Stashbusting Saturday: Merry Making

There's a reason I've been MIA.

December is the season for get-togethers, gatherings, bazaars, etc.

 

It's also a time for holiday crafting and these purchases last Friday at the gift bazaar are what got my creative juices flowing.  

(A snowman sachet, Christmas coasters and holiday cookies.)

 This pretty beaded yarn has been in my stash for years and is finally being made up into a scarf.  Merry mandalas and tiny bowls have been crocheted and I finished another granny square basket.

 Snowflakes using a simple pattern from Sarah London can be used as ornaments and some have been sewn to the front of gift bags.

The gingerbread house is from ursulamarkgraf

 Christmas trees from The Royal Sisters

Santa from Dly's Hooks & Yarn 

Cup and saucer from Justjen-Knits & Stitches

Spiral Christmas tree from Planet M Files

Not sure where I got that last ornament design from as it is something handwritten in my notebook from last year.

 As you can see, Jingles is not phased by the merry making at all.

Linking to Linda's Crafty Corner for the stashbuster party.

Happy Holidays!

Stashbusting Sunday: Granny Baskets and Candle Jars

On Thursday, I came across a guest post on This Little Street for mini-granny square crochet baskets and knew I wanted to make one right away.  I usually stick with 30 minute projects and this is definitely not that, but it still works up fairly quickly.  

 Basket number one filled with cotton yarn was made on Friday.

And basket number two was finished yesterday.

 For a change of pace, I then used some of the thin cotton yarn to crochet covers for Yankee Candle jars.  

 A great little recycling projects.

Next up, a gift bag.  Always something on the hook.

Visit Linda for more stashbusting projects.

Best wishes,

Moody, Musical, Mandala Monday

Sky watching, like bird watching, is much better than anything you can find on tv.

Our weather was very moody today ... from cool to warm with puffy white clouds and stormy dark ones.  

We even had a little rain which made the plants very happy.

Seeing as I haven't watched tv in a year and a half and am totally out of the loop on so many things, I had not heard of Pentatonix until I saw a post on Catherine's blog.

I've just spent the whole evening listening to their songs on YouTube.  Their voices are incredible and harmonize so well together. 

This first granny mini-mandala was finished last week using a pattern from Zooty Owl.

I like these colors a lot.

 But not so sure about this one.  

A true stash-busting project if I ever saw one.  

Have a great week.

Stashbusting Sunday: Giant Granny and Little Leaves

A giant granny square is my most recent project.

Some of the yarn was bought 2 years ago by my husband while on a business trip in Bangkok.  I figured it was about time I put it to good use.

 With the leftover bits, I've made a few Autumn leaves.

Which have then been used to embellish gift bags.

You can find the leaf pattern here.

If you enjoy fiber art and learning about different cultures, then you should visit Around the World in 80 Skeins,a blog tour of fiber art designers. Maya at Little Treasures recently participated and shared her beautiful country of Macedonia.

Thanks, Linda, for hosting the stash-buster party.

Best wishes,

Feathered Acrobats

Yesterday morning after the drizzly rain, the bulbuls were putting on an acrobatic show as they tried to get to the juicy brown dates still clinging to the palm trees.

While the doves just sat by quietly ... 

watching ...

 as still as could be.

I am feeling very tired after 4 hours of cleaning so plan to sit here quietly for a while visiting all of you.

Best wishes and blessings,

Today

A 6:30 a.m. drive to the cemetery this morning.

Where we placed rocks on the graves of my mother-in-law, father-in-law and a family friend who passed away a couple of weeks ago.

On the way back we stopped for plants.

And bought falafel for breakfast.

It's been a dark and gloomy day.

 With drizzly rain a few times.

Perfect weather for soup.

Spicy lentil & spinach with pumpkin sage biscuits.

Baking.

Pumpkin gingersnap cookies

And a whole lot of nothing else.

Happy Friday to all!

Using the Good Camera

I was very disappointed recently when the house across the street was torn down and all the trees surrounding it were removed.  Huge palm trees and another big tree that have been there since we moved here 13 years ago.  There's a lot of building going on right now, and unfortunately, people seem to think bigger is better.  They don't care to leave room for green spaces which to me is very, very sad.

I am so grateful that I have two balconies that allow me to surround myself with greenery.

 Jingles is very happy, too, as she gets to explore and enjoy the great outdoors.

Thankfully, we still have some trees in our block.  Early morning and just before dusk are my favorite times of day for one of my favorite activities ... 

The birds are at their liveliest then as it is the best time for them to find food.  They are fascinating to watch.

It's also about the only time I actually use my good camera.

Now that the winter months are upon us, it gets dark very early.  My body has yet to adjust.  The sun sets at 5:00 p.m. and by 7:00 p.m. my brain is telling me it's time to go to bed.  

I wish days and weekends lasted a whole lot longer.

Hope you are enjoying yours!