Visiting, Dresses, Hearts...

August is definitely my very most favorite month of the entire year.  It is the month I gave birth to my beautiful daughter.  She just celebrated her birthday and I got to spend it with her and my two beautiful granddaughters too.  Here we are being silly and enjoying a very large craft store!  From the left is Amy 25, me "old", Jenifer 48, Amber 28.   

My daughter treated all four of us to a Chris Isaak concert at the Grove in Anaheim.  If you remember him he is still fabulous and a great entertainer.  His song "Wicked Games" still sounds so good and he can still hold a note forever!  We also had dinner before the show and it was delicious.  Thank you my sweet loving daughter.  You are the BEST!!!

I finally have my sewing machine back and repaired.  The first project I did was to enhance the shower curtain in the new downstairs bathroom.  Mr. C did not like how the ceiling brackets showed white above the grey fabric curtain.  So off to my favorite store to buy black lace.  I have resolved the bracket showing issue and also have a very beautiful custom curtain now. 

Mr. C approves of this designer look.  I like how it all ties in together.

The next thing I did with my repaired sewing machine was sew the three dresses I had cut out and ready to complete for Dress a Girl Around the World.  My friend Donna of Brynwood Needleworks is collecting dresses and thankfully extended the deadline to this coming Friday.  I had all three sewn and mailed by last Saturday.

I am making these dresses larger for the tween girls.  I am having fun with mixing up pockets and armhole bindings.  Sometimes you can use up the smallest bits of fabrics in such a great way.

This dress is one of my favorites even though it is the one I was sewing when my machine had it's metal on metal horrific crash.  I merely unstitched and began again with much care.  This fabric is quite wide so maybe a girl who has a little more body than the others will like this dress.

Now what are these you ask?  Did you ask?  Well, in my many peruses on this vast internet I came across this...The Preemie Project.  I was telling my dry cleaning lady (Wendy) about my sewing escapades with dresses and these hearts I wanted to sew.  On my next visit Wendy very kindly and generously gave me fabrics she has kept from when her girls were little.  She hoped I would sew dresses and hearts and let her be a part of the giving.  These are 31 hearts ranging in size from 5" to 8" and they are all made from Wendy's fabrics.  Thank you Dear Wendy.  These Developmental Hearts will make families with Preemies feel part of their special care.   I will continue with more dresses next. 
I enjoyed my time in So Cal with my girls.  It really does go by so quickly.  Mr. C was kind enough to drive me to and from the airport and the traffic is worse than ever!  Thank you Mr. C.
Our weather is triple digit HOT and still so very scary and DRY.  We have fires that break out every day and yet so far we remain safe in our home.  I am so very thankful for all firefighters and support people and equipment. I don't mind paying twice every year for fire services (please don't ask...it's complicated).  After all we do live in a forest!
Loving August Always...Staying busy in this wonderful Summer...and Smiling...

Embroidery, Coloring, Charming...

I was recently missing my creative time and a very dear lady said a special prayer for me.  A gift of time is what I received and this is what I did with those sweet precious bits of time...
I embroidered this pear.  Thank you Jenny of elefantz for your wonderful design and monthly stitchery club.  You are a very dear lady!

Then I framed this little pear and sent it off to a friend for her birthday.  I love taking time to hand create gifts for friends and family.  I put lots of love and special thoughts into my gifts.

I also gathered my coloring pencils and spent tiny bits of time coloring these adorable drawings.  My friend Lindsay Ostrom is the artist and Miss Creator of Cuteness!  I am using these as post cards and card embellishments for my participation in Random Acts of Mail and Love Notes.

I also was able to create these angel and dragonfly charms.  I like to have these on hand for little Thank You gifts.  Or many times I give these as "thinking of you" charms.  Now I will have a nice selection to choose from.
I am so very grateful for the gift of time and being able to spend it doing what makes me truly happy.  Next I will share with you a new to me project I am participating in.
I have decided on my August tag line after giving it a lot of thought and trying many out.  Because August is my very favorite month I am happy with...August Always!  Creative Bliss and continued Summer Smiles from Hot, Dry, Burning California.  May you all stay safe and hydrated...

