When I was 7 years old my father showed me how to knit. We lived on a small farm in southwest Michigan and lived in manner not unlike my ancestors did in Eastern Europe (see photo above). It wasn't that he sat around and knit socks, but he could if it came down to it. I left the farm to study art in Chicago and am still taking courses in handspinning, knitting, and weaving as well as working as a teaching artist. I work with the fiber from the small flock of sheep on the family farm.

Most of my work is created from scratch. The wool comes from our own sheep. The wool is handspun using either a drop spindle, a Babe Fiber Starter wheel, or my garage-sale-find Ashford Traditional wheel. The dyes come from plants grown in my garden (with a few fun, bright colors created with Kool-Aid or Jaquard dyes).

The indoor 61st Street Farmers Market in Woodlawn/Hyde Park. 6100 S. Blackstone, Experimental Station, Saturdays December 6 and 13, 9am-noon. Lots of hand-spun yarns were available as well as preserves from the farm (ajvar, fruit butters, and quince marmalade).

I was selling veggies (and yarn) at the Chicago Logan Square Farmers' Market, Logan/ Kedzie/ Milwaukee on Sundays June through October, 10am-3pm. There's an interesting photo of me at the market here.

Chicago Weekly wrote about CSA farmers who deliver to the Hyde Park area. It's an honor for me to be mentioned alongside Farmer Vickie of Genesis Growers. Read the article here.

Twist Collective, an online knitting magazine, featured several CSA fiber farms in Shearing and Sharing: Community Supported Fiberculture Catches On.

Chicago Tribune's Good Eating "Summer, captured: Pickling preserves the edible bounty of Chicago's fleeting season."

I was Gapers Blocked.

The Statement
An article about my sheep and natural-colored wool.

Venus Magazine
Venus Magazine captured me and my wheel at the Renegade Holiday Sale 2007.

Slow Food Chicago (2008)
Peppers, peppers, peppers. I lectured on the history of peppers in the Balkans and gave out samples of my homemade ajvar and Macedonian-style pickled peppers.

International Academy of Art and Technology, Chicago (2001)
Discussed natural-colored wool, naturally-dyed yarn, and hand-constructed garments

Center for Book & Paper Arts, Columbia College, Art of the Zine (2006)
Showcase of Rain and Drizzle fanzines

Hyde Park Art Center, Faculty Show (2007)
knit and woven work
Freak Boutique fashion show, Red Dog nightclub (1995)
The Film Center, Field/Frame (1990)
The Family 20-minute video documentary
Chicago Filmmakers (1989)
(Say Yes to No) Continental Cuisine (dir. George Kuchar)
School of the Art Institute of Chicago, 3D Show (1987)
Knit Envelope
School of the Art Institute of Chicago, 2D show (1986)
self-portrait
School of the Art Institute of Chicago 4D Show (1986)
Some Cars Have Ears, group show

Renegade Craft Fair, Chicago, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
DIY Trunk Show, Chicago, 2006, 2008
Handmade Market, Chicago, 2006-present
Delilah's Holiday Sale, Chicago, 2000-2003
Intuit Galley Holiday Fashion Sale, Chicago, 1999

Stellaria Natural Health, Chicago 2007
Knit1 Yarn Shop, Chicago 2006

I was the publisher/editor of these zines:

Drizzle, newsletter focusing on Chicago music (1994-2000)
Rain, fanzine focusing on Chicago music, art, and fashion (1986-2000)

These Parts Critic's Choice: Michigan Fiber Festival.

Chicago Farmers' Markets (2007): Where to shop for produce and more this summer (includes recipes from Paul Vivrant).

The complete Chicago 2006 farmers markets published in the Chicago Reader (includes recipes from Shawn McClain, Bruce Sherman, and Mehmet Ak).

Here's a list of Chicago 2005 farmers markets published in the Chicago Reader (includes recipes from Erwin Dreschler, John Bubala, and Jason Hammel/Lea Tshilds).

Also from the Chicago Reader, Eat Local The Reader's Guide to Subscription Farms (2007) and The Reader's Guide to Subscription Farms (2006).