Turning Over the Page

Once again the month is speeding by -- and it was August when I last wrote a "proper" blog post -- one with news of Making Things, Growing Things and More.  

The leaves in these parts are beginning to turn.  Nights are colder, daylight hours are shorter, the furnace runs more often, the garden is waning, and more of my making takes place indoors.

Like so many do, I look upon September as a "second New Year" month -- when school starts up again (not that I've been part of that recently!)  And it's my Birthday Month.  Those of you who paused to read my short Birthday Reflections post will have noticed I was really feeling my age.  It's been a tough year -- replete with health challenges (resolved now, thank heavens!), the death of two friends in swift succession, and the falling apart of several items, costing varied amounts to repair or replace: a slow cooker, a microwave, the kitchen taps, my automatic garage door opener, my back-up sewing machine and most recently, the hard drive on my laptop which, the repair fellow told me, was so worn out (after 3 1/2 years of use) that he couldn't even extract the files in the usual fashion, and it would cost -- at minimum -- $1,800 to do it with special equipment. (I opted NOT to do that, and simply have the machine repaired, with a new battery added to the mix to give it extra oomf!)

What's a body to do?

Give her head a shake, that's what!

And that's precisely what I've been doing for the last couple of weeks: Serious Soul-Searching.  Counting My Blessings. And Creating Beauty Every Day with my blessedly still able and arthritis free hands.

Let's begin with the knitting, shall we?

It's decidedly "Sweatah Weathah" but I'm not working on any of those -- for myself, that is.  That's because it's also Knitting for Holiday Gifts (Christmas, in my case).  The first of these began to be knit in the spring, because it's the "Presto Vesto" for my daughter, a Christmas-Birthday gift because she was born 3 weeks after Xmas, so sometimes that's the way the gifts are given 'round here.  

This Vesto pattern is anything but "Presto"!  I last mentioned it and posted a photo of it in June.  Since then, I've completed the back, with the shoulder and neck shaping, and cast on the right-side front.  The ribbing is done and the complex cable pattern started -- to the point where I've now split for the inset pocket.

Knitter's Note: I've been knitting for about 64 years -- and this is the first time I've ever created an inset pocket in a garment!!  It took me about an hour of reading and re-reading the instructions in the pattern, of Google searching the technique and of trying to visualize the darned thing -- but once I began, stepping out in trust that the pattern really did make sense, well, now!  Off to the races!  I've got another 2 dozen or so rows of pattern to knit before I join the parts back together, but here's what it looked like as of yesterday, when I put it down:

Ta DA!

Yes, I'm pleased as punch with it!

The second Xmas gift is a newer cast on for a friend.  It's a relatively mindless garter-stitch shawlette/scarf that's asymmetrical.  The pattern caught my attention when Karen of the Recreational Knitting YouTube podcast showed the one she was working on.  "Just the ticket!", thought I, and I had just the right yarn in my stash with which to make it, too! 

I mentioned this project -- the "Back Bay Boomerang" -- in my end-of-August post, and while I've made great progress on it since then -- whittling the ball of yarn to almost 1/2 its size but alas, I've no new photo of it! Next time, perhaps.

I also began to knit a series of "Christmas Cowls" for my son and his family, using the "Simple Gift Cowl" pattern designed by Amy Curletto of Alligator Knits (free pattern on Ravelry). The pattern calls for worsted-weight yarn, but I used a DK-weight and simply made a larger size.  Started on September 9 -- and finished (not blocked) on September 13!

"Simple Gift Cowl"
Designer: Amy Curletto
Yarn: Schoeller & Stahl
Limbo Mexiko Color in Color #2583 

The colour name is "Green-white" but it comes across -- even in person -- as so dark a green that it's almost black.  It'll be just right for one of the two fellows in the household!

My carry-around knitting is, as usual, socks -- and I'm almost finished the 2nd of the pair of Long-Legged, Long-Footed socks for the dear gal who lost the first ones I made her in a housefire.  I've finally turned the heel and am past the gusset, moving down the foot!  Not a holiday gift, so I'm working on them a bit each day to get 'em done before month-end!

Pattern: Simple Ribbed Socks
A free pattern from Angela Law on Ravelry
Yarn: elann.com 'Sock-it-to-Me' Harlequin
From stash - Colour #80 - "Blue Stonewash"

My daughter assures me that the recipient will like them -- the colours go with her jeans!

