The Cup of Fortunes: Week 42 (October 12-18)

I'm at the point in the Cup of Fortunes where every fortune is either about financial plans, mentions a specific month or date, or is random in a way that's funny. I may have put some of these back earlier in the project because the vibes were off, and now I'm paying for that. It's fine. They're all going to be stitched and they're all fun to think about. 

This week's fortunes are a combination of financial motivation and weird travel plans. I like the desert, but I have no plans at this time to travel to a desert for a vacation. This did inspire me to want to re-watch the Brendan Fraser Mummy movies. Maybe my brother will let me borrow the DVD set he has. 

Here are this week's fortunes and lucky numbers. 

October 12

October 13

October 14

October 15

October 16

October 17

October 18

Weeks 1-42

WIP: The House Purse

So much progress on the house purse! Week 5 of the SAL started on Thursday and I started the pieces for Week 5 last night. This week, I'll be working on the two side panels. I'm going to modify one of the side panels to include two more cats and I'm changing the color of the flower pot and flower. So far, the best name for the piece is Meow Manor (thank you, Emily). It has a nice ring to it. 

Finished pieces: the front and back facade, the two roof panels, and the handle. In progress pieces: the side panels.

Finished back facade

Look at that trellis! I love everything about this project, but look how clean those lines are. 

Facades

I ended up switching to a different yarn for the roof. I was planning on using the same yarn that I used for the door overhang, but even doubled, it didn't look good. I switched to the other color I had for overhang, that looked terrible as the overhang, but looks great as the roof. Crazy.

All the finished pieces so far.

Bea helped out during my monthly craft meetup. She's going to figure out how to needlepoint.

I didn't take any pictures of the finished handle. I'm not happy with how it looks; the back is messy looking, so I'm going to redo it before I finish the piece. The back will be visible on the handle, so I want it to be neater.

In progress: side panel 1.

You can see my notes (sort of). Side panel 1 is getting a different color flower pot and flower, and side panel 2 will have two cats. All my cats will be represented!

Week 6 focuses on the bottom panel (grass) and the stitching the lining. I don't have a sewing machine anymore, so I'll be doing that part by hand. I actually prefer hand sewing to machine sewing (probably why I like embroidery and needlepoint), so it'll take longer but I'll enjoy the process more. Week 7 is assembly. Hopefully, it all fits together.

Vampire Book Club

 

I finished Bless Your Heart yesterday. I enjoyed it. It was funny, creepy, and mysterious. The rising dead aren't technically vampires, but they're not not vampires, but there was still a lot of the same vampire lore and tropes used. The sequel is out now; I'm going to pick it up with I have my spa day on Halloween (Old Town Books is a few books away from where I'm going for my facial).

I'll be starting the last book of this month's vampire reading list, Vampires of El Norte, later today. This was the book that inspired my themed reading and I'm very excited to start it. The book is set in Mexico in the 1840s and combines vampire lore with commentary on colonialism and a love story. I haven't read Canas's other books, The Hacienda or The Possession of Alba Diaz, but both are on my very long to be read list. 

Other Small Joys

Early voting is going on in Virginia right now. I voted and took my glass recycling in (the glass recycling bins are next to the government center where early voting is taking place), so I feel like I did some real five-star adulting this week. If you live in Virginia or another state with an election in November, make sure you get out and vote, early or on November 4.

Bea is off all her meds now, and is on the mend. It's gotten colder at night and in the early morning, so she's taken to sleeping as close to me as possible. I'm not complaining, but she also licks my hand occasionally and that's a weird thing at 3 am. 

The back of the couch is her new spot. Couch gargoyle.

Tomorrow is the anniversary of Keely's death, so me and Bea are roasting a chicken in his honor. She won't eat any of it, but will have to listen to me tell her about her big brother. Hug your pets and your people and have a good weekend.