More purposeful projects, and changes...

 

(we have hundreds of bees in the garden every day)

Unfortunately I had to miss writing last Thursday's blog post, and just as I was getting into a regular routine with blogging that day each week. Never mind, this is a new week and I think routines are back to normal again.

It's been a busy time with family, around home, the garden, and our pets, so I decided to skip a Thursday blog and stay focused with all that was happening here. I'm sure you have weeks like that too? 

Blossom, Ross and the children moved house with the help of hubby and Ross's dad, and wouldn't you know it, after months of no rain whatsoever, a huge storm hit the night before and the next morning, so we all prayed and waited for the storm to subside. The children and their two pugs were safe and dry here with me, and eventually around 11am the men and Blossom began loading the moving truck as the rain had eased to a very light shower. Praise God. 

We live about 30 minutes south of Blossom, and barely got a drop of rain, though our garden was in dire need. It seems where we are the rain clouds drift past without sharing any of their precious cargo, so each morning I am outside at 5am to water the front and back gardens before the scorching sun makes its way over the mountain to shock us into closing the front curtains and making use of the air conditioner. It's spring here, but every day lately has been a smarting 35C (95F), with heat and humidity (over 90%) that sucks our energy rapidly. 

Some things in the garden are thriving, such as the sweet basil...

...and the thai basil.

Both of these plants attract hundreds of bees all day, and not just honey bees, but a variety of native bees as well as the glorious Great Carpenter bees. As I walk among the flourishing plants, the bees leave me alone, and I talk to them. Such beautiful creatures, and so very needed in gardens. 

My Borlotti beans are doing well too. This is my first year growing them (planted in winter) and they have been abundant in producing what the grandchildren call "dragon beans" due to the red flames along the pods. 

We have eaten a lot of them fresh over the past few months, but now I am letting them plump out and dry on the vines to store for winter soups. I'll also save some seeds for planting again next April, as that's when we plant our winter veggies (which in our climate is more like a comfortable spring). 

The elder tree thrives in our climate and is heavy with elderflowers and elderberries right now. I love this tree with its waving hanging boughs and branches thta create the most glorious archway from the back of the house towards the clothesline. It also offers speckled shade for gentle herbs in pots beneath. 

During the hot afternoons, I spend a couple of hours enjoying the air conditioner and relaxing on the couch. Having a stitching project on hand feeds my creative need, and staying with my original plan (here) of creating with a purpose in mind, I have a small list of items which will hopefully be made over the coming months as time allows. 

Early last week I traced up a long narrow embroidery pattern from one of Yumiko Higuchi's books...

The stitchery measures 2.25" x 12" edge to edge, and I was immediately drawn to the design because of the owl. Her book is focused on stitching the designs in a single colour, and I chose a lovely green (DMC 3052) to blend with the fabric I'd be using later. 

I purchased the book as an inexpensive PDF download, because the hardcover was frightfully expensive, and though it's in Japanese, if you're used to hand embroidery, you can work out how to stitch the patterns by viewing the photos provided. 

One thing I did differently to Yumiko's original, was to sew with smaller stitches than she does. I naturally embroider with small stitches and find it difficult to do otherwise, but I am so pleased I stayed true to my natural way of stitching as the end result is lovely.

I've stitched the design onto a white cotton/linen blend fabric, and fused Parlan behind the linen after tracing the pattern. 

I loved all the French knots and chain stitching! They fill out the shapes beautifully, and the end result is exactly what I was after for the project's intended purpose.

What purpose you may ask?

A cover for my computer keyboard. 

You see, we have had roadworks right out front of our home for the past year, and the amount of black dust and dirt that filters through the doors and windows is something I've never dealt with before. Dusting our home is something I do regularly, but this 'dust' which is actually dirt from the roadworks, has been extreme. My husband mentioned how dirty his keyboard at work is, and how often it must be cleaned, and I thought, "Just like my keyboard here at home".

So I decided to sew a cover to lay across the keyboard when not in use, and when I saw this long stitchery pattern in Yumiko's book it gave me an idea for just such a project. 

Now that the stitchery is completed I just need to sew the backing fabric in place and hand quilt inside the edges with running stitch. The green floral fabric you can see under the stitched panel (photo above) will be the backing, and was how I came to choose that green for the embroidery. It will be finished later today and I'll share pics next Thursday.

