Fall works in progress…

I made a lot of things last month, partly to keep busy, but mostly to challenge myself and see what I can really do when I set my mind to it- kind of a dry run for a work week. It was fun, very satisfying, but really hard, too, and just like when I used to have a job outside my home, I got sick. Sigh- some things never change, do they? While I spend this week taking it easy (ha! there’s still a house to run- the dinner doesn’t make itself people! Hmm…wonder what those Faeries are up to…) here’s a peek at what I’ve been up to:

This photo actually shows three current projects, with another three symbolized, if not actually shown. I made that white skirt up from some lovely medium-weight linen I had gotten for a bag idea, but I like it as a skirt better. So much so that I’m making another two in the other pieces of linen I got for two other bag ideas I had…hmm, I sense a trend in this train of thought…

The quilt block is my new Alchemy project which I started in May. I got sidetracked this summer, so it’s sat patiently in the project shelf, inspiring me every time I look at it. My first Log Cabin, it’s all Pinks, Browns, Lavenders and Greens. Very yummy. Still some math to do before I decide how to “set” it, but the blocks themselves are coming along nicely. It was meant to be a Fall quilt so I’ve got my fingers crossed it’ll get finished in time for the really cold weather that is surely still to come…sometime.

There is a new “hipster” bag in the works up there in the photo also, a new “Minnie-the-Mouse” style for our newly annual trip to Disneyland next month. The first one went together in record time, but the second draft stalled out when I got to the flap stage, so it’s on the drafting table again for a pattern redo.

That huge basket of yarn is getting sorted regularly as I try to find the courage to start my first “real” knitting project. We’ll have to see how that goes, I keep finding other things to knit first before I start. ahem.

And interestingly enough, I am starting to begin poking at the Pixie Workshop- some ideas are sprouting already, which is just as well as I think I’m going to have to ship some things to far-away this time around. There’s an image I want to mess around with for holiday cards, too, so we’ll see how that goes as well… Unless those Faeries use up all my drawing paper making paper airplanes!!! Get outta that drawer you guys!

Tasha’s Adventures in sewing…

September was an exciting month, wasn’t it? Full of back-to-school, Hobbit Day, the Autumnal Equinox, Mabon Feasts, the yearly Fall closet cleaning (ahem), and oh! so much more! But the most interesting thing that happened was all the sewing Tasha got done:

These new grocery bags are the perfect size for me momma!

 

I want one of these pretty skirts for me, momma…

I’m going back to work with daddy- he needs my help there, too!

It was a busy month indeed- and October is looking to be just as busy as well! Back soon with and update on all that has found it’s way across my sewing table- hey, you Faeries get outta that scissors drawer!

A Winter’s Tale

Wasn’t that fun? I had a wonderful time writing those stories, and it was really good practice for me. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a tale to tell- next I want to do a dialogue scene. But for today I thought I check in and give you all an update on what I’ve been up to lately, besides writing children’s stories…

This month I decided to try a new pattern making technique- taking a pattern from an existing garment. How does it look?

The green tunic is the one I made- and yes, it’s very large, inside out and only basted together, but I’m very happy with it! It fits! I’m enjoying the process and learning a lot as I go through the steps. And all my thrifted sewing books are coming in very handy- I’ve already looked up assembling sleeves, plackets, cuffs, collars and seam finishes (although that’s getting ahead of myself- it’s not at that stage yet!) Very exciting…

There is new life again out in the garden- I gave it a good cleaning last week. Sweeping and dead-heading and a good feed brought most of the plants back to life. I’ve discovered liquid seaweed fertilizer, and I must say it’s easier and gives better results than the powdered stuff I was using. Almost everyone out there needs a new, bigger pot this year, so I’ll be making a trip to the garden shop soon…

The kitty grass had to come out- kitties love it, but their stomachs do not! Ahem. The Buddleia is not really doing it for me (they have no smell! And the hummers didn’t much care for it anyway), so I’ve decided it must come out. The red rose turned out to be a Hybrid Tea- which means there is only ever one single bloom on the thing at a time, so he’s coming out too. After I made that decision I took a good look at what else was going on out there and made an actual plan for this spring. Can’t wait til it warms up so we can buy some new plants!

Speaking of…yes, we brought home some new herbs- but I’m keeping them in the kitchen this time, they’re so pretty! Apple Mint, Tarragon and Lemon Thyme. Yummy- I put a pinch of tender thyme tops in my tea last night…Mmm….delicious!

