I May Have A Problem

 About 15 years ago, we started to foster cats. To date, we have fostered 187 cats in need of a quiet place to stay and get ready to find a forever home. Shortly after that, I started getting gifts of cat fabric. I may have also added a few pieces myself. 

I decided to take inventory today.

I found 17 cat fabric in pieces 1/2 metre or more.

Then, I found another piece.

That doesn't count the scraps and fat quarters. There is lots of variety, too.  I may have a problem. Or maybe, I just have a carefully curated collection of feline fabric art.

I did use some this week.

The Lyndhurst Feral Cat Project is having another fundraiser soon. so I made a set of small pouches. Then, I started looking for something to use for another bag, and was surprised at how much fabric I had. I do have to match the size of the print to the bag. Many of those prints are quite large. You will have to check my next blog to see what I chose.

Meanwhile, the dining room conservatory continues to delight. Today, we saw the first of the amaryllis blooms.

 Two stalks have started to open.

There are three more still to come. As you can see the azalea is still blooming. The hibiscus puts on two or three flowers every week. And, I got a surprise in my groceries, this week.

There were purple carnations at the checkout and the household shopper knew I would delight in them. After nearly a year, stuck at home, little surprises can really cheer one up. 

This week, we also welcomed a new foster cat.

This is Maggie and she is staying with us while she recovers from surgery. 

Waste Not!

 My son makes his own craft beer, in his kitchen. Among the byproducts of brewing are "spent grains". These are the grains used in brewing, boiled to get all the sugars out of them, and then strained out and discarded. They are low in carbohydrates and still have a lot of nutrients, so lately, people have been looking for ways to use them, besides throwning them into the "Green Bin" (municipal composting). 

After my son gave me some from his latest batch, I made dog cookies.

In addition to 4 cups of grains, I added some flour, peanut butter, and an egg. Then I mixed them with my hands, and rolled them out.

After 3 hours in the oven, they look very sturdy.  However, the dogs give them 2 paws up.

Spencer Ogg Designs posted a video tutorial for a new pouch. She calls it the Bummity Bum Bag, but I thought that with a bit of work, it would make a nice pouch for carrying masks to school. 

I had the bright idea to make them from denim, and that turned out to be a bit of a problem, but in the end, my lovely vintage Singer was up to the task. Turning them right side out was a challenge. 

They hold three masks, nicely.

Yes, I made more masks.

The "waste not" part of this: all of the fabric was from my scraps. The zippers, stabilizers. hardware and appliques were in my stash. The only materials specific to this are the filter fabric and elastic for the masks.

It's an Ordinary Day

 I have been busy, sewing, and knitting, though I only have one finish to show you.

Of course, it is more masks. A funny thing happened last week. I had ordered from a local quilt shop, and since they offered it, I got next day local delivery. After 5 days of waiting for my next day delivery, I contacted the store, and discovered that they had accidently dropped my parcel on the neighbour's porch. She offered to go get it and deliver it to my house, but I thought I could walk the 100ft. or so. I did think it odd the the neighbour didn't send it over, or send me a message. It turned out that the parcel was in a plastic bag, with no identification on it at all.  When I sent the neighbour a text, she was happy that I was coming to get it. Since she had taken such good care of the parcel, that contained polypropylene to interline masks, I offered to make her daughters some masks for school. So, these are the ones I have finished so far. I have lots of scraps of fun fabrics, so I will make a few more, in some other patterns.

The dining room conservatory continues to brighten my days.

 We see one or two of these, every week.

The azalea is a riot of colour.

Meanwhile, the amaryllis shows promise of  future blooms with three flower stalks coming, so far.

The other day, I came across an uplifting video of Canadian doctors singing a song from the Newfoundland group, Great Big Sea. They look like they are having a wonderful time. It's a virtual kitchen party!

It's An Ordinary Day by The Canadian Physicians' Virtual Choir