Unraveled Wednesday 7/1/26

 Good Morning!

I'm enjoying the early hours before the heat and humidity really settle in for the day.  Right now it is rather pleasant, but I know what this afternoon will be like....

So hey!  It's Wednesday (the first of July which does NOT seem possible) and it's time to link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers to talk about making and reading.

Monday early afternoon was actually quite pleasant outside.  I put a small table in front of my chair on the patio and set out my knitting, a book, and a glass of Pinot Grigio.  Bliss!  I had to bring out a different chair as the one I usually sit in is a deck chair with arms which doesn't really work for knitting.  Easy enough to remedy.

My first slip stitch sock is almost halfway down the foot.  I was easily distracted by bird song and Mabel roaming around.  Slow knitting is nice.  No one wants to wear a wool sock today, so there is no rush to finish.

Reading has also been a little slower, but so good.  I finished Whistler by Ann Patchett and loved it!  Honestly, I wasn't sure I would.  There has been so much (so much) buzz about this book and then, of course, Ann Patchett is set to win the Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction.  So I wasn't sure, but oh my!  What a wonderful book.  Strong, likable characters and a wonderful story!

I am now in the midst (roughly 100 pages in) of Villa Coco which (so far) is proving to be an amusing romp through Italy.  Such fun characters - but so many of them!  I might need a cheat sheet to keep all of them in my mind.

And, finally, Fletch and I are listening to The Old Ways - A Journey on Foot by Robert McFarlane.  We had enjoyed listening to "Is a River Alive?" so decided to try this one.  Very good.  Though I don't retain as much listening to books, it's a very enjoyable listen.  Kat - I think you recommended this one quite some time ago (at least that's what my notes say on my TBR list).

I'm still in queue (long queues) for a number of books (Theo of Golden, Land, Country People, etc.) so I requested some other books to fill time while waiting for the popular ones.  Well, late yesterday I received an email that four of those requested are waiting for me to pick them up!  When it rains it pours!  As I always say, not a bad problem.  I will not pick them up today (I'll be with Iris all day), but probably tomorrow.

Yesterday I did a thing.  I got my hair chopped!!  It had gotten long (like down to my bra strap on my back) and all I ever did with it was pull it back into a pony tail or with a clip or put it in a bun on top of my head.  I was bored and tired with that.  And hey!  Cutting so much off is kind of a weight loss plan.  LOL. Anyway, here is the new (slightly cooler) moi:

Just a chin length bob that hopefully will be easy to "do".  I'm not one to spend a lot of time with a blow dryer or product.  I'm a wash and wear type of gal, so we will see how it works out.  It looked fine this morning when I got out of bed, so that's a plus!

Wishing you a wonderful start to July.  Have some fun and stay cool and hydrated!

Tiny Needle Tuesday 6/30/26

 Good Morning,

How does this very last day of June feel?  The year has certainly zipped by, hasn't it?  It was fun going through my cross stitch stash last week.  The piece I chose to do is "Sew Red" from IStitch designs.  I think that back in the day this chart was a freebie, but I can't be sure.  I have a file folder filled with IStitch designs and chose this one.

No idea why the fabric appears as it does in the photo.  It is just plain linen (roughly 30 count I think) and I am stitching with one strand of silk thread over two linen threads.  The red I'm using is "Old Maid of the Heart" by Hand Dyed Fibers - one of my most favorite reds.

The stash dive did not yield the culling that I had anticipated.  That still needs to be done.  And the two rather large samplers are still calling me...I'm just not sure I want to start another massive piece just yet.  Time will tell.

This heat wave is nuts, huh?  I'm planning some cool meals (cold shrimp, salads, etc.).  Last night I made parsley pesto with peas and I added some cut up hot Italian sausage that I found in the freezer.  Fletch had grilled the sausage some time ago and I had saved the leftovers to add to red sauce.  Parsley pesto sounded more refreshing than red sauce.

The picture isn't all that appealing, but the dish was quite tasty.  I used fresh English peas I had bought at Trader Joe's.  And bonus - there's plenty left over for another meal!

Hope your Tuesday is a good one and that you can stay relatively cool.

Weekending 6/29/26

 Good Morning!

Whew!  It is soggy here.  We did not get the anticipated rain - just a smidge - but everything feels damp or wet.  The air is heavy and not much is moving outside.  Even the birds seem to be rather still.  Seems like everyone is gearing up for the nasty heat wave headed our way.  I've been going through recipes and finding cool salads to make and recipes that don't require a lot of effort.

Our weekend was nice.  Nothing much going on.  I managed to do a few chores (laundry and bathroom cleaning), but otherwise just took it easy.  Knitting, stitching and reading were on my agenda.  And, I have started working out with my weights (quite light) at home and I can feel an improvement in my upper arms and shoulders after only a couple of days.  Movement needs to happen every day!

