C Is For Cookie

 I got this scarf in the mail last week, and I've been dying to share it here.  Because I only LOVE it!

I love scarves anyway, and handmade scarves are my very favorite kind.

But knitted?  On one of those looms that remind of making looped pot holders in Girl Scouts?

By one of the people dearest to me in all the world?

Priceless.

 Now, in addition to a sweet reminder of my BFF Tracy, I get to be petted by my kids

(at home and at school!) and, because it's made in super soft homespun yarn in blue with  

I'm not kidding here

variegated blue fur and fringe, I get to giggle and call myself 

THE COOKIE MONSTER.

I can't stop singing "C is for Cookie"!  That's almost as good as getting a beautiful, happy, love-filled scarf...I do declare it.

Tea Time

It's been lovely here, during the days; right around 60 degrees, sunny, blue skies.  It reminds me of fall, actually, right around 2pm.

But in the morning, and after the sun goes down, it's quite chilly and wintery.  Not as bad as it was at the beginning of January, when I was scraping ice off the car each morning and I was certain that, if it had rained, it would have snowed.  No.  Not that cold.  But if it dips into the 40s, we native Californians completely fall apart.  (Whenever I hear about the crazy snow-y weather across the country, my head immediately goes to the homeless people who are without shelter and it breaks my heart...also, perhaps, a peculiarly San Franciscan thought.  :-/)

Looking at high 30s for the next few nights means that I'm ever-grateful for my favorite mug (full of hot spiced tea, and a well-loved gift from a well-loved family) and my new favorite blanket.  It's a ripple blanket crocheted as a gift for me from my friend Kathy.  I am addicted to it!  It's the perfect size for cuddling up with a pup or a boy, and I am crazy about the purples and greens and blues in all their ripple-y goodness. 

Teacher's Pet?

Being a teacher of little kids is a lot like being a mom to little kids.  In other words, totally frustrating, completely chaotic, and often horrifying.  haha!  I am not even kidding.

One thing that comes up a lot is the idea of "favorites".  I tell both my kids they are my favorite.  And it's totally true, so I don't feel bad at all.  Maybe there's some way I'm supposed to avoid using the word "favorite" at all, maybe I'm damaging them both (add it to the long list of things they'll be discussing in the future with either a talk-show host or a therapist), but it's true anyway.  They are, each of them, my very favorite person in the whole world.  I don't understand the physics of how this works, it just does.  It's like the sum of your favorite is greater than the parts of your favorite.  Or something.

Okay, so it works with my boys.  But then I run into this problem at school, too.  And it's not because I have "a favorite" in my class... it's more because every kid totally needs something different at different times, and I can't meet every need (see also:  I am only human) but every once in a while, there's such an obvious choice I can make to do something for someone and it always makes me stop for a second.  Should I not do THIS THING for THIS KID if I can't do EVERYTHING for EVERY KID?  When I write it out like this, it sounds absurd!  Of course, any rational person would choose the first, knowing the latter is impossible, and that even the question itself is totally ludicrous.

Yet, here we are.

Bianca is in my class, and she and a few other students gave me presents before the winter break.  I got drug store chocolates, a teddy bear, some Dove soap, and a beaded glamour bracelet.  I love each and every thing, and I wrote each student a thank you card and sent it to their homes during the two week break.

I probably don't have to tell you the profound effect this had and these kiddos.  I totally get it of course.  I feel the same way when I get mail today that's REAL mail, you know what I mean?  And I'm grown!  For a kid to get mail?  From teacher?  On a handmade card?  It's the trifecta!

I don't hand make cards, but I have very talented friends who do (that would be in Real Life and The Internets!) so they got some dang cute cards, I don't mind telling you. Bianca, in particular, asked me about how to make these.  She's carrying it around with her, by the way.  They all do.  

So, I don't make cards, and I don't scrapbook either, but for some reason, I have some supplies in my possession.  Pretty papers, some card stock, stickers, embellishments... I can remember coming across a couple of kits at deep-deep-discounts (like, a few dollars instead of forty!) and picking them up, but then never using them.  As you do.


I was cleaning the garage this last weekend, and I found this wooden box and these supplies.  I loaded a sampling of the papers and cardstock, plus just about all the sticker and embellishments, into the fancy box.

