Thursday, May 16, 2013
Wool Dryer Balls
I happened upon another blog in which the blogger talked about making dryer balls out of wool yarn. I had never heard that people have used wool in the dryer to fluff the clothes and eliminate the need for dryer sheets. Well, that is all the information I needed to search the internet until I happened upon some simple instructions for creating my own dryer balls. Here is a photo of 3 of the 9 I made. This is a fast project, although it did take some time to wash and dry on "hot" after making 1/2 of the balls, then wash and dry when they were finished to completely shrink/felt them. I made 3 for me and 3 each for my daughter and daughter-in-law. If you are intested, just google "wool dryer balls" and you will find instructions. The inportant thing is that THEY WORK!!
Saturday, May 4, 2013
Ambulances and Aid Cars
My heart skipped a beat last night. We had our friends, Don and Mary, over for dinner and as we were sitting at the patio table outside chatting before having dinner, we heard a siren off in the distance. Since we now live in an over 55 community we all joked that maybe it was coming here. We listened as the siren got closer and closer, then stopped. Phew! But moments later the aid car pulled into our community. Our patio faces the only entrance to our community so we see everything! The aid car went down the road, turned around and turned into our cul-de-sac! OH NO! That was when my heart skipped a beat! Since there are only 4 homes on our tiny street, I figured it had to be going to the home of our wonderful neighbors who are both over 90. They just celebrated their 70th anniversary!
Thankfully, the aid car backed out and went toward the gate but stopped at another home. I have met those elder folks but don't really know them. We couldn't see through our rhododendrons whether they took someone to the hospital but it wasn't long before the aid car drove off with no siren blaring. So I calmed down and we all went on with our conversation and soon came into the house to eat dinner.
When you live in a community of elders, you know that the reality is that people will get sick and at some point die. We have the firetruck and aid cars in here on a fairly regular basis. I have taken the time to get to know several of the 250 homeowners in this community. We try to attend the breakfasts that Arlo hosts 3 or 4 times a year, I play pinochle with 7 other ladies twice a month and I play bunco with eleven ladies once a month. A lovely woman who lived kitty-corner to us was in a nursing facility for 3 months shortly after we had moved in here. When I saw that she was back I went over and visited her, drove out to get her medication from the store and bring her dinner. Three days later the aid car was, not-surprisingly, at her home. I watched and waited until I saw the ambulance arrive and they brought the stretcher out to take her to the hospital. Then I walked across the street and talked to the medics. I was greeted at the door by one medic who said "Are you Sandy? Sandy Young?" Gulp! They figured it must be me because this dear lady doesn't have any friends close by and since I had told her that Dave and I were nearby if she needed anything, I became her contact person. I visited her in the hospital and thankfully her only child flew in from France and stayed for a month keeping tabs on her and getting her settled permanently in a local nursing home.
Because of the aid car showing up in our community, Mary and I started talking about the elders in our churches and how they are not really cared for properly. For about five years we attended the church that they go to and know many of the people there. Thankfully we are still on the their prayer chain and receive emails regularly. Mary told me about an older couple (the husband died about a month ago) who would have benefited so much with visits from people from the congregation. Older people, especially if they don't have realtives nearby, can live lonely lives. I don't think people mean to overlook them, but after all, just what do we have in common??
Dave and I have always enjoyed being in the company of elders. Many of our closest friends are in their 70's and 80's. But not everyone is older. Mary and Don are a few years younger than we are and we fellowship with lots of folks our own age. I wonder if people are reluctant to befriend the elderly because they know that heartache and death is not that far off? Is it a reminder that we, too, will find ourselves in that situation and we just don't want to think about it? Whatever it is.....it shouldn't be!
My friend, Judy, and I have made a habit of visiting widows within our church body. We have had some wonderful conversations and it made us both very sad to hear from one lady...."you are the only ones from church who have ever paid me a visit." It made us both chuckle but also sad when we visited some ladies about 10 years ago (almost all have passed on) and when we arrived at the scheduled time, we were quizzed a bit. "Did the church send you to spy on me?" "Why are you visiting me?" We realized very quickly that no one had been reaching out to these dear widows who so needed to be cared about.They just figured we certainly weren't coming without an agenda!!
