These are a few of my favorite things

Hello!  Here are a few of my latest loves:

1. The bliss of color and being able to read crochet patterns now.

2. My granny square cushion cover is coming along nicely...

3. In getting ready to move, I found this gem stashed away in a box labelled "handmade blankets".

I'd completely forgotten that while I was pregnant with J (8 years ago!) I worked night and day on this blanket/work of art for his crib.

I remember the thrill of learning how to applique and trying something new on each block.

3. I really, really loOoove my newly organized jars of buttons.

4. Lately though, this has been the #1 love of my life.

My sweet family gifted this book to me on mother's day, Homespun Style by Selina Lake who is an incredibly awesome interior stylist from the UK.  I have been soaking it in over the last few weeks, reading a few pages a day.  And really, a few pages a day is all I can handle because the images in this book leave me in an excited frenzy, they are so rich and vibrant. 

 

Talk about heart skippidy, giddy, my cup runneth over-y-ness!

If you like the stuff on my blog and colorful recycley-repurposey-handmadey goodness, then this is the book for you.  You will not be disappointed, I guarantee!

Wishing you a happy, joyful Wednesday.

Fabric bread basket

I just finished a very enjoyable project - a bread basket.  It has been on my To Do list forever and I've been working at it very, very leisurely (meaning slowly!)....5 minutes here and 5 minutes there.

We've been in dire need of a basket for fresh biscuits and bread for a long time.  We've been using the basket below for 11 years. This basket has had a long life because before that, it was in G's bachelor pad...and before that, it lived somewhere else (I'm sure G scored it at a garage sale). The bottom was really wearing out. It was a great size, perfect for a family size helping of bread, nice with a pretty towel draped inside it. But alas, it was time.

I wanted the new basket to be exactly the same size as the old so I was careful to keep measuring it against the old one as I sewed.

Around and around and around.  All you do is wind 1 inch strips of remnant fabric around cotton clothesline and zig zag away.

Ta-da!

Mmmmmmm.....breadsticks.....

I had a little bit of clothesline left over so I decided to make a teeny weeny bowl.

Don't those yellow buttons look just GLORIOUS in there?

Wind and rain

We've had a couple of windy and rainy days here in Edmonton.  I really like the rain.  Rainy days are such a great excuse to stay indoors and get cozy.  But this morning the girls and I decided to go for a rainy day walk complete with rainjackets, rubber boots and umbrellas.

I love the pitter patter sound of the rain on my umbrella.  It's like I'm in a magic dry bubble when everything around me is soaking wet.  Same with wearing my rubber boots.  My feet become invincible!  We found this little tulip sprouting in among the rocks in our front yard.

Beautiful spring.

 Boy, was it ever chilly though!  Our fingers were icicles clutching our umbrellas.  The girls were    ready for a nice hot bath when we got home.

I've started a new project. These granny squares are so fun to whip up. This pattern is called the Nuthatch Granny Square and you can find it here. I'm planning to make a cushion cover to go with my ripple blanket and patchwork cushion. It's my first attempt at granny squares and I'm liking the process so far!

The crisp, wet weather combined with my cozy project make me feel homey, safe and content.    Happy Wednesday. 

Day off

Yesterday was a day off school for the kids.  I love days off school.  G gets up for work like usual, and the kids get up with him.  But after we say good-bye, there's all this time to loaf around in our pajamas, have a long leisurely breakfast and play without interruption.  I really like having all 3 together.  We had pancakes for breakfast.  I poured the batter into this empty detergent bottle...

.

...and had a much easier time than usual making shapes.

J gave it a go!

Hearts for M

After breakfast our sweet little cousins came over and gosh, I don't know how my sister- in- law does it!  I forget that my kidlets were once 1 and 3 years old.  It's a busy, busy, age!  We had fun digging for worms in the garden...

 ...and making mud pies. 

It was a chilly, overcast day so we came inside and took out the playdough.  The kids imagination always fascinates me.  Today they had a bakery full of things like "sweet pepperoni cakes" and "sweetza pizza".

I am tickled that the kids are loving my finished ripple blanket, especially the oldest.  He regularly wears it like this in the morning.  The blanket also makes a regular appearance inside their forts.  Luckily I stay up later than my kids so that I can have my snuggle time with Ripple too!