New Fabric

So, here's my new mini stash to add to my not so mini one in the sewing room. Not sure what the Dick and Jane fabric's gonna' be for...it was just too cute not to pick up a bit. Maybe a zippered pouch for me? The orange is going to be a lunch bag and a pencil case for my daughter, with the dots for the lining. She's MADLY in love with penguins, and when I saw this, I knew she'd have a fit over it. I was right. She's beside herself excited over it. :) Feels good to know you picked the right one, hmm? I'll have to show you stuff as I get it ready for back to school in the next few weeks.

Snobby Shop

Have you ever been in one of those stores, where you felt you were just, well, not welcome? Somewhere where the service was so non-existant and snooty you felt as if they'd really rather you not have bothered stopping in at all? You kinda' start to wonder if, in fact, the shop is just a front for something else, and they want you gone as soon as possible. LOL Because if they treat everyone this way, HOW could they ever sell a thing??? Or maybe you have to be in the club to shop there???

Well, I went to one recently, a yarn/knitting/crochet store not too far from where I live. I've passed it so many times. It was one of those, "I'd love to stop in and see what they have one day when I have time." Only I never had time. Well, the other day, I finally did...

It's a cute store, that much I could tell from the window, though it's very small. And right at the front of the store are chairs set up for knitting/crocheting, but as my daughter and I stepped inside, the three or so women sitting there, (at least one of which I know worked there), didn't so much as smile our way, say hello, how are you, or even acknowledge our presence, to tell you the truth. In fact, they seemed to get quieter, like I was disturbing their current conversation.

Anyway, we (my daughter and I) looked around for a good while before ANYONE bothered to come and ask if we needed any help or anything. And when she did, it felt more like, "Can I help you with anything so I can get you out of here?" The woman gave off no kind of genuine helpfulness. Of course, I was just looking, I didn't need help, but I really think that fact annoyed her. Really, I think my being there in the first place annoyed her.

And though they had a LOT of NICE NICE yarns, they were sooooo EXPENSIVE. In my sheltered crochet existance, I have never seen a skein of yarn that cost over $35!!! (and up...very much up...) Granted, I'm sure they existed somewhere, some nice luxurious blend of cashmere or something, but it was almost EVERYTHING IN THE STORE!!! Even what I thought would be considered fairly "normal" yarn. (and we're talking small skeins, barely big enough to make a small scarf.) And as I'm still kind of a novice going on intermediate, I can't really justify spending that much on a project I'm not 100% sure I can pull off anyway. Not that I was expecting to pay a buck for it, either, but the cheapest I found (a reasonable $3)--it was the ONLY one in the store that price that I saw. Most were at least $10 and up. And as I said, I'm still learning, so I didn't want to invest that much, and quite frankly, they weren't really making me want to give them my money anyway. I could literally FEEL the "get out of here" vibes coming off of them. So, I grabbed up my daughter, and we went back to the car.

Later, I went by Michael's and got some lovely green Wool-Ease from Lion Brand Yarn that was more suited to my experiments...I'm now working on a throw. I will show you a pic when I get more done, but it's coming along quite nicely.

And I won't be going back to the snobby shop. I'll order online if I need some specialty yarn later down the road.

My Cat's on a Mission

I really don't like snakes. I mean, they're not the stuff my nightmares are made of. I don't have a phobia of them or anything. I just really, really don't like them. I don't mourn one if it gets hit by a car or meets some other untimely death. I am also not above sending out my dear hubby after one. But it's not like I wish them ALL death and torment. I do know that some of them are good, keeping the rodents and vermin at bay. I just don't want them in MY yard.

Well, we've had a run of them in our backyard lately. They're not poisonous ones, just black racers, I think. And as they're all fairly the same size, I'm surmising they all hatched together nearby, and that's why they are in sudden abundance. But it's freaking me out. I'm afraid to take the kids in the backyard, as even non-poisonous snakes can bite or just plain scare us.

Also, it's not helping that the backyard needs cutting BADLY, as we've had so much rain, it just grows and grows, and it's usually too wet and nasty to cut grass of late. (And don't get me started on the HEAT!!!) And our neighbors vine-thing has grown over our fence and down and is starting to actualy grow underneath our kids' playground, so that's got to go. Hubby's gonna' have to get out there and whack off what's hanging over. Today one was was trying to climb up the fence (and succeeding) while a bird dive bombed him, apparently trying to protect its nest, which I belive is in the vines somewhere. It was very freaky to see that snake striking at the bird, and the bird attacking it back.

BUT, this DOES explain my cat's insane (since the heat index is well above 100 lately, and he's a long-haired cat) desire to be outside at all hours of the day. He comes in to eat and drink, then cries to go right back out. He's already killed two of them. I think he thinks he's on a mission to save and protect his yard and family. It's very honorable of him. I should probably go buy him a case of his favorite gravied cat food. :)

Finished Projects

So, I finally finished that quilt and had to post my pics. Hand quilted and bound--I'm quite happy with how it turned out. It's just a throw, of course, not big enough for a bed, but that's what I wanted it for. I already have hopes for Fall. :) (Note: I now know I should not take pictures in my living room at night. The color quality just stinks. Really, the colors in the quilt are MUCH brighter than they appear. Hmm...I'll have to take another picture outside...when we get some sun.)

And these are some soft books I made for my boys, for their birthday, since they are madly in love with anything farms and tractor. I'm also making them a farm quilt, too, and a wall hanging for their room. Maybe I'll get those done in time for their birthday. We'll see. I'm working on a quilt for my daughter's birthday, too, but I've got a little longer for that one. So, as you can see, I'm not at all busy. Ha! Hope you have a great weekend! I plan to.

In Progress

These are part of my plans for this weekend. Getting my binding put on my quilt (that I finished HAND quilting yesterday--yea!) and finishing a much thinner, more lightweight pair of fingerless gloves for this fall. One down. :) Making this one out of sock weight yarn, and it takes a good bit longer with all those tiny stitches. :)

Also, making food for a baby shower for a friend of mine. Petit Fours, cheese straws, and homemade mints. I'll let you know how they turned out!

Oh, and hubby wants carrot cupcakes. Just because I didn't have enough to do, huh? LOL It's okay. It's rare he asks for something, so I love it when he does. Usually it's "Whatever you want to do is fine." I love to cook for people, though, so sometimes a request is a nice thing. :)

Scenes from my Garden

The one part I really REALLY love about Spring/Summer is all the pretty flowers in bloom. I love to dig in the dirt and plant things, have ever since I was a kid. Unfortunately, we don't have a veggie garden this year, though I do have several herbs up and growing. I love to pick fresh herbs to use in my cooking. Mmm. Basil's one of my very favorites. We might plant a few late tomatoes and cucumbers, but we'll see. My poor husband has hurt his knee and isn't much for digging me up a bed. It also doesn't help that it's about 106 in the shade already...and it's just JUNE! What will AUGUST be like???

Sock Monsters

Just thought I'd share some new sock monster pics. They're about to go up in my shop.

Hope you have a great Monday!

Little Bit Warmers

So, here's Little Bit's much smaller version.



She loves them, which makes me feel wonderful, of course. :) I had fun making them, as I did it after she went to bed, and I had to keep sneaking into her room and measuring it against her little hands while she was asleep. Bless her, the girl can sleep through anything! She wanted a brown pair, but I used up some of my leftover orange first and trimmed it in brown. I might wind up making her an opposite pair, too, brown trimmd in orange. And I did make these a HAIR too big, so there's room to grow. They're for winter, which is quite a ways away at the moment.