Needlework Tuesday - With a little Needlework!

I've been crafting! Even a little needlework!! Probably a little more than I should be because I'm not reading that much and I'm getting even further behind in reviewing books. Oh, well. I'm having a blast working on these things and I'll catch up with reading...one day. Here's an update on some of my projects.

Temperature Scarf:
I finally picked out my yarn for this!!!! I'm so excited. I got lots of help at the yarn store, Wolseley Wool (they have a huge sale until July 28th!!) and had lots of different yarns to choose from. Colour selection and price were the two big determining factors, with fibre content playing an important, but more minor role. In a perfect world, I would have chosen slightly more vibrant colours and perhaps a few different ones, however, overall I'm delighted with my selections.  Berroco Weekend DK (75% Acrlyic/25% Cotton) is light weight yarn (#3) and comes in an array of colours. One minor glitch so far: I forgot to get the hanks wound before leaving the store. I tried to do one myself - the red one. I managed to do it with a centre pull, but it took a long time and really it didn't work out so well. A quick trip back to the store and an accommodating, understanding fellow knitter/salesperson, solved that problem quickly. Thank you Wolseley Wool!

Here are the colours I chose:
 

There are still a few details to work out, but I hope to start soon. I'll post more about it in a week or two.

Branch Weaving:
This is a new project I started today. I'm counting this as needlework because it involves yarn and a needle!!  I got the idea from Jenclaire at Bayou Quilts and Dolls. The link takes you to one of her creations (scroll down a bit), but she's done some other really lovely branch weaving pieces in other posts. She got her inspiration from Natural Suburbia. The other day, while burning some branches in the backyard, I came across a few "perfect Y"s for this craft and knew right then I was going to try this one. It's a little tough to get started, but after a few rows it gets easier.

Here's a photo of the start of mine. For this first one, I'm using leftover yarn in earthy colours. I really love the bright colours in the two samples above, so I might have to purchase more yarn. ;)

Zentangles:
Thank you, Heather, for showing these on your blog. I'm really loving them, although I'm possibly getting a little carried away.  I've even showed my husband how to do the Paradox one. He was intrigued. I've done a few more and am thinking I might want to turn this into a year-long project. I don't have any details yet, but it's something I'm thinking about. Also, I noticed that "artists" are "signing" their work, so I'm made up a stylized version of my initials.

Here's a photo of the new ones (left-to-right, starting upper left): Footlights, Paradox - variation, Spokes, Paradox - another variation, auraknot - variation, Hako, which I purposely skewed and did a little shading on, which I'm not sure I like).

 










As for the other garden crafts I started a few weeks ago:
• Windows: I have one more window that's ready for glass gems and I picked out three more windows to do. No other progress other than that.
• Fans - no progress.
• Garden Checkers - My husband cut the wood slab for the game board. Now, I'm waiting for it to dry out a bit before sanding and painting. The additional game pieces are primed and base coated.
• Butterflies: I completed one other butterfly, but now I realize that the colours aren't strong enough, so I'm going to go back and repaint some sections. I have 7 others that are primed and base coated.

Well that's it.

Needlework Tuesday is hosted by Heather over at Books and Quilts.