The gales of November are upon us ...

Last week the wind switched.  It rained, the wind blew and it was just plain icky out.

This was last Tuesday. I stopped at the grocery store after work to pick something up for supper. The weather was downright depressing.  The cold and dampness got bone-deep, thanks to the wind gusts.

On Wednesday the weather switched and the sun came out.  It was BEAUTIFUL out.  Temps were almost in the 60s F. 

I had to run around the house and take pictures of the outside. 

I threw open ALL the windows in the house and exchanged the air.  *sigh* It was so lovely.  I even took advantage of the nice weather and mucked out the coop over my lunch hour. The chickens and turkey got to stretch their legs for a bit. 

Then the wind changed and the weather turned yet again.

And now we've a bit of snow on the ground at the homsestead.  No snow in town.

I've been waking up to frost on the car. 

Goodbye 50 F degree temps.  It was nice knowing you.

Thanksgiving is in just a few days. Once again, the month is going way too fast. Tomorrow is my last day of work for the week. My son has the whole week off from school.  Lucky! He's been getting spoiled by his grandma.

Let's see, what else is going on ... Since it got "cold" out we haven't been doing much outside.

I was listening to "Crewel." The audiobook expired before I had a chance to finish it. I've got in on request again. I picked up "Westing Game" from the library today.  My son read it in school and asked me to read it too.  By the time I remembered to get it they finished the book. I also picked up "Floors" to listen in the car.  It was something I grabbed off the shelf and so far is family friendly.  I forgot how much I dislike morning radio. It was nice to have a story to listen to during the afternoon drive.

For all I read and listen too, my GoodReads TBR list isn't getting smaller. 

This week I got an urge to whip up a knit bunny.  I finished him last night.

I added a little color to his cheeks.  It's a trick I learned from another project. Rub a little color pencil onto the yarn.

And it appears I've been smitten by the sewing bug.  Honestly, I had no intention of this happening but I reckon that when you get a good machine and it's a dream to sew, you suddenly want to sew all the things.

I used a walking foot for the first time.  I felt so cool using something other than the all-purpose foot. When I got my machine my DH ordered me a set of feet to go with it. I had to look on YouTube to see how to use it.

I am a sewer. Hear me rawr!

 Last weekend I attempted to make a maxi skirt and it turned out not as expected.  It's a strictly around the house skirt. You will never see pics of it, unless I decide to rip it apart and try again. It is super comfy.  There is no doubt about it. 

So, I posted my woes about it on my Facebook account and received LOTS of encouragement to keep trying.

Earlier this week I drove to a local fabric place and picked out some patterns and fabric to work with.  I'm excited and nervous because fabric was cheaper the last time I tried making skirts and dresses. I also am a complete newbie when it comes to the different types of fabrics.

Thanks to one of my knitter friends I am slowly learning about fabrics and what is meant for what. 

When I was looking at fabrics I was completely overwhelmed by all the options available and knowing that I didn't know what some of the fabrics were used for. 

I don't typically buy willy nilly.  I must have a project in mind.  My friend told me what type of fabrics were good for each of these patterns and I tried to shop accordingly. 

My friend suggested I hold off on this pattern for now.

Here and there I've been doing reading online about sewing clothes and learning why people opt to make their own clothing.  Making your own clothes is *not* cheap. When you start really thinking about what has to happen in order for you to get the "cheap" off-the-rack clothing, it really makes you stop and think, and develop a real appreciation for what goes into it all.  It's sort of like when you raise your own livestock and grow your own produce. Doing this stuff yourself costs so much more, yet you get so much more out of it. You are also keeping certain skills alive.