Hi everyone,
When I last posted, we were in the thick of things with snow falling…on top of our ice! We got 5-6″ of snow on top of the ice but today the sun came out and started melting some of the places so thick with ice and snow. The trees are still down, some limbs still dangling, and we still can’t tell anything about the fountain’s fate yet. It’s still buried under limbs and snow. Here are a few pictures I took Saturday morning from inside the house…
When we got home from church today, our power was off again… but fortunately I had put a pork roast in the crock pot and it was done when I checked it. We had to make the rest of lunch on the propane cook stove… the power came back on just as we finished lunch.
Not to be derailed by the weather outside, I decided to work on making my Ruby Red Fashion Friends “slip on” shoes the best they could be.
These were pretty nice and I was very proud of them…
… but I wasn’t happy with the backs of the shoes… instead of stitching the backs with a seam showing, I just kind of overlapped one side over the other and glued it in place and sometimes it was a bit tricky trying to get them to line up straight…
So, I tried something new… I decided to extend one side of my shoe pattern and make it wrap around the heel and look more smooth. Then I tapered the piece off and let it slope down into the shoe part that is stitched around the foot.
Here was my prototype…
Now I had to fix my paper pattern to fit what I had done. This was my pattern for the shoes I showed you Friday…
…and these were the patterns in progression to that point…
1st…
So I tried it and decided the front part needed to be scooped out just a little bit on the right side…
Every time you change the top part of the shoe, you have to modify the sole of the shoe… matching up holes… (one extra hole in the top piece because it is overlapped and counts as one hole)
If you think this has been a simple task… take a look at all these pieces… JUST FOR THE RUBY REDS! They are my trial and error and some patterns for keeps…I do need to sort them out again…
I found a couple pair of shoes in my box, from a few years ago… First my “Clodhoppers!”
… and then another pair of leather shoes, I obviously had no idea what I was doing…
So anyway, here are a few more pair I made this weekend. They are just plain for now because I am waiting for a new flower punch that has been delayed in the weather. It may come tomorrow or Tuesday…
This red pair…
…another red pair…
…and a gold pair made from a thicker leather…
So here are all the shoes I’ve made in about a week… Practice not only makes you better… it makes you faster. (Especially when you have a pattern that goes together just the way you want…
If you aren’t particularly interested in my doll shoes…how about some pictures of the birds at our feeder. I love watching them…
Well, that’s it for this shoemaker… time for bed…
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
In case people were wondering where I was Friday, I did write much later than I usualaly do, and then when I pressed PPost Comment”, I got the message that it was waiting for moderation, so I have no idea what I did wrong! It’s there finally this morning, I see.
OK, today I am bright and early, and just saw that you, Jeanne, have the same problems we have here, namely, ice under snow! We have not had mail all week, and our yard looks about the same as yours. It really is a winter wonderland! I just loved the little video of the birds at your feeder. You should have added music too! 🙂 I am out of birdseed at the moment, but hopefully we will find some today at the grocery store.
The shoes are very nice, and I see that you are getting better and better!
The shoes are looking good! I like the new design. It’s funny to me how we judge our own efforts. You say you had “no idea” what you were doing with the yellow/green and black lace pair. It’s true they aren’t up to your current ability in fit and finish, but they are obviously shoes and they go on the chosen doll’s foot. I haven’t even made it that far. : D
I’m glad things are beginning to melt, but I’m also enjoying seeing what you’re making while mostly homebound.
I love these shoes. I absolutely love the way all of the patterns are labeled during your process of construction, Jeanne. I am the same way with making patterns.
these shoes are gems. do you hand sew the stitching… the top to the bottom?
You have a very neat and tidy process.
Happy Monday everyone.
Your winter looks like ours, very cold and everything is solid ice.
The snow is beautiful.
What a great shoe progression. I think Jeanne could make a fun video of all the patterns and shoes made along the way and end with those sweet silver ones for the New Years outfit.
