Good afternoon friends. Spring is finding her way into our neighborhood, strengthened by longer days, warmer temperatures and occasional sunny days. We’ve planted so many flowering bulbs here at our bit of earth over the years…bit by bit…and they are beginning to fill in nicely. As with so many things in life, blooming things do remind that patience has its rewards.
Our goat friend Toshi had the last batch of this spring’s kids at our neighbors’ down the road. She waited for the big snowstorm to pass before she settled down to deliver her triplets. She looked like such a wide bit of critter, we thought she might be carrying three. Now that the weather is nicer, all seven kids are able to get outside and frolic on the rocks in their barnyard. Their mamas may have been getting tired of being their playground when they were snug in the cozy barn! We’re so lucky to have the herd down to road. Visiting them can really cheer us up. xo
I finally finished Gretta’s Studio Tunic, using a pattern from Sew Liberated. It’s been forever since I sewed a garment, and this one went together so nicely! Gretta had purchased a quilt weight cotton, so it sewed up just a bit differently than a heavier fabric might. I made adjustments to accommodate the yardage she sent, mixing and matching the three prints. Gretta teaches science to middle school students (bless her, am I right?) and she may wear this as an occasional lab coat. It will look spiffy with her oversized, bright turquoise glasses. :-) Since it was folded up and put into the mail, I am leaving the final ironing to Gretta. xo
Some observations on the project
I love the way the facings are finished, but I am really trying to get away from using iron- on interfacing (It can’t be good for the planet). I may use a lightweight cotton lawn next time.
All of the seams are clean finished (with easy instructions), so there will be no fraying.
Maybe it was me, but I found the instructions on sewing the small, inner pocket to be wonky. Proceed with caution.
I did not mark the fabric with the pocket placement dots. I regretted that “shortcut”!
Let me know if you sew one! I’m looking forward to making one for myself.
I continue to work on my 100 days of stitching book…
I used the last tiny bit of the sprout fabric I bought from BOOKHOU years ago. You can see another project I made with this fabric here. All the dots/flowers were cut from some of my hand dyed fabrics, secured with French knots.
I wanted to be sure to use some of this avocado dyed linen. I used clothespins to create the “resist”, or white patches . The soft pink shade does not reproduce well here on my computer screen but it plays nicely with this batik from my stash. I kept the page simple to create some contrast. Or maybe I’ll add a little something…
These will be facing pages in the book.
There’s so much mayhem in the news and I know that our brains were not built to absorb and understand all of it. It’s just too, too much. After remembering that April is National Poetry Month I renewed my devotion to reading poetry. What a lovely way to slow down, disengage from the headlines, pause and savor thoughtful words. Tea improves the experience and provides a few moments to participate in the calming and ancient ritual of brewing a mug. Wish we could share a teapot, dearest readers.
Batman and I enjoyed another quick get-away to Portland, ME for a few days. We ate some wonderful seafood! We walked the cobblestone streets of the old port and stumbled on some sweet shops and cafés. We bought a loaf of oat porridge bread warm from the oven at Bread &Friends. Gosh, have you ever had the experience of walking into a place that just felt so very homey? Next time we’ll have to stop by for breakfast. Hooray for small and local businesses, doing things right!
I’ll catch you up on my reading and listening next time and ask about yours! Until then, lots of love. xo