Another purposeful project since the last blog post, was moving my computer into the sewing room and out of the living room. It's been hard working on the small desk in our living room these past eight years, especially whilst running a business from home, and for designing patterns most of the years. As the years have passed, I have gradually been donating a lot of fabrics, trims, threads and books to local charity stores, and pared down what I want to keep or use in the future. By doing this I have finally made a good space to set up my 'office', with a window before me, and the native birds singing in our bottle brush and grevillea trees...and I am so happy about that. :-) This has allowed me to spread out my pattern notes, and prepare many more patterns for the Etsy shop, mostly patterns that have sat made, yet unpublished, for a very long time, as well as the patterns from over a decade ago which have never been in the shop before. All this is a blessing to us, as times are tougher now. 

My sewing room/office is just 9 feet square, but its amazing what you can do with a space that size when you need to!

Excuse the brightness of these photos, but the sun here is extremely bright and even on the shady side of the house each room glows in reflected sunbeams. 

Another change has been with our very old and precious cat, Sophie. She's 16 now, whis is 80 in human years, and since we got our large dachshund, Kelly, 18 months ago, she has had to be kept up in the fenced pool area. We had no idea when we took on Kelly (a rescue dog) that he would hate Sophie, and she would hate him. Up until then Sophie has loved all the family dogs, to the point of annoying them with her practical jokes, but she and Kelly did not take to each other at all. In fact Kelly hates it when we cuddle her and spend time with her in the undercover pool area, as we have found him to be an incredibly jealous dachshund, and she's not safe around him. This year she is not managing the heat at all. In fact, we saw a glimpse of this last summer, but only a glimpse. Another year passes and she is older, and not coping. Our girl has always prefered the outdoors, loved the spring/summer/autumn heat of the tropics (which astounded us), but now we have made the decision to keep healthy 2½ year old Kelly outside and bring Sophie inside permanently. We tried this in winter but she would keep wanting to go outside, so we gave in, and back to the shady pool area she went, but this time she is seemingly content to sleep a lot under our bed and just be with us. Praise God.

Next week I'm going to share a couple of free Christmas patterns with you, but in the meantime, I would love for you to pray for Blossom and Ross. As you know, he has been out of work and homeschooling the children much of this year, whilst Bloss has spent the past six months working as a cleaner. Well, this past week she damaged her shoulder and arm, and is unable to work. She's in a great deal of pain, and cannot get in for an MRI for at least two weeks, so its all about resting. Ross is looking for work, any work, to provide once more for the family, and they would very much appreciate your prayers over these two needs - her healing, and employment for him. Thank you darling friends. xx

I shall leave you with this, a morning devotional from Charles Spurgeon that spoke deeply into my heart the other day, and may be just what you need to hear as well...

God bless dear ones, and may you also be assured of the Lord's ear attending to your prayers...praise Yahweh!

Hugs, 

PS: My Etsy Shop is always open, so please drop by if you are in the mood for something new to stitch.

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The Gratitude Journal and bookmark...

 Last week I mentioned there was something I intended making for my granddaughters as Christmas gifts, and when I asked Blossom what she thought of it, she was very excited and said "YES!"

After that conversation I decided to go ahead with the project idea, and also to share it with you. The designs I'll use for my 8yo and 10yo granddaughters will be more in keeping with their own styles (Rafaella prefers colours that are very soft and pretty, whereas Cully May loves bright vibrant colours), but the one I have designed to share today is the Gratitude Journal I shall be using myself. :-)

I think Gratitude Journals are good for any age, and when written in over a full year they can be a wonderful reminder to us of all the precious things we have been, and still can be, grateful for. 

As I was sketching the design, Philippians 4:6 came to mind over and over, so it will feature on page one when I begin this journal on January 1st. Being thankful to God for life, for Jesus, for all we have, for all we are, and for all that is yet to come, is paramount to the Christian's prayer life, so I think there will be a lot of 'extras' added to my journal along the way...and I am already very excited to read, at the end of 2027, all the things I was grateful for over that year. 

Even more so, I am excited about how my granddaughters will feel with their own record of a grateful year, and how their journals will become heirlooms for the next generation. I am reminded of a few verses throughout the Bible which instruct on writing things down so they are not forgotten and remembered for all time...

