Birthday Number: 65

 I recycled parts from numbers Roger had made for me, hence the wood. 

A Faerie House Birthday Party

The friends at the faerie house were enjoying a warm summer. The garden often needed to be watered because even when it rained, it remained dry under the tree. T1 enjoyed the mist from the sprinkler and eating the weeds. Dog hoed now and then to loosen the soil, but mostly T1 managed the garden.

Dog spent some time each week gathering sticks for building bonfires when the evenings got chilly. 

 Dog enjoyed this task. There was the opportunity for a bit of an explore, and maybe you already know this: dogs like sticks.

Being an observant creature, Dog noticed that there was excitement building in the big house on the yard. Dog paid close attention and was quite sure that there was a birthday party afoot. 

Dog discussed this with the faerie house group of friends.

"I think one of the people is having a birthday," Dog reported.

"The one who grows things around our tree?" asked T1, who had watched lilies and lobelia planted, presumably for the friends enjoyment. Who else saw the faerie house yard? 

"No," said Dog, "The other one. The person who grows vegetables."

"Ah...." said Frog, "This calls for a celebration. Did you get a sense of when the birthday is?"

"I am not entirely sure. I think the party is not on the exact day of the birthday. The big ones seem to need to do things on weekends. At least until they are "retired," whatever that means," said Dog. "I think the party is tomorrow."

"Shall we have cake, then?" asked T2

"Yes," said Frog, "If you help me bake it."

Hedgehog missed the discussion entirely, being completely engrossed in reading a book. Hedgehog did, however, hear the word "cake."

"Cake?" Hedgehog looked up to ask, "What's this about cake?"

"Dog can tell you," said Frog, moving towards the house, "T2 and I have work to do."

Frog got down the big blue bowl and gave T2 a smaller red one. Frog asked T2 to get the sugar and cocoa. By now Frog and T2 were a good working team.

Outside, Dog prepared the new patio, first by sweeping it clean.

Then Dog laid down a blanket. Hedgehog brought out the dishes.

"Can you help me with this banner?" called T1, who loved big decorations, but had a hard time climbing ladders.

Dog, Hedgehog and T1 wrestled the banner into place. 

"That's awfully nice!" said Hedgehog. The others agreed.

"That's not all!" T1 said excitedly, "I have these flags and numbers as well!

"Of course you do!" said Dog, with a good natured grin.

The next afternoon people started gathering at the big house. Dog felt quite pleased to have understood things correctly. The friends were relaxing on the patio in front of the faerie house.

Every now and then one of the guests would come over and have a look at the faerie house. The friends stayed very still and quiet when that happened. 

When all the action was elsewhere, Frog brought out the cake.

It was a chocolate cake with raspberry sauce on top. 

Frog sliced the cake and gave everyone a piece with a dollop of whipped cream.

Just as all the friends were taking their first bites, some bright spritzes of colour popped into view.

"Nice work, faeries!" exclaimed T2, "Here's to the birthday !!!"

"Hip-Hip-Hooray!" all the friends shouted together.

 

The Wedding Suit

 A recent interaction with our storage bins delivered an opportunity I was not expecting: my husband's wedding suit. He thinks it did not fit him 6 months after the wedding. I put it on, and I am not sure if I was delighted or depressed; it fit very well. 

I have had an idea of messing around with a suit jacket for some time. I thought this would involve a thrift store find. Finding the suit in my hands was almost too easy. So, placing sentiment aside (what good was this suit to anyone at the bottom of a bin?) I got started.

It would have made very good sense to have taken a photo before I did anything, but I did not.

First step was to remove the sleeves. That whole part - shoulders, sleeve bulk - was too big. 

I bought some Briggs & Little yarn in a charcoal that matched quite closely. I could have chosen any colour, but didn't want the outcome to look like a vest with a sweater underneath. It took a few tries to get the sleeve shape right. 

I made blocking forms with the right dimensions out of towels.

 

Then it was time to move on to the embellishment. I chose a soft pink yarn - the colour does not show up well on photos - with some light green embroidery cotton. My plan was more a set of notions than a design. I did one thing, then added another until I felt I was done.

Where will I wear it? Good question. I hope to take it out into the world at least once. 

A Little (Lamp) Shade

We have an old Ikea floor lamp in our living room, a cast-off from our daughter's university years. It fits the space, gives the right kind of light, and I maybe shopped once trying to replace it, and did not try again. Fast forward to my recent painting spree. I moved the lamp, inspected it more closely, and thought I could do better (and still not go shopping). Bits broke off the shade while I removed it, so there was no turning back. This is what I came up with.

It is hard to get an accurate night shot.

In its environment: