I Keep Clean Wearing an Apron

Yesterday's afternoon class was a holiday apron. What really made me want to take this session, however, was this silly little , little apron! The apron and little apron were printed on a fabric panel. We cut them out and then lined them with a coordinating fabric to make them reversible. Even the little one can be used on either side! It could fit a doll, but I think it looks great on the Joy soap bottle - the bottle even fills out the top! It is so silly and goofy. Now I am thinking I need to make more little aprons...wine bottles need them, liquid hand soap containers need them. I am sure this new production of mini me cover ups will really make my children wonder about my sanity. How many would you like to order for Christmas gifts? On our new wood floor update: this morning I noticed the floor( the NEW hardwood floor) in front of the fridge was slightly warped. Yep. The fridge was leaking enough from the ice maker hook up that the floor got wet and warped. Very bummed. Have no idea what next. So, tomorrow when we go in to pay for the floor, we will need to order two more boxes of wood and set up a time for the installer to come in, tear up, and put new boards down. This is not good. Jerilynn

Where Have All the Handknit Scarves Gone?

In the evening I like sitting in my Red Chair and knitting. My sewing room is in the lower level and I just like being up here, half listening to/watching the tv, maybe having a little glass of wine, talking to Carl about the day. For many months I was on a cotton yarn dishcloth knitting kick - until my kids threatened to put me in a washcloth rehab unit. So, now I am knitting other things, mostly all small projects because it keeps my interest. The latest projects are out of an interesting wool yarn, Zitron Opus 1, mit Aloe and Jojoba (made in Germany, of course). It is a super soft yarn, and maybe I should have found some slipper sock pattern. The yarn would have been wonderful on my feet! But, the hat is done, and the scarf is getting there. The hat is a basic rolled brim hat from here. The scarf is an open, repeating pattern from the wonderful book, Scarf Style, by Pam Allen. I bought that book a few years ago, and just recently looked at it again, and found several wonderful possibilities for the Red Chair times. When I went to pull a scarf out of the scarf basket the other day, I only found "store bought" ones....where did the handknit ones go??? I think I have been "gifting" them as I get a compliment. I must stop that bad habit if I want to be stylish in handknits this winter! By the way, the wooden hutch that you see in the lefthand corner doesn't normally live across from the Red Chair. Our floor is not yet done, so we have an interesting mix of kitchen/breakfast room/dining room stuff everywhere. Good news is that the parts of the floor that are already done are really pretty. Youngest son Peter came over tonight and said "Oh, oh." We all knew what he meant. Jerilynn

Cotton Theory Rug

My neighbor at the cabin, Betty, is a certified Cotton Theory Teacher and I took a class at her

house to make a rug. I picked out some bright fabrics (of course!) and some striped fabrics that would give an overall look of a rag rug. You can't really tell from the photo, but the white-looking fabric has a black stripe and that really makes it look like the string running through a rug from a loom. Not really up on my weaving terms, oops. The fun thing about Cotton Theory stuff is that they are reversible, so when I bloop something on the rug, I can turn it over for more floor time before hitting the wash. It is made just from cotton, with a cotton blend batting. It washes beautifully. How do you like the floor that it is on? Well, say good-bye to that floor! Our old fridge sprung a leak sometime last summer while we were at the cabin. The floor in a wide area around the accident zone has the grain of the wood very raised. Not so comfy on bare feet. Of course the floor is old enough that it can't be repaired, so we need to tear up all the wood in the kitchen, breakfast room, dining room, and entry. Fun! We decided to wait until after my sister is gone (she is here for a month) because the kitchen will be out of order for a couple of days. It should look nice and new by the time the holidays roll around. The fridge? Had to replace it...boy, those things aren't cheap! The rug, however, did not get ruined at all - still the star of the kitchen! Happy sewing. Jerilynn