One thing that I included was this fun pattern for making your own envelopes.  It's the one thing I've used the pretty patterned paper for, actually, and they are super cute, for sure.

So, I opted for a tactical offensive move.  I get to work early, and no matter what time I get there, there are a group of kids eager to come into the classroom with me.  (Sometimes I need quiet; but I never turn them away...I turn them away at lunch at least twice a week though.  Honestly, sometimes I just need peace.  Left to their own devices, 80% of my class would never leave the room.  Okay.  But get out of my grill for 10 minutes, what do ya say?) This morning, the young ladies who joined me, I shared with them this present for Bianca (she wasn't there) and together we made a sample card, using the supplies so they could see how it worked.  Then, we decided there was something missing, so we  added glue and a couple pairs of scissors I've had forever, they are fancy scissors that cut wavy edges?  I told them this was for Bianca, and because B is such a peach of a kid, and because I managed to make them feel like the present was also from them, they were all on board for the gifting.  We left it on her desk and she LOVED it.

B of course is the kind of kid who shares readily, and soon enough, a group of girls was working on a card for Sweet Alice, who was missing her uncle in the cafeteria (I do not pretend to understand) and everybody seemed pretty happy.  Of course, tomorrow I'll be parsing out the rest of the patterned papers I have here at the house to the other girls who were such good sports about it all.

I'm such a sucker.  :)

Handmade Christmas ~ In the Mail Part Two

I sent my cousin and his family a box in the mail for Christmas.  For Aunt Betty, I sent a pillow that I had made using an applique block from the flower series I was working on.

 I had said I wasn't sure about this blue one, and she mentioned it was her favorite one.  Perhaps she was just being polite; that'll learn her!  haha!

The pillow form comes out (the back of the pillow overlaps) and it was kind of a breeze to put it together.  The applique seems well done, which was a pleasant surprise, considering I made it!

I also sent two (semi-)matching candlesticks I had painted.  You know, what can I say?  They look like they should match, but one has more flowers than the other.  Whatever, I figured they can ignore the imbalance, or simply keep them in separate rooms, so as not to offend.  What a great gift!  oh dear.

 I found this dish towel too, when Cori and I went to Bizarre Bazaar a few weeks ago, so that went into the box, of course!

And we put in a letter from Tommy to his favorite "Uncle Moose", some pictures of the boys, and finally, there was this:

Also made from the applique blocks, using all three from the red series, I made them this 'table runner'.  I had decided a long time ago to make this for them, because Kelly had written in her blog about wanting to paint their dining room "eating room red", or something like that.  They have an amazing historical house mansion, and she was researching traditional paint colors, and so she mentioned it in passing and god I hope she meant it or this is going to be awkward.  haha


This table runner was very nearly the death of me, and there were three different times that it nearly didn't end up in the box.


The first time, was when I had sewed it together.  Using no pattern, and apparently no skill or sense, either, I managed to fashion a table-runner-esque object around the original three blocks.  Here's a picture of me, using my mad measuring skillz, to try and figure out what I needed to do:

Erik actually came up with the idea about how to do the red border and blank blocks.  I was pleasantly surprised that he was willing to play that game with me, and I think it was a mistake on his part, because it's a game I never grow tired of.

By the time I got it to here, I thought it was going to be great!  Then I layered it and pinned it, sewing the edges and turning it, and I was so bad at doing this that I actually considered cutting out the white blocks with the applique on them and starting over.

The second time it almost didn't make it into box, was when it was finally put together, and I realized there were some smudges on the fabric.  It was just dirty in spots, but who could complain?  That little square has been kicked around and lugged to football and baseball games for, like, two years or something.  What?  I'm slow.  I was REALLY afraid to put it in the washer, though, because for all I know, it wouldn't even survive one washing.  I mean, isn't it better for it to disintegrate on somebody else's watch?  Common sense prevailed (eventually) (barely) and it went into the washer and came out sparkling clean.  Yay!

The third time it almost didn't go into the box, was when I took it out of the dryer and saw the good news that my applique skills have come a long ways since I first started the flower block project!  Wow, am I getting good at it!  The bad news was that these red ones were among my first blocks... aaaannndddd....it showed.  :-/  In my defense, circles are hard!  Well, then, that's that!  I thought to myself.  I definitely can't send this out now!

But then I remembered this blanket:

 My mom made and gave me this blanket, and I LOVE IT.  I really, really, do.  And you know, my mom is not the most patient, detail-oriented person I've ever met.  These octogons had to be pieced together, and where I have spent weeks meticulously weaving in tails my mother simply tied the knots so tightly it was like she was mad at them, then snipped the yarn tails to a low nub, and moved on to the next one.  The combined effect is to have little pieces of yarn sticking straight up from various points on the blanket (my OCD was happy to discover that one side was less like this than the other, so now it's a directional blanket, for my sanity) AND I've had to resew the octogons in several spots, just because the little knots don't always hold.  I was able to pick up a few pieces of the actual yarn she used when making the blanket, so it still looks great.

Did I mention how much I love it?  Because the truth is, my affection for this blanket (and the person who made it for me) is no less diminished by these (slight) logistical issues. 

I thought about all these things while I used the blunt edge of a flat, wooden toothpick to push the tiny edges back under, in the (many) various spots that they should have been tacked down with my needle and thread, and when I ironed the whole thing, I was this close to saying, yeah, this might just work.

When Erik held it up from across the room though, I thought all those mistakes just went away and it actually looked nice, from where I was standing.  That sealed it.  Into the box it went.  I should have thrown in some toothpicks, as I'm sure it will need a washing at some point, but I leave it up to Moose and Kelly, who are very competent and will, I'm sure, attack this situation with the vim and vigor it requires.  Including, but certainly not limited to, tucking it away, ready to pull out and decorate the table, should we ever come visiting.  There must be some statute of limitations on how long somebody needs to give up valuable cupboard space for such an occasion, but I want to publicly say, here and now, that I will never ask them how the table runner is working out for them.  It's considered part of the gift, at this point.  Just do what you need to do.  ;)

To summarize:  I will send you a box of half-ass gifts because even though I'm not very good at something, it looked great when I pictured it in my head.  Is it my fault that the execution doesn't come to the heights of my vision?  I say no.  Merry Christmas, Moose, Kelly, and Aunt Betty!!!!  :)

Handmade Christmas ~ In the Mail Part One

 The Stitch Family ~ oh how I love them! ~ are so perfectly perfect.  They are, collectively, the funniest family on the planet.  They are also sweet, sassy, intelligent, generous, and friendly.  It's a mind-blowing combination!  Because of all their hippie-goodness, I was pretty sure the gnomes were a must have...It looks to me like this picture is missing one or two.  Well, no matter, because I need to make more for the boys because these are for Brit.  Never underestimate the need for gnomes felt by every adult woman I've come by in the last few weeks.  :)

I wrote about making this rag rug before, too, and it was always going to be for The Stitches.  I think it's so wonderfully thick and yummy!  On a post I wrote last year about how to make these rugs, a commenter recently left a note that her mom made a crocheted rug out of thrifted wool clothing that took years to make, and eventually covered the entire living room floor.  The kids still have it, having inherited it after their parents passed away, and it weighs more than 300 pounds!  I mean really!  More than 300 pounds.  It's so joyfully absurd, I just LOVE that story!  This rug is not big enough to cover a room (instead, it's about 2.5 x 3.5 feet or so), but it really made me think that if I ever did make one big enough for a room, The Stitches would most assuredly be the recipients. 

Every once in a while, Brit or I will email each other with blogs we like to read; she told me about Soulemama's blog, which I quite like.  Poor sweet Amanda Soule, who seems like a lovely person, also seems to be the recipient of an inordinate number of angst-ridden posts re:  every mother's inability to be her.  Oh, folly!  :)  I have so many hobbies, but this constant comparison is not one of them...even on the one hand, that I can enjoy a voyeuristic peek into somebody's life through their blog, I don't seem to experience the other hand of that, of wishing for what they have or do or believe.  It's not that I'm so full of esteem for myself, nor am I so full of disdain for others; I think it's a gene, inherited from my mom, that if you're busy (enough of the time), and happy (enough of the time), and choose to still feel busy and happy (the rest of the time), then it's okay to be cool with that and not worry about anything, or anyone else, while you're at it.   I will point out that my mom probably takes this to a mind-numbing, socially-embarrassing extreme, but she's rad so we ignore that.

