On the last day of my Christmas vacation, I threw my back out. (I stubbornly insisted on putting the new car jack I’d bought Dave in the truck by myself). I should have spent the day chewing pain killers and chilling on the couch, but I really wanted to do some sewing.
I had collected some fun unicorn fabric, and had planned on making a disappearing nine patch with it. I had just enough of it to make a baby-sized quilt with it. But when I was cutting, I messed up my cuts. I wasn’t going to get enough squares for the pattern now. Sigh.
I decided to switch gears and decided I could make do with my favoured 8.5″ saw-toothed star. Everything seemed to go ok…. at first. I fussy cut the rest of the unicorn fabric for some centers, then I started doing eight-at-a-time HSTs for the star points.
It wasn’t until I started cutting those HSTs apart, that I realized I should have done geese for the star points. It’s not the end of the world, but it saves on time and makes a more accurate block (less seams). I didn’t have enough of the star point fabric to start over with geese, so I just had to deal with it.
Obviously, the back pain was interfering with my brain processes. I put together one star and called it a day
At least they are cute. It’s going to be one adorable quilt… but I’ll save it for a day with less brain fog!
But I think I’ve mentioned before, that cross stitching was actually my first craft. I set it aside in my teens, but watching so many of you make tiny little Xs has had me itching to get get stitching!
Not long after we bought the house, Dee sent me a pattern for a little house sampler, and I’ve been dying to get started on it. But since it’s been so long, I figured I should probably start a little smaller. So I dug out a project that’s been around for far too long.
Back in the early 2000s, Mom bought a couple Debbie Mumm kits to make and hang in her bathroom.
She made the butterfly one, but lost interest. A couple years later, she asked if I wanted the dragonfly. I said I would take it and make it for her. And then I put it on my shelf, and there it sat forever and ever.
Until the other day that is. I pulled it out, ready to get started…
It was already started!! But here’s the kicker… neither of us remembers doing it. I’m pretty sure if I’d started it, I’d remember. But it’s not the first time I’d be wrong about remembering something. And at the end of the day.. it doesn’t really matter. It just meant the project would be even easier.
By the end of the evening, I had all the crosses done! Up next is the outlining. I used to dread the outlining, so it will be interesting to see how it goes. Stay tuned!
There’s been no work on the Hemlock Ring blanket, as I await arrival of the longer needle. (It should be here this week.) As such, my Koi Pond socks have been getting lots of love.
The first one is done, and I’m on the gusset of the second. They are for me, so they are short in the leg and small in the foot. It won’t take too much longer before I’ve got a completed pair!
A while back, I picked up a couple terra cotta pots at the dollar store. They sat around for a while before I finally got the ambition to do something with them.
I got out my paints, and over the course of a couple evenings, got busy beautifying them.
First up… GNOMES!!!!
If these guys look famililar, it’s because they were inspired by my current quilting project. My Ogre Ears plant (Crassula Ovata) has gotten quite large and needed a new home. I thought the gnomes would appreciate it.
Next up… a little marsh scene…
It’s now home to my ZZ plant (Zamioculcas zamiifolia),
Now I’m looking at the rest of my plant collection, wondering who else could use a new home!
Ah, New Year Day… a time to reflect on the past, and then ruminate on the future.
First the reflections:
Holy-free-holies… where the heck did 2021 go? I know the years go by faster as you get older, but I’m pretty sure 2021 was only about 26 weeks long!
A Christmas ornament from our realtor!
Ok, admittedly, that because we had a major happening; ie We bought our first house!!!! And it really was a whirlwind. We started looking in March, and by the end of April we had our place picked out and offer approved. Early May saw the approval of the financing by the bank. June 1st we closed, and took possession. We then spent the bulk of June and July doing as much renovation as we could, and officially moved in on July 24th! Things slowed down a little after the move, but not that much. As of December 31st, we had the catio built, the basement refreshed (it got a good cleaning and a fresh coat of paint), two rooms 90% renovated (Dave’s studio and the lower living room), and one room partially renovated (the laundry room – just enough so we could get a laundry sink in as there wasn’t one). And Dave has started on fixing up his garage – he got the important things done (i.e. his sounds system, a tv, and computer installed out there! Ha!)
