Thank you!

Since I work so hard in the garden, I think it's time for the garden to work a little for me. I'd like to print a test-run of thank-you cards featuring the flowers of my labor. The lot have been narrowed down to seven choices. Help me out and vote below! (Please don't vote if you already have on flickr or Facebook.)

Hawthorn Tree

Sedum & Bee

Strawberry Marigold

Tiger Lily

Sensation Lilac

Ripe strawberry

Blue hydrangea

I haven't decided on the specifics yet. I might do $2 a notecard (5.5x4.5) and/or a pack of 6 for $10. Thank YOU for voting!

Lilies and a logo

This garden update is brought to you by a new down-to-earth logo (above! ^) and the letter "R" — rain and robin. Both of which have kept me inside for most of the month.

Mama robin became a vigilante, swooping down on anyone who dared to walk near her nest under the deck. This meant the patio garden, upper deck and most of the backyard were danger zones. But the babies are finally flying now so here's hoping they fly far, far away.

At least the rain (7.75 inches!) offered me a consolation prize of beautiful lily blooms.

The tall tiger lilies are a me-pleaser.

The aptly named rain lilies are thriving.

Strawberry Candy daylily looks good enough to eat.

I got a Dark Sensation oriental lily from a greenhouse clearance this year. He's adding some pink pop to the front yard.

The teeny tiny Samurai toad lilies bloomed! I hope his buddies follow his example.

The garden edibles are ripenin' for the pickin' ...

Sweet 100 cherry tomatoes ... in the Topsy Turvy

Early Girl tomatoes

We are now waiting for the sweet pimiento pepper to turn red. The green bell pepper plants are not doing so hot.

And cucumbers are just crazy cool to watch.

Loom-a-long for a lazy day

Cotton, quick and not at all cumbersome. That sounds like perfect summer loom-knitting to me.

I'm hosting the July loom-a-long on the Ravelry boards and you can still join us. We're knitting up the Loom Rib-It washcloth. Using a simple ribbing technique, you can have a 9x11" washcloth after a day or night of knitting.

Ribbing technique on the long loom

Or you can knit longer to make a hand/kitchen towel. If you haven't yet learned how to knit on long looms (also called knitting boards), this is a nice introduction.

Knit with worsted yarn for an airy cloth

All you need is at least a partial skein of cotton yarn (worsted to bulky weight) and the green Knifty Knitter long loom (54 pegs, large gauge). The Loom Knitting Primer by Isela Phelps is a good reference but not required.

If you're not a member of Ravelry but you'd still like to give this pattern a go, you can download it for free from my blog. Let's loom knit!

Bookmarks

I learned how to make paper from paper. Yep, I wrote that right. Well, I did throw in some flowers and stuff, too. My epilogue is a selection of pretty bookmarks. (and I got some nifty books for them today, too!)

I tested out a paper-making kit with my husband's mom last week. We tore up old drawing paper and newspapers. Then we blended them into a pulp. After pouring our concoction onto a screen, we added flowers, leaves, seeds and sometimes, glitter and bits of yarn.

Some lessons were learned. Dried flowers work best. Glitter is dangerous so use sparingly. And don't overdo the pulp unless you want to the paper to dry next year.

This paper certainly wasn't made for writing. I cut them up this week to be bookmark size. I placed fancy stickers on a few and threaded yarn on almost all. I don't have 20 books to read at once so most of the marks are going to some unsuspecting friends.

But I do have two new loom-knitting books for two of my flowery bookmarks.

I'm looking forward to making the Lattice Pillow and Felted Basketweave Tote right there on the cover of I Can't Believe I'm Loom Knitting. Almost every project by Kathy Norris introduces a new stitch or technique I've never tried.

I also picked up Learn to Knit on Long Looms by Anne Bipes. The placemat set pattern intrigued me with its simple lace pattern. And the beaded mitten-scarf-hat set is so pretty! This book might get me to use my long looms a bit more.

Celebration and redecoration

I've been a bit busy behind the scenes. Let's start with some savings!

I'm having a Christmas in July sale at my Etsy shop. Let's call it a birthday sale, too, since my 30th is this Friday. All knits are 20% off! It's a great chance to grab a pretty summer scarf or a silly hat for a gift. Here's a mosaic of all the possibilities:

1. Sparkly cinch bag, 2. Seashell girly fur scarf, 3. Tidepool girly fur scarf,
4. Pink monster hat, 5. Green summer scarf, 6. Horror in Romantic Comedies hat,
7. RGB hat, 8. Yeah Attitude mittens done!, 9. Woolly hat 2.0

I've made my little home on the interwebs a bit prettier, too. You might notice larger photos in the posts and an overall wider layout. I've created some nifty page links on top.

