Keeping Entertained

Zachary's quilt is with the quilter. I dropped it off on Thursday.

I forgot to get a photo of the backing fabric, but I think this is it (website photo).

I have the binding sewn, pressed and ready to go.

To go with the quilt for Zachary's birthday, I have the Ruby Red Fashion Friends doll, Alex. I'm making him some clothes, including pajamas. I made him a sweater using my free pattern Pippa's Wonderland Turtle.

It's a quick and simple pattern. I used some Essential (Stroll) sock yarn from Knit Picks in "Flint Tweed." I've had it a long time, since before they changed the name. They still have Stroll yarn. It's basically the same, but they changed the name shortly after I bought what I used for the sweater.

Dolls don't like to have clothing pulled on over their heads, so it buttons down the back. This way, it can be used as a cardigan, too.

I finished Clue #1 in the Rose City Yarn Crawl Mystery Knit Along and started Clue #2 on Wednesday, when it came out. I really like how the beads look.

Saturday I finished the second clue.

I can't work on the MKAL project until the next clue. This means I had nothing to knit, so I wound up the yarn for the Milk Thistle shawl on Saturday and CO on Sunday. The kit was a nice present for my birthday. The herringbone stitch is proving to be a challenge. I frogged and started over again more times than I can count. It has I-cord edges, so it will take a while for it to look right, I think, but I'm not planning to start over again...again!

The pups were still wearing their sweaters until the weather warmed up a bit. Here they are, working their shift at KP duty, where they are pre-rinse specialists.

Because it warmed up, I've taken the sweaters off. We have snow melting, a muddy backyard and wet streets, but it's noticeably warmer. To keep out of the mud, we have been walking around the block or along the streets instead of on the trails.

There's still ice in some places. When we find that, we step over into the street and walk around. I expect we'll get more snow. After all, it's still January.

I have a lot of difficulty responding to comments to my blog posts because of technical issues beyond my control (my lack of understanding of how things work). Message me on Facebook, Ravelry or Spoutible if you need information.

If you have a few minutes and are willing, please go to Amazon and B&N and search for "Our Favorite Verses: Poems from The Doll's Storybook by Peggy Stuart". Every click on the page for the book makes it more likely they will keep a good supply in their warehouse and stores. If you are outside the US, you may have a separate website for these retailers. If you have a copy of any of our books, including Emil, Mariah or Classic Tales Retold, please leave an honest review on the websites, especially if you bought from them.

Where's my blog: If you want to follow my blog, go here and sign up to follow.

What's on my needles: Still the Happier Days Shawl, the Mystery KAL for the Rose City Yarn Crawl 2024. I'm waiting for Clue #3 on January 24th. The Milk Thistle, for which I have the kit, newly started.

What's on my loom: Still folded up

What's on my sewing machine: Ready to put on the binding when I get Zachary's quilt back. Need to start some pajamas for the doll Alex.

What's in The Doll's Storybook: In A Visit to the Mesozoic, Billy gets some help from Mandy when studying for a test.

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Finished listening to Ginny by M. C. Beaton. Now listing to Another Time, Another Place , #12 in "The Chronicles of St. Mary's" by Jodi Taylor.

Also still reading Harry Potter und die Kammer des Schreckens by Joanne K. Rowling (in German), the physical book, which I received for my birthday.

What's in my wine glass: Pleno Voo vino tinto 2021 from Portugal. It seems very nice, but I still don't have my sense of smell back, so I'm not sure I can really vouch for it (or any wine, for that matter).

What's my tip of the week: Just sewing a strip of cloth along one edge of a quilt top for a border until you run out quilt top may seem a way to save time, but you can end up with a quilt that looks like a potato chip. It's best to measure the length of the middle of the quilt. I sew the longer border on first, so I measure the length of the quilt top from top to bottom, then cut two border strips exactly that length. I pin and work in the ease as needed. Then I measure again for the width of the quilt, which is now larger by the width of the borders. I sew the top and bottom borders on the same way. I end up with a quilt top that is flat.

Where are my books: The stories in each book first appeared in the blog and they are reproduced with a few changes. 

Our Favorite Verses: Poems from The Doll's Storybook is available from the BookBabyBookshop and other booksellers worldwide. Poems included are Valentine's Day, Keeping Pets, Back to School, Victor the Vulture, The Week Before Christmas, Insomnia and Veronika's Vocabulary Verses.

The stories in Classic Tales Retold: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Little Green Greatcoat, The Boy Doll Who Cried Wolf and Lost in the Woods.

Emil: Stories from The Doll's Storybook and Mariah: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are also still available from booksellers. The link for Book Baby is here. The three stories in Emil are Best Buds, Getting What You Want, and The Boys Cook Dinner.

