I told my dentist last week that I see hearts everywhere. :)
The hydrangeas in the front of the house are spectacular this year, such a vibrant blue. Two years ago I had cut them back too severely so that last summer we only got a couple blooms.
I have not heard a peep (i.e. received any mail) from O since we dropped him off at camp. He had told me not to expect anything because he doesn't like handwriting letters (the camp doesn't allow computers/e-mail), but his counselor assured me I'd get a couple letters anyway. I'm trying not to get antsy about it ... as long as he's having a good time, that's all that really matters. Plus the camp does a great job updating their blog every night to let parents know what's going on. I can tell from the activities they describe that O is most definitely enjoying himself. He's not super athletic but he's "sporty" and loves to run around and participate in physical activities/games. They had a "marathon" the other night where kids could run a course through the woods, and I can guarantee he was ALL over that.
I'm picking him up this Saturday. I can't wait to see him and hear all about his adventures!
Crafting
Melody and I are becoming fast friends, maybe even BFFs! Last week I took one of those "get to know your new sewing machine" classes at the dealership where I bought her. A lot of the class was fairly basic--how to thread the machine, how to wind a bobbin, etc.--but I did learn a few tricks and became comfortable with some of the advanced functions on the machine. Like buttonholes...as I said to my husband last night, I will never get sick of watching Melody sew a buttonhole!!! What used to be an exercise in frustration is now a matter of letting her do 90% of the job...my only task is to move the fabric around and press buttons. It couldn't be easier.
This week I finished the Roman shade for the dormer window in our bedroom and a pair of swimming trunks (Kwik Sew 3421) for my husband. I'll talk about the Roman shades in my next post as I need to take photos. Both were straightforward projects, except for sewing the power mesh lining on the trunks. So slippery and fiddly and tricky to work with, especially when joining elastic around the leg holes. Luckily that part of the suit isn't public. I used a medium-weight cotton twill I bought on sale at JoAnn's for the outer fabric; my husband does not like synthetics, so cotton it is. Today's job is to purchase a navy cotton drawstring to finish them off. The pattern, like all Kwik Sew patterns, is easy to follow. The only thing I would do differently is use my own way of inserting elastic in the waistband casing (sewing up the casing except for a 2" gap, threading the elastic through as one long piece, sewing the ends, then sewing up the gap). The KS way is to sew the elastic into a circle then wrap the casing around it to sew it into place. Too fiddly for me!
Now it's time for some selfish sewing. Today's project is preparing fabric (lavender twill) for a my own pair of shorts.
I'm just over 80% done on the Pebble Beach shawl, which should be finished over the weekend at the rate I'm going. Each row is over 400 stitches long, and there's a picot bind-off.
At last week's knitting group I got my yarn to knit a 12" x 12" block for a blanket we're making for an ailing group member. We get our choice of stitch patterns and I'm pretty happy with the one I chose. As soon as the block looks like a block, I'll snap a photo. My goal is to have the block complete by next Thursday's meeting.
Sequence Knitting got an excellent review at Knitter's Review. Now I am tempted by Susan Crawford's vintage Shetland knitting project/book, which is being crowdfunded. She has reached her goal, but is still accepting funding. I could have the book in my hands before the holidays, but honestly, will I really get around to knitting Fair Isle before then? I don't think so.
I missed our Forrest family reunion and my Aunt Pam's interment up in Vermont this weekend--my back was giving me trouble, then the car started making funny noises--but I did get to talk to my cousin Sherry at some length Saturday night. She said she sent an enormous amount of Aunt Pam's yarn home with my father for me to have. Wow, I was so touched! I'll probably pick it up on Saturday when I get O from camp...she says there's a lot of it, so maybe I'll have to make two trips. My Aunt Pam was a spectacular craftswoman; not only a first-rate knitter, but she painted, did cross-stitch and crewel embroidery, and quilted ... and other crafts/art endeavors, I'm sure! At some point I will show you some of the projects she did. They are truly beautiful.
It sounds like you have had lots to keep you busy while O is away at camp. I didn't take the class they offered when I bought my machine, partly because it was a 45 minute drive away, and partly because I didn't want to look stupid in front of people. As a consequence, I have no clue how to use my machine to make buttonholes and am now thinking I should have done the class. I contributed to the crowdfunding for Susan Crawford's book. There was no way I could resist since I've been in the museum in Lerwick and looked at the knitting collection there. I remember thinking at the time how nice it would be if some of the patterns were available. If I were you I would get the book now. I suspect it is going to be very popular, and who knows if she will be able to do another print run once the first is gone.
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