News of the Day

I've deleted my Facebook account.  While I truly enjoyed it most of the time, I found myself on it far too much.  It seemed that every day I spent more time sitting there looking than I did up and about doing things.  So, yesterday the deletion took place.  I will miss very much being in touch with far away friends, but there really is the old fashioned email and absolutely archaic snail mail.. ;o) 

The weather here has veered to the slightly hot for the last few days.  We've been in and out and find it just as funny now as we did when were we kids...tripping over stuff when the car door is opened and the hot air fogs the glasses.  And it's even funnier when you look over and everyone you see is carrying their glasses in their hand for the very same reason.  ;o)

I've almost completely cleared my work room.  Essentially all of the contents with the exception of my sewing machines and mat cutter, tools and few other things were delivered to the Salvation Army yesterday.  That includes all the craft paints, oil paints, pastels, brushes....everything.  I will let you know if I have any real remorse when the reality finally sets in...lol

Finally got pictures of the spider lilies the other day.  So pretty.  They are like magic, popping up out of nowhere with a splash of color.  

I find it a bit ironic that the City of Sherman does a bit of moaning about losing businesses in the downtown area.  The Sherman Heritage Festival is this weekend...that would be 2 days from now... and not a word of it has been in the paper, on television.... not anywhere.  Does that sound like a real effort to help the downtown businesses... ????  Oh well....

Hope all is well wherever you are and shades of happiness cover your day.  :o)

Hello, Hermine and Cafe Press Impressions

Occasionally a swath of the hurricanes that hit the coast of Texas will swing up here and we'll get rain...sometimes lots of rain.  As far as I have heard, we here in North Central Texas have had pretty steady gentle rain, but no hard downpours.  This is the perfect rain... just enough to fill your hair with fairy diamonds.   ;o)

I haven't mentioned it, but I've opened a Cafe Press shop for Fabric Follies Two... and that's what it's called... Fabric Follies Two.  I decided that before I said anything about it I would order some of it and see if the quality was as good as I would like.  So far, I've ordered and received 2 mugs, 1 set of postcards and 1 journal.  I am really impressed with the quality.  

This is the first one I ordered.  The pic on this one is of the first crazy quilt block I ever made.  The colors are great and image is clear.  But I hadn't quite figured our how to make the image wrap around, so I did another image.

This one is the pic of the bottlebrush bush that was outside our motel in El Cajon, CA.  It did much better.  With the mug, I also added postcards and a journal.

The quality of these is wonderful.  I have been so impressed .. ;o)  I don't know what I expected, but this wasn't it.  So now I will go ahead and mention the Cafe Press Shop..lol 






Looks to be a busy day ahead... Good day for cleaning out my work room... again.. ;o)

Hope all is good for you today.

Creating A Home... Free Thread Holder Tutorial

One of the most popular posts on this blog concerns a thread holder that my sweet DH made for me a few years ago.  It's made of wood and is really good for use with a side table.... However, if there is no side table and you have to either hold the thread/yarn in your lap or on the floor, this may not work too well.

 Jim, from Creating A Home , has posted a wonderful tute using the most basic thing on the kitchen shelf... a coffee container.    I had to make me one.  I use it not only for crocheting, but also for needle tatting, holding the thread/yarn when I am warping my Kromski Harp, when I'm measuring thread/yarn for my tablet weaving loom..and any other time I need to pull a continuous length of thread/yarn.  Love it...

I think the heat has finally pushed my bad mood buttons.  Been a little funky for the last few days... my poor sweetie..sigh  So I think in response to the cold wave pushing through that will bring the temps down to 97° (we can only hope) today, I will be looking around and appreciating all that I have... my sweet DH, those warm snuggles in bed in the mornings, even the gray in my hair.. ;o)  Soooo.... for a few days we will be playing Pollyanna around here... it never fails to make me realize that bad moods are just that... not even a reality... just a passing fancy...

Have a really good day.. ;o)

The Winter Guest

I was working hard on finishing up the cards, shuttles and thread packets for the last Tablet Weaving Class at the RR Historical Museum tomorrow.  DH was gone to coffee...the house was quiet.  I began to scan through the guide on the television and came across a movie starring Emma Thompson... she's one of my very favorites.  I had never heard of the movie, but decided to watch it anyway just because she was in it.  And another thing... this was the Directorial debut for Alan Rickman... another of my favorites.

