Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Got Sweaters?


I do!


I spent a couple of days last week
visiting my parents 
who live about six hours from me.
Along the way I was able to 
visit two of my favorite thrift shops.


And did I find some treasures!


From textures and colors,


to cables,


I found a mother lode of  sweaters!


If you need me during the next
several days...


...you'll find me in my studio 
happily making new
Sweater Pillows!

Sunday, September 13, 2015

Yard Sale Wrap Up


I am happy to say
another Tree Street Yard Sale
has come and gone
quite successfully!


Nancy and I spent most of last 
Thursday setting out our wares
on the front porch.


As in the past,
our plan was to sell
all we could on Friday.


Then late in the afternoon we would
transition whatever was left
to the drive way and set up our
Bistro on the Porch
for Saturday.


We had an incredibly busy day Friday.


The weather was pleasant.
However, the predictions for Saturday
were not good.
100% chance of thunderstorms ALL day!

 
So this year for the first time
we had to combine the Bistro
with some remaining yard sale on the porch.
We lacked a bit of our
usual ambiance,



...but the food was plentiful,




and our customers didn't seem to mind.


We carried on through the dreadful weather
and had our most successful weekend yet!

Saturday, September 5, 2015

Isn't Life a Bowl of Cherries?


Thirty plus years ago I had a friend named Kathy.
Kathy and I were friends by default.
Our husbands had been boyhood friends,
having grown up across the street
from one another.  
We became friends early in 
Kathy's marriage
because of our 
husbands' friendship.
We lived in different states,
but had periodic visits.
We welcomed all our children
into our circle
as they came into our lives,
four for Kathy,
one for me.
As lives became busier with
children, careers, and homemaking
our visits grew less and less.

By the time my marriage ended
ten years ago,
I had not had any 
contact with Kathy for some time.
As is often the case in divorce,
alliances form along the lines 
of "couple" relationships
("his" friends/"her" friends).
I moved ahead,
getting totally engrossed 
in forging a new life for myself
and never made any attempt to keep
my relationship with Kathy alive.

Then out of the blue
a few weeks ago,
I got an email from...KATHY!
She had stumbled upon
my Etsy shop and hence this blog.
She took the time to read my past posts
and reached out to me.
She tells me she read
ALL my blogs posts!
I can say without a doubt,
no one has done that except me!
I don't doubt her because this week 
I received the above three bottles of
Mexican vanilla in the mail
from Kathy as a result of my post of

Now Kathy and I are
reconnecting totally on our own
as two middle aged, divorced women
with grown children.
We will create a new friendship
based upon who we are now. 
Life is certainly
a twisty tale,
isn't it?

Now about that Mexican vanilla...
I used to make a wonderful
homemade vanilla ice cream.
But, with our current consciousness
concerning uncooked eggs,
I hesitate to share the recipe with you
because it is a "no-cook" one.
It also requires an ice cream maker
which I no longer own.
It was one of the many "things"
I shed when I reinvented myself
at Buttermilk Cottage.

I offer you instead a simple new
one I intend to try soon
with some of my
Mexican vanilla.

Easy Vanilla Ice Cream
2 cups heavy cream
14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Mix the condensed milk and vanilla in a small bowl.
Whip the cream with an electric mixer
until stiff peaks form.
With the mixer on low speed,
slowly add the vanilla mixture
to the whipped heavy cream and combine.
Pour into a freezer safe container 
and freeze for 6 hours or overnight.

 Google Images

Thank you Kathy
for the Mexican vanilla,
I've been without it for quite a while.
But mostly, thank you for reaching out.
You've put the cherry on top of my ice cream!

Tuesday, September 1, 2015

It's Almost Time...


...for our colossal
neighborhood yard sale
next week.


Buttermilk Cottage
has been a state
of total disorder
since last week.


My sister and I have been
pulling out,
organizing and pricing
all the "junque" we have
acquired since last year.


My entry and living room
have become a staging area
until we can take it all outside.


And I have been
baking and freezing
to prepare for our 
"Bistro on the Porch"
during the sale.

This yearly event
brings thousands of
shoppers to our neighborhood
each year.
We do our best to let them know
we're happy to have them!







Sunday, July 12, 2015

Back in Business Again...or


...finally finishing the past week's project
of painting my office/sewing room/studio.
Small room...big painting job, 
for me anyway.