The incident that probably caused me to want to reach out to the elderly happened years ago. When I was about 23 years old and living temporarily in San Diego when Dave was stationed at Balboa Naval Hospital, we lived in the upstairs of a family's home. Next door two old ladies lived alone. One day when I was outside, one of the ladies chatted with me and asked me if I would consider being her "daughter" at the Mother Daughter Tea at her church in a couple of weeks. I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW HER!! I felt so sad that this lady didn't have a daughter and had to resort to asking me, someone she didn't know, to accompany her. I said yes. With a bit of apprehension I attended the tea with this sweet little lady. So, early in my adult life I saw the need to befriend the elderly and consider it a joy to have the opportunity to brighten their life a bit.
My question to you is, "are you seeking out those elder folks in your neighborhood or your church and offering friendship and concern?" You won't regret it!! And they will feel blessed.
Thankfully, the aid car backed out and went toward the gate but stopped at another home. I have met those elder folks but don't really know them. We couldn't see through our rhododendrons whether they took someone to the hospital but it wasn't long before the aid car drove off with no siren blaring. So I calmed down and we all went on with our conversation and soon came into the house to eat dinner.
When you live in a community of elders, you know that the reality is that people will get sick and at some point die. We have the firetruck and aid cars in here on a fairly regular basis. I have taken the time to get to know several of the 250 homeowners in this community. We try to attend the breakfasts that Arlo hosts 3 or 4 times a year, I play pinochle with 7 other ladies twice a month and I play bunco with eleven ladies once a month. A lovely woman who lived kitty-corner to us was in a nursing facility for 3 months shortly after we had moved in here. When I saw that she was back I went over and visited her, drove out to get her medication from the store and bring her dinner. Three days later the aid car was, not-surprisingly, at her home. I watched and waited until I saw the ambulance arrive and they brought the stretcher out to take her to the hospital. Then I walked across the street and talked to the medics. I was greeted at the door by one medic who said "Are you Sandy? Sandy Young?" Gulp! They figured it must be me because this dear lady doesn't have any friends close by and since I had told her that Dave and I were nearby if she needed anything, I became her contact person. I visited her in the hospital and thankfully her only child flew in from France and stayed for a month keeping tabs on her and getting her settled permanently in a local nursing home.
Because of the aid car showing up in our community, Mary and I started talking about the elders in our churches and how they are not really cared for properly. For about five years we attended the church that they go to and know many of the people there. Thankfully we are still on the their prayer chain and receive emails regularly. Mary told me about an older couple (the husband died about a month ago) who would have benefited so much with visits from people from the congregation. Older people, especially if they don't have realtives nearby, can live lonely lives. I don't think people mean to overlook them, but after all, just what do we have in common??
Dave and I have always enjoyed being in the company of elders. Many of our closest friends are in their 70's and 80's. But not everyone is older. Mary and Don are a few years younger than we are and we fellowship with lots of folks our own age. I wonder if people are reluctant to befriend the elderly because they know that heartache and death is not that far off? Is it a reminder that we, too, will find ourselves in that situation and we just don't want to think about it? Whatever it is.....it shouldn't be!
My friend, Judy, and I have made a habit of visiting widows within our church body. We have had some wonderful conversations and it made us both very sad to hear from one lady...."you are the only ones from church who have ever paid me a visit." It made us both chuckle but also sad when we visited some ladies about 10 years ago (almost all have passed on) and when we arrived at the scheduled time, we were quizzed a bit. "Did the church send you to spy on me?" "Why are you visiting me?" We realized very quickly that no one had been reaching out to these dear widows who so needed to be cared about.They just figured we certainly weren't coming without an agenda!!
The incident that probably caused me to want to reach out to the elderly happened years ago. When I was about 23 years old and living temporarily in San Diego when Dave was stationed at Balboa Naval Hospital, we lived in the upstairs of a family's home. Next door two old ladies lived alone. One day when I was outside, one of the ladies chatted with me and asked me if I would consider being her "daughter" at the Mother Daughter Tea at her church in a couple of weeks. I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW HER!! I felt so sad that this lady didn't have a daughter and had to resort to asking me, someone she didn't know, to accompany her. I said yes. With a bit of apprehension I attended the tea with this sweet little lady. So, early in my adult life I saw the need to befriend the elderly and consider it a joy to have the opportunity to brighten their life a bit.
My question to you is, "are you seeking out those elder folks in your neighborhood or your church and offering friendship and concern?" You won't regret it!! And they will feel blessed.
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Homemade Garden Flowers
I've been working bit by bit on these glass flowers. We had a speaker at one of our garden club meetings a few months ago who taught us how to make this type of flower out of glassware that we could find at the local thrift shop. It wasn't easy to find glass bowls and such that would stack together and sort of look like a flower! AND ones that were cheap enough for this project. But I kept searching until I had pretty much what I wanted.
