{this moment} – A Friday ritual. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. Join in the fun here.
photo credit: the daweshaus
my creative space
I did a little bit of airplane knitting while on vacation. It’s not exactly mindless knitting, but it distracted me from all of the stormy turbulence we encountered.
I really love the pattern and the design would probably “pop” more with a solid color yarn.
I’m no longer ripping back tiny mistakes if they aren’t too noticeable. I’ve figured out how to yarn over here and there to hide them pretty good.
I started this cowl in February. At this rate, it might get finished before the cold weather hits.
What’s in your creative space? Visit other places here.
pattern: Good Luck Cowl by Drop Stitch Knitter
the little avocado that could
We planted our first avocado seed today. Remember way back in April when we put it in a bag of moss? The book said it would take a few weeks to get roots. Ours took a few months. Maybe our laundry room isn’t warm enough?
You’re supposed to have 3-4 inches of roots before planting. Our second avocado seed is really slow. (Sorry I forgot to take a pic of the first seed’s roots.) Back into the bag of moss for that one.
Other green happenings: A friend is traveling a lot this summer and has asked me to look after her strawberry plants. She started them from very special seeds that came all the way from Poland. No pressure, right? So far, so good.
Full disclosure: My green thumb isn’t very consistent. The neglected tomato plant is thriving, but not producing any fruit. The cucumber got snapped in half by The Ol’ Nebraska Winds during a storm. Technically, it’s not my fault, but it’s dead just the same.
neighborhood fireworks
Our neighborhood has been exploding since last Thursday. These are from July 3rd. I expect even more tonight. I’m glad my daughter saw them last night. We’ve had a full day and I think she’ll be in bed before dark tonight.
fabric dog tag (good for penguins, too)
You’ve met Puppy before. He’s the one who got a new nose. He’s my daughter’s best stuffed friend. I get really nervous when we take him on trips. I can’t imagine what life would be like if he got lost.
Right before our San Diego trip last year, I made fabric tags for Puppy and his little cat friend Gnocchi. It was a last minute idea. I cut out small rectangles of muslin and applied fray check to the edges. When they were dry, I used a fabric marker to write “If found, please call” with my cell phone number. Then I hand stitched the corners to each stuffed friend.
It was my intention to make something soft so it wouldn’t poke my daughter at night. Of course, now she sleeps with a hard, plastic penguin, too. Kids! I wound up stitching a label to Pengi’s leg for this trip. When everyone gets home safely, I snip the stitches and save the labels for next time.
Does traveling with your child’s “special friends” make you nervous? How do you ensure their safe travels?
i’m back!
Well, my body is back on American soil. My mind hasn’t really left the sandy beaches and beautiful blue waters of Aruba.
I’m slowly getting back into home life. I’ve bought groceries and it’s nice to have a home-cooked meal. I’ve started going through all of my pictures. That may take awhile. The suitcases are unpacked, but I haven’t done a stitch of laundry.
I did a little bit of writing while I was gone. Some knitting, too. I plan to be back to regular posting soon.
gone fishin’
Not actual fishing, but I’m taking my knitting, so I’ll have sticks and string if the urge strikes.
I need to recharge my creative batteries. Get my creative juices flowing again. Reboot my personal hard drive. Can I use any more cliches?
I’ve been thinking a lot about my little space on the Internet. A few years ago I spun my creative work off of my personal blog because they felt like two separate parts of me. Now they couldn’t be more intertwined.
This space isn’t going away. In fact, it will probably grow to include more aspects of my creative life. I don’t want it to become too cumbersome, but I need a place to document more of the whole me.
I’ll be away at least a week — maybe two. Going to find some sand to dig my toes in, do some crosswords, and read a good book. Oh, and I’ve got my knitting, too. I promise I won’t use my Malabrigo to catch fish. You didn’t think I would, did you?
my creative space
Playing around with the camera and Photoshop today.
Using actions from The Pioneer Woman, The CoffeeShop Blog and Totally Rad.
More creative spaces here.
how to: adjust the side seams of a dress in
4 easy steps
I’ve been waiting for this dress to fit my daughter for two years. When she tried it on this Spring, it was just above her knees, but still too big in the body. The only way she would be able to wear it would be if I took it in at the sides. It was actually very easy. All you need is a seam ripper and some matching thread.
Step 1
Unpick the facing under the arm and the bottom hem a few inches on either side of the seams.
Step 2
Unfold the fabric. Press the facing and hem flat.
Step 3
Mark the new seam and stitch. (My daughter is kind of squirmy. I measure in thumbs, not inches. I took this dress in one thumbnail on each side.)
Step 4
Re-fold the facing and hem. Stitch over the original holes.
See? Really easy! I didn’t even trim the new seam allowance. The edges were already finished with a serger, so I just pressed them toward the back of the dress before stitching everything back together.
I have a feeling I’ll be doing this to a lot of my daughter’s dresses this Summer. Let me know if you try it!
wwkip day 2011
Today was World Wide Knit in Public Day. My daughter and I spent it with friends at the park. (I worked on a crochet project. I’m such a rebel.) The weather was beautiful, but kind of chilly. I wished I had brought a sweater.
Afterward, we went to lunch at my favorite coffee shop and then to another park to weed the Butterfly Garden. By then it was hot and I was wishing I brought sunscreen. Not so hot that I wasn’t glad to be outside. We even went on a little hike.
I love days like this.
Did you do any yarning in public?