September & Cozy Cottages
It’s been a long hot summer, and goodness am I happy for September! Though the weather hasn’t changed very much just yet, there are hints of autumn everywhere.
I’m dreaming of long walks, and watching leaves float gently to the ground. Coming home, lighting a spice-scented candle, brewing a cup of tea, and curling up on the couch with some stitchwork.
This is the season of cozy. And naturally, I dream of cottage-life.
The cottage series has always been a favorite. Pumpkin and Butternut, Honeycrisp, and Mushroom. (And Spooky and Figgy Pudding for Halloween and Christmas.) The official inspiration happened one autumn afternoon a few years ago, when we were wandering about the local harvest festival.
It was so bright and festive, pumpkins everywhere, and bales of hay to sit upon and watch the whole fuzzy world go by. (With a bag of freshly-made caramels, of course.)
There were cornfield mazes (one for kiddos and a more complex one for adults – lucky we made it out of that one!) And rows and rows of giant golden yellow sunflowers. It all made me feel like a wonderfully miniature wanderer in a magical world…
And then we spotted this:
A little gray mouse had made a perfectly round hole right at the base of the giant pumpkin. We watched him go in and out, take in the sunshine, make silly faces, and pop back inside again. Suddenly, all the dreams of my 8-year-old self came rushing back. This was cottage living at its finest! Of course, the pumpkin needed windows, and a pretty door…
And so, the little feltcraft cottage patterns were born. We hope you’ll give them a try, if you fancy some magical stitchery this season! They make the sweetest ornaments and decorations. (And pincushions, too!)