Esther's Place

Last Friday HEG (Homewood Embroiderers' Guild) sponsored a field trip to Esther's Place in Big Rock, Illinois. One of the members who had signed up to go was not feeling well, so three of us met up and made the trek. (It was over 70 miles from my house!)

My GPS dropped us off more than a mile away from the actual location, but we just kept on driving and found it with no problem.



A very nice Victorian:



with the lilacs in bloom!

When we walked through the door we were greeted like long lost friends. We looked at the shop, a very nice selection of fibers and supplies for felting, both needle felting and nuno (wet felting). We also got the tour of the upstairs, with accommodations for a small retreat or workshop, a special overnight for a mother/daughter and friends evening, or a place to stay for a small family reunion. Our hostess mentioned a family that stayed over and during the evening wove a rug on the loom that is in one of the rooms for a wedding present to commemorate the weaving the great-grandmother used to do. Sounds like close to heaven to me!

Donna also shared with us how Esther's Place came to be, and some of the dreams she and her daughter have for ways to continue to expand the business.

When we returned downstairs Donna invited us to have tea and scones, and pulled out a bucket of fiber, inviting us to make a felted flower. We got right to work. Here is Peggy, felting away:



And Elizabeth, pondering her next color choice.



Her is our hostess Donna. You can see on the table in front of her the first flower I made.



While we were felting away, Donna invited us for lunch, and brought out elegant plates with spinach quiche, spinach salad, and a cup of chicken soup to go with our tea.



Later, when we were checking out, we asked how much lunch was, and were told we were her guests for lunch! Most of this food came from her farm, and it was all delicious!

Natasha started Esther's Place with her mom Donna to showcase Natasha's talent in the fiber arts, and to provide a place to encourage people to gather to make art, form a community, and return to the forgotten skills of living close to the land and using its abundance to enrich lives. Much of the fiber in the shop comes from their own farm, but also from other local fiber producers. We didn't get a chance to visit much with Natasha, because she was teaching classes the whole time we were there: a weaving class when we got there, and then a follow-up to a felted flower class. I found out she also teaches spinning, beginning with drop spindle spinning to learn the draw, and then following up with a spinning wheel. I think if the shop were closer I would have signed up right then and there.

I was encouraged to make as many flowers as I wanted to. (I cannot sit and talk without something to do with my hands, so I was busy.) Here are the flowers I came home with:



I think these would be excellent to use for my chemo caps!

Here is a link to the list of classes. I can see five or six classes I would love to take! The current list is for last winter, the new classes should be posted within a couple of weeks. There are 3 or 4 spinning classes that would work, and I would love to make the thrummed mittens!

When we went to check out there were several pleasant surprises. As I mentioned, there was no charge for lunch! Plus, I picked a bag-o-fiber to make the flowers for the chemo caps (we had chatted about that during our time around the table), and Donna did not include that on the bill. She donated the fiber for the flowers! Thank you so much Donna! I did get a kit for the Nativity scene angels, and a bar of hand-made soap, and a beginner's felting kit.

We all had a wonderful time, and I cannot wait for the chance to go back.

Not there yet

So far this week I have worked on 5 different projects from my WIP list. In case you forgot, here's the list.

Black lacy shawl,
5 guild projects: beading heart, the sudoku puzzle, a surface embroidery angel ornament, a set of 3 biscornu, and my needle book.
I want to get re-started on my TAST sampler.
The chemo caps are an on-going knitting project too.
And I have the scarf set I promised my cousin.

Of course, skipping around, working on different projects means you don't get everything done you work on. But I did finish 2 projects! Plus I worked on chemo caps, the biscornu set, and my needle book.

Here's my finished sudoku puzzle.



It's not very beautiful, but it is very interesting to look at and study, and it was a lot of fun to stitch. There are two different sudoku puzzles (9 different colors or patterns, with each one used only once in each square, column or row.) The circles represent number 5, and the square eyelets represent number 7, for the patterns. I was going for pastel rainbow colors, but I think I veered into darker colors toward the end.

Three of us did the programs for our guild this past year, and we found a sudoku pattern in Needlepoint Now magazine. That one was very beautiful and coordinated, but I didn't follow the plan. I did get the main idea there, though, to use 2 sudoku puzzles, one for the patterns, and one for the colors. I hope other guild members finish theirs; you know they will all be different!

I also finished my lacy shawl! but you will have to wait for pictures until I can get it blocked. I have been working on that since August. I have already made plans to wear it to a wedding we are invited to this summer!

Two finishes in one week! Woohoo! I will try to do the same thing again for the coming week, knocking out WIPs, but I cannot promise. I am getting some new yarn in the mail, and my friend gave me a slipper pattern yesterday. Felted slippers! (The yarn has arrived! Stay tuned to see how long I can resist starting the slippers.)

