winter love

when i am driving to work in the mornings i always make great plans for what i'm going to do when i get home, usually involving sewing and making something for supper. i should know better...i never have much energy left after work,  especially with it getting dark so early. well, i have good intentions anyway, and thankfully brian likes to cook, or we'd have toast for supper every night.....

it's damn cold today. i went out to see the chickens when i got home with a big bag of leftover pasta from work which they love, but they'd already gone up to roost. poor chilly girls! i have 4, and three of them were all piled on top of the laying box and one was left alone on the perch! i wish they'd all stay together. i'll warm up the pasta and give it to them for breakfast. they'll like that.

i do love these cold, dark days. i love being in the cozy warm house with my pets and brian, going to sleep under so many blankets i'm afraid i'm going to put my back out when i turn over sometimes! i love the warm colors of the lamplit rooms, the beautiful blue of the sky through the windows before the sun goes down. candles and tea and comfort food.  this is my time of the year and i'm enjoying every day of it!

warm and cozy

textiles.

that's what it's all about for me. blankets, pillows, curtains, rugs, tablecloths. they make the house so warm and cozy and interesting to look at. and easy to change!

speaking of warm and cozy, now that the cold weather is upon us, "cocktail hour" (or i should say, "my one drink after dinner that pretty much makes me useless and puts me to sleep"...) is something i look forward to! my favorite drink right now is a white russian. yummmmmm! ah yes, useless and sleepy!

what is your favorite wintertime drink?

*****

rest in peace nelson mandela.

CAT AND QUILTS

hi! i am excited to show you my new set of postcards called "cat and quilts" starring my furry friend, violet!  she loves snuggling up on all of the quilts and crocheted blankets around here, and i got some nice photos of her in the act!

i'll have these for sale at the craft fair, individually and in sets of five. the sets are bundled in wraps made with sweet vintage fabrics and  ric-rac trim.

i have also dusted the cobwebs off of  my long neglected etsy shop, and you can find them there now! if you live outside the united states, please leave me a message here or on etsy and i will be happy to find the shipping cost for your location.

thanks to everyone who reads my blog and leaves such nice comments! i love knowing you're out there!

happy monday!

**note** the colors are best represented in the very first photo. thanks!

lately

not a whole lot going on around here lately.  i went peach picking with two of my cousins which was really fun and such good peaches!!

i'm slowly plugging away at the x and + quilt.  i can't wait til i have time to really crank those squares out!!  i found some sweet prints the other day at the fabric store.  the green polka dot fabric was given to me by my friends kelly and roger who found it at the flea market.  i love it!

we've had some crazy weather this week-HOT and terrible thunder storms! brian and i took a walk this afternoon and found a spot on the sidewalk where the lightening hit and turned the area to glass!  pretty cool!

pretty relaxing day here today which has been niiiiiccceeeeee!  enjoy your sunday!

v

basking in the glow of the bedside lamp.

ed

i knit this little guy a while back. i got the pattern on etsy, here.

i think he looks like ed asner. like, exactly like ed asner. am i right???


**i notice this pattern doesn't seem to be available anymore, but she has other cute things!**

...and i get my life back

i can say i pretty much got lost in this quilt. i was DRIVEN to finish it! sunday night i finished the hand quilting, and tuesday i found the perfect color to bind it with. you know how you have a certain color in mind, and then you can never find it? well, i went to the fabric store and there it was. a kind of orange-y salmon-y red. thank you kaffe fasset!

so tuesday night i set to work binding the quilt, and , ta-da! it's done!

itch!

the quilt is made up of 4" squares, 20 squares x 22, about 80" x 84". i washed and dried it last night, and i love how it came out all crinkly, especially on the back. due to my "pinning together rush job", there were a few puckery places on the back. but now the whole thing looks wrinkly, so that's great!

i think violet's cooperation today was born of heat prostration (it was almost 90 degrees today!!!) rather than any desire to pose. poor girl!

excuse my color differences. i like that "retro" setting on my camera because it makes everything so soft looking, but the real color is more like the last photo.

now i can do things like mow the lawn and work in the garden...*yay*  (and maybe cook and clean...)

and, so exciting, one more day of work, then v-a-c-a-t-i-o-n!!!!!!!

covergirl

i put the spring quilt on the bed yesterday, and violet jumped right up in a very posing sort of mood. so we had a little photo shoot! she's looking good!!

make sure you comment for the garland giveaway!

violet is here reminding you to leave a comment on last saturday's post, by TOMORROW, friday, february 22nd, so that your name will be entered in the drawing for a sweet crocheted garland!!!!! the drawing will be held on SATURDAY, february 23rd. sooooooo exciting!!! time's a-wastin'!!

it's a blizzard!

i thought i'd better post early today in case we lose power. it's sure coming down!! we're expecting up to two feet-yay! it's quite beautiful out there, and nice and warm in here. i have lots of projects to keep me busy and hope to get out snow shoeing tomorrow.

i'm also going to make a bunch of meatballs. there was a restaurant in portsmouth, nh called "rosa's" that i used to love. they were open for 80 years (!) and made the BEST meatballs ever! i was really sad when they closed. i ran into the chef a while back and asked if there was any way i could get that meatball recipe, and he gave it to me! i was so happy! so, rosa's meatballs it is! i can't wait!

keep safe if you have to go out, and enjoy the blizzard!

a picture an hour

yesterday for a little challenge, i took a picture every hour. here they are. above is 7:00 am

8:00 am

9:00 am

10:00 am

11:00 am

12:00 pm

1:00 pm

2:00 pm

3:00 pm

4:00 pm

5:00 pm

6:00 pm

7:00 pm

8:00 pm

9:00 pm

just an ordinary day, but an extraordinary dinner at joe and marj's!! today we'll be making pizzas and watching the superbowl.

have a nice sunday!!!