February 2021… yes!!

Who doesn’t like pretty pink tulips? When I was traveling it didn’t make sense to buy plants or a bunch of flowers because I wasn’t going to be home to look after them… or even look at them! That’s not the case right now and a little pot of something often finds its way into my shopping cart…

That’s a real life shopping cart of course, but I have also been shopping on-line! I’m not going to shows and shopping the vendors anymore, so I have been doing my bit to help the economy at some of my favorite virtual stores.

I bought a couple of things from Cultured Expressions before Christmas and actually made this little Bogolan Mini Pouch. I only needed to add the button and a hair elastic to make the closure.I constructed it so that the selvedges of the fabric became the edges of the purse and just zigzagged the top and bottom to stop it unravelling.The pouch is the right size for my phone.  I wear it as a pocket during the day so I always know where my phone is (and it records every step!)

I did a lot of Zooming during January, and I will get to that in a moment. First let me share some other finishes…

Knitting is my relaxation “hobby” of choice. If I am stitching it counts as work!

I have finished a couple of lace little shawls since I last wrote. I’m not sure I should be allowed to use a selfie stick but thanks to Julia for providing one…

This is the Misty Meadow shawl from Stunning String, made with a 50% silk, 50% yarn from Twisted Fiber.The main body of the shawl was plain stockinette but I had to concentrate for that knit on lace edging!Then, because I am not known for moderation, I cast on another shawl! This is Afloat, also from Stunning String, knit with two skeins of Delicious DK in Pumpkin Spice from FuzzyWhatKnots.Another knit on lacy edge, this one with some big holes!I realized right before I was nearly finished that I had misread the instructions for the cast on tab and I was about 10 yards short of actually completing the last few rows but you wouldn’t know if I didn’t tell?

I learnt to block my knitting by listening to the conversation at all the STITCHES knitting shows… I have to say it really does make a difference!

Back to work…I’m not sure if Zoom screen shots really do justice to all the creativity in class?

You be the judge.

Dorset Buttons with Vermont Quilt Festival.Explorations in Folk Art Embroidery with STITCHES at Home… a three part series of classes.Walking Foot Quilting – Beyond the Ditch with Road at HomeMore Walking Foot Quilting, this time with the Wandering Foot Quilt Guild of Arcadia (students in Germany, Cambridge MA, Kentucky, and CA)
Then three, two hour classes just last weekend with STITCHES Expo…

Introduction to Folk Art Embroidery,Wrapped in Scraps, Fabric wrapped clothesline bowls,and more Dorset Buttons!There were other classes too, sometimes I just forget to take the photo… I also taught for Mancuso CREATE DIY, there was another class with Road at Home and two with original Sewing and Quilting Expo AND there were a couple of lectures and quite a few friendly zoom sessions…

My Zoom room is getting a lot of use!

I stitched a few more Sashiko style pieces. I needed to try the elephant design that is on the back of my Trip Around the World postcard…How about a butterfly as negative space?And a little red, white and blue stitching while I was watching the Inauguration.I do like using fabric with a preprinted grid. I have yardage of Gridwork  from Benartex ready for future projects. My local store, BERNINA of Naperville has it in stock if you need some too. (Click on the link to go straight to it!)

Looking to the future, I have been working on a new project. Pieced stars anyone?I just needed a picture of all these beautifully aligned seams sitting in the sunshine on my ironing board…More to come soon, I promise!

I have been buying some books, with a view to expanding my class offerings. I think I will have a little more “me” time in February than I had in January, as long as I don’t spend it all knitting I should have some good things to show for it 🙂

We have had a lot of snow over the last week. It looks lovely against the bright blue sky this morning.A picture from the kitchen door is as close as I’m going to get to it. It’s cold outside, time to turn the iron on and get to work!