Scattered

I realized yesterday that I haven't posted anything on my blog in over a week. That's because I'm so scattered lately. I've been working on this and that but not really accomplishing much of anything. Sometimes I really wonder if I have ADHD! Here are some of the things I've been up to...

I finished knitting a bowl a few weeks ago and it's been sitting and waiting to be felted. I finally did this week!

I learned how to knit an i-cord right onto the top! That was so cool!...


Here it is after felting. It's nice and thick and holds the shape of the bowl edge very nicely...


Here's the whole thing before felting...


And, after...It's so cute! Now, all I need to do is give it a little haircut (it has mohair in it) and add some needle felted sheep, clouds, trees, etc...


My sister-in-law was given a few fleeces years ago and we sent them off to be processed into roving. I enjoyed spinning and spinning and spinning it (there was a lot) and I've knitted with it. This week, I pulled out what was left and wound it into balls and wet felted them. I'll use these to decorate with needle felting and pretty colors of wool...


I finally finished warping my loom this week and started weaving yesterday. I'm already on my third bobbin. I don't know why I don't do this more often. It's a lot of fun! Here's how this project is turning out, so far...


I finished winding all of the yarn on bobbins this morning. At the rate it's weaving up, it should be done in no time. Well, if I can stay focused that is. lol


I'm really happy with the selvedges. They're hardly pulling in at all...


In between those things, I've been knitting on my Olympic Shawl. I started it at the beginning of the year but it's gone in and out of time out as I've gotten interested in other things or frustrated with it or bored with it. I'm trying to keep working on it so I can get it done.

I also harvested another batch of fresh basil from my herb garden this week. I processed it and put it into the freezer for the winter. I need to dry some of the oregano and other herbs too. And, I've been doing house cleaning, laundry and I've been wasting a whole lot of time on Facebook and playing solitaire and majong on my laptop. I need to focus! I need to focus! lol

Framed - Memories

Part three of my "Framed" series is all about memories and the special touch they are going to add to the "inspiration wall" of my craft studio.

Last month, my favorite yarn shop closed down. I had shopped there for decades. I even went there with my mom when I was a kid! It had been around a long time, under various owners. The most recent owner was a sweet woman that somehow made this yarn shop very welcoming and comfortable. I loved going there for yarn and inspiration but mostly to enjoy the company of other wonderful ladies. I miss it so much! I'm very happy for the owner though. She had a successful business that she loved and now she gets to enjoy a wonderful retirement with her hubby.

At the closing potluck/party, I noticed the sign hanging outside in the breezeway. I love signs! I have several old ones hanging on my walls at home. And, this one would be so special. Hmmmm?! I thought that, maybe, they might not want them and decided to ask if there was any chance I might be able to have one or buy one (there were two signs, one on each side of a lighted box). She seemed to be more than happy to pass them along. The next thing I knew, her husband was outside, on a ladder, taking the signs out. They graciously gave them to me and another one of their devoted customers. I was thrilled and honored to receive such a great souvenir of this beloved yarn shop.

I knew immediately what I wanted to do with the sign, carefully loaded it into my SUV and couldn't wait to get home and show my husband. We soon went shopping for supplies and he built a nice frame to protect and showcase my new treasure. It will be the crowning touch to my inspiration wall. It's about 50" wide by 14" tall. I love it! Click on the picture to make it larger...


I've been going a little crazy with the black paint! I even painted the frame of an applique butterfly that my grandmother made decades ago...at least 40 years, maybe more. I framed it a long time ago to protect it and I've enjoyed it on the wall for years. It's a simple inexpensive oak frame and, with the black paint, I think it will work out well in this grouping. It's 10" x 12"...