COVID continued to make life difficult. But we still both have our jobs, and our health. In fact, we are better off financially than we’ve ever been, which is kind of amazing And we still managed to socialize a little. Dave has stepped in with his Grandma’s care and spent every other weekend with her to help give his Mom a break. This will continue in 2022. I got to spend a few weekends with Dad and Mom and her quilt machine! And we squeezed in a few visits with friends here and there too! Once COVID settles again, and we can do more things outside, I hope to see a few more people. I’m not a huge social butterfly, but there are definitely people who’s company I miss!
In terms of crafting, you saw in my year end round ups – the go-go-go nature of the year didn’t make too much of a difference in my output. It was a fabulous year of crafting, and we managed to sell quite a few quilts too.
Now the ruminations… what will 2022 bring?
I hope the pace will be a little bit slower!!!
In terms of the house, my goals for the year are to finish off the studio and lower living room (they need windows and trim), and then renovate the upper living room and dining room. Outside, we need to attend to the sun porch (it’s sinking and we need to decide if it can be jacked and re-supported, or needs to be completely rebuilt). Landscaping is also high up on the agenda. I’m not going to go too crazy… I have a lot of space to work with. But I want to get the front of the house started, and looking more presentable. I also want to landscape the inside of the catio fence. There’s so much bare ground there right now, that every time it rains, it turns into a giant mud hole, and the cats just track it all inside. Ideally when I’m, done with it, it will be 80% gardens, with a looped path and a small grass patch for munching and sunning. Dave would also like to do some more work on the garage. By the end of the year, I hope to see new garage doors on it, and insulate and drywall the interior.
Financially, as I’ve said, we are better than we’ve ever been. Last year Dave managed to pay off his credit cards. Now we are focusing on mine. It will mean the renovations won’t go as fast as we’d like, but it will be worth it in the long run. By the end of the year, the only debt I want is the mortgage.
When it comes to my crafting, knitting and quilting will continue! The yarn stash is overflowing, so I’m making the commitment to knit only from stash this year. I’ve been pretty good at that the last few years, though in 2020/21 I did buy quite a bit of sock yarn. Between that and dyeing up the last of the Wandering Cat stock, I’m pretty well supplied. Quilting is tougher… I’ve got a great stash, but sometimes you really need to buy something to finish off a quilt (usually a backing). I am going to try buy as little as possible, and it will only be to go with projects I’ve started… not something new I saw online and just had to have!
And last, I hope to explore our new area a little more. We’ve gotten to know the immediate area pretty well, but there’s still lots to discover. I’m hoping to talk Dave into some hiking. And maybe get Dad out here for some fishing (we haven’t fished together in years.)
Here’s hoping 2022 brings wonderful things to you and yours!
Despite the upheaval of moving house, and ongoing renovations, I managed to complete 28 quilts this year.
That’s down from 31 last year, but still very respectable! Nine of them have sold, three of them raised funds for charity, and seven of them were made to gift.
It was a great year of stitching and I can’t wait to do more in 2022.
There’s no doubt about it, 2021 was the year of the sock for me…
In the past year, I completed 26 knitted projects, 15 of which were socks (three aren’t pictured above).
It will be no surprise to any of you but the move and renovations greatly affected the knitting output. Generally, I complete an average 35 knit projects each year, but this year was down significantly. And most of the things I completed were relatively simple. I just wasn’t up to anything complicated with everything else going on.
Still, all things considered, it was a pretty respectable output for the year. And now that things have settled back into a routine, I’m sure 2022 will be more productive, and maybe even a little more varied.
As I noted yesterday, it was a pretty quiet holiday for us. This was by design. First, because COVID. Like many other places, our province is just exploding with new cases due to Omicron. While we are all vaccinated, and Omicron appears to be milder, both Dave and I have vulnerable family members we prefer to protect as much as we can. The second reason is because we now live two or more hours from the people we normally spend Christmas with… it takes a lot more planning on logistics to get together.
