Events and elections time...what can I say?

Just wanted to let you all know I am still around, but have been caught up in work.  First we had our big annual fundraiser with over 1,100 people (whew!)....

So fun! And then I was off to Michigan to do some learning and networking at the national conference.    I got to go to Grand Rapids, drink some local craft beer, and also see Lake Michigan!  

The view of the river from the hotel....

It had recently flooded there, so the river is still very high.

And can you believe this is a lake?  Lake Michigan was gorgeous.  It felt like I was back at the Oregon coast!

Finally, I have been fully engaged in an election on the coast, in Newport, and I am working hard to get good things done there to help protect the ocean and the environment.  But that has taken up evenings and weekends...so come May 21st, I will be all yours again!

It was a wonderful day yesterday to hit the streets in Newport and talk to voters. 

Anyway, I wanted to let you know that I am still alive and hoping to get back to the regularly scheduled postings soon!

Ash

In my free moments...crocheting, knitting, perler beads and a little sewing

The last couple of weeks at work have kicked my behind. (Oops!  I missed last week's Feature Friday!)   But I have been doing small projects whenever a spare moment came up.

Recently, my hubby and his friend have gotten into perler beads.  And I wanted to try it out, so I created a few coasters in a 70's design inspiration.  So far I have....

I think they are fun....(sorry, not the best pics ever...)

I have also been knitting on the bus to and from work.  I am using my new found cabling skills to make myself a laptop sleeve!

This is what I have so far.  I think I will be sharing the pattern once I have completed it, so keep an eye out for that, too!

I also just got some new cast iron cookware, which I am seriously loving.  No going back for me!  But the handles get pretty hot, so I crocheted us a few handle covers out of cotton....

I think they came out cute. :)

And finally, I just started cutting out a dress that I bough material for probably at least 2 years ago!  I am pretty excited for it, and happy to be getting back into sewing more.

I absolutely love the Sew Serendipity book that I have.  And I need to get the new one!  Here is the dress I want to make - mine will be out of the above material - the floral pattern is the main fabric and the pink dotted material will be the accents.

Can't wait to share all the finished products with you soon!

Ash

Ackk! I am behind again on my Feature Friday. But I still want to feature Fresh From Home!

Man...sometimes I am so bad!  I have no good excuse for being late on this Feature Friday, but good news is that I am finally doing it!  And I am feeling this week like being a super self sufficient backyard homesteader, so thus why I have chosen to feature Fresh From Home - Adventures in Backyard Homesteading!

I first came upon this blog from Pinterest (I know, shocker!) when I saw this hilarious pic...

I am not sure if everyone will think this is as funny as I do, but I swear that my chickens do this with the dog.  They love to wander in the house, and my dog watches them intently whilst they meander through the kitchen.  Silly animals.

So of course I had to see what else was going on at this blog.  And if you are into the homesteading where you are sort of mentality at all, you will enjoy this website.  She has lots of great tutorials and tips on growing stuff....like this post on sprouts...

As well as yummy and interesting recipes, like this one for Springerle Cookies.  

There is something about the old way that food looked like art.  I think about reading Little House on the Prairie and how they would use a strawberry butter mold to make the butter look nice.  A kind of pride in the food.  I think I must try this out.

And then of course she has some great posts on her chickens.  I was especially interested in this post about her bunny living with her chickens!  We have had a bunny, definitely a tame house pet, that must have gotten loose and has come to hang out in the yard.  Maybe it stays with the chickens sometimes...hehe...

Their bunny doesn't even care that the chickens threw dirt on it! So cute.

Anyway, head on over and check the site out.  Fun to check out tips on gardening, all the fun chicken posts, and of course good food and tips!

Happy Feature Friday on a Sunday! 

Ash

Pom Poms!!

I am loving the pom pom craze right now.  I have decided to make my own pom pom rug for my future travel trailer.  It has a bright orange vintage oven in it, which made me want a fun, squishy rug that is also super colorful.  Here is what I have so far....

Actually, I have made a few more since I took this pic.  I am pretty excited!  But boy does it take a lot of pom poms!  

