faire well

i’ve had a productive couple of days. today it was bright, sunny and warm, so i spent the entire afternoon doing backbreaking yard work (and getting my first sunburn of the year). in about five hours i was able to clear and cultivate most of the land between the mini-fence and the canal, which is supposed to fill with water any day now. the dirt back there is so lovely. somehow it’s a million times better than last year. dark and rich and crumbly and perfect...i was watching a martha stewart gardening show yesterday and coveting martha’s fantastic soil, and to my great surprise this stuff looks almost as good as hers, unlike the soil in another part of the yard where i still need to work in some amendments to make it less clayey.

yesterday the weather wasn’t as nice and i didn’t feel like going out, but i had tons of energy, so i spent almost all day sewing. i started making sets of gardening totes and half-aprons. i might try to make more and sell some on ETSY...i get way more enjoyment out of giving away the things i make rather than selling them, but i’ve been wanting to figure out a good reliable way to make money that doesn’t involve working a regular job and selling crafts could potentially be part of the plan.

i designed the aprons with loops to fit a belt rather than making straps, so they’re completely one-size-fits-all. i think i’ll experiment with full aprons too.

the hardest part is putting together the color combinations. sadly i didn't have enough fabric to make a matching bag for this last one, but i'm extremely happy with how the colors go together. i debated long and hard about the trim and i think i made the right choice:

my baby mantises are now safely encased in a bird-proof mesh cage:

a couple more toys for the toy society...fleece monster:

and paisley owly: