Very Soft Blanket

Much of my sewing is governed by what scrap bin is overflowing--it's like planning dinner around a gardenful of zucchini.

In today's project we can see that the box of wool and cashmere sweaters (collected from the thrift store and then felted) was pretty full, and it was time to make a blanket.

This is a very soft blanket. I'm still thinking about a very soft back for it.

The Fruit Bowl Today

The fruit bowl today struck me as beautifully seasonal. The Fuji apples from my favorite farmer, a few pears (they are so good this year!), a butternut squash I have got to remember to roast for dinner--I keep thinking of it at 5:30, and the first orange and pomegranate of the year.

A Warm November Afternoon

Felix has just a few more weeks on campus and it was a beautiful warm end-of-color weekend so we headed his way to enjoy the woods and take him out to dinner.

We all appreciate living so close to so much beauty.

And so many raccoons.

Next semester Felix will be farther away (more on that later), and we've learned to enjoy proximity while we have it. For sure.

Framing

This week I framed my paint-by-numbers favorites for the sitting room. There's something about uniform frames (even the cheap wood ones from Hobby Lobby) and a mat and some glass that just lends authority.

I kept buying the wrong things though. It took about four trips to the store to get three things on the wall. I hope it's not just me that does that.

So, one painting on the left and two on the right. I'm definitely waiting for the fourth picture to cross my path one of these days. I love these portrayals of Jesus. They may not be fine art, but they are, I think, reverent.

Patterns in the Shop

In the shop this afternoon: a box of thirty-five patterns, a mix of old and new. Many not-so-exciting skirts, but plenty of vintage children's, a few vintage ladies' items (see dress above), and a darling patterns for assorted, very period, pot holders. All proceeds to charity, and it works out to just $.57 a pattern!

Shop here!

Jane Brocket's The Gentle Art of Quiltmaking

I've been perusing Jane Brocket's quilt-making book this week. It's a great companion for someone who's been intimidated by quilts but wants to jump in. The how-to is there, and the way to think about color and pattern. For that, I heartily recommend it.

And yet. I just want her to loosen up! Every single quilt is made with nothing but name designer fabrics. The problem is, that starts to look old. Studied. Even if--especially if--you try to give your arrangements as unstudied an air as possible. To me they cry out "Storebought!" 

Jane is careful and thoughtful with color, but her quilts would be more fun if she would use them as an opportunity to use up a little of the ugly fabric in her scrapbox*. That's where the real magic happens.

*If there is any. If there's not, she needs to go to the thrift store, close her eyes and spin around three times, and buy whatever shirt her hand lands on. And use it in a quilt. Seriously.

"The Simplicity of Good Taste"

" . . . She now knew what one ought to wear and exactly how to accomplish it on a very small income. She had learned that the most expensive models almost invariably chose lines of simplicity, both in cut and decoration, and therefore she had been enabled to select from among the cheaper garments, those which followed this simplicity of good taste."

--Grace Livingston Hill, Crimson Roses

In My Shop

Now in my etsy shop, these pot holders in my new quilt colorway "Saturday Morning at the Hardware Store." All proceeds to hurricane relief!

Autumn Morning Walk

The horses were looking over the fence, the homemade smoker was burning with hickory smoke, and the leaves were drifting down.

Matty's Window Log Cabin Quilt, Finished

This quilt was commissioned on behalf of a very young man with very strong opinions about what makes a quilt acceptable. It should not, for instance, have anything babyish in it. It should not look like it was made for a girl.

Squares are the best, but they can be built out of rectangles. 

I like to think that I achieved all of that, and that I did it with love.

Japanese Maple Log Cabin Quilt

Japanese Maple Log Cabin Quilt *Started*, the headline should actually read. I haven't wanted to do any Big Sewing since we got home from Paris, so instead I spent some time this week going through two scrap bins--the blue+green, and the red+pink, which was very full because I haven't made any good-size quilts in that colorway in several years.

But a girl can only poke around in fabric for so long before inspiration starts to stir . . . .

The Top of Daisy's Bookshelf

Not being of the "less is more" persuasion, Daisy builds up elaborate displays in her room. I love this telling collection on top of her bookcase. So many of her loves--kittens, fairies, birds, puzzles, pencils, and little boxes. 

A Fitted Wool Coat

A quick stop in a Goodwill to get some aqua t-shirts to cut up for an applique project, and I glanced at the coat rail and saw this.

Flawless heavy wool, a mink collar (with lapel notches!) and mink trim on the bottom of the front only (see the back!), a nipped-in waist, inverted pleats behind.

Not a single label or clue inside; I think it's been relined. Twenty dollars, and my size? Okay.

Turnips in My Winter Garden

Now I'm pinning my hopes on a *winter* garden, and so far so good. The turnip patch is a wonderland, even if the Swiss chard seeds never do sprout.

And on an unrelated note: I've put a dress in my etsy shop--and 100% of any etsy proceeds for the next two weeks will go to disaster relief in New Jersey.

Hobo Style

Felix came home for the weekend wearing his thirties' style hat (from his most recent visit to NY), a tie, and carrying his banjo. Like the cutest hobo I've ever seen. Later he showed me how he had ripped both elbows out of his favorite gray cotton shirt, and would I please patch them?

Since no patch would match, he chose tiny brown houndstooth for a little extra hobo style.

Around the Fire

We lit the first fire of the season, and looked down to see that we weren't the only ones enjoying it.

Tiny Bit of Sumac

Daisy with a Rake

Most of the leaves are still on the tree, but it's never too early to at least *start* your leaf pile.

Persimmon Smock Blouse

This morning I tackled some dirty chores, outside and in. The biggest was to wrassle Frederick's entire birdcage out into the back yard, take it apart, and clean it top to bottom before winter sets in. Not a fun job, and not improved by the gnats swarming my face *or* the strong hints that the cats had established a latrine nearby.

However, we do what we must! And when I'd finished my work I consoled myself with a bundle of persimmon clippings.

For your heavy-duty housework days, may I suggest this persimmon apron blouse? It wraps around back, ties with long waist ties, and sports four pockets across the front for your microfibre cloth and chocolate caramels.

 Find it in my etsy shop!

The Granny Square Groweth

I'm calling this one "Ornamental Cabbage." See those dark greens, cream, and purple?

It's all one big granny square, but every fourth row is done in half-double stitches, just to keep things a little firmer.

When you're in the mood to crochet a blanket, nothing else will do!