The three stories in Mariah are Being Little, Besties, and Distraction.

If you don't get free shipping from Amazon or B&N, buy from the BookBabyBookshop, because 50% of the price goes to St. Jude. Other booksellers pay much less. 

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals or dolls were harmed during the production of this blog post.

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Piecing Together

The top for Johan's quilt is finished. This will give you an idea of what it looks like now. I added an inner border using the same green fabric as the background, so the blocks are sort of floating.

Here's a reminder of what the top looked like without the borders added.

The backing fabric (ordered online) arrived before thanksgiving. I think it goes well with the quilt. It went through the wash. Now top and backing are ready to deliver to the quilter.

I got a little more done on the second sleeve of the Kultainen käki Cardigan.

After I finished Angels and Demons by Dan Brown, we dropped it off at the library. I have a lot of books at home I haven't read or haven't read in a long time. Der Kleine Grenzverkehr by Erich Kästner is a novella I enjoyed years ago after my summer in Salzburg, which is the setting for the story. It's a fun story and hits a lot of the locations I was familiar with during my stay.

This present from my BIL was a nice surprise. From the series "Chicken Soup for the Soul" it's a collection of very short stories about people and their dogs. Great bedtime reading!

We were alone for our Thanksgiving celebration, as planned. I spread out the preparations over several days. Charlie came home with a turkey breast, which he prepared. I had a Quorn faux chicken breast. I made stuffing and cranberry sauce, cooked a sweet potato and pulled some frozen Lanttulaatikko (Finnish rutabaga casserole) from the freezer. I used boxed vegetarian mushroom gravy. Of course, I had to cut everything up into tiny bites, except for the menu items that were already soft.

Our wine was the Madroña Member Selection GSM&M. It was lovely.

We finished our dinner off with some frozen cheesecake from Trader Joe's. A squirt of chocolate sauce on top was a nice touch.

The sourdough starter needed feeding, so I made bread. 

I had my appointment with the audiologist on Tuesday. I have a severe hearing loss. The audiologist thinks some of it will return and some might be correctible with new hearing aids, not an expenditure I was planning on. I see the ENT specialist this week, so there's still a chance I'll get some good news on that front. Also this week: outpatient rehab and a consultation with a neurosurgeon. Oh, and I think that pain when I sit may be a bruised or cracked tailbone. That's the only pain I have, and it only hurts if I sit, stand or lie down. My head doesn't hurt, at least.

I have a lot of difficulty responding to comments to my blog posts because of technical issues beyond my control (my lack of understanding of how things work). Message me on Facebook, Ravelry or Spoutible if you need information.

If you have a few minutes and are willing, please go to Amazon and B&N and search for "Our Favorite Verses: Poems from The Doll's Storybook by Peggy Stuart". Every click on the page for the book makes it more likely they will keep a good supply in their warehouse and stores. If you are outside the US, you may have a separate website for these retailers. If you have a copy of any of our books, including Emil, Mariah or Classic Tales Retold, please leave an honest review on the websites, especially if you bought from them.

Where's my blog: If you want to follow my blog, go here and sign up to follow.

What's on my needles: Still the Kultainen käki cardigan, the EmPower People Kerchief (hibernating) and the Happier Days Shawl, the Mystery KAL for the Rose City Yarn Crawl 2024.

What's on my loom: Some progress on the placemats.

What's on my sewing machine: Boys quilts. Expecting to sew binding on Soren's quilt soon.

What's in The Doll's Storybook: In "Caroling and Dreaming," a young brother and sister get to hear the dolls singing Christmas Carols, but shhhhh! It's a secret!

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Finished Die Unendliche Geschichte by Michael Ende. With my new hearing impairment, I've had to keep the phone close to my ear. Then listened to Prequel by Rachel Maddow, a history of the fight against Fascism in the US during the time leading up to and through WWII. Some of the figures highlighted were known to me. I was familiar with the German side of the events because of having studied German history as part of my Master's Degree, but much of the American involvement was new to me. This is a book every American should read or listen to.

What's in my wine glass: Synfonia Red from Portugal. Not quite as good as the Madroña wine we had for Thanksgiving, but still nice.

What's my tip of the week: Be careful around large energetic puppies.

Where are my books: The stories in each book first appeared in the blog and they are reproduced with a few changes. 

Our Favorite Verses: Poems from The Doll's Storybook is available from the BookBabyBookshop and other booksellers worldwide. Poems included are Valentine's Day, Keeping Pets, Back to School, Victor the Vulture, The Week Before Christmas, Insomnia and Veronika's Vocabulary Verses.

The stories in Classic Tales Retold: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Little Green Greatcoat, The Boy Doll Who Cried Wolf and Lost in the Woods.