The trick to this is to ONLY use a silicone based glue. I used LocTite Plumber/Marine Clear Adhesive. It will stand up to the rain and cold. I also used some paint pens (made to use on glass) to lend some color on the clear pieces. The pink on the left plate is from a paint pen, as are the pink "flowers" on the clear glass insert in the turquoise flower. The orange trim around the smallest flower is also paint. I baked FIMO for the centers of the flowers and glued in wires with beads on the ends for the stamens. You need to look pretty closely to see them in the photo.
I'm not sure how much I like them....I'm not fond of the square one, but was giving up on finding another plate. You can use bone china, porcelain, stoneware or earthenware. If you use terra cotta, you definitely need to move it to the garage or it will crumble and break like terra cotta does in the winter!
I suppose I will just wait and see if someone steals these before I invest any more time and money in this project. I was rather worried about placing these out further toward the street because before we moved here last spring, I set a beautiful new hosta out in a huge pot so that it would be here and ready for me when I returned to plant it. It was Miother's Day weekend and voila! Gone! I really wondered then what we had gotten ourselves into in moving here!! Aside from that little glitch, we are very happy that we downsized. And I'm very happy that I still have some flower beds to play in and that there was room for the most important items that I use for sewing and crafting.
The trick to this is to ONLY use a silicone based glue. I used LocTite Plumber/Marine Clear Adhesive. It will stand up to the rain and cold. I also used some paint pens (made to use on glass) to lend some color on the clear pieces. The pink on the left plate is from a paint pen, as are the pink "flowers" on the clear glass insert in the turquoise flower. The orange trim around the smallest flower is also paint. I baked FIMO for the centers of the flowers and glued in wires with beads on the ends for the stamens. You need to look pretty closely to see them in the photo.
I'm not sure how much I like them....I'm not fond of the square one, but was giving up on finding another plate. You can use bone china, porcelain, stoneware or earthenware. If you use terra cotta, you definitely need to move it to the garage or it will crumble and break like terra cotta does in the winter!
I suppose I will just wait and see if someone steals these before I invest any more time and money in this project. I was rather worried about placing these out further toward the street because before we moved here last spring, I set a beautiful new hosta out in a huge pot so that it would be here and ready for me when I returned to plant it. It was Miother's Day weekend and voila! Gone! I really wondered then what we had gotten ourselves into in moving here!! Aside from that little glitch, we are very happy that we downsized. And I'm very happy that I still have some flower beds to play in and that there was room for the most important items that I use for sewing and crafting.
LIFE IS GOOD!!
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Rough hands and feet??
It's time to soften them up. A nice sugar scrub should do the trick. I've tried the ones that they sell at places like Bath and Body Works. They work well, but at $14-$16 it's just way more than I want to spend. Besides I'm a do-it-yourselfer. For a fraction of the cost you can make your own, like I did. My hands are so soft after using this on them just once.
Measurements don't have to be exact, but what you will need is:
1 Cup of granulated sugar (better on your skin than in your tummy)
1 Cup of oil (olive, grape seed, corn oil, etc.)
at least 4 drops of essential oils (I used orange)
Simply combine everything in a glass bowl. Mix together with a spoon and transfer to a glass jar. Keep this in your bathroom and when you are ready to use it, use a small spoon to mix and put a small amount in your hand. Rub into your hands or feet (or elbows!) for about one minute. Pause for about 3 minutes and then rinse with warm water. Pat dry.
A metal measuring spoon would be perfect for scooping the proper amount out, so tomorrow I will go to my local thrift store and buy one. Don't use plastic! That's why I want a stainless steel measuring teaspoon....it will be short enough to keep in the jar.
And if your hubby has rough hands, have him use this too! Enjoy!
Measurements don't have to be exact, but what you will need is:
1 Cup of granulated sugar (better on your skin than in your tummy)
1 Cup of oil (olive, grape seed, corn oil, etc.)
at least 4 drops of essential oils (I used orange)
Simply combine everything in a glass bowl. Mix together with a spoon and transfer to a glass jar. Keep this in your bathroom and when you are ready to use it, use a small spoon to mix and put a small amount in your hand. Rub into your hands or feet (or elbows!) for about one minute. Pause for about 3 minutes and then rinse with warm water. Pat dry.