Here's what I started with last Monday:


This room was last painted about ten years ago
when I moved into Buttermilk Cottage.
Vivid color seems to have been the mood then.
But I have been thinking lately 
perhaps a paler shade 
would be a bit more calming.
This lighter shade of blue is 
called "Dewdrop."

Monday morning I started my day with
a trip to Lowe's to purchase supplies.
The color had already been chosen,
so I was home quickly.
Then came the huge job of
dismantling the room.

This small space is the 
command center of my business and 
I pack a LOT into it!


Everything came out except my office desk
and a large work table.
There was no space for them to be moved to, 
so I had to work around them.


A temporary sewing center was established
in the dining room for any work that
came in and needed doing while I was in
the midst of the great painting project.

Next came the wall prep and caulking.




By the end of the day,
a coat of primer had been applied.



On the second day, 
I began applying the real paint.
(From this angle you can see into my
bedroom which is the "old" blue.
It will soon be painted the "new" blue too.)


By the end of the day the walls were all painted,
including any needed touch ups.



Day Three was a slow and tedious day.
I did two coats of glossy white on the crown molding
and one coat of off white on all the trim work.
That's masking tape you see under the 
crown molding.


Finally on Thursday I began moving things back in
and establishing some order.


From this...


...to this.

While getting things back in order, 
I have been very conscious of 
simplifying things.
Some of the artwork is gone, or changed 
for a fresher look.
My idea board was moved from one wall
to the opposite side of the room.


Except for some final
decor tweaking,
which for me, is always an evolving process,
all done!

I have decided painting is a lot like housework.
I hate doing it,
but love how I feel once it is done.

Tuesday, June 30, 2015

A Blog for Knitters

Here's a shout out to a great

It has lots of designs,
patterns and informative articles.

Today, blogger, Teresa has a great post about
different types of stitch holders,
all of which can be found in various 
Etsy shops.

If you knit, it is well worth your time
to check out this blog!

Happy Knitting!

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

From My Book Shelf


Just finished this very interesting book.
The premise explores the 
different paths life could take
if we were able to keep repeating
it (life) until we "got it right."

Monday, June 15, 2015

What Can You Do with an Old Sweater?


Specially, what can you do with an old
Laura Ashley sweater?
This is one I picked up at a thrift shop
during a visit to Florida last winter.


You can make a really sweet set of
The larger pillow is from the sweater's back
and the smaller, with the original crocheted 
button band and shell buttons
is made from the front.

And what about the sleeves?


Well, for me,
little sheep ornaments are ALWAYS
an option!

Waste not, want not!

Tuesday, June 9, 2015

Pizza Love


This morning is pickup day for recycling on my street.
As Daisy, the dog and I took our morning walk
I noted that every recycling box
we passed except one, 
had one or more take out pizza boxes in it.
We, and I am certainly no exception,
love our pizza!

Saturday, May 16, 2015

New in My Shop - Knitter's Tools!

 If you haven't visited my shop lately,
you haven't seen some of the handy
Knitting Tools I have recently added!

 One of my all time favorites is the 
a nifty little counter to help you
keep track of rows, stitches, repeats, etc
when knitting.
I actually have 2 or 3 of these
so I can always put my hands on one.


All knitters know what a hassle
a slippery yarn can be when knitting it.
"Yarn Bras" are the perfect tool to keep
them upright and perky!


I have even selected the ones I consider
absolute "essentials" for any knitting bag
and have them available in a 
pretty chevron Accessory Bag.
Wouldn't this make a great gift
for any beginner knitter?

Happy Weekend!
You'll find me on the porch knitting!


Saturday, February 14, 2015

A Little Pop of Color


I know why Valentine's Day
comes in February.
It's because most of us
need a little pop of red
during the cold and dreary 
month of February.

My little pop of red color 
wasn't a Valentine gift.
It was actually a gift to myself
during the Christmas holidays.

After Christmas, during a day trip to
Asheville, NC
I found it in a gallery there.

It's by Susan Stanton,
a North Carolina photographer.
I am normally not an impulse shopper,
but as soon as I saw it,
even though I had no idea 
where I would put it,
I knew it had my name on it.

It found a home hanging just inside the front door.
It's the little pop of red I needed there!


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