Monday, February 10, 2014

These Happy Winter Days

 

Ice is forming on top of the snow.
 
We are snowed-in, and that means getting very resourceful with time and energy and supplies at home. It is not possible to do the laundry or wash dishes, run the sweeper or cook. There is unlimited time to do things, as long as they do not require running water or electricity, so today I made two Valentines. The light is limited also. I have been using tea-light candles in jars in the evening, which adds a little heat.
 

This one is a heart surrounded by pink pleated crepe paper streamer and topped with a foam glittered heart. I have used a glue pen to make an outline for fine pink glitter.

This white heart, also backed with ruffled crepe paper, is something I have been formulating in my mind for several weeks. I was in the mood to make something white and bright and simple, yet soft-looking. so I again used the glue pen and very fine white glitter, finished with a piece of clip-art from my box of scraps.
Here is what they both look like on a magnetic bulletin board. I have made loops from the card stock for hanging.

One of my earliest memories of using fabric is wrapping pieces of it around dolls and tying with scraps to make a garment. Here I have used the same technique with fleece to make a doll cape to match mother-daughter capes I have made this week. Most of the pictures of the people-capes did not turn out well enough to post because my models looked like apparitions in the fog and snow, but here is what the capes looked like from the side:
 

Each cape has a white rose on the hood, sewn from the same fabric.
 
 
 

When I last visited the fabric store there were a lot of Valentine themed items, including a pretty pink dish towel. I was able to imitate it with a dollar store hand towel, tinted with a few drops of liquid rit dye, and a piece of lace from a discount catalog.

We finally got the car out of the snow and went to pizza place to get a meal with a salad and connect to the internet. I will still have to return home and be without heat and water but it is a nice break from winter hardship to come into town and thaw out. I am sure it is time to equip our house with a couple of generators and a gas fireplace and gas cook stove. We are getting too old for this kind of roughing-it!

This is a scene of our church meeting-house from one of the windows of our home. This Lord's Day, the only people who were able to come were those who lived close enough to walk, so our family and one neighbor family attended. Because there was no heat, my husband decided to keep the sermon short and serve communion and not allow people to get too cold, especially since some of them were small children.

While my children were growing up, I always let them have pencil and paper during the sermon, to keep them quiet. Our grandchildren carry on the tradition. This time, though, one of the children was rather stunned when the meeting was dismissed. She said, "Papa didn't even have a proper sermon! It was not long enough for me to even finish drawing a face!"

 

 

 

13 comments:

becky said...

Sorry to read about your having no heat or electricity. We haven't had heat all winter but keep warm with a firplace. Oh, the joys of log cabin living:) Waiting for our 12 inches of snow to melt here in Kansas. Wishing you warm thoughts:)
Becky

living from glory to glory said...

Dear Lydia, So glad you had a little bit of a break from the hardships of the down electricity. We had a terrible storm years ago and it was terrible.....
We then and there as soon as it was over made provisions for a wood stove. Also, my stove is now able to operate, no oven, but it is much better. I have seen more power outages this year than ever!
I was happy to see this post!
Your capes are very lovely, and what fun it must have been making them. Also, your Valentine decorations are really cute.
Blessings, May an alternative heat source come quickly to your home and Meeting House! Roxy

anonymous said...

I love those Valentine hearts you made with ruffles, so creative.
The capes are really wonderful. How blessed your girls are to have a woman in the family who sews for them.
How pretty the pink towel is with the white lace on the white hanger.
I thought of making some towels myself, but haven't had much time to sew lately.
Thank you for another encouraging blog. Again you show us how to be creative in hard times. Hopefully you'll have heat and electricity soon.
Bless you Lydia. Thank you for sharing with us.

Mrs. J.

Anonymous said...

Hello Lady Lydia!
Sorry to hear about your lack of electricity ~ it must be very chilly indeed...and well done for getting some crafting done with freezing cold hands! Not the easiest, but you're a stoical lady!
I love the capes ~ so romantic, they do look special and ethereal
in the snow. (Red might have been easier to photograph, though : ))The detailing (yoke and rose) really adds so much.
I expect that you knew this, but in Victorian England the girls wore red flannel petticoats because they were considered to be warmer. Not scientific, but very cheering.
It was one of these that the girl
(Bobby) in E. Nesbit's 'The Railway Children' takes off and waves, like a flag, to stop a train running over her sister!

