Summer Sky: Learning as I go

Happy Easter

For those of you who celebrate Easter, Happy Easter, and for those who don't, have a lovely day! Blessings to you and your loved ones.

 

The påskris is a Swedish tradition with a somber past. We make ours from seasonal branches (pussy willows in early Spring, fruit branches when Easter falls late). Each year the kids paint tiny wooden eggs to add to our collection.  We hang them by thread from and forgo the traditional feathers.

 

 

 

Earlier in the week, N and his friends had an Easter egg hunt at a local park. We walked through the neighborhood to get there, admiring the blooms along the way.

 

 

 

 

{this moment} + Happy Earth Day!

Inspired by Soulemama.

 

We've been celebrating Earth Week over at The Magnifying Glass; be sure and stop by.

Alphabet Glue Winner :: Cherry Blossom Rain

Thank you to everyone who participated in Annie’s Alphabet Glue giveaway!  And the winner, drawn by random number generator is Kris, with this comment:

The magazine looks wonderful. Thank you for sharing!

I just took a look through Kris’ blog, Two Nukes, which she authors with her good friend Stacey.  They post sweet photos of their two “nuclear” families.

Thanks again Annie, for this fun giveaway!

* * * * * * * * * * *

I had wanted to go see the cherry blossoms by the Tidal Basin again this year with the kids.  We don’t go every year, because of the crush of tourists and the vagaries of spring weather that can freeze the buds or blow down the blooms before you have a chance to see them.  And, as every native knows, you don’t go on the weekends.

So we finally went last Tuesday, late in the afternoon.  The day before the thermometer soared to 80 (it’s back down to the 40’s now) and I knew that meant the blooms would be past their peak.  The leaves would be starting to pop out and the blossom petals would be floating into drifts a couple inches deep.

 



We walked around the whole Tidal Basin, which takes quite a while with little ones.  There is no fence around the water and I had to emphasize several times how very difficult it would be to fish someone out.  But the light was so beautiful and the kids were in happy moods and the outing took on a magical quality that no amount of planning can bring.  (That night, N told me the visit was “boring” as he drifted off to sleep, but the very next morning he begged to go back.)

As we were wandering, a young woman walking the other way told her companion that she never takes pictures of the cherry blossoms “because the definitive photos have been taken already.” And I thought, how sad to think that way.

Here's a slide show of our afternoon--"definitive" to us, if to no one else!  Please feel free to share the memories of your week--I'd love to hear them.

 

"Cherry Blossom Rain"

Create a free slideshow with Picnik!

WIP Wednesday :: how's the sewing?

Still time for the Alphabet Glue giveaway! Don't miss out!

No yarn along this time. In fact, I ripped out the knitting you saw last week and started over 12 times already. Size 2 needles + me = do not mix.  But I’m determined, I tell you; I really want to make this sweater (plus knitting is like Tetris to me, I can't say why, but I don't mind a set back).

In the meantime, I have a little bit of sewing WIP to show. I will come back and show the finished skirt, I promise, it turned out well but I still need to hem it. However, onward and upward, sewing class schedules wait for no man or woman and I’m now taking a tailored shirt class that is making me so happy.

 

A muslin, or mock-up, of the shirt

 

I’ve mentioned before that I’ve sewed up plenty of patterns, I somehow gained quite a bit of sewing knowledge (via osmosis) from my mother (who was always sewing something with me in the room). But I still felt I could use some guidance, and I’ve recently found it in spades.

I had held off for years from taking these local sewing classes—mostly because I had no babysitting to speak of and the timing never seemed right. I also pictured sitting patiently while the teacher helped everyone thread their machines again (yawn) or else feeling like I was holding everyone else back (the more likely scenario).

Instead, the fabric store is letting the classes move forward even if there’s just one student (me!). And did I tell you I love the teacher? Antoinette is a fascinating person and if she would just get her blog up and running I would share it with you. She is just brimming with creative ideas and it is fun to talk to her about almost anything, not just sewing.

She is just the mentor I needed! She is letting me make a tailored shirt for N (fingers crossed, in time for Easter) rather than for myself; she is letting me use an Ottobre pattern; and because I’m the only one there, I can spend 15 minutes discussing very precisely how to pin the inset sleeve into the shoulder with a teeny bit of gathering but no pleats.

This is the shirt I'm making, from the Winter 2009 edition of Ottobre. It comes in a 'little boy' version, but it doesn't have all the same details, so I'm doing the little boy shirt with the big boy pockets, cuffs, and topstitching you see below.

 

I’m craving my two hours on Tuesdays now. I’m going to keep right on taking these classes as long as everyone else lets me.

And here’s one last photo of some forlorn looking fabric that I have a fun idea for. But that’s for another day…

Linen towelling. Whatever for?

 

Are you enjoying the thrill of learning something new? Please share ~