rose hip

patches and pillowcases...

 

 

...last fall and earlier this spring, I started up a couple of new flower patches at our lake property; I'd like to say I dug up these patches, but because we barely have any topsoil on our property as we are perched on a rocky shore, I started these patches with soil bought in bags which I simply dumped all over the ground... (I really should be getting truckloads of soil delivered as I need so much of it!) Over these new garden patches which used to be unattractive bare spots of gravelly dirt, I sprinkled all sorts of flower seeds which, as you can see above, have definitely germinated. (Isn't that borage plant just fabulous and all from a wee little seed!) Eventually, I'd like to grow berries and veggies in one of these patches but that will involve building a deer fence, so for now I'll quite happily watch my flowers from seed packets grow, keep adding soil to the patch and more seeds until I can get a deer fence built. (It might be a little while before that happens as we do have quite a to-do list at the lake!...) And of course, with flower patches, and especially new ones, there will always be weeds (I'm sure I must have every possible weed growing on our property!) and weeding to be done, and that's what I was doing earlier this week when I went to the lake for a couple of days...

 

 

Everything I've planted in the last few years, such as the lilacs above and roses below, is growing rather nicely there and it all looked especially lovely just before a thunderstorm passed through; I still had sun at my back when I took the pictures you see here, but ahead of me, the sky was starting to look rather menacing! The resulting downpour was amazing and, once the sun came out again after all the drama, everything looked so beautifully verdant... Don't you just love spring thunderstorms!

 

 

Because I was away at the lake for a big part of this last week, I didn't get around to listing any pillowcases in my Etsy shop as I said I would, but I will do so after our long weekend here (Monday is a holiday in Canada); so, on Tuesday, May 19, I will start by listing the Liberty and Linen pillowcase below as well as a sprinkling of old and new pillowcases (see mosaic below).

 

 

Perhaps you've noticed if you've visited my blog before that I've done a bit of housekeeping in my blog's sidebar. I've tried to make it all look a bit neater and I've also added some clickable social media icons; I've had Facebook and Instagram accounts for a while now but I've never really used them much, and certainly not in conjunction with my blog, but now I will start updating them with my blog posts and photos. So, if you are on Facebook and Instagram and also use Pinterest and Bloglovin, I'd love it if you would pop by to visit me there and see what I'm up to! Thanks so much for coming by today and I hope you have a lovely weekend!

 

 

 

Liberty and Linen...

 

 

...yes, it's been a little while since my last post and, no, I haven't deserted my blog, but I've just had to slow down and focus on doing things in a way that lessens my hip, lower back and leg pain; my physio sessions have really made it clear that sitting triggers my pain, so I've been trying to sit less throughout the day and for shorter durations at a time... Unfortunately, that has meant that I've had to slow down on my blog-writing, crocheting and sewing activities and so, while I'm still getting things done, it's just taking me much longer...

 

 

Along with many lovely get well messages and helpful tips on how to ease my aching body (thank you so very much!), I have received many queries as to when I will start listing some new pillowcases in my Etsy shop... Well, new listings are coming very soon, in a few days or so, and I will notify you with a quick post as soon as I'm at the point of re-stocking my shop. I'm actually quite excited about some of these new listings because I've come up with something a bit new...

 

 

For quite a little while now, I've had in my fabric reserves several bolts of stunning Liberty cotton fabric from the Art Fabrics Lifestyle collection; now, in case you don't know it, the fabric in this collection is not the lovely Tana Lawn cotton one expects from Liberty, but a quilting weight 100% Egyptian cotton printed in Italy. Liberty first introduced it in, I believe, 2012 with the Bloomsbury collection, inspired by the historic Bloomsbury London district. As you can see if you take a look at the prints in the collection here, they are gorgeous and very "Liberty", and I think the cotton itself, while heavier than lawn, is silkier and finer to the touch than standard quilting weight cottons which makes it perfect for pillowcases! So, I sewed up a few sample pillowcases with the fabric and tried many different yarn options for the crochet trim, looking for something really special given the loveliness of the fabric... After coming up with a few possible options involving different cotton yarns, I decided to also try trimming the pillowcases with some 100% linen yarn I just so happen to have lying around... and I'm so happy I did because the pairing could not have been more perfect!

 

 

For one, the crocheted linen yarn has lovely stitch definition which complements the finely detailed Liberty florals just beautifully...

 

 

The finished linen trim has a pretty airy look to it due to the inherent stiffness of new linen which hasn't been washed yet; stiffer than, for example, cotton yarn, linen yarn when crocheted gives stitches that are less taut, still nicely shaped but definitely looser (bigger holes). I think the resulting delicate lacy trim partners perfectly with the Liberty fabric as it brings out the daintiness of its floral print...

 

 

Linen yarn also has a lovely silky sheen to it, very subtle and natural-looking, unlike that of yarn which gets its sheen from synthetic ingredients. I think this delightful attribute nicely complements the fine nature of the Egyptian cotton used in this Liberty collection, which I believe has a hint of pleasing silkiness to it, perfect for resting a tired head on...

 

 

Now, the beauty of linen yarn is that, despite it being delicate and lacy-looking when crocheted, it is a rather durable yarn that actually improves with machine washing over time. Along with flax and hemp yarns, linen yarn softens and still looks very beautiful (some would say even more beautiful!) after being washed, a good thing when used to adorn pillowcases you would like to have around for a while!...

 

 

So there you have it, my first Liberty and Linen pillowcase, which I will be stocking my Etsy shop with as of next week (I will post exactly when)... I decided on using a Bloomsbury print in a pretty colour stream with pink as the background for my first Liberty and Linen pillowcase as I find it's very soft and summery, perfect to make one daydream about the lovely season awaiting us just around the corner... I'm expecting new linen yarn samples any day now which I will be matching up with more pillowcases made from other yummy Liberty prints in different colour streams and patterns; as soon as they're done, I will show you them to you...

 

 

Thank you so much for checking up on my blog despite my latest prolonged absence -- I"m still here and very willing, just moving at a slower pace for, hopefully, not too much longer! I hope you enjoyed this post and I do hope you come by again for a visit!...