more and more cats

It surprised me to see that, for as many additional cat blocks as I made, there were more needed. I've been joining the blocks in rows and have them laid out in the diagonal pattern. I know I counted correctly, planned correctly. At least I thought I did. Rather than to whine about it, I printed more copies of blocks A & B, and set about cutting and pinning. Maybe I can get started on joining the rows. Its taken a lot longer than I thought. 

The aprons were easier. I cut out two of them for this month's Making Winter Solstice, and have them bagged for the next monthly session. Both are frilly aprons, one with a bib, and one without. They are both going to be cute and colorful.

I have nothing new to show for those fabric arts. It is enough to rejoice in progress how little or large it is. When I think of spending an entire day on the two aprons and not having them finished, it feels so smart to have started this early. No wonder they cost at least $20 for panel print versions. They take more time than you would think and even with sale fabrics are expensive to make.

The walk up in the Tehachapi Mountains was lovely. Temps were mid-60's and the sun was out. It is so essential for the paths and ground to be groomed in the event of fires. It is so dry, so very dry. I brought back a bag full of fallen twigs, some bark pieces, a few pine cones and moss. Fallen plant material breaks down quickly in this drought, and there isn't a lot to work with. It is my plan to build it near the pond in back with some of the smaller rocks for the foundation. I used to build a lot of them when I lived in MN on the farm. It was easy to harvest very interesting pieces for both the house and the furniture.

It will be good to sit outside and work on this. Unfortunately, there is no plan so it will simply evolve. Its almost an ecological insult to use hot glue and with this weather, it rarely works anyway. The challenge will be building the house by natural means...whatever that is. Maybe weaving. Maybe stacking.