October's Party

                                                      October gave a party,
                                                       The leaves by hundreds came—
                                                       The chestnuts, Oaks and Maples
                                                       And leaves of every name.
                                                       The sunshine spread a carpet,
                                                       And everything was grand.
                                                       Miss Weather led the dancing,
                                                       Professor Wind the band,

                                                       The Chestnuts came in yellow,
                                                       The Oaks in crimson dressed;
                                                       The lovely Misses Maple
                                                        In scarlet looked their best;
                                                        All balanced to their partners,
                                                        And gaily fluttered by;
                                                        The sight was like a rainbow
                                                        New fallen from the sky.

                                                        Then, in the rustic hollow
                                                        At hind-and-seek they played
                                                        The party closed at sundown,
                                                        And everybody stayed.
                                                        Professor Wind played louder;
                                                        They flew along the ground;
                                                       And then the party ended
                                                        In jolly “hands around.”

                                                     -George Cooper.

What Sanctifies Our Offerings?

“And the priest shall put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar of sweet incense before the LORD.” Leviticus 4:7


The altar of incense is the place where saints present their prayers and praises; and it is delightful to think of it as sprinkled with the blood of the great sacrifice. This it is which makes all our worship acceptable with Jehovah: He sees the blood of His own Son and therefore accepts our homage.

It is well for us to fix our eyes upon the blood of the one offering for sin. Sin mingles even with our holy things, and our best repentance, faith, prayer, and thanksgiving could not be received of God were it not for the merit of the atoning sacrifice. Many sneer at “the blood”; but to us it is the foundation of comfort and hope. That which is on the horns of the altar is meant to be prominently before our eyes when we draw near to God. The blood gives strength to prayer, and hence it is on the altar’s horns. It is “before the Lord”, and therefore it ought to be before us. It is on the altar before we bring the incense; it is there to sanctify our offerings and gifts.

Come, let us pray with confidence, since the Victim is offered, the merit has been pleaded, the blood is within the veil, and the prayers of believers must be sweet unto the Lord.

From "Faith's Checkbook" by Charles H. Spurgeon

Maria's Austrian Floral Dress for Ladies

Last fall we introduced Gretel’s Peasant Outfit to our Etsy shop and website. It proved to be a well received item, and we had many requests for a ladies dress in the styling of our Gretel Outfit or Maria’s Austrian Floral Dress. This fall we are introducing our Ladies Maria’s Austrian Floral Dress. We have two available in-stock on our Etsy page, as well as the option to custom order this dress in the size and color of your choice. Hopefully, the Gretel Outfit for ladies will soon follow, but until then we are excepting custom orders for that outfit too. : )

"She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs with no fear of the future. When she speaks, her words are wise, and kindness is a rule when she gives instructions. She carefully watches all that goes on in her household and does not bear the consequences of laziness." Proverbs 31:25-27

 

Sale!

This week I have been posting sale priced items on ebay, as well as some patterns and a couple odds and ends. I am still in the process of adding items and plan to add a couple more ladies dresses over the next few days. You can view the items I have listed here. Below are just a few of the items I have listed.

                                                          Ladies Navy Empire Waist Dress

                                                        Hand Knit Wool Shawl

                                                 Blue and White Checked 1940's Swing Dress

Brown Calico Apron

Springtime in Upstate New York

The post below is shared by my mother, Donna Jean.

“And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And He said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.” Revelation 21: 4&5

Springtime in upstate New York is lovely; fragrant lilacs, beautiful forget-me-nots, tulips and more. I wish I could bottle the scent of our mountain ash tree; it is so sweet and lovely. In my mind I can imagine heaven a perpetual springtime and its atmosphere filled with the wonderful essence of springtime always. Thank you Father for new life in Christ Jesus.  2 Corinthians 5:17

A Visitor

  Earlier this week while sewing I had an unexpected visitor..........

       A baby praying mantis! : )

"Pray without ceasing." 1 Thessalonians 5:17

Spring Flowers

"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these." Matthew 6:28&29

"The splendor of the rose and the whiteness of the lily do not rob the little violet of its scent nor the daisy of its simple charm. If every tiny flower wanted to be a rose, spring would lose its loveliness."
                                                   -Terese of Lisieux

                                        "Her heart is like her garden
                                         Old-fashioned, quaint and sweet.
                                         With here a wealth of blossoms,
                                          And there a still retreat."
                                                       -Alice E. Allen

One Day!

One day when heaven was filled with his praises,

One day when sin was as black as could be,

Jesus came forth to be born of a virgin—

Dwelt amongst men, my example is he!



