Spring Startitis!

 

Living up here in Canada -- a good day's drive NORTH of the border with Montana -- I always feel like Spring arrives on March 1, even if Mother Nature disagrees.  This year, She has been undecided, and has sent mixed messages.

Today's been rather grey with that wonderful thing known as "mixed precipitation", and some fog, and Totally Grey Skies -- so I've spent it inside with all my favourite 'makes' and thought I'd catch you up on all things creative around here.  My objective is to Take Your Mind Off All the World's Foolishness...and just share some colour, beauty and art/craft goodness.  One day at a time, Gentle Readers; one day at a time! 🩷

Over at Deanne Fitzpatrick Studios, we're still in the throes of "March is for Makers".  I say "we" because every week day at 2 p.m. Atlantic Time, (rug) hookers from all over the place gather on Zoom -- via DFS -- to meet, greet, hook on our mats and share ideas with each other.  

Even those of us who are rather introverted and prone to Zoom Fatigue have participated.  

Alas, this was a Special Event and isn't a regular thing for the Whole Wide World.  We've been having a great deal of fun -- found friends who live near us (surprise!) or whom we've met at conferences/retreats.  A place where Canadians, Americans, and folks from the UK (rarely farther afield at the moment) can gather, laugh, tell stories, share our backgrounds and our love of the rug-hooking craft -- as well as our love of knitting, spinning, quilting and stitching because, of course, most of us are 'multi-craftual'.  None of us want this to end, so...we'll see what sort of challenge this poses the Studio for the future!

As for hooking, well...I've been focusing on what one of my friends calls a "Dreamscape".  I mentioned it in my last post in which I showed my initial sketch and a tiny start of the hooking.  Since then I took it to this:

And then, joining the 'hook-ins' almost daily...well...today, it's finished, though still on the frame:

Pussy Willows, Cat Tails
(c) 2026

I confess I'm not sure about framing it and putting it up for sale -- would it have any takers?  I've been accepted into the local Encore! Art Show & Sale in mid-April...any thoughts?

I've also purchased two online classes from Deanne -- one on 'Working Big' and one that's a "Sea Garden Abstract".  Both, I think, will be valuable -- though my 'Sea Garden' will have morphed into a prairie...Stay tuned for more!

Of course, aside from hooking, I continue to Knit Every Day.  It's tough to break a 65-year-long habit! 😉

I continue to enjoy my 'Train Knitting' and the Sylph Cowl is slowly getting longer.  My Spring Start-itis began when in my last post I showed you my cast on for the Sea Haven Pullover, a pattern by Jennifer Shiels Toland that I won from the "Recreational Knitting" podcast (thanks, Karen!)  I continue to love this pattern!  I'm now past the yoke patterning and finished the short rows yesterday -- my first attempt at German Short Rows.  Not hard to do but a bit challenging in that they are less visible than the "wrap-and-turn" version. 

Here's a couple of progress photos taken earlier today:

The wee red marker identifies the front...and indicates that from there, I have to knit 1 1/4" before I can split for the sleeves.

See the blue arrow? That's the German short row section I accomplished this morning (my first experience with those).

Having mentioned that I have Spring Startitis, I must let you know that today I also cast on stitches for a cardigan -- a pattern I've had in mind for a Very Long Time: the Shades of Spring Cardigan from Sara Louise Greer.  I apologize, as it's no longer readily available.  That just shows you how long I've had it in mind. Sigh...

I've decided to knit it in a rather colourful variegated yarn from deep stash, and even made a swatch (!?! Who? Me?!?).  So far...I've just cast on for the back so there's really nothing to show you.  Stay tuned for further reports!

In my quilting studio, I satisfied some of the 'Spring Staritis' by making the March Block from A Quilting Life.  You'll recall that I'm trying to stretch my Canada 150 fabric for a red-and-white version.  This is what the March block looks like:

Methinks I'm going to be even better at making points match -- in stars or elsewhere -- once this BOM is over! 😉

Speaking of 'matching points' well...Bonnie Hunter.  I swear, having made her mystery quilts (and some of her "Addicted to Scraps" blocks and "Leaders and Enders" projects) -- she is pretty much single-handedly responsible for my ability to make (most of) my points match in any given pieced quilt!