 Pom poms are such a great stash buster.  I have decided that I must finish all unfinished yarncrafting projects before moving on to a new one, and that I can not buy yarn unless there is a planned project and I don't have suitable yarn in the stash.  I am happy to say that I just finished a VERY old UFO (un-finished object...hehe) and that got me caught up.  (Pics to come soon.) Now I need to use up all my yarn so I can buy more!  :)

What projects are you working on?  Here are some other pom pom projects that I have recently come across and just loved....

From Design Mom

Great tutorial at Annika Likes

Giant pom pom scarf at Johanna Rundel (in German)

And these adorable pom pom flower...love them in the Ball Jar...over at Eclectically Vintage

Yay!! 

Ash

Feature Fridays returns (a little late) with Naughty Shorts!

One of my favorite ways to discover new and wonderful blogs is through craftgawker and pinterest.  I think it might be one of the only ways I would actually be able to find the awesomeness that I find!  And this week's Feature Friday is no exception!  I stumbled upon this pin when I was cruising around on pinterest recently of adorable dresses made from vintage sheets and knew I'd found a site I'd return to many times at Naughty Shorts!

I mean....how extremely adorable are these dresses?  They are amazing.

And after checking out her blog more, I found that not only does she love vintage materials, she just plain has a great blog!  She makes wonderful creations from the vintage materials she finds, she likes to craft in other ways and share them, and she loves to thrift!  I love some of the finds in this particular haul that she shared....

So neat!

And I can't say it enough....just seeing the great fabrics that she finds and sells or creates dresses from is so fun.  Her whole blog makes me want to go out and scour the thrift stores for some fun fabrics and neat finds.  I think I need a shelf like she has above!

And look that this stash!

L.O.V.E.

So go on over to Naughty Shorts and peruse the gorgeous fabrics, wonderful dresses, great photography and awesome thrift finds! Make sure to say hello while you are there!

Happy belated Friday!

Ash

Feature Fridays break...instead how about some garden fun and update to DIY Plant Markers!

I have been trying all week to get this blog post up!  So, I am taking a little break from my Feature Fridays to share this post.  Maybe not quite as exciting, but it is good to mix it up sometimes, right?

I am getting pretty excited about my little garden this year.  We have started with new, raised beds using cinder blocks.  I have one that is always shaded by a big pine tree, so that one is going to be the greens bed.  We have planted some yummy early greens in that bed and they are peeking their little heads up now!

And in the back there....that is my update to my shrink-dink (shrink plastic) plant markers!  I am so excited!  You may recall a post I had done before with a tutorial on making shrink plastic plant markers and attaching them to spoons?  Well, they were fun, but pretty basic.  I have had a lot of fun with new versions this year!  One of my friends helped me.  I wanted ones that even told the name of the seeds I was using.  I have to say, I am pretty proud of us. Hehe.  Check these out!

Each one is different and a lot of fun....arugula.... 

Cartouche style spinach....

Some Flashy Butter Oak Lettuce....

Mild Mesclun Mix....

London Springs Lettuce Mix...

This one is pretty cute  - see the little 'p's in there?  Because they are Sugar Snap Peas! hehe

And Oregon Sugar Snap Peas!

We made them a little small, so if you are making your own, err on too large.  They shrink a lot!  I would start with something at least 4-5 inches wide and a proportional height.

Finally, just for a giggle...look at this silly chicken.

I kept wondering how they were hopping the fence.....

Happy Friday!

Ash

Feature Fridays and Happy Loves Rosie

I decided that this week I needed another fix of adorable campers and caravans that have been fixed up to be almost too retro-cute to bear.  So, I went on over to Happy Loves Rosie, a blog that offers me just that. I mean, I could show you this pic right here and stop this whole post.  This is the epitome!

Right?!  But you then seriously need to check out the rest of her page, and of course, the whole post to see the interior of her cute little caravan.

Happy, the author of this blog, sounds like she would be a blast to hang out with.  And she has a keen eye for great vintage items, which she then sells at her online store.  I mean, seriously, she has some fun stuff, that I would almost pay the shipping overseas for!

Her blog is a retro feast for the eyes!  I was supposed to be writing this blog post, but instead just kept getting side tracked by the colorful images....like this one of her getting organized...

Look at the cute tins and teapots in the background, too!

And she even shares some great free vintage patterns and images, like this cute tea cosy pattern!

Ok, I need to show another picture of the caravan....so hard to choose!

In fact, you better head over there right now and see what I am talking about!

Happy Friday!

Ash