Tiny Needle Tuesday 6/23/26

 Good Morning!

It's a grey day outside.  And damp.  Rain is expected at any time and throughout the day.  Yesterday's rain never amounted to much which was fine.  We were back and forth and out and about.  We had dropped off my car Sunday night for inspection on Monday.  And an oil change.  And tire rotation.  Turns out the car wanted a new battery and a new rear wiper blade as well.  But, it was all done and ready before lunch which was wonderful.

All the "me time" I had over the weekend paid off because, my friends, the Appil sampler is finished!!  Woo-Hoo!  First I filled in the lion:

Then I did the final creepy-crawly thing which ended up being a flying thing as well.  And the letters!

The letters were finished yesterday afternoon and voila!  A finished sampler:

Here are the details:

And All Was For An Appil

 

·      Sampler is from The Scarlet Letter

·      Started May 31, 2025; Finished June 22, 2026

·      Stitched on 36 count Antique White Edinburgh Linen

·      DMC threads used; one thread over two threads of linen

·      Finished Size:  17” across and 13.25” height

It definitely was a fun and enjoyable ride, but I'm happy to put it away now!  Unless someone wants it, the pattern will be donated.  Up next?  Who knows?  I'll have the pleasure of going through my stash later.  I know of a couple of samplers that are calling to me but they are both large like this one and I think something small will be a nice change.  But, time will tell.  I will also be (attempting anyway) culling my collection of pieces to be stitched.  There is a ton of them and my tastes have changed over the years.  No point holding on to things that I know I will not use.

Thanks for sticking with me as I stitched this monster for over a year!!

Time To Ease Into The Weekend

 Hello, Hello,

I sure hope this Friday morning finds you ready for the weekend and doing what you enjoy.  I do plan to just ease into the weekend and enjoy it.  Does anyone have plans for Father's Day?  Colin and Fletch will spend the afternoon together watching some movie.  Mailing is taking Iris shopping (early training!!) and I will have a blissful (hopefully) afternoon alone.  Later I will head over to C&M's to join everyone for dinner (I think we are just going to order out).

These gorgeous calla lily plants are at the front of C&M's house.

The yellow color is so strong and vibrant.  I tread carefully up their sidewalk though as there is a resident snake always nearby (and y'all know how much I dislike serpents!!).  It can often be found next to the front step or further down in the herb bed nestled in the mint.  Only a garter snake, but still....

Our trumpet vine has started to bloom and yesterday afternoon I spotted my first hummingbird of the season going from blossom to blossom.

Next to the Seven Sisters Rose.  This trumpet vine is one Fletch put in years ago by our clothesline tree.  The tree is now completely dead and (Fletch swears) the only thing holding it up is the trumpet vine!  As pretty as the blooms are, this plant is a real PITA.  It sends out runners all over the place so that weekly we have trumpet vine shoots coming up all over our backyard.  They have even gotten as far as the garden which is on the opposite side of our yard!

This morning has already found me a little busy - changing the tablecloth and napkins, watering the houseplants.  Just small chores, but all needing to be done.  A little later I will head out for errand running.  I have a book to drop at the library, a list for Trader Joe's and another one for a few miscellaneous items from our regular grocery store, a list for the liquor store.  I think (hope) that's it.

It feels muggy and steamy already, so I'd like to get things done and then have the balance of the day to relax.  I promised Fletch I would make BLTs for lunch and I need to figure out what dinner will be.  Other than that, I'm hoping for stitching and knitting time with a good dose of reading included.

May your weekend find you relaxed and enjoying life.  And, Happy Father's Day to all the Dads out there!

Unraveled Wednesday 6/17/26

 Good Morning All,

It's another delightfully cool morning in Eastern PA.  I know our temps are climbing, but I'm going to enjoy a cool morning while I can.

My eye appointment was a good one which is always nice.  Today I'm back to watching Iris (and tomorrow too).  My days of watching are increasing at a rapid pace!  Bonnie (Mailing's Mom who shares watching times) has a number of planned trips in the next few months:  a 2 week trip back to China; an Alaskan cruise and a trip to Europe.  All of these are 2+ weeks long which means long weeks for me.  I do love caring for Iris and I love being able to help Colin & Mailing...but I sure hope my back, arms and shoulders hold up!  LOL

Now it's Wednesday and time to link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers for another fun romp through the world of making and reading.  Yesterday ended up being quite busy, so no making time, but I do have a new start to show you!