So that’s the month so far- lots of sewing, a little gardening, and a new pasttime, writing! I’ll have a new chapter up this Friday, thanks for staying tuned! Now if I could just get those Faeries out of my ink pot…

The Pixie Workshop

It is a cold, wet, rainy, windy morning over here a the Pixie Workshop! We are having a Winter Storm- right smack in the middle of Fall…and it’s a welcome sight. Not much to do but settle in and work on some Winter Tide crafts:

Bags, bags and more bags- it’s all bags, all the time this month. Knitted bags, makeup bags, Pixie Pouches, Dice bags and even a mini-Duffle bag! No pictures yet, most are presents that haven’t been gifted yet, so no peeking!

Paper houses galore! I cut out a bunch of folded paper houses with my handy-dandy Cricut machine yesterday, and have an assembly line set up to finish them today. A little paint, and a LOT of glitter, and they’ll be all ready for Santa’s Sleigh…

Ornaments made from glass bulbs and…wrapping paper? Yep! A few are going out to friends and family this year (okay- a lot are going out! I really liked this one, and they came out beautifully- I’m so proud of these, so everyone I can think of is getting one, as long as my supply holds out!). I’ve been using them as White Elephant gifts this whole season, and they are met with rave reviews! Here’s a tiny peek:

They were so pretty at this stage I almost kept them all at this point in the process, but they turned out even better! I’ll show you more after the Holiday gifting is done.

So, today’s schedule is full of paint, glitter, glue and cookie dough! Yes, I’m starting my Baker’s Shoppe (it’s the perfect day for it! Soo chilly outside,and wet! Let’s turn the oven up, shall we?) Scottish Shortbread, Christmas Stars, Tea cookies, and a special edition of my favorite Scone recipe are on the list. And maybe even an extra-special batch of Mushroom Cupcakes will make an appearance this weekend… Hey you Faeries, they’re Cupcakes- not Toadstools!

A rainy Fall morning…

From a high of 90* to cold,wet, rainy mornings- all in the space of a week, this Fall is behaving strangely, indeed! So glad I washed the floors while it was hot and dry a few days ago. Now it’s on to prepping dinner for the weekend (a Pot Roast, Indian Tacos, Lemon Chicken and lots of Mashed Potatoes! Oh, and a trial run of a new Stuffing recipe. Only it’s not going into a bird, so maybe it’s a Dressing recipe? Hmm…), making a Quilt Sandwich (it’s about time, I know), and lots of tinkering in the Christmas Workshop. I love this time of year, lots of new ideas flying around (some even landing on paper), tables strewn with half-finished  projects, slivers of paper, hanks of yarn, swatches of fabric and bottles of paint. Bliss!

It’s hard to believe it was so hot last weekend, sitting here today with the rain coming down right outside my window, the chilly air making the house cold and brisk. That sweet face up above greeted us to Julian last Saturday, just as he has a few times this year- very quiet and curious, such a pretty boy! The trees are turning from green to brilliant reds, oranges and yellows up in the mountains this month- so refreshing! And exhilarating really. Our house in the city is on a bit of a ridge, so no trees around us here, just windswept streets with the occasional bush. There’s no shelter from the heat, sun or rain here- very different from our last house, come to think of it. That was more of  Hobbity-hole, all surrounded by trees, huddled under the stairs on the first floor. This place feels more of an Aerie- a windswept nest of Eagle people perched high atop a vast mountain…hmmm, she’s quite poetic today, isn’t she?

So- cooking, baking, cleaning, crafting, sewing and maybe even some Gaming to do today. Busy, busy, busy. Where are my Faeries? No time for dawdling today boys, there’s work to do!

Friday recap

Finally! The first storm of the season- clouds filled the sky as far as the eye could see:

Lovely aren’t they?

I love a good rainstorm to ring in the new Fall season, don’t you?

Today is filled with all kinds of cold weather projects:

Work on the Watercolours Quilt has begun again- adding borders to fill it out a bit…

The weekly food prep is underway in the kitchen- Roasted Butternut Squash is featured again this week. So yummy…

On the baking front- Blueberry Muffins, Buttermilk Biscuits and maybe a chocolate chip cookie or two…

The knitting needles are out in full force- a new Pixie Pouch, a hat, and maybe some socks finally…

All that, plus Christmas Crafting Lists, Thanksgiving Meal Planning, and even a Winter Solstice idea or two are in the works. Oh my, I do love cold weather!

Happy Weekending everyone!

That bright, golden October light…

Lovely October- the gold, brassy light, streaming into the house, blinding me with its’ brightness, turning the computer screen and TV into nicely reflective mirrors…drat. Time for new curtains!

