Saturday, October 31, 2020

Etsy Weekends: Spooky Halloween Art

Apart from Halloween earrings, this is not my favorite time of year. Scary stuff doesn't sit well with me, unless it's tempered with humor - like Supernatural, or tempered with humour - like Midsomer Murders and other British Murder Mysteries. :) Anyhow - I do so love black/blue/gray kitties, and they are probably my favorite symbol of Halloween. This image has been in my favorites list on Etsy for years - it is adorable. 

Russian Blue Cat Portrait by The Lonely Pixel










Sunday, October 25, 2020

Snowy Weather

 Hello!

It's been a while. My weekends have been full of Japanese homework, knitting, garden cleanup, and flower bed creation. Now the ground is covered in a foot (at least!) of snow, we have a weekend off from homework, and I am between knitting projects as of right this moment!

I pulled out the leather working supplies and started making my leather tags for the knitting - they are pretty cool! But it was a day full of learning lessons about all the little intricacies - how wet should the leather be? How far apart should the stamps be? Should they go the same direction or upside down? Which of my scraps work for the stamping? Should I buy the heat gun so I can burn the suede style leathers since they won't stamp?? There were also lessons learned on how large the holes need to be in the leather so that I can actually get the needle through, (bigger than I expect they should be) and how to keep the label straight on the knitting while I stitch it (lesson still being learned...) But, overall, I'm pleased with the project. It has been years in the making, and finally seeing the labels on my hats and scarves is very satisfying. 


The knitting projects always come in waves for me - I wanted to work on my colorwork mittens, so I have yarn set aside to make about four different pairs. Of course I didn't swatch my new yarn, assuming it would work since it is sport weight, and while the mittens will fit a variety of hands, they look very silly - long and thin. So...now I have to decide how to proceed - do I rework the pattern to fit my yarn or do I find yarn to fit my pattern? I also have two different colorwork patterns that I want to test out, and one is quite a bit smaller than the other - so that raises even more questions. What it really means though, is that I am doing a lot of thinking about knitting and a lot of charting, and a lot of math, but not actually a lot of knitting. 

With the holidays coming up, I have several custom order malas to be working on, so I'll need to get my thoughts and materials gathered for that. Yesterday I worked on my Etsy listings for the jewelry shop, I have jars of jewelry sitting on the coffee table staring at me: earrings and bracelets and necklaces that have yet to be photographed or listed. 

We shoveled three times yesterday and once on Thursday - so we are fully into snow season! Matt and I are hoping to get out in it today, put on our long johns and go enjoy the sunshine and the blinding white snow. Hope you all have a lovely week!

Saturday, October 24, 2020

Etsy Weekends: Pearls!

 Matt bought me coin pearl earrings and a matching necklace a few years ago, and since then I've been really intrigued by all kinds of pearls. This shop has many beautiful examples, but this pair in particular caught my eye....

Dainty Pearl Earrings from Crystal Glow Design


Saturday, October 17, 2020

Etsy Weekends: Fiber!!

Winter is coming, Fall will be here any day, and my spinning wheel is begging me to spin something! This fiber is soooooo tempting. 
Ashford Merino-Silk Top Citrus Wool Roving Spinning Fiber image 0
Merino-Silk Top Roving from Pacific Wool and Fiber

Saturday, October 10, 2020

Etsy Weekends: Bath Bombs

We love bath bombs in our house. Someday, we will own a home with a giant bathtub - but for now, our bath bombs make our regular sized tub feel very fancy, and these look like a real hit! :)
Huge Orange Cream Bath Bomb with Calendula Large Bath Bomb image 0
Orange and Calendula Bath Bombs from Bath Thyme Bakery

Saturday, October 3, 2020

Etsy Weekends: You Got to be Seen Gold

How quickly fashion goes down the drain.
Last week when you all was wearin' pink
Already for me red was old.
The ultimate brick is gold.
That's the new color, children
-The Wiz

These earrings are gorgeous! I would love to have them :)

Green Gold Green Fire Agate Boho Hoop Earrings for Women for image 0
Agate and Gold Earrings from Gypsy Jade Soul