Friday’s are my day to stick my nose in Maria’s studio and discover what she has been working on all week. I have not yet been disappointed, and usually delighted and surprised, as happened today.

We both decided to work less and read and talk more this week, and we were (mostly) successful.

I blogged, of course, and took some photos, and  Maria took a few hours a day to make a new batch of potholders – eight frog potholders and five bee holders. 

These are great fun. You won’t find them on Amazon or at Target. In fact, you won’t find them anywhere but on Maria’s Etsy Page. On Friday I’m her proud Marketing Team.

For us, this is a radical scaling back just for a holiday.

We are hoping to extend our Peaceable Week into the weekend. We’ll do some work, but less. We are working hard to keep from working all the time, but not working is hard when work is a calling and important to us and never feels like work.

There must be a balance; we are working on it. I see these potholders as a creative and surprising gift for Christmas stockings.

Over the years we have been married, I’ve had the pleasure to see Maria turn humble potholders into functional potholders and a new kind of art form. However, many of hers adorn walls rather than kitchen counters.

These new potholders went up on Etsy this afternoon; they cost $20 each plus $5 shipping. You can see them and buy them here.