We’re celebrating early this year. It’s molds and spores season in Maine, but I threw caution to the wind and went outside all day on what we expected to be the last 60 degree day of the year.

The next morning, I woke up with one eye completely swollen shut— a little early for a Halloween costume! I’ve had this before, but never in Maine, and never so quickly and badly, so I went to Urgent Care— yes, more dr. appts. They gave me an antibiotic gel to prevent infection and it makes my vision really blurry. Just feeling so run down this fall— I am calling myself Quasimodo with my hunched over posture and closed up eye.

I said to Mr. SFO, “I can only worry about myself right now,” which while true, hurt me right after I said it. So I decided to have fun with it and test the reactions of the various family and farm creatures to my new look.

Chickens: Supposedly they are capable of remembering up to 25 faces, but they had no reaction at all, God bless them. Maybe they just assumed I’m someone else and as long as the treats are coming, there are not concerned.

Goats: Vera looked concerned; Violet looked very concerned and actually backed away! I could see her slightly cock her head like a dog.

Grandson Charlie: I could tell he saw it right away— and he laughed! I had to laugh, too.

My sister: I sent her a picture of myself with the caption, “UGH!” So she didn’t really notice the eye, but thought I was talking about my appearance in general. I’m still trying to process this.

My iPhone: Facial recognition is not working.

The occupational therapy continues, now with one arm and one eye. I got back to my puzzle and got another little area of barn well underway.

I had hoped to have Harvest Stars completed, but the project hit the doldrums. People on the Sew Sampler Facebook page have made the quilt using just the oranges for the stars and the greys for the nine patches— they just glow. It just goes to show you, you should never be the first to make a Sew Sampler Box quilt.

So I’m bummed out about that— I also have enough stitched over points, pleats, and 1/8” seams to be truly humbled. It’s up in the air how much shoulder I’m going to get back, and I can’t help wonder if this is the end of my sewing skills. I’ll most likely just soldier on and finish it badly.

I did get my farm junk journal underway! I’m happy to report this is a sewing activity— some of the junk journal YouTube videos I’m watching while awake at 3am showed how books, at least back in the day, were actually sewn together!

I taped up a chipboard cover and covered in it this fabulous rooster fabric I had purchased for the chicken quilt I never started.

Then, I folded long strips of paper and sewed them into a spine I made out of black grunge fabric. I’m now in the process of adding in the pages which are glued in to the folded strips. You do see a piece of the strip on one side, but all this gets covered over with layer upon layer of pockets, tags, folds, and ephemera.

According to my early a.m. YouTube peeps, junk journaling has saved the physical paper and scrapbook market. We do just keep our photos on our phones now, but a junk journal is a very material object. I can’t wait to do more on this– neatness does not count, so it’s the perfect one-armed, one-eye activity.

Since I’m not buying fabric or quilt kits right now, I have raided Hobby Lobby for stickers and washi tape.

Who could say no to maple leaf jewels, at the maple syrup farm?

The Christmas decor is starting to hit the shelves–
we’re a little later than other parts of the country on this…

If this little show of merch tickles your fancy, it has come to my attention, also at 3am, that people are making a living on YouTube by going to the various stores, Michaels, Five Below, Target, and showing all the Christmas “Cozy Crafts” as they call them and decorations. I’m glad my fetish has a name now, “Cozy Crafts,” but I’d like to point out I’ve been doing them for years before this became popular, starting with Perler Beads.

Perler Beads are out, but Diamond Painting is in– and the offerings this year are giving me something to live for. I’m hoping to get to Michaels next week before it all starts to sell out. You don’t need two eyes to see this is going to be a big year for crafts.

These little “book nook” projects are also popular– do you know what I’m talking about? I have a bake shop and a greenhouse still waiting to be made for several years now. It ain’t happenin’ with one eye– too many tiny pieces!

That’s why, when I saw a video entitled, “A Nook Project I Can Definitely Finish,” I clicked on it and discovered these adorable things– “Starbox Nook Nooks.”

They are little animals in little things– what could be cuter? A laundry kitty in a detergent bottle, a couch potato bunny in a TV, and sloth in an alarm clock. Very nicely designed. Assemble in five minutes. PROBLEM– there are six available and you don’t know which you are buying– I only want the refridge penguin. At $12, I may just take a chance when they let me out of here next week.

Still there?

This has really turned from a sewing blog into a case study of a person slowly losing sanity. I hope you’re enjoying the show and I thank you for being here! Great news– I honestly think I have now bottomed out with this eye thing, and the creative juices are really starting to flow. After this posts– I am going to DIGITIZE EMBROIDERY! Imagine that.

Here’s a metaphor God gave me on Monday– a red sky at night.
I read: COMING SOON– a stitcher’s delight!

xox
Carol