And yes, I'm on the last part of this year's 2026 Mystery quilt, aka "Lupines and Laughter".  This design was inspired by Bonnie's trip to Iceland in 2025 -- where, it seems, lupines are found in abundance.  I don't have to go that far north.  They are among my favourites spreading through my meadow/flower beds.  This was a natural for me and I've enjoyed every minute.  And yes, all fabrics have come from my stash.  

Quilt top, inner border, 1st outer border

Close-up of 1st border, attached to top

As I'm making this top at 75% of the called-for size, it took a bit of...adjusting...but it worked!

This is going to be an "almost 40" gift for my son's partner -- her birthday is in August -- so I'm hoping all will continue to proceed accordingly between now and then!

And then there's stitching -- where the Spring Startitis is really taking hold!

My work on the "Little Acorns SAL" from Modern Folk Embroidery continues...but I've started a slight move away from Jacob's recommended sections.  I'm on the third section from the top -- but according to the pattern, it's supposed to include two parts - the one on which I'm stitching and a second that's a good 80+ rows down in the charts.  Seriously?!  Neither my brain nor my 73-year-old eyes is prepared to do that. So...I will finish the current section this month and move forward in an Orderly Fashion! Ahem! 😉

I've set that aside for just a bit, though, given the State Of The World, and have turned again to "Disagree" from Rebel Stitcher.  I showed this in my last post, and have made significant progress thus far, as it's been almost a focus piece.

BUT

Last evening I discovered A Problem.  It's taken me close to the finishing point of this piece to discover that I may have (inadvertenly!) stitched it the wrong way on my fabric.  OOOOOOPS!!!

Yep!  See that blue arrow?  And the gap near the right side of the hoop?  There's only about an inch (!!) of fabric to the edge.  Sigh...

The lettering will work out fine; the motifs I'll adjust accordingly...and it will likely become a small hanging or a pillow or go into a project bag.  It's only for me -- not a gift.  I've never let perfection get in the way of 'Good Enough'!

And what about stitchy Spring Startitis? 

Yes; there is some!  First, I finished the "Winter" section of the Seasons from the long-ago pattern from Elsa Williams, so I am ready to start "Spring" -- because I'm doing it all on one piece of aida -- it's a kit from when dinos roamed the earth...

Back-stitch, etc. -
I'm rather chuffed!

And then...well...my Newbie of Choice is inspired by the hue and cry that went up in my home town (southwest Quebec) and family back in the day, and still (for me) marks the Actual First Day of Spring:

The robins are here! The robins are here!

The Robins are Here! -- Brenda Gervais

I confess, I got such a kick out of this that I had to kit it up and I'm ready to stitch -- even though the weather is still a bit too cold and so The Robins have yet to arrive here. It will be my Spring Start this weekend!

There's pretty much no waterfront to cover, Gentle Readers, as it's too early to spin outside and there's no gardening happening up here for some time.

Over at Nina Marie's, she's making a gift for a friend, which has required her to dust off her sewing/quilting skills.  Have any of you been challenged by that?  You might just go over and give her al hug.

Meanwhile, I light a candle for our troubled world and hope all involved in assorted conflicts will find That Eternal Light SOON.

A bientot!

'M' is for March

Mmmmmmm....SO many 'ems' in March this year! 😁

First off, my rug-hooking art inspiration, Deanne Fitzpatrick has declared, "March is for Makers", and created a month-long, Monday through Friday Zoom "hook-in" for all willing and able. For $31 CAD a slew of us from all over the globe have joined in.  Some show up every day. Some -- like me -- are Monday, Wednesday, Friday folks.  ALL of us are having the time of our lives and getting lots of hooking done in the hour we share together.

