when it comes around again.

1. Bubbles, 2. Seaweed Shawl WIP, 3. Basket Tree II, 4. This is all I see!, 5. Ninja!, 6. Project Spectrum: Bariloche or Bust - Ears, FO

I didn't knit as much as I was hoping to, but I knit a ton of useful and much-loved smaller items. I'm happy with what I've done and excited to see what this year brings. As you can see, Project Spectrum was a huge incentive for me.

1. Hemlock Ring Complete II, 2. NaKniSweMoDo09 #1 UCA Shrug, 3. NaKniSweMoDo09 #2 Demeter, 4. Project Spectrum: Frostberries FO, 5. Seaweed Shawlette Project Spectrum: North, 6. Toasty Gold Project Spectrum: East, 7. FO: Quick 'n Dirty Socks III, 8. FO: Bariloche or Bust, 9. Project Spectrum: Bariloche or Bust - Ears, FO, 10. Strong like bull!, 11. Too big for mee..., 12. Secret Santa

I have jumped back on the 52 Books in 52 Weeks wagon, but my rotation starts in August, so that's old news. I haven't been blogging the books, but perhaps I'll start doing that again. In the meantime you can see what I'm reading in the sidebar on the left.

I have big plans for my jewelry this year, but I will write about that more as the year goes on.