Crafting Happiness..........

 Last week I worked on cleaning the living room and will continue this week.  I loaded lots of boxes into the Tahoe for dropping at the thrift store later this week.

  I've been very troubled by what's going on in Gaza and I have spent  time writing "those in charge" although they justify their actions with the same old talking points that the major news stations make.  "Israel has a right to defend itself" which is true but genocide is a whole different matter.  I watch Democracy Now on You Tube which to me is one of the most accurate and fact filled news reports.  I also listen to BBC and Al Jazeera to get the perspective from people outside "our bubble" we call the United States.  Last night I listened to a cardiologist in Falls Church, Virginia who has lost over 100 relatives in Gaza....all civilians and I cried with him as he showed the photos of the children, the babies, the  mothers, the aunts and uncles etc. that have been killed just in his family alone.  Here he is, a cardiologist whose heart was breaking and he couldn't fix his own heart.  I am going to go get a sympathy card today and write to him.  It's the least I can do.  If I was younger I would be out protesting as I used to do back in the day.  I will donate to Doctors Without Borders and Direct Relief and a few others but of course Israel is not letting them in to Gaza.  We are on the wrong side of history on this one and someday the history books will talk about how the U.S. contributed to genocide of an entire civilian population.  I am talking about civilians, not Hamas.  Anyway,  I'll get off my soapbox for now.  

Here are the "creations" I made this past weekend.........I still have a little XS pillow that goes in here also but I am still working on that.....I cross stitched the bag and sewed it up, curled the book pages, and put it all in the little bowl they provided.  You fill the bottom of the bag with rice and then fiberfill and put in the artificial greenery they sent.  They also include a little vintage Valentine.  They sent the ribbon and a little key charm which I have misplaced.  Hopefully it will turn up.  I will show you again when the little pillow is done.

This is the little pillow so far..........
               

I finally finished my little acorn watercolor.  This is from a book I bought to teach me how and the pages are all watercolor paper and this was lesson #1........I was pretty pleased with it for my first time working with water colors.........this is the original..........

and this is mine............
 

I also did some sketching over the weekend and this was one......just colored with colored pencils.....

I had a sketch I did a while ago and decided to try and use water color pencils on it but unfortunately it was not watercolor paper and it got warped out of shape.  I may try and iron it and see if that helps at all.  I need to get some watercolor paper obviously.........I'm not very good but I try to do more primitive sketches not really going for reality per se. I would love to draw/paint like Mary Engelbreit and/or Susan Branch.  (BTW, do you know Susan Branch has a blog and an online shop and she has cross stitch kits!!!  of course, I had to order one.....you will see it next week.  WARNING......she is not cheap!)   I think I like the real watercolors as opposed to the pencils but I will try them again when I get the watercolor paper.......

Here is the other pillow I made last week........

 

I also have been wanting to make these wool paperclip bookmarks I've been seeing and I finally found some instructions on how to do them.......I tried...it's not the best but hopefully with practice I will get better.............I had a dickens of a time with the blanket stitch as the wool kept tearing....I may try the whip stitch on  these.  I used to be so good at the blanket stitch but evidently not any more and definitely not on small circles.....

This is my progress so far on February's Anniversaries of the Heart...........

The only stash or haul I got was this wool applique book which is beautiful....I want to make everything in it, of course!

That's all for this week...have a good one.

Happy Trails!!!