A Brown "Purse"onality

It's 2sDay and I have two new brown bags to share with you today.

These are bags that I made towards the end of winter but I just didn't get around to blogging about them.  I did add some lining over the summer and I'm pleased with how they turned out.  It gives them their own "purse"onality.

I also like adding the lining material to the strap as it stops it from stretching out when you wear the bag.

The top pattern is called In Vogue and the second one is Jaunty Shells.  Both patterns are from the ASN book #1251, Trendsetting Totes.

My collection of bags and tote bags is growing.  My favourite colours are earth tones so I have lots of brown and beige colours along with lots of greens.
Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

Delish #1 ... the potatoes

I grew the no dig potatoes again this year, and what a success they were.  You can click the label potatoes and see last year's post.

I planted the seed potatoes in numerous bushel baskets in the spring.  It didn't take long for them to start growing.   Lots of watering was required this year as it was such a hot and humid summer.  As the plants started to die off it was time to start the no dig process.

I just dumped the basket into the wheelbarrow and presto, there were the potatoes just waiting for me to pluck them out.

 I just put on my gardening gloves and rummaged around.

This is the crop for just one bushel basket. 

They came in all shapes and sizes and scrubbed up so nice and clean.  Those little ones boiled up nicely and were so tasty.  The larger ones either went to potato salad or were cooked in foil packets on the bbq.
Absolutely delish!
I didn't have to harvest all the baskets at the same time either.  I'll be sharing the foil packets in Delish #2 in a day or so.

Did you grow potatoes this year?  I'd love to hear about your crop. Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

Weekend Shadows and Reflections

On one of our daytrips down into Prince Edward County we stopped at the Picton Harbour.  There is the most delicious little restaurant there.  The skies were blue and full of fluffy white clouds and I was able to capture the reflection of this sailboat in the water.

We went on to visit the Mariner's Museum which tells the history of the numerous shipwrecks off the coast.

The shadow of the rudder looks very interesting. I'm linking in to Weekend Reflections and Shadow Shot Sunday.  Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

Sewing a Jewelry Pouch

Sew this little pouch to hold your jewelry when you go away on trips.

The steps below show you how to make one yourself.  The photos are of the first pouch I made.  It was my test run to see how it turned out and what I needed to tweak.

You need 2 different sized circles of material.  I used my large dinner plate and my sandwich plate as tracers.  You need to cut 2 circles of each size. The inner circle must be smaller than the outer circle.  For my test pouch I used the same material on both sides.  I cut mine out with pinking shears for less fraying.

On one of the large circles you need to make a buttonhole about 2.5 cm. (1 inch) from the edge.  This step has to be done first else you will have to hand stitch an opening. With right sides together sew around the outside.  Leave a small opening so that you can turn the circles so the right side of the material is showing.  Top stitch around each edge and this will close the opening you left.  I always press my material before doing the top stitches to eliminate any puckers or odd shaped sides.  On the larger circles you need to sew 2 rows of stitches for the ribbon to slot through.  The buttonhole you first made must be between these 2 rows of stitching.

Place the two circles on top of each other with the centers lined up.  I drew a small chalk circle to sew around to fasten them together.  Sew from the outside edge of the small circle to the opposite side.  Do this is two more places. All sewing lines should intersect at the middle of the smaller circle.  It rather looks like a pie being cut into 6 equal pieces when finished.
Thread some ribbon through the buttonhole, around the large circle and out the buttonhole again.  Stitch the ends of the ribbon together.  Pull the ribbon to close up the pouch.

This pouch was made with larger circles and I made four rows of stitching to intersect through the center.  Then you can fill it with your jewelry, pull closed and pack it in your suitcase Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

Not my House

In the span of a couple of minutes the bluejay and the dove both landed on top of the birdhouse that sits on the top of the ladder planter.   Neither one of them lives in the birdhouse, but it is probably a convenvient stopping spot between the trees and the flat feeder.

 I think both the birds were posing as they knew they would be the stars on Birdhouse Thursday.

Birdhouse Thursday is the time to show off some birdhouses from your garden or ones you might have seen out on your travels.  Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

When-sday Memories of Tomatoes

When-sday Memories is a series to showcase some of my previous  posts. When were they previously posted ...  way back when.
Today the When-sday memory was originally posted in September 2009.  Field tomatoes are getting very plentiful and they are quite cheap to purchase by the basketful. On a visit to the farmers' market yesterday there were lots and lots to choose from. to how I freeze tomatoes for use later in the year when preparing soups, casseroles and stews.~~~~~~~~~~

It's that time of year when field tomatoes are plentiful.
They are red and juicy and make delicious toasted tomato sandwiches. They are also very reasonably priced. I buy extras and freeze them.

After washing the tomatoes, cut them into sections and lay them on a cookie sheet to put in the freezer.

After a few hours they are individually frozen and I transfer them to zip lock bags. Freezing them this way means they don't stick together into one big blob.

