Perhaps a monster - for Halloween?

 

This fellow was cobbled together trying to use up the leftover Bernat Blanket yarn from the previous two (much larger!) monster pillows I made.  I still have some of the green left but not enough to really make anything.  This guy measures about 17" tall.  There's no real pattern - the body and feet were from one, the arms from another, the horn from another and the eye more or less from the eyes used for the other monsters I made.  

Today the quote is from an unknown source..."If the broom fits, ride it!"

A tutorial! Who knew?

 It's been awhile since I did any sort of tutorial for you and as I was whipping one of these up I thought perhaps you might have fun with them too.  They make great little gifts and very useful too (as Resident Chef will attest!).

Above you can see the rubbery backing and to the right is the front side that clearly shows the 'X'

So, here goes, a tutorial to make Jar Lid Openers...cheap and cheerfully...

You will need 2 pieces of fabric 7" x 7" and a piece of that rubbery shelf liner 'stuff' from the dollar store (it must be the rubbery version for this to work), also cut 7x7", along with a piece of tissue paper a bit larger than the fabric.

1.  Place one piece of fabric RIGHT SIDE UP; top with piece of shelf liner; and then the second piece of fabric RIGHT SIDE DOWN.

2. Sew around leaving approx. 3" open for turning.  Use a bit more than a 1/4" seam allowance.  Clip corners and turn, making sure the rubber side is on the outside.

3.  Press from FABRIC SIDE (use parchment paper between your fabric and your iron....if you don't and the iron touches the rubber - well, just don't do it!).

4.  Place tissue paper between the rubber side and the sewing machine plate and, using a straight stitch, topstich around the edges.

5.  Mark an 'X' from corner to corner and stitch.  

6.  Remove paper and voila!  You're done.  I like to add a little paper tag explaining that it's a jar opener, otherwise people will wonder what on earth it's for!  I often parcel one of these together with a knitted scrubby for dishes and it's a great small hostess gift; an add-on to a larger gift; or a 'thinking of you' gift.

Today the quote is from Plato..."The greatest wealth is to live content with little"

All set for Santa!

A Christmas stocking for our wee little grandie-girl.

I found the fox face on a free coloring page from the internet and sized it to fit.  The woodland snow scene is the co-ordinating print that goes with the main animal print.   The lace trim was knitted by my maternal grandmother (therefore our little one's great-great-grandma).  

Today the quote is from Meryl Streep..."Let no one remove the wrinkles from my forehead, obtained through amazement at the beauty of life; or those of my mouth, which show how much I laughed and how much I kissed; nor the dark circles of my eyes:  in them is the memory of how much I cried.  They are mine and they are beautiful"

The end (for now!)

 Yes, I think I can officially call the current cross stitch 'kick' to be over for this year.   The final things from my needle include these postcards...

There are two of the middle design and 4 of the others currently waiting for the time to come for them to go in the mail 

The quote this time is from John Wayne..."I'm only responsible for what I say, not for what you understand"

Right jab, left jab and almost a finish

 Now how's that for a blog post title?  The right and left jabs, as you may have guessed, refer to the fact that Resident Chef and I got both our flu shot and our bivalent Covid booster shots yesterday....one in each arm.  

And, the almost a finish refers to the latest sweater to come off my knitting needles.  After much procrastination I finally got the seams done although I still have to muster my courage to sew in a zipper.  I've sewn zippers before but never into a knitted sweater.  

The pattern I used, sort of, is THIS one.....BUT.....I changed it.  I added a basketweave design pattern to the main body pieces but did the sleeves plain.  Yarn was entirely leftovers of Lion Brand Jeans yarn that I used to make the sweaters for the grandies last Christmas.  I played a game of yarn chicken and I won!

Today the quote is from Adam Stanley...."It's better to have your nose in a book than in someone else's business"

Yet more cross stitch, sort of

 I've carried on with my cross stitching for a little while longer (don't worry, it's not going to become a constant) and have been working on some Christmas cards and postcards.  Here's the first card I made...

