It was a good idea...

I knit a beautiful button up vest from the Sinnesfrid pattern on Knitty.  The color is wonderful. The fit is outstanding.

The buttons I picked are vintage reproductions. I adore them. They are perfect for the top.

Except for one minor detail.  They are too heavy for the piece.  So much so that it radically distorts the entire top.
It now stares at me from the table, taunting me until I can get to the store to buy new buttons.
To deal with the frustration, I cast on a new sweater.

I figured it was time for a trim

My hand is seven inches, from wrist to fingertip.  My hair still comes to the middle of my back.  My lower back feels naked!

Peppers and a blanket

I had been trying to grow some hot peppers this spring, only to have the downpours in May drown my poor plants.  So, I re-planted. 

Chocolate and purple sweet peppers. As well as some black chile peppers I picked up the seed for at the local botanical gardens.

The rest of my poor potted plants look a little sad, or empty, thanks to bouts of heavy rain and high temperatures.
The other thing consuming my summer, aside from the outings we go on that I consistently forget to take pictures of, is working from my craft stash.  Inspired by The Knitgrllls and their Stash Dash knitalong, I decided why of course I could knit 4375 yards of yarn by August!  It would clear some stuff off my needles, maybe make some room in the storage bins.
So I knit a blanket.

The picture doesn't do the color justice. It glows like fall leaves hit by the sun.  And I kind of adore it! At about 4 feet across, it will make a lovely lap blanket when it gets cooler.  A heavier gauge wool blanket probably wasn't the best choice for a summer project, but it's 1100 yards out of my yarn stash.

As part of the work from the craft stash, I also pulled out and washed fabric enough for seven dresses, several skirts (a combination of pencil and a-line), and two or three aprons. The patterns Hawthorne and Ceylon over at Colette Patterns were really responsible for the sewing re-boot.  Paired with a need for new clothes, a true dislike for what the standard available (and worn), plus a shape that requires me to tailor store bought items anyway, may as well make my own right? 
Crash course in advanced and couture sewing techniques here I come!