LATELY / July 2025
Hellooo!
It’s so fun to pop in and share what I’ve been up to these past few months, but also a bit overwhelming, as it feels like so much has happened since I wrote one of these posts (April, ack).
Elli and I launched Sapphire in May, and afterwards I treated myself to a little mini-break at a cabin the woods — a sabbatical of sorts — and I worked on some creative projects that were not at all related to work, and it was lovely and relaxing. It also turned out to be well-timed, as I was feeling a little burned out from the pattern launch and *waves hand at everything*, and honestly, it was May, so need I say more? Maybe I will find a moment to share some of my photos from that time soon? Or maybe not.
Elliot graduated from high school in June and we threw a big deck party and a bunch of adorable slash awkward teenagers ran around our yard, played badminton, and ate a shit ton of BBQ’d meats. We went through like, five whole trays of mac and cheese. I spent the days leading up to the party covering our chalkboard wall with hundreds of photos of him from baby to age 18 and it was giving A Beautiful Mind but with 4x6’s, but everyone seemed to enjoy it…so no worries.
I love these big life moments with my kiddos but at the same time it’s so hard to even wrap my brain around it when I can recall with such clarity the moment we buckled his tiny carseat into the back seat of our car and took him home from the hospital. So to see my awesome, independent, smart, funny, generous kid at 18, graduating from high school, it is just so wild. And I know it’s so cliché but I wish I could go back in time and give my 29 year old self a hug and say: you’re doing great; it’s all going to be OK; in the blink of an eye he will walk across the stage to receive his high school diploma. Post partum me would probably cry big fat turtle tears of relief because fuuuuuck is it ever hard, you know?
My mom and dad came to visit, I went to a couple more protests (still mad, yep!), Hugo graduated from 5th grade and went to sleepaway camp, and last week I spent some time with my sisters for a few days. We went shopping, walked past the house we grew up in, visited my sweet, 100-year-old (!!!) grandma, ate a lot of ice cream, had some pool time, swam in my favorite lake (above) and laughed a lot.
Here are a few other things I’ve been into and up to these past few months…
reading: I tore through Kindred by Octavia Butler in just a few days, riveting. Enjoyed Lessons in Chemistry, pretty good. I was amused by all of the rowing references (my sister Elli, who works here at MBR, is a champion rower, btw). And Margot’s Got Money Troubles had me in both stitches and tears, it was the best.
sewing: I made myself an Emerald baby-doll dress (above) by cropping an Emerald top and adding a gathered skirt and layered it with my Citrine sweaters this spring. Have been in a bit of a sewing slump, but I bought some colorful SewLike fabric a couple weeks ago from Romy — shown below — and can’t wait to cut into it. Would anyone be up for a Sapphire sewalong in August or September? Let me know.
I also made a bunch of cloth napkins out of designer (mainly Heather Ross) quilting cottons I'd held onto for years to replace our old napkins which were 10+ years old and threadbare. It felt great to spend just a couple of hours sewing squares together, assembly-line-style, and have a fresh stack of napkins to show for it.
blooming: I am truly the most half-assed gardener, so seeing my daffodils come back year after year is pretty delightful. Right now my Shasta Daisies are in full bloom, the first flowers I ever successfully grew from seed — and I kinda can’t believe how well they are doing. Plants, man. They’re pretty cool!
stitching: away happily every day on my Pattern Club samplers. I bought the purple Taos one ala carte, and the sunburst one was the first one of the 2025 club. The other two shown were from last year - I turned them into pouches.
listening: The Telepathy Tapes is so fascinating. Have you listened to it? Tell me what you think. And I’m really having fun listening to Las Culturistas (skip the most recent LCCA ones though if you’ve never listened) and Good Hang with Amy Poehler.
watching: am currently obsessed with Lupin. And Survival of the Thickest is comedian Michelle Buteau at her finest.
Oh! Hugo got glasses (hee - I think he’s so cute!!) and after we get back from a family vacation on Lake Huron next week, we are going to get a puppy.
Which reminds me: My print pattern shop will be on vacation for a month starting tomorrow, July 25 until August 25, so if you want one of my print patterns shipped from me, today is literally the day to order!! But don’t worry — my full collection of instant-download PDF patterns is always available, or you can pick up one of my print patterns from one of these stockists.
stay cool!
xo
Rae
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