Now, then...on to a bit of spinning.  I failed miserably at the Ravelry "Tour de Fleece" this year -- it was just too darned hot to spin (or knit or do pretty much anything hands-on with wool!)  BUT when the weather moderated a bit in August, I managed to get more spinning done (I love to do it outside), and so managed to turn the marl I showed you in my last post while it was still on the bobbins -- into a skein. 

My online spinning compatriots at Two Ewes Fiber Adventures (on Ravelry) suggested I turn the 85 grams of fingering-like yarn into mittens -- and I think that's exactly what I'll do!

Meanwhile, I've begun spinning singles from a hand-dyed merino batt I bought at the Rose City Fibre Festival (Camrose, Alberta) in 2023.  It's a bit challenging, given the softness of it (compared to Falklands roving and alpaca/wool blend), so it'll be a learning experience for the next while.  Stay tuned!

Moving from fibre to fabric...Quilting!  In my end-of-August post, I showed the start of the assembly of the Celtic Knot Quilt blocks.  Since that post, I've put all five of the blocks of one colour-combo and all four of the blocks of a second colour-combo together.  Here they are, stacked side-by-side on my design surface:

Left: "A" Blocks
Right: "B" Blocks

Yes, I know they look alike, but look closely. There is a subtle difference in the fabrics!  Now you know why I have to tread carefully here and pay close attention to assembly and layout!  There are currently 9 blocks made -- but to arrive at the desired size for this particular quilt, I need to create 7 more: 3 "A" Blocks (bringing the total to 8) and 4 "B" blocks (bringing the total to 8).  This will happen over the course of the winter, so by spring, the top will be assembled, with borders, and be ready for quilting so it can be bound and delivered to the designated recipients a year from now for their Special Occasion.  

Indeed, 2025 will be a Significant Year in my corner of the world.  It marks 50 years since I was married (and 19 of those as a widow).  Two other couples -- now with only 1 surviving partner -- will accompany me in that.  Fond memories, yes, but no sparkly celebrations there!  

But it marks 55 years since my younger sister graduated from our high school, and my son will turn 40 (he's the youngest of my two kids!).  So I've decided to make him a quilt, as it's been a long time.

For this one, my stash is calling -- and my choice is batiks.  I have a selection of dark blue and dark blue-green ones that have yet to be used.  At the Central Alberta Quilt Show last spring I bought several metres -- about eight on a 'skinny bolt' from a shop whose owner was retiring.  And I dug out this book:  Batik Beauties: 18 Stunning Quilts by Laurie Shifrin, which I bought eons ago. 

I've chosen a star pattern -- not the one on the cover! --  with the lighter fabric (from the skinny bolt) as the background.  Here's what I've cut for the block units so far:

The left-hand stack is actually a dozen squares -- each different -- for the centre of the stars.  The right-hand stack is background fabric but in this case, it's cut to go in the 4 corners of each star block.  I've got a lot of cutting of units to do before a block is assembled, so stay tuned!

Aside from the 'special' quilts I'm constructing, I continue to make scrappy quilts to give away.  One of them comes from the 'bonus triangles' created when I was doing one of Bonnie Hunter's mysteries (don't ask me which one).  I've managed to turn those into HSTs (Half-Square-Triangles), and from there into small-ish (5" finished) four-patches, thus -- as shown on the right-hand side of this photo:

On the left-hand side there's another trio of blocks -- part of the scrappy collection I'm gathering for another "Easy Breezy" (Leader-and-ender Challenge) quilt from Bonnie.  I have almost 50 of these made, but they're tiny (4" finished) so have a good 80 or more to go before I can turn them into something.  The centre 4-patches are all made up, and clipped in batches of 10, but the remaining 'borders' for each block have to be cut and attached!

Yep.  I'm just stacking 'em up -- both of these types of units.   Eventually, they'll become tops for comforting someone.  A local fella and his partner are expecting their first baby -- a girl -- close to Christmas this year.  I don't know her, but his mother died a couple of years ago and his dad is never mentioned -- neither are his siblings (if any). So that pink pinwheel quilt might be just right thing for a baby gift (with a pair of hand-knit baby socks attached!)

