Finished tie scarf

Take two ties, sew them together lengthwise (a short end to a wide end), line with fabric, cut off and close up the ends and you have a pretty and dynamic scarf.

Take the scraps that you cut off from the ends of the scarf and sew them together like a crazy-quilt, add a fabric yo-yo and vintage enamel pin and you have a matching brooch.

Now, I only have a dozen more to finish....

Travels in Blogland

I actually had time in the last few days to get caught up on reading my favorite blogs (list off to the right). I enjoyed reading about what everyone has been up to this summer but didn't comment much. Guess I'm just not chatty.

I want to share some new-to-me-blogs with you before I add them to my blogroll.

First, you have to meet the newest addition to our family, Jem. My cousin Steve and his bride are currently in Kazakhstan waiting to bring her home. Much cuter import than Borat, don't you think? (You must start at the beginning to get the whole story of what they've been through in the last few months.)

Oh, while you are at it, go see who just happened to be in my niece's neighborhood -- in Tanzania, Africa. Pretty cool!

Under "Other Mom Bloggers" which I'm changing to "Other Family Bloggers" you'll soon find:
Life at the Craigs
Senior Bicycling
Ninny & Co.
Jayleigh's Grand Adventures
Minivan Life

Soon to join "Creative Links" are:
The Graphics Fairy
Thompson Family-Life
Confessions of an Apron Queen
The Sewing Geek
At Home on the Prairie
christy michelle
Made
Knitting This and That
Farmer Julie
Easily amused, hard to offend
this mama makes stuff

Have fun traveling around the global village that is Blogland. After all the travels we did this summer, I'm sure enjoying it.

Purchases

First up, a trade I made awhile back. Cintia wanted some of my abandoned woven pieces, I wanted her turtle anklet and we were bot Paypal poor, so we swapped. She made this cute little pink pouch with one of the pieces. And here is the turtle anklet I bought for a friend. I got some goat's milk soap too.

I bought 15 bunches of flowers from Caramelos on Etsy for my fairy dresses and crowns. They are even prettier in person and I can't wait to use them.

On Friday, I ventured out with all 4 boys to a garage sale. I know you are saying I must've been very daring to do it. It was at a friend's house. She has 4 kids of her own and great deals at her garage sales. We got two bike helmets, 3 water bottles, a scooter, a swim vest and a few other toys there.

The garage sale down the street was for me. Other crafty kindred spirits lived there. I bought a stash of belt buckles, random jewelry, bits of ribbon and two small painted trays.

I also got more eyelet trim (can never have enough eyelet), 3 crocheted doily/hotpot thingies and some crochet hooks.

At first I passed this up, then went back to it when I was charged so little for everything else. It is a rather long wall hanging from Sweden of embroidered folks in frocks and finery. Can anyone translate the descriptions for me?

These were my favorite purchases there. A twin set of sheets with pretty shabby chic pink roses and a linen piece with rose ribbon trim. They'll have to go together in some sort of project, I'm just not sure what kind yet.

Buzz buzz buzz

PS. I've added more sunflower pics to the slideshow below.

My sunflower show

I've been going out to visit the sunflowers in my backyard
at different times of the day. They look different each time.

And I learned a new trick on Flickr. Here is a sunflower show.




If you would like to the images in the slideshow larger, click here. And be sure to check back as I'll add more as I take them.

Travel photos

Hat number two

Much bigger than the first one thanks to the hint about loosening up my stitches. It's almost too big for its recipient but he likes it apparently. He hasn't taken it off since I finished it.

I wanted to make a little korker topper like on this hat but it didn't quite turn out like it. I'll keep trying.

Semi-successful crocheting project

You are looking at this photo and saying
"but what's wrong with it?" aren't you?

Nice shape, cute flower, great fall colors,
so why is it only semi-successful?

It was supposed to fit me and not a toddler-sized monkey head!!!!

I used the right weight yarn and the right sized crochet hook and the directions were easy to follow. It should've worked out.
Is this what I get for finding free patterns online?

I did figure out my problem with following directions
for making flowers, and even those are easy for me now.

And I have a stash of autumnal yarns to practice with.
I'm going to start by following the same instructions
and just add extra rows to make it longer.

WIPS

I've got the sewing machine out again, finally. I sold the last of my finished fairy dresses, so I am ready to make more.

It's a good thing I stocked up on more vintage slips. I've been researching vintage fairy images and have ideas for making each one unique. Dawn's site is always full of inspiration for me. I'm now off to Etsy to look for tulle and millinery flowers.

I'm also finally finishing up the double tie scarves I started months ago. I've sewn the backs onto each pair and now I have to close up the ends. I don't know if I'll be able to let Mickey Mouse go.

Layered posey brooches

I figured out how to crochet circles and flowers all by myself.
I still can't follow the directions I have exactly but I have figured
out how to make some semblance of round.

Once I was done with a few, I thought to make them into brooches
and went digging in my stash.

I found old earrings, enamel pins
and yo-yo's I'd started awhile back.

Got some cute combinations, I think.

I need to get some pinbacks and I think I want to make them funkier with some laces and trims.

I also need to head to our storage space to collect the yarn,
pins, earrings and buttons I sent down there.

For now, I'll use what I have and see what I can come up with.

Proud as a peacock

I seem to have a thing lately for bright, saturated cool colors like turquoise, green blue and purple.

Like the colors in peacock feathers. These are from the residents of the farm we visited a few weeks ago. We were told to take what we wanted. Now I need to think of something to do with them.

Here are the body feathers, commingled with some from Canada geese my 6yo collected.

We even had to save some of the small, downy ones. I didn't realize their body feathers would also be brown or patterned (the fuzzy white ones are from the geese, I believe.)

I've only been able to shop a little bit this summer. Too hard with all the boys in tow. While at the farm, I bought a few things at a thrift store. -- the wooden box, the clip-on earrings and the broken pocketwatch. The small turquoise Blue Mountain Pottery ashtray and the children's book (with Dick before Jane came along) were purchased in Canada.

Remember the thistles I collected? I bought flower drying crystals and they puffed right up. Now to think of something to do with them too...

And even my crocheting has taken on a turquoise hue. Just practicing with stitches (as I still can't follow instructions) by making chanter cover for one of my boys and scarves for some young sisters we know.