This one is heading for AU to my distant cousin who owns a much-loved Scottie dog.  Thought she'd appreciate this one.

- Some of you might find THESE intriguing.

- And THIS too!

- There's a good article HERE on how to square off a quilt of any size.

- There are links HERE to several different vintage needlework sites that some of you might find of interest.

Today's quote is from Emily Dickinson..."Forever is composed of nows"

Last one!

 This is the final in the ornament series (and I'm sure you're glad!)...

For better pictures you can visit the designer HERE.

Today's quote is from Susan Sarandon..."I look forward to being older, when what you look like becomes less and less an issue and what you are is the point"

Just dropping in

 It's been a busy couple of days here and I'm thoroughly behind in what I should be doing....so....I will simply show you another of the cross stitched ornaments...

You can go HERE to see better pictures!

And....tomorrow (the 15th) is the last day 
to take advantage of my Landscape Christmas sale!

House Ornament #2

 Today I'm showing you another of the ornaments in the series.  It's really difficult to get decent photos of something that's round!  If you go HERE you can see much better photos of what I was aiming towards.

And...yesterday Resident Chef made these....why buy chocolates when his are so much better? 

Today's quote..."The nice part about living in a small town is that when you don't know what you're doing, someone else does"

Thanksgiving and ornaments

 

I know it comes as a surprise to some people,
but Thanksgiving in Canada is celebrated at a 

different time than in the US.  

So - Happy Thanksgiving to those of us 

in Canada!

I've completed the first of the 'house' ornaments from the series I've been working on...

This one was really tricky because I had to resize the base and the 'roof' to suit the fact that I didn't use the correct size of aida cloth for the base.  It was a case of using what I had (as usual) and not thinking ahead to what I might need to adjust later on.  Took some finagling but I managed.  If you want to see the original design and more pictures  go HERE  

Today's quote is from Monique Hammond..."Although Thanksgiving comes but once a year, every day should be a day of thanks"

Two more done

 I've finished two more of the ornament series (or at least they're finished as far as I can go for the moment)....

The search is on for either a frying pan or a rolling pin to add to each one to complete them.  The original design called for a flour sack but being that neither recipient is a baker I thought a frying pan would be a better choice.  If you want to see the original design, go HERE.  

And....Resident Chef harvested the remainder of our little balcony garden and we had enough green tomatoes to make these...

For those of you who have green tomatoes you're wondering about, perhaps this recipe might appeal...

DISCLAIMER!!!!
It seems that green tomatoes are slightly poisonous!
Who knew?  

According to my research, they only bother those who have a sensitivity (much, I suppose, like those having an allergy to certain foods).  

You might want to read THIS article for
further information!

GREEN TOMATO RELISH

7 lbs. green tomatoes, cored & cut into ¼’s

4 large yellow onions, wedged

2 large red onions, wedged

3 large green peppers, wedged

2 large red peppers *

4 tsp. pickling salt

5 c. apple cider vinegar

4 c. sugar

2 Tablespoons celery seed

4 tsp. mustard seed

   In a food processor, chop veg’s.  Combine &

add salt.  Place in large strainer and drain for

3 hours.  Pour drained veg’s into large pot &

add remaining ingredients.  Bring to boil, reduce

heat to a moderate simmer & cook uncovered 30

mins, stirring frequently.  Ladle into hot jars, seal,

 & process in a boiling water bath for 15 mins. 

  * chop the red peppers finer than the rest

Today's quote is from Rithvik Singh..."If you cannot accept changes, you cannot expect growth"

Not quite the dance of the sugar plum fairy....

 The nutcrackers are done!

The original design shows a miniature sword but
that might not happen and probably won't be
missed if it doesn't.

Our thoughts and prayers remain with the people who were so incredibly affected by both Hurricane Fiona, who devastated our Canadian east coast, and by Hurricane Ian, who caused such devastation in the US.  Hard to believe two such massive storms struck within a matter of mere days of each other.

Today's quote is by Shira Tamir..."Anyone who thinks fallen leaves are dead has never watched them dance in the wind"