Write about a random act of kindness you’ve done for someone.
I donated my recently passed husband’s suits to Men’s Warehouse suit several summers ago, and they gave me 30% coupon. I really didn’t have any use for it or knew anyone at that moment who could use the coupon. Then I remembered as I walked into the store, I passed two young men trying on tuxedos for a wedding. That’s when I decided who would get the coupon. They were so shocked to get this out of the blue.
My husband would have loved that he helped someone look great for their wedding. He was such a clothes horse. It was a small way to remember him.
I’m so excited. I got a package in the mail from the UK. It’s my English paper-piecing (epp) kit. Kate from The Last Homely House inspired me with her hexagon quilt for her granddaughter. Here’s a link to a playlist of Kate’s hexagon quilt. Paper piecing uses a paper template as a base. The fabric is wrapped around it and stitched for stability. This kit is my first attempt at it.
I purchase a Hexagon Cushion Kit from Kate to test the waters of epp. It’s a twelve-inch pillow with an epp on the front. It’s a small enough project that wouldn’t overwhelm me to quit.
Look at all of the goodies that come in the kit. It’s so fun to get stuff from faraway places.
The kit comes with fabric from Kate’s favorite designers, Kaffe Fassett, Brandon Mably, and Phillip Jacobs, paper templates, a spool of Aurifil 50-weight thread in grey, and an instructional booklet on how to make the pillow. The kit had four colors, and I chose orange/yellow. I wanted something bright and cheery.
Kate’s quilt got me thinking about all my scraps, and I thought it would make a beautiful quilt. It could be my long-term project that I could have in the background—something to do when I got tired of my other projects—just something for me.
My paper templates are covered. The process wasn’t hard, and I did it faster than I thought. This step has passed the “dipping my toe in the water” test. Now to lay the pieces out.
I am doing the hexi shuffle to get my piece placed in an order I’m happy with.
I’ve gotten through stitching my hexi squares together. It is on temporary hold to get two patchwork quilts done. The first one is almost done, just finishing touches, and I’m thrilled to be so close to the end. The second needs a bit of restart. I don’t particularly appreciate how the quilting looks, and I need to rip out the stitching and develop a new plan of attack. Stay tuned for more epp and quilting updates.
It’s been a while since my last post. Even though I’ve been making and doing things, I thought I had nothing to post about. Yesterday I took images of what I’ve been doing in Cora’s garden. I’m sharing my progress with you.
The bougainvillea seems to like what I’m doing and has been happily blooming.
I’ve been trying to rescue Mom’s anthuriums and orchid plants. Mom rarely spends time out in her garden anymore. She has a fear of falling since her fall at the beginning of 2019. I’ve been tending the garden since, mostly watering, raking, and weeding.
Giving It a Try
The anthuriums and orchids are badly in need of repotting. I recently decided to dive in and try my hand at it. I couldn’t make it much worst. I researched what potting media was needed and mixed up a batch for the anthuriums. (Lucky for me, I discovered I could use the same mix for the orchids. Whew!)
My game plan with the anthuriums is to get them back into decent shape and rehome them to a cooler climate at a friend’s house. I started with the ones that looked the worst—giving me a chance to learn the process. Mom is no help, as her explanation makes no sense to me as an amateur gardener. She just wanted me to try and see what would happen on my own. Here’s a couple that I think I saved.
Little leaves and shoots have appeared from these leafless transplants. I knew they had some life left in them as their roots were still green. The bigger green leaves you see in the picture are my pakalana plant which is trying to take over the anthurium patch. I think I transplanted about eight plants. Half of them look like they are starting to come back. As for the other half, I’m waiting to see if something will happen. My Auntie M (the Anthurium Whisper) said to give them time.
Keikis
I can’t say Mom’s orchids are in better shape than her anthuriums. Most of her orchids have grown out of their pot size. A big clue is the plant crawling to the edge of the pot and the stems have died back.
I remember my dad making thesecement pots that the orchids are in.
Several of the dendrobiums have keikis (little ones). I read that this happens when the plant is stressed. There is no doubt that several of these plants are stress.
