Snippets from December

This is Christmas Eve - people from our village in Blackforest

make a walk with torches uphill where a bonfire is lit

We could have walked with them but we rather watched

from the opposite side of the Köllbach Valley -

being there for the first time and not knowing how long this 

would last.

Back in our home village we attended a Christmas mess 

where we saw this very beautiful crib

Yes these slippers arrived in Boston and DD said that they fitted

very well - I washed them 60° in the washing machine and success

 -  they shrank to the right size.

A pity I did not take a picture. 

The foot is mine just for comparison - and my size is not negligible!

Gingermen - to give away - and I gave them away to our gymnastics

friends - in Blackforest

How we are celebrating in the gymnasium (Turnhalle by the way)

(looked it up in dict.de)



While DH worked in the kitchen as baker of sweet small cakes 

I had time to do what I like most - dig in my scraps or little samples

and think of something to make of it

and of course what comes out - purses, pouches, bags, utensiles

some are are living already in other homes - but this one below



is in use and travels with me - it is called sew-along-bag - and instructions

are from internet - you can find it on Pinterest or just google sew-along-bag

This one above was a little gift to grandson no. 1‘s beautiful and loveable 

girlfriend - her name is between the two orange buttons.

I am late to wish you merry Christmas but not too late to send you,

my readers, my wishes for a happy and healthy New Year.

Tales from October

Yes, we met again. I mean my patchwork friends meet very often but I am frequently

in our vacation house - in France - so it is a special event when I can

be with them chatting, sewing, showing and telling, getting inspiration - 

and last but not least eating and laughing

I like to bake with yeast - I love to eat it - it can be dry like wood I still like it

here it didn’t get dry because I gave half of it to grandson L who is studying in 

our town Karlsruhe



Some time to stitch - and if just for half an hour - 




And now this is the end of our French farmhouse in Haute-Saône we are going

to sell it - very soon - next week the final signature will be rendered. We called

it Schato with a broad smile in the face - derived from the French word château - 

because of its long rusty iron fence alongside the street.

The far away house is not ours but it can be seen now

 

the future owners were allowed to  make order in our rather wild garden

I mean they cut every bush around on three sides of the garden

The neighbor lady will be happy - she was not very amused by our gardening.

We however loved the green surrounding

Selling the house means also moving things 

How often we made the travel of three and a half hours from France to Germany

I didn‘t count  - I estimate some 6 times - we didn‘t move the furniture

just the household equipment and the atelier of DH, the atelier and again the atelier

The trailor crammed full and the car, too

I have more time now and started to knit for Christmas

Rather big slippers but after felting in the washing machine they will have the

right size.

But then....

I remembered that in autumn I usually embroider dry leaves

These are old leaves and...

...waiting till the new autumn leaves will be dry between newspaper pages and 

under a heavy book - again stitching on this piece - no concept just going on -

patch on patch and stitches.

2015 - Carpinus - Hainbuche

I shooted it from above, on a walk through
our park

Hainbuche - Carpinus - in winter - I added

some stars to greet you in 2015 -

and show you what I knitted these last days.

Do you remember? This was my cowl.

It was in November last year - which means 2013.

I did not wear it - it was too short to wrap it twice and

once around the neck it did not warm me - and for decoration

only - I did not need it.

So I spent an afternoon to unravel it. Complicated.

But I am patient.

And now look at my cap - a beret - a basque beret.

Just right for those cold days.

And now the slippers:

also good for cold days in a Swiss cabin (son and family) ---

you remember certainly:

My son's legs trying on the slippers.

What's going on in my studio?

From Monday January 5, I am in a class of Karen Ruane - Swathed in Cloth.

Oh, I am looking forward to this and I am sure I can show you this and that.

Mit Blogsy veröffentlicht

Knitting backwards ...

Undoing - I think this was the best idea.

I took off 3 1/2 cm of the length of the sole up to now

No problem - I could unrip easily. it was simply too long

even with the estimated shrinkage of one third - 

Patience - I must go on knitting 

The autumn cat is finished - wind blowing and leaves swirling around

All hand sewn - the border as well.

The leaves are made of hand-dyed scraps out of my scrap box - 

I don't throw away anything related to fabric. 

Slippers -

It is looking enormous - it is the large pattern - and it is meant for

guests to slip into with their -hopefully clean- shoes. No they have

to take them off !! It would be cruel.

But I am somehow worried about the enourmous size - although

the imprint on the wool says it will shrink when washed in the 

machine with 60° - it will shrink about 30 to 40%. 

Here I am starting the front part. The pattern for the sole is

extra thick.

Maybe I have to "cook" them to achieve a normal size.

I see already experts clapping their hand above their heads....