snippets

Hi!  Here's a peek into what I've been up to lately.

All of a sudden, Queen Anne's Lace flowers are popping up everywhere!  One of my favorite things about my commute is seeing what is growing in the gardens in my neighborhood.

 
The Buckster fell asleep with his tongue out.  Heehee.

 
 It's been cool enough this week to have tea in the morning.  Yay!

 
 I walk past this bird cage every day, and usually there is a parrot in it.  But yesterday morning, he was joined by this squirrel, who was enjoying a snack of parrot food!  The parrot didn't even seem bothered about it.  When I walked by this morning, there were two sparrows in the cage with him.  Maybe he likes the company.

 
I went to the knitwear and yarn trend show, SpinExpo, for work, and I loved these two swatches.  The bottom one made me want to start crocheting a blanket in these beautiful, creamy neutrals with fuzzy angora bits here and there.  So pretty!

 
It's always a good day for a cat sweater.  One of my coworkers brought this one back from Europe, and when it wasn't used for work, she gave it to me!  It makes me smile every time I look at it.

 

Sometimes Cocoa decides it is time to snuggle right now.  And sometimes he doesn't care too much if Bucky is in the mood for snuggling.

I hope you're having a lovely week so far!

♥

snippets ♥

Hello lovelies!

Here's a peek into my life lately.

There's something so pretty about the simplicity of pale pink carnations.

 
Bucky has recently discovered mirrors, and he is obsessed with his own reflection.
He gazes adoringly and occasionally gives the handsome cat in the mirror a coy pet with his paw.

 

Sunset views are one of my (admittedly many) favorite things about my apartment.

Can you believe it's already almost September?!  We're so close to autumn-- my favorite season!  I'm so ready for sweaters and hot tea (which I drink all year, but it'll be extra-cozy when it gets chilly outside) and pumpkins and apples and eventually snow!  I usually don't get excited for winter-- in general I'd rather go from fall straight through to spring, with maybe two weeks of winter.  But my apartment is going to be so much fun to decorate for Christmas that I'm looking forward to it!  I want to hang twinkly lights and watch the claymation Rudolph movie and I have the perfect spot for a tree in my living room.  There will be mistletoe, and my doorways will be festooned with  garlands-- it is going to be a seriously festive event.  I have a sneaking suspicion I'm going to become one of those people who puts up their holiday decorations the day after Thanksgiving.

Have a beautiful day!

♥

snippets♥

Hi there,

I hope you're having a good week and that all of you are safe and sound.

First of all, my heart goes out to everyone involved in this week's events in Boston and in Texas.  

I'm lucky enough not to know first-hand what it feels like to be in either situation, or to have a loved one involved.  I'm sure that even the deepest empathy or the most vivid imaginings fall short of how horrifying the reality is.  I'm simultaneously shocked at how terrible some actions can be and at how selflessly others respond.  Seeing the footage of runners in Boston putting their own lives in danger to try to save others, or continuing to run directly to hospitals to donate blood, is so encouraging.  It pales in comparison the heroic efforts made by so many, but I'm sending out all of the positive, healing energy I can muster up.

With no segue whatsoever (because really, how can one possibly segue from that to anything else?), here's a peek into my life lately.

My mom won a door prize at the opening of the Skirted Fleece Mill!  She won a set of these adorable sheep stitch markers and a beautiful hand-thrown, hand-painted yarn bowl.  Lucky for me, she doesn't knit.  She also won a skein of handspun yarn, which I'll be knitting into a hat for her.  The stitch markers are currently on my very first sweater-- more about that soon!

Here are the two adorable reasons why I never have room to stretch out to sleep.  They take up the entire bottom half of the bed!  But they always look so cozy, I just can't bring myself to move them.    These little guys have had a rough time this week-- more on that soon, too.  They're back to their usual charming selves now, though.

Tulips are blooming in Manhattan!  

It's such an amazing change to see the city go from cold and gray to balmy and green.

I just re-stocked my supply of my favorite tea ever, McNulty's Berry Creme black tea.  It's delicious, and the dried rose petals make it beautiful to look at, too.  

I hope you have a beautiful, peaceful day.

♥

snippets

Hi there and happy Saturday!

Here's a little peek into my life lately.

rusted iron stars and a stained glass window on an old warehouse building

chocolate Easter eggs!  The yellow one had a maple walnut filling, the blue was coconut, and the purple was peanut butter (my favorite!).