Sewing By Hand...

In my last post I mentioned, "You can take the sewing machine away from the girl but you can't take the needle and thread from her fingers".  Well, while my sewing machine has been out for repairs I just had to pick up needle and thread.  A few months ago I won this lovely book, "Pretty Birds" by Virginia Lindsay from Lori and her son Zack of the blog Pretty Things.  Thank you both very much.

The least I could do was make Zack one of the birds and Lori mentioned he liked the Bluebird.  So I gathered some scraps of fabric and began cutting out the patterns.  Of course I didn't reverse the pattern the first time so the bird would have needed therapy so I gathered some other scraps of fabric.

Without my machine I threaded a hand sewing needle and began.  Actually the bird came together quite nicely and I am pretty happy with my stitching.  Here you see I am working on the tail section.

Well...when the little bird was all sewn I thought it lacked personality so I added a real tail feather to the fabric tail.  Viola!  So much cuter. 

This is the one I made for Zack.  I like the brighter colors in this fabric.  So off it flew in the US Mail clear across the country.  Wouldn't it be fun to hear the story from BlueBird of his travels?!

Zack got his little fabric birdie safe and sound and here is proof he likes it.  Thank you very much Zack and Lori for gifting me not only this book and some beautiful purple fabrics but also with your friendship through the years via blogging. 
Sew...do you ever put needle and thread in fabric and find it to be a wonderful relaxing pastime?  I have always enjoyed hand sewing.  There are lots more "Pretty Birds" in this book and I know I shall be making more as time allows. 
The closest fire (Lowell) to us is now predicted to be fully contained by August 10th.  California and our other West Coast states have so many major fires burning we are running short of firefighters and support air attack planes.  Thankfully other states (and Canada) are sharing their resources to help fight these fires and keep us safe.  If only El Nino would get here (with nice rain...not flooding rain).  Every day the reports are devastating not only about the fires but about the lakes and reservoirs that are the lowest levels in recorded history.  Thank you all for your continued prayers. 
Here we are into August 2015 so quickly I hardly remember July as it rushed past me.  August is my favorite month and there are lots of birthdays to celebrate...beginning with my daughter on August 7th!  Happy Birthday Honey!!! 
As I try to find my word for August so far it has eluded me.  Lots come to mind however I am not amused by them...Awesome August, Amazing August, Always August, Outstanding August, Artful August.  I want a word that truly describes my JOY I feel in this month of August Summer.  So in the meantime I am tagging with Summer Smiles...  I do hope you are enjoying your Summer and the wonderful world we live in while experiencing Creative Bliss.  I am truly grateful for each and every one of you!

Company Amidst Chaos...

This year has been long and trying and yet I remain so very grateful.  I am finally getting to say good-bye to the 1980's mauve carpeting.  Our home wasn't even built until the 1990's but the entire downstairs was mainly mauve in tile and carpet.  It just had to go for the sake of re-sale...at least that is what I convinced Mr. C.

Little did I know what a major amount of work it would entail.  I have already shared the bathroom remodel and how much I love the new updated look.  Here is the finished hall and bathroom link http://www.createology.blogspot.com/2015/05/downstairs-reno-update.html

So needless to say the removal of three rooms of overwhelming stuff and furniture was daunting.  I carried all I could upstairs into the Library and just piled it or dropped it where I stood. 

Mr. C and I are so old that we have massive heavy good quality furniture.  The bad news is that it is massive and heavy and where do you put it temporarily!

