i know i am not alone in my love of sourdough bread baking.

i find it to be a magical process, akin to natural dyeing and gardening. i am continuously in awe of the transformation of humble ingredients into something beautiful. with baking, dyeing, gardening, and many other passions in my life, i like to keep a beginner’s mindset. it is a very approachable way to acquire new skills, without the pressure of perfection. i love this statement by the buddhist monk shunryu suzuki, “in the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities but in the expert’s there are few.” known as shoshin in zen buddhism, the beginner’s mindset means “approaching any situation, task, or relationship with openness, eagerness, and a lack of preconceptions, as if you were experiencing it for the very first time.” i take notes, grow from my mistakes, and am always learning. 

with copious amounts of bread in my kitchen, i started experimenting with the best way to store it. i kept wrapping bread in different fabrics, paper, beeswax bags, and finally found what keeps my bread the freshest. i stitched myself a bread bag out of hemp linen fabric and made a few for my shop. i put the instructions into a free sewing tutorial if you would like to make your own.

i crafted these bags with tea-dyed hemp linen fabric, it is a bit heavier with a looser weave. i love this design because it accommodates loaves of different shapes, simply tie it closed. each bag has a plant-dyed patch with a hand-stitched wheat design (the stitching was overseen by my very attentive lap dog). choose between a terracotta, ochre, or green patch.

a bread bag and a loaf of beautiful bread (homemade or store bought) makes the loveliest gift.

would you like to make your own bread bag? find the free sewing tutorial here.

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gifting myself a new bread bag, which has already become a beloved staple in my kitchen, motivated me to make myself some new hemp linen napkins.

the napkin situation in my household makes me think of the phrase “the cobbler’s children have no shoes.” at home we are often sharing one bleach stained and ripped towel suitable for house cleaning as our napkin. if company is coming over, i dig out some mismatched threadbare napkins that i salvaged from my mom’s giveaway pile. after decades, i finally made myself a set of beautiful plant-dyed hemp linen napkins. i made some extras in case you too would like an upgrade. these get better with every wash, they feel broken in and ready for lots of use. 

the 24” square inch napkins feature contrast stitching around the edge and are available in four colors: terracotta (turquoise stitching), ochre (black stitching), charcoal (ochre stitching), and dusty rose (magenta stitching). each bundle contains two napkins of the same color.

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if you get extra crafty before the holidays, gift yourself beautiful materials to work with. you can find plant-dyed fabrics of various weights, wool felt, silk ribbon, and sashiko thread in my collection of craft supplies.



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this is the season for crafty host gifts and handmade holiday table inspiration. find the bread bag project, fabric and felt coaster tutorials, and felt flower stem and fallen leaves in my collection of 60 free sewing tutorials.  happy stitching!



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kata golda in the wild!
come and find me (or my handmade goods) this holiday season. i am busy stitching up all sorts of good things to send to osay linger on december 3-6. i do most of my holiday shopping at this sale which is a beautifully curated collection of over 70 pacific northwest makers. you can find me at the lamb & kid on bainbridge island on saturday, december 12 for a pop-up shop and at the corson building in seattle on sunday, december 13 for a holiday bazaar.



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PS: computer work makes myra very sleepy.