Meanwhile, the "A Quilting Life" 2024 Block of the Month continues to test my piecing skills! As you might recall, Gentle Readers, I'm aiming to make two of the smaller (8" finished) blocks per month, using my Thimbleberry fabric stash from years ago.  I gotta confess, a bit fiddly though they are, as the pieces get *very* tiny, I really enjoy making these up.  Here are my September blocks:

I ran out of greens so I'm making blocks with more blues and browns/golds.  So be it!  Scrappy all the way!

Now...what about hooked art?

In my end-of-August post I showed you the beginnings of my work in the online class form Deanne Fitzpatrick entitled, "Simple Shading".  My purpose in taking that class was to explore the technique of shading with yarn and fabric strips insead of with cotton fabric.  Also, I'm more of a landscape artist (or I was, before Covid had me trying to make order out of chaos) -- so I'd not really done anything in the way of still life work.  This project encompassed both techniques...and while it was a challenge, I learned a lot (including that I'm not fond of creating still life work!) -- and made, in the end, a pretty and comfy small pillow, and learned about shading with hooked fibre.  Here it is, finished but not fully finished:

And now, fully finished, on the bench in my Outdoor Studio -- including a close-up shot:

Yes, that cute l'il thing is all of 9" x 12" and now lives on a chair in my living room!

This week I finally set up a new piece -- this time, an original design -- on my standing frame.  It's 6" square and will likely be mounted on stretched canvas.  If I'm accepted, it'll go into the annual Under $100 Art Market in Lacombe, Alberta at the end of November.  It's a landscape, tentatively entitled "Turning", and here's my tiny start:

I hope to create 3 pieces that size. Anything not sold at that show will go to Curiosity Art & Framing in Red Deer, with high hopes to be sold there!

The Under $100 Art Market is not only an opportunity for the community to see and purchase all kinds of art and fine craft for less than $100 a piece, but also a fundraiser for the organizers -- the Lacombe Performing Arts Centre (aka LPAC).  In an area where sports -- especially HOCKEY -- are paramount, the Arts (visual and performing) have struggled to maintain a foothold in the minds of the populace.  I'm happy to play my part to keep the Arts alive in these parts!!

In the interests of adding to my "hooking" yarn supply, I happily went to the Prairie Fibre Festival in Lacombe on September 14*.  And I wasn't disappointed!  I came home with a variety of yarn and fibre suitable for my hooked-art pieces.

First, this trio of yarns from Brine Dyeworks of Calgary, Alberta -- 100% Finn wool, all light worsted weight:  

Left to right: "Canopy"; Rym"; and "Galactica"
All are classed as "DK/worsted" 

Next, a skein of single-ply "super bulky" hand-dyed yarn from That Yarn Habit of Grande Prairie, Alberta, in the colour "Thunder Cloud":

Third, a skein of Peruvian Highland Wool, aran weight and hand-dyed, from All Wound Up Kntting (Facebook link) of Castor, Alberta.

Finally, some curly locks for texture: Cotswold locks from Saskatchewan in the "Oprah" (!) colour-way (i.e. natural) from Imagine Yarn of Biggar, SK:

Such a quantity of fibre goodness with which to create new landscapes and skyscapes!

 *NOTE: Since earlier this year, Olds College permanently cancelled it's famous, decades-old "Fibre Week", the Alberta fibre community has been stepping up!  To that end, the Prairie Fibre Festival last weekend hosted MORE vendors and MORE classes than ever before -- AND have booked in for TWO events in 2025:  

1. June 14, 2025 -- in Olds -- put that in your pipe and smoke it, Olds College!; and
2. September 13, 2025 -- in Lacombe, Alberta.

Get on the e-mail list for news and updates, eh?

Of course, being a woolly wool fan, I couldn't pass up a chance to buy a bit of Black Welsh Mountain fingering being sold by Melanie Rudy, the gal from whom I and friends Anne and Sha took the 'Shetland Lace Knitting' workshop on the Saturday afternoon of the Festival.  I got it to go into a Shetland Hap...some day in the not-too-distant future.  Soooo beautiful!

I should note that the day was made rich not only by the finding of glorious yarn I can use, or by taking an interesting class, but also by the friends I had with me for part of the day: Barbara from Calgary, Mary and Sha from south of Calgary, and Anne from Gull Lake.  I/we shared the joy with Shauna from Westaskiwin, Erin from near Blackfalds, and Gail and Sharon from Lacombe.  I missed Lori (she showed up later when I was in class) but no matter.  It was all good.