The point of all that, I suppose, is to say that Brit is sort of my "Soulemama"!  I've always thought of Brit's blog as a love letter to her children, and in the best possible way, I'm a fan of her perspective and choices and mama-ing, plus she's so creative and talented; it's like a great big lovely-ball-of-wax, and I'm so glad to know her and her husband in both my real and virtual lives.

They might move pretty soon, and I know it's too much to ask for, but I do wish on a star that they might find their way down to my neighborhood.  :)

Such a blur, this time of the year!  Every day and evening is filled to brimming with something.  Tomorrow night, it's Tommy's Festival of Lights celebration, to the store to pick up presents for my classroom, a batch of something to contribute to Thursday's treats at school, and another round of making that will hopefully result in finishing at least two of the three projects hanging out there on my to-do list.

My birthday passed last week (43!!) uneventfully, but sweetly, with My Boys.  Erik bought me a new 18-55mm lens with gyro for my Nikon D90....my precious!  :)   I can now take clear pictures this close to something.

Like this thrifted sheet I used in a few projects recently (more to come on that, I'm sure!).  My kids gave the lens to me while I was trying to pee that morning, so I had to open it on the toilet, with them standing around telling me happy birthday.  What can I say?  Situation normal.

The other present I got was not being needed for my jury duty summons!  Which worked out great, since I was triple booked on my birthday....A class I was teaching, jury duty, AND parent conferences.  In addition to getting out of jury duty, I also managed to switch out my teaching duties; and so I spent my birthday doing 17 of the 30 parent conferences I would ultimately finish in two days (two no shows, but that's still pretty good!).  

25 of them had to be done in Spanish.  Now, I speak Spanish, but that's a special kind of headache, all that translating and thinking so hard!  The parents and kids I work with are so sweet though, and very grateful that I speak their language.  Habla espanol?  Ay, maestra, que buena!  Entonces, tengo una pregunta....  and they're off and running!  By this time in the year, they all know they can talk to me in Spanish, but at the beginning of the year, when they first find out that la gringa can understand, it's such a funny moment!

Last week was definitely the worst of it...with just a weekend of packed and quick fun to rejuvenate, we're off and running for this last week before our vacation.  Oh, oh, please let me get through this week!  :)

I Mean, Really!

 I suppose there is a proper way to share this, which would probably involve waiting for the thank you card to arrive in her actual mailbox (hard pressed to meet this criteria, since the card is sitting, stamped, on the passenger seat of my car....still!) but let's just be honest here and say, you know, I'm not known for being conventional.

I am famous in my own mind, however, for being incredibly lucky.  I'm telling you...it's a party in my mailbox!  Witness:

 How adorable is this knitted pouch?!?  Kelly's mom Carol (who blogs at Sisters Three about all things homey and family), just out of nowhere, sent it with a sweet note and instructions for making my own.  I couldn't resist filling it up already....

 Yes!  With gnomes!  Am I right?  I mean, really!  It is just a situation so overloaded with cute that I can barely stand it.   I think she's a genius.  Wee little gnomes?  Check!  Garden fairies?  Check!  Tiny wooden bucket and pint-sized hope chest?  Check-check!  Good times.

 As I'm slowly adding to our Gnome Village, I'm learning that Scotty pretty much loves the little wooden people in any state.  Flower fairies, gnomes...buck naked.  He loves them!  And I love listening to him and his little Mickey Mouse voice as he takes them through a typical day.

He slept with a pouch full of gnomes, and I have to say...I approve.  Thank you, Carol!  We LOVE our sweet gift and can't wait to make more!

Cheap and Easy....Cheasy?

I love a bargain.  I bought an embroidered jean skirt at the thrift store 2 weeks ago (and have since worn three times, so it's already paid for itself!) and every time I wear it somebody compliments it.  I should say, "Thank you!" but instead I cheerfully state, "It only cost $5.00 second hand!"  My need to be a savvy shopper, apparently, is worth far more than my dignity.  But, if you care that I bought some clothes at the thrift, you're probably not the kind of person I'd be worrying about impressing anyway, so we'll call it a draw.

All that to say, I bought some wooden candlesticks at Casey's Wood, and they cost all of $2.50 each.  They are solid and cute and six inches tall, but they were also unfinished.  I just bought a couple pairs, since I didn't know what I'd actually do with them (a box full of cheap but unused items moves from 'frugal!' to 'stupid!' in a flash...I'm speaking from experience *cough*) so I didn't want a gross on hand to remind me of my impulse purchase.

