2022 has not brought me as much time to sew as I would like so far, but I couldn’t resist sneaking in another sew-a-long.

Over the last couple of years, I’ve watched several of you do the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, and I decided this year is the year to join in. January’s colour is Red, so I dug through my scrap bin, got out some graph paper, and came up with this big beauty.

Because my sewing time is more limited, I decided to do just one block each month. To compensate for that, I made it big one. This a a modified carpenter star, and it’s 16.5″ big. At the end of the year, I’ll have 12 of them, and with some sashing and a border, it will be enough for a good-sized lap quilt.

Way back (all those weeks ago) when I realized that I needed a longer needle for the Hemlock Ring, I started another project to keep my busy while I waited. It was the Harriet Bolero, for Miss Wren. Her birthday is in March, so I wanted to have something done in time to mail to her if I wasn’t going to be able to make it down that way.

I dug around in the stash and came up with two skeins of Fat Cat in this fantastic BRIGHT pink. And as you can see, I’ve made good progress. The body is done, I’m just now picking up stitches for the bands. Then it will be onto the sleeves. The pattern has short sleeves, but I should have enough yarn for at least 1/2 sleeves, if not 3/4 or full. I’m going to make them as long as I can.

I’ve been keeping an eye on Old Navy as their new spring fashions come in. I’d like to get a nice little spring dress to go with this.

I had a very productive Stitchy Saturday and Sunday night, and now my house has a little lawn and a tree

If you’re paying attention from last week, you’ll notice that I changed the pattern up a bit. The pattern has trees on both sides. In real life, we only have a tree on the left side of the house. It’s a big purple Norway maple, so I gave it nice dark purple leaves.

The other side I left open for the date. The original pattern only recorded the year, but I wanted to put the full date of the very first day we became homeowners.

Now all that’s left are the vines and the sampler letters. Can I finish it in one more weekend…? Hard to say. Time will tell, I guess

As expected, I got Krista’s socks done by the weekend. Nothing fancy to see here. The yarn is Ice Yarns Glamour Sock. It’s a sport-weight yarn, so they are are little heavier. I used a 2.75mm, cast on 60 stitches and used basic sock math. I’m pretty pleased with the result, and I think Krista will be too.

There’s still quite a bit left on this ball, and I have another full ball of it left. I think it would make a nice hat and glove set at some point in the future. But that’s for another day.

Ok… I lied a little yesterday…. it’s not too early to plant indoors….

January to March are always the hardest time of the year for me. I spend so much time thinking about playing in my gardens, and there’s NOTHING I can do but dream.

I have to find other ways to channel my urge to grow, and the other week, the grocery store offered up a solution.

They had several little “grow” boxes of different plants – Cala lilies, Mums, and a few others. Including Ranunculuses.

Ranunculus, also known as Persian Buttercup, is a gorgeous little flower. They can’t overwinter outside here, but they are supposed to do well in pots. I tried once before but didn’t have any luck. The boxes were only a few dollars, so I figured it was worth another try.

They had a few colours, but I picked this pretty apricot. I followed all the directions, and it’s sitting under my grow light now. Here’s hoping I see a sprout or two in a few weeks.

Last weekend, Dave and I had to take a trip to Sarnia. As usual, I was driving. I think that’s just so Dave can watch the world go by and shout “Stop, turn around, there’s a used store over there we have to check out!!!”

We were on a mission to Home Depot, and had already been on the road running errands for most of the morning, so I really wasn’t in the mood to stop. But I did.

I didn’t take a lot of pictures.

But this picture gives you an idea. Its one of those cavernous labyrinthine “vintage” stores that’s been there for ages, and the owner just keeps jamming more and more things in. Dave wandered off and looked at the multitude of dusty electronics and car parts, while I browsed through the trove of glassware

I wasn’t really looking for anything particular, and I didn’t really expect to find anything. But then I did. And then another, and then another.

And apparently now I’m a pigeon fancier! As you can guess, these will end up somewhere in the garden this spring, filled with plants. The middle one needs some new rope, but he’s actually a hanging planter (you can see the holes for the rope).

Eventually we did make it to Home Depot. Dave got a pile of stuff to put a new faucet in my bathroom (nothing fancy, the old one was just so calcified, you could barely get water out of it.) And I found some fantastic seagreass baskets on sale!

I bought two of them, and I think at least one of them will hang out by my recliner to help keep my knititng WIPs a little more tidy.

And I also got seed….

Lots and lots of seed!!!! But more on that another day. It’s still too early to get too excited about planting – even planting indoors!

I always feel like…

…somebody’s watching me…..

(Here’s your Friday Earworm)

I know… this is the second time this week that I’ve mentioned the C word. But that’s just how I roll. As soon as Christmas is over, I’m thinking about what I’ll be making for the next one.

I’ve got an excel file on my computer that contains all the people for which I make things for birthdays and Christmas. I’ve filled in some ideas, and over the course of the year, I’ll pick them off, one by one.

Up first is Dave’s mom.

Just before I got side-tracked by the Krista socks, I’d cast on for this pair. Dave’s Mom is not the best for following washing instructions, so indestructible Kroy Socks are perfect for her. She also has small feet (even smaller than mine!) so they whip up super quick! The colour of this one is “Dad’s Jacquard” and it’s an interesting mix of pink and red, with bands of green, yellow, grey and white. They certainly stand out!

Of course, I’ve got to get Krista’s pair out of the way before I get back to these. But I expect that will happen by the weekend!

Hey kids! I found a new place to buy reasonably priced yarn and I wanted to share with you all. It’s called Hobbii! It’s located in Denmark, but they offer free shipping over a certain amount.

And I know, I know… I literally said at the start of the month that I would knit from stash and not buy anything new, because I do not need any yarn.

But I didn’t actually place the order for the yarn….

I NEEDED these unicorn scissors. Like absolutely needed them!!!! And wasn’t about to pay shipping for just a pair of silly scissors. So, some yarn popped in my cart so I could get FREE shipping.

First was some of their Dolce sock yarn. It’s a gradient yarn with speckles. Technically, you can never have enough sock so I don’t really feel bad about ordering it.

Next up is some fun self-striping sparkle worsted, and some plain solids. These will become colourwork hats for my nieces for Christmas this year.

And because I still needed a few dollars in stuff to get that free shipping, so this Raggi came along for the ride. It’s a Worsted weight sock yarn and I’m happy to have found another source of yarn to make Dad thick socks.

With my dragonfly done, it was time for another tiny needle project.

Back when we moved in, Dee (a fabulous cross-stitcher as I’m sure you are aware), sent me a little housewarming gift.

She’d made this sampler not long before. I’d admired it, an noted it would be nice to make something like it to mark the purchase of our first house. She kindly offered to send me the pattern. It’s been tucked away since then, just waiting for me to have time to start it.

I’ve committed myself to dedicating Saturday and Sunday evening for cross-stitching:

As a result, I’ve completed the house. Since our house is white, I got some light blue aida (16 count) for it. It looks more grey here but is really is blue, I promise.

Hopefully by the next time you see it, it will have some landscaping!