So...in the last week I've blocked, bound and fully finished two small hooked pieces, and sketched out, designed and drawn out a new, larger piece -- all of which I hope to show at the local Art Show/Sale in April.  (I await notice of acceptance; it's a juried show. Though I've been in it most of the past 17 years, and was Featured Artist in 2023, that's no guarantee of anything!  That keeps my halo from pinching my ears, as my mother would have said! 😉

Duo - 12" square, framed
Assorted yarn and fabric strips 
hooked into burlap

And...

Holly's Bouquet - 9" x 12"
Mounted on stretched canvas
Wool yarn and fabric strips hooked
into burlap

Once those pieces were done and dusted, I had to put a new one on the Cheticamp frame, and so..."Pussy Willows, Cat Tails" has come to be. It's inspired by this Gordon Lightfoot ballad: 

I started with a sketch, and then...this outline on the burlap:

I began yesterday to hook an outline of some of the leaves for the cat tails (bull rushes, so-called, where I grew up in Quebec), and have now filled in more of the leaves:

The vision is coming together...

Meanwhile, the 2026 "Piece-by-Piece" fundraiser opened at the Lacombe Performing Arts Centre on the evening of March 4.  It was dark and snowy, so I didn't attend the opening but dropped in yesterday afternoon when I was running errands in town, and took this shot:

The blue arrow points to my piece, "Under a January Moon", mounted on stretched canvas, which I mentioned in my last post.

The smaller pieces (i.e., not the requisite 12" x 12") were contributed by youngsters aged 10-12, whose parents are artists and who also participated in the exhibit.  For more information or to call in a bid, check out this section of the LPAC website -- with thanks.

To round out my good 'hooking' news this week, my dear friends at the gallery at Curiosity Art & Framing in Red Deer informed me that recently they sold THREE (!!!) of my hooked pieces in one day!  Gobsmacked?! You bet!  Gone are 2 small pieces ("All That Blue, Green and Gold", "Slough View") and a larger piece, "Tree Island".  To say that I'm 'over the moon' about this is missing the mark. Having been known for a long time as an art quilter, to find that these hooked pieces have found homes is a surprise, a delight and a blessing!

But there are other 'ems' in March...

In the stitching world, it's "Monochromatic March"! Who knew?!  Folks who cotton on to this theme are stitching one-colour projects.  A favourite is the 2026 Stitch-Along (SAL) from Jacob at Modern Folk Embroidery, of which I spoke in my last post.  Here's my progress as of February 28th:

While I'm about to start the narrow section just below all that I've done so far, I'm also -- given The State of the World Right Now -- working on another quasi-monochromatic piece.  I say "quasi" because the thread I'm using is a Sulky 12-weight "Blendables" thread and so is variegated with a blue and a green.  You'll see what I mean when I show you this bit from "Disagree" by Rebel Stitcher, to which I've returned after a few months "away":

Of course, other forms of stitchy commentary aren't monochromatic.  I'm not fussy.  If I like the sentiment etc., I'm happy to stitch along -- including this piece -- a free pattern -- from Ellen Reid of Maximum Cross Stitch, entitled "Go Show Love".  I introduced it in my last post; here is where I am now:

In the quilting world -- or, at least, in my corner of it, "M" is for the ongoing Mystery -- Bonnie Hunter's 2026 version, "Lupines and Laughter".  Though the last clue and the Big Reveal happened in January, it always takes me some time to get it all together.  As of now, I've prepared all the blocks for the size I'm making (75% of the full size in the pattern), which means I have 6 rows of 6 blocks each, and I'm starting to assemble them, row by row.  Here's my progress so far -- three rows assembled, but (NOTE) not yet attached to each other:

Of course, before I could lay them out for the photo, one of my trio of Studio Supervisors had to give her stamp of qualified approval!

Miss Sylvie, trying not to look the
least bit interested!

The other bit of a quilty 'mystery' -- the Block of the Month from A Quilting Life -- has a March block out too, but all I've done thus far is print out the pattern!  Stay tuned for that in a later post.😊

Knitters, not to be left out of this 'em is for March' trend, have ongoing Make Alongs (MALs), a Lenten Mystery Knit Along (MKAL) and at least one group focused on using an M-yarn, declaring it to be Malabrigo March. 

