Forsythia Blooming Inside

Here is a lovely sign of spring. I cheated mother nature a tad tho by forcing the forsythia blooms inside. As you can see through the window we have a snow/ice cover again. But our chipmunk has popped out of his winter nest and was nosing around the birdfeeders yesterday. The little knitted hearts hanging at the window are a gift from Meg last year.

Doll's House

Isn't this dollhouse cute? I like all the do-it-yourself ideas and the peg wooden dolls. Has anybody seen the booklet that seems to have been offered about the Doll's House?

Blooms and Boots

Rochester Witch Hazel in bloom! It looks like curls of colored coconut doesn't it?

Lots of wet mud as the snow is gone (for now). And I've got mucking-about boots now!

Man oh man do I love polka dots!

 

I found my troll paper dolls! I have had the outside cover in a different place and thought that I had thrown out the dolls long ago. Well, I was happy to find that I had not.

Now, I would like to find the make-it book with patterns for Richard Scarry dolls that I had when Em was small. Did I throw it out??? No idea....

Valentines

                                 Sweet valentines from circa 1974 (Hallmark)

Spring is not long off. I can feel it coming!!! We came home after dark last night to find a skunk eating the sunflower shells below our bird feeder 5 ft from our bedroom window. Lucky for us it was only interested in eating and not spraying. :-)

                       Happy Valentines Day!!

Happy Heart

A small felt pin I made for Valentine's Day. Em was going to wear it to school for her v-day party on Friday, but she decided not to. She said it looked like the heart that Julia Child (Meryl Streep) wears in the movie "Julie and Julia"....too big evidently. Ahhhh...Em has reached the age of self-conciousness. Makes me yearn for the little girl, who once delighted in pink, princesses, and large hearts. But, I still get daily hugs and kisses and much love. So much!!
Wishing you a lovey day!

Do you have ice??

Icy feed--those sad little birds.

Here is another finger puppet.

I made it a tad bit bigger than the one I made the other day.

I started with 25 stitches cast on and reduced a little less in the rows near the end.

The last row had 8 stitches instead of 6.

Finger Puppet

A knitted finger puppet I whipped up the other evening.

I have no idea what animal? it is....

Finger Puppet

I used variegated sock yarn on size one needles.

Cast on: 20 st.

stockinette stitch 18 rows (give or take)

(K2, SSK) 2 times, K4, (K2tog, K2) 2 times (16 st)

purl

(SSK) 4 times, (K2tog) 4 times (8 st)

purl

K1, SSK, K2, K2tog, K1 (6st)

pull the working thread through all stitches, gather

and stitch the puppet's back up using the mattress stitch.

Pointed ears (make two)

Cast on 2 st.

Kfb, K1 (3 st)

purl

knit

purl

(Kfb) 3 times (6 st)

cast off

Fold ear in half and stitch along the long cast off edge,

then placing onto puppet, stitch one to each side.

This ear could easily become a bunny ear by continuing to knit,

before casting off, until the length is pleasing.

Nose

Cast on 3 st.

Knit one row

Thread the working thread through all three stitches,

gather roughly into a triangular shape

or circular blob and stitch to face.

You could always knit one more row to get a bigger nose.

(each nose is guaranteed to look different) 

Ahhh....

Sunday Morning!!!

Do you like the red polka dot plate?

It's a Target find from the other day. I got a red tin bin for art supplies

from the bargain area near the front of the store as well. Lots of red

to cheer the dim colors of this month. :-)

I am trying to get geared up to clean up my art area.

Maybe new organizing supplies will help inspire....maybe. :-)

Brrr.....

You know it's been cold when the waterfall is meeting in the middle.

Bundle Up

A small scarf for a small bear.

Little Pies

Crisscross appley goodness.

Not nearly as pretty as those seen on Martha Stewart but yummy anyway. :-)

Brightens up another cold day around here.

Warm Tootsies

A day to keep the tootsies warm. We woke to -13F this morning and it hasn't gotten much warmer. Yikes! The woodstove is going, so warm and comforting, don't you love 'em.

Today we are finally getting around to seeing the Harry Potter movie before it leaves theaters.

Em has got a little store downstairs and she has bundled up bits of yarn and ribbon for sale, bags of pompoms and old toys. I am trying to convince her to make some things for the store to sell, like homemade valentines or pictures for our walls.

On Martha Stewart the other day--the wedding special one--there was a guy showing small eats for weddings and Meg and I cooed over the teeny tiny pies. They looked the size of a half-dollar.

 All kinds of ideas for cold, cold days!

Teddy

I have just finished this teddy bear. Em's teacher is just about to have a baby, so I thought it was a great time to try this pattern out. I found the pattern in a pull-out in a Simply Knitting magazine last spring. The pattern is designed by Laura Long and is found in the book "Knitted Toy Tales" as well.

The pattern had you seaming the back like a fabric toy, with right sides together and turning it back out. I changed this to a mattress-stitched seam.

I really like this pattern and I am now making a scarf for the wee fellow.