Yesterday I did turn the oven on.  I made a peach/apricot/blueberry crostata...and made it just in time before all of the fruit went bad!

I have not yet tried it, but Fletch had a piece and pronounced it excellent!  And then, since the oven was already warmed up, I decided to roast some nuts and used fresh rosemary and thyme along with sea salt and a little bit of red pepper flakes.

Almonds, walnuts, pecans, cashews, hazelnuts, Brazil nuts and pistachios.  YUM!!!

Saturday night we watched "Song Sung Blue" which we both thought was ok.  Not great, but an easy watch on a hot summer night.

Mabel has been taking it easy and hanging around.  She goes over to the apple tree and nibbles/munches on her catnip plant now and again.

We have a screen around it to protect it from the lawn guys who whacked it down with one of their weed whackers one day!  It came back and it is now above the top of the screen, so easy enough to bite now and then.

Wishing you all a relaxing Monday.  Stay cool and hydrated!!

Friday Felines 6/26/26

 Hello!

I'm ready for the weekend, are you?  Another great day with Iris.  I think a milestone has been reached - for the past two days when I told her it was time to settle down for a nap, she did just that!!  She plopped down on the couch and after a few minutes of flipping and flopping, she closed her eyes and was out like a light.  Wednesday she slept for 2 hours and 20 minutes and yesterday for 2 hours and 40 minutes!  Found time!  I was able to knit and read some.

Yesterday on their morning walk, Colin and Iris passed a house that had a bag outside with a sign "Catnip - Free" so they took some.  Colin was hoping for rooted plants, instead the folks had just trimmed their plant.  But Talbot was happy!

They placed it on the futon in the sunroom.  Talbot came down from his balcony in the cat tree and spent hours (yes hours) just laying on top of the catnip.  A true addict!  He did come out after a bit for a bite to eat, but wanted to go right back out into the sunroom.

I did not bring any home for Mabel - she has her own catnip plant under the apple tree and she periodically goes over and chomps on it for a bit.  LOL

Today will be all about relaxing!  I do have some laundry washing and another load to put in, but I plan to mostly stitch, knit and read.  Oh, and bake - I have some apricots and some peaches and I think another crostata will be made.

Whatever your plans - enjoy the day and the weekend!  Have some fun.

A Trip Down Memory Lane 6-25-26

 Good Morning All,

How are you?  I had such a wonderful day with Iris yesterday and am anticipating more of the same today.

Over the weekend I noticed two small, framed stitched pieces on a wall in my office.  They are pieces I stitched for Colin's room probably 35 years ago!  I got them off the wall, dusted them and put them in my bag to take over to Iris yesterday.  She likes them and Colin wants to put them on a wall in Iris' bedroom.  Hopefully Mailing will agree (she was at work yesterday).

So, here they are!

The Fox and Grapes.  I love the crow (of course) on top of the house...and the fox.  Too cute.

Winter Garden.  Cute little bunnies and a moon in the sky as well as smoke curling from the chimney.

I think both of these pieces are from The Prairie Schooler, but I'm not positive.  I no longer have the charts and The Prairie Schooler is (sadly) not producing charts now.  They are both stitched on linen and I used DMC threads.  It makes me happy that Iris will be enjoying them.

Have a lovely Thursday!

Unraveled Wednesday 6/24/26

 Good Morning!

It is just barely 60 degrees out and I am wearing a sweatshirt!!  It feels wonderful.  Yesterday was a cool day as well.  Perfect for making eggplant parmesan for dinner.  I added sautéed mushrooms to the mix and will be doing that from now on.

It's Wednesday.  I'll be back with Iris today (and tomorrow), but before then it is time to link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers to chat a bit about what we are making and reading.  There has been no unraveling this week.  And, other than a few moments while at Colin's there hasn't been much knitting since I was focused on finishing my Appil sampler (see yesterday's post).  But there was a little and my slip stitch sock is now at the point where I will knit the heel flap and turn the heel.

I'm liking this sock a lot.  The colors and the pattern.  At this point, I'm planning to continue the pattern down the top of the foot (leaving the sole plain).

Reading has been good as well.  The mystery I was in the middle of last week was Missing by E. A. Jackson.  It was good - not great, but kept my interest.  And Fletch and I finished In a Pig's Eye by Karl Schwenke.  We had a few good laughs while reading this.

Most surprising for me was The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout.  I liked it!  A lot!!  Strout is an author who - for me - sometimes hits it right and other times does not.  I think it was Jane who said she felt the book was melancholy.  I did not feel that at all.  I would have preferred less about the current political situation, but that is really my only complaint.  For me, the book was about hope and kindness.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Wednesday!

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!!