(Or Planting Only Flowers)

No more doilies for me. This soft thread is being crocheted into a “virus stitch” shawl. And am I ever so happy that is turning out so well! The soft fabric that the #5 thread makes just was not working out for doilies. It never stiffened up even with the fancy store bought starches. So my love for the shawl found another home.

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And no, I am not making new curtains!

Sometimes thread or yarn tells us what to do. Just like wood working, or pottery, art is often about listening to the medium before the project is defined. Old world crafting has become a passion of mine over the last year or two.

I love watching a woodworker turn a new bowl, or build a log house. True craftsmanship is such an art. watching a potter make a vase, or bowl is another amazing art. The process of carding, dyeing and making wool thread is amazing to me. All of these crafts are “old world.” Some of the artist actually revive old ways and do things they way they use to be done. Dyeing wool from plant berrys or woody nuts is not a new concept.

Recipes that are passed down from generation to the next fascinate me. How can I get back some of the peace and quiet, the calm and gentleness of the old world in my life?

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Maybe that’s actually not the right question.

Lately it seems motivation is the driver. What motivates me to do things? This little Bright Stripes Backpack was made with the apache tear stitch. It is my first mosaic stitch that I learned. I am so pleased with how the little bag turned out. It is big enough to fit a standard size tablet of paper.

Below is the Butterfly Shape garden. I tried to make it the most simple flower arrangement ever. But as always getting something to grow in hot, dry, wind was a challenge. The “cat sprinkler” system was good it two ways. It was keeping out the cats and the motion detector gave the garden a shot of moisture more frequently. So now there are flowers! The birds like the bird bath and I will add some more plants as the un-seasonal moisture dictates. Getting the bottom wings to produce a viable plant has been hard. I might have to do some soil testing or just put in some more well established plants.

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Monday morning is usually spent in recovery mode. I must push myself a bit too much with my hubby around on the weekend. We had a full day of rain on Saturday. And enjoyed visiting my niece and nephews at their house. The sun came out for a little while and we enjoyed an “Arts in the Park” parade of wares. It was hard not to people watch. It seems that has been a bit of a starvation appetite this last year or so. We found a few things to purchase.

Sunday we spent the afternoon in the muddy garden pulling weeds and trying not to pull plants up in the process. At this point I am suppose to let my husband hijack my blog and tell things like it really was…

Me: “The flies are biting me. I can’t tell what is weed and what is plant. I think I lost the row. where am I? did I get turned in a circle? Now the sweat is rolling down my back. How many more rows did I plant of this? Are there any buds on these peppers yet? I think it’s time for a drink break? Can you even hear me? Where are you now?”

“Oh look it’s the zinnias! There is a yellow one! Oh, there you go, now this plant can breath. Flower! Little zinnia! Oh, my goodness this purple one is huge! These flowers are so pretty! There you go we got rid of that big bad weed didn’t we”

Hubby: “ You should only plant flowers in this garden! Weeding would be more fun, and I wouldn’t have to weed any of the rows.”