It’s funny how out of sorts a redecorating project can make you feel. Because of the floor installation, the furniture (including my stitching nest) is out in the garage, the TV is in my studio (not hooked up), and I don’t know where the cd player has gotten to. I read for a while last night but I couldn’t focus well with my little world out of order. So I turned to the f word… FELT.

I have had a list of ideas for felt projects I want to try for a long time now. I have tons of wool felt squares, boxes of wool roving, needlefelting tools, etc. I have been preparing for my foray into the world of felty goodness for well over a year now and have never started a single felt thing! Why is that?! WHY don’t I make more time for fun things I’d like to try?!

After philosophizing for a bit, I decided to get started on a needlefelting project. But the needlefelting stuff is in my studio, which is where my computer is, and I thought I’d just check my Etsy convos first, which I did… but then I went off on a little tangent and found some really cute things made of felt. Just when I was inspired to begin, the fireworks started.

Every year the neighbors behind us put on a fireworks display that rivals those put on by major cities. Really. Although I was able to get a better picture than last year, the clearest of the bunch is still not very good. I’d need a better camera and photography skills to ever get a good one.

After the neighbors finished up, I walked into the living room to admire the flooring. I started thinking about what kind of area rug I’d like, and imagining what pictures I’d like to have on the walls, and noticing how bland the kitchen floor looks now, and so on. By the time I redecorated almost the entire house in my head, I was tired and went to bed.

Another evening spent not felting.

Have a lovely day today!  No fireworks for us tonight, we are working on the new floor!!

pictured: My Mark, “Independence Day Blackwork”

“I am well aware of the toil and blood and treasure it will cost us to maintain this declaration, and support and defend these states. Yet through all the gloom I see the rays of ravishing light and glory. I can see that the end is worth all the means. This is our day of deliverance.” -John Adams

pictured below: My Mark, “a little love”

Today I got a really sweet card and a pile of charts:

But the best gift of all (she said sarcastically) was the promise of surgery:

No wonder I’ve been feeling less than clever lately!

My flooring is here, the carpet removal has begun, and plans are in place for a July 4th installation! I never thought I’d see the day when I’d be excited about a new floor, but I’m hitting the point where I feel the need to decorate on purpose rather than just redecorating around what’s already here.

The funny thing is that I’m planning my decorating around a tote bag. I like to keep a totebag holding a few stitching projects hanging on the coat closet door, and a few months ago I bought a new one. As I was sitting there looking at it one day, I realized that the fabric pattern included the exact color of my couch. And the exact color of my wall. So why not take it a step further, I thought? I hunted for a while and found curtains to match the bag and hung those up, then found a floor to match as well… I’ve been keeping an eye out for area rugs, too.

The tote bag was made by Janine King, and I just noticed that there’s a sale on in her Etsy shop. In case you want to redecorate one of your rooms, I mean.

I finished a quilt square for a little girl with a foot injury. Mary, I’ll mail this out within the next few days:

Front & back of a new design:

Another square for my LHN project:

I found these at a garage sale! They were glued into awful frames so I pried them loose and washed them… no clue what I’ll do with them yet, but I can vaguely imagine them being sewn into tote bags or something useful:

Just a few days until my anniversary… I’ve was so worried I’d forget again that I’ve been thinking about it every day for the past two weeks! Last night I asked my husband if he could believe we’ve been married for 10 years and he corrected me; it will only be 9 years on July 2nd. Well, at least I got the date right.

This morning, we heard that the sandbagging effort had failed, and that more homes were affected… decided to go down and walk the train tracks. This is some of what we saw:

On Tuesday, a few of us gathered for a stitching day at Teresa’s house and made ourselves at home on her back deck… isn’t her yard fabulous?!

This super-cute LK finish was hanging just inside the front door and I had to post a picture:

We ate and stitched and talked and ate… all in all a very lovely day! Before heading over to Teresa’s on Tuesday morning, I had ordered a few charts and they came in today’s mail:

I don’t have any progress pictures, though I have been stitching… I’ve been working on new designs. September’s Fall TNNA Market will be here any minute and I won’t have anything new to show if I don’t focus! Oh-speaking of September, here’s the cover of the ornament issue if you haven’t seen it yet:

Looks like someone forgot to put my ornament on the cover (ha!) but just knowing mine is in there is exciting enough. I’m hoping my recipe/article makes sense. I was down to the deadline as usual (like 20 minutes away in fact), getting ready to hop a plane to see about my uncle who had been taken to the hospital in Albuquerque, after about 30 hours without sleep because my cat was missing… and I honestly don’t remember what I turned in. I will be as surprised as everyone else ;)

Just one floody tidbit today: a muskrat is responsible for the latest levee break. The evac sirens woke me up early this morning!

It feels like my flood-related postings have been going on forever, but floods aren’t exactly the quickest natural disaster. My next post will be stitchy, promise ;)

Thank you all so much for helping me with this little fundraising campaign!! Your Studio Twenty purchases enabled me to donate $196 towards the MOHS Disaster Response Team. That’s right.. ALMOST TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS! The rescue workers are still finding animals– today they logged 16, one of which was a poor kitty who had been in a tree for who knows how long. Like I said before, I’m very impressed with what they are accomplishing here. Here’s a thumbnail of the donation receipt, click to read:

The deer have also been having a hard time…they are either getting stranded on the levees or bolting out onto the main road. (video of a bunch on a levee) The highway department has posted signs that read, “Crash Hazard Ahead Deer on Road” and today we passed a few hand-made signs, like this one:

Today’s pictures are all a bit blurry/crooked but I was trying to drive, watch for deer, and take pics at the same time.