Mosaic Crochet

I tried a neat new to me crochet technique called Mosaic Crochet.  Love how the patterns work  out and are identical on both sides, no right or wrong side !!!  The possibilities are endless !!!

Kids, Pickles & Corn

Spent a very hot day in a nice cool house watching the kids yesterday.

Then it was very nice to come home to this little out of the blue downpour of 2 tenths of rain !!!

This morning was more watermelon pickles and sweet cucumber pickles....

.....then sweating it out in a hot corn patch to get some corn for supper and to freeze.  Sure is nice to have corn this year instead of the last 2 years when there wasn't any because of the stink bugs, deer and dry weather.  The freezer needs restocking !!! 

Black-Eye Susan's and Corn

The Black-Eye Susan's are taking over the tractor.  Much prettier today than the picture looks.

They remind me a little of this doily border

The corn is so tall this year and looking good for no more rain than it has had lately. 

At least it seems to have bounced back from all the wind the other week. 

Pickles & Crochet ???

When the thermometer IN THE SHADE!!! gets this high...

About the only thing it's fit to do is stay inside and do some babysitting......

(Addie is such a good big sister !!! )

........or finish up a crochet project......

.....or make some Watermelon Pickles !!

At least we had a nice storm this morning with 6 tenths of rain and a little cooler today. Made it less hot in the kitchen to can the pickles.  I know the corn and soybeans (and all of us) are very thankful for that !!

Happy Birthday USA !!!

There's lots of Red, White and Blue around here that's not crochet but there is plenty of Red, White and Blue crochet, too !!

There is this centerpiece.....

.....and also this one.  This runner was worked using 2 colors at the same time.  Size 30 threads, blue and ecru together, 2 strands of ecru, and burgundy and ecru together.  My original thought for this one in the top picture the stars didn't quite show out so I made another one and when I came to the stars, except for the ecru section, I just carried the ecru along to only use one color to make them stand out.  This one was worked across the long end. The inspiration for this runner came to me one day driving down the road in Virginia hauling fertilizer. Lots of people have the name of their place out along the road and the star on one of the signs caught my attention every time I went by.  So while sitting in the truck waiting for the loads to be sprayed off I made up the pattern on graph paper then crocheted it in the truck also.  I think this one was entirely worked sitting in a truck !!  Inspiration comes from anywhere at all !! 

This is the same pattern really just worked across the short end and in one strand of size 10 white thread.  Working across the short ends makes the stars a little taller instead of as wide as on the other one.  Also this one the center section is worked in sold double crochets instead of open mesh like the other one and the stars in the center section are the open mesh.  Both very easy to do. This pattern is one that will  be in my book that is coming out.   

These pretty little coasters were given to me after my first pattern was published in Crochet World.  Vera Kopp mailed them to me with a very nice letter saying that she was working on finishing up her 500th set of these.  The package she sent me said mine were number 496 !!!! That's a lot of little coasters !!!  I use them like little doilies with my 4th of July decorations.  They are so pretty !!!  She did a great job on them.  Very pretty pattern. 

I love this doily from my favorite holiday pattern book, Holiday Doilies by Emma L Willey.  This one was worked in size 10 thread with a size 6 hook and measures 17 1/2".  Very easy doily to make and very pretty.  Thanks for the great pictures of this one Barb :) 

Happy 4th everyone !!  Keep cool !!

Babysitting......

....what better job can you have when it's too hot to do anything outside !!

Flowers and Storms

The flowers have been looking pretty good despite needing rain. They look much better than they do in these pictures.

So has the corn.

But the grass sure needs a drink.....

......and so do our chemically fried soybeans.

But everything got a break Friday night from the high heat and humidity, at least for a little while, in the form of a huge storm that rolled threw.  The 1 and 2 tenths inches of rain that came with it were very welcome but what the wind did was not !!!

We thought this was the worst of it until we looked at the corn fields.....

Lots of the one field blown over.  Could have been a whole lot worse !!! At least we never lost power.