Oh look!  It's the start of another sock.  I like having a sock to work on when I spend the day with Iris - sometimes I can knit while she has lunch with Colin or when she naps.  This time I am doing a simple slip stitch pattern.  The yarn is from Twisted Owl (I think no longer producing) and the color way is Honkey Tonk Woman.  This is the very same skein of yarn that I attempted to turn into a cowl.  The yarn was not pleased and the cowl was unraveled.  But, now the yarn is very happy to become socks.  Whew!

Meanwhile my swatching was unsuccessful.  Ugh.  I was using Ito Kinu in the hopes of making a Shakerag Sweater.  The pattern calls for a gauge of 20 stitches and 26 rows in stockinette on size 6 needles for a 4" square with the yarn held double.  I got 3".  Moved up to a 7 needle and got 3.5".  Moved up to an 8 needle and got (just barely) 4" but I honestly did not like the fabric.  I also went on and continued knitting with just one strand of yarn (as the pattern calls for) and I really did not like that on an 8 needle.  So, my Ito Kinu is back in the cone stage while I think about things.  Maybe a little vest...or maybe a little tank top.  I have some old (like from the 90's) Rowan books that have some lovely patterns.  I'll look through them.  Later...

Since I last posted about my reading I have finished 2 books.  First is Kin by Tayari Jones.  This has been quite a "buzzy" book being on the NYT bestseller list and a pick for Oprah's Book Club.  I found it to be average.  Kind of what I expected.  It was good.  The writing was good.  It just did not pull me in like some books do.

The other book I finished is Life: A Love Story by Elizabeth Berg.  I think, like Kin, a number of you have already read this book.  Berg is an author whose books I sometimes like a lot (The Pull of the Moon is one of them), but many of them just fall short for me.  This book was just ok.  Good, but slow in many places and a bit "schmaltzy" in others.

Yesterday three books came in for me at the library and I'm excited to get started (finishing up a mystery before starting though).  Again, many of you have already read them and I am sure hoping they engage me!  They are:  Whistler by Ann Patchett, The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout (another author whom I enjoy sometimes, but not always), and Villa Coco by Andrew Sean Greer. 

Now it's time to pour another cup of coffee, have a bite to eat and get ready to go see Iris.  May your Wednesday find you immersed in something that brings you delight - enjoy!

Tiny Needle Tuesday 6/16/26

 Good Morning!

Mid-June found me turning off the ceiling fan in the middle of the night!  I was chilly.  And when I came downstairs and looked outside, the thermometer was in the mid-fifties!!  What a change and what a relief.  Yesterday was a pleasant day as well with cooler temps and strong wind all day.  The thunderstorms Sunday evening seemed to have cleared things out.  Though pollen still seems to be high.

Anyway, here we are at Tuesday and it's time for a TNT update.  The last large creature has been outlined and it is a lion!!

After I outlined him, I realized there was more grass in the Garden of Eden to be filled in just under him.  I got that green stitched and ran out of steam before I could start filling in the lion.  Here is an overall shot.

As I mentioned last week, there is still another creepy crawly bug to be stitched to the right of Eve as well as the words "And All Was For An Appil."  I didn't care for the lettering on the chart, so I spent time the other day looking at alphabet books and deciding on different letters to use.  My plan is to get the lion filled in before starting anything else...but plans don't always happen, so we shall see.

I have an eye doctor appointment this morning and then, at some point I need to pick up a few groceries.  And, two more books came in for me at my library!  Hopefully some stitching time will be found later.

Our cool morning brought a couple of visitors to our back yard.

Looking at that photo makes me realize it's been ages since I did any archery.  I need to get out my bow and do some!

Finally, I'll share a recipe that we had for dinner last night.  This is a recipe from Colin and it is delicious!  I added a bunch of fresh spinach and we had it with warmed Italian bread.  Yummy and very filling.

Wishing you all a happy Tuesday!

And Monday Rolls Around. 6/15/26

 Hello My Friends,

After a few days away from the computer (and screens in general), it is nice to be back in this space.  I loved my quiet mornings - time to sip coffee slowly and do some reading, or knitting, or stitching.  Taking time to play with Mabel and just relax.

Despite the return of typical Eastern PA weather (i.e., HHH or hazy, hot and humid), this sweet girl and I have been enjoying time together on the patio (or, in the case of Mabel, on the grass at the edge of the patio).  There has been a noisy catbird around scolding Mabel constantly.  Damon spotted a nest in our apple tree and my guess is that it is the catbird's.  When the scolding becomes too obnoxious, we retreat indoors for a little bit.

We do have a bit of a mystery.  When we adopted Mabel in October of 2021, she had a kink in her tail.  Pretty pronounced.  Our vet said most likely it happened in utero as opposed to it just being broken at some point.  Anyway, when I was petting Mabel on Friday I noticed that the kink is gone!  Now how can that happen?  I keep checking and I keep asking Mabel what happened to her kink, but she is not talking!