Living, he loved me; dying, he saved me;

Buried, he carried my sins far away;

Rising, he justified freely, for ever:

One day he's coming—O, glorious day!



One day they led him up Calvary's mountain,

One day they nailed him to die on the tree;

Suffering anguish, despised and rejected:

Bearing our sins, my Redeemer is he!



One day they left him alone in the garden,

One day he rested, from suffering free;

Angels came down o'er his tomb to keep vigil;

Hope of the hopeless, my Saviour is he!



One day the grave could conceal him no longer,

One day the stone rolled away from the door;

Then he arose, over death he had conquered;

Now is ascended, my Lord evermore!



One day the trumpet will sound for his coming,

One day the skies with his glories will shine;

Wonderful day, my beloved ones bringing;

Glorious Saviour, this Jesus is mine!
 
-J. Wilbur Chapman
 
"For the LORD himself will come down from heaven  with a commanding shout, with the call of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, all the Christians who have died will rise from thier graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the LORD in the air and remain with him forever. So comfort and encourage each other with these words." Thessalonians 4:16-18

A Rainy Day...

                                        "It rains- what lady loves a rainy day?
                                        She loves a rainy day who sweeps the hearth,
                                        And threads the busy needle, or applies
                                       The scissors to the torn or threadbare sleeve;
                                        And blesses God that she has friends and home."
                                                                                          -Anon.

Scrubbies

 Several years ago I began crocheting scrubbies. They have always been a big hit with my family. Crocheted from nylon netting (also know as crinoline the material petticoats are made from) scrubbies are perfect for all of your pans, even those with protective coatings. You can wash scrubbies in your washing machine with Clorox, they are very durable and nothing works as well on hard to clean pots and pans. Once you have given scrubbies a try I am sure you will be a fan too. : )

To begin you must cut your nylon netting into 2” wide strips. At first I found this the most challenging step; nylon netting has a way of slipping about. Somewhere along the way I began pinning my neatly folded material to the carpet. I would then mark every 2” with a black marker and cut.


Using a size 9/I crochet hook chain 4. Slip stitch to first chain to form a ring.

Round 1: Chain 2, 6 dc (double crochet) in ring. Sl st (slip stitch) to first chain.

Round 2: Chain 2, dc in same space, 2 dc in each dc of previous round. (I always add one extra dc, as I feel there is a space between where I began and where I am to end. There should be a total of 15 sts counting the first two chains as a dc.) Sl st to first chain.

Round 3: Chain 2, dc in same space, 2 dc in each dc of previous round.

Round 4: Chain 1, sc (single crochet) in each dc of previous round. Sl st to first chain.

Round 5: Chain 2, dc in each sc of previous round. Sl st to first chain.

Round 6: Chain 2, dc in every other dc of previous round.

Round 7: Chain 2, dc in every other dc of previous round.

You will now have a small opening in the back of your scrubbie. I simply slip stitch from one side of the opening into the other side 2-3 times. Cut material and draw material through the loop on your hook. Pull excess material into the inside of the scrubbie, I do this by pushing my hook through the front of the scrubbie and drawing the excess material through to the inside.

Tatting

Earlier this month I had the opportunity to learn how to tat. Tatting has always interested me and is a skill I have long wanted to learn. So when I discovered that a local shop was offering lessons in tatting I was thrilled.

I must admit tatting has been, by far, one of the most difficult handicrafts for me to learn but, with the LORD’s help, I have been able to make some progress. The photos above are of my first two projects. I was so pleased with how the lavender and purple bookmark coordinated with the book I am currently reading. : )

A wonderful resource for learning to tat is Shuttle Tatting 1. I had purchased this video several years ago and, though I had learned the basic stitch at the lesson I attended, I found this video to be a tremendous help in learning the rest I needed to know in order to complete a simple project.

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." James 1:17

Nelson

Some of you may recall a post from last May, where I recounted the story of how my sisters and I found a dear little cat on the main street of our town. I thought I should give a follow up to the story of Nelson.

Nelson has grown to be a very handsome, loving cat. He loves his home and has a very sweet disposition. I must say I am grateful that the animal shelter refused to take him, as I would have missed out on a chance to know one of the sweetest and dearest feline friends. : )

Happy New Year!

"For you are God's people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you out of all people, His treasured possession." Deuteronomy 7:6

"Direct my footsteps according to your Word." Psalm 119:133

"The LORD says, 'I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.'" Psalm 32:8

"Commit your work to the LORD, and then your plans will succeed." Proverbs 32:8

"If we are living now by the Holy Spirit, let us follow the Holy Spirit's leading in every part of our lives." Galatians 5:25

"Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight." Psalm119:35