Good Reads

Ahhhh...........the loveliness of a quiet, snowy day!

I am banishing my winter blahs with a good book.

This one is a well-thumbed library pick, it's pages soft from use.

It is a mystery titled "Passport to Peril" by Robert Parker.

It has a man traveling under a murdered man's name, a beautiful young lady and the dangers of travel just after WWII into Budapest, Hungary.

I am thinking of all the old Agatha Christie's to keep me company through the winter. I love all of her characterizations and old-time England. Miss Marple--say no more, my all-time favorite detective.

Project Bags

Here is a project bag that I made for Em this Christmas.

I used an image from the fabric to sketch out for the felt kitty on the front.

This is the project bag that I made for Meg. I traced off one of the hedgehogs to embroider.

A New Year

New plantings just in time to take advantage of the little thaw we are experiencing.

Both future trees need protection from the pesky deer that roam all too frequently across our yard.

Have a very Happy New Year's Day!

Bye Bye 2010

A little bit rocky this year, 2010, and I'm glad to move on to a new one.

It wasn't all doom and gloom, there was lots of happiness, but I am looking forward to 2011.

A bright, shiny new beginning....

Merrily............

                                                   Warmest Wishes for a Very Merry Christmas!

Wrappings in Red

Getting my wrapping done today. I love the matryoshka tissue and tags that I found at World Market this year. Lots of red dotted love!

Holiday Fun

I went in to Em's class today and helped the kids make gingerbread houses. It was a blast to see what they came up with. All that candy and gooey icing!!

I got together a great craft for Em's class as well. I found the idea on Crafty Crow and added glitter. I prepared by making part of it ahead. First drizzle hot glue all over cardboard. Then you cut out a circle and spray with glue. Foil is pressed down on the glue. This is when the kids take over and color each area with a permanent marker, leaving the ridges silver. Then they take the ornament to a box where we sprayed more glue on top and it was off to the glitter tray. Finally, we put a string through a punched hole and bagged them to keep the glitter contained on the way home. I was lucky to have lots of help getting the ornaments ready and helping during the process.

The only other thing I added was a paper cut out on the back of the ornament for each student's name and I also included the teacher's name and year.
It was so much fun and I am so glad it is over and we can relax and enjoy this next week. It is snowing here-lightly-so pretty.
My Bell's Palsy is slowly getting a bit better. I have more control over my mouth and eyelid. :-)

Peppermint Sticks

A sampling of Christmas around here.....

Merry...finally

Well, I'm finally ready to start blogging again. I am not completely healed--it will take some time--but I am on the road and seeing some progress. I woke up on the third of November with half of my face paralyzed. The doctor reassured me that it wasn't a stroke, but it is Bell's Palsy. A cranial nerve gets damaged and it completely paralyzes one side of your face. My eyelid droops, mouth droops, tongue, cheek and nose are numb. My sense of taste, smell, and ability to eat are all affected. It does usually reverse itself at a painfully slow rate. It has been 4 weeks and just small improvements, so far. I am thankful for those, though. I can eat solid foods (on one side) and I don't require a straw to drink.
The hardest parts are the purely vain, looking strange and having people stare and then there were the medications with awful side effects. Most of all though I miss smiling with my whole face and the nuances of expression. It will get better though, I just have to have a lot of patience (who has a lot of that?)
During the month I busied myself with a few Christmas stuffies. I've seen ideas all over the place. The sort of gingerbread man pictured above is inspired by a project in "Fa La La Felt" by Amanda Carestio. The project from the book is by Cathy Gaubert.

A Lot of Small Steps

I need to take a litttle blog break. I am a bit sick and need to get healthy. Nothing too serious, just a long recovery and wanting to rest. Hopefully, I'll be back in the swing of things soon. In the meantime, take care and enjoy November. :-)

Cloth Peg Wooden

Made up my own pattern for this doll yesterday. I am hoping to make it look sort of like an old-time peg wooden doll. I have been working on a paper clay head and plan to attach it to the body with more paper clay. The fabric under this doll is what I'm planning on using for a voluminous skirt and over-skirt. A couple of notes: The nut-pick in the top picture is a handy tool for poking out tiny pieces. It is not overly sharp like a needle tool or scissors would be. The drinking straw is cleverly used to poke into the unturned arm or leg and the skewer is poked thru the straw with the fabric. This turns the smallest of tubes readily. I found this handy tip on Melly & Me.

One More Card

Here is another Pennslyvania Dutch greeting card. I love the little girl with her doll.

Now this is more like it! Sticky Buns, what's not to like?? :-)

Delightful Cupboard

I found a box of vintage greeting cards with Pennslyvania Dutch images on them. Here is one of my favorites. Each card has a recipe on the back. Eeewww! Liver dumplings.............

Caves and Cliffs

 A wonderful shelter cave.

Climbing and hiking today in Southeastern Ohio. It was a beautiful sunny perfect fall day.

Fall Colors

Beautiful fall colors where I am! How about you?