MARCH EXITING AS WINTER ENDS?

March 27th, 2014 and it was 32F this morning, 18F yesterday morning and snow showers the day before that. Here's a video of a bit of those showers (note the winds!)

So, plenty of opportunity to stay indoors and craft! 

With Easter coming up soon, I decided to utilize some badminton birdies I had hanging around to craft some little egg-cover bunnies. 

I did that yesterday and today tried my hand at making a video tutorial. Here's how that turned out:

I think she's pretty cute and will make others since I have four of those birdies sitting around not doing anything (we haven't had a badminton game set up for at least two decades!).

We have had a few truly Spring-y days here so far and I made good use of those days getting my garden ready. My yard is not well-lit or optimal in any way for growing vegetables. The earth beneath our feet is typical hillside clay and rock with little topsoil. I've tried a number of spots to grow edible fare with only a few little successes: my asparagus bed, which held a wheel barrow full of rocks before it was finished with additional dirt and compost, the elephant garlic I grow everywhere (it goes where it wants to and is very good), and my perennials (daffodils, tulips, daylilies, hyacinths, peonies, hosta, snow flowers, cutleaf toothwart and toadstool trillium {both native wildflowers} and Solomon's seal). I just acquired a hellebore which survived and is showing new growth! I have a few shrubs that we love, too - a couple crepe myrtles, some rose of sharons, a hedge of kerria, and a flowering almond and redbud tree. 

My efforts this season will be concentrated on one square foot garden plot and a dozen containers in a spot untried thus far. I've had to lop down some brush and need to do a bit more, so that the sun's light will get to the plants for at least six hours total daily. That was the hardest part, to find that spot. I've set up a large garbage can to collect rainwater off the roof right behind the area. A friend offered me composted horse manure and my son's friend had his back yard bulldozed and has bags of nice, loamy soil for me. Hopefully this will serve as the majority of what I need to fill containers and the rest of the square foot area. 

The remaining challenge is to keep out the gophers, goats and other scavenging and ravaging wildlife that manages to get to my produce before I do. 

I am also looking forward to my first craft fair in which I will be a vendor, finally. It is a couple weeks away and I'm already nervously making lists and gathering items, drawing diagrams of how I'll lay out my props, and trying to make some spring-y, Easter-y, and baseball-y (it's coinciding with opening day for the Dixie Youth Association ball season) items and props to catch folks' eyes. 

I figure my little easter bunnies will be a nice decoration, too. 

I cannot imagine a Spring without birds, bunnies, flowers and pretty little girls in Easter dresses, so I found this marvelously cute pattern for a crocheted dress on the My Hobby is Crochet site (link: http://www.myhobbyiscrochet.com/2014/03/crochet-top-iris-child-size-3-5-years.html ) and by way of the Facebook page Myhobbyiscrochet. Thanks to Kinga, the curator, for a great, free pattern. Here's my first dress in rayon chenille using that pattern, I'm starting on another in cotton: 

I got those cute button from a shop on etsy.com. fabric-covered with a metal shank. https://www.etsy.com/shop/CottnLove

I love them and it's something I can't make myself and they're very reasonably priced.  

While I'm at it, my shop on etsy is 3Csshop. Stop by and browse when you get a chance. 

I'll even throw in a 10% off coupon code for you - 1STTIMER which is good through July '14. Use it at checkout for your discount to be applied.

Thanks so much for reading and visiting with me and allow me to wish you a lovely Spring, wonderful Easter season and blessings in the coming year to you and yours. 

The God of our fathers is a loving god who desires nothing more than our love in return for His. 

------

Pray for World Peace 

#SOSVenezuela: Les étudiants venezueliens appellent AU SECOURS - I would love it if someone would translate or at least paraphrase the gist of this report in english. PLEASE!

The unrest in Venezuela is very troubling to me. I would like to get the real spin not the "official" or what authorities or mainstream media say is going on there. I know there are google-ers out there who live nearby or even in the same country. Let me hear from you about this. So far the US is not saying much except a certain past-nominee for President who says the people there are "tired of socialism." I'd prefer to hear it from someone who is living there. Thank you and bless you.

Missed February altogether!

I swore I'd blog at least once a month this year but, hell's bells, I didn't meet that goal, did I? In my defense, I have been very busy. I had several projects to finish that were put on hold by the Holidays. I did catch up finally, but then decided to participate in two Crochet-a-longs (CAL), one of which I've completed, and one Mystery Quilt project. Yes, I said QUILT! Yes, it's a pieced quilt, something I've attempted before, but didn't truly master. This one promises to be easy and do-able, so long as I can sew a 1/4 inch seam, cut and press properly. I won't lie, I'm scared! Fabric is expensive, first cuts petrify me most of the time, but, if I pull this off, it will be a 30 year dream fulfilled. I'm holding tight to that dream, too.

This is that first CAL project I mentioned. It is a Stripey Sampler Stitch Afghan and a stash buster. I'm keeping it. As you know, if you read my blog before, I have an ETSY shop (3Csshop) where I sell, mainly, my own crocheted items. However, there's no way I could part with this for any amount of cash. Really. The edges (not shown) came out wobbly, so I decided to cover them in fabric. Here's what I did:

First, I used felt fabric to even out the uneven sides, then I covered the felt with blue linen, pinning both sides so that the felt edges were caught beneath the folded seams of the linen. That was not as easy as one would think. 

Eh, voila'! This is how it came out! 

Not perfect but I think it's lovely and that's all that matters. Looks really nice draped over the end of my queen sized bed, too. 

The other CAL is a Red Hearts Yarn project. Theirs is in gray, mine is in shades of violet. So far I've done 10 inch granny squares - 10 of those- and one each of the three squares they've released thus far; actually I'm not quite done with the one that was released this past Wednesday. I'm not at all sure how many more squares there will be and they are only giving out the patterns for new squares every other week. No telling when that project will wrap up! Some folks participating are already joining the squares but not me, I've got to have them all before I know how I'll lay them out. 

Now, getting to the quilt, I've decided on my fabrics,

washed the fabric and, if all goes as planned, will spend the rest of today, pressing and cutting strips. If I have time, I will begin making squares from the strips. I do not expect to begin sewing until next week. Do wish me luck. Thanks in advance for that. I will need all the luck I can get.

UPdate - I kept that crocheted afghan. It's on my bed now and looks great still. Until next time, stay well, and

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again,
may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

traditional gaelic blessing

Right Under Your Nose: Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll by Gene Brignola (NOOK)

Right Under Your Nose: Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll by Gene Brignola (NOOK)

Written by someone who grew up in my hometown about the same time I did. Must put this on my TO BE READ list.