These are so handy to add to casseroles, crock pot meals, soups and stews. Just take out how many you want and pop them right into the pot. No defrosting needed. The heat will cause the skin to come off and rise to the top and then you can quickly and easily skim it off. The tomatoes blend in with a couple of stirs of the spoon.
I'm not into making spaghetti sauce or salsa so for me this is the best way to save the tomatoes and use them all winter. I know lots of people skin the tomatoes first, but I'm all for time saving methods and this one works well for me.
~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

2sDay Bluejays

It's 2sDay and my lens captured 2 young bluejays at the flat feeder.

Have you photographed 2 of something lately? Thanks for visiting this 2sDay.

Monday Mystery Birds

Can you help me identify the Monday Mystery photos? We had a fair sized flock of these birds at the feeder for a few days.

I'm certain they are young birds but can't quite come up with the identification.

 I'm leaning towards a member of the black bird family ... perhaps cowbirds as there is brown coming through on the heads.

Lots of black wing feathers showing through.

What is your guess?

Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

Cosmos Reflections

After a wind and rain storm a couple of days ago there was some damage to the tall cosmos stems, so I went out and trimmed some down and got a lovely bouquet of pink and white cosmos for the bathroom vanity .

 They added just the right splash of colour and were captured again in the mirror.

These photos fit in perfectly for Weekend Reflections.

Be sure to check here for assistance on seed gathering for cosmos.  Thanks for visiting today.Enjoy the weekend.

Dragonfly Shadows

 This gorgeous dragonfly settled on my husband's sleeve while we were out garage sale-ing one Saturday.  I just happened to have my camera in my bag and was able to get this shot of it before it flew away.

 You can see the reflection of the wings and its body.It's the perfect photo for linking with Camera Critters, and Shadow Shot Sunday. Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

Storm Clouds Approaching

It was mid afternoon on Thursday and we were under severe thunder storm warning.

 I started taking photos of the sky as the clouds approached.

 The system was actually a bit to the north of us and I'm sure that area got the storm worse than we did.

 But it did get darker and the winds really got stronger.

 The clouds rapidly moved across the sky.

And then we got a few crashes of thunder and a few flashes of lightening.

 Then the rain came down steadily for a few minutes.  And as quickly as the storm approached it left our area.  If you love sky photos as much as I do be sure to check out the other participants in Sky Watch Friday.   Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

A Swifer Clean Up

I have a Swifer wet jet for quick clean ups in the kitchen and bathroom but I always cringe when I have to toss the cleaning pad into the garbage. I'm always trying to find ways to have less throw away garbage and less packaging.

I knit and crochet my own dishcloths and wondered if I altered the pattern would it fit the Swifer. Then I did some searching on the net and discovered that I wasn't the first person to have this 'brainwave' idea. I found lots of patterns, both knit and crochet, for making reusable cloths to fit the Swifer.  If you can't come up with your own pattern then you can Google it as well.

So it was into the craft closet to find some cotton yarn, which I always keep on hand for those times when I want to knit a dishcloth with a no-brainer pattern.

First I measured my Swifer and it is 25 cm. by about 11 cm. and I cast on enough stitches to cover the length.  I did some random rows of knit and purl, just to break the monotony and here is what I came up with.  Every now and then I measured it against the base of the Swifer to see if it would fit.  I think I cast on 40 stitches and did about 30 rows of knitting.   I made this awhile ago and I'm just getting around to blogging about it, but I know I wrote it down on a piece of paper somewhere.  When I find it I will add it here.  But it really is a pattern you can figure out for yourself.

I stitched velcro along the edges and presto it was ready to fasten onto the Swifer and clean the floor.

I did find at first it was harder to push along the floor but as it got the Swifer liquid on it it was much easier. 
After cleaning it is so easy to take off.

You can use it as a cloth to get into those hard to reach places the Swifer doesn't reach.  Then it was quickly hand washed out and hung outside to dry.

My next project will be to see if I can put my own cleaning solution into the Swifer container, then I will have eliminated the use of whatever chemicals they put in it.

Do you have an environmentally friendly kitchen tip to share?

Exploring With Little Blue

This is the time of year that I love in the garden.  All the young birds are exploring the yard and checking out all the feeders. Here is a series of photos created into a mosaic image showing the young bluejay as it flits around from feeder to feeder enjoying the seed and peanuts.  I'm joining in with Blue Monday and Mosaic Monday. Thanks for visiting today. I hope you have a great Monday.

Clay Pot Totem

Here is another simple, easy and quick project to make for your garden. It's a clay pot totem, or a pot stacker, which will add some vertical interest to your garden.