"Write this on a scroll as something to be remembered..." Exodus 17:14

"Go now, write it on a tablet for them, inscribed on a scroll, that it may be for the time to come as a witness forever." Isaiah 30:8

A Gratitude Journal can become a record of inspiration, thoughts, and experiences, which lift the soul during difficult seasons - and not just that day or that year, but five years, ten years, thirty years later. We in this modern-day-era of everything happening quickly, a time when so much information (good and bad) is poured forth into our eyes and ears day by day, whether we want it or not, too often forget or overlook the wonderful things in life that make us smile, laugh, and rejoice. Making a record of the good things we've experienced,and then going back to read of them at a future date, can do more for lifting your thoughts from darkness to light, than any piece of chocolate cake, glass of wine, or mind enhancing pills will. 

Now I know not everyone who follows my blog enjoys hand embroidery, so I had a thought about that as well. Perhaps you can simply purchase a pretty journal for yourself, or someone you care about, and make a simple bookmark to include with the journal?

My second gift today is something you could use for that purpose. All you need is a printer and some heavier printing paper (160gsm)...

I have made the files in A4 and Letter size. Use the links below for the files you'd like. Please do not share them with anyone, but direct others to my blog if they'd like copies for themselves. :-)

A4 Gratitude Journal pattern

A4 Gratitude Bookmark

Letter size Gratitude Journal

Letter size Gratitude Bookmark

I'd love to see your journals if you make one, so please email me a photo and I'll do a blog post later this year with those photos so we can all be inspired. My details are HERE

Today is Ross's 36th birthday, and he's just like Blossom, hubby and myself in preferring a very low key celebration. They are moving in less than 48 hours, so we've enjoyed a few hours together with doughnuts, coffee, strawberries, raspberries and twiggy sticks, amidst the ongoing packing. We have laughed, hugged and truly just enjoyed being together...and isn't that the most wonderful way to celebrate.  Would you pray a blessing over his life please? This year has brought challenges, but he rose to all of them and has led his family with hands-on love and support all the way. He is a genuine example to young Charlie David of what a real man, a real husband, and a real father is, for his loved ones and his community. We are very proud of our son-in-law, and pray that the Lord will continue to bless him, Blossom and their children. xx

I'll leave it there this week as so much of my time over the past seven days was spent working on the Gratitude designs, the garden, and the house. I'll have a day of rest tomorrow (Friday) and then get ready to enjoy caring for the three granddchildren and their two pugs on Saturday, while Mummy, Daddy, and Poppy do the moving from one house to the new one. 

God bless you dear ones!! How precious you all are, and how blessed I am to have you here. Let me know how you're doing, okay. If you have a prayer need you can share it in the comments (even anonymously, because the Lord knows who you are) and there will be thousands of caring hearts reading who will be praying for you. 

Until next time,

PS: My Etsy Shop is always open, so please drop by if you are in the mood for something new to stitch.

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Making our own...

 

TEA CUP BLESSING:

This is my new tea cup and saucer set. Last post I spoke of how I'd seen a mini ironing board at the op-shop a month previous, and regretted not buying it, so I'd prayed and asked the Lord to hold it there for me, or have another one at the shop next time I visited...and a month later, there it was waiting for me. 

Well, when I finally bought that little ironing board I saw this beautiful tea cup and saucer, and thought to myself, "Now that's a gift I'd love, exactly the set I'd choose for myself with that wee birdie and flowers." But I did not think it in my budget so I left it there and hoped someone else would enjoy it. 

Yesterday I had some errands to run, and popped into that op-shop to see if I could find a cheap cotton sheet to use for sewing up a new thin summer blanket for the Kelly-dog's bed. (He loves to wrap himself in a blanket at night and is still using the polar fleece blankie from winter, though I can see he's kicking it off before waking up each morning as its very warm and humid here this spring) Praise God, I did find a lovely blue pinstripe sheet and now that its been washed and sun-dried I can begin sewing it into a doggy blanket later today. I was so happy with that sheet, a good cotton one, barely ever used, and perfect for a boy-dog's bed, but then as I walked towards the counter to pay there was that same cup and saucer on a shelf nearby. If my heart could smile, it would have been a mile wide! After thanking the Lord I purchased it, for less than half the price it had been originally. What a blessing! I am reminded yet again, to pray over everything, even small insignificant things, and then leave it with God. Have you experienced a simple yet unexpected blessing lately? 

