My Terrarium(!)

I did it! I made my own little terrarium! It was a pretty brainlessly easy project, and it adds a lot of life and character to our dining room. A win-win.

                    

I only needed:

  - A glass container from thrift store for $3.

  - Sand from sandbox.

  - Rocks from our property.

  - Potting soil. (I had on hand since my other indoor plants promptly died.)

  - 2 little succulents from Home Depot for $2.50 and moss from our property.

I passed up the activated charcoal because I read moss can do some of the same odor and moisture absorbing functions. Also, I followed the "terrariums for amateurs" advice and did no lid. Without the humidity build-up, charcoal isn't a necessity. We'll see if I regret it. If so I'll hightail it over to a pet store and pick some up.

These are supposed to last for years...with my black thumb, we'll see about that. But I'm hopeful :)

My Quilt of Reckoning

My great-great grandmother Mary Malinda Hall was a big time quilter. Like, she made a quilt for every child (she had 18), grandchild, child in her primary class at church, and many people in her little community. I thought maybe, maybe I have some kind of quilting blood in me I just needed to tap into.

But, see, I don't sew. For instance, I feel proud to know what a bobbin is. (Not that I can confidently wind it.)

By some miraculous event I got invited to a quilting group and by chance a bit of a master quilter took me under her wing. So I began learning to sew by starting to make a quilt. 

I never knew cutting and sewing straight lines could be so(oooooo) frustrating and tedious. And time consuming. Each block represents hours. No joke.

Now that I have these blocks done though, and can see it all together, I feel pretty proud. And I can see how people find it fulfilling. And a little addicting.

Next tasks: 

- get the squares back out of my closet,

- piece this together with borders between, 

- back it, 

- bind it, 

- give it to my little niece for a very belated birthday gift,

- never look at it again,

- pick and start one more ULTRA SIMPLE pattern, so as not to have this quilt of reckoning totally put me off from sewing or quilting for all time.  

2 Seasonal Homemade Gifts

Someday I'll aspire to make the cute homemade things I see. For now I'll put them here so I don't forget about them.

1) "Snow"

These letters are hollow and cardboardy, the kind that could be found at a craft store. They are just covered in cute paper, each with a different but complementary design.

2) Peppermint Oreo "Truffles"
Mini Oreos dipped in white chocolate and topped shaved white chocolate and crushed peppermint presented in a small festive box with mini muffin paper liners. Simple and delightful.