Cocoa, unaware that I'm spying on him spying on Bucky from inside his cardboard box fortress.

(About fifteen seconds after this, he noticed the camera and gave it a smack with his paw.  He doesn't put up with the cat-loving paparazzi.)

And then he was all tired out.

Happy Easter tomorrow to those who celebrate it!

♥

snippets

Hi there, I hope you're having a wonderful week!

Here's a little peek into my life lately.

I don't think it's possible to be in a bad mood while wearing a kitty-print dress, especially celestial kitties with stars in them.

...or when looking at these little guys.  They're best buddies.

This is one of my favorite yarns I've ever knit with-- it's Dream in Color Smooshy in the Into the Mystic colorway.  I'm working on some socks in this yarn, which I'll be posting soon!

Ducks on an unusually warm day-- bottoms up!

chocolate chip cookies!  Fun fact:  I like chocolate chip cookies to be crunchy, and the only way I've discovered to consistently get crunchy cookies is to do all the mixing by hand with a wooden spoon, not an electric mixer.  Adding an extra two teaspoons of vanilla seems to help, too.

Have a beautiful afternoon!

♥

snippets

Just a peek into my life lately...

daytime stars

river rocks-- the river has thawed enough to see the bottom!

english breakfast...and lunch.  and after dinner.  I really drink a lot of tea.

Bucky in his blanket fort

a door for wishing on

I hope you're having a lovely day!

♥

p.s. if you like things on facebook, and you like this blog, please consider liking Julie Rose Sews on facebook!  there's going to be a seeeecret coupon code for the shop there soon, too.  just saying.

snippets, and some thoughts.

just a peek into my life lately...

I learned to knit cables!  Yay!  I don't know why I thought cabling was going to be completely terrifying, but it took me nine or ten years of knitting to try it.  And y'know what?  It's totally not difficult or scary.  Naturally I had to make some cabled hexipuffs!

pretty iron scrollwork on church doors

One of my very favorite fruits is now in season-- clementines!  And how darn cute is the Poppy logo?  

This sweet kitty found me when I was walking back from my knitting group last week.  She was so affectionate that she started following me after I had been petting her for a few minutes and I had to say, "You can't come with me, I have two kitties!  You have your own family, kitty!"  What a sweetheart.

On a more somber note, my heart goes out to everyone affected by the tragic events in Newtown, Connecticut--and I think pretty much everyone has been affected.  I still can't even fathom how something like that could happen.  So please-- hug people and tell them how much they mean to you at every opportunity.  Be a little more kind than is strictly necessary.  And let's work toward finding a way to prevent atrocities like this.  I've been pretty appalled with reactions to this tragedy that I've seen on Facebook and Twitter and around the blogosphere, especially those claiming that these events are some sort of divine revenge for living in a diverse nation with diverse beliefs.  Let's just stop that train of thought before it leaves the station, because historically, blaming a country's problems on a religious  group (or non-religious, as the case may be) hasn't led to anything good.  Instead, let's focus on finding concrete ways to make sure horrors like this are prevented in the future.

♥

snippets

Hi friends, I hope you're having a wonderful week!

Here are a few snapshots from my life lately.

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the last of the autumn leaves, bright in the afternoon sun

hydrangeas-- not so colorful anymore, but still beautiful

Bucky snatched a hexipuff from my busy bee blanket.  He's really, really possessive of it.

This is my dream house.  And I saw it after having a pumpkin pancake with custard and cinnamon, so the whole morning was just perfect.

Have a beautiful day!

♥

snippets

just a peek into my life lately...

even as it gets chilly, we've still had some beautifully sunny days

garden squash picked before the frost

the last leaves of autumn

cozy hot chocolate on cold afternoons

Have a beautiful day!

♥

snippets

just bits and pieces of what I've been doing and seeing lately...

clearly, I've been ousted from my own loveseat.

beautiful oranges mums

My mom and I found these matching teapots-- mine is the green one, and hers is the blue one.  They have a mesh basket in the top for putting loose tea in, so none ever escapes into the cup of tea!

cream and gray and pink, oh my!

Cocoa likes to enjoy the great outdoors from the comfort of his blanket.

tiny pitcher of tiny mums

Have a beautiful day!

♥