80 degrees in April?

Busy times lately. I have been knitting some socks (got past the heel- a regular heel flap & turn) and the purple shawl but not a whole lot else. 

Yesterday got inspired while cleaning the craft room. I have been thinking a lot about earring holders. I have made 2 attempts of holders in the past. One of them i used window screen. This one has larger holes which helps solve the problem becasuse i use earring backs on my earrings. They can easy slip in and out without having to take the backs off. Yay!

Another thing I need to work on is postcards for the bruhn album. Bruhn.bandcamp.com They did a preorder thing online and one of the extra options was to get aome bruhn postcards. We have 2 bear ideas from the past and i am designing two more. 

This guy is spposed to be a chainsaw carved bear. Hopefully that will come through by the time i am finished with the design. I may embroider it? Not sure yet. 

Other things: hosting my first craft party (first at our new house) this weekend! Yay. I have a great longing to craft with people as i think about crafts almost 24/7 when not thinking about other stuff like work etc. I have been doing a little research trying to see if i should take a sewing class or join a knitting group. There are some things by our house but a lot are when i am at work or when i would be commuting home. So. I'll just start with a craft party and i do have craftsy classes i could work on or finish a skirt i have already cut and just need to sew. 

While cleaning the craft room I found so many clothes I want to alter. Dresses to cut into skirts, etc. A goal I have had for a long time is to make more of my own clothes. Fast fashion is just a bad idea. I'd like to make more of my own clothes and/or buy vintage or used clothes again. I used to be much more deliberate about that. So I am hoping to reevaluate my wardrobe and also see what I can alter that I already have. I have never been a part of Me Made May or Self Stitched September but I think it is a cool challenge to try to see what you've made and what else you could make before the next time you participate. I recently tried on some dresses that I made in collage to see what still fits.  I may need to alter some of those too. I really haven't sewn many clothes for about two years since I didn't have space but it is my hope and goal to start thinking about that more. That's all for now!

PS: having fun doing the little bit of gardening i have done. Pulling weeds. Mowed the lawn! (Mike has done several times already) planted Sweet Pea seeds, planted a Heather plant. Trying to see if my succulants i seperated will take root and grow! 

Little hats & general October update

I started knitting short-row hats to keep in my purse/knit at lunch. I have finished two and it's a pretty simple pattern and fun. The first one I did not wrap the shortrows, the second one I did and I prefer the wrapped style. I am making them for kids in my life though I'm not sure yet what size I have made. They will grow into them eventually :0)

Other news (if you can call it news):
- I bought a pumpkin (small and cute)
- I saw a pheasant in our backyard! Wish I could have gotten a picture.
- I am working on the other wool quilt for our bed. I am almost done patching it and then i will post more photos.
- I have done some mending/thinking about altering clothes. Slowly but surely. Modernizing the neckline of a blue and white floral dress that was high-necked buttondown. Trying to reinvent a dress to a shirt.
- I may be a penguin for halloween, but I am not sure yet.
- I have also been trying to cook more & learning about avoiding food allergins. (Dairy, eggs, corn, wheat...)
- I am really hoping my tomatos will keep ripening. I have some inside and others on the vine to catch whatever sun they can.

Busy summer

Well in the last two weekends we've had a funeral and 2 weddings to go to. I had no idea how tired I would be after two weddings (Saturday and Sunday) in the heat and sun. They were both lovely and fancy and I'm so happy for the couples... but it was very Hot!

My garden: Hanging basket to replace dead flowers I forgot to water for several hot days.

 My tomatos are reaching up soooo high. This cherry plant I had to use 3 stakes to try to prop it up.

 We have used some basil from our garden, it just keeps on growing. 2 of my bean plants sort of got pulled up (i assume by the chickens?) But one is climbing the walls, and the other 2 have some small new leaves so they may do something.

 Not much has happened craft-wise but I have made a little progress on the cat embroidery.

 Sorry for the washed out photos. These are vintagey fabrics from my mother-in-law who finds great stuff at yard sales. I think the blue paisley is silk. I have never sewn with silk before so it would be interesting to try. In the bottom photo there is also a textured yellow cotton fabric that has several yards to it so i could practice making a dress or skirt. I have so many Colette patterns I have hoped to do but have not yet worked on. It is so hot in the sewing studio, and frankly we have been to busy with family health issues and weddings we have barely kept up with basic housework and life.
Hopefully some things will slow down a bit and I can make more progress.

Finally planting

My parents came over today to help me make a fence around the garden. I am late planting partly because we weren't sure for a while if we were moving. Also, Our housemates have chickens and they like to peck at things. I was originally just planning on putting up some chicken wire, but today it became a little more complicated. We used the lattuce and wood from a scrap pile. We made a functional door with hinges...(so fancy!) I'm so grateful to finally plant and i hope the chickens can't hop over the lower side. I had 3 volunteer tomatos and bought 1 tomato plant, 1 bell pepper, and some basil. Yum!! Can't wait!