Friday, October 6, 2023

September Update

After a hot, dry, humid, and busy summer, things started to let up a bit in September. The second half of the month brought cooler weather, and the lessening of gardening chores meant there was more free time for exploring. We had the most amazing rainbow in the backyard, a full arch! It didn't last long but we all ran outside to enjoy it while it was there. 


The light is changing. Cora sat on the couch long enough for me to take this photo, but don't let it fool you, within a minute she was back setting up horse jumps all over the floor. We got a new couch! After the previous one being abused for 14 years, I did a ton of research and found my dream couch. It's a beautiful color (more forest green than how it looks in the picture) and it's high enough off the ground that cat toys and dust can't hide away for years underneath it.

So far the cat has stayed away from scratching it - he just scratches the carpet instead, but that's fine, because the carpet was 10% of the price of the couch. I've always thought of rugs as disposable in our house, because eventually they become so ruined by cat claws, spills, and scissors-wielding children that they need to be replaced. This is not the season of life for wall-to-wall carpeting.

I love working from home so much. I have a beautiful home office with lots of light, and cozy bookshelves, plants and candles. I have an adjustable desk and can move around during meetings while wearing comfy pants. I get super grumpy on the days I have to go into the actual office, which is dark, gray, and cold. I come home exhausted and headachy. Ugh! Ideally I'd have a fully remote job, but after 13 years with the same company, it's hard to walk away from the benefits and responsibility I've earned over the years. If anyone has ideas for making office life better, let me know!


Inspired by Karen I deadheaded my marigolds and made this garland. It was so pretty! Unfortunately it lasted less than 24 hours, and I found all the flowers lying in a pile on the ground. I didn't use thick enough thread, so I'll have to try again with better supplies.




I dry as many extra flowers as I can throughout the year. There are so many beautiful crafts you can do with them, but you know... time. I sell them as dried bouquets and they do pretty well. These flowers are from last year and still going strong. Most of the dried flowers sold in craft stores have been dyed or otherwise chemically preserved.


The kids and I went to the local community fair, which we do almost every year because it's close by and free. I didn't enter any knitting this year because I haven't finished many projects. It's Mary's life goal to win a blue ribbon though, so she got all kinds of ideas about what she wants to make for next year. Because it's a small local fair, the competition is not... fierce. As long as she can follow through, she has a good chance of getting that ribbon. Also: miniature horses!


We also went to an RV show. Now, we have no intention of buying an RV. The ones that can fit 4 people are too big and expensive, and I do not want a house-on-wheels to maintain. They are basically playhouses, so the kids LOVED them. They pretended that they lived in one and cooked fake dinner. If you haven't seen an RV lately, they are NICE. Some of them have multiple bedrooms, bathrooms, and SECOND FLOORS. Inexplicably they seem to all be designed in a "farmhouse" style. Oh, and the most expensive one we saw cost $230,000!!!!

Motivated by my relatively quick finish of my last quilt, I continued on to working on my last remaining quilt in progress. This one is made up of t-shirts, and if you can't zoom in to see, most are at least 20 years old. I have another t-shirt quilt that I made of even older shirts (circa 1996) that I've used for so long that it's literally falling apart. I had to completely replace the binding a few years ago. This one should be equally cuddly. I don't have any scraps big enough to do the sashing and backing, so I had to order some fabric, along with batting. I am trying to whittle down my fabric collection as my tastes have changed over the years and I want to make room for the new. A big scrap quilt is likely needed to finally use everything up.


At the end of the month I had my real vacation: a relaxing trip with my friends to what we have started calling the "craft cabin" (although it's a different rental house every year). This year we went to the mountains in Virginia. The view from our balcony was stunning, if cloudy most of the time. The quiet and birdsong made me fall in love with this place - I will definitely be back to this area. 



I could stare at this view all day. It was wet outside the majority of the time, but I made sure to sit outside as much as possible. And the fall weather made it seem extra cozy inside.


We made candles! It was fairly easy and I plan to keep an eye out for interesting containers at thrift stores to fill with wax.


The house was marketed as "ski-in", which obviously we couldn't do, but that meant we were a walkable distance to the ski slopes. The resort runs the lift for mountain bikers, but it was closed that day, leading to a very quiet and lovely walk. Can you see the brown mountain bike trails crisscrossing the slope? Going down one of these must be terrifying. Most of the runs require full-face helmets and displayed all sort of concerning warnings. (This is also why I don't ski!)


I hope everyone is having a lovely fall. I find that transitional seasons give me the most energy, meaning lots of projects planned for the future; but who knows when they will actually get done. The fun is the planning! Wishing you all beautiful weather and fabulous reads!

21 comments:

  1. Ha ha ha! $230,000 for an RV. That's more than we paid for our house, real talk.

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    1. Nuts, right? I guess some people do live in them full time and use them as houses - but still, that's a ton of money!

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  2. What a fun idea to go to an RV show! We used to go to the Boat Show in Annapolis and it was so much fun to see inside all the boats and imagine what it would be like to live in one.
    How do you dry your bouquets? When I got married I put my bouquet in a vase and it eventually did dry, but it was a winter bouquet so not a lot of flowers, mostly greenery (I am woefully unable to describe it). But then the bouquet got dusty over the years from just sitting on my desk in the vase, and I eventually threw it out when we moved.