So- first I measure the windows- or rather, in this case, the glass doors. 8 feet exactly. Okay, I want them long enough to brush elegantly against the floor, 2 inches for that. and, I don’t like sewing drapes, I generally just fold over an allowance at the top to slide the curtain rod through and call it done, so 4 inches for that. 96 inches plus 2 plus four= hmm…lets just make it 3 yards, that’ll be plenty. Now I just need to dig something suitable out of the stash. In the meantime…

I have a little black Pixie Pouch almost done, and plans for a white one to go on the needles before the day is done…

The shower curtain is working out great- until I realized that I never finished off the seams! Drat. Guess I’ll take that down today and do some work on that this week…

It’s time to drag out the Cricket and cut some new Fall shapes again! Bats and pumpkins, leaves and foxes this year…

Playing around with a new Purse idea- it’s involving lots of brown velvet, ribbons, leaves and Fall colours!

And finally, still messing about with doll patterns, ideas, sketches and plans. I really do like the early stages of a new idea, but sometimes the logistics just get in the way!

Pinning for cooler weather- can’t even look at the oven its so hot nowadays!

October!

Gosh I love this time of year!The pumpkin patches are finally up, Pumpkins and squash are heaped in piles in the market, the leaves are spinning down, the earth goes to bed earlier, and everyone longs for a weekend in the mountains…
No baking yet this week- it’s been too hot to turn the oven on! Lots of crafting though:

Finished Tasha’s new Morris Pillow this morning- it’s made from the leftovers of the Shower Curtain I made a few weeks back. After piecing together strips and blocks I put some iron-on interfacing to the back, both to plump it up and also to enhance it’s quilty-ness. Then I put a regular old bed pillow in and sewed it up. Perfect! It goes quite nicely with the new Fall themed dishes I picked up early last month, too…
I also finally- finally!- perfected my new Pixie Pouches pattern! I’ll have pictures to post of that later this week, but basically it’s my knitted bag recipe. I started the process last Fall, believe it or not…
The only other thing I have going at the moment is a pretty major Job Search- time to get these oars back into the water and find some regular work! And no, I’m not giving up on The Dream- it’s just time to realize certain paths didn’t pan out, and time to get back on the Road…

A Second Breakfast Celebration

Happy Second Breakfast! It was a wild party- all the Dwarves showed up, shedding their scarves and hats hither and yon. Even Gandalf dropped by- he left his bag by the bookcase! I hope he remembers to come by and pick it up before the movie premiers- he might need it for his opening scene…

While they were planning their route to take on the Dragon Smaug, I noticed somebody eavesdropping by the door…

Do you see him? Bilbo is such a little fellow, he fits in with the Hallway décor!

 

 

 

Thorin insisted on writing up an Itinerary for the festivities, which Bilbo updated with a few necessary items, namely the Washing Up, which any good Hobbit can tell you is Very Important for any impending adventure preparations!

I suppose you’re interested in learning what they ate whilst planning their epic journey, eh? Well, there were a few things laid out…

Bunting makes a good, cheerful atmosphere for any planning party…

 

 

 

There were Sausages, nicely plump and browned in apple cider…

There was a good dish of gruel (requested by Bombur as an appetizer), and a plate of Cheese and Pickles…

A proper pot of Tea with a plate of Scones for Gandalf- notice that rather ostentatious saque by the bookcase…

A few boiled eggs for the youngsters Fili and Kili, along with a few choice jams, jellies, and mustard …

and lastly a beautiful crusty Beer Bread set out with a full crock of butter was set out for Thorin’s enjoyment.

  Gandalfs traveling bag caused quite a stir-  everyone had to go get his to show of their skills!

 

 

 

A bit of bunting was strung up to give a bit of cheer to the grim proceedings, and Gandalf threw a bunch of maps and travelogues on top of the bookcase when he sat down..

For some reason Bilbo has a model of the tavern The Foot and Fang on his bookshelf…

 

 

 

A few hours later they all took their leave after many “thanks’”  “lovely party’s” and several suspicious lumps in their sacks. Upon closing the door I discovered every last crumb had been swept up and even the heel from the loaf had been taken. Hrrumph! I don’t know whether to be glad- no leftovers to pack away- or despondent- no leftovers for lunch tomorrow! Oh well, at least now I know to make a bit more for next year’s party.

Thank you for stopping by our little Second Breakfast celebration- have a Great Weekend everyone!

Autumn’s Herald

Would you believe I have no pictures of my knitting? None? I’ll have to give you a picture of a kitty to look at while we chat:

 

 

She is getting ready to play hostess for tomorrows Second Breakfast party…

 

 

It is officially knitting weather around these parts- at least in the early morning, when it’s nice and cool. There is a Pixie Pouch that’s been on the needles all summer that I’m finally finishing up, and a new one in black that’s going lickety-split fast since last night. Funny how that works- try a new pattern for the first time and it takes for ever to get done, but do one in straight stitch and it goes together almost faster than I can see!