SASHIKO Question asked:

This comment was left on a previous blog post recently so I thought I'd answer today in case there's more of you with a similar desire to dabble with sashiko but not knowing where to start? 

"I love your work with the sashiko sewing. It is so beautiful that I was wondering what your source is for the patterns and the fabric with grids, etc. I would really like to get into that and I am not sure where to go for the supplies., maybe online? Thank you so much, Devonna"

My first suggestion is to visit your local library and borrow some books on sashiko. That's how I began. There are numerous books which can help with learning the basics, offering templates to trace, or grid pages you can photocopy. I branched out fairly quickly to Boro as well and made over a dress into a Boro top, something I will do again one day, but sashiko is part of my stitching journey now and I find it very soothing, gentle and satisfying. 

There were two books at the library which I borrowed a few times, and eventually bought my own copies, but one was more about boro and darning stitch, and that's not really for beginners, however, the other is Essential Sashiko: A Dictionary of the 92 Most Popular Patterns by Boutique-Sha, which includes 11 easy projects as well. In fact I loved that this book has grid sheets in the back to photocopy and last week I used a sheet to draw up the wickerwork design...

Then I traced it onto some repurposed pink linen fabric (which had once been part of a blouse), and chose the sashiko thread colour to match the centre of the flowers in this older Tilda print fabric.

I traced the design onto the linen with a heat erasable pen, after fusing some very thin stabiliser behind it. Linen can be quite fine so I find some stabiliser is important when employing any kind of hand embroidery to it. The fusible stabiliser I use is Staflex 3045, which is as thin as tissue paper and makes a world of difference when hand stitching. 

I have not finished a project from the completed Wickerwork block yet, but it will be done soon and I'll share it here for you to see. 

Something new for me was to buy a set of sashiko stencils, and I got these from Temu. There's 24 different sashiko templates to trace from and in keeping with my "sewing with purpose" mindset, I set about using the #1 template, which was a hexagon shape, and made a pouch to house the complete set. 

I featured the completed hexagon on the front of the pouch, and used press-studs as the closure. The templates now have a home, and I can find them easily. Actually, one thing I am enjoying about sewing with purpose, is making 'homes' for various sewing supplies. "A place for everything and everything in its place" as Nana used to say. 

The blue fabric background for the sashiko block is cotton that I dyed last year, and the thread is a DMC Perle 8 which matched the pouch fabric nicely. The sweet floral pouch fabric is a sturdy linen also bought on Temu, and the lining is made from the remnants of an old linen sheet. 

(I need to say that the few sewing items I have bought from Temu this year have not just been cheap, but they have all been excellent quality. I read all the reviews first of course, before adding them to my cart.)

Other good books I've borrowed from the library for sashiko are these. I'll include the Amazon Australia links so you can see the covers (I am not an affiliate, and just sharing links so you can 'see' the books)

The Ultimate Sashiko Sourcebook by Susan Briscoe

Simply Sashiko by Nihon Vogue

Sashiko Color by Boutique-Sha

Sashiko 365 by Susan Briscoe

MAKING HEALTHY CAPSULES:

For about the past 26 years, I have studied many various aspects of health, with the focus on natural ways to optimise my family's personal health through diet and supplements, as well as natural skin care and homecare products I could make myself.

Hubby and I have been taking turmeric/pepper capsules for many years, but over the past twelve months we have noticed the cost of these have gone through the roof and for a while we just didn't buy any. We also eat fresh ginger everyday - some from our garden, but in the off-season we buy it instead. I dehydrate much of our home-grown ginger for herbal teas, because that way we have it on hand for years. (I'd need to have an extra 1/4 acre just for growing ginger if I was to make my own ground ginger, so that's not an option)

A few months back I watched a woman on Youtube making her own capsules. She had dried herbs from her garden, ground them up and filled empty gelatine capsules, then given them as gifts...but it made me think about turmeric and I went on a little journey to find out more. Along the way I discovered that ground ginger is far more potent and beneficial than fresh, so with my new found knowledge I purchased a capsule making kit, 500 'slow release' empty capsules, and a kilo each of organic ground turmeric, ground ginger, and whole black peppercorns (which I grind myself as needed). This past weekend I made 200 turmeric/black pepper capsules, and 100 ginger capsules. 