I'm participating in the Lenten MKAL, but as it's not over until Easter, I really shouldn't spoil the fun by posting a photo.

I'm not active in any MALs this month -- but I did finish my February socks on time for them to be included in the Socks from Stash February challenge:

Pattern: Fancy Rib Socks
from Patons & Baldwin book #37
published in 1947

This month, that group's challenge theme is "Folklore and Fantasy", and while I have a suitable pattern in my library -- from the Hobbit et al -- it's another richly textured pair and my brain is too full to take it on at the moment! LOL!

That said, besides the Lenten MKAL, I'm continuing to whittle away at my mitred-square blanket, the Bernie sweater, another plain top-down raglan pullover, and the Sylph cowl, which will be for my 2026 Warm Things box:

This photo is from December; it's now about 11 inches long.  As my 'out-and-about' project, it's not getting a lot of love, so it's slow going, as the pattern calls for it to be 26" long before seaming the ends together!  I'm using 2 yarns held together and have only 1 ball of one of them, so will knit until that one has only enough left for a cast off.

All that aside, what's a new month without a new start -- of something? 

A few weeks ago, I won a pattern prize from Karen of "Recreational Knitting" on YouTube.  I really get a kick out of her, her sense of humour and her outlook on life these days.  Anyway, it was a prize related to a key word in the comment section for one of her January posts -- having to do with the "12 Cast-ons of Xmas", I think.  I got to choose a pattern I'd had my eye on, and I picked the Sea Haven pullover from Jennifer Shiels Toland, a designer to whom I'd been introduced on yet another podcast: "Ruth Loves to Knit".  

It's gorgeous!  It's a top-down sweater with a textured yoke, and you can knit it with long or short sleeves (I prefer long).  Karen obliged, I received the pattern in my Ravelry "mail" and this past week I cast on, using deep stash: Elspeth Lavold's "Silky Wool" in a textured grey called "Stormy".  Here's my progress thus far:

I've had this yarn for at least 20 years, having bought it at my favourite LYS back when I lived in Calgary.  I've no idea if the LYS is still there -- it moved locations after I left the city in 2008; it was a great shop!

When Deanne put together "March is for Makers", she was thinking about how March is often a 'lean' month in much of Canada.  The stack of firewood is dwindling, the veggies and fruit that are in cold storage have nearly run out, and it's too early to plant anything but a few seedlings in pots in a sunny spot in the house or -- if you've got it -- under 'grow lights' or in a green house.

March can also be messy underfoot -- snow melting and refreezing for treacherous sidewalks, puddles of water with ice hiding underneath, or maybe even the start of Mud Season.  

And this March has become messy for other reasons, of which most of us are fully aware, by which we are appalled, about which we are more than simply worried.  And so, Gentle Readers, let us remember our role in this: to bring light, comfort, and caring into our small corners of this world -- working with our hands to create beauty, tranquility, warmth and firm, clear, unexpected resistance.  As Nina Marie has posted over at Off the Wall Friday: creativity is the way we can hold on to our own sanity and help others hold on to theirs.  As we are children of a great Creator, and created in love, let's remember our call to bring that to others every day.

And so, my friends, a bientot!

All the Things

Well, Friends...My annual bout of New Year's Startitis is still in high pitch.  I've been trying to tame the Beast by sticking to a certain routine - Making My Bed, as it were -- and so far, I'm Getting Things Done and Holding the Fort -- to use a variety of time-worn cliches! 😉

So here's the gist of it, with my loosey-goosey "goals-that-aren't-carved-in-stone":

Hooked Art

As I mentioned in my last post, I've applied for a spot at the local art show/sale again this year (won't know for about a month), and I've been working toward that a bit with a new hooked landscape or two.  