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| I used GrapeOla Grape Seed Oil because it is all natural and contains Omega 6 and Vitamin E. I have made other lotions in past years and have added Vitamin E so this made sense to me! Notice that BIG Tupperware container full of sugar. I have one like it for flour. I've used these for probably 30 years and they are still going strong! |
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| I used to make soap. Preferably goat's milk soap, hence all the essential oils. If you don't use a good quality essential oil you will need to add more drops to make it fragrant, so splurge for the good stuff. I have some good and some not so great oils. Best place to buy your oils is online. |
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| Now wasn't that easy?? |
And if your hubby has rough hands, have him use this too! Enjoy!
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Sewing
I've had lots of hobbies over the years. Some I've lost interest in or life has taken me in other directions. Not sewing! Ever since purchasing my first sewing machine right after graduating from high school, I have never left this love for too long a time. My mom had an old black Singer sewing machine that she used to make me lots of clothes when I was a child. I remember sewing on it when I was taking Home Ec (why did schools discontinue offering this??) in junior high (now middle school) to make my mom a size 10 fitted black wool dress, completely lined, with a zipper in the back. The biggest memory for me now is that it FIT!! AND she actually wore it!
Of course, my first sewing machine had to be a Singer. That seemed to be the standard back in those days. Mine was a nice 646 Touch-a-Matic. I found this photo online of the instruction manual.
Since that handy machine, I have upgrated a few times. In the mid 70's I got a wonderful Viking machine that had cams that you could stick in the back of the machine for more stitch pattern options. I loved that machine because it was heavy duty! Sewing through multi-layers of denim or leather was no problem! It was manufactured in several colors other than brown. I searched around online to find this photo:
Then in 1985 I was able to purchase a lovely Pfaff Creative 1473 that had lots of other stitches displayed under that "lid" and had another attachment that you could plug into it to stitch out a simple pattern that you drew. I LOVED the integrated walking food which would keep two layers of fabric from sliding apart when you sewed them together. The machine looked like this:
For several years I threatened that once I saw grandkids in my future I would need an embroidery machine. So once again I got the bug to upgrade (kind of like wanting a new car!) and in 2004 I purchased a Baby Lock sewing/embroidery machine Here is a photo of it with the "top" (that covers the thread) removed:
This machine required a new table to accommodate the embroidery attachment and a handy lift so I can easily raise the level of the machine to use as an embroidery machine. It is hard to believe that I have owned this machine for 9 years! I have thoroughly enjoyed each of the machines I have owned. The manufacturers keep coming up with new bells and whistles to entice sewing enthusiasts! Of course, I don't have room, nor do I want to spend the $$$ on a designated "quilting" machine that will more easily quilt the layers of a quilt together with beautiful stitching.
With all the machine upgrades and sewing I have done to keep my creative juices going , one would think I would have been better served to just purchase a sewing machine store! Or a fabric store.
Here is my rant for the day. When I think back to that Viking machine, I am saddened by the fact that they just don't make many machines these days that are as solidly built as it was. Now we see plastic on the outside, plastic on the inside, and we're told to bring it in once a year for it's annual "going over." My mom NEVER took her machine in to be serviced! And it ran fine. Maybe I'm just subtly telling myself that I should have kept that old Viking. It sure was pretty! But the prices go up and quality goes down.
I do love my Baby Lock machine (and serger with the jet air treading system) but I still have that nagging feeling that maybe I should have at some point plunked down the extra $$$ for a Bernina. Now those machines are solid as a rock! I have always felt that they were overpriced and not quite up to having the latest bells and whistles. Bernina is sort of the Mercedes of sewing machines. I had an opportunity to try out the Bernina 830 while making a zippered cosmetic bag for Kari for her birthday. Wow! I was impressed! Here is a picture of the Bernina 830:
This machine has a jumbo size embroidery hoop which I don't see offered with other brands. It also has a built-in stitch regulator which I LOVED!! This gives even stitches when doing free motion embroidery. It also had the ability to use a special foot (for extra $$) that would clamp on a permanent marker pen and it would print out a pattern with the pen! Another special attachment (extra $$) easily creates a pattern for putting a design with crystals on your fabric. If you are looking to purchase a machine and spending a bit extra is no problem, you might want to look at Bernina. I think their technology has caught up to that in other machines and passed them up. My only complaint is that the screen is awfully tiny. I haven't been bothered by my screen being off to the right, but I understand that some folks get frustrated with it off to the side and Bernina has taken those complaints seriously. It is easier to see it when it is right in front of your eyeballs!
