Lady Emma

We had frost in our neighborhood this week.  How strange for April in Houston.  I realized that I wished to put my hands in the soil.  It may be due to how chaotic life is.  I love the short people in my life but that does not mean I have a lot of time to create.  Or thought power.

I can pull weeds and try to make the flowers that are starting to flower try to look prettier.  I planted a Lady Emma rose.  The buds are changing in a positive way, not a I killed it as I planted it.  I hope to plant more roses again. I need flowers.  There is a theory that flowers are enlightened beings because they developed before insects and other pollinators.  

I do not know.  I am not that wise.  I know flowers sooth my soul.  I am going to add more roses to my garden again.  The soil should have revived from the last time I planted them.  And this time, I am not so worried about having veg as well.  I am told I may get a veg plot again in the backyard.  I am kind of at I will believe it when I see it stage of life.

But I will have roses.  Be prepared for many pictures when that does happen!

Something new for my Etsy shop

I have started to put something new together for my Etsy shop.  Slips.  They are fun for me because they combine dyeing, hand sewing, and sewing.  I am working on one right now that will have embroidery.  I have not put them in the shop here yet.  I am not completely sure why.

The slip itself is a cotton silk blend that I find works very well under dresses.  But is not too hot for where I live most of the time.  The hand torn ribbon on the dress is what I made using cabbage and hibiscus.  Grey pink lavender.  Something like that.

Then I sit and hand sew most of the ribbon and lace on.  I listen to audiobooks while I do it.  I have to admit, this one of those tasks which I wish I could do every day, all day.  It is restful and meditative.  I love hand sewing.  Now if I could just get the community college to respond about their tailoring program, there might be more of it in my life as a way to make money.  Baby steps.

I had to share the sunflowers in my garden.  Are they not pretty!

t-shirts

I find t-shirts are a difficult piece of clothing for me to purchase.  Part of it is color.  Part of it is fit.  Part of it is quality.  I want a t-shirt to be able to hold up to more then a couple of washings.  I do not wish to be choked.  I like long sleeves.  And every time I find a t-shirt that fits those parameters, the company who made it changes something in their process or stops making what I like.  My best friend has the same problem.

I have a treadle sewing machine so fabric that stretches is not really the right choice usually.  Recently I went down a rabbit hole at the Alabama Studio sites.  Such a bad thing.

Hand sewn t-shirts.  Organic cotton jerseys.  I decided to give it a try.  It was a lovely calming process. Such that I wish to do more hand sewing.

Felted seams.  Herringbone stitching.  My best friend has a t-shirt to try.  I have a t-shirt to try.  I am now working on Christmas gifts that are teaching me reverse applique.  I just keep trying and learning new things.  It is a true rabbit hole!

And just because.  Flowers from my garden.

my garden

When I got back from my travels, I did not know what I would return to in my garden.

I think abundance is the right word.  There is spinach and amaranth that can be picked.  There are so many flowers.

The flowers definitely make me smile!  I have not picked many because everyday I have been weeding and enjoy them while I am in the garden.  I did bring one inside today because it had come off in the weeding but that is about it.

I keep transplanting vegetable plants so they will have more room.  Every time, I hope the plant will make it.  So far, so good.  But there has been rain everyday which has helped.  

There is a lot of peace in the weeding.  Any time I get anxious, having my hands in the dirt lowers the anxiety a lot.  It has been six months of risks and strange curves on the road.  I am still on that path and sometimes it just causes me to be anxious.  The weeding helps.  It is food I can see that will be coming to the table.  It is flowers that just bring joy.

More dirt time is needed.  Especially in my new overalls!  I get so dirty and I track mud so well.  The overalls have been protecting me better from insects as well so life is pretty good.

quiet spot

My garden is growing.  I have been spending a bit of time out in it each day.  There are weeds starting to come back so I go out and work with my garden knife.  It may not be that long each day but I seem to get a couple handful of weeds out each time.  

I have also needed to do some thinning.  The pumpkins are trying to take over the world again.  Some of the broccoli seeds came up much too close together.  I know I will need to thin more as things grow but it is hard when the plants are so small.  But I did notice that they were bigger in the evening then when I weeded in the morning.  That is what happens when a bit of water and warmth are added.

This bunch of mint came out of my mint bed.  I walked it up to a local restaurant.  We went out for drinks last night and talked a lot with the bar manager.  I think I found someone of like mind.  There may be much more infusion happening in my future.  Infusion that is alcohol based.  For now, I will take him mint occasionally.  Even though this did not even seem to touch my mint bed.  The clipping will help it keep from getting leggy and it will grow more.  Just what I need, more mint!