I finished the first -- 12" square -- which is the one I think I'll donate to the silent auction fundraiser at the local performing arts centre:

"Under a January Moon" (c)
Finished Feb. 2026

I have to thank my cyber-friend, artist Holly Maclean of New Brunswick, for permission to use her painting of a deciduous tree as inspiration for mine. 😊

On the same piece of burlap, I drew out another 12" square piece, modelled after a long-finished art quilt from 2012.  This hooked piece will be the third iteration of this idea.  The first was "Trio" -- the art quilt I made as my final exam piece for my London City & Guilds Level 2 Certificate in 'Creative Techniques: Quilting' (with everlasting thanks to my tutor, the great Linda Kemshall):

Trio - (c) 2012

The second iteration: in June 2019 a long-time friend commissioned me to turn this piece into a bed-sized quilt -- she wanted to buy it for herself for her 99th birthday in October!  I agreed, gave her a price, and proceeded to get to work, creating this, with the help of Katie Pasquini Masopust's book, "Artful Log Cabins":

"Prairie Quintet" (c) 2019

I had to add 2 trees to make it the right size!  I finished it in time, and can still here her voice mail message of thanks.  She used it for several months -- never sleeping under it.  She put it on her bed only when it was made up, and took it off each night!  Alas, she died of heart failure in May 2020, a few months shy of her centenary. I miss her still.  I only hope someone in her family has kept that quilt.

So now...a third iteration: as a hooked piece!  I'm now working on the last bit of it -- that blue sky:

"Duo" in progress - Feb. 6, 2026

It's only 12" x 12", so I've put in only 2 trees, and gave them a slightly different look.  I'll show you the finish in the next post.

Quilting

I'm still moving right along on the 2026 Bonnie Hunter mystery, "Lupines and Laughter".  It's so darned pretty!  

In my last post, I'd just started Clue 6.  Now I've only a few units left to make for that clue, before I move on to Clue 7 (more units!!)  Here's a progress photo:

Stacks and stacks!

And of course I couldn't miss the BOM for February, from "A Quilting Life" -- which I'm doing in "Canadiana" colours:

Something tells me I'm going to be very good at making those stars when this is finished! 😉

As a sort of "leaders and enders" project at the moment, I've returned to making crumb "sections" and scrappy, wonky log cabin blocks, which will end up going to those in need -- eventually.

Knitting

This is where starts and finishes line up for me at the moment.  I've finished a hat, and started a pair of socks, and am nearing a finish on a blanket.

First, the hat -- the "Melt the ICE" hat -- from Needle and Skein via Ravelry.  YES, I paid for it in CAD, even at the 30% exchange rate. It's a worthy cause!

I used an unlabelled stash yarn, which the 'match test' revealed was mostly -- if not 100% -- wool. I enjoyed the knit, but could have done without the tassel. Full disclosure: I don't like tassels, pom-poms or bobbles on the things I knit!  I used only 100 sts, but it fit my small-medium (22") head just fine.  However, if I make it again, I'll go up to 108 sts, and leave off the tassel.  This one -- and future ones -- will end up in my Warm Things box, for indeed they would be Warm Things.

As for socks, I'm trying again to revive my sock mojo.  This month it's with a pair of textured socks from a vintage pattern (1947), which satisfies the criterion for the February 2026 challenge in the Socks from Stash group on Ravelry -- something they're calling "Ultra-unappreciated patterns".  In other words, patterns with very few projects recorded on Ravelry.  Mine is #3! 

Yes...this is the source -- and I have the book. It was my mother's -- or maybe her mother's! -- and it's in a page protector in my collection of knitting patterns.  I've made other socks from it, but not recently.

Anyway, the one I selected is called "Fancy Rib Socks", and I've been thankful for another Ravelry member -- a Canuck living in B.C., to boot! -- for the notes she made when she knit these.  It's not every day you try a pattern that someone else has knit, and you become cyber-friends with that person! 

I've only recently cast them on, and adapted the pattern (with the above-mentioned help) to 64 sts (from 80 as called for) -- so this is what they look like as of this morning:

Yarn: Estelle Highland Alpaca Fine
Colour: "Lagoon"

I think I'm going to enjoy knitting these, but whether or not they'll be enough to restore my lack-lustre sock mojo remains to be seen!

