Some Twittery

Happy Heart Day

I made this valentine for myself yesterday, using the template from Lisa.  Thank you so very much, Lisa!  It brought a smile to my week.

And so did this.  My apron for the Sassy Apron Swap came on Tuesday and I was so flippin' excited.  it was made for me by Valerie in Louisiana and it is so fun and beautiful and makes me think of sitting with rapberry peach punch in the grass.  Totally made my day, especially when I had to fish my decapitated mailbox out of the snowbank for the third time this winter.  She sent along three recipes that I can't wait to try out, seeds for daisies, zinnias, and basil, a cute postcard, and some Mardi Gras beads.  She even wrapped the apron in some extra fabric so that was a sweet little bonus.  Thank you for an awesome apron, Valerie!

This is what I got for Valentine's Day- a heart shaped waffle iron!  The cute plates were a wedding shower gift from my Aunt Nancy and cousin Kathy and they will be even cuter with heart waffles piled on them with melting butter and raspberries.  Thanks, Scott.  I love you the worst!

Have a good Valentine's Day! 

xo -Andria 

Add a comment...

Quilt Monday, Cheater Style

The weather is so awful here.  It's snaining- snowing and raining at the same time.  There are supposed to be thunderstorms this afternoon.  Nothing to do, nothing to do.  I have been wanting to do some quilting so bad but I don't have a large enough surface to work on (that's clean).  The basement is almost finished and then I should be able to work on the floor down there.  I like to finish a project before i start another one, or I get overwhelmed, and I have a large queen sized quilt to finish.  But maybe I will make a small doll quilt.  I have neither a doll nor a child with a doll so I'm not sure what I would do with it right now.  It would just get stashed in a pile somewhere or become a cat mat.  Someday I'll make lots to hang on a pretty bedroom wall.  Untill then I will just enjoy all of your beautiful quilts on flickr .  These bring so much sunshine to my day!

Add a comment...

More Snow &  New Scarf

There were seven inches of new powdery snow on the ground today.

Good thing I knitted this little neck warmer last night.

This was fun to make and nearly instant gratification.  Its the Luxe Neck Warmer, just a feather-and-fan stitch pattern, from this book and only took about three hours to knit- exactly the amount of time it took to watch a mini marathon of one of my favorite shows, Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations .

I however didn't have the cashmere yarn the pattern calls for.  I did have some super soft Malabrigo pure merino yarn that Holly gave me.  I love this yarn!  The color is Simply Taube and it is so pretty.  Its sort of lavander-pink and cream-green and I like how goes with all of my coats, especially this grass green one.  I will most surely have to get more of it.  Thanks a lot, Holly, like i don't have anything else to spend my money on.

I particularly like how I can pull this up over my face Mortal Kombat style.  I'm sure Sub-Zero knits when he isn't kicking your ass. 

Add a comment...

Planning my Plot

I had yesterday off and good thing, too, because it snowed about six inches over the course of the day.  This gave me a good opportunity to do nothing!  I was going to make soap but I had this horrible compulsion to look through gardening magazines and catalogs.

I am just itching to get some dirt under my fingernails.  I started to casually think about spring when my Jung's catalog came a few weeks ago.  The thoughts slowly twisted into a knot in my stomach until I couldn't stand it and had to get them down on paper.  So I drew a map of my yard and listed the areas I would like to address this spring and all the plants I would like to get.  This should hold me over until the end of February, long enough to focus on Valentine's Day doings.

This is my little crocheted rug I made from two vintage fabric balls.  I never knew what type of fabric or pattern would be on the next row so it was just the sort of minamal excitement I needed.  On to the next project, something a little harder.

See that ittle bit of fleeting sunshine falling on the rug?  it felt so good on my face this morning but it is terribly cold outside.  There is a windchill advisory through Sunday with highs in the low single digits or lower.  The forecast for tomorrow is -1 and it actually says 'sunny, bitter & frigid'.  I am not looking forward to getting up in the wee hours of the below-freezing morning and going to work.  I'll just have to keep green, warm thoughts in my head and picture the little tulips pushing their way up through the thawed ground.  It'll be here soon.

Add a comment...

