summer news

It is difficult to acknowledge that summer is beginning to wind down. Parts of the garden are looking a bit forlorn; it has been a great year for pests--bad for the plants.  I have been busy in the kitchen eating/cooking/preserving what is good -- tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans, many eggplant, zucchini, peppers, basil, and raspberries.  Delicious red haven peaches found at the Amish store have been frozen and baked into pie.  I planted two Red Haven trees this spring and can't wait to be able to pick my own! 

This is our third summer at our new-built home, and we continue to work on finishing things inside as well as adding to the outside landscape.  The limelight hydrangea are thriving and perfect for indoor arrangements.  This year we added a snowball bush, rugosa roses, a Zephirine Drouhin climbing rose, oakleaf hydrangea, bleeding heart, white pine trees, clematis, and more...  Inside, the pantry was finished and wall planks & a range hood were added in the kitchen.  A hundred year old beam from a corncrib was used to trim out the hood...still need to add crown molding.


We were happy to get away to the woods one weekend with our camper--we haven't camped since selling our previous home.  It was very relaxing, except for the night a large black bear decided to visit!  I've also been enjoying time spent with my first grandchild, a boy born to my son & his wife, and looking forward to another grandbaby my daughter and son-in-law are expecting in January.  Life is so good!

Whenever I could, I have squeezed in some knitting and sewing.  A sweater started for grandbaby no.2 and a dishcloth is always on the needles.  I sewed 4 tops for myself and a pair of pants, all out linen I had on hand--I was actually happy with how all turned out and have loved the coolness and comfort of wearing linen this summer. And most recently, I finished up a few zipper pouches for the shop.

It feels so good to be back here on the blog--please let me know what is new with you!!

Deb

Over the Fourth...

It was a good July Fourth weekend here with great weather.  We had a wonderful dinner with the kids and then headed down to the lake to enjoy the sunset.  There just happened to be a sailboat race taking place, which {along with the swimming geese} made the view especially picturesque.

One morning we got up and decided to take a bike ride along the canal towpath.  

I really miss having my own yard and gardens!, but being a renter has given us a little more time for recreation--and Mother Nature can be counted on to make some beautiful wildflower gardens...

I took advantage of some Joann Fabric sales combined with coupons and bought some fabrics for a coverlet and pillows.  It has probably been well over 15 years since I made our current duvet cover out of some Ralph Lauren fabric, which I still love but felt it was time for something new.

I really like this double-faced, diamond quilted cotton, that puffed up so nicely after being washed and dried.

I also made a new dog bed cover, with enough fabric left over for a couple sofa cushions.

Our basement for the new house is still on hold, with a tentative date of July 20.  The inspection hole alternates between being filled with water and being almost empty, depending upon the rains.  According to the local weather, there were only two days in June without rain...we're hoping for a drier July!

office chair makeover

Should you ever happen upon an ugly looking, but free office chair, have hope.  With a just a screwdriver, a staple gun, and some fabric on hand, it's the perfect candidate for a makeover.

 

In the midst of spring cleaning the spare bedroom I decided I could no longer live with the shabby-though-free office chair that Mike would sometimes use at the desk there.  It was one of those 'there's no better time than the present!' moments.  I rummaged through the fabric cupboard and came up with an Orla Kiely tablecloth that I found at Target a few years ago, grabbed a screwdriver and my staple gun, and set to work.  About an hour later it was done, and I got back to my spring cleaning.

less than three weeks til Christmas?

 

 

Hope your Thanksgiving was good!  Ours was snowy white and wonderful.  I tried something new this year {from my Fanny Farmer cookbook} and baked our 21 lb turkey for an hour and a half, breast-side down in the parchment lined roaster; then we carefully flipped it over and finished roasting as normal.

The breast meat was deliciously moist with this method...I can't believe I never heard of this before, but it's the way I will be cooking it from now on.

 

We did not finish our farmhouse table, but were happy to get a start on it.  Four old porch posts found at a yard sale are being used for the legs.  The apron boards are new poplar wood.  The base of the table will be painted, and the top will be stained.  We are still looking for boards for the top, but what we've looked at so far is way too pricey.  With no salvaged wood on hand that will work, we are going to check a few other places for planks.

 

Can you believe it's less than 3 weeks til Christmas?  My want-to-do list and my need-to-do list seem to grow daily.  At tea time I am working on some knitted gifts, in the afternoon I do some shop-related sewing, and in the evening I try to fit in some time for Christmas gift sewing.  I haven't started to decorate, but have added some crafty ideas to my Pinterest board that I would love to make time for.

 

How are your holiday plans coming along? 

 

 



homemade cleaning

 

Have you tried making your own homemade cleaning wipes?

I recently found a recipe for homemade cleaning wipes, and though I already make up most of my own cleaning solutions and put them in a spray bottle, I wanted to try the wipes for the convenience factor.

 

The recipe is from Living on a Dime and can be found here. I followed it exactly and did use the ammonia...for rags I cut 24 squares from an old flannel sheet.  I found I needed to double the recipe to moisten all the rags.  When I make these again, I will probably cut back on the Dawn, as mine seem a bit too sudsy.

 

Other than that, I love using these wipes and find I'm much more likely to grab one for a quick clean-up than I would be to go get a spray bottle and a rag.