Wandering Cables and Cards for Your Tables

The busy holiday season is upon us!  I barely had time to make Thanksgiving cards before going out of town for a week...AFTER being out of town for a long weekend.  I don't usually make Thanksgiving cards, but since I flaked out on Halloween this year, I felt more motivated to make something for this typically low-card-yield holiday.

These cards were easy to make.  I cut out brown rectangles for doors and used a ticket punch for the panels.  A large brown brad made a simple door knob.  I used my leaf punch for the wreath, and stamped out a tiny "Thankful" sign to hang beneath it.  Foam stickers beneath the door panels and the wreath gave them a more three-dimensional look.

I put each card in a clear plastic envelope and sealed them with a glittery oak leaf sticker.

I'm very please with how they turned out!  But speaking of leaves...we were absolutely inundated with them in our absence...despite two Saturdays with the leaf blower!

There's a driveway there somewhere!

The cats love to be outside in the leaves.  I try to take them out on the back deck every week to sniff around.

Most of the time, though, ESCAPE is the only thing on their minds.  I have to be very diligent.

We have stray cats around that like to loll on the deck and peek in our windows.  I like having them here, but I can't risk them fighting and potentially injuring our cats.

We also have lots of birds of prey, like this red-tailed hawk.  They've carried off neighborhood cats before!  (Click on photo for larger view)

While we're on the subject of birds...I spotted a flock of these interesting creatures on our yard this week.  They resembled turkeys, but were much smaller.  I assumed the white one was a female.

My bird-expert uncle told me that these were actually female turkeys.  Female turkeys apparently flock together separate from male turkeys for part of the year.  The white turkey above could very possibly be partially albino, the result of inbreeding.  So interesting! 

I have been frantically working on my Christmas knitting in my spare time and just finished yesterday.  What a relief!  The project I've been working on is pretty labor-intensive and in the final stretch, I've started knitting a little something for myself on the side, just to have a breather from the Christmas project.  I'm knitting myself a pair of knee-length German stockings. 

I had one sock finished almost down to the ankle when I realized that I'd misread the instructions, as I so frequently do.  The nobby "V" shape beneath the cable is the mistake.  The increases are supposed to be much more gradual.

 

So, I frogged the entire sock and started over.  Second time's the charm!  This time has been much better.

 

It's hard to appreciate how pretty the cables will look once spread out on your leg:

I've actually just got half a foot to knit on this one, now, and then I can start on the left side.  It's not an incredibly complicated pattern, but you have to keep a close eye on things.  There are over 40 sizing combinations for it, so you have to make sure in each sock "section" that you're knitting the proper number of stitches for your specific size.  You also have two rows of cables that are wandering off in different directions, and a gradually increasing moss stitch center.  I've greatly enjoyed this project and will post photos when they're done!  They'll be perfect to wear over tights with a plaid skirt this winter. 

We just got our Christmas tree...

...and I can't wait to do my Christmas decorating.  I found these cool postcards at a flea market in Indiana:

They're quite old, over 100 years!

I like spreading them around on holidays or framing them.

A good find. 

Hopefully I'll have a recipe to post soon.  I've done a great deal of holiday baking, but have been too busy to photograph it.

Have a great week!