I thought this would all be difficult, but as it turned out, I simply followed the photo tutorial inside the kit, and found it all quite easy indeed. 

We take the a ginger capsule and a turmeric capsule in the mornings with our other supplements, and I take another turmeric capsule at night. 

THIS is the capsule filling machine I bought, and THESE are the gelatine capsules. Again, these are links to show you what bought as I am not an affiliate. 

The health benefits for ginger and turmeric w/pepper are vast and we are thrilled to have found a more economic way to make our own supplements from ingredients we chose ourselves. :-)

OTHER THINGS:

I am baking one loaf of sour dough per week because if I bake more we eat more! Having that Monday 'prepare' and Tuesday 'bake' routine is good, just like my 'write a blog post' every Thursday routine is good. Routines are my favourite thing when it comes to homemaking, and just as needful as when we followed a routine through those eleven years of homeschooling. I am a girl who has always thrived in a routine, and I wonder if that's natural or whether it came from growing up with Nana? Her routine appeared so natural because everyday flowed seemlessly in our tiny flat, but I wish I'd asked about it when I had the chance (she passed away when I was 23 and I still had so much to glean from her). Was it self-dsicipline, or just the everyday life of a happy and calm woman who took pride in her little home? I think perhaps the latter, for my darling Nana smiled and laughed a lot. :-)

News of Blossom and Ross - it's time for the rental home they are in to be sold and at the 11th hour, our Father God has provided for them a new home, one that has more to offer than the previous one. It's still near the beach, and in the same suburb, so they're the same distance from us (1/2 hour drive north)as before, but what a blessing! They move on the 24th of this month so we ask that you would pray for no rain that day, and a smooth transfer from one house to the other. What a wonderful answer to prayer!

NEXT WEEK...

I have an idea, which I shall share with you next week. Something you may like to stitch for Christmas gifting. I suggested this to Blossom for the two girls, Cully May and Rafaella, and she shouted YES into the phone with such enthusiasm that I thought it might be a pattern to share here. Please pray the Lord adds His own creative touch to this idea, and that it may glorify Him. May His own heart smile...

God bless precious ones!

Until next time,

PS: My Etsy Shop is always open, so please drop by if you are in the mood for something new to stitch.

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With a purpose in mind...

One of the channels I watch regularly on YouTube is Kiko Sabi. She is a Canadian wife to a Japanese husband, and is quite prolific in the variety of handcrafts she carefully learns, practices, and then creates with.

Initially I found her interesting to watch each Sunday afternoon, and enjoyed the silent 30ish minute videos with gentle music and subtitles. She was a beginner to many crafts and each week there was something new to be seen as she began making various items, often with a Japanese theme or technique. 

But there was something I enjoyed even more, especially now, two years later. It was the purpose she had for each item made. Rarely was it whimsy, though in the beginning there were practice pieces, but over the past year and a half Kiko has had a very clear purpose for all the things she makes - whether that be spinning yarn , knitting, crochet, embroidery, boro, sashiko, darning, sewing her own clothes etc. 

I have been pondering her way of thinking for a month or two, and it's changed the way I plan and create. Looking back, especially those first few years before I started designing, when I was teaching myself to embroider and quilt, I saw something lovely and immediately made it. It really did not matter whether it had a place in our home or a purpose, because I just loved the various aspects of sewing and had a project (or five) on the go all the time. Some were given to family and friends as gifts, some were placed around the house, and some were stored away in large plastic tubs because I did not know what to do with them, or were donated. After a while it became clear that other people like me were doing this as well, as though it were a natural part of the sewing/quilting culture in that time. 

Now I want what I make to have a purpose. Just having this mindset has allowed me to slow down and enjoy the sewing/stitching process more than I ever did, because I no longer feel the need to make so many of the lovely quilts or projects I see online or in books/magazines (and I no longer design 4-6 hand embroidery patterns a month for a living).

Back at the end of 2018 God directed me to "use what you already have" and eight years later this is the first thing that comes to mind when I'm considering what to cook, or sew, or plant, or create with. Lately I've been going a bit further and looking at ways to keep using what I have by repairing or mending or altering those items. My clothes have become a good avenue for living out this habit, and many dresses, linen pants and nightgowns are now mended and back 'in service' again - but I also spent an afternoon cutting up the items that are too worn and discarding the fabric which is unusable, whilst saving the good sections of fabric for future use. 

