Fabric Scraps and Brawny Chaps

Other areas of the country might be experiencing the first whiff of fall, but here in South Carolina, it was 95 degrees yesterday.  It's been hot, hot, hot, with little rain, so I just haven't felt like going outside much.  Instead, I focused on some indoor crafting.

My quilt strips have been cut...

...and I've started the process of sewing pieces that will become part of larger squares together.

I've heard that the cutting is the most tedious part, and that whipping the pieces together on the machine will take no time at all.  We'll see!

I did a quick dollhouse project, because I feel like the dollhouse has been absolutely languishing, unloved, in our game room.  I found some embroidery floss that matched the tiny recliner I made earlier this year...

I tied a knot at the end of the 3 strands and braided it tightly, with the knotted end held securely under my KitchenAid mixer.  Once braided, I coated a piece of fabric with glue and carefully wound the braided thread in concentric circles.

Once dried, I cut out the braid (the fabric below comes along; it gives it stability) and placed it in front of the chair.  Voila!  A five-minute rag rug.

Although I haven't been knitting much, I did finish a pair of blue striped socks for myself:

I've also been taking a hand embroidery class on Craftsy.  I was finally able to master french knots and move beyond a running stitch.  First I embroidered a little hedgehog for Todd using the back stitch and scatter stitch:

Then, some farm animals using chain stitch and french knots:

I added the rosemary to the pig square because I thought it looked a little plain.  That is the fern stitch, I believe!

Even though my sugar intake has been pretty minimal, I've been doing a lot of baking.  These pumpkin cupcakes might be my favorite ever, thanks to the addition of a handful of cinnamon chips to the batter and marshmallow fluff to the frosting...

I made Star Wars-themed sugar cookies for our Star Wars-loving nephew recently, but plain sugar cookies are so boring.  I ended up making cookie sandwiches by filling them with a simple vanilla buttercream and adding sprinkles around the edges.  They were SO tasty!

I also made my favorite cream cheese/coconut banana bread.  Didn't last long around here.

I don't just make sweets.  I made naan a week or so ago, which is my new favorite for homemade pizza.  The dough is made the same...the mix, the rise, and shaping into balls for a second rise.

But you cook them on the griddle at a very high temperature, just like homemade tortillas.

So good.

Not too much going on outside the house.  Todd (my brawny chap!) is slowly chopping up and stacking the massive amounts of wood that now litter our yard:

A newborn fawn (another one!) died behind our house last week...

 ...but most of the fawns around here are growing and thriving.

I'm mainly keeping an eye out for cooler temperatures.  Hopefully by October we'll at least be in the 70s!

Have a great week!