Friday, July 20, 2012

A Cool and Affordable Luxury

 Linen. For summer there is nothing like it!  I think of all my linen clothing as an investment and I wear them year round. With minimal care, they will last for years too, just like linen handwoven's.  While linen sheets for a king sized bed can be cost prohibitive, a pair (or more) of linen pillowcases isn't.



 These mint green beauties took about an hour and half in time and  $35.00 for 2.5 +- yards of good quality European linen. I utilized the pretty pale periwinkle blue selvage edge as the decorative band between the deep folded hem and the pillow case body and matched my thread to it for some simple top stitching. Pillow cases are one of the few home decorating type projects I like. I used a tutorial from Fabric of Visions blog here. I liked it better than the one I had previously followed and like the size and very generous hem this one calls for.

In sewing news, one top (Burda 7220) in voile has been completed



and another (Simplicity 2191) is in the works with a wonderful shirt weight Italian cotton.



I had to do some adjustments to Rhonda. It meant taking everything off of her and the two of us standing around in our skivvies while I measured and adjusted. Time consuming, but worth it since she's in service for most of my sewing. For those that are curious, we had to go down a bit in some places, not up.  ;) Lastly in sewing, I am finally going to cut into my treasured tomato red plaid for a jacket. It's been in the petting stash long enough!

Around the farm, the horses and donkeys had their feet trimmed yesterday. The new farrier Steve is now just Steve the farrier. Everyone has become accustomed to his way of working and it's all good. I need to get pics of the donkeys, they are finally looking pretty svelte.

Notable sightings around the farm have included a big Red Tailed Hawk, a fully mature Bald Eagle and of course, the usual residents, Chickadees, Nuthatches, wood peckers, wrens, sparrows and robins. The deer are out and about all over the mountain. Does and fawns are constantly crossing the roads now that the fawns are getting older. This is probably the most dangerous time for both drivers and deer. These two cuties were grazing with their Mommas last night while we watched them from our front porch.



 They finally got suspicious of the camera clicking (what hearing they've got!), and took off.



 I've spied my favorite little grey fox once or twice this week too. Gratefully, no raccoons or skunks.

The new warp for Murphy is in process. I'll work on it some more over the weekend along with writing out the prayers on the silks.



Parting shot: Comfort in closeness. These two are almost always touching at rest.

6 comments:

Judy said...

You're so right about linen. It just feels wonderful in the hot weather. You did a fine job on those pillowcases!
Thanks so much for sharing the photos of the fawns with us :-) How neat is that??
Enjoy your weekend,
Judy

Michelle said...

You are the most productive and talented seamstress I have ever known!

Mary said...

Those are really lovely pillowcases. The colors are perfect!

Theresa said...

Judy, Those fawns are providing a ton of entertainment most late afternoons and early evening.

Michelle, Thank you, but you got it all over me with the beautiful spinning and knitting!

Mary, Thank you! It really is a pretty soft green.

Sharon said...

I wish I had an nth of your sewing energy. I don't get past the thinking stage.

mrsmole said...

With all your projects you are never bored and toss in watching deer and wildlife out your window...whew it is a full time job! Love the pillowcases! Clever to use the selvedge as trim.