I have to say that it was one of the best movies I have seen in a very long time.  The depth of the personal insights for all the characters reached out and  touched me. Emma portrayed a relatively young widow with a 17 y/o son... the visitor was her mother who was portrayed by Emma's real mother, Phyllida Law... and their interactions were so deeply true to life.  I cannot tell you about the movie... if I did I would only make it sound trite.  I am unable to verbalize how it affected me... It may not do the same for you. But I have to give this movie an absolute 10..

Have a wonderful day.. ;o)

Kitchen Towel Holder Pattern

I was wandering the web the other day looking at some of my favorite craft sites and came across a pattern for something almost like this.  For the life of me I cannot remember where it was.. sigh  If any of you know where to find that pattern, please let me know and I will give the author of that post the credit she deserves.

I did make one change to the pattern, but this one is almost completely the same...

What I needed:

1 metal clothes hanger
Cotton yarn ... I used Sugar and Cream Cotton  Yarn by Lily but this pattern would work with acrylic or wool in either sport or worsted weight
Crochet Hook  size I

The first thing I did was have my DH cut a metal clothes hanger to a length of approx. 10 inches.  Then we curled the 10 inch length into a circle with the ends overlapping about 1 inch.  I used tape to hold the ends together.

Row 1:  Starting anywhere on the circle, attach the yarn.  SC as many stitches around  the metal circle as it takes to hide the metal circle. Join with a slip stitch to first sc.

Row 2:  Ch 1, sc in same stitch and in each sc around the circle.  Join last sc with a sl st to first sc of round.  Ch 1, turn,

Row 3: sc in same stitch, sc in next 11sc,  ch 1, turn.

Row 4 thru 14: , sc in same stitch, sc in next 11 sc,  ch1, turn,

Row 15: sc in same stitch,  sc in next 4 sc, ch 2, skip next 2 sc, sc in next 5 sc, ch 1, turn, (The skip 2 sc and the 2 ch stitches make your buttonhole.)

Row 15: sc in same st, sc in next 11 st, ch 1, turn,

Row 16:  sc in same st, sc in next 11 st. ch 1, but do not turn.
 Now sc in each stitch completely around the piece.  Fasten off.

I used a button about 1" across.  Fold the top of the piece down until it just touches the circle.  Find the button hole and use that as a guide to place your button.  Sew the button on using either the same yarn as what was used in the piece or any sewing thread that you like.

Now sit back and enjoy your Kitchen Towel Holder.. ;o)

This is a really quick project.  This was crocheted in about an hour last night while watching tv.  I hope you enjoy it.  It would make great quick gifts for Christmas... throw in a couple of kitchen towels, a few hand knitted dish cloths and there ya' go.. ;o)

The summer sun is still hanging in there giving up 100+ temps every day.  Even the birds get all their running around done in the morning or evening..

Have much to do today... Hope your day is good and that you are staying cool.. ;o)

Still can't put any comments up on my own blog...?????

First of all... thanks to Kristy of This Bean Knits for trying and succeeding to comment on my blog.. ;o)  However... I have not been able to post a single answering comment or any other comment since I changed the look of my blog... Still wondering what's up with that and having a dickens of a time trying to contact Blogger Support... Oh well... will keep trying.  Just wanted everyone to know that I am aware of the problem and trying to fix it... sigh

I need to buy some folders.....

Some days it just seems like the piles of paper on my desk are out to get me... Ever have a day like that?  And things like my camera and usb port bone seem to be magnets for things like my DHs 16' tape measure and my granddaughter's ball that was left here when she visited.  Now add in my crochet books, calculator, sale flyers from JoAnn's, a list of "Things to Blog", a list of harmful ingredients in OTC drugs that I promised my DH I would research online, my coffee cup and hand lotion and well... it finally gets hard to even find my pencil cup!  And the question is.... How Does This Happen?!!  I have concluded that this is as insidious as weight gain!  I looked for folders to file some of this "stuff" away and .. just as I thought... there are none.   Oh well... it's just a short trip to Office Depot... sigh

Of Clocks, Eggs and Darn! It's Hot!

