I woke this morning to the sun blazing through the the cracks in the blinds. I wasn’t too bothered though, because I’d slept till 8:30, which is a late morning for me. Brannon left for coffee with a friend and I had the quiet morning to myself. I made some tea and read my bible for awhile, waking up. Lindy nudged my legs repeatedly as if to say, “Mama…..I have to go! Please take me out!” How could I refuse such a cute face? So out we went.

The morning air was cool and damp against my skin. It was a balmy 69 degrees, a welcome change from the recent heat wave. I decided that weather this good warranted a run. A half hour later Lindy and I were pooped, but ready to take on the day. After a shower and washing some dishes, I pulled out my sewing machine, unfinished projects, bias tape, thread, pins, and ironing board. I had so much fun scattering the dining room table with fabric and notions and matching up color combinations. I finished making 12 baby bibs in about 3 hours. I felt a great surge of accomplishment and joy in my creative work. I even enjoyed cleaning up!

In the evening, Brannon and I took the G train down to Park Slope to hang out. We ate at a tiny Thai restaurant called Beet and walked hand in hand down streets lined with brownstones shaded by full grown trees. Even the busy streets felt peaceful.

Back at home I made tea, lit candles, and settled into EB White’s Letters. Jazz was playing low on my great grandfather’s radio. By the time I closed my book my eyelids were heavy. I sat listening to the radio and watching the candles flicker.

It was a truly delightful day from beginning to end, and I’m sure I will sleep well tonight.

Goodnight!

Over the last year I have been learning to sew.  I’ve experimented with several different projects, and have narrowed down a few that I want to really focus on.  My hope is to eventually open up an etsy shop where my handmade items will be for sale.  So here is just a sneak peek into one of the various sewing projects I’ve been focusing on: quilted baby bibs. More to come…

Today is the last day of August and hopefully the beginning of the end of Summer.  When I walked outside this morning the air was chilly, and I noticed a few extra leaves on the ground. These were  signs that Fall is on its way.  Fall always puts me in a good mood. It is a brisk season of bustling movement.  Fall welcomes our favorite holidays, hearty soups, woolen sweaters, and apple pies.

Although I was off work today, I decided to make it a day of fresh starts, wrapping up, and preparation. Here are a few of the things I’ve done today:

1. Early morning walk/jog  (I’m hopeful that the cool weather will encourage a new habit for me.)

2. House cleaning (I even changed the sheets!)

3. Grocery shopping

4. Created the last few squares of my quilt in progress (I plan to piece it together tomorrow.)

5. Playtime with Lindy in the leafy yard. (Lindy gets a longer playtime in the fall, due to less heat.)

Come quickly September, we’re ready for you.

Sewing has recently become my newest hobby.  Until a few months ago I had never touched a sewing machine before.  If you’d asked me about bobbins or feed dogs you would have found me quite bemused.  My mom gave me a tiny “Sew-Mini” machine as a wedding gift.  I think she thought it would come in handy in case I ever needed to mend something.  Little did she know the toylike machine would inspire me to actually take up sewing.  I bought Sewing For Dummies (yes, it is very helpful) and read it cover to cover.  I bought a few patterns and began to gather fabric scraps from family and friends to practice with.  I’ve now acquired quite a collection!  Whenever I have a free afternoon or evening, I dump out all my fabric scraps onto the table and start conceptualizing how I can put them together and what sorts of things I can make.  While I am still very much a beginner in this craft, I am always trying to branch out to learn new patterns and projects.  So far I have focused mostly on making aprons and bags. Hand embroidery is also a recent development.

A few nights ago, Brannon went out to meet with a friend and I had the whole house to myself. So of course I took the opportunity to make a grand mess with fabric and notions, singing along to my favorite Simon and Garfunkel LP.  It was an absolutely glorious evening.  I collected six new project ideas and set them aside. I even had time to clean up before Brannon came home. I’ve posted some pictures of a tote bag and a pillow that I just finished.

I also want to give a special thanks to Michelle Berg Radford for letting me raid her box of funky fabric scraps last week!