New Year, Same Old

A Happy New Year to all!  I think it will take a while before I catch on with this year.  January is such a good time for fresh starts and new beginnings but this year I feel like I'm stuck in a snow bank.  I was so busy before trying to get gifts made and any days I had off were spent with Olive out at my Momma and Papa's house.  As a result my own house has been seriously neglected.  At this point I would be happy just to get my floor mopped by the end of the month.

I did manage to get all of my presents made on time, though.  I knitted four scarves and one ballerina wrap, made candles and soap, and painted a pirate lunchbox for Scott (I'll show pictures later).

These homemade marshmallows went to my co-workers.  They were a lot of fun to make! 

I also baked soft pretzels for Papa Olson, and sewed several items including an apron for Mama Olson, a lap blanket for my Papa made entirely of felted cashmere sweaters from the thrift store,

and these mushroom ornaments for my Momma, which took me forever to figure out how to make.  I always save her gift for last and she usually ends up with a half finished project.  But this year I was finished by three o'clock in the afternoon of the 24th.  I was so happy I was dancing around the kithcen, embarassing my brother Blake and his girlfriend.

It was so good to see all of my family and just hang out.  I still have a lot to do, though.  Our basement is thisclose to being finished.  The walls are painted and Clifton came over last Saturday and helped Scott put down laminate flooring.  I will spend the rest of the week painting the trim so it can be put up this weekend.  Then we can get some shelving and all of my craft supplies can finally be organized.  That will be a major project in itself.

So I'll keep plugging along and hopefully my house and life will get organized along the way.  Then maybe I will have some time to finally knit something for my self.  I'm thinking a pair of stripey socks so I can slide across my new laminate flooring.

Add a comment...

Snestle In

The snow finally stopped on Tuesday after another six inches came down.  There is now almost two feet of snow out there! 

Olive has already lost two toys in the front yard.

That's okay.  We'll just snestle in for some naps on the couch.

Or under the tree.

While we knit until our toes and hearts are warm. 

 

Add a comment...

Snowdays Ahead

The flakes are coming this weekend but I have been way ahead.  I have been knitting this cute little ruffle scarf for the past two weeks.  There are three thousand, two hundred stitches across the final row after starting with one hundred.  It is knit out of Rowan Kid Silk Haze in pearl and is so fine and fuzzy its about like knitting snow.  The scarf is delicate but lofty and warm, however, if its not worn properly it looks like an Elizabethan collar.  It actually reminded me of a small intestine hanging by its mesentery, but I'm kind of gross...nevermind.   I'm trying to take my style in a little bit of a new direction.  I lost it for a while but I'm getting back into the swing of things and when making decisions on my attire and accessories I ask myself, would a French librarian wear this?  I say she would wear this scarf.  Now I need new shoes and a new bra to complete the effect.

I made these little earrings, too.  Want to know what they remind me of?  No you don't.  I felted them out of some wool roving I have and they are cute little snowballs that never melt.

My friend Lindsey got me this book for my birthday and I have been flipping through it since.  I made the Sticky Pear Walnut Gingerbread Upside-down Cake for Thanksgiving and it was very easy and so good.

I think I might make this sometime over the weekend, when we're covered in eight inches of beautiful snow.  I mean, chocolate soup with cinnamon sugar puond cake croutons?! Yes, please!!  I might even make the shortbread spoons to eat it with.  Thanks for this, Lindsey.  The pictures are just beautiful.  I am determined to make everything in this book and I will let you know which recipes are the best.  (P.S. I like your new glasses!)  

I've been a little on the sad side of things this week, feeling pointless, frustrated and lonely.  But I get my hair cut this afternoon and I am glad that I will have time to make soap and glittered ornaments, and to bake this weekend.  It is scientifically proven impossible to be down when glitter is involved.  So things are already looking up.

Add a comment...

The Day After

Everything went so well yesterday.  My turkey turned out perfect and was much easier to cook than I expected.  It was so nice to have everyone here for dinner. Thank you all for coming!  I hope to see you all again soon.