 I painted them red (two coats, actually) using some paint pots gifted to me by a teaching friend.  I couldn't even tell you what kind of paint it is!  When both coats dried, I wanted to add some easy embellishments.  I'm nobody's tole painter, but the one trick I know is that if you want to make 'dots', you don't use the brush end...just dip the tip of the handle into the paint, and use that.  It forms perfect, smear free dots, so knock yourself out!  These have a blue center dot surrounded by yellow dots to form a simple folk art-inspired flower.  I made a ring of them around the candlestick.

 I felt it needed more, but my limited talents were already completely stretched.  Necessity being the inspiration of so many crafty ideas, it occurred to me after just a few minutes that I could make a ring of yellow dots around the top detailing.  The urge to keep adding on was strong indeed, but when you are working more on will than skill, it's best to go the 'less is more' path.

From unfinished but charming to "oh man, why didn't I buy more of these now I want about a dozen" in less than 15 minutes (not tallying dry time, of course!).

Been Busy

I am thoroughly committed to finishing some projects for the holidays.  I like to give (and get, if you're wondering! ;) handmade presents.  But I've never successfully pulled off much of a handmade coup at this time of year; mostly because the projects are too ambitious, combined with I start them too late.

This year, through a combination of starting in October and working on some projects I never finished LAST year, I am quite on track for my most successful (and no doubt still sorely lacking) Christmas exchange.

For example, once the materials have been prepared (I wrote about this here), it was a snap to whip up two new rag rugs in just a few evenings.

 It's so hard to photograph these for scale.  I think this could be any size based on the picture!  Is it a placemat?  Or a rug? 
 

Here's the Wii remote for scale purposes.  I don't know.  Does this really help?

 

Forget it.  Here, let me just hop on it.  It's a good size to stand on in front of the stove or the sink, I do think so!  And I like this one.  I make a lot of blue rugs (I don't even prefer the color blue, but the first one I ever made was for my Grandma Mary, and blue is her favorite and only color, and the materials from several blue sheets will last a LONG TIME.  Just saying.)  and this one is probably one of my favorites.  It came out with a very 'graphic' quality which pleases me.  And, also?  Is not my asthetic.  What can I say?  I'm extremely open-minded about such things.

Then i made this one, which is much cuter in person, I declare it so.  I like this one because circles are rad.  haha Not even kidding.  Wee little gnomes and flower fairy aren't doing much for the scale.

 But they sure make me happy!  These are prototypes I made from the Wee Folk Art directions, and they are a huge hit with Scotty.  In fact, I had made the purple and the fairy for testing purposes, and Scotty woke up in the morning and found them and loved them so much that he asked me to "make a whole town" and literally MADE me make another one RIGHT NOW because he needed a Daddy.  He claims the originals were him and Tommy.  Be still my heart.  Yesterday I spent most of the day (and my extra hour!) over at my mom's house.  My grand niece and nephew were there, and between the three of them, our three new friends got a quite a workout!  Good, I have big plans for these little folks, and hopefully lots more to share about that.

Anybody making anything?  I know Michelle is making an argyle cardigan (show off!)...anything else happening?  I love to hear about makin'.  It just makes me happy.  :)

Kind of like this video I shared on Facebook this weekend.  Worth sharing again, I promise.

If you can't play the video, you can find it here.

Quilt Along ~ Episodes Done and Done!

 Quilt along ~ finished!

I'm so glad that Carmen and Nancy did this, it's so much funner to do together....even when "together" means thousands of miles and too many weeks apart.  :)  Plus, you have to click over and see Nancy's finished quilt...it's pretty spectacular.  ;)

 I used fabric from the give-away I had won over on RoseHip.  The fabric is so wonderful, and it made quilting a pleasure.  I usually get all twisted up with 'what colors' and 'what patterns' and argh!

 Beata makes the most wonderful crocheted edgings.  I've been wanting to make some pillow cases from some repurposed sheets, and I've known I would try my hand at the edgings when I do so.  She's such an inspiration!  So at some point, when I was imagining this blanket done, I thought maybe I would do the crochet edging on it, as a tribute to sweet Betta and her generous fabric give away.