Last but not least, what about stitching?  Well...it's Sampler September!

In my late-August post, I mentioned my plans, and as this month slides by, trying to hustle me along with it, I've pretty much stuck to those plans.

I began the month working on Jeanette Douglas' reproduction of Ann Perrin 1841.  I worked on it for the better part of the first week, and ended that time with two pattern pages completed - working top left to right:

I then moved on to my "birthday sampler" (begun last year) from Hands Across the Sea designs: "Memories of the Past".  Here's where I left it on September 18th -- again, with two pages finished, but this time on the left side only:

And as of yesterday (the 19th) I've resumed work on Emeline Hotchkiss 1846, making progress here too.  I've moved from the first page (top left) to the second (bottom left) and have started my very first 'berry bowl' motif!

Last but not least (and yet to be worked on this month) is the wee new start I made on 56-count -- "Frances Lawson 1848" from Sampler & Antique Needlework: a Year in Stitches, published in 1994 and given me by a friend.   Here's what the start looks like at the moment -- just a bit of the border from the top left corner:

I'm loving each and every one of these pieces -- for their history, their back story, their connections to my Quebec home, their colours, their expressed sentiments.  Sometimes we work pieces for only one of these reasons; sometimes, for more than one; sometimes for all of them.

And for reasons we don't fully understand, the work brings us comfort and peace.

Like any of us who are makers -- working 'hand-over-hand' as Deanne Fitzpatrick says -- knitters, spinners and weavers form community as do quilters, rug-hookers, and stitchers.  Many of us overlap our interests and so belong to more than one of these.  We take our passion for making, and our art, and use it for comfort, for teaching, for sharing and giving -- for developing harmony and the meditative peace that comes from these humble skills.  We create beauty every time we sit down at the loom or the wheel; every time we pick up needles or hooks; every time we stir a dye pot or share a pattern or gather around a frame or a table.

How are you creating beauty, community, harmony and peace every day in your tiny space in the world?  Never forget that every time you pick up a hook, a needle, a pin, some yarn, or fabric, some fibre or floss; every time you click a camera's shutter; every time you fashion clay or turn wood on a lathe; every time you put a pen or pencil or oil pastel or chalk or paint to paper or canvas; every time you warp a loom or move a shuttle or spin on a wheel or spindle -- every time you make with your heart, mind, hands and soul, you are making your tiny corner of the world a better place.

On that note, I'll leave you for the moment, Gentle Readers, with my usual link to Nna-Marie's Off the Wall Friday, and with wishes and blssings for good days ahead.

A bientot!

Birthday Reflections

I'm old. I love my children, even if they don't always believe it. They are the life that came from me and my late DH. They are the last of our direct line, as they have no children of their own (yet). No matter. They are the embodiment of the best we knew how to be and give and share.

My next year may be better or worse than this past one; God only knows. I will continue to look for hope, to care for others as God expects, to love and pray and serve and create beauty...to exercise the gifts I've been given. It is all I can do and be.

But it's all being done for the Creator, for the memory of my husband, and for my children. May the Creator give me the grace to carry on.

Our Family - ca September 1985

September in the Air

 

Living in a country with four pretty distinct seasons, I've been sensing September in the air for a couple of weeks now (at least!)  No matter that the forecast for tomorrow and Sunday will take us back into the Heat Zone -- though not quite as hot as July.  The mornings are cooler, the dawn arrives later and the sun sets earlier each day.  The kids started school this week.  September is coming.  The Mountain Ash* berries are turning -- though not yet as red as in this photo from some years ago.  Some of my neighbours -- and I -- are wondering if climate change is affecting the turning. Then again, for the moment, there's no frost on the horizon.  They need to be more red by the first frost...or so 'they' say...   *Rowan in the UK

I've stopped cutting the leaf lettuce in my raised beds, and simply pull it now; otherwise, I risk its bolting.  My dill is forming seeds.  My Savoury is flowering so it's time to cut and dry it.  

I still have some tiger lilies and hardy roses bravely flowering, and my verbena is brilliant!  It's become a staple in my garden.  It likes a pot, it blooms, dies back and blooms again -- and it's deer-resistant!  What's not to like?!

And now I am at last harvesting zucchini that have made me happy.  Salad and stir-fry size -- no footballs!

Perfection!  Not too big, not too small!