Now a little catch up.  Here is my finished ottoman cover, with a puppy tired out from Thanksgiving excitement.  Seben likes it, too.  My friends Sarah and Andy had their baby on the 13th and named her Olivia Grace.  She is beautiful and healthy and I can't wait to meet her!  My birthday was on the 17th.  It was a good day but I don't know how twenty-six is supposed to feel.  So far not very different from twenty-five. Special thank-you's to the girls at work.  Celestia brought me cherry cheescake and Holly got me my very own extra-large cupcake with it's own spork.  You made my week ladies!

Then on to Yuletide.  The gift list has been written and re-written several times already but I think it is now solid and simple.  I have taken the Buy Handmade Pledge and plan on giving only handmade gifts this year, made either by my self or by others on Etsy.  This isn't so different from previous years but this year I have a plan.  Now I just need to order my supplies and get things made!  Have a great weekend everyone!

 

Add a comment...

Orange Kitty & the Misinformed Iris

I was up very early a few mornings ago, still adjusting to the time change, and found my orange kitty Seben sleeping on the ottoman.  He wasn't curled up in the chair, just slightly strecthed out with his chin resting on his front paws, and he looked cold.  Any other cat this thought wouldn't have entered my head.  If they were cold any other cat would curl up in a warmer spot.  But I know Seben's fearfulness has more control over him than the drive for other basic needs, such as a warm place to sleep.  I can see that this sleeping position is the best one from which to escape should someone look at him.  So I thought I would make a nice and toasty fuzzy felted sweater ottoman cover. 

Momma and I went to some thrift stores yesterday and I found some large grey sweaters to felt.  I sat and cut up the sweaters and sewed the sides before going to bed.  I stacked the sewater parts neatly beside the ottoman.  This morning I came down and found this little messy nest.

I think I made the right choice by using felt rather than, say, linen.

I just wanted to show you all this.  This is my yellow iris that Scott and I bought the day we got engaged at the green house.  It didn't bloom this spring and I was a little sad.  I looked out my kitchen window last week and saw yellow buds swaying in the chilly wind (practically snow). 

I plucked them all off and brought them into the warm house, where they have been opening to show their magnificence all week.  Confused you think?

Add a comment...

A Dress for Novemeber

This is the dress I made for a wedding in Door County Scott and I went to last weekend.  It is Simplicity number 3777 and I used Moda cotton for the body and some Denyse Schmidt for the trim.  I was having trouble finding a dress that was orange or grey or both so I decided to make this one.  The printed fabric is my most favorite pattern ever  and I try to snatch some up when I can. 

Grey is usually my base color for everything.  I love it- it makes me feel warm and snestled in fall and winter months.  My heart is happy and calm when wrapped in grey.  I just add colors as the seasons change.  November is grey and orange for me.

This month is already moving fast.  Ten days until my birthday and fifteen days until Thanksgiving, which I will be hosting at my house this year.  The lists have already started flying.  I'm taking some time off of work the days before so I will be making soap, candles, and balms for the holidays that weekend in hopes of having them on the website after Thanksgiving.  We'll see... I'm not the one who is building the site so I have to fit into his schedule.  Love you Dear. 

But this week and next I think I will be sprucing things up around the house.  New pillow and ottoman covers from thrifted sweaters, a fall/winter bag, a table runner, knitted scarves and squares for a blanket, some holiday aprons, baby and birthday gifts, and not to mention cleaning.  Lets see if I can get it all done! 

Add a comment...

Black Squirrel Sundries

So this is the start of Black Squirrel Sundries.  The soap selling went well, better than I expected.  Scott and I stayed up most of Thursday night printing, cutting, and labeling.  I was so tired when I got home and I am very thankful that Holly or Celestia (or both?) picked up my shift today.  Thanks ladies- maybe a compensation of homemade bath products is in order?

It was good to see what fragrances people like, what I need to make more or less of, presentation, labeling, things like that.  A website will be up soon and I think for now I will just list products as they become available.  Please leave a comment if you have a favorite fragrance or product you would like me to work on.  Besides soaps, I hope to get some aprons and things of that nature made and up for sale.  We'll see...but tomorrow we are leaving for vacation!  South Dakota here we come.  Yippee!!

Add a comment...

Soap Box 

This was the first project made wwith the new saw.  It's a little soap box mold that holds just enough soap to test out one ounce bottles of fragrance oil.

