Category : Crafts

147 posts

Lets start with the collage since this is an art blog after all. I decided to attack my scrap pile and make a few mini collage pieces as card backgrounds.  It’s been a long time since I made any cards.  It was really fun…why did I put it off so long.

I even got out my sewing machine to add a bit of stitching to a few places. I decided to leave all but one of the cards without any sort of greeting or sentiment right now. That way I can add whatever I want when the time comes to fit the personality and appropriate greeting for the recipient.

As expected I missed last weeks edition of T stands for Tuesday. We were on the road bringing J to college. We were up before the crack of dawn to get on the road.

My baby bulldog’s new home.

Shockingly we traveled lighter than some for move in day. We’ve started a bag of stuff to bring on parent weekend in October.

*note the waterbottle in accordance with T stands for Tuesday guidelines*

Then this happened the day after we dropped him off at school.

Today was his first day of classes. He bought his books, made it to all classes and sent me a nice selfie to add to my first day of school photos. It’s a good day. For me I had my first half day back to work. Another half day this week then back full time the following Tuesday. I was super excited when on the third attempt I remembered my locker combo. HA!

We are settling into our new normal. Soon I’ll have my sewing machine set up in the unoccupied bedroom. I have several projects I’ve been thinking about and just some repairs that need attention.

I have a ton more stuff to talk about but we have a big storm rolling in and I’m thinking I may have to shut this computer down for a while. I’ll save it for another post.

What are you doing today?

Last week on T stands for Tuesday I had mentioned that I had attempted some eco dyed papers. Today I thought I’d share my results with you.

Last we left off I had bundled my papers and my cooking pot was way too small….

One trip to Goodwill later, I found the perfect size pot in which to cook my paper bundle. 

The bundle wanted to float since it was pine boards that acted as the presser boards. A couple rocks worked well to hold the bundle down in the vinegar and alum spiked water. I boiled on the side burner of our grill for about and hour. Thank goodness I did this outside because it was not pleasant smelling. Also I learned that the pine boards had a lot of sap left in them…what a mess.

After boiling I drained off the cooking water then added cool water which I salted quite heavily. Once everything was cool enough to handle I started the unbundling process.

Then set the pages to dry on the hot concrete. I was surprised at what did and didn’t leave an impression. The marigolds and lemon grass had the greatest color from the experiment.  But that wasn’t my favorite.

It was these….the baby maple trees I pulled from my lawn were lovely ghosted images.

A few freshly turned leaves from our service berry tree gave a slightly rusty, vein like appearance as it’s only impression. Pretty as well but still not holding my interest like those baby maples.

I think I’ll try this again…but perhaps with other sources for dyes. Purple cabbage and onion skins are the first to jump to my mind. I think perhaps I’d get some nice color out of those.

Speaking of color….

I enjoyed a colorful sort of beer this summer. Grain Belt came out with a limited edition Blueberry infused beer. I had to buy some…its local and we like to support our local business. That’s my excuse and I’m stickin’ to it. It was pretty in color and pretty tasty too. Not that you’d really want to drink more than one…too sweet for that.

Anyway…this Tuesday I will be late in visiting…

Next week I may miss all together unless I prepost. We are taking J to college!! Move in day is the 21st. Crazy!!

What are you doing today?

Three days…that’s the long and short of it.

Three days until I’m done with work until late August. But also three days until my oldest is done with high school. Technically he has already graduated since everything is checked off and he has his “card” but he must still attend school until the end. The actual “walk” is on Friday. Yep…getting my tissues ready now.

For me this last week off school is chaotic which can sway from “easy breezy” to “smack you in the face difficult” to “wait, what just happened?” all in one class period. So needless to say, in that respect, the days are long.

Outside of school days, I’ve been keeping busy with little mini projects and helping a friend with the monumental task of cleaning out her parents house now that is sold. I know how hard it is and I wish I could lend a greater hand but timing on these things isn’t always the best.

My first mini project was making a pair of glasses for a co-workers wedding cake topper. She had mentioned that she ordered some Barbie glasses off the internet. I told her I doubted they’d fit and mentioned that I’d made a pair of glasses for a Gnome a couple years back.

The glasses made the gnome a dead ringer for the neighbor kid…err…adult now. Too funny!


Long story short…the Barbie glasses were WAY to small for the would be groom so I was given the challenge of creating a suitable pair.

I think they turned out pretty good. I sent a photo to the bride and she approves.

Over the weekend, my rows of beans and snow peas popped out of the ground. It’s amazing how quickly that happens. I swear if you had all day you could watch them wiggle their way through the soil and unfurl their leaves in a splendid little dance.

