Wardrobe work!

Hello everyone.  My bathrobe has needed help for quite a while.  First I thought Replacement...but I'm so fond of it.  Then I asked myself what is its worst feature and could I fix it.  The answer...sleeves! and yes...
So...here are the sleeve ends which I cut off:

And here is the improved version:

To do this I deconstructed an old nightie that also needed help...the rest of it is going to become a summer skirt eventually, maybe soon!  Jude's classes have definitely helped me become braver about this sort of thing; my classmates have all been inspirational, particularly Deb and Grace. Thank you!

Next, sigh.  The little hummingbird from my last post has gone away...she was sitting on her beautiful little nest, but the neighborhood crow ended that happy story.  Not that there is just one crow...there are many, many.  This happened last year also...the squirrels and the crows are very dominant here.

Here is another trivet/prayer mat,  "bee star":

It's one of several prayers for the underdog, for example, that the hummingbird might evolve to not so easily attract the crow.  I just finished reading River of Doubt by Candice Millard, about Theodore Roosevelt's harrowing adventures in the Amazonian type jungle, and how life in the jungle there evolved.  So, it's easy to see how a crow can find a hummingbird nest...I wish mother nature could assist the hummingbird a little more here.  Seems like I should be able to help. 

That's all for now!

Closer to home

Hello everyone.  I'm slowly making my way home after visiting my dear family.  I hopped off the train this morning to visit Denver for a day and will hop on the next one tomorrow to continue on.  Denver is a wonderful place for walking.  The sun was out and the temperature was perfect.  A new travel center is being built and I think it will be quite something...a real hub for buses and trains.  So here are a few impressions...the old grand station which is being renovated:

A pattern where the sidewalk crosses the tracks:

Some coal cars waiting to go somewhere:

Crocheted flowers on the fence separating the sidewalk from the construction.  This is just a tiny portion of the display. 

Here is the sleeve of my old jacket that I "boro-ed"  a la Jude:

Some New Jersey azalea blossoms, just beginning to assert themselves.  It was cold and rainy almost the entire visit, but then Easter was a beautiful day, maybe even a little too suddenly warm, but how glad we were for the sunshine.

That's all for now.  Time for bed.