SpiderWomanKnits

Day 24: 30 Days to Blogville or Bust

Ha. Ha. Let me distract you with really pretty yarn while we don't mention the fact that I utterly and completely abandoned my pet project of 30 Days to Blogville or Bust which, by the way, I started in *ahem* JULY! Sheesh. There seems to be a reoccurring trend here too. I only got 25 days into my 30 Days of Happiness ending on an unhappy day no less!

Well, it goes without saying that I am happy to be blogging again, if not as often as I would like, at least more regularly. But, do me a favor ok, forgive me for being the worst replier in the world lately. I reply to each and every comment with a giant smile on my face and a warmed heart but I must get better at actually saying so. That's my new goal only I won't attach a silly "30 Days to Comment Reply" or anything like that to it because then I am surely condemning it to failure.

Oh, that yarn! That is Karin's yarn. You can find it here. The bottom one, Rooster (how could I pass that up), was my sole Rhinebeck Fiber Acquisition. The top one, Crap Shoot, is already on it's way to becoming this. Yum. Yum.

Day 23: 30 Days to Blogville or Bust

Lucky

Can anyone guess what that is?

That, my dear friends is a Super Stack of Antique-Vintage Knitting Good-Schtuff. I mean Good Stuff. It's not even the whole pile. I can hardly take a break from pawing through it all to blog. I think I almost swooned when I found it. Now, I have to decide if I can let it go...

Day 22: 30 Days to Blogville or Bust

A Little Home Improvement

There are a lot of feet in our house. Big and Small. We are blessed to have a truly beautiful mud room that up until recently has had the unfortunate condition of being the largest tripping hazard in the county. Shoes would come off, flying, and land where they may...usually right in front of the entryway to the house. It was a nasty condition and had bothered us for some time. But I knew holding out for the right "shoe system" would be a wise choice since I really didn't have any good ideas on how to aesthetically corral a family's worth of shoes anyhow. 

Then one day a free and BIG cabinet came our way and it just clicked! Pardon the not-so-great "before" pictures. We were so excited to tackle this project we started before thinking of documenting it. 

It's a huge and heavy wooden cabinet with big wooden doors. It was ok enough but it was a lot to look at and made the mud room feel "heavy" if that makes any sense. At first I though of putting some pretty wallpaper on the doors or something but quickly realized how messy that would get. So Greg started removing the inner panels for me with a huge question mark look on his face and a plea from me to just "trust me". In this picture above you see the first panel removed.

Here are three of the panels and original knobs removed. And then I just knew what I was going to do. A quick run to the hardware store for some hardware cloth...

and voila! Shoe cabinet!

And a mud room that isn't a mess to walk through but a joy to be in!

You can see in this photo too that we replaced the old ceiling fan that was in the room when we first moved in with this antique one I found at an estate sale. It's really cool. Punched Tin.  And quite possibly one of my favorite finds is this head board bench I picked up at a local used furniture place for peanuts.

Total cost for the project $18. $15 for the roll of hardware cloth and $3 for the new knobs (which I still have to paint) We did this in June but I wanted to wait to see if we'd actually use the cabinet or not and I have to say the mudroom is now always organized. I think it helps to be able to see the shoes inside so you know where to find the shoes you are looking for with out having to open the whole thing. It's great for the kids. All their shoes are on the bottom two shelves and the visibility is a huge help for them as well. Honestly, I don't think we'd use it if we had to constantly search and guess. The hardware cloth was just the right fix for this cabinet.  It was on it's way to a landfill by the way when a friend stopped at our house first knowing that I love to modify furniture and thought I might have an idea for it. She was right and I love her for it!

Day 21: 30 Days to Blogville or Bust

Love Through the US Postal Service

Today was a good mail day. No bills today, just bliss.

 Anna Maria Horner - Good Folks - Adriatic Fat Quarter Set

(from Etsy Seller A Fabric Outlet)

And some Bare Yarn for my first ever natural dye endeavor! I am so excited!

 (Anyone have any good links or advice to share about dyeing with plants?)

You know, I've been really blessed with my Etsy shop in the sense that I feel it has been a successful venture. I started my vintage shop without any expectations and so that makes it really easy to feel good about how busy it's been. In just 7 months (with a two month baby break in there) I have matched 179 items that could have been lost to time with their new rightful owners.

I am not boasting here, trust me, I am going somewhere with this. 179 items means almost 179 packages that had to be shipped. Sometimes I stop to think about that and realize that if I hadn't started an Etsy shop I wouldn't have shipped that many things in three lifetimes let alone a few months! I have shipped literally all over the world and I am in the Post Office at least a few times a week.  So, I've gotten to know my local post clerks quite well and that, my friends, isn't an easy thing to do. It took a while for them to get used to me and for me to get used to them. That is a whole 'nother post for another time. I "get" the grief, I really do. But I wonder how often these guys stop to think about just how much happiness they are spreading around the world? Sure, sure there are more bill days than bliss days for most of us but don't the bliss days just leave you on cloud nine for quite a while? I am not much of a shopper but I *love* getting packages in the mail. Oh, for me it is just one of my favorite things. 

So tomorrow or the next day or whenever I am back in the Post Office again I am going to thank these guys for bringing pure happiness right to my doorstep. It's not often, in this day and age, to say that that is part of your job. Bringing happiness to people. That is a really good thing. 

Speaking of deliveries don't you just wish that things were still delivered in old crates like this instead of cardboard boxes? I was lucky enough to find two old crates this weekend on my hunting trip that will find a spot somewhere in our home once they dry out and once they find their proper place I'll be sure to share. 

Oh, and if you have the time head on over to Red Comb Farm! The brooder is done and Greg is blogging.

