invitation replication

 I can't get over how quickly the grass and trees have filled in over the past few weeks!

an evening nibble on the new grass

It's astonishingly green.

front yard

back fields with path to pond mowed

The apple tree, which was almost bare two weeks ago...

...is in full bloom now.

We still have a few redbuds in bloom behind the house...

...but the petals are dropping quickly...ditto with the apple blossoms.  The temperatures are still see-sawing wildly, and I'm slowly mulching the flower beds as my temperamental shoulder permits.  I can do about an hour of work at a time.  Still, the beds are filling in nicely with no help from me.

Even though it's been sunny, it's cold...

...not out of the 40s today, and a frost last week.

These early bloomers are used to it, though, and perked right up.  I'm not too keen on working outside in the cold, though, so other than an occasional getaway, I'm working on my indoor projects.

Todd and I made the local paper (barely!) last week when we were photographed at the International Festival...blink and you'd miss us!

I'm slowly plugging away at my Shadow sweater.  The front and back panels are done, and now I'm knitting the sleeves.  Sleeves and body panels will be blocked and then seamed together soon!

I bought an embroidery stand recently, since my shoulder has been so sore.  It's been a lifesaver!  I'm about halfway done with my latest embroidery project.

I'm eager to start on the next one.  I was incredibly inspired by the UK coronation invitation:

Have a closer look:

I don't care about the coats of arms, but I'm going to find a way to copy the side and top panels into a cohesive design.  It's fascinating to read about the symbolism in the items selected here.  Everything is carefully chosen.  I love it!  

Inside, on these chilly days...lazy cats.

Some lazy ones outside, too.

They're enjoying the calm before the storm...it can turn roasting hot on a dime, and stay there, too.  Here's hoping that I can at least finish the beds around the house before the heat hits.  

Have a great week!  

reptile style

 Even though it's been bitterly cold, we've still enjoyed a little bit of outside beauty.

Unusual for this time of year, deer have been flocking to our front yard in droves.  

I noticed that several of them had what I thought were bloody spots on their hind legs.

When I started doing some research, though, I discovered that this was the tarsal gland, present on both bucks and does.  They urinate on this gland and then rub it so that the gland absorbs certain components of the urine.  The gland then emits a powerful scent, telling others about the dominance of the males and the mating readiness of the females.  Pretty interesting stuff!

St. Patrick's Day was on the 17th, and I made my usual roll-and-cut rainbow cookies.

They're kind of a pain to make, because you have to separate and color the vanilla dough before combining it in a "rainbow log," then encasing that log in chocolate dough.  The proportions were a little off this year, making them look more like peacock feather eyes...

...but they still felt festive and tasted great!

I've been working on a few other projects.  I planted lots of sweet pea seeds in yogurt containers and left them in the attic to sprout.  We've got liftoff! 

The sprouts are pale when they first emerge, but I expect them to green up after a few days under the lights.  Then they'll go out in the garden...in maybe 2-3 weeks?  Ditto these anemone and ranunculus, which I've been pre-sprouting in the attic for the past few weeks.  I thought they might be goners, but they sent up anemic fingers this weekend.  Bingo!

I finished the front panel on my Shadow sweater.  I'm measuring it against a sweater that fits in the way that I want Shadow to fit, and I think it's a pretty good match so far, especially considering that Shadow will grow a bit when I block it.

Phew, that's a lot of cables!  Now I will make an identical panel for the front.  It's coming along nicely!

I saw a really interesting woodcut of a snake last week.  I'm not a huge snake fan, but I love seeing them depicted in relief printings, like woodcuts and linocuts.  After all, I grew up with a pretty famous one:

I've found some beautiful ones online, although the internet being what it is, it's not always easy to find the original artist:

Tyler Krasowski

artist unknown

artist unknown

artist unknown

I think they're really beautiful, and I decided to try stitching one.  I chose a chain stitch for the scales, to give them a bit more detail, and a simple stem stitch for the outline.  I went with a monochromatic color scheme.

I need more practice with "fill stitches," so I'm especially pleased with how the tail and head turned out.  It's not my favorite, but it was an enjoyable-enough small project.

Another small project...I was so pleased with how my Darth Vader Scrabble bag turned out...

...that I practiced another lined bag this week, too.  Not as scary as I'd expected...practice makes perfect!

Looks like we have a cool, wet week coming up...more time for indoor projects, I guess.

Have a great week!