My studio got the brunt of stuff since it was the closest to the three rooms getting new carpet.  I won't bore you with more photos or tales of woe.  I will show the new carpeting when I find my camera in all this stuff!  I am grateful that the new carpet is installed.  Long story that I will left untold.  Now I realize that putting every thing back in order will be a much larger job due to exhaustion and overload...not to mention I must edit and reduce my stuff. 
There hasn't been any fun happening in this household and Summer is quickly waning.  The Moon gave me some much needed Bliss as I gazed at it last night and talked softly thanking my blessings.
Oh you are wondering about the title..."Company Amidst Chaos"?  Mr. C's son gave us three days notice and arrived for a week's visit.  Yes, I had to help with all the guest room furniture and it is very heavy solid wood antiques!!!  Mr. C and I were up most of the night before his arrival to get just that room ready.  I am praying my Chaos turns to Calm very soon or I may need a serious vacation.
Thank you for your prayers regarding the dangerous raging forest fire that is just a few miles from our home.  It has been a tense few days and thankfully...so far...the over 2000 firefighters and numerous amounts of planes, dozers and helicopters are keeping us safe.  Rain would be so welcome here in Northern California where there are over 1200 fires burning each day.  Yes, I did type that number correctly.  And to top it off we are back in triple digit heat wave temperatures. 
Soon I will share some creative bits I have managed to eek out in spite of my sewing machine being gone for repairs.  You can take the sewing machine away from the girl but you can't take the needle and thread from her fingers.
Yes, my July tag line is still fitting..."High on Life July".  Warm Summer Smiles and Creative Bliss My Friends... 

Welcome to Our Pond...

This is the walkway to our pond that Mr. C went to pond college and then built for us.  We have had it now for at least 12 years and it has its challenges from year to year.  I know I have shared many posts on this blog.  This is by far my most favorite place ever!  Mr. C did such a great job and I am so grateful to be able to sit and reflect while enjoying the wonders of Nature.
 

I have tried many flowers here but the deer and other critters always eat/destroy them.  Now I have mint planted and it has been left untouched.

This is a rather large pond that is very eco friendly.  I would explain but it is too technical for this simple girl.  These photos were taken in early morning as I am really here to trim the Wooley Thyme. and once the sun hits I cannot stay long.

We have Lillies that bloom in shades of yellow, salmon, burgundy, pink and white.  Lots of amazing dragonflies in colors of blues, reds and black with yellow stripes.  Just turn on the water spray and they appear like magic.

This is our seating area where I spend lots of time reflecting on life and enjoying our surrounding Nature.  Living here is truly dreamy.  Each year I must trim the Wooley Thyme around the flagstones.  When you step here the fragrance is delightful.  First I let the Wooley Thyme bloom its sweet tiny lavender flowers.  Then I sit back and enjoy at least 6 different types of bees flit from blossom to blossom doing their harvesting.  Once the blossoms completely fade then it is time for me to trim.

I have tried many types of trimming tools and find my orange handled Fiskars to work the very best. 

The trickiest part is finding the flagstone down under the growth.  Some years I admit my flagstone shapes are slightly different.  Rounded corners vs. square corners can depend on how tired I am at trimming time.  Oh and many teeny tiny little frogs live in the Thyme.  I tried to photo them but they are very quick and don't stay to pose for a camera.  They are the size of my fingernails...just 1/2 inch or so.  Very sweet but I must say they do startle me when they jump out of nowhere.  One day there was a very large alligator lizard in the way so I left until he was gone.  After all it gave me a much needed rest break.  They do scare me a lot!

Thank you for visiting our pond.  We could share a glass of wine or a cuppa anytime.  I truly cherish the moments when Mr. C takes time to sit with me and enjoy what he has built for us.

Now it is back up the hill to the house and other chores.  By the way I usually don't trim this walkway with the precision I do at the sitting area.  I like the walkway to be more random as it gets a lot of foot traffic.  I hope you feel relaxed and refreshed after visiting our pond. 
We are in another HOT spell with temperatures in the nineties.  Just down the hill is triple digit heat.  We are still completely dry and without rain.  Everyday the CDF Air Tankers are flying and refilling to put out numerous fires.  I added a link if you would like to know more.  So far...we are safe! 
May you be savoring your Summer.  Having fun and doing the things that bring you JOY.   I continue to be finding High on Life July perfectly fitting for me.  Mr. C and I have a very busy weekend of moving furniture and stuff in preparation for next week.  I will share all that very soon.  Creative Bliss and Summer Smiles...