In which she tromps through the garden with a loaf of bread and a bottle of kombucha

I opened a bottle of strawberry kombucha this morning. The lid came off with a Bang! and the strawberries swam their way to freedom on a wave of foam. Fortunately a bowl waited in anticipation of their escape and caught them before they could make a swimming pool of the counter.

Note: Kombucha devours berries, leaving them devoid of color and the fermenting tea full of bubbles.
Also note: Candied ginger and strawberry flavored kombucha is particularly tasty.

The planned fascination of the year was to be woodwork. Instead it is Turkish coffee, gardening, fermentation, and bread.
The Turkish coffee has yet to foam properly. Meanwhile traditional Arabic music improves the atmosphere.

I have read that gardening is a forgiving process but is it I or the carrots who are to do the forgiving if the seeds refuse to sprout? A maple tree and salvia bush have sprouted in the front yard without asking permission. 

As it happens, the carrots are the only shy ones thus far and the rest of the garden is behaving itself in a satisfactory, though not predictable fashion.

Young basil sprouts ready for planting

For the first time since I started baking bread, I heeded the instructions to dust the peel with rice flour. Ah, the joy! Ah, the understanding! when the dough slid easily off the slab of wood instead of holding on for dear life! I am a changed baker.

Books Christina Read in 2012

A list of books I read in 2012, with occasional frequent comments. 

The 100 Cupboards Trilogy (N.D.Wilson)
A fantasy trilogy set (mostly) in Kansas. It draws attention to the little things--that may not be so insignificant after all.

Dragon's Tooth (N.D.Wilson)
As much as I liked the 100 Cupboards, this one (in my opinion) is even better. The references to multiple historical and mythological figures successfully aroused my curiosity and sent me on a mission to know these fascinating people.

The Drowned Vault (N.D.Wilson)
*Warning: Spoilers* Why does the bad-guy get away? Now I have to read the next book!

Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm (Kate Wiggin)

Redwall (Brian Jaques)
I have to wonder why Jaques bothered to write about mice at all. They could very easily have been humans. This is not so true of the birds--I enjoyed the language he developed for them. 

The Black Tulip (Dumas)
I was surprised to find that this book really is about a black tulip. Or, more specifically, about the development of the black tulip, and a man who was thwarted in his attempt to do so. 

A Matter of Magic (Patricia C. Wrede)
Probably my favorite out of the books I read last year. I laughed almost as much as I would have with a Wodehouse, and the back-street London slang added a lot of character to the protagonist.

Very Good, Jeeves! (Wodehouse)

If I were You (Wodehouse)
Best thing ever! 

Stepping Heavenward (Elizabeth Prentiss)

French Lessons: Adventures with the Knife, Fork, and Corkscrew (Peter Mayle)
I shall certainly read more of Mayle's writings--food and a good deal of humor, what could be better?

Kim (Kipling)

Bonhoeffer: Paster, Martyr, Prophet, Spy (Eric Metaxis)

The Tale of Despereaux (Kate DiKamillo)
A charming and heroic children's fairy tale... that is somewhat spoiled by swearing--in French, of course, but is there really a difference?

Northanger Abbey (Jane Austen)

The Kitchen Counter Cooking School (Kathleen Flinn)

The Final Problem (Doyle)

Snow White and Red Rose (Patricia C. Wrede)
I was curious about this story, and while it was fun to read, by the time I got to the end I had to ask the question: is 'Snow White' really worth being re-told? The answer is 'no'.

13 books for 2013

 Christina's List

Comedy

Ukridge (Wodehouse)

Wodehouse is always funny. I trust that this novel will not disappoint.

Nicholas Nickleby (Dickens)

This will be my second Dickens novel.
 

Adventure

The Regent’s Daughter or Louise de la Valliere (Dumas) 

A different Dumas, or more of the three musketeers? I will finish The Vicomte de Bragelonne and then decide. 

Treasure Island (Stevenson)

Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea (Verne)

I purchased a copy of this book for $0.25--a good reason to read it even if I didn't already like Verne's writings.

Historical Fiction

The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Hugo)

I have long been curious about this story, and will now read it for myself.

Romance

The Scarlet Letter (Hawthorne)

Philosophical Novel

The Brothers Karamazov  (Dostoevsky)

I've joined a group on goodreads that reads and discusses the classics together. This month's assignment is The Brothers Karamazov. 

Theology

Embracing the Love of God (J.B. Smith)

The Imitation of Christ (Kempis)

Many false starts later, I will actually read--and finish this book!

Ethics (Bonhoeffer)

After recently finishing a biography of Bonhoeffer, I've been keen to read some of his works.

Biography

Surprised by Joy (Lewis)

Writing

Wordsmithy: Hot Tips for the Writing Life (Wilson)

My sister mentioned this book in her list of books to read. Being a writer myself--how could I resist?

The sewing machine ate my homework....

Having been reunited with my sewing machine in February, we have since become good friends. In fact, as a result, the kitchen and I are now at some slight enmity (I think the bench scraper is jealous).

These are the creations that have been keeping me busy:

I've wanted to try crazy quilting for some time and finally decided to try the technique on a cushion.

Easy enough, though a tad time consuming. I arranged the scraps on a circle of interfacing and hand basted each piece before crazy stitching all over the whole piece.

Purses are also something I've been yearning to try my hand at. Inspiration struck, and this is the bag that was formed. The bottom section that was originally gathered merely for looks became a zippered pocket (zipper is positioned on the side), the perfect size for a small novel.

Later, I made a few alterations to the design (actually lining that zippered pocket was one of them), and created this--which happened, to my delight, to match the dress I wore on Resurrection Day.

