Molly and Murphy were very interested in the goings-on around the pool! Too bad it’s still kind of green, and very cold! Maybe by this weekend it will be fit for doggy swimming – I can’t wait to see whether Murphy likes to swim.
I spent a little time on their pages tonight. I have a lot more work to do – mostly finding pictures on archived CDs – but at least it finally reflects the fact that we have two dogs.
There’s something about 7 AM dentist appointments – you’re still too sleepy to care, and there’s still plenty of time after to make coffee, eat breakfast and read before going to work. :)
Last night we picked up a Bissell Little Green steam cleaner to well, take care of a couple of puppy accidents. I can’t wait to try it out – if it works, it will save us a fortune in emergency three-days-before-a-party carpet cleaner calls. OK, I agree, it’s pathetic that I can’t wait to try it out. ;)
Four more days until Harry Potter 5! (It may be a little while before new craft projects get the attention they deserve – but there are new projects, of course!)
Presenting the felted tote!
It’s tougher than it looks – I took it shopping tonight, with my wallet, cell phone, palm, a small book and my keys, and it held up really well. It’s quite roomy, and could easily hold a knitting project or three…
I finally had to give in and hand-stitch the straps. Nothing was going to convince my sewing machine to sew those straps on. Oh, well.
Oh, and while we’re on the subject, I also finished the cross-stitch for my Godson. Four finished projects in one week – this might be a record for me!
I’m supposed to be in an outdoors concert tonight…but since it’s currently 60° and raining, somehow I imagine it will be moved to the school. I was looking forward to playing in the park. :(
(Is it summer yet?)
Since I promised, here they are… (click on the picture to go to that project’s page).
The finished shawl:
And the sweater:
I also made a page for the felted bag, although I still haven’t gotten around to finishing the straps. So look for post-felting pictures in a couple of days…
…and back away slowly…
After two frustrating hours of trying to sew the straps on my felted bag, I gave up. It was either that, or throw the sewing machine out the window. I have a very good sewing machine, which for some reason refused to sew more than one side of one strap onto the bag. I rethreaded it a million times, changed the needle, changed the bobbin, changed the presser foot, tried the walking foot, played around with the tension, removed the plate and brushed away lint…all for naught. Just giant knotted threads instead of a seam. We’re only talking something about the thickness of two layers, maybe three, of denim. I can sew eight layers of denim. Why?
So, maybe pictures tonight. At least of the other two finished objects. I suppose I could just use safety pins instead of sewing the straps on…
It took an hour, and 210 blocking pins, but the shawl is blocking on the guest room floor. I finished sewing up the purple wool sweater. I felted the bag, and it came out great – for some reason, though, the bottom popped open, so I still need to sew that up and sew the straps on.
Pictures tonight! :)
New projects soon!
…there’s even a knitted swimsuit for those more adventurous than I am!
OK, so I forgot how long it takes to darn in ends. Oh, well. I did finish the Icelandic Lace Shawl, and I just need to run to the craft store to buy rust-proof pins to block it out.
I managed to sew the raglan seams on the purple sweater…just the side seams and a million ends to hide. (I really should start doing them as I go along!)
The third project? I started a felted bag not last fall, but the fall before. I almost finished it probably about a month after I’d started it. All I have left to do is (take a guess) hide the ends, and felt it. I dragged it out of the craft closet to make the attempt, but got tied up with the ends of the shawl.
So, this week I’m going to try to finish hiding ends on everything, blocking the shawl, and felting the bag. I promise not to start anything new until those things are done!
If the rain keeps up, and we can’t get any outdoor work done this weekend (…must…open…pool…) there is the potential for me to finish not one, not two, but three projects! Wish me luck! (I can’t believe I’m hoping for more rain.)