Though my Mountain Ash and ornamental fruit trees have long ago stopped flowering and have produced fruit for the birds, my Prairie Clematis has done its best to cover the west window in my living room, and take over that assignment!

Bee on Prairie Clematis - Aug 26-2024

This month, too, we've had much of the rain we should have had in July.  I don't exactly know what this has done for the ranchers -- grain and corn growers -- but it's got to have been challenging to deal with!

On cool and rainy days, I've focused on knitting, stitching and quilting, so let's review, shall we?

First, I finished a "summer" sweater: the Vincas top, a free pattern from Berocco.  I made it out of 100% cotton -- Estelle Young Touch Cotton DK -- long discontinued -- I've owned ot for at least 20 years!  Mine is in the fuschia colour-way; out of 9 fifty-gram balls, I used 7 1/2 -- so it was a good stash-buster.  Moreover, even though I've finished it late in the summer season, it also looks great as a vest over a turtleneck top!  Win-win-win!  😁  I can't take proper "selfies" because I don't own a fancy phone...so here it is, lying on the back of the love seat in my living room.  

The construction is easy -- two rectangles, seamed together -- but the design is interesting due to the texture, which is created by the bands of stitching in different patterns, separated by a narrow drop-stitch band.  I'll be the first to tell you that I avoid anything with deliberately dropped stitches --- BUT --- this pattern actually worked!  I'm delighted!

My portable project continues to be the socks for T. I made her a pair that were destroyed (along with most of what she and her new DH owned) in a house fire last year...so this is a replacement pair, and as you might recall, I'm on the second of the pair.  She has long legs and long feet -- so these keep me well occupied when I'm stopped during Construction Season on Hwy 12 West.  That's supposed to come to an end today (Aug. 31) but given some fog and rain delays, who knows?  And I always have knitting in my bag, in case I have to wait for the train on the west edge of town!

Waiting for the Train (c) 2013

But as I finished the Vincas top, I decided it was time for a new start.  Of course, Christmas is coming, so there are knits in the line-up.  This year there will be simple cowls (aka "neck warmers") for some -- though not my daughter.  (You might recall that she is getting the "Presto Vesto" -- about which NOTHING is "presto"; I will be returning to that in September too). And there will be a simple shawl (or mayb two). Time will tell.

I cast on the "Back Bay Boomerang" -- a boomerang-shaped shawl -- for one dear friend, and love how simple it is to create -- with a wonderful ball of fingering from my stash.  Thanks to Karen of the YouTube "Recreational Knitting" for the mention of this pattern!  (she has a group on Ravelry by the same name).

The yarn is a ball of Queensland Collection "Perth" fingering in the colour-way "Tasmania" -- and I simply love it.  The photo is a couple of days old, so it's grown from there.  All garter stitch; a 2-row pattern -- perfect for a gradiant yarn!

The other gifts (cowls/neck-warmers) will be made from stash DK in a pattern to be revealed once I actually cast on.  Stay tuned!

In Quilting News...

1. I finished the "Rectangle Pinwheel" (free block pattern from Pinker n Punkin Designs) and delivered it to my friend Annette in Red Deer for her quilting group to include in their next delivery to Klare's Corner quilt shop in Airdrie, which is collecting quilts (or parts thereof) for the victims of the wildfire that destroyed at least 1/3 of the town of Jasper, Alberta.  

Quilted and bound - in the Outdoor Studio

Here's a detail of this quilt, which is made from scraps, including a pieced backing and a pieced batting:

Most of the time I've no recollection of the source of the fabric I use in the comfort quilts I make, though I will admit that for this piece, much of the background was from a recycled bedsheet -- courtesy of my daughter!  In addition, there are several blocks made with the same fabric.  Those were from remnants of a wide backing I used long ago. There's a lot  of mileage in wide backing! 😁

2. I'm returning now to the Celtic Knot Quilt that my daughter's commissioned me to make for a special anniversary for friends of hers -- a year from now.   I showed some work on this in my mid-July post.  Now, I'm ready to construct the actuall blocks.

I began with constructing the sashing that will go between the units.

Next, I followed instructions to pin the sashing and block units for the first of five blocks of one colour-way onto my design board:

Note that this isn't yet sewn together.   It will measure 22" finished; I need to make 5 of these for the pattern -- BUT I am enlarging the pattern to fit a king-sized bed.  