While the Sylph Cowl is still in the queue, it's become my 'train knitting' -- carried with me in the car in the event I'm stopped at the local train crossing, which is not just for trains passing through. It's a switch-point for CN Rail, which means I can sit there for 15-20 minutes, depending on the day and my timing!

However, I'm working hard on my January Blanket, started in 2024...and closing in on a finish. This was a photo taken a month ago; it's now longer -- I've finished 24 of a called-for 35 pattern repeats, and am on the 8th of 10 balls of yarn.  I thought I might try to use up all 10, but that would make it far longer than called for, so I'm just going to stick with the pattern as written!

I've done nothing more on my red-and-white cowl, or on my Bernie sweater -- just focusing on the above-mentioned projects for now.

And then there's Cross-stitch

I'm pleased to say that I finished the (recommended by Jacob) January section of the "Little Acorns" SAL from Modern Folk Embroidery -- at 8:30 p.m. on January 31! 

I then took a few days "off" but yesterday evening I started the February section (again, recommended by Jacob in his pattern notes).  Here's how it looked at the end of the evening:

NOTE: the border on the left isn't really skewed; it's just that the linen in the hoop has been pulled off grain!! It's really a straight line, and would look that way if I took it out of the hoop!!

Of course, I've been distracted by other things, as one is.  I've not done any more on the Elsa Williams "Winter" piece, or on "Disagree" by Rebel Stitcher, but I did have a new start.

Being February -- the month in which I was engaged in 1975 -- I've returned to "A Quilter's Dream" (also Modern Folk Embroidery) and have made a bit more progress on that:

Yes, it's only one teen motif, but each one is a mini-accomplishment, eh?! 😁

As for my "squirrel" moment? Well...again, given what's still going on in the world, I downloaded this new free pattern from Ellen Reid of Maximum Cross Stitch, and made a start:

It's entitled "Go Show Love", and is available in both Canadian and American versions re: the -- ahem! -- spelling of "neighboUr". 😉 

I found a large piece of 22-count white evenweave in my stash (I believe I inherited it from a dear friend who died in 2020 -- heart, not Covid) and I'm using the called-for DMC, 2 strands over 2 fabric threads.  Because I messed up on the colour instructions, I'm using black for both the 1st and 2nd inner borders, but I'm okay with that.  It's the perfect counter-part to stitching 1 strand over 2 on 40-count as I'm doing with "Little Acorns" and "A Quilter's Dream".

That's really all the news that's fit to print for this post, Gentle Readers.  My heart goes out to those in Eastern Canada, the Maritimes and all down the east coast of the US into places not as used to snow as we are, as they experience really overwhelming dumps of the stuff.  We out here on the Canadian prairies could use some more, as without it we're likely to remain in drought territory this spring and summer...not good.  Sigh...

And I continue to hope and pray for better days for all my US readers...

So I leave you with those wishes, and my usual link to Nina-Marie's Off the Wall Friday.  This week, she has the Great Reveal of her Studio Reset -- it's a WOW!  

And until next time...a bientot!

Making My Bed

 

I've never been a tip-top housekeeper -- it seems like such a thankless exercise -- but I do try to keep up with some things: the dishes (I'm the dishwasher); the laundry; the bathroom; the vacuuming...that sort of thing.

And I always made my bed -- until about 20 years ago, when my husband died.  I'd been sleeping in a twin bed in my daughter's room for some years before that, as Howard was in a hospital bed -- with a special mattress for his fragile skin and poor circulation -- for more than two years before he died.  

During that time, I'd tried to keep my room in good shape -- it was at the front of the house, after all -- but after he died, I moved back into what had been 'our' room, and it didn't seem to matter much any more.  Even after I moved out of the city to this wee rural hamlet, well...I'd make my bed before I left the house for any length of time, but if I were at home, I just left it.

That seems to have changed in the last few months...since the fall.  In August I posted a special post about what would have been our 50th Anniversary -- and the 19th of his death (same day, different year).  Sometime in the weeks after that, and after my 73rd birthday, and a visit with good friends who let me work through all that those weeks had brought, I began to make my bed again.