Shop ... See a selection of my Etsy items and all pattern goodies, cheap and free.

Meet me ... Read a little bit about me, what I make and where I work.

Meet Mr. Mitzy ... Let me know introduce you to my mostly silent business partner.

Our garden ... Take a tour of all the flowery yard photos I've taken in the past couple years.

Pillow gallery ... Check out what cozy comforts come from my sewing machine ...

Knit gallery ... and the casual/crazy creations from my knitting loom.

Print portfolio ... Here's what I've done when I'm not crafting away.

Moving these pages up helped tidy my right rail. Be sure to check out my blog roll to read about some mighty awesome friends of mine. And if you're a fan of me, feel free to grab my button, too!

<a href="http://madebytelaine.com/"><img border="0" src="http://telaine.dillfrog.com/images/blogbutton.png" /></a>

Loops and Links

I pushed open the heavy wood door into my first local yarn shop. A smiling head bopped up from behind a shelf of yarn and said "Hello!" Loops and Links immediately felt like home.

Painting by a Loops and Links Yarns customer

The owner, Shana, welcomed me — not a needle-knitter, not a crocheter, but a loom-knitter — into her home away from home. I didn't feel embarrassed about going into a "real" yarn shop with my looms. I joined the regulars who knit Wednesdays and Saturdays. Finished objects grew as quickly as the bonds between us.

But after three years of making friends who will last lifetime and buying enough yarn for that same time frame, I say goodbye to the retiring brick-and-mortar shop.

... With arm-fulls of yarn and yarn-y things.

Three decorative dressforms will dress up my own lil online shop and house. A sample scarf made by Meg will remind me of the very talented knitters who I might not see every week now. I purchased my first set of needles that I intend to needle-knit with someday. And I stashed enough yarn for the following and then some ...

• Swing Jacket
• Summertime Top from Loom Knitting Pattern Book
• Knit Lace Shawl (scroll to Show 213)
• some plushy sock pairs
• Mulberry Merino ribbed scarf
• something Christmas-y out of red, green and white alpaca
• a few sets of fingerless mittens
• two living room pillows

Fun buttons and a funny book


Needle-felting kit and roving wool fiber

But I made sure to leave something behind as well. I joined a few other knitty friends in making socks in Shana's favorite color. I knit with Sirdar Escape Chunky for the Adestan socks pattern in the Learn to Knit Cables on Looms.

But that's not the end of this yarn. The remaining fiber, books, needles and hooks — and the comfy green couch — await to be packed. Shana says her new yarn shop venture will share some space with Barbie at her house. Loops' next link will be online soon.

Dear Shana ... Thank you for smiles everyday, hugs for any reason and support for my craft. We hope to see you again soon, needles in hand, in a cozy coffee shop.

I beg your garden

This garden update is brought to you by the letter "S" — strawberries and slugs. But first, the Samurai toad lily that survived the latter …

Rain showers brought slews of slugs to my innocent garden early in the month. The slimy suckers ravaged my newly planted hostas, solomon's seal and toad lilies. They even made it to the pepper plants in the
Earth Box.

But I tried a trick I read online. I gave the freeloaders something they craved even more — beer. They slithered into the Dixie cups of yeasty liquid and met their drowny death. While the shade garden suffered a little, another first-timer plant was fruitful.

I love my little strawberry plant. It might never give me the same yield of a 99-cent carton but it's just so gratifying to watch them grow. The neighborhood birds aren't pecking at the plant yet. The pinwheel and fake snake are doing their jobs.

Here are some more of my favorite amateur garden photos from June:

Hot pink spirea

Seeds on the tall tiger lilies


Emerald Gem hosta in bloom


My favorite "touch me" plant — Lamb's Ear


Asiatic tiger lilies from our wedding day way back when

The veggies aren't ripe for pickin' yet but some are starting to show:

Sweet 100 cherry tomatoes


Pimento Elite sweet pepper


Teeny-tiny, prickly cucumbers


Beefmaster tomatoes

But the herbs have been plentiful. I've clipped the basil for a breadsticks recipe, peppermint in iced tea, cilantro for a butter recipe and taco night, and parsley for the bunny.

Cilantro makes the transition to coriander

Basil from seed, go me!

My last photo isn't a beauty but it might be someday — and it's another "S". I think the birds shook some sunflower seeds into some super fertile soil under the birdfeeder. This never happened when the feeder was in the backyard.