Hand Sewing in the 21st Century

I finished another Wee Wonderfuls pattern from the Hand Sewing is Fun group. I chose to make the turtle (there are four patterns in all). I sent it off to the site and lo! My little turtle appeared today on Friday Favourites.

Check out the site here, at wee wonderfuls

I can't quite believe that I managed to take a photo, send a photo, have it posted on someone else's blog, and then link it from my blog to another!

Absolutely amazing!

I have truly entered the 21st century.

Perhaps I'll do a little dance.

Button, Button Who's Got the Button?

Whenever I have to compose a list of my interests - like for my blog or on Flickr - I often mention my love of buttons. I recall being very young and going through my mother's button tin and the enjoyment found in such simple things. The colours and shapes and even textures of each little piece delighted me. My sister and brother and I all learned to count with buttons.


I still love buttons, especially bags of old buttons from thrift stores.




I love to bring them home and pour them out onto paper and sift through them all. I group them into colours and materials - shell, plastic, metal, glass - and cut out old threads left in from their previous owners.

I wash them.





I pile them into onto a tea towel and dry them and sort them some more.




Some are metal:





Some are shell:







There are always plastic ones, but sometimes they're extra pretty:







Iridescent glass sewn to card (can't wash these ones):





Metal and giant rhinestone:






Old, old bone:




Sometimes, things aren't buttons at all:




As I go through them I can see the minds of the people these objects came from, the thrifty, the magpie, the hoarder, the collector. I can see myself in all those minds. I can see the organiser as well.



Did I ever tell you that I really love buttons?

My Own Wee Wonderfuls

My young niece Thea (she's just ten) took up knitting in the last little while and, while visiting us this summer, presented me with her very first completed project. A little pouch from the Klutz Knitting for Kids book.




I was very impressed with this project. Her tension is perfect and I really liked the colour of yarn she chose. Look how well it goes with my ipod, I'm going to use it as a wee ipod cozy this autumn(it helps the battery last longer). Thank you again Thea. Really well done.



I have great plans to have all kinds of links and lists on this blog, but I still have to learn how to do all those things. In the mean time I thought I would tell you about my favourite blog, Wee Wonderfuls. Operated by a woman in the States named Hillary Lang, it always has the sweetest projects going on. She sells her patterns on-line and, though I don't sign up for everything, I've never been disappointed with her instructions. Last autumn I purchased her Make-a-Long Story. Too, too adorable.

Here are Olive and Archie:




Their backpacks:




Their friend Mr. Paws:





And their sleeping rolls:





There is still more of the story to come. I can't wait for the next installment of the story of Olive and Archie (all about their first day of school). You can check out Wee Wonderfuls on-line, just Google it.

Progress continues on the pink sweater and the Asian cross-stitch, but I'll wait to show you photos when progress is more easily seen in a photo.

Going to the Dogs and Rabbit

I thought I should introduce the dogs in my life.




This is Whimsy, my daughter's dog. She is five pounds of whirling fury (the dog, not my daughter). She is a miniature Shih Tzu and will turn two on September 13 of this year. Whimsy likes to pursue our larger dog endlessly, biting his elbows and ears.






Suffering all the abuse is Gus Gus. He is a two and a half year old border terrier. We had to wait nearly two years for him (we got him from a very reputable breeder who doesn't over-breed her females). He is a bit dim for a border, but very sweet tempered and litter-perfect, except for a little white patch on his chest.

My husband remarked on how Whimsy looked quite majestic and Gus looked terribly intelligent in these shots I took the other day. Don't be fooled, there was a reason it took ages to get these snaps of them.

Gus is looking out the living-room window at our neighbour as he works in his front garden.

I made a little felt Gus Gus from the book "Making Fairy-Tale Wool Animals" by Angelika Wolk-Gerche.





Can you see his wee tongue?




We also have a rabbit named Pippin, he just turned four, and I have to say, he is one of the most vicious creatures I have ever cared for. Gus adores him and tries and tries to make friends, but Pip just lunges at him and threatens to gouge out his eyes. I find Pippin quite difficult to photograph. This was the best I could do.



His colours remind me of the horse in the Hidalgo film. I adopted him at four weeks old because he was very beautiful. Lesson learned. The woman I bought him from sells, not only pet rabbits, but rabbit meat and rabbit skins. As tempting as it was to return him, I knew what fate had waiting for him, so opted to keep him.

He really is beautiful and its important to focus on his positive attributes (before I have him turned into a hat and a pie).

To Begin With

Hello to all.

My first blog post.

Exciting, no?

Well, perhaps not so much for you, but I'm feeling a wee bit intimidated by all the machinations. I'm currently having one of those occasions when I want to chuck the entire computer out the window. However, I will soldier on...

My purpose for this blog, if one is required, is to keep the world - mostly family and friends - abreast of the glorious banality that is my life. I plan on sharing with you my various craft projects, and my varied interests.

To begin with I'm working on the Tangled Yoke Cardigan from the new issue of Interweave Knits (Autumn 2007).




I'm knitting it in two strands of Knitpicks Alpaca Cloud - the pale pink shade. I believe its called Peppermint Heather. I've worked with this yarn before and am always amazed at both its softness and strength, its also fantastically inexpensive.




Also, I'm working on a cross-stitch called Wisdom from Joan Elliott's book Oriental Odyssey.




This project will be quite a long time in the making, but I will update my progress from time to time with photos.




Deary, deary. I've been struggling to create this post for hours. I'm going to take a long, hot bath and eat some chocolate. I'll post again someday soon.

Until then.