Emil: Stories from The Doll's Storybook and Mariah: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are also still available from booksellers. The link for Book Baby is here. The three stories in Emil are Best Buds, Getting What You Want, and The Boys Cook Dinner.

The three stories in Mariah are Being Little, Besties, and Distraction.

If you don't get free shipping from Amazon or B&N, buy from the BookBabyBookshop, because 50% of the price goes to St. Jude. Other booksellers pay much less. 

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals or dolls were harmed during the production of this blog post.

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Revisiting the Sweat Shop

Rebecca is at it again.

Vintage Stitchers met at Janet's on Thursday, and Rebecca had this pillow for show-and-tell. She colored the image with crayons, and then heat-set the image. Finally, she embroidered it. She found the image here.

Rebecca and Brenda are also working on a free design from Crabapple Hill Studio using the same technique. 

Rebecca said she will teach us how to do this process. It should be interesting.

Carol had made this baby quilt:

The back is almost as interesting.

Marilyn was finishing up this interesting quilt.

This was the back, a good use for the large bird print.

Barbara had this one to show from Jelly Roll Jambalaya Quilts by Jean Ann Wright. It's a nice break from the 1600 quilts she has made.

I love the fabric she used for the border and the backing.

The knitters were busy, too. Diane had brought this shawl for show-and-tell.

...and Janet was working on this shawl, a mystery KAL with a designer she likes.

She picked from her stash of Knit Picks Palette for this project. Janet was also finishing this  cross-stitch to commemorate her anniversary. She's almost done, or at least coming down the home stretch.

The Habitat for Humanity sweat shop was busy. Dolly is standing in for the Habitat girl, but Carter is wearing his own overalls. The Habitat kids will wear overalls to the Overall Ball September 22nd where they will be part of a silent auction, along with their wardrobes. The overalls pattern was The Oh My Gosh Overalls pattern by QTPie from Pixie Faire.

I love the detailing on the overalls, and the pattern design and instructions made it fairly easy to do. Here's the back.

There is a loop to hold a hammer (right below Carter's thumb).

On the other side, there's a special pocket for a screwdriver.

I also made Carter a surfing outfit: trunks and a shirt.

We don't do a lot of surfing here in the mountains of Utah, but he can pretend, and his hat, the Summer Camp Bucket Hat by Matilda's Closet, also from Pixie Faire, can be used for any outdoor activity, like hiking.

Carter still needs a couple more shirts and more pants, so I'm not done yet. Until I get the Habitat girl, I don't know which outfits she'll be taking from my growing girl collection. I'll need to try them on and see which ones to add to the wardrobe of donated knitted and sewn clothes. I added a few items to the assortment last week, though. I finished the green (Palette "Macaw") French Back-to-school Cardigan, modeled here by Vroni.

I also made two new dresses. Here are Mandy and Vroni modeling them for us.

The pattern is Simplicity 1484 (with easy modifications) for both. I'm making another Gracie Cardigan in Palette "Cyan" to go with the dress Mandy is wearing.

You might notice Mandy's new reading glasses. They're from American Girl.

The house exterior has a new coat of paint and the portico has fresh stain. We paid a neighbor, who is a house painter, to do those jobs. DH painted the mailbox. We're going through our "stuff" to see what we can dispose of. MS is coming to pick up on Saturday. 

Dusty had his annual checkup and shots on Wednesday. We've been busy, but somehow we managed to find time to hike with the doggies. I had just finished taking this photo when DH threw the toy and hit me in the face. (An accident, he says.)

That's what I get for looking at the photo I just took.

Retraction: I misunderstood about Johan's time in the cockpit during the family's return flight. It was while the plane was on the ground. Everyone can relax now.

What's on my needles: The Gracie Cardigan in Palette "Cyan" for Mandy.

What's on my Featherweight: Still clothes for the Habitat for Humanity dolls.

What's on my loom: Still waiting.

What's on my wheel: Stanzi has been busy with the Woodland Woolworks, Carlton, OR. Merino Combed Top Multicolor, 4 oz, Mojave Heather. I should have something to show next week. 

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Finished listening to Dark Witch by Nora Roberts. Then listened to Lord Grenville’s Choice by G. G. Vandagriff. Now listening to another Rachel Abbot mystery, Stranger Child. On the Kindle app, still reading Undeniable by Laura Stapleton.

What's in my wine glass: Corbett Canyon Merlot in the big bottle. Very nice, good value. I must tip the wine steward. (As soon as he stops throwing things.)

What's my tip of the week: If you have one of those magnetic pin dishes, you can use it to find pins and needles you drop on the floor. Just empty it, turn it upside down and wave it over the area where you think you might have dropped the pin or needle. As an alternative, I often wait until DH walks through in bare feet. He always finds them.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals were harmed during the production of this blog post.