I've run into a snag with this "inspiration wall" project. I had planned to add a round wall clock to the grouping. However, after posting about the coo coo clock and thinking about how I can't stand hearing "tick tock", I decided the clock might not be such a great idea. That leaves a hole in the grouping. So, now I'm working at figuring out how I want to arrange everything and what I'll need to make it just right. So, we haven't started hanging anything yet. I'm hoping it'll be soon though. When I do, I'll be sure to post it right away. :-)

Swirly Bag

I just finished up a little knit bag. It's swirly and cute and it's made out of one of my favorite kinds of yarn, Sugar N Cream. I bought four skeins in this "Country Side Ombre" color a couple of years ago and have been on the look out for just the right pattern. I recently ran across the "Jamaica Pouch" pattern on Ravelry and thought it might be a great match for my yarn. I think it worked out pretty well...


For the drawstrings, I used ribbon and beads to dress it up a bit...


I love the ruffly top when it's closed...


The bottom is kind of swirly too, but in a different way...


This fun little project only took two little skeins of Sugar N Cream (about 190 yards) with size seven needles. That means I still have two skeins left! The cost of this bag was practically nothing because the yarn was only a couple of dollars, the pattern was free, and I had everything else.

The greens are fairly accurate in the photos but it actually has purples and lavenders in it, not blue. I tried to correct it through editing but it just wouldn't work. It's actually a lot prettier in person. :-)

Day in the Desert

I visited a good friend of mine at her beautiful desert home on Monday. I enjoyed the drive along quiet, winding, country highways. The skies were blue with puffy white clouds making shadows that floated gently over the hills. The landscape was covered in wildflowers...little yellow ones, white and even some pale blue ones. The flowers that stood out the most and covered much of the landscape were the "Red Shank Chaparral". They are like small trees or big bushes and they're covered in teeny, tiny flowers that were once white but are now turning beautiful golden, Fall colors. There were tons of them!...


I always love going to visit my friend. She's so sweet and so much fun. And, she has a Southwest style home that is beautiful and inspiring. She and her husband are very creative and always have something new and amazing to see. This entry is new since I had last been there. Isn't it gorgeous?! I love how their kitty and doggy casually come and go as they please. Life is good!...


This is the top of their garage...


The inside of their home is beautiful too but I don't want to invade their privacy too much by showing a lot of photos...even though I took more. I couldn't help myself! I love their home!

There was a lot to see outside too. She has two llamas. They're in their 20's! It was hot, so she turned on the hose and they strolled up the hill to have their legs sprinkled and cool down. I love llamas!!!...


I've never seen a cactus with so many fruits at one time. They are loaded! Aren't they pretty?! I'd love to see what they look like on the inside and try cooking with them. Wouldn't that be fun?!...


As we strolled around the property we found more fun things. These are Elderberries...


They're so tiny! We tasted them but they didn't seem to have much flavor. Maybe it's because they're so small. It'd be fun to try making Elderberry wine though...


We aren't sure what these are but they sure are pretty!...


She called this "Ribbonwood". The bark peeled off and it was so long, just like ribbon...


After strolling around her property and visiting for a while, we went into the small town nearby for a Mexican food lunch. Yum! Then back to her house on the hill for a little more visiting time before I enjoyed the peaceful drive home. Going to visit her is always a treat! :-)

Framed - Tacky

This will be another component of my inspiration wall. It's a simple tack/cork/bulletin board from a discount store...


It came with a black frame and I dressed it up with red fabric and a vintage trim that I simply stapled into place. It's going to add a great punch of color to my inspiration wall!

The size of this one is 22"x35". I'm not sure what the total cost was because the frame was a gift a few years ago and I dressed it up shortly after I received it. I can't remember if I purchased the fabric or if I had it. The trim was from my ever growing collection of vintage trims that I've been buying for decades. I usually pay almost nothing for a bag of old trims...maybe ten cents or a quarter. I imagine that the total cost of this project would probably be $20-$25.

As with yesterday's post, I'm only showing a close up so you can see the detail. I'll show you the whole thing when I get it up on the wall. :-)

I'll soon be posting another "Framed" story that is at least as exciting as yesterday's...possibly even more!

Framed - Extreme Makeover

I've been working on some projects for my craft studio for a few months now and I think I'm at the point that I can start sharing what I've been up to. The projects are almost all complete and ready to hang up to create my "inspiration wall".