 I made another bunting this time for the deck garden. Since I still need to stain the deck rails I decided to try out something new with the bunting.

I used some bamboo to act as mini flag poles suspending the bunting at the front of the garden. The hope is that the flutter of the flags might deter the deer from munching on the plants. This wasn’t my original plan so I’ll need to make a little extension so it can reach all the way around.

Anyone notice my after dinner beer in accordance with the T Stands for Tuesday guidelines?  I’m trying to be a good kid and follow the rules….sometimes it is difficult. :) I forget. It happens.

 

I’ve worked a bit on some journal spilling. Creating a background then quickly with a very free hand (aka messy) spilling my thoughts of the moment. I may leave things as is or I may use my writing as a part of the background. Not sure, so it sits.

I brought home a little basket of treasures from my friends house. Mostly spools of thread, a few vintage dress patterns and some double pointed knitting needles. You should have seen me walking home with my little basket under my arm. I felt like Little Red Riding Hood. I even saw a large critter on the way home. Only it wasn’t a wolf…it was its slightly small cousin a coyote. Its crazy! We’ve noticed a big jump in sightings lately. I have seen 4 in the past 2 weeks. But seeing one while out walking only 2.5 blocks from we was a little disconcerting.

Its the last Tuesday of the school year for me…. but what are you doing today?

My life in the petri dish of school has continued. Just as I was feeling better, I was hit with the crud again. I missed Thursday of school last week. UGH!! GERMS EVERYWHERE!!  I feel good now with the exception of a residual cough congestion cough. So frustrating.

I did start a new project on Friday and finished it up over the weekend. I learned how to use a different kind of knitting loom with a completely different stitch thanks to Pinterest and YouTube. I love all the resources we have at our finger tips these days!loom knit cowl

I followed this blog post to learn the new stitch. The kind of yarn I’m using doesn’t really show any stitches and I think perhaps in part of it I messed up. Thank you forgiving yarn…no one will never notice it.loom knit cowl

It’s so soft. I wore it to school yesterday as a snugly edition to my outfit.

loom knit cowl

Sorry for the poor photos. I took these after dark last night.

Speaking of photos…I’m nearly done with January. Here are the next six of the challenge.

24. begins with s…stickers

25. my morning view….everyday

26. thank you for….coffee

27. in the night….Marvin waits for me to top off his bowl before bed each night

28. text…dictionary pages covering my ancient fridge

28. magic….just the tip of the iceberg of the cards we’ve been collecting since 1994

I’ll need to pick my new challenge for February. These photo a day challenges really keep me stretching my creativity even when I can’t create hands-on.

Work, errands and archery are on the list today…
What are you doing today?

I am super late getting this posted. Yesterday was a scheduled day off for school although it’s highly likely that school would have been released early due to the blizzard that rolled through.  On the bright side…Mini-me took her knowledge test and got her learners permit yesterday. I let her drive a bit in a parking lot on our way home. It was crazy slippery already at 11am.

(fyi…this will be a photo heavy post)

Lets back up a bit….last week I was super excited about the Vikings playing for a spot in the Super Bowl. Yep…they lost. By a lot. It was almost as if they didn’t show up. Don’t get me wrong…I’m still a fan. Always a fan but I’m not going to lie it was disappointing.

Me circa 1976 sporting a Vikings Fan club button.

The game was so stressful to watch that I kept myself busy knitting Little Hats for Big Hearts

When I switched to crochet the pattern got away from me. Not really sure what this might end up as…certainly not a hat.

I’ve continued with the January photo challenge…this month is going really well and a fun challenge to think outside the box at times.

13) floral

14) faceless portrait….faceless portrait of a Vikings fan

15) new….my new Vikings shirt

16) wall….local tribute to Prince

17) thoughtful

18) cool

19) paper….embarrassed to say only part of my collection

20) reflection

21) day off

22) scenic…out for a drive at the start of the blizzard

Last night we waited and waited and waited for the plow to go through so we could clear the driveway. The snow just kept coming getting deeper and deeper. Finally we heard it come barreling down the street at about 8:30. The four of us suited up and began to dig out.

Fast forward to this morning…I get the call that school is delayed by 2 hours! Hooray! In the meantime Mr. G leaves for work.  Then I get an email to district staff telling us that school is now closed for the day. The kids were screaming for joy and passing the news along to their friends since the automated call had not come through yet. The joy was lost a bit when they realized the chore we still had in front of us….moving a ton more snow.

The drifting sure looks pretty but makes crazy mounds of snow in other places.