It makes the cutest little soap logs

Which are then cut into five bars.  I have, like, twenty-eight different fragrances I want to try out so I better get to soaping.  Guess what everyones getting for the holidays and their birthdays?

On a special little note I would like to send birthday wishes to my most devoted reader (Who doesn't leave comments, but I'll let that slide, being its her birthday and all!).  Happy Birthday Kristi!!!  I hope you have a great day tomorrow!  Sorry if you have to work with my husband- but he'd better be nice to you. Or else...

Add a comment...

Nothing to Show For it But a New Chair

Despite my absence I haven't been up to a whole lot.  The chair above has been sitting in the kitchen for about five months, patiently waiting for its moment to sparkle.  I found it at an antique store.  It had already been painted cream but was re-upholstered in a material not quite like oilcloth but a step up from contact paper. Undeneath this was the original fabric, avocado green, cranberry, and gold stripes, with the paper label dating the chair itself from 1924. Old pieces of mattress were used for padding and the wood for the back was mint green with tire tread marks across it.

Now how good it looks!  New cushions wrapped in simple linen.  Just quiet and good.  The chair has found a new home in our bedroom, next to the window.

And now on to the garden.  It has just been spectacular these past few weeks.  The tomatoes have been abundant thus far but the peppers were a little slow, despite the plants themselves being four and a half feet tall.  Now they are fruiting but the tomatoes are about gone.  So much for having a coordinating salsa garden.  We had a nice watermelon, too, that was very good.  Olive can assure you it was.  Now there three more that have grown to large softballs in the past two weeks but I don't think they'll make it until frost.

But this is what I'm most excited for!  Can you tell what it is?  They are peanuts!  I bought this little plant on a whim, or an experiment I suppose, and sort of forgot about it.  Then I saw this guy peeking out the other day.  If they turn out well. I may have to get some more next spring. 

So this is what I have to show for the last two weeks, but I have been tired.  I'm staring at a counter full of dirty dishes and Scott is probably cutting off some digits with the new mitre saw we got today.  Not to mention I have two paper bags full of apples from Momma's that need to be addressed.  I'm wondering how many food items one can make out of apples before they detest them.  Over a thousand?  Let's experiment and I'll get back to you when I have more exciting things to share.  And after I take a nap. 

Add a comment...

Soaping

This is how I've been spending my time lately.  Researching all the ways to make soap, making the soap, waiting for the soap to finish.  This is a seriously addicting hobby but you do get something useful out of the deal.  I have had all the equipment and oils  to make soap fpr a while now but it was so sweltering that I didn't have the courage to make any.  The weather has finally calmed down and colled off a bit so Scott and I decided to try our hand on Tuesday.  Everything went swimmingly.  Scott chose his favorite scent out of the ever increasing bottles of fragrance oils, another addictiing part of this whole project.  He chose a very green, manly scent that smells like a handsome man fresh from the shower.  Very nice. 

Scott even made me a mold for this little venture.  The mold is a little rough-hewn (and a little leaky due to the poor lining job by me) but he made it in like twenty minutes with scrap wood we had around.  It works well for small batches that yield about one pound of soap.  

After I sliced the soap into bars, I let them dry until the following afternoon.  I then trimmed the edges with my Thrifting Thursday find- this little metal veggie peeler.  It cost me a quarter and it was my only purchase yesterday.  We have another one just like it but it always goes missing because we can't seem to agree on which drawer it belongs in.  I don't particularly like the peelers with the large handles, they are just too unwieldy.  So I was a little excited when I found this.  Silly, but that's me I suppose.

I couldn't possibly be satisfied with one batch of soap this week, though.  I wanted some soap I could use in the kitchen, not just clean sudsy man soap.  I was often thinking about a mint fragrance oil I had so I decided to give it a go.

This batch went perfectly and only took about a half an hour to make.  It was a larger batch, about two pounds, so I decided to pour it into these two enamel pans my momma had gotten me.  After being wrapped up and insulated, it had gotten to the point where it needed to be uncovered and cooled down a bit. I swear, I just bent down to set the cardboard box that had been covering the whole mess on the floor and when I turned around Tibbs was already fast a-napping next to the warm pans.  Just like a cat to take credit where no credit is due- like he toiled away making this soap and now needed a nap for his efforts.

