07 October 2022
06 October 2022
Cool WIPs
I secretly wanted this quarter's WIP challenge list to be single digits. I'm so bummed I finished only two projects during the summer quarter. Yet, I'm happy to have made progress, even though not as much as I planned.
My September finish came in at 8:43 p.m. on the 30th, end of the final day of the quarter once again. (Yes, I was queen of the last minute AGAIN.) I'd taken a week of vacation and was without my computer and my sewing machine. But my vacation evenings were spent making one of my favorite pairs of jeans wearable once again. I crossed another WIP off my list, and I got to wear those beloved soft and faded jeans again for the first time in years on October 1, the final day of vacation (and first day of the new quarter)!
We still get to dress fairly casual at work most of the time, so I even wore my repaired jeans to work this week.
My co-workers got a kick out of my hexie patches. I told them I eventually will have to add more because there are many places where the denim is wearing really thin. They thought I should add some hearts and stars too...
Even though I got rid of two WIPs on the long-existing list, I had to add three Christmas presents that have been requested by my in-laws. Two steps forward, three steps back. On the bright side, I guess I truly will finish three WIPs this quarter. But secretly, that means my finishing goal is six projects. Gotta get down into single digits!!!
My mother-in-law decided she doesn't want to make a quilt from the kit I made for her last year, and she asked for a second table topper, this one smaller, from the same fabric line for a serving table in her dining room. My father-in-law asked if I could make a pin quilt for him for his medals, and he asked for a flag image in the center and his medic patch somewhere in the design. (My mother-in-law's pin quilt I made years ago has a southwest mission photo from an early 14er climbing trip during Lizard's and my climbing days.) I've been trying to come up with a new pin quilt design I can have printed at Spoonflower.
Here is my WIP list for the Ravelry Autumn Quarter:
1. Hawaiian Punch
2. Tickled Pink, the Sequel
3. Goodbye Hollyhock Road
4. Snowflake Strip Bar
5. Green Floral Batik Postage Stamps
6. Giant Dahlia
7. Showcase
8. Moda Blockheads
9. Tiny Triangle Leftovers
10. Scrappy I Spy Neighborhood
11. Take Me to the Other Side
12. FIL Pin Quilt
13. MIL Mini Table Topper
14. MIL Quilt
05 October 2022
04 October 2022
Transcendental Efflorescence
Seven years and two weeks ago, I discovered cosmos. I'd seen seeds, but I'd never planted any, probably because I'd never really seen (or recognized) any flowering cosmos plants. We were on our way to the Tour de Lavender in Washington, and I can never go to the Pacific Northwest without a stop (or two!!!) in Wyoming. More specifically, a stop in Tetons/Yellowstone. We paused en route at a rest stop in Shoshoni, where the bright pink cosmos were blooming like crazy. We'd been shooting a bit of fall color, so the burst of pink was an addictive pleasant surprise. When we returned home a week later, I created a poster (the shot above), then began researching what kind of flower could handle late September overnight lows.
My cosmos adventure began! I planted my first seeds the following spring and was a bit disappointed when the flowers didn't bloom until September. (Although I was very thankful to have flowers in September because for the last many years, most of my garden has gone to seed by mid- to late July!)
Each year, seeds would sprout in places where I did not plant. Each year, I'd buy seeds for a new variety or two. Or more.
This year, I attempted digging up some of the volunteers and transplanting them in places where I wanted flowers and in pots for the porch. Some survived; some didn't. Overall, I have far more cosmos this year than I've ever had, and there are still volunteers popping up in places I would not expect them to flourish.
Last week we returned to the birthplace of my cosmos addiction. I didn't expect tons of flowers this late in the season, but I did expect flowers. I had to really look to find them! The "garden" has been overgrown with grass.
If I lived in Shoshoni, I would dig up this little garden welcome mat and redo it with every variety of cosmos I could get into my little green thumb hand as a service project. Hopefully giving everyone who drives through (in September) a wonderful impression of Shoshoni...
The 2017ish addition to the Shoshoni sign made me giggle.
I'd forgotten we originally had planned to view the Great American Eclipse somewhere near this site. We chickened out when we learned tiny little remote areas such as Glendo were expecting up to 40,000 or 50,000 people. We opted for fairly remote, non-totality on the Colorado/Wyoming border.
I've always heard Wyoming and wind are blood brothers. I had to giggle at the Shoshoni sign wind braces...
