Owls and More

Eastern Screech Owl

It looks like I will get to blogging about once a week. I've tried to sit down and do it more often, but there's only so much a person can fit into a day...
I do post pictures of my work more frequently on Facebook. If you'd like to get those posted directly to your FB page, look up Bethany Homecrafts and hit the Like button. My page would love to have more friends!

I've been working on owls this week, so I have something new and interesting to bring to market. It 's fun, but takes so much longer than other birds! The guy above is the gray phase of the eastern screech owl. You can hear what they sound like at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology

The guy below is a saw-whet owl, and you can hear his voice here. He's a really tiny owl, and his whistled hoot is as cute as he is. When you see his photo you'll see that I can't come close to doing him justice!

Northern Saw-whet Owl

Purple Finch

Purple finches are really common where I am, but I don't get tired of them, they're so beautiful! Here's what they sound like, from Cornell.

This is my first try at a jumper for a little girl. We'll see how it goes over when I bring it to market!

Have a great weekend!

How to Make Lemonade on a Snowy Day

Common Redpoll

Yesterday was a forced in-the-house day, because of the weather. (Today's one, too). So I decided to make lemonade of the weather's lemons, and finish up a lot of work that's been sitting around.
First off, I've had a huge bin of cashmere scraps sitting around for a while, just waiting for me to have time to figure out what to do with them. The other night, while the boy was rehearsing at the Warner, I started on that pile. I cut a bunch of panels for baby skirts, and pieces for baby booties, and still had a big pile left. The rest I cut into rectangles and squares.

Cashmere Wrist Warmers

Here's the result, or at least the beginning. My friend and fiber co-conspirator, Rhonda Withington (check out her Etsy Shop, The Mischievous Carrot) brought some really cute and funky wrist warmers to the Coventry Farmer's Market on Sunday, and graciously gave permission for me to make some Rhonda-inspired warmers of my own. I had a ridiculous amount of fun sewing these up!

Just how do you photograph your own arm???

Baby Booties

Mittens and Wrist Warmers from a lovely sweater

So today is another home day of sewing and shoveling. I still have a bunch of baby skirts pinned and waiting to be sewn. Sigh. It's much more fun to design than to sew! But I do love the baby skirts when they're done - they're so darn cute!

Stay safe, warm and dry, wherever you are, and may your roof be strong!