Nature Walks: a place for everything and everything in its place!

(Craig Valley, VA)

HT: Cassi at Crafty Crow .... you have to go check out Sew Mama Sew's post about making a nature backpack.  She's got links to tutorials about how to make these ...

I'm thinking this would be a stellar present for my nature-girl, String Bean, for Christmas ... filled with

• binoculars,
• field guides,
• journal,
• pencil case,
• specimen cases
• magnifying glass

 ... she'll be in 7th heaven!  Thanks, Sew Mama!

Knitting: a felted backpack

Back on Columbus Day, I mentioned that I was designing a simple knitted backpack for a class I was teaching the next day. 

Here are pictures of the before felting

and after felting

here's the front:

here's the back:

The overall size decreases by about 25%, depending on how much you felt -- or shrink on purpose -- the bag.  BTW, at a certain point, the yarn will not felt anymore -- once that happens, you can wash and dry in the machine!

I love felted projects for beginners -- the irregular stitches are hidden and the knitting tends toward the rote.  Also, once the item is felted, the knitting can be cut (!) without fear of raveling and the resulting fabric can be made into whatever you'd like.

When I finished the design, I realized that this could also be used in an article I was writing for the January issue of mater-et-magistra, the ONLY Catholic homeschool periodical in publication.  The article covers some cool crafts for co-op participants ... different crafts (sewing, painting, knitting) that can be called into play to make useful items for co-op classes.  The article will have a link to a pdf I created for this file.  If you just can't wait for the January issue to make this fun project, email me (or comment below) and I'll be happy to email you the pdf ...

... but don't forget to subscribe to the wonderful mater-et-magistra ... for all the articles, columns and great information (and the advertisers are a treasure trove of wonderful Catholic products)!

Where should we go today?

Christopher Columbus discovers the New World!

Dh was off ... so we were too!  What to do on a cloudy, cold (never getting much above 50 today) kind of day?

How's about a hayride and pumpkin hunting with a bunch of homeschoolers at a fellow homeschooler's family farm?  Sounds good to us ...

And, before (starting around 7:00 a.m.) and during (on the ride to and from, really helps to have dh home!) and after, I worked on my talk for 7th graders tomorrow on my fave topic: knitting.  Here's the project I made for them to try:

Easy Knitted Backpack

(shown in Knit Picks' Wool of the Andes Bulky --

I still want to felt it and then post the pattern here, but I won't have time before the class tomorrow.)

How was YOUR Columbus Day?