"This one!"

A finished "pick a pumpkin" YCH for the lovely and patient @ ccursero over on Twitter! <3

EDIT: this is starting to get some attention, so here’s the YCH if you’d like to grab one for yourself! <3

Adapting a leaf pattern from its original (far left) "maple leaf" shape to get a leaf that looks more cucurbit-shaped (from left to right).

Original pattern (free!): Maple Leaf by Nicole Riley

I don't have much experience with this style of crochet (it seems to be called "Irish crochet" for appliques and motifs), so it was neat to play with the pattern and see what happened!

I think I've arrived at a leaf that looks both true to nature, but stylised enough to also be quickly recognisable (and remaining fairly easy to crochet). During this journey, I also realised that the grape leaf shape is my personal platonic ideal of an "autumn leaf" shape--though, granted, there is much variation in cultivated grape leaf shapes!

This little lady was warming herself on a pumpkin leaf in the early dawn rays: 

I’ve been up less than thirty minutes & I already have dirt on my hands: 

Red hot butterfly sex: 

Ooh, we might get another pumpkin: 

Today’s backyard garden harvest: 

I put out our Halloween decorations today: 

This part of our Halloween decorations is an homage to my father & his dog who have journeyed over the horizon: 

Cottonwood seed. If you’ve ever seen a full grown cotton wood tree growing on a river bank, you’d be surprised to know this was its tiny beginning: 

I found this dead moth at our back door. I wish I’d gotten a photo of it when it still burned with life: 

onward! into the unknown! 10.12.18