This means that instead of 9 very large blocks (3 by 3) plus borders, in the end I will be making 16 such blocks -- 4 by 4 -- plus borders.  (And yes, I got help from Hamel's Fabrics, the owner and staff of which figured out how much extra I'd need.)

So that's where it sits at the moment.

In addition to that, after finishing the Rectangle Pinwheel for Jasper, I got caught up on the "A Quilting Life" BOM 2024, for which (as you may recall) I'm using my Thimbleberries stash:

July BOM - I make 2 @ 8 1/2" unfinished

August BOM - another 2 at 8 1/2" unfinished

I've been using a lot of greens...and so now may have to switch my focus, as I'm running out of those in this sector of my stash.  I might have to switch to blues!  No matter; I continue to enjoy the fussy aspect of these small blocks because it helps me be more precise with piecing -- even if I don't plan to aspire to greatness in that endevour! LOL!  And heck; it's using up stash!  

Next up?  Yarn/wool hooked art -- and a bit of spinning!

My friend Annette was remarking that I seem to have so much on the go -- and I suppose that's true -- but I love variety.  I also love order, and planning, so I've got a rotation.  The nature of the rotation depends on the season, as some of it I enjoy doing outdoors (spinning, hooked art and stitching) and others require that I be inside (quilting).

In my last post, for example, I showed you my outdoor set-up for hooked art.  And those of you who've followed along have seen photos of my "Outdoor Studio", where I love to stitch -- as long as it's neither too hot (as it was most of July this year) or windy.

This week, as the weather is cooling, I've moved my hooking frame indoors, finding that I can still stand to do it (which I like) if I put the frame on my cutting table in the studio.  I'm continuing to work on the "Simple Shading" project from Deanne Fitzpatrick's online course by that name.  Some of you might think that as an art quilter, I should know how to do that by now, but it's quite different working with wool fabric slices and lengths of yarn!  And this project isn't a landscape; it's a still life, which isn't something I've depicted much, even in my quilted work.  So...I'm learning a lot.  Here's my progress as of yesterday:

I'm not happy with the proximity of the leaves above the blue flower -- it looks like one large blob! -- so that' will be rectified in short order.  I've also added 2 things to the pattern: a leaf in the bottom left corner, for balance, and lines on the vase for guidance.  I found that I had a tendency to hook in straight lines on that vase, even though I know I need to indicate curves -- so I dre the lines to help me out!

As for spinning, the Summer Spin-in over on Ravelry -- in the Two Ewes Fiber Adventures group -- ends this weekend (Labour Day).  I managed to get a bobbin-and-a-bit of 2-ply marl spun up:

The pink/purple you see is from one single source -- a shaded hand-painted braid of 100% Falkland wool.  The black is a blend of wool (70%) and alpaca (30%).  I now need to get it off the bobbins, wash and set it, and put it into a skein.  I suppose I could call it "finished" at the bobbin stage, but it won't be "fully finished" until it's a skein!

Last but not least...cross-stitch!

This is my favourite late-afternoon/early evening activity, though I'll confess I do sometimes stitch with my morning coffee, as I know some other stitchers do.

As I mentioned in my last post, in July I focused on Canadian samplers, in August, I turned to pieces that had flowers in them -- but weren't samplers.  And (drum roll, please!) I finished two of the WIPs!

Yes!  I got that border done on the "Vintage Blossoms" piece -- and it matched at the top!  

Look closely -- the border fades 
into the background.  I like it that way!

Then I went on to finish the little "Buttercup Alphabet" piece, designed over a decade ago by Cathy Jean at The Victoria Sampler (you can still buy the pattern from the TVS website):

It's a cute little piece -- quite different from what I'm keen to stitch now.  After all, I bought the pattern and threads back in 2008.  Still, I'm glad it's done, and I'll probably either turn it into a pillow or put a little frame on it.  Time will tell!

My third 'floral' is the Kathy Barrick "Wildflowers" piece I mentioned in my last post.  I'm just coming down to the bottom of the first page of the pattern and if I persevere, I'll finish that later today.  It's a simple pattern but there's a lot of filling it to do.  This makes it comforting and meditative, which has been just right to help combat the stresses and strains of my life this month.  Here's what it looked like as of yesterday:

And yes, there are 3 more pages to do!

