What I've been up to lately...

[dreamflower]

I wish I could have posted this earlier. Since my paid LJ ran out of space, I had to rely on Photobucket, and it is SOOO slow and frustrating! But finally I have all the pics I took today ready behind the cut.

One of the things we've been doing is spending a lot of time in the garden:

One of my new flowers in bloom, a variety of daylily called "Tiny Bee".



Today I planted out some other small bedding plants: moss roses, petunias, impatiens, phlox, coreopsis, geranium, marigolds, and gazania. The seeds I planted for Shasta daisy and nasturtium are coming up. In the back yard I harvested some broccoli, mixed lettuce, spinach, radishes and green onion. We had the broccoli and a couple of salads for supper, along with garlic-lemon drumsticks.

I planted some more spinach and onions, but both of us kind of pooped out before we finished everything we wanted to do in the back yard. Tomorrow I hope to get in some beans and maybe some more lettuce.

I've also been doing some more rock painting. I posted a few pics the other day, and yesterday I did some more.

Three more new painted rocks for the garden:



You may recall a few years back, I painted some pavers with the Doors of Durin, and with "Speak, friend, and enter". Well, now I made some new ones to fit in, as the path was a little sparse; I also refurbished the original set of pavers, since they had faded a little through the years.

Smaug the Dragon paver:



Feanorian Star paver:




Tree of Gondor paver:


Completed pathway, with the original Door of Durin pavers:




Here's a picture of my progress on the crocheted yoke for the tunic blouse I am working on. I've been working on it off and on for a little over two weeks. Thread crochet with ecru bedspread cotton:



I hope that I can get a scan of the pattern I'm using so y'all can see what it's going to look like when it's finished. I hope to have it done in a month if I can keep working at it.

I also finished my riddle-poem for the April challenge. I have to work Sunday, but tomorrow the DH is working but I'm off, so I am hoping to get to work on some other writing projects tomorrow.

Lately I've been watching a lot of YouTube. My latest find is all the episodes of the old PBS show of Bob Ross teaching oil painting. I've really been enjoying them, but he's so relaxing that sometimes I fall asleep. The neat thing about YouTube though is that I don't have to miss anything, I can always back them up and watch them over if I miss something. I use acrylics when I paint, rather than oils, but so many of his techniques can also be used with acrylics. There are also lots of great vids of zentangle, rock painting, polymer clay and gardening!

What's everyone else up to this weekend?

Comments

[grey-wonderer.livejournal.com]

My grandmother would have loved that crochet. She did a great deal of needle work. That is a lovely piece! You have been very busy! All of my work has been indoors on home repair that isn't really pretty, like putting a window unit air conditioner. It's a nice air conditioner but it's not as pretty as your garden.; )

[dreamflower]

I have quite a bit of crocheted items from my husband's grandmother; in my family it was my aunt who knitted. I didn't learn crochet until after I got married and my s-i-l taught me how.

Hey, air conditioners are an essential part of life! When ours broke down last year in the summer, our new one looked mighty beautiful!

[febobe.livejournal.com]

Lovely! <3

[dreamflower]

Thank you!

[shirebound]

How I would love to visit you, and see your lovely gardens in person. I'm so in love with your painted rocks!

I've had four houseguests/visitors in a row this week, and hope the weekend is CALM and quiet.

[dreamflower]

I wish you could visit me, too! Maybe someday!

Company is nice, but too much at one time can really eat up your time and peace! I hope your weekend is calm and quiet too!

[rhapsody11.livejournal.com]

I will be enjoying some much needed days off with my family this loooong weekend. Just bliss.

[dreamflower]

Sounds like it! ((hugs)) Have a good one!

[livejournal.livejournal.com]

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[ellynn-ithilwen.livejournal.com]

I love your painted rocks! :)

[dreamflower]

Thank you, dear! They are so much fun to make.

[mumstheword54.livejournal.com]

Sweet flowers, lovely rocks and pavers, gorgeous crochet! You've been a busy beaver!

I've been home all this time, and have accomplished nothing -- still recovering from the flu and just haven't felt up to doing or reading anything.

Well, actually, I did get my "frontier library" organized and documented, ready to pack up for our weekend at Ft. McKavett in two weeks. That's assuming that we're all well and strong enough by then.

Spring is such a beautiful season! We've had 4 colors of Iris and still have TONS of wildflowers -- reds and yellows predominating now, between the house and the road. Just beautiful. Plenty of rain and mostly pleasant temperatures so far. So thankful.

Thankful for you too, dear Dreamflower!
*big hugs*

[dreamflower]

Hey, flu will do that. Last year I had the flu, and for two weeks all I could do was sit in my recliner and binge watch "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". I had no energy to write or do needlecraft, and reading put me to sleep. (So did watching TV, but at least I could back it up to what I missed!)

Hey, you should post all about your frontier weekend! That would be fun to hear about. I'm going to think positive, and be certain you will feel better by then!

((hugs))

[engarian.livejournal.com]

Love, love, LOVE your painted rocks and pavers. So very well done!

I'm in awe of anyone who can (and actually wants to) crochet with thin threads like that. Lovely work!

I'm afraid I haven't accomplished anything close to what you've achieved, but I'm raising my coffee in toast of your accomplishments!

Brost!

- Erulisse (one L)

[dreamflower]

Thanks! They are so much fun to make, and pretty cheap too, since all anyone needs is some rocks (or pavers), acrylic paint, and spray sealer (All of which I already have at any given time). The smaller ones don't even take much time. I was inspired years ago by Lin Wellford's wonderful books!

I love thread crochet much more than yarn crochet. With yarn I generally tend to prefer knitting. But I've always enjoyed making doilies and such. I've made a couple of crocheted yokes for tops, but this is my first try at a complete garment!

Thanks for the toast! You make some lovely stuff too--I know, I've seen some of it!

[mews1945.livejournal.com]

You have so many artistic gifts.

[dreamflower]

Thank you, sweetie! I just need to make things, of one kind or another.

[debriswoman]

Such a creative lady:-)

[dreamflower]

Thanks! I think we all are creative--it's just that some people haven't found the things they want to create yet!

[claudia603.livejournal.com]

Wonderful! :) Beautiful everything. Your house is like an ideal hobbit house/LOTR fan house! I'd love to see it in person some day!

[dreamflower]

I wish you could too! Maybe you and Shirebound can both come and visit!

[lindahoyland.livejournal.com]

Love your painted rocks.

Try Flickr. I find it way better than photobucket. Just click on any of my photos to get there.

[dreamflower]

THANK YOU! Your comment reminded me that I actually do have a Flickr account. I have never used it for personal photo storage--I made it for a comm I was part of that had the requirement of putting all my photos for the comm on Flickr.

I will see if I can retrieve my pw for that account and maybe post there, until I can get back to a paid LJ account.

[lindahoyland.livejournal.com]

I love Flickr as they give you a TB of storage free! Also it is easy to set photos to private if you want to store them there for your own use.Hope you can retrieve your account or start a new one.

[pandemonium-213.livejournal.com]

Those pavers are fantastic! And yes, I still have the pattern you sent to me. One of these days... :^) The painted rocks are lovely.

Nothing is remotely close to flowering in my yard, but the clematis vines are shooting up, and the hostas are poking up through the dirt.

[dreamflower]

If you want I can send you the patterns for the new pavers, too. Although I didn't use one for the star; it didn't need one, just a little geometry.

We've been eating salad from the back yard for a week and a half, now. Mixed lettuces, spinach, green onions and radishes. Only now we don't have anymore radishes that are mature, so we will have to wait on more of those.