My garden is in the deep snow.

The kids worked hard shoveling while I pulled the drifted snow off the roof.

The struggle was real. We got a foot (30 mm) of snow in total that drifted in crazy ways.

Since we were all tired and hungry I took the kids to breakfast. I had buckwheat pancakes. They were so good!! I was so hungry I almost forgot to snap my photo for T stands for Tuesday!

What are you doing today?

I admit it…I’ve been neglecting my blog again. I haven’t had anything artsy or craftsy to share so I figured I wouldn’t bore you to tears with nothingness. As I began to pull photos together for this post I realized that I have a multitude of things to share, with many different facets.

Last week I skipped T Tuesday entirely both posting and visiting….in fact, I hardly touched my computer all week. I realized how truly close to Christmas we were getting. With something on the calendar every night after work, I couldn’t quite wrap my brain around blogging too. Gosh I miss it though. Sitting at the keyboard typing away is so soothing…it’s like therapy without paying someone to listen to you bare your soul. No, there will be no soul baring today.

Where should I start since I can’t remember what order things came in anymore. Ok…first of all…I’ve abandoned my December photo challenge. As I got further into my list I was just not loving it or getting inspired for that matter. It’s supposed to be fun…not work. I’m sure I’ll do another at a later date but for right now…I’m good with my occasional random Instagram posts.

Speaking of Instagram…I posted this the other day…after getting it from Fitbit.

I thought that was pretty cool! I can’t wait to see what my next badge will be.

We had some beautiful weather so I decided one of our favorite summertime meals was in store.

Crab boil or Low Country boil complete with a Corona beer. See how I snuck that beverage in there. :)

We attended the kids Holiday choir concert.

And got to hear the boy sing up close and personal.

 

The weekend was spent in the kitchen….

J and I made Krumkake…his favorite. My old vintage Nordic Ware iron is well seasoned….it may not look pretty anymore but it makes the best krumkake. Way better than the electric one my mom had given me a couple years ago.

Mini-me and I tackled lefse making. Neither of us have perfected rolling them out round but they taste the same no matter the shape.

After we got the majority of the flour swept up…(trust me…its everywhere…ugh.) I was recruited to help out with a mouse trap car. Thankfully Mr. G was available to lend a hand as well. That wire is tough!!

It’s not the prettiest thing but it definitely moves!

I have made some progress on the hat I am knitting but I set that aside after work today to make this little hat for a very special early delivery.

It’s hard to believe that will actually fit on a little ones head. Hopefully not for long!!

I’d also like to take this time to wish you all a very Merry Christmas from our house to yours!

What are you doing today??

I can’t believe we are into December already!! I think its because we have no snow that I’m having a hard time wrapping my brain around it.  Although that is supposed to change in the next couple hours as I write this. I am happy to say that we at least have the tree up and the house decorated…as much as we do. We aren’t outside light people. I admire those who do…it’s just not us.

Last year after the holidays I bought a tree on clearance at our grocery store of all places….totally sight unseen. All I knew was it was pre-lit with white lights. It was such a steal that I couldn’t pass it up especially since out old pre-lit tree had a band of dead lights smack in the middle.Isn’t it pretty!?!? Not bad for $34.

Mini-me put together some new hanging decor for a bare corner of the livingroom.  I gave her a little springboard idea and she ran with it while I was busy. It turned out really cute.

Last Friday I had the privilege of supporting a couple of students on a field trip to Orchestra Hall. I hadn’t been there since Mini-me was in preschool.

It is so unique inside…and beautiful, not that my quick phone picture really captured the beauty.

I spent a good share of Saturday trying to decide between designing a photo card and writing a Christmas letter to send out this year. Who knows…I may do both.

Oh that’s right…I need to update you with my photos to finish out the November photo a day.

22. A favorite thing…..Marvin, of course

23. I made this! ……fabric star ornament (shared the tutorial links last week)

24. I need to do this! ……put all this crap away…just keepin’ it real folks.

25. Time……clock I made over a decade ago….likely should change the battery one of these days.

26. Wall…….my favorite wall especially this time of year.

27. I’m thankful for this…… Love

28. Black…….J’s school chrome book

29. So, this happened…..inflation of the new activity dome outside my school (it’s truly immense)

30. I bought this! ……not telling what’s inside though.

And with that…November is done.

This is my new challenge for December. I followed an old version of the October challenge by this same site. I’m enjoying the creative challenge of these photo a day prompts especially since most days this is my only creative outlet.

Want to see what I’ve already gotten for December?

What are you doing today?

 

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