My thoughts are turning now to Sampler September, and my plans for the next month.  I've developed a fondness for working on a piece for seven days in a row (each day for an hour or more, as time permits).  There are just over 4 weeks in a given month, and I have these four projects in mind -- well, 3 Works In Progress and 1 new start. 😊

1. A return to Emeline Hotchkiss 1846;
2. A return to Memories of the Past (my birthday sampler from last year);
3. A return to Ann Perrin 1841; and
4. The new start: Frances Lawson 1836 -- from the 1994 publication, Sampler & Antique Needlework: A Year in Stitches.  This book was given me by a friend who was culling her collection, and I've been hankering to do this one.  It's going to be my first foray into stitching on 56-count linen.  Yes, you read that correctly: 56-count, one strand over two fabric threads (except the lettering, which is one-over-one), using DMC on a cream-coloured piece of Kingston linen from Zweigart.  I'm doing this on a bit of a dare, or at least, a challenge, from Brenda of the Brenda and the Serial Starter (Laura) floss tube.  She gave 56-count a try recently, and now she and Laura are gung-ho to do more.  And yes...I'm following them down that particular rabbit hole!  I'll keep you posted!

Alas, the individual pattern for "Frances" is not in print, and I've no idea where you'd find the book, as it's 30 years old, but if you have a nose for library book sales or the online secondary market, you might be able to track it down.  I can't find a link to the particular pattern, but I found this information on Amazon Canada...so you can still buy the book through them, or other second-hand book sellers.  Note that there are two volumes; the book I have is Volume I.

Now that I've caught you up on my Life in the Making for August, it's time to refresh my coffee, pick up my early-morning knitting, and get on with today's "rotation"!  I'll leave you with my best wishes to for a safe, healthy, creative weekend, a Happy Labour/Labor Day for those who so observe, and my usual link to dear Nina-Marie's Off the Wall Friday.

A bientot!

August = Abundance

It's been a very full three weeks since I last wrote you, Gentle Readers.  Shortly after that post, my raspberry bushes exploded with berries and I've been picking and making and picking and making ever since!

The first pick (at left) was the day after I posted, and it's been a steady stream of eating, preserving, baking and sharing.  I've made thirteen jars of jam -- the last 9 shown at right, below -- and this morning I'll be making at least 4 more.  

I've also made two "bumbleberry" crumbles: raspberries, rhubarb, blueberries and apple.  One, 9" x 13", I took to church to share at coffee hour after the service (another gal brought vanilla ice cream -- perfection!)  The other, 9" x 9", is in my sister's cottage freezer to share with the family tomorrow, as my kids will be visiting from Edmonton!  Hooray!

And I made a batch of 18 raspberry muffins, some being eaten (by me), some shared with neighbours, and some -- yes -- still in the freezer.

I've been enjoying my own leaf lettuce and watching carefully to see if my (currently) tiny zucchini will get a wee bit bigger.  Right now they're only finger-sized, and I'd really rather them resemble a small cucumber than a gherkin!

On the textile making front, I've managed to finish the "purple to peach" bobbin of handspun yarn I was working on in my last post and am making headway on a spindle of black alpaca/wool roving.  Here's what it looked like after a spinning session Thursday morning:

Once I get the bobbin full -- and I'm almost there -- I'll ply it with the purple-to-peach for what I hope will be a lovely marl.

I continue to enjoy making hooked mats, and finished the little "text" one I showed in my last post.  It's now a little cushion, shown here in my Outdoor Studio:

I'm not sure I really like hooking letters/text, but I certainly learned a great deal from that experiment!

I followed that by creating a landscape based on a view on the walking route I take regularly around this wee hamlet.  I call it "Tree Island" (for obvious reasons), and will have it framed and probably hung in the Gallery at Curiosity Art & Framing in Red Deer.  I finished it earlier this week, but it has to be blocked and hemmed before I take it for a frame:

"Tree Island" - 12 1/2" x 14 1/2" before blocking

You might be able to see where my scroll frame is -- yes; it's outside, on my fibre freezer, which has become a favourite place for me to do this work.  Here's a better photo of the set-up:

Studio on the Back Stoop!

It doesn't mean I won't hook indoors; I just really like the way this worked!

On the knitting front, I've finished a sock and am half-way up the front piece of the Vincas tee I'm making for myself, but sorry -- no new photos of these projects at the moment.  I want to finish the tee by the end of this month, as in September I'll have to get back to the "Presto Vesto" in order to finish it for my daughter for Xmas.