I struggled with the decision because I couldn't find any source that described sewing, turning, closing, then quilting.  It seemed like you need to quilt first, then bind.  It just seemed like the whole "quilting thing" was sort of the point of doing the quilt along, so it gave me pause to skip it.  I wasn't in the mood to experiment with my blanket (the cutting!  so much cutting!) and Carmen encouraged me to stop fretting and go for it, so that's exactly what I did!

And you know what?  I LOVE it!!!  I've always been in awe of Betta's (and Alice's, too!) perfectly perfect blanket stitches, and I have to say that the green gingham check fabric provided the perfect pre-made grid so that even I could have perfectly perfect blanket stitches.  I used 100% cotton for the edging.

Did I mention that I love it???  It's the perfect size for cuddling on the couch, but I really picture it on the sand at the beach, the star of a picnic; later, you can cozy under it as the sun sets on the water.

Or is that just too much pressure to put on a blanket?

October!

I'm already loving October!  The heat wave broke on the first, leaving us 30 degrees cooler than we were in September.  I sent off my manuscript on September 30th at 6:30 in the morning...two hours before it was due!  And I don't have any consulting work due until late October, and just so you know, that work is just about done already.  Me!  Ahead of schedule! 

I spent this weekend mostly with my family, doing some sewing, some crocheting, some partying (of the kid variety...happy birthday Niece!) and even doing some chores around the house.  It just feels good.

On my to-do-list, and officially done:

These turtles were the one thing I asked for after Marie died...and her wonderful, sweet children agreed.  So my mom brought them back from Healdsburg on Wednesday, I picked them up from her house on Friday, and I floated them around the house all weekend before hanging them in the very first spot I had considered.  Isn't it always like that? 

I may have told this story, but it's worth repeating because it's so very Marie, but right after she was diagnosed with lung cancer, my mom and I headed up to see what's-what.  Marie was showing me some things she had brought back from Hawaii with her, after Glenn died, and these turtles were hanging on her wall.  "These are for good health and long life...." then she turned to me and deadpanned, "And you can see how well that's working out for Glen and I!"  She was so funny!  So twisted and funny.  I miss her.  :(

I love love love turtles myself, and so I was so happy when my mom let me have them.  I know she would have gladly accepted them herself, so it was very (uncharacteristically) sweet of her.  My own sweet dear childhood friend Tracy had sent me these just last week, and I've been so grateful to wear one or the other daily....

My students love the silver one (his legs and head wobble!) as do I, but I am also quite enamoured of  the mother of pearl...it feels so heavy, and it reminds me every day that friendships that last a lifetime are precious.  I love you, Tra!

I was also so happy that both Jenny and Michael wanted the blanket I had made with their parents' clothing and pictures.  My told me that they agreed to 'share it', trading off who got to keep it at their house.  Love!

Dipping a Toe In....

 

This summer, between spending time with Marie, trying to deny that Marie was dying, and the occasional sweltering heat wave, my mom crocheted this blanket.

It's done in these enormous hexagons octogons, then pieced together with squares.  My favorite hexagon octogon is that super-fly green and brick one in the lower left corner, but I guess I could say that about them all.

My mom completely shocked me by giving me this blanket.  I was admiring it just a few days after Marie passed away, and she said, in the matter-of-fact way that she says everything, "You can have it, I'll make another one."

I LOVE this blanket.  I know my mom loves it too, but I'm guessing she can't look at it without thinking about this horrible summer.  She buried herself in this blanket project, and a few others, so she wouldn't have to think about what was happening.

I totally get it.  I do.  But is it wrong that I love it so much?  I guess....deep down, I'm neither surprised nor offended that so much beauty can come out of so much ugliness. 

I am at the tail end of my math writing project.  Between the deadlines and teaching and THIS OPPRESSIVE HEAT WAVE, I am ready to be done with all this and go back to the glorious,  happy bubble of my ridiculously charmed life.  Last week is gone.  And I say, good riddance.

Now I'm just looking to get through the next 36 hours, and then it's home free...wish me luck!!!

A Card, an Article, and a Bowl

I've gotten some 'snail mail' that's made me so happy!  Not too long ago, my cousins sent me a lovely 'thinking of you' card when my godmother was declining and my blog got quiet.  Recently, my friend Laurie (who doesn't have a blog, but DOES have a life and has been traveling and enjoying her post-retirement summer!) sent me a lovely note and a newspaper article on beekeeping.  (She wrote that clipping news articles was "old lady-ish behavior", and if so, I couldn't be more delighted!  I think Kelly will also think that's funny, as she recently sent two links to beekeeping blogs, via email, which has to be the 21st century version of clippings from the paper!)  This box also arrived, quite unexpectedly.