You need three different sized clay pots (two of each size) and a metal rod to hammer into the ground.  Place the bottom pot on so the rod goes through the center hole.  Then place a similar sized pot on top, rims together.  Repeat with the next sized pot and then the smallest sized pot.  If you have an extra long metal rod you can add more pots.  The challenge I found was that the smaller the pot the smaller the center hole and it wouldn't fit over the diameter of the rod.
I had some tipsy pots set up this spring but with the unusually hot and humid season we have been having it was hard to keep them watered. Watering tipsy pots is hard at the best of times and having to do it a few times a day made it very time consuming.  I ended up taking it apart and just setting the pots in the garden (you can see one in the background of the photo). I think I will use the pots from the tipsy pots to make another pot stacker for another part of the garden.
 Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

Let's Streak

It's time for

The Let's Streak Hosta is a rare hosta that is not registered right now.  This is the second year I have had this plant in my garden.  Every spring there is a wonderful plant sale at a private house that has amazing varieties of hosta and other plants.  This plant was bought for me by my good friend.  Last season it was small but this year I was thrilled to see two flower spikes develop.  I've been watching it carefully and taking photos along the way.

The blooms opened in the last couple of days and they are wonderful.

Don't you just love the streaking on the blooms?  I included a copy of the detailed plant poke info that the wonderful lady at the plant sale adds to all her plants.

Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

Interesting and Unusual Birdhouses

Earlier in the summer we visitied Birdhouse City in Picton, Ontario.  Here are a couple of interesting and unusual birdhouses to show for Birdhouse Thursday.

 The roof looks in good condition on this one, but I think the tenants would benefit from some little perches to sit on.  And perhaps a touch of paint to freshen it up.

Here is an unusual birdhouse in the shape of the leaning tower of Pisa.  I wonder if the birds get a sense of falling once they are inside?

 See some more Cheep Rooms if you visit here.  Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

There ain't no flies on us ..

There ain't no flies on us,There ain't no flies on us, There might be flies on some of you guys, But there ain't no flies on us. This is an old Scout/Guide song that we used to sing at camp.  You were divided into 2 teams and you tried to out sing/yell the other side by singing the round louder each time.  You can even change the words to bugs, frogs, insects, lizards, or whatever you fancy.  Do you want to be able to say "there ain't no flies on us?"  Here is a tip that got passed onto me from my friend, who got it from her neighbour, who got it from her cousin, who got it from ... you get the gist.
To keep flies away from your doorway, window, garbage can or where ever you don't want flies you hang a bag of water with at least 1 penny in it.  I was told 3 pennies, but I have a feeling it differs depending on your source of this tip.

Supposedly when the fly gets close to the bag it sees its reflection through its many eyes and gets scared off.  Does it work, I don't really know, but I'm giving it a try. I have one hanging by the back door and one on each of the garage windows which always fill up with flies for some reason or other.  I Googled this tip and found out that many people are trying it and there are both positive and negative comments.

Have you tried this?  If so, please let me know if it works.  If you haven't tried it yet, why don't you give it a try. Don't forget to tell someone about it!  It just might work.   Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

2sDay Knitting Projects

It's 2sDay I'm showing you some progress on two projects that I recently shared with you.

The fingerless gloves are finished and I managed to have a bit of yarn left over from the 50 gm. ball of yarn I used.  I was getting a bit worried towards the end as I thought I might run out of yarn.

The lacy scarf is another story. I started it on smaller needles and it looked good but I wanted it to be a bit bigger.  So it was that froggy stitch, rip-it rip-it rip-it and start over.  I'm sure you have done things like that too.  But now I'm realizing I won't have enough yarn to make it as long as I want.  I'm looking around some yarn stores to see if I can get another ball.  I know I won't be able to match the colour lot etc, but I'm sure I can work something out.  If not I'll be looking for a different pattern to use up this lovely yarn.

 I found another project to start on, some knitted slippers, and I started some sewing projects.  Those ones deserve a whole post to themselves as the sewing machine gave me a lot of grief and it took a couple of days to sort it out.  What craft project are you working on?  Thanks for visiting today.Have a great 2sDay.

What's Your Number?

Here is a quick and easy little craft to make for the garden. You just need a good sized rock, some flat sided gems/marbles and some strong waterproof glue.

I laid out the number on a flat surface first, then transferred it piece by piece and glued it onto the rock.  This rock is standing up but I had laid it flat for glueing and drying. I used Household Goop, it's an all purpose contact adhesive and sealant.  I originally was thinking of adding a clear colour in between all the blue ones but for now have decided to leave it as it.  What do you think?
You could do all sorts of things instead of numbers ... initials, names, short garden quotes and more.  It is only limited by your imagination.

I've got my number, what's your number? This craft fits in perfectly with Blue Monday.  Thanks for visiting today. I hope you can take a moment to leave a comment and say hi.

Shadows and Reflections

 It's the weekend and it's time to show some shadows and reflections.

 In a quiet spot full of lily pads the trees cast their shadows on the water.

Down by the bay the trees reflect in the water.  The lily pads are just starting to open.
Join in for  Shadow Shot Sunday and Weekend Reflections.  Thanks for visiting today. I hope you are having an enjoyable weekend.