I made my first table runner yesterday, the easy way- split a length in two and seamed it together to make a really long piece, then just hemmed the edges. This fabric already has a cute little fringe edge along the selvedge, so I just left that to make a ready-made fringe! And the best thing is it’s the perfect width for a little Fall shawl, too!

And lastly- this year has been a hectic one, mostly due to my inability to listen to my own heart. Forcing myself to slow down and get back to my basics has been really hard to implement, but I’m glad I did- this Fall has been a lot more comfortable once I slowed my pace down a bit. Some things I had wanted to do this year just aren’t going to happen- no matter how much I want them to, or how much effort I put into it. Working myself into the ground, and becoming a grumbly bear to my loved ones, isn’t worth it in the end. I’m very grateful for what I have in this life, and I’m a lucky girl for having them. Sometimes its better to say Thank You, and leave the rest to find it’s own way to your door.

Full steam ahead in the workshop…

Christmas prep starts this week- I am thick in the midst of researching new ideas, mock-up building, and daydreams galore! Sometimes the best part of a new design is the initial dreaming. Lots of ideas flying around the workshop today:

Doll ideas and patterning- trying a half-size variant this week. Tiny fingers!

How to make a Winter Fairy Throne? Hmm…

Want to make a new Fall Tunic out of some yummy fabric I just found that I had totally forgotten about in my stash…

Winter Holidays menu building…

Christmas Gift List- what should this years’ theme be?

Holly, Mistletoe, Pine, and Moss internet research…

And lots more to come in the following weeks ahead! I just love the creative atmosphere of this time of year, don’t you?

Hey you faeries, get outta that fabric bin!

I made this!

I should make this a regular series- things I made this week! It seems this was a very productive week. Getting the shopping done on Thursdays has been working out great- there’s food in the house for the weekend, I can get all my food prep done on Friday (and not waste the weekend with kitchen chores!) and I have lots of yummy things to eat for lunch all week long (so I have more time to sew, since it’s all made and ready to heat up!)

So, things I made this week- first up is a new Fall shower curtain!

It’s made up of a few different Morris inspired fabrics (love them! See the blue border? It’s my favorite), a little leftover green linen (that has been finding its way into everything lately! I keep thinking it’s the end of the piece, only to find still more in my scrap basket!) and a lovely green print I’ve had for a while. Great big 10'” squares pieced together, no backing- lots of ironing and hemming tho. And just a nice straightforward turned cuff hem at the top with the curtain rod threaded through. It’s shorter than I had planned because of that, but it works fine  so I am happy with it.  I am turning the scraps into a new fall pillow/blanky/bed for Tasha, because she asked for one:

Please mama, can I have this?

 

 

 

 

So of course, I had to whip something up for her that very instant! It’s done and just waiting for a pillow insert. I am very pleased with how it came out, too. I pieced the scraps together and put some fusible interfacing on them to make them even more poofy (technical term there, poofy) them sewed them up into a pillow case form. Insert pillow, finish the seam and voila! Instant kitty bed! Or couch pillow, which is what it will turn into when she gets bored of it in three weeks, which is the usual around here. But hey- I made two things this week! Yaay me!

Now if I can just find a pillow form to fit this…

A change in the weather

Today is the first cool day we’ve had in ages! It was overcast yesterday, but still muggy and hot. Ick. Today is much nicer, so nice in fact I just had to go out in it so I reworked the entire garden this morning at dawn! It was so cool and delicious! Tasha has been bitten by something- her little cheek has swollen up, but she’s a trooper! Not a peep out of her, so I’m not sure exactly when she was bit, I do know it was yesterday evening though. But this morning she was right there at the door cheering me on as I swiped down all the cobwebs and spider egg sacks I could find. Yeck! They had to go- bugs can be beneficial, but not if they are going to attack my baby!

Once I had finished clearing out the detritus of summer from the garden, I decided to turn mine eyes to the overgrown mess that has grown up over the years here on the blog.The book is still coming along, I have to wait til we can afford to print the monster out, thought the design still needs some work. This week I am messing with the layout of the blog template itself, as well as the content a bit. Today I want to try and create a new labeling system. It is tempting to just open up a whole new blog, but I can’t bring myself to do it so it’s forward with the cleanup of this one!

And because I simply can’t leave just a blank post up, here’s a picture of my lovely little Teddy Bear sunflowers- they are so cute! And only a couple of inches high- I may do these again this fall if I can manage it…

What end of summer projects are you taking care of this month?