Linen and red

What's that I hear you say? Another close-up shot of linen with red embroidery? I do seem to have a bit of a mania for it at the moment, but I assure it will end and I'll be off in some other direction shortly. I'm a bit like that with breakfast cereals too...  When another blogger gets on a bit of a theme and post after post is variations on X, Y or Z and I often wonder if it will ever end. I kind of understand them now!  Forgive me bloggers who I have silently maligned!




This the back of my latest WIP, hopefully it'll be ready for proper viewing soon, though I've had a bit of a hiccup in the colour-selection line. If I'd just stuck with the red it would have been fine but noooo, had to get all fancy and now I have to go back and rip it out and redo it. In pink. Because Hazel insists it must be pink. And considering how she's been behaving in the last couple months I'm damned if I'm going to fight her on it, it's too emotionally draining!

Everyone says the Terrible Twos are so awful, they even have their own name for goodness' sake. Then I was told that three is worse and I should just start drinking while she was two. Pfft! A walk in the park.  I'm here to tell you that 4 may be delightful but 4.5 is frightful and I've never been angrier with her or more frustrated.  Or more in love.  But hoooboy, I'm glad I've got the 4.5 years practice under my belt because it's taking every ounce of self-control I have to negotiate conversations like this on a daily basis:

Me (very casually and following our usual routine): Ok, let's just brush you hair and braid it and then we'll go swimming with daddy.
Hazel: No. I don't want to.
Me: Well you have to have your hair braided otherwise it gets tangled in your googles. C'mon, just a quick brush and we'll go.
Hazel: No. I don't want to.
Me: Well we can't go until we've done your hair.
Hazel: But I want to go!
Me: Well let's do your hair then.
Hazel: No. No. No!
Me (in my laying-down-the-law-even-though-she-wishes-she-hadn't-started-it voice) Well we're not going to go swimming until your hair is done. What do you want to do?
Hazel: I don't know
Me: Well that's not an answer, yes or no?
Hazel: I don't know
Me: Ok then, we're not going
Hazel: BUT I WANT TO GO!!
Me: Well let's brush your hair.
Hazel. No, I don't want to!!!
...........................repeat ad nauseum for about 10 minutes until Hazel is placed in her room crying hysterically and I repair to the living room wishing the sun was over the yard arm. And we don't go swimming.  I'm assuming it's a "stage" and that it's about exerting control over her life but geez, does she have to choose such illogical things to control?  She knows they are too I think, which adds to her stubborness.  Today we had an episode after which she actually came out of her room after 10 minutes and said she was willing to get dressed and go out now. Oh please please please let it be the light at the end of the tunnel!

I'm still here, honest!

I'm just lost in the land of craft-that-does-not-lend-itself-to-blogging if you know what I mean. I've been working steadily away on the bunny tutorial, cut out a tshirt to sew, made one (count 'em ONE) napkin, and made new curtains for a little puppet theatre we got from the toy library. And yes, it's been busy but nothing to show for it really and no time to blog about it.

I've also been reading and re-reading 'Sewing Green' and 'Sew-U Home Stretch' for inspiration. The napkins are inspired by the former, the latter is teaching me how to make a long-sleeved, v-necked tshirt. I'm insanely nervous about doing this tshirt thing, I've been wanting to for ages - Jess may remember me reading the book on the Accela from NY to DC last September! I don't know why knits and my overlocker intimidate me so, but there it is. You'll probably all hear the cussing and swearing (what's the difference between those two things anyways?) emanating from Auckland later on tonight. If it's a failure then I'm not posting photos and I expect you all to forget that I ever mentioned it in the first place.

Last night I started on the napkins from Sewing Green. Well just napkins really, with the idea of binding the edges from the book. I royally stuffed up the first lot of fabric strips I cut to make the bias binding, I made it too narrow by half. Then the new strips just wouldn't work with my little bias binding maker, I think it was slightly too narrow still, or the fabric was too light or something. Total disaster. Cue more swearing and singing of fingers with the steam out of the iron. I gave up and did it the old-fashioned way by folding in half and then folding in the edges to meet the middle. Needless to say there's only enough to do two 15x15" napkins! Then I decided that I just needed to do one up and started on it at 10pm. Oh yeah, that was a good idea. Anyways, the binding stretches, the linen napkins stretch, and the first side is decidedly wonky. But I pressed on and got two more sides done before Hazel had a spack attack after being woken to go to the toilet by Mat and I had to go and deal with that. She's been a thumb sucker since she was able to get it in to her mouth and it's beginning to have dire effects on her teeth so yesterday we started painting the yukky-tasting stuff on it and night was when the full effects of no thumb really hit! Still, I wouldn't trade all the self-settling and comfort she's had from it for a few bad nights now. No sirree! Well I don't think so anyways... She accidentally stuck her thumb in Mat's mouth when they were rough-housing this morning and he bolted for the kitchen looking for something to wash the taste out of his mouth.

Busted!

A mail-order company here is selling those heatable wheatie-warmers shaped like bunnies and horses. Hazel wants one. This was our bedtime conversation just now

Hazel: Are you going to buy me a bunny one?
Me: Well...I might make you one instead.

Pause

Hazel: Buying one would be faster...

I'm not fooling anyone am I, not even almost-four-year-olds.

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On a more positive note, 'Sewing Green' arrived this afternoon which totally took me by surprise! All the other crafting books I've ordered from Fishpond have taken a couple of weeks to come from overseas first, this one must have been sitting in their warehouse. It's lovely! I'll post more about it in a day or so but I'm really in love with some of the projects although I'm not overly confident about my ability to source all these woolen sweaters from op-shops that they seem to require. Like 3 or 4 per project... I might have a look around tomorrow and see what the supply is like. Probably not good considering the cold snap that's hit us the last couple weeks! Some of the projects are a bit 'meh' though - I'm sorry but I really don't need yet another apron pattern, particularly the utterly useless half aprons that don't cover the part of the body most likely to get coated in flour! But that's probably my particular pet peeve - they're in every single recent craft book I have I think, it's a pandemic! :) Otherwise there are many projects that I'm absolutely dying to try out, especially the log-shaped draft-stopper, complete with leaves and bracket fungi! Eeeeee!