Sorry about the ice with snow on the top. In the mountains here, we’d call that a good base for skiing. Ha ha
I’m still very concerned about using that propane stove indoors. Most articles I’ve looked at say not to, but if you do, to leave a window or door open. Again, having a carbon monoxide detector near the stove is a must. Do you have one of those?? I found this, below and a lot of other information that says it’s not a good idea to use one indoors. A charcoal burner, for example, should never be used indoors, under any circumstances. They produce far too much CO. Kerosene stoves should also never be used indoors, for the same reason. On the other hand, alcohol, white gas, and propane stoves are safe to use in a “ventilated” area. Good examples of ventilated spaces include under a working stove vent, inside a fireplace, or a room with open windows. Finally, white gas and propane stoves can potentially leak, which can cause gas to build up in an enclosed space. This can lead to a flash fire, or even a fuel can explosion. To avoid this, tighten all fittings as securely as possible to ensure that no gas is leaking. And never leave your stove running unattended. If it goes out by accident, the room can fill with gas very quickly. Safety first around here. 🙂
Well, as they are containing the LA fires, we had very high winds here last night. Still blowing this morning, but I sure didn’t sleep very well. A tarp I had covering some outdoor furniture under our shade area, has blown across the deck and down the steps this morning. Not sure where it is right now. Going to be lots of trees down in the area, but not here. Looks like a lot of sticks and leaves to pick up here after it stops.
Stay safe, Joy. The news out of CA is so sad.
I haven’t forgotten about the bird/ squirrel pictures you wanted to see. I tried to get a few over the weekend, but didn’t manage to take one of a Blue Jay or a Flicker. They’re on the feeder right until I press my phone and then I miss them. Hopefully tomorrow.
Oh, that’s great Laura. Hope the birds will stop whatever they are doing and smile and look directly at the camera for you. 🙂
I forgot to mention to Jeanne how great her bird feeding video turned out. Here, lots of crows. 🙂
The shoes look very nice, Jeanne. Lots of red shoes for the Ruby Reds.
We actually do have ice under our snow now the snow is beginning to melt. There must have been just a glazing before the snow came as I didn’t see basically any on the trees or bushes. Better when the ice is on top of the snow and you crunch through.
Nice to see your birds busy at the feeder. They’re busy here as well.
I actually can see some potential for some of your earlier shoe-making attempts. A little tweaking here and there might work. Obviously you have become quite the expert since those bygone days, but it would be a challenge to see if you can rework some of them. I think the clodhoppers would be cute with a little trimming on the top of the shoe in front of the strap and then some “finishing”.
I take it you don’t have a gas stove. When we had the winter storm back in February of 2021 we lost power but we could still make tea and hot chocolate as well as cook us all some breakfast. My mother always believed in gas stoves for that reason. During hurricanes we often thought we were good to go since we had a gas grill if something would happen we couldn’t use our gas stove. But we realized the other day that our new pellet grill runs on electricity so no sense of security there anymore. Our new subdivision will be all electric because the cost of running the gas lines was over the top and we couldn’t price the houses high enough to cover it. I lived in an all-electric house once and didn’t like it. I like my gas stove, gas hot water heater and gas furnace and they are definitely cheaper to run.
After two weeks of avoiding it, I managed to catch David’s cold. He says he still has his so it must be mine alone but I still insist he is sharing. Since I took steps ahead of time to try to head it off, mine is not as bad as his but it is sure sapping my energy. At least it’s sunny here today so that’s a good thing. I would love to sit out in the sun for awhile but it is cold out so nah on that one.
Sure hope you have the get over fast cold variety. Take care and be careful that it doesn’t go into something more serious.
Thinking about Joy’s comment on charcoal used indoors. My 9th grade speech teacher served in Korea, where it was miserably cold. He put a charcoal heater in his tent. He woke up warm, but he could feel his heart going thud….thud….thud, very slowly. He managed to get partly out of the tent and breathe and get help. It’s been a long time, but I remember that and a neighbor from down the block, one that I had never seen and don’t recall seeing again, telling us that he had mixed Spic and Span and bleach and realized quite quickly that it created killer fumes.
Your shoes are a much better topic. When we look at something someone does, we think it’s easy for them. It’s good to be reminded that good work takes work.
Again, Jeanne, your shoes are just the top of the shoe trade! I love the change from the back!
The snow is mostly ice here now, but the roads are clear. The birds are still just as hungry. I am having fun sewing and watching the birds. So nice and quiet here, and lovey to be just taking it easy.
Sounds like paradise there, Sissy. Glad you’re having a great time. 🙂