Today I unmolded the pan with less soap in it, being more set up than the other one, and I am so excited for this batch.  I added some chopped up lemon balm at the end and it looks so pretty.  Not to mention it smells incredible, especially since I have a hard time with the smell of peppermint.  It literally makes me sick.  But this mint is more like spearmint, brighter and sweeter rather than icy, if that makes sense, and I do like the smell of spearmint.  Now just another three to four weeks and these soaps will be fully cured.  I can hardly wait!

                                                       

On a slight tangent,  I must say thank you to bigbucketgirl for nominating me for the 'Nice Matters Award '.  It is such a good feeling to be noticed by others, especially for being nice!  Thank you very much!

 

Add a comment...

Nerd Alert

We have one day that dips below eighty-two and I start buying supplies to make candles and pulling out last year's unused yarn stash, plotting future projects.  I remembered I had wanted to make the hat and mittens Hermione wore in The Prisoner of Azkaban and I started to look for the patterns online and found they are now printed in this book.  The book has lots of other cute patterns, too, and I didn't just buy it for the one pattern- sort-of.  There is something about Harry Potter anything that makes me want to knit.  Maybe its that most of the movies have been released around my birthday in November  and November is the quintessential knitting month.  You've got upcoming gifts to get made and the weather is downright ugly- cold and rainy with bare trees and dormant grass.  Perfect for staying indoors.  There is nothing better than running bright orange wool from Norweigian sheep, like the skein and ball from above, through your fingers and around a pair of birch needles.  Or winding up a tweedy ball of bunny-soft wool from an alpaca whose name is Ted, also in the picture (the yarn, not Ted).  I got these little pets from the Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival last year.  A sad little festival but you can tell the wool crafters love their animals and what they do.  What is lacking in the number of attendees is certainly made up for in the quality of the wool you can get.  But I'm just thinking about knitting.  It will still be until the end of September or into October until I will even start wooking with wool.  Its like snuggling with a cat on a hot and humid day- matty and itchy and somebody's going to get scratched.

Add a comment...

Andria: 0, Dryer: 1

PSA: Do not pick fights with your major household appliances.  They will win.  This lovely little shiner happened when I was doing laundry on Friday (sorry for the blurry photo, but you can still see it is a lovely shade of vomit).  After shutting the dryer door I saw I had missed a pair of wet shorts that had fallen on the floor.  I bent down to pick them up and opened the dryer at the same moment my eye was level with the corner of the door.  It stuck a little and opened much sooner and harder than I had anticipated.  That'll teach me to back sass.

Between ice packs and ibuprofen I managed to finish sewing the wedding present for my cousin Chrissy and her husband, Jonah. 

I made them matching aprons, his from a pattern I already had and hers from an apron I traced and kind of made up as I went a long. Their wedding was on Saturday and everything was so beautiful and we had so much fun.  Thankfully my eye was only a little purple that day and nobody seem to notice and ask questions. 

Thanks for the good time guys, congratulations, and welcome to the family, Jonah!

Add a comment...

Brand New Bag

New tote bag?  Check.  Another one crossed off the list of good things to do.  This is the Pleated Beauty Handbag pattern from Amy Karol's book Bend-The-Rules Sewing .  I made some adjustments like increasing the width of the straps, adding an extra pocket, and making the lining fabric contrasting, but I suppose that is the purpose of her book: making things your own and not getting too bogged down with the instructions.  I would have used stiffer interfacing, though.  My fabrics are a little flimsy so the bag flops a bit.  And the handles are a touch too long, but whatever.  I'll use it all summer!

In other happenings...Momma and Gretchen swung through Prairie du Sac to pick me up for an adventure at the Henry Vilas Zoo .  This blonde goat was sooo pregnant and she was trying her best to stay still and keep cool.  

But these little guys are my favorite.  There were so many tiny baby prairie dogs running around and squealing and fighting over kale.  Just so flippin' cute and I do have a soft spot for rodents.  I think its their beady eyes and small ears that get me.

The littlest one on the right was so funny.  He kept falling asleep in the sun chewing on carrots. 