My sweet DH has been working in the shop for a while now.  He finished his clock and it's lovely.  He's made 11 clocks and there are only 5 here in the house.  I told him that this one is mine.. ;o) ... and not to be given away...lol   Every clock he makes is lovely.  This one is solid oak...as are most of the clocks he designs and builds.  There is more oak in the shop... and he's already planning the next clock.. ;o)

When I started spinning I began to learn to knit socks.  Now I knit "sleep socks" for my DH to keep his feet warm at night.  This prevents the "charlie horses" and cramps that send him on his midnight prowls  through the house in search of relief. 

Of course, with all the scooting of the heels and sides of the socks across the sheets, pretty soon little holes begin to appear that are pretty rapidly followed by big holes.  I found a You Tube video ... here ... that showed me how to darn socks.  I bought a couple of darning eggs...alas they were too small.  I found that the only thing that was big enough and easy enough to use was an incandescent light bulb.

Now I know that my hands are strong ... sort of... but not really strong enough to crunch an incandescent light bulb.  (I hope not anyway).  But I never could quite get past the sensation that if I wasn't careful I'd be picking tiny pieces of glass out of his sock...and possibly my hands... Sooo.. when he came across these 3" finials on one of his wood shop odds and ends sites online and asked me if I could use them for my painted eggs hobby... I immediately thought of darning eggs.

While he worked on his clock, I was drawing, wood burning and painting this egg.  It has several coats of polyurethane on it to help protect it from the needle, but I will have to use it for a while to see how well it works.  It fits perfectly in the heel of his socks and is easy for me to hold and control while I'm darning... loving it.  Keeping my fingers crossed that the finish holds.. ;o)

Here in North Texas it's supposed to be 105° today and tomorrow.  They are telling us that the humidity should only be around 30%, so perhaps it will only feel like 105°... we can only hope...  This will be a really good time for air conditioned spinning... ;o)

I hope all have a good day today.. and... as my grandmother used to say...
"When you have a flat on your car...relax.. It's God's way of protecting you from that big truck that's down the road."  

Curves and Kids.. I Am So Loving It!

I was out running around a  week or so ago.  Errands, hair cut..that sort of thing.  I found myself across the street from our local Curves.  I have been looking at the sign every time I go to the bookstore or to have my hair done for a long time. I decided to stop in and find out what it was all about.  I knew right away that this was something I could do.So I jumped in with both feet and boy oh boy.. is it ever great.  I've only been going a week and already find myself with more energy than I've had in a long time. (Make that a "very" long time.)  Everyone is pleasant and welcoming.. makes me look forward to going... Imagine me looking forward to exercising..lol

I can't believe I haven't put the pictures up of the kids visit.. ;o(   So I will now.

First, of course,  is my sweet Hannah. This is our only grand daughter and she is now 2 years old.  She's not too sure about her first trip to Texas and all these new people so it was quite the visit.  Her Aunt Loretta is holding her... Hannah calls her Nana.  Son Phil and Loretta have never had children so this was pretty wonderful to watch.. ;o)

This is Dad.. son Chuck.  Talk about a doting
father.. ;o)  I just love it. 













Two more sons.. Phil and John with very talented daughter in law Tomomi..







What a wonderful visit.  Makes me (almost) wish they were all small again.. ;o)

It's hot, hot, hot.  My grapevine out back wilts low every afternoon. It perks back up when the sun goes down, but it sure is being stressed. I see a few clouds popping up in the southwest but that really doesn't mean much here.  I think the weather definitely has a mind of it's own and will do just as it pleases... does that remind any of teenagers.. ?? ;o)

Just to leave on a reality note..  A woman never realizes that her mother is right until she's about 40... too late.. she already has a daughter that knows she wrong.. ;o)   Have a good day.. ;o)

What's up with my Blogger comments?

I clicked when I should have clacked a day or so ago when I was checking the new designs for Blogger and found myself  with a new look whether I wanted it or not...lol   Isn't it always the way with curiosity?  Anyway, I find that with a little tweaking I really do like the new look... even better than the old one.  There's just one problem... my comments are not showing up at all.  ?????  I have it set up to send comments to me as e-mail, so I know I have some.  I have even answered with a comment... but they don't show up.  Anyone have any ideas what to do about that?  I've tried everything I can think of... sigh