“If an orchid is dying, asexually producing a keiki may be its best chance at passing on its genes.
Because keikis are produced asexually, without pollination, each keiki is genetically identical to its mother plant. Once mature, they’ll have the same flowers as the mother plant.”
This orchid is definitely dying. There are several keikis on it and I’m waiting for their roots to get long enough to plant.
Mom’s orchids maybe old and bit neglected but a few of them still produce beautiful blooms.
Flowers now and soon to be.
I’ve been busy repotting and cleaning up the orchids that have outgrown their pot and planting any keikis that are ready to go. In all of this repotting madness, I do not know any of the names or have visual clues as to what color type of flowers will appear. If there were once markers in the plants, they have long gone with the elements.
Wish my repotted plants luck, I hope I can get them to bloom.
It’s been a while since I posted a Fav Pics. And I was inspired by the blooms in Cora’s garden to look back at my flower shots from my garden in NJ. All the shots are of annuals from the garden center, nothing too fancy, probably on the distress plant rack.
I loved these shots of these pink geranium buds against their velvety green leaves. The buds look like a rosebud. I tried to get a geranium every spring after Mother’s Day. I’d bring them in for the winter with hopes of them surviving till next year.
This is the self-seeding Pentas, which most likely came from the distress plant rack. They are always great to have as they keep blooming.
I bought these garlic chives, so I didn’t have to buy them from the store. They are also self-seeding, like the pentas. These flowers can be eaten, though I haven’t tried them. I used garlic chives in Oisobagi Kimchi (stuffed cucumber) recipe from No Recipe, which is so good. Or simply added to an omelet. Delicious
Here’s a sneak peek of more blooms from my stitching project I’m soon to begin. This is the Hexagon cushion kit from Kate at The Last Homely House. This is an English paper piecing (epp) project, my first. I’m using it as a gauge to see if I enjoy doing epp. Kate made a beautiful quilt for her granddaughter that inspired me to try out this kit. I hope I like.
This is where I stand with my WIP. I like to work on multiple projects at a time. It helps me not to be bored. For me, boredom equals mistakes, and mistakes mean ripping work out. It is always frustrating to go backward. I am trying not to put down a project too long so I don’t lose the flow. It’s hard to get back into a project. I think this is why I like to knit hats and mitts. I can get through them quickly without too many distractions.
Zig Zag pillow
My current distraction is Matthew Schrank’s Zig Zag pillow from Noro Knitting Magazine #17, made with 2 colorways of Kureyon. I dreamed of working on a colorful project, and this pattern fills the bill. I love how the two colorways are playing out in this pattern. I just pulled the colorways that I had 2 skeins of. I’ve loved it since cast-on.
Starting with purple was a happy beginning.
Travel Mini Blanket/Shawl
This Travel Mini Blanket/Shawl pattern by Sue Keola was an unfinished project gifted to me. The project came with beautiful deep green lace weight yarn, a circular needle (I think it’s an Addis), stitch markers, and needle caps that look like socks. I continued with the shawl as the lace pattern wasn’t too complex. Well, I guess I was wrong. I found a bunch of mistakes and ended up spending so much time unknitting. And then I dropped half a row of stitches and lost the red sock needle cap somewhere in my unknitting process. This is probably where I decided to take the whole thing apart and start from the beginning.
I was making significant headway, and I’m past where I was when I ripped it apart.
Left: where I’m at now; Middle: new cast-on; Right: the unfinished project
Hawaiian quilt potholders
I’m working on another gifted unfinished project. Two Hawaiian quilt potholders that I’m unsure what plant/flower they are. I’m using these as practice stitching. I wish I knew what plant/flower this design is. It would help with my stitching pattern. I will wing it and do what I think looks the best.
Any thoughts on what plant/flower this design could be?
Hippy Slouchy bag
I picked up this Hippy Slouchy bag from the thrift shop. It was a mess, with holes and stains inside and out. But something about it spoke to me, and I decided to pick it up and give it a go with slow stitching and mending techniques.
I started on the inside covering up the stains with stitches. I love how the mending of the fraying seam looks.
Princess Hot Flash 