I do hope you will be into some warmer times soon, but I do enjoy your upbeat posts, whatever the weather.
Blessings to you.

Barbara said...

You do a good job of making the best of a challenging situation… a good example for us all. The comments from your granddaughter about not having time to even make a face during the short sermon -- that's cute!

Stephanie said...

Your sweet hearts are just that, sweet :) The use of crepe paper is very clever and I must admit that it looks like beautiful fabric and not just paper.

The gorgeous white coats are stunning! And the pretty pink towel with lace is very feminine :)

May you stay safe and warm - hugs and blessings to you!

SharonR said...

You have made the best of a difficult situation and shared the priceless lesson, and with no complaining! Thank you again.

Once, when I had written down an evening routine, I wrote in, as an after kitchen clean-up, to do a paper project. We never really got that into our routine as I had hoped, but I'm glad to know that I wasn't the only one thinking on those lines. I do like all your paper projects you have shown us on here.

Praying for your warmth there! We've had a very cold winter here in Arkansas, too, so I can only imagine how cold you must be!

Lydia said...

Becky I am ready for a wood fireplace and a wood cook stove. There is plenty of wood around here with all the fallen limbs and trees.

Roxy, I am looking forward to getting a wood stove. The work required to install it will be hard, since we will also need a suitable chimney.

Mrs. J. If we did not live so far apart I would flee to your house in this weather and enjoy your fireplace.

Alexandra, I do remember the red flannel being considered warmer, and I think they had a reason to believe that. I have some red fleece but I cannot locate which box I stored it in. When I get to feeling warmer I will find it and make some Valentines capes if there is enough of it. The picture will show up a lot better in the snow.

Barbara, I appreciate your visit, and hope to post more soon. We are back to normal, with our power on, and I am catching up on housework. A power outage really causes a mess. Without lights, it is hard to see well enough to keep house, and we drag out candles and covers and make such a mess.

Stephanie, crepe paper is interesting in how it can be used. I still have some full length rolls of it. You can still get the yard long lengths of it on the web but I never see it in stores anymore.

Sharon, I first collect all the ingredients and put them in a box. That way I do not run around the house looking for tape, scissors, papers, envelopes, or various scraps. Getting the supplies together for even a small paper project can take a lot of time.

All I a well here now and I hope to get back to writing and posting.




Susan said...

I love the rose on the cape and the pink hand towel. I like how the hand towel is hanging on a candle holder. I might try to use that idea in my bathroom. I am in the east and we are bracing for yet another winter storm. I always have extra food and water around during these times. A friend told me that the Aladdin oil lamps are great for providing heat and some even have a little cook top to heat a pot of water or food on. I live in an all electric apartment and think the lamps might be helpful when the power goes out as I will never be able to put in a wood or gas stove here. I am headed out to get some extra candles tomorrow just in case we lose lights. We like comfort foods when we are snowed in like hot chocolate and baked soft pretzels. Movies from the library are great too as long as the power is on and I make sure to check out a bunch of extra books to snuggle under the blankets with. Well thanks for the uplifting post and Happy Valentines Day.

Lydia said...

Susan, I will try to find those Aladdin oil lamps. I do not have any. We ate sandwiches and had cold drinks during the lack of heat,light and water.mwe are expecting another blast of cold weather this week. So I am thinking how to prepare. I am still cleaning up the mess.mit is so hard to keep order and cleanliness in the house without water or lights and heat,mans there is a big pile up of cleaning to do afterwards.

Lydia said...

Barbara, it is the first time I ever heard anyone complain about a sermon being too short!

Mary said...

I love the capes. My son would love to have a men's cape. They are very dashing!

Homemaker's Heart said...

Your positive outlook and creative tasks are inspirational. Even in the midst of struggles. Thank you. I wondered if you could do a tutorial on the rose you made for the cape. I have been trying to make a few for my jackets and sweaters and can't seem to get the petals right. Thanks for considering do that.

We are in Ohio and I am from the southwest, this cold and snow is just about to do everyone here in. It's a comfort to hear others are "done" with this stuff too. God has His reason's, but boy am I grateful the sun has been out lately.

Warm hugs to you,
Dee