So much goodness inside!

Crafy stickers!  I've already used some, of course!  They're perfect for cards and decorations on some handmades I've gifted this summer!  I imagine they'll work their way onto some Christmas gifts, too!

Oh, stop it!  This divine bowl comes from the hands of the second-half of The Stitches, and while everything he makes is positively swoon-worthy (and I have a nice, growing collection of both purchased and gifted articles, so I have some expertise in this area) the sweet, sweet, SIZE of this bowl alone is enough to tip me over the edge.

For reference, here it is with my very favorite (also Scott-made) tea mug.  If you happen to think cereal is like crack, you will agree with me that this is the PERFECT cereal-sized bowl.

Oh, but it's perfect for lots of things!  My beloved cucumber and tomato salads, which I've been eating daily?  Just the right sized bowl for salad-as-dinner evenings.  My favorite kind!

I wish there was a way I could eat from it AND look at it upside down at the same time.  Because, hi, look at how beautiful the glazing is!

And, because Brit is only awesome, I have to say that the little note that said, "Don't throw out the packing newspaper....see who's on it!" makes my day!  Mr. Andy Paulson, nurse-extra-ordinaire, and that makes me laugh!  Alicia Paulson is so wonderful, and I have loved reading about their twee life in Portland, Oregon,  so much so that I recommended the blog to sweet Brit (she loves it, she does!) and so this funny touch just kills me.  Also, Mr. Andy Paulson became a nurse after he and Alicia went through a horrible ordeal (she was runover by a garbage truck, truth) and he found his calling at her bedside, and during her months of recovery.  They were newlyweds when this happened, and it was devastating (she still wears a boot, as she lost most of one of her feet) but it's so much a part of their love story ...I love people in love.  Did you click on the link to The Stitches?  Yeah.  

I love people in love!

The Internets have been so kind to me over the years, both as a way of keeping in touch with old friends and in making new friends.  Old and new...the best kinds of friends, don't you agree?

Quilt Along ~ Episodes 3 and 4

I had to make a decision this weekend on what to do with my quilt along quilt.  I was toying with a particular edging (that is not binding) and in order to do it, I would have had to let go of the machine quilting.  Like any good quilting partners, Carmen and Nancy were very supportive of whatever I chose to do.  I guess you'll know what I decided when I'm totally done! 

After washing cutting, I had a bit of a snag.  Namely?  My sewing machine is my bedroom, and I like to be with my family, not holed up in the corner!  I stalled by pinning one rectangle to one square, but I finally had to breakdown and zip through all those.  I love how they made this little flag!  I thought I was being so clever when I figured this out...I was quite pleased that I had figured out how to do this part without cutting the thread and repositioning everything between all of them.  But then, right when I finished this, I saw on the I Have to Say blog that she had done the same thing, on some other project.  Harumph!

Then I put the little patches into a paper bag, and I randomly grabbed one at a time, and sewed them together (alternating square to rectangle and rectangle to square) into rows.  Each row needed five patches.   I had to force myself to not look at the bag at all, or it really wouldn't have been random at all.  I was undeniably attracted to certain scraps of fabric over others, even though everyone of them is beautiful on its own! 

When my bag was empty, I took a moment to admire my beautiful mess.  I'm sure I've mentioned that I am a) a klutz and b) a slob.  So, in addition to this growing pile, I cracked my leg on that open drawer four different times.  Awesome.

 This was before I sewed the strips together, but you can get the general idea.  It's a lot harder than it looks to lay it out so there are no rectangles that are the same touching each other!  I worked on this for half an hour, before calling in Erik so I could point out to him all the places where, even though they weren't touching, they were clearly making a pattern, and it was obviously unseemly, and he managed to be both supportive and insulting by rolling his eyes and telling me I was "thinking too hard".   Of course, he's right...I reminded myself of what my friend Monica always tells me when I'm sweating details.  She says, "Are you entering this project into a juried competition?  No?  Well, then, do you like the way it looks?  Alright then."

That's very sound advice, I don't mind telling you!