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    1. Ooh, a boat show! That could be fun too, I need to check out when that is. I just hang flowers upside down in the basement to dry. It takes a few weeks. I find they will last 2-3 years, eventually they become brittle and lose color, and get dusty. I had some of my wedding flowers pressed in a frame, and that seems like a more permanent way to preserve them, but I'd guess no flowers will last forever!

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  3. Your new couch is perfection! You ticked off my boxes: up and off the ground so that it's easy to clean under! Also, that dark color is a must have in my home. We can't afford a new couch right now but this is exactly what I'd want!

    And your flowers are gorgeous. I know the flower farm is hard work and I'm amazed that you manage so much in the summer. I hope those beautiful bouquets make it feel worthwhile. I'm so jealous of your crafty weekend with friends! That cabin looks like a winner!

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    1. I admit that around this time I'm glad for impending frosts and an end to gardening. But it never fails that come spring, I'm excited for flowers again. The cat also likes to lay under the couch, which makes it extra important that I can vacuum underneath it. I don't know how one can can produce all that hair - he must do it while he's sleeping all day.

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  4. That RV price is CRAZY. I have zero desire to travel via RV, but that price tag solidifies that notion. That said, for $230K, I bet it's gorgeous inside.

    Your flowers are stunning. Just beautiful and such a lovely, relaxing way for me to start my day. Ditto your office. I can see why you prefer working out of that space. And your comments about how badly you feel physically after a day at the corporate office drives home the fact that our surroundings really matter so much - both for physical and mental wellbeing.

    And that new couch is perfect. Love the aesthetic AND the size. It looks so deep and comfortable. Perfect for sinking into at the end of a long day with a book.

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    1. I would be terrified to drive or tow an RV! My sister found a company that will deliver one directly to your campsite, which seems ideal. The couch is so deep that each section is almost the size of a twin bed. It makes the cushions hard to manage, but if someone ever has to sleep on it it will be perfect!

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  5. So much great stuff in this post, Sarah! I love the quilt idea with t-shirts. What a great way to use old t-shirts. I also love that you made candles and that your home office is so cozy. I love all your flowers and bouquets! And the couch. You know, I think carpeting is kind of icky, we had our carpeting taken out in our old house in probably...2009 maybe? Anyway, the amount of GROSS that was in that carpet...ugh!

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    1. I love how plush carpeting feels, but unless you live in a house with only adults and no pets, there is no way it will ever stay clean!

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  6. What fun to see your marigold garland, even if it was short lived. :-) And your bouquets are just spectacular. A crafty retreat with friends sounds wonderful, such a good boost of creative energy. Hooray for using up fabric scraps! Someone in my quilt guild showed an amazing string quilt yesterday during "show and tell", it used up oodles of scraps. I can imagine that your spiffy new sofa will be well loved as the season shifts into cooler days and more snuggling. Happy reading to you too, Sarah! xo

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    1. I need ideas for a scrap quilt, so send any good ones my way! Colorful prints aren't really my style anymore (I love the solid-color fabric modern quilts), but I can't let my stash go to waste!

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    2. https://newquilters.com/how-to-make-string-quilts/

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    3. OOH this is so cool! This may be what I make!

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  7. Looks like you have been having a great time with family and friends. Cora is making good use of your new sofa :-)
    Wow, that is some serious money for an RV! but good to have a nose around with the girls.
    Love the T shirt quilt. It will be fab when you finish.
    And to round things off- a fun holiday with your friends.
    Have a good week x

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    1. Thanks for stopping by! I love looking at things I would never buy, including houses. I always come back to "I could never keep that clean!"

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  8. Your home work space is gorgeous. I love working at home as well, I never enjoyed going in to an office, so I understand what you mean. Gorgeous new couch, I love it. We would love an RV show as well, how brilliant. My children used to love looking around the sheds at the garden centre when they were little, you have reminded me of that. An RV show is definitely next level though :) I love the idea of a craft cabin, what a fantastic break. And thank you so much for the kind comment you left on my blog, it was very much appreciated. CJ xx

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    1. Ooh sheds, now that is a brilliant idea. They love anywhere they can poke around. I remember as a child my parents would take us to view new model homes and we loved it.

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  9. A getaway to the "craft cabin". That sounds delightful - and the place you rented is so dreamy. I would have loved to sit there and just "watch" the world go by.

    I think you need to take some candles and plants to work to make your office day a little more cozy. Before you know it, people will want to hang out at your desk.

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  10. Hi Sarah! I’m a new reader - found you from Elisabeth’s blog. I was reading back about your flowers - we grow a lot of flowers in our small garden in SC - and I saw this photo of your new couch that looks like exactly what we have been searching for! Do you mind sharing the brand with me? I love how deep the cushions are - that has been a downside of all the ones we’ve looked at so far! Thanks!!

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    1. It is the Joybird Lewis sectional (definitely find it on sale, it's too expensive otherwise!) I will say, when we first got it was SO HARD. Not comfortable at all. Now after 6 months, it has broken in, at least in the parts where we usually sit, and I like it a lot more. I still think it is beautiful though and I love looking at it :)

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