Decking the Halls

We had a really nice Thanksgiving. I hope you did too. Before I get to Christmas I want to share the last of my morning glory before it gets cold. You're probably sick of seeing this, but I am so in love with this. I started in the spring with seeds. I germinated them in a wet paper towel until they sprouted. Planted them against the fence.

It didn't take long to start sending it's tendrils around the trellis.

First flower.

 Notice how far the morning glory is from the lady bug on the fence.

 It has pretty much spread out and covered the lady bug. It's still blooming-purple, pink and white flowers. I'll miss this so much in the winter, but plan on planting a few more in the spring.

I've been Christmas decorating. Here's a sneak peak.

 I am participating in the Cozy at Christmas Holiday Blog Tour and will show my house on Tuesday. I hope you come back and also check out the other bloggers homes and wonderful Christmas ideas. It runs Dec. 5, 6, and 7.

 When son was home for Thanksgiving he made a pie crust to use in an ad(he's a graphic designer. He cut this out with an exacto knife. and baked it on parchment paper. It was the top of a pie to be used for pie day. I thought it came out so pretty. So delicate.

See you next Tuesday. Lots going on here at Brookhollow Lane. Have a great week!
Leslie

Hoping for Fall, but Feeling like Summer

Here's a little peak at some of my fall decor. You'll have to come back on Oct.6 to see the full tour. I'll be part of the Fall in Love With Texas Fall Blog Hop.

 I added some vintage spice tins in fall colors to my antique scale. Found the vintage thermos at the thrift store and how perfect are those colors for fall?

See the little wool acorns I made? I glued on real acorn tops.

 This is what it is like outside today in North Texas. 98 degrees! The sweet potato vine has gone crazy. I can't wait for the temps to drop-I'm thinking soups, chili, plaid blankets, cool nights and pumpkins.

 My morning glory has gone over the fence into the neighbors yard and is peaking back through to our side.

I kinda want to plant these all over the place, because it has been so fun watching this grow, and grow, and grow! I will miss it when the weather finally does cool down.

What do you think of when you think fall? I hope you are enjoying the season.
Leslie

Strawberries and Crafting

I finally got my craft mojo back. Partly because I rearranged son's boxes in the craftroom and am now able to sidle by to my desk. I have wanted to make these for awhile.Also checking out my new readers (I'm testing different strengths after my eye surgery) to see if I can thread a needle and I can!

I just cut some rounds on scraps of fabrics. Mine were 4 1/2" across. Cut each circle in half.

 I folded over , right sides together and sewed the edge up on the machine with a little rounded point.

 I turned them right side out. They look like little gnome hats, don't they?

  I used quilting thread, but any heavy thread will do for the next part.

 Using the quilting thread, (Here's where I really needed to be able to see), I did a running stitch on the top edge. Be sure to leave a tail on the  knot so you have something to pull.

 Stuffed it and pulled in the gather and tied it off in a knot.

 Cut out little leaves from felt. Also little rectangles.

I rolled the rectangles and hot glued and held it with a cloths pin. Also glued 2 little leaves together in the middle.Glue each leaf on end of strawberry to cover your gathered hole. Hot glue the rolled stem on the end.

 Clean off all your glue strings and there you have it. Ripe strawberries!

 These were so fun to make.See the little printed one in the jelly jar? It has berries and cherries on the fabric. That was fabric from my Mom's stash.

 This was a perfect little project to ease my way back into crafting. Feels so good to be creative!

 Maybe I'll make some strawberry pie later, on this super hot summer day. With real strawberries, though.

 Progress report on the morning glory. It's growing over the 8 foot fence into the neighbors side and is just lovely.

 My purple crepe myrtle is in full bloom.I love that shade of deep purple.

Let me know if you have any questions on making strawberries. Still hot here, but of course it's summer in Texas. Hope you have a wonderful week!
Leslie

My Week

Well, things are looking up this week. A few things have gotten done in the heat wave. I know most of the country is suffering, but we are pretty used to 100 degrees in the summer in Texas. Hubby had a birthday and I wanted to show you one of his gifts. I ordered this from this Etsy shop. Hubby was in the Navy during the Evacuation of Saigon and this was his ship. 

 Here's a closer look. The artist even put the insignia of the Blue Ridge in the lower corner. I love how he had the ocean melting into the map of the Japan. This ship is still going today. Anyway, he really liked it and it is hanging in the office.

 New garage door-done.

 New matchstick blinds- hung. I had to shorten all of them and we had to cut the width down on one. They came out great. Still can't get into my craftroom though, and I really miss it.

 I put some little daisies in my vases. I really like the look.

 I have decided I love daylillies. They are doing great in our hot temps.

Mostly just staying inside in the cool. This will last through mid September for us. Hopefully the heat won't last that long wherever you are. Have a great week and stay cool!
Leslie

Real Life

Hi everyone. No terrible news here. I was just trying to think of something to blog about, and not much has been happening here. Lots of things falling apart at the same time. You know that rule of threes? My pleated soft shade broke in the bedroom. This is our beautiful new custom window treatment. lol. I have to give a shout out to Levolor Blinds. Turns out it was under 10 year warranty and they are shipping us a new one for free. Excellent customer service! Waiting for delivery.

 No cute craft projects. Sons boxes are stacked in the craftroom for the summer. I don't love the boxes, but do love having son home for a little while.

 Got half an order of matchstick blinds for the breakfast nook. I had to argue with Home Depot and UPS that they only delivered 2 out of 4 boxes. We'll see how that one plays out. Still waiting.

 My 2 leather chairs are falling apart and have ordered new chairs and am still waiting on those.

 Our garage door had a run in with the tailgate of my open van. The tailgate won. I won't go into my garage door saga-just know it was so frustrating it's almost funny. Still waiting on that.

This isn't a feel sorry for me post-just being real here. So I'm in a state of waiting for things to get delivered or fixed. Can't wait to get back on track!

On a pretty note-roses from Hubby. I had eye surgery over the past 2 weeks-nothing major, but getting used to new lenses and new reading glasses etc.

 My sweet potato vine is going crazy by the front door.

It's hotter then heck here in Dallas. It's been a rough week here and around the country. I hope people start coming together soon. 

I thought I'd leave you with a  video that I took in Seattle. Snoqualmie Falls looks so cooling and inviting. Sorry-I still haven't figured out how to turn the video. If anyone knows-please let me in on the secret.

Hope your week goes well.
Leslie

Ordinary Days

 Not a whole lot going on at Brookhollow Lane this week. I found this cool gate when we were in Waxahachie awhile back. I had been looking for one. This one has a tag from the county where I live, so it had to come home with me.

 Not sure what I'll put in front of it yet, but I like it leaning on the fence.

 The crepe myrtles are blooming. This one is the prettiest shade of purple.

 This one is a lilac color. The hot pinks in my yard haven't gotten into full bloom yet.

 Here's a little collage of some of the flowers and trees in Seattle.

I 

It's hard to act normal and cheerful, when such bad stuff is happening in the world. I'm thinking about you, Orlando. Something has got to change!
Leslie