I never know what to do with the back of a purse-- should it be plain, or decorated in some way? I envisioned a flower on the back of this one, so after sketching it on the fabric with a fabric marker, I back stitched it on. One of the few times something has turned out exactly the way I imagined it.

Embroidery is a skill I'd love to cultivate more. I got plenty of practice with the satin stitch on the following item.

I love that pillow. :)


I needed a gift for a friend of mine who recently had a birthday and so I made this mini clutch-like bag for her. It's about the perfect size for storing bookmarks (that's what I would use it for) or for storing a comb and other essentials inside a larger purse.

In Which my Sewing Machine and I are Reunited.

So. This is to catch up on a few sewing projects that are long overdue for a spot on this blog, as well as some newly finished items.

First, some stuffed animals made from recycled t-shirts, socks and other such things, hand- stitched last summer.

This is a frog made out of a t-shirt.

Ok. I know it doesn't look like a frog, but that's what it's supposed to be, and (if I recall correctly) it was the first project in the book, Sew Me, Love Me by Hsiu-Lan Kuei. I like the wobbly button-bead eyes.













The following adorable item is made from a pair of my brother's outgrown dress socks, a yellow camisole and some fabric from my stash.

SO soft and cuddly.

Then I made this doggie, the perfect addition to any tea party. The other side of her face (not pictured) has a wide awake beaded eye.

And now to more recent creations.

To be quite honest, I don't like this fabric at all. Rows of cats wearing sunglasses. Seriously? But my opinion of the fabric was improved a bit after said material was turned into an apron with green rickrack-lined pink insets and waistband. What dost thou think, my readers?

A recent trip to the library found me bringing home a massive stack of cookbooks, sewing books, and two classic novels, (A Tale of Two Cities and Nicholas Nickleby). Flipping through The Perfect Handmade Bag, this bucket shaped owl bag from the "kid's bags" section caught my eye and I fell in love.
The tree and leaves are appliqued on, leaving part of the hole open in which to insert the little owl.

I didn't actually have enough of any fabric to make the entire bag, so I pieced what I did have together, and am pleased with the result. (On examination you will see a seam across the middle of the bag, and another one through the tree.)

I wanted the inside to have a pocket, so I added one (pictured [not very well] below).

On of my favorite parts of making this bag, was realizing that homemade bags can have a cute little handmade tag. I was delighted with the idea of a little french-knotted tree on either side of the tag, and got started. Problem: No matter how I tried, I could not make a french knot. After much trial and error, aggravation, and looking at several books (all with different methods for accomplishing this feat of french knotting), my mommy sat me down and showed me one more time, slowly, the way to make a french knot. I'm afraid I cannot duplicate what she showed me in words, but all I know is that it worked. And the results? See for yourself.































The last feature of this bag before moving on to the final projects is the button on the back. The purpose? To make everything inside stay inside.


I was looking at Sew Sunny Homestyle (a book which, the more I look at it, the more I like the ideas inside it), and saw a pattern for some jewelry mannequins. I'd been looking for a new way to store jewelry-- it looks like this will be it.

My (very nice) older brother took some time from studying to make me the stands on which the mannequins are mounted.
Which is your favorite?

The first one is trimmed with a bit of "lace" from my collection and the second with some gathered ribbon.









On last thing: This is an owl I made when I was in Australia, visiting my sister and brother-in-law. My sweet sister gave me a little kit with felt, thread, buttons and a pattern for Sinterklaas Eve.
She found a picture on pinterest which led to the pattern, here.

And between uploading photos and writing I've just finished another one. :) Pictures later.

Aprons

I recently went through an "apron phase" and thought I would share pictures of the aprons that I made. I will always love the way a pleated apron looks-- so crisp and smooth, yet with a feminine ruffle to it. This one was made with what scraps of fabric I had laying around (thus the unusual fabric combination).
Speaking of ruffles...
This light blue apron took a while to make because of the time it took to gather the ruffles, but I was pleased with the outcome.
This is my "hostess" apron. The lace encompassing the edges was tea-dyed to match the fabric.

I enjoy making half-aprons because they don't require any binding. The insets in this one give it more fullness.
One of my favorite features of this apron are the pockets (positioned at the top of each inset). Since they are made with the same fabric as the rest of the apron, they are rendered almost invisible.
And my favorite apron...
The fabric is so colorful that it matches anything! And it has rick-rack-- which is always fun. And paisleys. I love paisleys.

Thank you for reading! Which apron is your favorite?

Simple Woman's Daybook

For Monday, February 28, 2011

Outside My Window... I am presently in the basement, and therefore, there are no windows in sight.

I am thinking... that it's lovely to start one's day with breakfast in bed, while listening to Andrea Bocelli's operatic arias, and reading Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew .

I am thankful for... love and patience.

From the kitchen... the clatter of dishes being washed.

I am wearing... a mismatched collection of pajamas. Yes, at 1 in the afternoon.

I am creating... an apron-- so excited about it-- and I have many ideas for future projects, including some bags and totes, and hopefully a purse or two. And some more aprons. I love aprons.

I am going... to step out into the warm morning air soon.

I am reading... Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott, Under the Sea Wind by Rachel Carson, The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare, When People are big and God is Small by Edward T. Welch, & Guidance and the Voice of God by Phillip D. Jensen and Tony Payne.

I am hoping... to see Josh Groban this spring!

I am hearing... the parakeets singing upstairs.

Around the house... the time for spring cleaning approaches!

One of my favourite things... spending time with friends and talking about books while we sew, bake, or do other fun things.

A few plans for the rest of the week: Read books, write letters, sew, practice violin, and prepare for my final orchestra concert this Saturday.

Here is picture thought I am sharing... a renaissance shirt and cape I made, donned by my brother and a friend.

Thanks to the Simple Woman for hosting this.