I scored this frame last November (or, maybe it was the year before) at a church rummage sale for only $5! I couldn't believe what I had found and that it hadn't been snatched up already. Especially, as I carried it out the door and people were gasping at what a great piece it is! I have to admit though that it took a while to work up the courage to paint it. I always wonder if it's ok to change something like this and if it will diminish it's value or specialness. But, in the end, I went for it! After all, this gold finish is a little gross and there were some chips and dings (you can click on the pictures to enlarge them and get a better look at the details)...


There is a lot of detail and that required careful painting, several coats and touch ups to get all that gold covered up. I used black craft paint and satin, water based craft varnish for this makeover...


Look at it now! It's amazing! All those dings and chips have completely disappeared! It went from dingy and ugly to sophisticated and elegant. It looks even better in person! My husband put a piece of galvanized metal into it so I can use it as a magnet board...


The frame is just over 33"x33". The total cost of purchase and makeover supplies was about $35.

Why did I paint it black? And, why did I add galvanized metal to such an elegant frame? You'll have to stay tuned to find out. :-)

P.S. I'm only posting close ups right now to show the detail. If I post a picture of the whole thing, the details wouldn't show up very well because it's so large. I'll definitley show the whole thing when it's up on the wall with everything else I'll be showing you. :-)

Coo Coo

I have an idea that might be a bit coo coo and I'd like to hear your thoughts...

I have an old coo coo clock that my mom got when I was a child. She collected either Blue Chip Stamps or Green Stamps to get it. I remember going with her to the store to get it. And, I remember it coo cooing on the hour and the half hour for years and years as I grew up. My parents gave it to me a long time ago and I hung on the wall in our last house. Since we moved, about eight years ago, it's been in a box and stored in a closet.

I think it's brown paint is kind of ugly. So, I have a coo coo idea in my head that it might be cute if I painted it black...or red...or ivory...or ??? Here's how it looks now...


The little blue bird might stand out better against another color. Isn't it cute?!...


I could even paint the bird at the bottom blue and the leaves green. But that might be going a bit too far. I'm not even sure if it's a good idea to paint it. I know it's not a quality clock but it was purchased with shopping stamps which you can't do anymore. And, it was made in West Germany...


It has another stamp on the back...


I wouldn't want to ruin it if it's a collector item. But, it does have a few flaws. It looks like it has been broken and put back together. See the cracks on the back?...


Here's another one...


There's a tiny crack in the roof too. And, a spot of white paint...


It doesn't quite work right either. I took it to a clock repair shop years ago and was told that they wouldn't be able to fix it. But, I could get a second opinion. Although, I'm not a huge fan of coo cooing and the constant tick tock sound. I could just hang it on the wall as a decoration.

What do you think? Would it be coo coo to paint this little clock? If so, what color? Or, should I just clean it up a bit and hang it on the wall as it is? Either way, it's an interesting little keepsake of my time growing up.

I appreciate your thoughts and comments. Thanks for stopping by. :-)

Ready...Set...Warp!

I have a weaving project in mind that I've been wanting to get started on for some time now. Last weekend, I finally gathered my supplies...


Planned and measured out my warp...


Chained it and took it to the loom...


And, then, the week started and went by so fast that it's almost a blur. I can't believe it's Friday already. But, that's good. I'm hoping to find time this weekend to get this on the loom and get started. Yippee!

I'll be using Katia Colibri yarn for my warp and weft and weaving an open, airy scarf/wrap. I can't wait to get started and see how it turns out with this interestingly textured yarn.

Busy as a Bee

I wanted to save this picture for a "Floral Friday" post but it fits perfect for this week and an update on what I've been up to. It's a busy little bee that I saw on our recent weekend in the mountains...


I like to post several times a week but I'm finding that hard to do this week. First, Monday was a holiday and it's kind of messed with my inner calendar....what day is this anyway?! And, I've been busy with so many things...in sort of a non-focused way. That makes it hard to create a complete post about any of the things I've been up to. But, I can say that I've been cooking, measuring out warp for a weaving project, knitting a new project, cleaning, felting another project, doing laundry, listing things in my Etsy shop, planning crochet projects, planning sewing projects, refinancing the mortgage, visiting with knit friends, walking, and today my dad is having surgery and I'll be hanging out with my mom in the waiting room. I'm hoping to get more focused soon so I can finish up a few things and take pictures. Whew! No wonder I've been tired and going to bed early!