That night we went to a birthday party in Madison for one of Scott's co-workers, Katie.  It was so nice to finally meet her, as well as his other co-nurse, Jen.  They are both a lot of fun and it was a good time hanging out with them and drinking forties!

Then to another birthday party on Saturday- my Aunt Bonnie's surprise party.  There was great food from TJ's Catering , who catered our wedding, great music , and great company.  It was good fun but we couldn't stay long as we were off to the wedding reception of my grade and high school friend Katie and her now husband Mark.  It was a really beautiful wedding and it was so fun seeing everyone from school again.  Congratulations!

There is no rest for the weary so on Sunday Scott, Olive, and I drove to the other side of the river to walk on the trails down to the water.  We had never been back there and it was fun to explore.  We found prickly pear cactus wich made me feel like I was with Eren in Texas.  There was a nice patch of blackcaps all ripe, sweet and warm.  I'll have to go back with a container and pick some for upside down cake as the raspberries at my Momma's house were "accidentally" thinned out beyond a harvestable number. 

To round out the day Scott grilled some hamburgers and potatoes and I made a plum-nectarine buckle.  It was very good right of the oven with some ice cream- I just love warm stone fruits.  The best way to end a busy weekend.

Add a comment...

Purple Dress

I'm not sure if anyone noticed this or not but Butterick patterns were only 99 cents at JoAnn's last week.  The limit was ten per customer but I went back twice and got twenty.  Very ambitious.  I found the vintage dress pattern (plus many more) I had been wanting ever since seeing Jen's at The Fabled Needle .

I think it turned out rather well, being my first sewing project involving an article of clothing.  It's a dress I would wear to the farmer's market or to go collect eggs in.  Now I just need the chickens.

Add a comment...

Our Own Park

We started building our garden last weekend and finally got it finished (almost) yesterday.  This is the best way to start off any sort of construction project, with a Leinenkugel's or a Spotted Cow.  Or a margarita.  Notice the long sleeves.  It was in the 50's last weekend and four days later it was 83.

We previously had a small patch of the yard tilled up that wouldn't grow much.

I am so excited about this new garden.  I have so much more room that I almost don't know what to plant.  I definetly want one box devoted to strawberries, one for salsa ingredients like tomatoes, onions, peppers, and cilantro, another for salads with lettuce, carrots, and radishes, and one for the viney plants like sugar baby watermelons, cucmbers, and peas.  I think I will plant flowers in the middle box.

Now I just need to top each box off with garden soil and I will be ready to go! 

Add a comment...

New Little Babies

Olive and I went out to my Mom and Dad's house yesterday to get some mulch to cover up those plants she previously dug up.  Momma had some new babies!

She came home with these little ones, only a day old, last Monday.  The fuzziness is too much to handle and you just want to scoop up a handful and squeeze the cuteness out of them!  I always think of the opening of The Wizard of Oz when Dorothy fills her apron with the new chicks.  Who wouldn't want an apron full of chirping downy?

It was such a good day.  I don't think we sat down at all.  Except for the part where I stabbed my leg with a pitchfork (Don't ask. My parents call me Grace). And maybe for the golf cart rides through the woods.  Olive loves getting chauffeured around by my brother Clifton.  This is what she looks like the next day.  We can hardly get her out of bed to go outside.  Of course she snuggles in the chair after I have removed the slipcovers for laundering. Pa-thet-ic!  In other news...

I am still working on the quilt and it is going well.  I have found I am not a very careful cutter and some of my seams don't line up.  But that is okay with me.  I don't mind a little imperfection.  It's the quirks I end up loving so much.  It's me.  I did need a little instant gratification, though, and made a little pillow cover out of my extra squares.  This to replace the furry polar bear-like cover I had on it before, which someone had started sucking on the corners of.  I'm not sure of the guilty party but I think I have it narrowed down to the ones with four legs. 

Add a comment...

How I've been Spending My Time

I have been sitting under this little pretty.  I just got it on Tuesday and I love it.  I like to think her name is Birgitta or Elsa.  Something Scandinavian.  I had been sewing on a piece of junk that shook the entire table when I used it, that is when it wasn't jammed up.  She runs so quietly and smoothly and has so many stitch patterns, including a row of jumping bunnies.  I may be spending entirely too much time with her.