I tried shooting cosmos still blooming at home when we returned last weekend, but that blasted wind, which does not confine itself to Wyoming, kept taking those precious blossoms right out of my viewfinder. But, I guess wind (plus goldfinch) is what spreads the seeds, right? So my own little guarantee for next year's crop!
And, I really can't complain about having flowers, even if windblown, in October. Once that first freeze happens, which could literally be any minute now, outdoor flowers will come to a quick and sorrowful end until next year...
03 October 2022
Autumn Leaf Monday
Probably one of my favorite leaves at fall. You may modify the tips by working ch 3 and sl st into 2nd ch from hook instead of ch 4 and sl st into 3rd ch from hook to make them less pointy. I wanted to try it both ways, and I actually like both.
You may do whatever you'd like with leaves you make from this pattern, but you may not sell or republish the pattern. Thanks, and enjoy!
Finished Size: 3.5 inches long
Materials: Size 10 crochet thread, size 7 crochet hook, empty pizza box, wax paper or plastic wrap, cellophane tape, water soluble school glue or desired stiffener, water, small container for glue/water mixture, paintbrush, stick pins that won't be used later for sewing, clear thread or fishing line
Sugar Maple Leaf Instructions
Make magic ring.
Round 1: 8 sc in ring; sl st in starting sc. Do not pull magic circle too tight.
Row 2: Ch 2 (counts as 1 dc), 1 dc in same sc as sl st, [ch 3, 3 dc in next sc] 3 times; ch 2, turn.
Row 3: 2 dc in next ch 3 tip, ch 3, 3 dc in same tip, [1 sc between next 2 dc, in next ch 3 tip work (3 dc, ch 3, 3 dc)] 2 times; ch 1, turn.
If you're not reading this pattern on Snowcatcher, you're not reading the designer's blog. Please go here to see the original.
Round 4: 1 sc in each of next 2 dc, ch 4, sl st in 3rd ch from hook, 1 sc in next ch, 1 sc in next dc, in next ch 3 tip work (3 dc, ch 5, sl st in 2nd ch from hook, sc in next ch, hdc in next ch, dc in next ch, 3 dc), 1 sc in next dc, ch 4, sl st in 3rd ch from hook, 1 sc in next ch, 1 sc in each of next 2 dc, sl st in next sc, 1 sc in each of next 2 dc, ch 4, sl st in 3rd ch from hook, 1 sc in next ch, 1 sc in next dc, in next ch 3 tip work (2 dc, 1 tr, ch 5, sl st in 2nd ch from hook, 1 sc in next ch, 1 hdc in next ch, 1 dc in next ch, 1 tr, 2 dc), 1 sc in next dc, ch 4, sl st in 3rd ch from hook, 1 sc in next ch, 1 sc in each of next 2 dc, sl st in next sc, 1 sc in each of next 2 dc, ch 4, sl st in 3rd ch from hook, 1 sc in next ch, 1 sc in next dc, in next ch 3 tip work (3 dc, ch 5, sl st in 2nd ch from hook, sc in next ch, hdc in next ch, dc in next ch, 3 dc), 1 sc in next dc, ch 4, sl st in 3rd ch from hook, 1 sc in next ch, 1 sc in next dc, 1 sc in next ch (2nd ch of Row 3 ch 2), 3 dc around post of next Row 2 dc, sk next Round 1 sc, 3 dc in next sc, ch 10, 1 hdc in 4th ch from hook and in each of next 2 ch, 1 sc in each of next 3 ch, sl st in next ch, 3 dc in next Round 1 sc, 3 dc around next Row 2 ch 2, sl st in top of next Row 3 dc; bind off. Weave in ends.
Finish: Today's crocheted leaf looks better stiffened, at least to me, but feel free to shape instead with a light mist of water if desired. Tape wax paper or plastic wrap to top of empty pizza box. Pin leaf to box on top of wax paper or plastic wrap.
If using glue, mix a few drops of water with a teaspoon of glue in small washable container. Paint snowflake with glue mixture or desired stiffener. Wash paintbrush and container thoroughly. Allow leaf to dry at least 24 hours. Remove pins. Gently peel leaf from wax paper or plastic wrap. Attach 10-inch clear thread to stem, weaving in end. Wrap fishing line around tree branch (or tape to ceiling or any overhead surface) and watch leaf twirl freely whenever you walk by! Leaf also may be taped to window or tied to doorknob or cabinet handle.
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