No Cook Summer Meal

We're having a heat wave here in Southern California. When the temps are high, I really don't want to cook and heat up the house. Combine that with the inspiration I had yesterday of mixing unexpected ingredients and I came up with this...


I combined two cans of organic black beans, a cup of thawed frozen white corn, two diced tomatoes, two diced zucchini and three finely sliced green onions. For a dressing, I combined about 1/2 cup of mayonaise, the juice of one large lime, several shakes of Tapatio hot sauce, chili powder, fresh basil cut in a chiffonade style (stack the leaves, roll them, and thinly slice the roll to get thin strands), and salt and pepper to taste. I poured this mixture over the vegetables and mixed it all up.

It was delicious! We tried it with chips and liked it but found out we got a much bigger punch of flavor by just eating it with a spoon. The lime, chili and basil were a great combination of flavors for the dressing and all the veggies. I think it would be great with some finely diced jalapeno too. And, it might be really good rolled up in lettuce leaves. Yum! I'll definitely make this again! :-D

Morning Harvest

I harvested a few things from our garden this morning while the temps were still cool. Beautiful cherry and yellow pear tomatoes and more figs. Yummm!

Dinner and Blues

Yesterday was the perfect end to our week and an awesome start to our long holiday weekend! It started out with a girls day out with my mother-in-law, her mom, my two sisters-in-law, my daughter, and I. We had fun and laughs shopping and then went to lunch at a new restaurant in town, The Lazy Dog Cafe. We were all very glad we gave it a try because everything was delicious and fun!

Sometimes I wonder if there are any new tastes out there or new combinations that actually taste different than anything else rather than like something else. Does that make sense? Well, this place answered that question with a huge "yes"! They have a lot of unique things on the menu with interesting ingredient combinations. It was so good that I took my husband there last night for dinner!


One of their interesting taste combinations is the Phukett Martini (pronounced "poo-ket"). It's a combination of Absolut Peppar, coconut rum, fresh jalapeno, basil, mint, sweet & sour & candied ginger. It's so tasty that the alcohol is undetectable and the flavor is like nothing I've ever had. The flavor is hard to describe but it was soooo good.

For dinner, I had Hawaiian Ahi Poke with fresh ahi tuna, sesame vinaigrette, green onions, crispy wontons, avocado, wasabi dressing (YUMMMM!!). Soooo good and it came with a bowl of coleslaw type salad with another interesting and unique taste. I don't know what all was in it but it was very different and I couldn't decide if I liked it just because it was different or if I actually loved it. I had mashed potatoes and gravy too. Even the gravy had a unique taste. A weird pairing, I know...but it was all so good.

Hubby had ahi fish tacos. He said they were really good. It came with a delicious fruit salsa, steamed rice and black beans with yet another unique taste...kinda sweet. Dinner was a lot of fun!

Afterward, we went to one of our favorite local wineries, Miramonte, to meet up with my hubby's parents, his sister, and her hubby for a night of wine and blues. The Nathan James Trio was playing...one of our favorites! We enjoyed a bottle of their 2005 Syrah, finishing the evening off with some incredible Port wine. Yum!


These pictures are from my cell phone.

Have a fabulous Labor Day Weekend! :-)

Dog Days of Summer

Our dog, Salsa, had a blast last weekend when we went camping in the mountains. She loves to go "bye bye" and she loves camping. But, on Sunday, after just about everyone went home and we had the campground almost all to ourselves, Salsa realllly had some fun. We went for a walk and enjoyed the cool air, the trees, and the beautiful green grass area at Hurkey Creek Campground.

My daughter and Salsa had a little chat about what they were going to do...


And the games began...


Runnin'...


Weeeee....


So much fun...look at that smile...


Whooosh...


A moment off the leash, running to dad...


Jumpin...


That was so much fun! How about a kiss?! :-)