Now with Kiko's philosophy, and creating purposefully at the forefront of my mind, I began to look around our home to see what was actually needed. That tiny red rice bag I made last month was sewn from scrap fabrics (vintage linen I bought years ago mostly) and my own sketchings for the embroidery. Along with the tiny pinushion and needlebook made the following week, this item is in use every single day now. It holds all I need for my evening embroidery, looks lovely, is small, taught me how to make a rice bag, and makes me smile!

This past week I made another three purposeful projects. The rice bag pictured above, and below, came about because I had been working on some sashiko embroidery blocks, learning the rice flower stitch, and making use of some reclaimed blue cotton dress fabric. Initially I'd considered making this larger rice bag for holding yarn, but in my sewing room, something that bugs me is the foot pedal and power cord for my sewing machine. I wind them both together and push them loosely into the throat space of the machine to keep them out of the way - but they do not have an actual place to be stored.

So over the past few days I made a larger rice bag with sashiko on four sides, fabrics cut from two old dresses, and smaller offcuts of quilt wadding. Each square was 7.5". This now houses my foot pedal and power cord beautifully. 

(This is the outside before sewing the sides together. The lining is the same, also made from five equal measure squares)

Last week I burned my hand getting a tray out of the oven, because silly me used a damp tea towel! I had some small leftover pieces of Insulbrite in the cupboard and decided to purposefully sew some pot holders, and I chose a design which had caught my eye over ten years ago. The pattern was a free one by Amy Sinibaldi of Nana Company, and though her old blog is no longer around, she has republished this free tutorial on her new webpage HERE

These are the two I made on Saturday afternoon. Two layers of Insulbrite in the base (for extra heat protection) and one layer of cotton quilt wadding in the top. The fabrics are by Lori Holt and mostly leftovers from a quilt project (still not sewn together years later...oh dear). These are actually quite easy to make, which surprised me, and would make excellent useful gifts with Christmas just a few months away. I intend making more and gifting some to my daughters. 

Something else I did this past week was to makeover a mini ironing board found at the opshop for $5. Cully May and I saw two of them there a month ago, in very dirty and tatty condition, but I had not stopped thinking about them since, regretting not getting one at the time because I currently use a piece of wood with Insulbrite and fabric wrapped around it. So I prayed and asked the Lord to hold one for me until I could get back to the shop, or for another to be donated before I arrived there.

On Tuesday I went back to the shop and could not see them, so I went for a short wander around anyhow. And there it was, hidden behind a stand of large framed pictures, but I could not mistake the horrible tattered fabric that poked out from behind them. 

Once home I threw away the old cover and removed the thin foam which was glued to the wire top, gave it a jolly good clean and got to work on giving it purpose once more. 

I traced the ironing board shape onto the old Insulbrite (previously wrapped around my piece of wood) and was able to get two pieces. Yay! Then I cut a wider piece of scrap cotton quilt wadding, and some sturdy cotton fabric for the outer cover. 

What a blessing! Just $5 for the donated mini ironing board, and everything else was reused from what was already in my sewing room. 

Such a productive week, and all projects had real purpose. :-)

I did also make time for baking a fresh loaf of sourdough, which was enjoyed with all we had left of the apricot jam I made last season. Soon the apricots will be back, hopefully before Christmas, and I'll be able to restock the pantry with another year's worth of delicious apricot jam - though I do wonder if this is in fact apricot conserve because I use whole fruits (halved) in my jam. I absolutely love getting those big bits of apricot when I have it on bread or toast!

There's more purposeful projects on my list now, and my heart is very excited about that. In fact, it seems that the Lord has opened my eyes to 'see' what I've missed by too often being swept away and tempted by other things that are lovely to the eye, but not particuarly of any great use. 

Message to self - "Useful projects can be beautiful too you know, Jennifer".

God bless dear ones, and please let me know if you've had similar thoughts of being more purposeful in what you make. Have you discovered projects that make a difference in your home, or in your life? Useful and purposeful gifts to make? What are they?? 

Much love!!

Until next time,

PS: My Etsy Shop is always open, so please drop by if you are in the mood for something new to stitch.

CLICK HERE