Pretty much every morning -- after whichever cat was sleeping on it, got up and left.

I still have my weepy days, my grumpy days, my angry days...but they're less frequent now.  I found a new faith family that I'm still uncertain about joining, but one thing I know is this: they are kind and friendly and want me to stay.

And while my 'art mojo' has been unsettled, this month I'm back into a better groove, making time for it again.

My word for this year is 'Enough' -- and I think that somehow, somewhere deep down inside, I found I'd had enough. Enough of the mess of the bedroom every night at bedtime.  Enough of feeling like I was never accomplishing anything.  Enough of bringing the uncertainty of the outside world into my home.

I'm sleeping better, longer and with fewer unsettling but unremembered dreams.  I'm drinking more water and tea -- even herbal tea! -- and less alcohol.

I'm losing my resentment for the short winter days, all the snow shovelling, and the unpredictable sidewalk and road surfaces that make daily walks difficult.  And when I'm out in the cold, crisp air, I take deep breaths and thank the Creator for the sunshine.

So my making is more a pleasant routine than a boring rote exercise -- and I've found the courage to apply (again) for a booth at the local Art Show/Sale in April.  I'm making new hooked work, including a piece for another fund-raising silent auction for the local performing arts centre.  I gave my 2025 Warm Things box to the church for its mitten tree, and have begun new pieces for a 2026 box.  I'm listening to more quiet, lovely music and less to the news.  

And it all began with the simple step forward: making my bed.

Here are some photos of what I've been working on:

Quilting

I'm making steady progress on Bonnie Hunter's latest Mystery, "Lupines and Laughter", inspired by her 2025 trip to Iceland.

I finished the units for Clue 5:

And I started those for Clue 6:

Shortly after my last post, Sherri posted the first of her blocks for her annual Block of the Month (BOM) at A Quilting Life.  She's doing hers in colours that honour the US 250th anniversary.  Being Canadian, well...I've decided to dig out red and white from my stash -- including fabric left from Canada's 150th Anniversary of Confederation.  I don't have much of the red-and-white print from that fabric line, but I'm going to stretch it as far as I can.  Here's my version of the first blocK:

If you want to make it, and haven't yet downloaded the pattern, it's still free for the taking, HERE.

Knitting:

You all know how I get 'startitis' every January, and (truth be told) again in September with "back to school" -- though I've not had to worry about that for decades now! LOL!

Well, this year, a couple of the knitting podcasters I watch have joined in something called "The 12 Days of Cast-Ons" (or "Christmas Cast-ons"), to which I referred -- briefly -- in my last post.  This originated some years ago, apparently, with a podcaster named Rainbow Ange -- her YouTube channel is YarnNYarns.  The project calls for folks to cast on 12 new items between Xmas Day and the end of January, and then try to finish them by the end of the year.

That said, the "rules" are...well...loosey-goosey.  One podcaster is casting on 6 new projects and dug out 6 Works in Progress (WIPs) to make up 12.  And the craft can be knitting, crochet, spinning, weaving...whatever.

Me?  I decided to cast on a few new knitted things, start a few new projects in my other crafts, and toss in a few languishing WIPs.

The quilting?  My 'new projects' consisted of the Block of the Month, that began January 4, and a funky scrappy log cabin I'm making as a leader/ender project.

In the knitting vein, I cast on a pair of socks (since frogged because though I liked the pattern, I didn't like it striped); a cowl -- mentioned in my last post -- red and white with maple leaves on it.  Sorry; I've still no photo to show you because although I'm past the ribbing and some of the first colour-work, the darned edge rolls up such that I can't photograph it!

And then...my first ever top-down stranded colour-work raglan pullover.  I am loving it!  Even the short-rows!

Pattern: "Feel the Bern"
Designer: Caitlin Hunter
FREE on Ravelry
Yarn: a stash assortment

I finished my 'Simple Handspun Hat'. and it's going into my Warm Things Box:

2-ply -- hand-painted Falklands wool
marled with black alpaca

And I continue to work on the 'Sylph Cowl', which is now my carry-along project.