And yes, there is still quilting.  The July heat wave disappeared after the first week of this month, and we've had cooler weather and some rain.  One day was perfect for staying inside to quilt, so I finished assembling the blocks of a throw I'm calling the Rectangle Pinwheel, and I got the borders on.  As of this writing, it's sandwiched but needs to be pin-basted and quilted so I can get it to my friend in Red Deer, who'll be taking it to a quilt shop south near Calgary, where it will join others and be given to those who lost everything in the Jasper Park fires. 

(Photo at left: all that remains of the Anglcian Parish church of St. Mary and St. George, Jasper, Alberta, July 2024.)

I'd like to get a second one done, but don't know if I'll be fast enough.  The Airdrie shop wants them by the end of September.

"Rectangle Pinwheel"
Block Pattern: Pinker n Punkin Designs
Approx 57" x 62" before quilting
Made completely from stash

Although I set aside the Celtic Block quilt construction, I'll be getting back to it later this fall.  I've done all the block units now and am ready to begin assembly of the blocks themselves.  Each one takes four units, and will measure 22" (finished).  Once I've got the first 9 assembled, I'll go back and repeat the process with the remaining fabric, as I need another seven of these large blocks in order to make the quilt the right size!

I also delayed working on the 2024 BOM from "A Quilting Life", but this week managed to put together the blocks for July.  I'm making the smaller block (8" finished) so am making two of these for each month:

I think I'm finally making a dent in the Thimbleberries left-overs I've had for years (left from two kitted quilts, long finished and given away) -- but I'd best not speak too loudly, as we all know how scraps of whatever size breed in the night!!

And yes...there's still stitching!

Having finished the wee Canadian sampler, Julia Amelia Hounslow, I've backed it and am ready to stuff it and turn it into a little pillow -- so it's in a stack of three or four, waiting for that to happen!

And, as mentioned in my last post, I started a second Canadian sampler -- Emiline Hotchkiss, Lacolle, 1846. I worked steadily on it until the end of July, making good progress -- but alas, no photo!  Stay tuned; it will return in Sampler September!

I decided that this month I'd work on "floral" WIPs (Works In Progress), and began by spending the first week on Kathy Barrick's "Wildflowers", which I began...over a year ago.  Here's my progress as of August 2, when I began to work on it again:

I've now finished filling in that flower on the lower left, all the leaves, and the stems, and have moved to put in another blossom on the upper right -- near the star.  I know; I know.  I should be better and taking photos, but I'd rather be stiching!

This week I'm working on finishing the border around a WIP from 2022 -- Jeannette Douglas' "Vintage Blooms" (a series of free motifs, no longer available as such).  

Here's what the last of the bouquets looked like before I stopped stitching:

Shown: November & December 'blooms'
with inner horizontal border above

And here's the outer border I'm talking about.  I began it in December 2021, before the first "blooms" pattern was released, so I could set the scene.  I'm using DMC 712 for the border, two threads over two, on 28-count Platinum Cashel linen from Zweigart:

I finished the bouquets all on the same piece of fabric, and the borders in between them.  I'd done the outer border across the top and down the left side -- so all I had to do was the bottom border and up the right side.  Well!  As of last evening, that bottom border is done and yes, I'm travelling up the right side with a hope and a prayer that it will match at the top when it's finished! LOL!  Photo next post!

I expect to finish this border in the next few days, and then will either go back to Kathy Barrick's "Wildflowers" (above) or perhaps another floral I've had forever and began to work on this spring: "Buttercup Alphabet" by Cathy Jean of The Victoria Sampler.  I got it, I think, in 2008, when I went on a retreat Thea Dueck hosted at her home studio in Victoria, B.C.  It's pretty, and small, so I should get on it!  If I spend 7 sessions on it, I'll likely be finished -- or close to it!

I think that's all the news I have to share for now, Gentle Readers, so I'll wish you blessings and lots of time for creating, until we meet again.  I'll leave you with my usual link to Nina-Marie's Off the Wall Friday (it's so good to know she's back at her quilting frame!) and send you out with a floral photo or two from my garden...

A bientot!

Yellow daylily - July 29,2024

Red-orange daylily, July 29, 2024

Poppies & daisies in the wildflower bed,
July 2024

Pink double impatiens in the planter,
August 5, 2024