goodbye March

Goodbye March,

and thank you for going out like a lamb.

I am enjoying the warm sunny day as I work in my gardens--raking, raking, and some more raking. The hyacinths, tulips, and daffodils are all popping up.

It's so good to get outdoors!

I am taking time off from Spring Cleaning for this Holy Week.

But I promised pictures of the clean and organized master bathroom,

so here they are--sorry for the poor lighting...

~ an old bowl to hold soaps

{towel rack made by Mr. A}

~ a favorite flea market cabinet

~ oops, forgot to refill the little bottles

Back to the 'spring cleaning house tour' next week.

Hope this warm sunny weather is coming your way too.

spring cleaning house tour ~ master bedroom

I may not have gotten into every nook & cranny, but I think I came close.

When I took the curtains down I saw how faded they are in spots--maybe I'll make new ones, someday.

To answer some questions, I use a mild soap and hot water for the walls and ceilings. If the ceiling is tiny, like the bathroom, I do wash it from a stepstool by hand. A larger ceiling I would definitely use a clean sponge mop. Many of our ceilings are textured, so washing them is out. And, Mrs Meyers soap can be found here online or there are also some stores.

Time for a rest...I'll be back soon with the bathroom pictures.

signs of Spring & sewing

Some signs of Spring indoors ~

~pussy willows in an old yellow vase

~a yellow striped linen tablecloth

~a lemon cake {recipe from The Gentle Art of Domesticity: Stitching, Baking, Nature, Art & the Comforts of Home }

And,

there are a couple new totes in the shop::

... one large roomy vintage barkcloth tote

...and one medium-sized tote made from a vintage cotton tablecloth.

Have a great weekend!

spring cleaning update

In the Master Bedroom

Today::

1. washed the walls & all the woodwork
2. 'erased' all the scuffs on the walls *

* I'm very sceptical when it comes to 'gimmicks', but at the advice of a very reliable source I tried the Mr Clean Magic Eraser. It has removed the numerous scuff-marks on the walls, and has left them looking fresh and good-as-new. Definitely worth the purchase as it has saved me the bother of having to repaint in the near future :)

Yesterday ~ Tuesday::

1. washed windows
2. vacuumed & replaced screens
3. polished wood furniture*
4. cleaned mirrors/glass/tv
5. washed curtains/cushion covers/slipcover/afghan
   

* Some time ago I made up some homemade floor wax, which once in a while I use on some of my wood furniture. The combination of waxes and oil moisturize the wood and leave a lustrous finish. {If you make some up, just don't leave it in a metal can as I did--it is causing the can to rust, so I will use glass or plastic next time.}

coming ~ the Spring Cleaning Home Tour

The other day I received an e-mail from a reader, Beth, asking if I would consider showing pictures of some of the rooms in my home. I thought it would be fun to do a home tour, which in turn has motivated me to get going on my Spring Cleaning.

The plan is to work on an area each week, then post pictures of the hopefully-clean-and-organized results at the end of said week...if all goes as planned.

Today I started in the Master Bath with a bucket of hot soapy water using some Mrs Meyers geranium dish soap ~ I just love the smell of her products!

And, I filled a spray bottle with some white vinegar in which has been soaking orange peels {tip from my local morning news station}. I use a lot of white vinegar for cleaning, and the orange peels give it a great smell ~use it as you would any window spray.

The vanity was emptied out, vacuumed, and scrubbed. The lining paper is a roll of wallpaper from Big Lots--it is still in good shape so I didn't replace it. Empty and outdated items were tossed, and everything else was put back in a much more organized manner!

My checklist for today::

1. wash ceiling, walls, & baseboard
2. clean/organize vanity & wall cabinet
3. wash area rug
4. wash shower curtain & liner
5. clean glass light globes
6. wipe down exterior of cabinets
7. scrub floor
8. clean mirrors

Next time I will finish up and then get started on the master bedroom.

I would love to hear if you're doing any Spring Cleaning,

and if you want to share any of your tips with the rest of us, please do.

on knitting

Despite all the lovely sunshine we've been having and the warm-for-this-time-of-year temps {40 to 50 degrees F}
for the last week, we still have snow,

and where the snow has melted, we have puddles...lots of puddles.

Our garden is covered half in snow and half in water,

so not too much to do yet as far as gardening or yard work.

I've really been in the mood to knit, even though the Cavern cardigan I was working on {here} did not work out. I love the top down construction, but once I got the body done I realized it was much too big--I suppose it may have something to do with the fact that I wasn't even using the right size needles...no idea what I was thinking!

As I was ripping it all out, I came across this free pattern and decided to give it a try.

So far I have the back and the left side completed.

One of my readers, Jan, asked how and when I learned to knit, and what would be a good book to get her started.

I was taught by my mom {who made us mittens and wonderful sweaters & hats for our Barbie dolls} at an early age--not sure exactly...maybe by age 10? I remember struggling with the stitches which always seemed to be too tight. Eventually I got better and I remember making some scarves. Then I learned crochet, and knitting fell by the wayside--I was busy making granny square afghans in the late 70's & early 80's. It wasn't until about 5 years ago that I got serious about knitting and decided to attempt a sweater.
I went to the library and started reading knitting books, and a couple that stand out as far as helpfulness are Elizabeth Zimmerman's Knitting Without Tears: Basic Techniques and Easy-to-Follow Directions for Garments to Fit All Sizes
and Debbie Stoller's Stitch 'N Bitch: The Knitter's Handbook
.

There are also some online video tutorials that have helped me out a lot ~ it is so much easier when you can actually see someone doing the stitches/techniques. Knit Picks has many beginner tutorials {here}.

Don't be intimidated, just keep trying and practicing. My first sweater was awful!...but the second one was much better.

Jan, I hope this helps.

clutches for Spring

After lugging around a large handbag for most of the winter

{and I do love a bag that holds all kinds of stuff}

I am ready for a change.

Now that the sun is shining brighter and the birds are just beginning to sing,

I am in the mood for something small, colorful, and compact for Spring.

I decided a clutch would be the perfect thing...

sorry! I had no intention that all that should rhyme.
Anyway, there are some cheerful clutches in my Firefly Farm shop, since maybe someone else out there is feeling the same way...

Thanks for stopping by and for the nicest comments on the pillows!

more pillows...

This is the latest new pillow for the living room.

There's something very satisfying about taking my favorite scraps of fabric and making something useful.

For this 20 inch square pillow I cut 16 -- 5 1/2 inch squares,

joined them using 1/4 inch seams,

used a piece of white linen for the back,

and added a zipper.

Had I been thinking ahead, I should have added 1/2 inch along the edges of the squares that would be sewn to the zipper

but,

I don't think you can notice...

I love feather/down pillows, so for most cushions I make, I take an inexpensive feather & down bed pillow {which is about 19 - 20 inches wide x whatever length},

draw a line across the pillow about 20 inches down from the short, 20-inch side,

shake all the feathers down to the part of the pillow that I will be using,

and sew across the marked line.

Then I cut off the excess fabric from the unneeded pillow end,

leaving a 20" by 20" square feather cushion.

Here are two other pillows that I made before Christmas

for the leather chairs...

I bought too much of this fabric way back when, so this was a great way to use some up.

The goal is to get one more patchwork done before Spring;

we'll see....