Spring brings ...Garden dreams

Here is a kindred spirit in an old photo from 1925....found on Pinterest.

Maybe wishful thinking.......here is the garden corner right now......being cleaned out.

The soil needs help.....though I did find earthworms (yeah!) as I turned over the soil....time to add compost.

In a perfect world, I would be making my own compost too.....!!! Someday....

Raking away the blanket of leaves, I find cilantro seedlings! Planted last September, these plants like cold!

They seem to be a good omen!

So, encouraged, I order a kit for another raised bed. I will fill it with the layers of newspaper, leaves, garden soil, grass clippings, etc. to make another small "lasagna garden".

I will sow the seeds for my favorite lettuce...and those pink flowers too!

And one day, I can put myself into this photo....then garden dreams will have come true!

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Now, I must confess, one reason for ordering the raised bed kit was to get free shipping on some yarn in a color which I can't find locally....

Lime green ( or SPRING green?), a shade not too harsh, not too pastel and in sport weight. To add to my granny squares...

They just seem to be missing that wonderful shade of green. Or maybe I just think so, as spring green is seasonal now?

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I do have lots of sewing going on too. Here is the latest quilt top....fun, yes?

Snow day crafting....thunder sleet storm

Not going anywhere today.....and even though I could deep clean another room.....

I have seen this .....and pasted it into my SMASH book.

The living room with so much white from Yvestown blog.  She writes from the Netherlands about crochet, among other things domestic!

So I have my bins of yarn and my crochet hooks....warm and cozy as long as the power is on! Ice storms can take down power lines!

Granny squares galore!

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  If I get in the mood to paint.....(I guess that takes more focus than handwork....), I may do a painting using those fading tulips from last week's post!
I took a photo to refer to! [It IS time to transfer them into the ground....but the winter storm makes doing that a little hard today!]
My tulips...

Now , a wonderful tulip painting by artist Emily Patrick.   I love the loose, floppy, red, fully open tulips!

Looking at knitted tea cozies! My next project? Granny Chic!

Yesterday, I ran across this book which looks delightful!

This, along with cold winter days causes me to think about making a tea cozy. Crocheted like the one above?...., or knitted????
These tea cozy are images for inspiration.....

Some free patterns are available on the Internet. I will probably do the one below, without the flowers!

So cute for the season!

And finally, the cutest ever....following the current cupcake craze...

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More on "granny chic"......for a dramatic, glamorous granny.....a jeweled spider!
(Found on Amazon )

Easy, peasy, not glamorous, frocks.......from Dottie Angel....who has an ETSY shop, a blog and a book...

These soft dresses tempt me, speak to my heart, which loves retro, cozy domesticity!!!! I almost want to start sewing some from my fabric stash!
But, this is a look I have tried before....here, when grandaughter Lilia was playing with her rain gear....Mr. P snapped this great photo....with granny-aproned Grandma Lila looking on....

Is this the fashion statement I want to project?......hmmm
Reality vs. fantasy, LOL!!!
But I might still read the book!

And I have made a crocheted granny square afghan!

and I finished a cardigan from Madelinetosh DK wool in "Esoteric" (color way) which I started in the Denver Airport on a layover....Sunday Dec. 1st. For my beautiful daughter-in-law who lives in all cold climate...now off to mail it, and the alpaca brown scarf for my son!

It's coming together....

scrappy and fun, this crocheted afghan will get lots of use in the cool months ahead! Laying it out to "see" the effect and decide if we need to crochet more....

It's off to work for a few hours now, then we'll see!

Finishing up and working together!
This quilt top has been around our family home for some time. My sister pieced it while in high school in the 1960's....slowly, by hand in quiet time in her room.
Mom handquilted it more recently. Now it will be ready to go home with my sister, (who is due to visit this weekend) after the binding is put on with the help of our friend, Paula. It is full of memories of the clothes we wore in high school, and some family "scraps" which go back even earlier!

I love the colors and orange is so "IN" again now!

Below, another colorful family effort. Mom is crocheting the next round on my granny squares, destined to be a cozy afghan soon! I see lots of orange here too!