And not enough with this little girl.

I'd better go play some fetch.  Then I can get back to sewing! 

Add a comment...

Quilt Monday

Sort of.  I'm just starting. This will be my first quilt and I'm a little nervous.  It will just be simple four inch squares but the quilt will be an over-sized queen, so there are a lot of squares to cut.  I got most of them sliced up this weekend.  However, I have noticed that I need some odd pieces to break up the matchy-matchy-ness.  Maybe some more fabrics that are less floral and more graphic and some fuschia or orange or darker blue.  I don't know.  I'll see how things go.  I'm not sure of the best way to get all of these pieces together but I am good at being self-taught.  This is the way I have done most everything and it hasn't failed yet. Yet. 

Add a comment...

Soooooo Lazy

I really don't like February.  It is so cold and ugly.  I just wan't to wrap myself in a cacoon of down, fleece, and flannel and not emerge until the temperature reaches at least 65.  When I can wear capris and sandals.  That is why I have been lazy.  I have a strong dis-interest in everything right now and sometimes I get a little sad.  But nothing a petite craft project involving crayons can't fix.

You know, those crayons I have been hoarding.  Those crayons that have laid unused and still have their beautiful shiny waxiness.  Enough to make a pre-schooler cry.  Well I have so many that I decided to finally put them to good use.

 

I love all of these warm colors; they remind me of peaches in August, just about my favorite time of the year. The colors I like best are tickle me pink, macaroni & cheese, and wild strawberry.  How could you not love those?!  You get the crayons naked and scrape little curls onto waxed paper with scossors (I couldn't find a pencil sharpener). Then you cover it with another piece of waxed paper and iron it until the crayon shavings melt, then cut away to your heart's desire! 

Add a comment...

A Case of the Mean Reds

But not in the Holly Golightly way, being sad for no apparent reason.  My case of the mean reds is a new found appreciation for all things crimson.  I have never been this particular color's biggest fan.  I liked it okay, I was just more drawn to shades of light blue and green and pink and especially grey.  Most of the things in my home (even my website) are of the afore mentioned color palette and I am finding that little bits of red here and there are making me happy.  Lucky me, my Grandmother thought I would like red and gave me all sorts of good things that I now love even more. I have a stepstool, a toaster, and my favorite, a small two-cup enamel tea kettle with a wooden handle that is periwinkle blue inside. I also found these cute dog bowls at a little shop in Columbus.  The pet mat is a hard thing to find, usually they have gagy-cute animals on them.  We had been using a super-bright-every-color placemat from Target since summer.  Yesterday, however, a package of oilcloth arrived.  So this morning I whipped up a little mat and I just think it is about the cutest thing ever (did I mention how much I like dots?).  It even reverses to strawberries! And all of these pretties  happen to go so well with my favorite apron that I wear almost every day. 

 

Add a comment...

Bringer of Light

Today is St. Lucia day, a holiday celebrated in Scandinavia. it was originally celebrated on the Winter Solstice, the darkest, longest day of the year.  The eldest daughter in the family, wearing a white dress, red sash, and a wreath of candles on her head, would wake the family with coffee and saffron buns.  She was the bringer of light in the complete darkness, signifiying that the sun would soon be returning.  I really wish we would have celebrated this holiday more often in my family, especially since I am the oldest daughter but the fam doesn't get too much into things like this.  Maybe I will start it with my own family some day...

Speaking of lights, I got a package in the mail from my sister, Gretchen, today. We are trying to kick off a tradition of our own by sending each other care packages to keep in touch.  She is ten years younger than me and sometimes its hard to bridge that span.  Being a freshman in highschool, she has so many things she's busy with.  Last week I sent her a package of a pink sock puppy, some hair bobbies, and a Tord Boontje garland of kissing bunnies.  In my package I got this pair of wonderful sweater mittens with vintage buttons at the cuff and a cute garland of Christmas lights.  I was so excited I was doing a dance around the kitchen and nearly stabbed myself with the scissors!  Yeahhhh! Thank you, Gretchen! 

Add a comment...