Day 20: 30 Days to Blogville or Bust

Being Green

Wow! Thanks so much for all the chicken love from my last post. Greg was really excited to reply to your comments over on the Red Comb Farm blog. Blogging is new to him despite his history as a computer consultant. It's great to have support and feedback so it means a lot to be able to share this process. We hope too that we'll learn valuable lessons which we will be able to pass on. 

It is our hope to contribute to our family through a sustainable business. That is part of what I love so much about selling vintage on Etsy too. Literally everything is recycled. The packaging I use to ship my orders comes from a partnership with my local health food store, who save all their packing materials and boxes for me (most of which are 100% recycled already) and of course, vintage is in and of itself recycled goods. For those of you have have found a treasure or two in my shop before you know I always include a little extra gift that is recycled vintage as well.  In any case, I know that raising chickens becomes a different type of venture when you go from 8 to 60 hens. So, I hope we are able to recycle our knowledge as well to help others who might be thinking of starting something in the future. 

Today I want to share a recipe with you. One that is very new to me and absolutely delightful because it's from the garden and it takes a whole whopping 10 minutes to prepare. Last week Soulemama had a post about her pesto. Well, of course we've been there and done that, but one of her readers Zoe mentioned in the comments that she uses Nasturtium for her pesto! Nasturtium! We have always grown Nasturtium in our garden for it's beauty, edibility and tendency to crowd out weeds but never before have I thought of using it for pesto. Let me tell you it is amazing! And so simple. 

You'll need:

Four tightly packed cups of Nasturtium leaves

1 1/2 Cups of Olive Oil

1 Cup of Walnuts

5-6 Cloves of Garlic (or more or less to suit your taste)

Once you have all that together in a food processor, just process until smooth and voila! Add some to your perfectly cooked al dente pasta and sprinkle with cheese. Done! This made about 32 ozs of pesto. So some went straight to the freezer. And we have so much more Nasturtium left. Lovely!

I really can't say enough good things about Nasturtium. We plant it in between our hot peppers, beets, along with our chard anywhere there is a spot we don't want to weed. They add beautiful color both from their foliage and their blossoms and they just taste great. Whether you are using the leaves and flowers in a salad or spreading this delicious pesto on a fresh mozzarella sandwich. Grow some if you don't already! 

 **original recipe found here with more great info about Nasturtium.

Day 19: 30 Days to Blogville or Bust

Under Foot: Around our House

 

So many textures. So much diversity in feeling. So much support for the goings on of a family of five. So many surfaces to clean.

Day 18: 30 Days to Blogville or Bust

A quick knit. 

(Sleepy Baby still doesn't mind modeling knits. You gotta love this guy!)

Raveled here.

Day 17: 30 Days to Blogville or Bust

Today was a REALLY good day for Vintage! We were all sort of stuck this morning and getting in each other's hair (it was a rough night of sleep or lack thereof last night). So I suggested a family hunt and it paid off for everyone! Jorn got "skater" shoes, Simonne got a vintage wooden doll cradle, Vaughn got vintage red corduroy Osh-Kosh Overalls with feet (!) and Greg got a stack of books. In fact,  our house even got a new (very old) wooden folding chair. And me...well...I loaded up on stuff for the shop! But there was one thing I bought for the shop I just don't think I'll be able to part with. 

A vintage Saks Fifth Avenue jumper made from Railroad Stripes! Not the most practical garb for a nursing momma but I'll make it work in two hour intervals! I wasn't sure if it would fit and I wasn't planning on even trying it on but I did and it did and I love it. 

But it's even better when accessorized with baby feet! See!

The haul for the shop was huge. I already have a pile of stuff waiting to be listed. That's all good I guess. I just have a hard time finding my dining room these days. 

Day 16: 30 Days to Blogville or Bust

Sewing! Sewing has become my summer passion. Not that I have a great deal of time but when I do I have to say I am starting to make friends with my sewing machine and actually make some things I like. Meet Wee Bunny!

Wee Bunny loves to do all sorts of things. But his very most favorite thing is spinning around in circles until he is nauseatingly dizzy.

After, he just kind of tips over and rests on the front porch watching the cars go by and waving to the folks he knows. 

He really loved it here in Vermont but now lives in New Jersey with his second cousin. I happen to think that deep down inside he was always more of a City Bunny anyhow. 

*I made him from scratch, just cutting pattern pieces as I went along from cereal boxes. Using vintage fabrics I have in my stash (which is pitifully small). Safety eyes for sure. He was based on some bunnies I bought on Etsy last year for Simonne but I can't seem to find the seller on Etsy anymore. Wait, here she is The Vintage Magpie. 

One of my favorite things to knit is softies so it makes good sense that I am enjoying sewing them as well. Although, I do have a wee little knitted sweater in the works for Wee Bunny just in case he gets cold in New Jersey this winter. 

Day 15: 30 Days to Blogville or Bust

Boy was that a FUN week! Just what we needed. I have so few pictures because I was just too busy enjoying myself. We took the kids to the Joy-see (Jersey) Shore and had a blast. Stopping to see cousins, in laws and parents. Then when we got home we had more visiting from aunts and uncles. Lovely. I am the happiest when air mattresses are being blown up and the linen closet is empty. 

My cousin and I like to have our babies at the same time. Her first daughter and Simonne were born just a day apart. This year our boys were born a little over a month apart. Vaughn got to meet his newest (second) cousin for the first time. Super cute baby gathering. Like two little old men.

And Simonne was beside herself with happiness seeing her birth mate second cousin and playing with all the babies! Jorn was too. He really loves the little ones. 

Today was the day to catch up with all the laundry and settle back in. I am happy to say that we returned to our one chicken and two cats happy and healthy too. Next post...actual crafting! Yee Haw!