Here is that cosmetic bag that I sewed for Kari:
Here is the latest quilt that I have been working on for one of my granddaughter's preschool auction. I'm tired of working on it and yet my DD says it needs more flowers at the top. Maybe tomorrow I will add those and then get it layered and quilted and bound. I've put in hours upon hours and am ready to move on!!
While I'm at it, here is a wall hanging that I recently made for my sister-in-law, Jill:
And here are some kitchen towels that I embroidered and given as gifts:
Of course, my first sewing machine had to be a Singer. That seemed to be the standard back in those days. Mine was a nice 646 Touch-a-Matic. I found this photo online of the instruction manual.
Since that handy machine, I have upgrated a few times. In the mid 70's I got a wonderful Viking machine that had cams that you could stick in the back of the machine for more stitch pattern options. I loved that machine because it was heavy duty! Sewing through multi-layers of denim or leather was no problem! It was manufactured in several colors other than brown. I searched around online to find this photo:
Then in 1985 I was able to purchase a lovely Pfaff Creative 1473 that had lots of other stitches displayed under that "lid" and had another attachment that you could plug into it to stitch out a simple pattern that you drew. I LOVED the integrated walking food which would keep two layers of fabric from sliding apart when you sewed them together. The machine looked like this:
For several years I threatened that once I saw grandkids in my future I would need an embroidery machine. So once again I got the bug to upgrade (kind of like wanting a new car!) and in 2004 I purchased a Baby Lock sewing/embroidery machine Here is a photo of it with the "top" (that covers the thread) removed:
This machine required a new table to accommodate the embroidery attachment and a handy lift so I can easily raise the level of the machine to use as an embroidery machine. It is hard to believe that I have owned this machine for 9 years! I have thoroughly enjoyed each of the machines I have owned. The manufacturers keep coming up with new bells and whistles to entice sewing enthusiasts! Of course, I don't have room, nor do I want to spend the $$$ on a designated "quilting" machine that will more easily quilt the layers of a quilt together with beautiful stitching.
With all the machine upgrades and sewing I have done to keep my creative juices going , one would think I would have been better served to just purchase a sewing machine store! Or a fabric store.
Here is my rant for the day. When I think back to that Viking machine, I am saddened by the fact that they just don't make many machines these days that are as solidly built as it was. Now we see plastic on the outside, plastic on the inside, and we're told to bring it in once a year for it's annual "going over." My mom NEVER took her machine in to be serviced! And it ran fine. Maybe I'm just subtly telling myself that I should have kept that old Viking. It sure was pretty! But the prices go up and quality goes down.
I do love my Baby Lock machine (and serger with the jet air treading system) but I still have that nagging feeling that maybe I should have at some point plunked down the extra $$$ for a Bernina. Now those machines are solid as a rock! I have always felt that they were overpriced and not quite up to having the latest bells and whistles. Bernina is sort of the Mercedes of sewing machines. I had an opportunity to try out the Bernina 830 while making a zippered cosmetic bag for Kari for her birthday. Wow! I was impressed! Here is a picture of the Bernina 830:
This machine has a jumbo size embroidery hoop which I don't see offered with other brands. It also has a built-in stitch regulator which I LOVED!! This gives even stitches when doing free motion embroidery. It also had the ability to use a special foot (for extra $$) that would clamp on a permanent marker pen and it would print out a pattern with the pen! Another special attachment (extra $$) easily creates a pattern for putting a design with crystals on your fabric. If you are looking to purchase a machine and spending a bit extra is no problem, you might want to look at Bernina. I think their technology has caught up to that in other machines and passed them up. My only complaint is that the screen is awfully tiny. I haven't been bothered by my screen being off to the right, but I understand that some folks get frustrated with it off to the side and Bernina has taken those complaints seriously. It is easier to see it when it is right in front of your eyeballs!
Here is that cosmetic bag that I sewed for Kari:
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| Note that the heart design was done with permanent pen and the design for the crystals was also done on the machine. |
While I'm at it, here is a wall hanging that I recently made for my sister-in-law, Jill:
And here are some kitchen towels that I embroidered and given as gifts:
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| I also made that jazzy ironing board cover to spruce up my craft room. It almost makes ironing tolerable!! |
Monday, March 11, 2013
Hellebore Tea 2013
Yesterday was the annual tea at Lake Wilderness Lodge. Our table mates gathered together twice over the past month to plan what our table theme would be and who would be providing what. Once again this year we were pleased to have the owner of Countryside Floral in Issaquah help us out with our centerpiece and he rented the table lines and chair covers for us. Jon is a very talented floral artist and did an amazing job with the massive tall centerpieces and the roses on the chair backs. We did win first place for table design. The event was judged by Marianne Binetti, horticulture expert and author of several garden books. THANK YOU JON!!
