Quixotic Pixels

We sharpened a box full of pencils.

We stuffed his backpack full of supplies. I heated up some soup and filled his thermos. Sam dressed himself in brand new slacks and shoes.

He couldn’t eat his breakfast–and I had made his favorite thing–oatmeal with brown sugar.

“Are you nervous,” I asked.

“No, I’m not nervous. I’m excited.”

Very well. So, we walked to school. His brand new sneakers put terrible blisters on his heels. First things first, we got band-aids from the school nurse. He still had trouble walking.

With a hug and kiss, I left him sitting at his new desk, looking forlorn.

Later, I brought him extra shoes and a box full of band-aids. He was absorbed by his lesson and barely acknowledged my presence. He looked happy.

At home, I set about making a special dinner for the big day. Since we’re drowning in produce right now (from our garden, our friends’ gardens and a CSA basket), I’ve been stuffing veggies and fruit into everything we’re eating. Here are the fixings for slow-cooker enchiladas a la Simply in Season, a great cookbook to help you manage a flood of produce or learn how to add more fresh ingredients to your diet.

Tomatoes, corn, peppers, summer squash, onions…MMM! The recipes from this cookbook are usually pretty good, but they aim for a degree of healthiness that I’m not sure I need. I added salt to this dish. I’m so decadent.

When the weekend started, I didn’t think I’d be working obsessively on an embroidery project, especially one of my own design. Look what happened though:

I’ve finished stitching the witch. She turned out much cuter than I had expected. I will probably restitch the part around the eyes with fewer strands of floss so more white space shows up. It didn’t look that black to me until I took this photo. It’s funny how a picture can change your perspective!

I did make a couple of changes as I worked on the piece. I added more strands of hair, another bristle or two to the broom and straightened out a couple of crooked lines. I also moved the buttons to the left of the bodice opening. If I ever design another embroidery project again, I might try cleaning it up first in Illustrator first. I didn’t do it this time around, because I wasn’t sure this was going to work out, and it seemed like it would be a big drain on my time for a possibly worthless doodle.

I also started working on a patchwork border for it:

Hopefully, I’ll be able to show it off in the next day or so!

Simplicity 2874.

I cannot figure out the magic formula for making clothing Claire loves. She’d gladly wear her favorite red skirt every single day, but won’t touch a purple skirt I made just like it–and purple’s supposed to be her favorite color.

Something about this little cherry print jumper really appeals to her. Perhaps it’s the bright, happy colors or the big pockets she immediately filled with toys. Whatever it might be, I’m glad of the outcome.

Tags: clothing, dress, jumper, sewing