Finished Hoodie Vest

I finished my lacy sweater vest! I really like how it turned out, and I have received tons of compliments already.



 I used Lion Brand Fishermen's Wool, purchased at JoAnn Fabrics, which made this very affordable. This is pure virgin wool containing natural oils. I am not sure the oils are still in the wool after I washed the pieces to block them. I bought 4 skeins to make sure I would not run out, and didn't even start on the 4th skein. Don't worry, though, I have plans for the other skein.

I decided not to start a new knitting project until I finish a couple of UFOs/WIPs (UnFinished Objects or Works In Progress). I am working on the black lacy shawl, and should be able to finish that within a week. I have about 6 more inches of knitting.  I have 5 guild projects to finish, beading heart, the sudoku puzzle, a surface embroidery angel ornament, a set of 3 biscornu, and my needle book.  I want to get re-started on my TAST sampler. The chemo caps are an on-going knitting project too. And I have the scarf set I promised my cousin. I don't promise to finish all of these before I start a new knitting project but I can make a good dent in the list. Wish me luck!

Easter Weekend

We had a very nice Easter weekend, even though it was very busy. On Friday I ran to pick up the kids, and was able to shop an estate sale. I picked up these "day of the week" dish towels in Spanish. Aren't they cute!?  Friday is missing, but they are not the same chores as usual on English DOW dish towels.



So then on Friday night, of course we had Good Friday services, always very meaningful. Then this year there was an extra service for Holy Week. The oldest member of our church passed away this week, and the service was on "good Saturday." I think that might be the best day of the year for a funeral, since we are in between death and resurrection until Jesus returns.

Then of course, we had Sunday services, celebrating new life. Here are my two sweeties all dressed up. Aren't they getting big?



C helped me make the cake for dessert. I covered up her pretty dress with the apron my mom sent me: she loved it! Look at that face. She didn't take it off until the cake came out of the oven.

 

(DD1 & C, and DD2 were here too, but I didn't get pictures. Thank you, girls, so much for your help in the basement. Everything is gone out of the alley, and there was a lot of interest at the thrift store for the horse and the dresser. I also dropped off 150 books at another thrift store. Like I said, it was a busy weekend.)

Update on Chemo caps

I finally figured out how to decorate the brim of the chemo caps I have been making. I made a tiny crocheted flower (with about a yard of yarn).



I am using sportweight yarn so they stay little and delicate. Then I layered two flowers, one over the other, on the brim.



I think it turned out very cute! (One of these days I will model one of the hats for you.)

It only takes a couple of minutes to make the flowers, and a couple more to stitch them on, so I should be able to finish these other three with no problems.



This makes 9 hats I have knit! A friend made one other one; we have given away 6, so that is 10 in all, and I think I have 5 more skeins/balls before I have to order more.

I really like making these. They are very portable, fitting into a small tote, and I don't need the pattern, so I can knit anywhere.

Let me know if you need one, I will send it right out.

Look!

I am so proud of myself! Here is the back, and the two fronts of the hooded vest I am working on. I love! the lace pattern.



I had to wait all day yesterday for the blocking to dry so I could stitch the shoulder seams and start knitting the hood. When everything was dry last night I was too tired to start, so that task is first on the list today.

I have also finished two chemo caps this week, and I found a cute little flower to crochet to add to the brim/band for a final finishing touch. I picked up some fine yarn yesterday, and got one made. I think they will be cute. Don't worry, I will show you when they are ready.

Tonight is guild meeting; Moonsilk Stitches and I are going to be going over our program for next week. We are going to be playing with methods of transferring patterns. I think we have 5 or 6 ways to play with/experiment on, plus more to talk about. We have had a lot of fun gathering ideas together.

still no stitching pictures

Sorry I have been absent... there's not too much going on around here. Last week Thursday C had a school program. Here she is all ready for it (bright solid colors), displaying the status (at the time) of her acquaintance with the tooth fairy. She Skyped me yesterday to show me another space where a tooth used to be.



Here are Meme and P waiting for the program to start.



The program was called "Cats and Dogs." The kindergarten class represented the cats, you can tell because of their hats. At this point they were all excited, hiding their sticks behind their backs (except for one little distracted boy). C is in the back row, second from the right.



The music teacher was very impressed that they were all pointing in the same direction, at the same time. I do see a couple of kids checking to make sure they are doing it right.



The program was very cute, and quite short which was not a problem, because this is how we spent the next day:



In a hospital waiting room, waiting for P's surgery to be done. He did great, and is home, recuperating. It is amazing how exhausting it is to sit in a chair for 7 hours...

I am very pleased by my progress on the hooded vest I am knitting. Here's a link to the finished project. For a couple of days I was thinking it was too hot to even knit with wool yarn, but we are back to more normal spring weather... I wish I could wear this vest today! I have the back panel done, and I have a good start on the 2 front panels. I am knitting them at the same time. I can't wait to show you a picture.