Cross-stitch:

Except for my Sunday Stitch -- "Cattle on a Thousand Hills" from Plum Street designs -- I've set aside the other projects mentioned in my last post, in favour of focusing on a languishing WIP and a new start (part of my "12 Days" informal plan).

The WIP is the first section -- "Winter" -- of a four-seasons kitted cross-stitch project I got sometime after it came out in (yes) 2005. It's from Elsa Williams, and is done on 14-count white aida, with specially kitted DMC floss.  I really didn't have much left to do, and now all I have is a bit of straight stitching "tree branches".  It's very pretty, and I'm delighted that I'll have it finished by March, when I can start the "Spring" section:

The other piece is my new start -- mentioned in my last post -- the 2026 Stitch-ALong (SAL) from Modern Folk Embroidery, entitled "Little Acorns".  I did indeed start it January 1st, and here's where I am now:

Floss: "Pippy" from Roxy Floss Co.
Fabric: 40-count "Platinum" from Roxy Floss Co.

I took Jacob's suggestion as to how to divide up this year-long SAL, and then decided to further divide the first section into four -- one for each week this month Jan. 1st, Jan. 8th, Jan. 15th, and Jan.22nd.  What you see above is where I got to last evening, just past the half-way mark, so into the fourth week, which is really 10 days.

Finally, in stitch, in light of the events of the past week, I dug out "Disagree" from Rebel Stitcher, and have put in a few stitches.  Here's where I left it in May, 2025:

                              And here's where it was as of last evening:

Thread: 12-wt. Sulky variegated in blues and greens
Fabric: unlabelled 40-count something! 

Rug Hooking:

These are my newest projects.  In my last post I mentioned that I'd received Deanne Fitzpatrick's latest book on landscapes.  I've now read most of it, and taken inspiration to get back to the frame(s).

On my made-over embroidery frame, I started a small piece (8" x 10") that's a floral, inspired by a water-colour from my cyber-friend Holly Maclean of New Brunswick -- and used by permission:

There's actually more been done on it than the photo shows -- but I've put it on pause until I receive some more yarn in shades of maroon that I discovered I was lacking.  They should arrive next week.

And on the Cheticamp frame, I drew two landscapes.  One is an adaptation of an art quilt I created in 2012, but I've not started it yet. Stay tuned!

The other is the landscape I plan to mount on canvas (provided by the venue) for the 2nd "Piece-by-Piece" silent auction fundraiser to benefit the Lacombe Performing Arts Centre (LPAC):

Working Title: Underneath a January Moon

Again, I took some inspiration from Holly -- a watercolour she did of a large bare tree in winter -- again with her permission -- but I've made it my own with the other trees and the moon etc.  I have yet to finish the sky and the foreground snow, but it'll be finished soon.

Those of you, Gentle Readers, who've been following along, might remember that in November I was accepted into "Winter's Night", a small group exhibit also at the LPAC.  It closed last week, and on Monday this week I picked up my piece, "Love Lives in the Stars".

It won't be home long, though, as "my" gallery, Curiosity Art and Framing in Red Deer", has accepted it for their next themed exhibit, "Starry-eyed" -- so I'll be taking it there next week.

Riding a wave of inspiration and hopeful ambition, I've sent in my application for the 2026 Lacombe Encore! Art Show and Sale in April, and am giving consideration to answering an Open Call at LPAC for later this year or into 2027, a solo show of my quilted work.  I've talked it over with the young woman in charge, and she's encouraged me to apply...so stay tuned for news on that too.

I think that's enough for this go 'round, Gentle Readers.  Just reviewing it all makes my head spin a bit. The evening is getting late, so perhaps it's time for me to close this off and crawl into that well-made bed with a cuppa and book.

Until next time, I'll leave you with a link to Nina-Marie's Off the Wall Friday.  She too is in a whiriwind of new making -- requiring her to deal with the...um...state of her studio.  I think you'll agree that for most of us, it's easier to make our beds! 😉

A bientot!