We are also blessed to have such great cooks in our group. What yummy treats we all enjoyed. We all got filled up for sure! Enjoy all the photos! Here are some shots of our table.
Here are some of the other tables:
We are also blessed to have such great cooks in our group. What yummy treats we all enjoyed. We all got filled up for sure! Enjoy all the photos! Here are some shots of our table.
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| Sherran made the sweet tea that you see in the serving jar and it was DELICIOUS! |
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| Those big leaves really added a touch of the outdoors! |
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| Love, love, love how our table came together! |
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| Swag on our chair backs. |
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| I caught Jon with his mouth full! |
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| Cate and Fran |
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| We were the only table with shrimp cocktails! I made those, as well as cucumber appetizers. |
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| Jessica, looking marvelous! We all wore colors represented by our table. I wore green, but don't have a shot of me! |
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| We had lots of people swirling around our table taking photos |
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| Cate, Dianne and Joan |
Here are some of the other tables:
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| LOVE that teapot!! |
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| Clever idea this table had. One person bought the white plates at the dollar store, placed a paper doily on top and spray painted the plates black! Great to use with a clear plate on top, but you can't eat off the painted plate! |
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| Had to get a closeup of this ladybug cake. |
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| This table was most creative with their moss centerpiece! |
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| Very dramatic, but alas....silk flowers! |
Monday, January 21, 2013
Sewing and the grandkids
Here is a photo of Annika and her friend, Riley, in their Hawaiian dresses.
They look so cute especially with the flower headbands!! And here is Saben in his machine embroidered golf logo shirt.
We are blessed to have such wonderful grandchildren!
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| Riley on the left and granddaughter Annika on the right |
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| Dave and I are looking forward to getting him out on the golf course this summer |
Monday, January 14, 2013
Tip for those who knit or crochet
Somewhere or another I came upon a brilliant idea for containing that unruly ball of yarn while knitting. Sure, they sell special bowls like these: http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&keywords=yarn%20bowl&page=1&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Ayarn%20bowl
BUT.....the cheap plastic ones are too lightweight to remain in place and the nice ceramic ones are very pricey! So, off you go to the Goodwill and find yourself a nice heavy weight used tea pot. Like this:
You will simply need to make sure that when you check inside the pot that there is no blockage for the end of the yarn to thread through and out the spout. This teapot is HEAVY! So it won't go flying when I tug on the yarn.
I just love knitting. And crocheting. And sewing. And embroidering. And quilting. And CRAFTS of all sorts! January is usually a perfect month to focus on being creative. It's too cold to do much outdoors. The flower beds are rather dormant anyway. No pressing celebrations to tend to. Just creating items while in a relaxed state of mind.
Of course, there is always the fine prospect of reading. I do love a good book....er....book on my Kindle! I admit, however, that I am more of a project person. I love the fact that when I do my handiwork, I end up with a useful item. The last book I read in December was The Zookeeper's Wife by Diane Ackerman. I enjoyed it but it wasn't nearly as well-written or as interesting as In the Garden of the Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik Larsen. Both books were based on true events and I would definitely recommend them. I am currently reading War Brides by Helen Bryan.
BUT.....the cheap plastic ones are too lightweight to remain in place and the nice ceramic ones are very pricey! So, off you go to the Goodwill and find yourself a nice heavy weight used tea pot. Like this:
You will simply need to make sure that when you check inside the pot that there is no blockage for the end of the yarn to thread through and out the spout. This teapot is HEAVY! So it won't go flying when I tug on the yarn.
I just love knitting. And crocheting. And sewing. And embroidering. And quilting. And CRAFTS of all sorts! January is usually a perfect month to focus on being creative. It's too cold to do much outdoors. The flower beds are rather dormant anyway. No pressing celebrations to tend to. Just creating items while in a relaxed state of mind.
Of course, there is always the fine prospect of reading. I do love a good book....er....book on my Kindle! I admit, however, that I am more of a project person. I love the fact that when I do my handiwork, I end up with a useful item. The last book I read in December was The Zookeeper's Wife by Diane Ackerman. I enjoyed it but it wasn't nearly as well-written or as interesting as In the Garden of the Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik Larsen. Both books were based on true events and I would definitely recommend them. I am currently reading War Brides by Helen Bryan.
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