Packing

Good morning,

We are packing and sure have a lot of help.  As soon as we got suitcases out the dogs all had to get on the bed to monitor what was happening.  They may appear to be sleeping, but as soon as we move something, they lift their heads and take note.

Where are we going you may ask?  We are on our way to Galveston, Texas.  The pups won't be going and won't have to leave the house during our absense.  There will be people here with them.

Stay tuned!

All the best,
Lois

Flowers!

Good morning,

What a unique flower arrangement!  Long-time friends (since 1975) sent these this week.  They certainly are bright and cheery.  How very sweet!

I like to take pictures of flowers because I can keep them forever that way.

The arrangement is so unique I had to share.

:),
Lois

Red Bud Tree in the Snow

Good morning,

Here's another image taken through the French doors in the living room this week.  The Red Bud Tree is beginning to bloom.  What isn't so obvious in this shot is the snow.  It snowed all day on Monday and small amounts of snow accumulated on the lawn.  Shortly before I took this one, the snow was so heavy the tree was hard to see.  It was cold and snowy until evening when the sun came out.  So strange, but, hey, this is Cincinnati.

Happy Spring one more time!

Lois

Tulips from Years Ago

Good morning,

The four red tulips in today's post have been coming back for more than 30 years.

There was once a long row of them along our fence by the driveway, but only these remain.

Welcome back, pretty tulips!

:),
Lois

Falling Petals, Rainy Day

Good morning,

I took this image through my window screen on a rainy day.  The effects seemed to "work" to get the image of the falling petals of the Tulip Magnolia.

So pretty!

Happy Spring,
Lois

Thank You for Asking

Good morning,

Thank you so much to those who have written to see if I'm OK since I haven't had a blog post for a couple of days.

My blog was rudely interrupted by Acute Appendicitis.  I'm home, recovering, and all is well, but I'm not moving around taking many pictures or doing much more than recovering.

That is a picture of my night shirt.  Appropriate, isn't it!

Thanks, again, for your concern.  It was so very kind of you and inspiring to hear from people who read my blog daily and missed seeing it.

All the best,
Lois

Here Come the Peonies!

Good morning,

The Peonies are coming up!  In two or three weeks these small shoots will develop into large bushes with huge pom pom flowers.

I hope this year the Peonies have a few days of bloom before the rains come.  Last year the rain knocked them to the ground just as they began to come into full bloom.

Happy Spring!

Lois

Peach Tree Wood

Good morning,

Yesterday My Honey and I worked in the garden clearing away vines and removing overgrown bushes.  We also took down my beloved peach tree that had died on one side.  We never got any peaches because the squirrels got to them first.  I didn't mind that so much;  squirrels have to eat, too.

We carefully cut the healthy parts of the peach tree and will dry it so My Honey can use it in his wood workshop.  We've moved several sections inside to dry.  I look forward to seeing him use this!   It will make many things, but turned wood pens are high on my list of projects.

Two days ago we added another turned wood pen to the shop.  He made that one from Spalted Tamarind wood that we had purchased at the wood store.  I think it will be so amazing to be able to use wood from our own property in items in the future.

All the best,
Lois

Gravlaks for Dinner

Good morning,

We generally have Gravlaks for breakfast, but we recently enjoyed it for dinner.  This time we served it with crackers.  It's good however you eat it.

It is yummy at any time of the day, too.  :)

I've published My Honey's recipe for Gravlaks earlier here.

Enjoy!

:),
Lois

Pink Tulips Perservere

Good morning,

Our Spring is extremely cold here.  Even though we wake to a blanket of snow most mornings, the Spring flowers are still pushing through.

These pretty pink tulips have been blooming in our front yard for nearly 40 years. 

Welcome back for another year!

Lois

Royal Purple Flowers

Good morning,

I've enjoyed being surrounded by Royal Purple flowers for the past few days.  I'm now adding the fourth round to the 80 squares needed to make a large afghan blanket.  A fifth joining round then a scalloped border for the entire piece is still to come.