Christmas Eve:
This is the day we’d normally spend with Dave’s Grandma and Mom, but we stayed home. Well actually… we ran out and got our COVID booster, and then stayed home. Last week, our government finally got on the booster train (previously, you had to be old or a healthcare worker to get it) and opened it up to every one over 18. Only there weren’t any doses or appointments anywhere around us. The closest I could book was in London (an hour away),and I couldn’t get anything until January 17th. But I signed up for every wait list/pharmacy/clinic I could and hoped something came up sooner. On the afternoon of the 23rd, I got a text for Walmart in Sarnia (40 minutes away). I could get us appointments for Christmas Eve morning. I weighed the benefit of getting the booster right away against braving Walmart on Christmas Eve… and decided the booster was worth the hassle.
It actually wasn’t too bad, and because the shots were by appointment, there wasn’t a lot of waiting at the pharmacy. When we left however (just before noon), the line of cars to get into the parking lot was astounding! Looks like we timed it just right.
The rest of the evening was quiet as we waited for side effects to kick in.
Christmas day:
Christmas morning dawned grey and rainy. No white Christmas for us this year. We opened our gifts. Dave loved his socks, and he gave me one stunner of a ring:
The picture does NOT do it justice. Opals, two different shades of Blue Topaz (London and Swiss blue), and white sapphires. You should see it sparkle!
The rest of the was a nice slow pace, and absolutely full of food!
Even though it was just the two of us, I cooked my very first turkey. This year, my grocery store offered frozen butter-infused turkey “crowns”. Basically a whole turkey, minus the legs and wings. It was perfect for us because a whole turkey is too much for us, and neither of us really like dark meat much anyway. This was still more than we needed, so it will be turkey sandwiches for a few days, and I even have enough bones to make Dave some turkey soup!
Boxing day:
Both of us we’re quite pleased that the booster didn’t give us much more than a sore arm, so while Dave puttered about inside the house, I headed outside. The day was sunny and somewhat warm (approx 8C). I took advantage of it to organize the shed. When finally Dave got the doors on it, it was too chilly out there for me, so I’ve been waiting for a decent day to get out there and clean it all up. It didn’t take too long, and now all my pots and tools are organized nicely and ready for spring!
December 27th:
Finally, Christmas! We were up bright and early to tackle the long drive to Dave’s Grandma’s house. Te weather wasn’t great, so we took our time and got there a little after 10 am. Presents were exchanged… Grandma loved her hat and shawl/scarf.
After a couple hours, we hit the road and headed to Mom and Dad’s (about an hour from Grandma’s). The weather improved slightly, but the traffic was heavier.
Pets were loved (you know I’m not getting in that house without given Jem my full attention first), and presents were exchanged. Dad loved his Labrador quilt, but he said I’m not allowed to put the picture I took of him under it on the internet though, so you’ll just have to your imagination.
Mom and Dad gave us and air fryer/toaster oven combo and I am VERY excited. I’ve wanted an air fryer for a while now, and Dave’s been going on about getting as toaster oven forever. To have it in a combo is just amazing. I can’t wait to try it out.
But there was also a gnome wall hanging kit, sock yarn, and a new ornament for my tree!
It was a long day, but it was a good day. And that’s another Christmas under the belt. I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for a fresh, shiny new year!
It’s been a very quiet Christmas for us (I’ll detail it all tomorrow), so there has been lots of time for stitching.
Most of my stitching time has been devoted to the hemlock ring. And as a result, I now have a very unexciting giant blue blob…
In fact, it’s so big that it’s getting hard to work with on the 40″ circular needle I have it on. I’ve just ordered a 60″, and hopefully it won’t take too long to get here. Each repeat is only five rounds long, and I’m only about three or four repeats from finishing. Of course, those rounds are REALLY long… but still.. the end is in sight, and I’m itchy to finish!
While I wait on the post, I have a pair of socks on the needles to keep me busy. I cast them on for travel knitting, but they’ve been so much fun, I’ve snuck in a few rounds here and there just for fun.
It’s more Knit Picks Stroll and the colour is Koi Pond. I’ve seen a few of you knit with this particular colour, and I just had to have it. One of my hopes is to one day put a koi pond in the yard. I don’t know if it will ever happen, but for now I can knit on these and dream!
Wandering Cat Studio 