Crafts & Projects

scalloped edge hot pads

These little hot pads crochet up quickly and make a nice addition to a gift basket or a hostess gift. I sort of made up the pattern, so it’s not exact, but I can give you the basics. I made a base chain of 23-25 stitches and single crocheted the entire body of the hot…

creativity nights

Last night I was invited to my friend Clare’s quilting and design studio for an evening of catching up and creativity. We’ve decided to try to get together once a week to sip tea or wine, chat and make things. Since it’s so cold this time of year, a wooly quilt seemed like a good…

french press cozy

After going through my studio last week, and seeing exactly how ginormous the yarn stash has become, I decided it was time to start using up some of those skeins if I ever want to even think about entering a yarn store again. I’ve always thought a cozy for a French press is a brilliant…

studio snapshots

Hello friends! I spent a good portion of my day going through my home studio yesterday. A few of you expressed an interest in seeing pictures, so I took a few snapshots with the little Sony Cyber Shot and posted them. If you start at the second picture of my desk and scroll down, it’s…

“stained glass” candle cups

Today was a wonderfully relaxing day. We slept in, had tea and pumpkin muffins for breakfast, strolled around Red Wing’s historic district and enjoyed the autumn sun and breeze. We went out to lunch with our girls, Andie, Grace and Maddie May, and then came home and did a fun little craft project inspired by…

teacup candle

page 16- “Welcome Home” by Melissa Placzek There are several pages where I talk about tea and tea-related treats in my books, Chin Deep in Bubbles and Welcome Home! I remembered this while deciding what to post for Teatime Tuesday. I’ll be posting these little luxuries periodically throughout the next few months so you can…

linen hutch

The Hutch… The page in “Welcome Home” where I talk about the hutch… some of the (but not all of the) linens… and some of the vintage fabrics… and vintage reproduction fabrics… and a selection of the vintage pillowcases (this is about 1/4 of them) I LOVE vintage sheets and pillowcases…especially ones with hand embroidery…

autumn decorating

I’m feeling that feeling that comes over me every October. Time to feather the nest! I’ve packed summer away, rolled out the woven throw rugs and wool area rugs, and exchanged summer’s crisp blues and whites for autumn’s tawny earth tones. I sipped tea and hot apple cider while I decorated and took photographs to…

fresh herb tea

~fresh herb tea~ “Teaism is a cult founded on the adoration of the beautiful among the sordid facts of everyday existence. It inculcates purity and harmony, the mystery of mutual charity, the romanticism of the social order.” ~Okakura Kakuzu, 1906 We have a ton of fresh herbs growing in the container gardens out back on…

sewing lessons ~ gracie’s gingham strawberry purse

Gracie has expressed an interest in sewing! I’m so excited for her. We’ve decided to make her sewing lessons one of our summer projects. Today she learned the basics: cutting, pressing, pinning, how to work the sewing machine, and sewing a straight seam. She said several times during the process that she was having lots…