In another three or four days this blanket will be finished and ready to photograph for the shop.

Then it'll be on to the next project.

What are you making today?

:),
Lois

Mother Nature is SOOOOOOO Confused!

Good morning,

This is what I saw when I opened the door to let the pups out yesterday morning.  

The picture says it all.  *sigh*

Lois

Downtown Cincinnati Landmark

Good  morning,

Yesterday My Honey and I went downtown to run some errands. 

We happened to park near the headquarters of Procter and Gamble and this view was just too perfect not to capture with my camera.

P&G is a part of the fiber of Cincinnati.  I'm quite sure there is at least one P&G product in the home of 99% of Americans.

Lois

Winter Food on a Cold Spring Evening

Good morning,

Since Mother Nature hasn't figured out what season it is and it was so cold outside yesterday, I made beef stew in the crock pot.  It still had about four hours to go when I took this picture.  When it was ready the sauce had thickened and the meat was marvelously tender and tasty.

Now I'm waiting for Mother Nature to provide a day for a Spring Salad. 

;),
Lois

Tulip Magnolias

Good morning,

We lost a few magnolia blossoms this year because of late frost, but the vast majority are blooming now. 

So pretty!

:),
Lois

48 Hours - From Snow to 73 Degrees

Good morning,

I took this image yesterday, April 3.  It was 73 F  and sunny so Kjell and I grabbed a couple of cups of coffee and sat on the patio for just over an hour before the skies turned dark before thunder storms in the evening.  I've started another hat as my portable knitting project.

Of course, the pups joined us.  Wendy definitely considers herself a people and likes to sit in a chair with the rest of the other people in the family.  ;)

Happy Spring, but enjoy it when you can.  It was 38 F overnight after the thunder storms.  There were tornado warnings, too.

Lois

Needlework and Wood Working Update - April, 2018

Good morning,

This has been a busy month for larger projects.  The afghan blanket above reminds me of blue woodland flowers sparkling with dew in the morning sun.  I just love how the colors all work together.  At this writing it is available in our on line shop.  $155. 

This Nordic Knit Intarsia hat was my waiting room project this month.  I love these smaller projects that are so easy to carry along while I am away from my studio.  This hat and similar hats are available here.  $38.

This is a long tunic sweater that I knit for our daughter, Catherine.  It was was a long project and finished just in time for Easter.  :) 

It's time to travel again and these luggage identifiers are a popular item.

I've made three more sets to restock.

They are pretty and useful, too!  Luggage Identifiers are available here.  Set of six - $5.

 A few days ago I shared a video of My Honey's Tea Bag Dipping machine in a post.  I still think it is more useful as a dipper of strawberries into warm chocolate.  This item is not in the shop.  It's in our recreation room where we will enjoy playing with it.  ;) 

See all of those gears behind behind the tea dipper?  My Honey is now working on building a clock.  He has made many of the gears and other parts already and has them laying on the table awaiting assembly.  Stay tuned!

 These wall mount bottle openers are now in the shop.  What a fun conversation piece that is also so useful!

 My Honey painted the engraved flag.  Beautiful!

 Here's one for a really cool granny!

 This one is my favorite.

 

 The wall mount bottle openers are available here.  $32 - $36.

So, there you have it for this month. 

We have these and many more excellent gifts for Mother's Day, Father's Day, and every day. 

When you're ready to shop for gifts and for yourself, we hope you'll stop by and see what we have to offer.  Thank you!

All the very best,
Lois

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Original and Traditional Hand Crafted Designs

EvensensProductions.com

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My Companion Miss Wendy

Good morning,

My Honey was in his wood workshop when Miss Wendy took over his chair in our sitting room while I was working at my computer. 

I'm sure she would love to help me with the accounting records for our shop.

If only our pups could talk.  I would love to know what they are thinking.

So precious!

Lois

Happy Easter - Happy Passover

To our family and friends we send our wishes
for a
Happy Easter and Happy Passover