We spent Saturday afternoon over at Colin & Mailing's celebrating Iris' 1.5 year birthday.  Hard to believe that girl is 18 months already.  She was spoiled with a lot of gifts and we all enjoyed some delicious food (and, of course, beverages).  Family time is the best time and we are so lucky that C&M&I live nearby.

Meanwhile, things outside seem to be thriving in the HHH weather.  Our Seven Sisters Rose has started to bloom.

This rose came from a cutting Fletcher's Mom gave us years and years ago.  The original plant is on the farm where Fletcher's grandparents lived.

And lettuce is thriving!  I thought it would have bolted by now, but it is going strong.

There are 5 or 6 varieties of greens there and we have been having salads a lot of nights.  I also discovered that my parsley plant came back.  I have not planted parsley in a couple of years, but we keep having a big plant in the garden!  Can't complain about that.

That's about it for now!  I'll be back tomorrow with a TNT update and on Wednesday I'll have a knitting and reading update.  Today will be spent with Iris.  I hope your Monday is filled with joy.

No Kink!!  LOL

Tiny Needle Tuesday 6/9/26

 Good Morning!

I hope this morning finds you rested and feeling fine.  It was a bit cooler here yesterday...chilly enough in the evening that Fletch fixed hot chocolate!!  Yesterday was filled with good things.  I got some new gloves and set about doing a bit of weeding.  Not my usual activity, but Fletch can't do it like he used to.  A visit to the library (including paying a fine for an overdue book), some reading and a bit of (unsuccessful) swatching.  And now it's Tuesday and time for a TNT update.  Progress!!!  The tree that the rabbit sits under has been completed - all the fruit, all the leaves, and the endless brown trunk...all stitched!

And here is an overall shot off where things stand at this point.

Next up will be the creature to the right of the rabbit.  You will notice there is also space to the right of Eve.  That will include some words (And All Was For An Appil) and yet another creepy crawly creature.  Those will be the last things I stitch.  First I want to do the creature under the tree!

Today will include a trip to get wine, a trip to get groceries and (hopefully) (successful) swatching.  I also picked out yarn to start another pair of socks.  And, of course, our Zoom RWU tonight to discuss "Good People."  Looking forward to seeing a number of you tonight!

Friday Cooking and Other Things

 Hello My Friends,

Today is a later-than-usual post from moi.  My morning was busy, but all in a very good way.  Our temps are rising (as is the humidity) and I knew I wanted to get a crostata in the oven before the heat of the day.  And voila!  A blueberry/peach/rhubarb crostata was made.

I wish there were sniffable monitors - this just smells amazing and I cannot wait to try it (but I will!).

My socks were finished this morning!  They are matchy-matchy up until the very tip of the toe.

Sock #1 on the left has a little bit of the next color showing in the toe.  The sock I finished this morning had no need of that additional color.  Maybe I knit tighter?  Maybe the length of colors was slightly different?  No matter...matchy-matchy doesn't matter to me and I am very happy with this pair of socks.  They are now tucked away to be gifted later (recipient TBD).  The yarn is from Fibernymph Dyeworks    - Lisa is amazing with her dying.  The color way is "Mountain House Winter" but they remind me of polo or rugby stripes.  Whatever, they are lovely.  And, if you have not tried Lisa's yarns (I know most of you have), you really should give them a try.

After that, I had a massage booked for 11 a.m.  Bliss!  Mallory, the massage therapist I have been seeing for months now, is a miracle worker.  She found knots I didn't know I had - lol.

When I got home, Fletch and I had lunch and then I started cooking again!  We want a cold dinner tonight, so I set about making a Lobster Orzo Salad with Tarragon Vinaigrette.  It's fast to make and quite tasty.  I used Langoustinos (tail meat) that I found at Trader Joe's instead of lobster.  It tastes like lobster but is much, much less $$$.  It is now in the fridge chilling.

We'll have some more radishes from Colin's garden and sugar snap peas to go with this.  An easy, fast, cool dinner for a warm/hot day.

Did any of you see the MDK post about the road trip to Florence, Alabama and The School of Making?  So tempting.  I would love to do that, but I don't think the timing is good for me right now.  Are any of you considering it?

And with that...let the weekend begin!  We have no plans (which is so nice).  I want to get to Target (I need printer paper).  Maybe I'll do some laundry...maybe not.  I'm sure I won't be doing cleaning.  I hope to swatch this afternoon for a Shakerag and maybe pick out yarn for the next socks.  I'd also like to sit down with my stitching.

Here's hoping you have some fun ahead of you!