This adorable penguin sweater is from 1946 and is knitted in 33-36 inch bust sizes. Enjoy!

Check out my Free Patterns page for more free vintage knitting, sewing and crochet patterns



 * this pattern was posted for free for everyone to enjoy. Please do not sell this pattern but please do share it! *

I woke up early, thinking it was Saturday morning but it is, in fact Wednesday. Part of being a housewife is that you're never really sure what day it is until its the weekend. I do kind of love week days, though. When the house is empty and its just me and our hamster, Zozo, who parties all night and sleeps all day. By 8:00, my house plants are basking in the sun and I turn the tv off, turn my scented wax warmers on and there's just the droning of the dryer turning in the basement.



I've been neglecting my chores for the past few days so today I have to crack down and get some work done but first I brew some coffee in my french press and sit on the porch, watching the cars go by. I stretch my legs out to rest my feet on the railings and sip my iced coffee. In the summer, clumsy bumble bees and hummingbirds fight over the obedient plant in the garden and praying mantis perch on the porch railings next to my feet but now that everything is cold and drying up, its just me.



Yesterday, I was talking to my friend, Daffny about housewife clothes. No one sees me except the bus driver and the mail carrier so why bother getting dressed up? Some days I definitely don't get out of my pajamas. But I realized on pajama days, I don't get anything done. When I get dressed, fix my hair and put on makeup, I'm a productivity machine. I dust every nook, wash the windows, sweep under the sofa and even find time to sew or knit after the clean laundry is put away. Housewives have work to do and you can't go to work in your pajamas with your hair unbrushed.


On housework days, I like to wear cotton dresses. They're easy to slip into and easy to wash. I have several that are old and show their age through wear so I don't have to worry about messing them up. If I have to run errands, they look nice enough to be in public view. Today I'm wearing one of my favorite dresses, a little 50s cotton sleeveless dress that looks cute with any color cardigan in my closet. I don't wear a lot of accessories on housework days either. Bakelite bangles get gross with my hands in the sink and brooches snag as I'm hauling laundry. Today, I decided to try one of my vintage sweater clips that I haven't worn yet. This pretty gold clip has little flowers with rhinestone petals and was a gift from a blog reader.  I ordered some new shoes from ebay that I was hoping would arrive today because they would look so cute with today's dress and what to do you know? They did! They run a little small but I'm breaking them in this week with some thick socks underneath. I think after a day or so of wear, they should be perfect!

I've lived in my city for most of my life. We've moved only about 30 minutes from where I was born and my house that I live in now is just 5 minutes from the first house that I lived in. You'd think that 31 years in the same city, I would pretty much have seen it all by now.


This morning, I walked a straight line from my front door, across a parking lot and a street, through a park, over a trail and into the woods. The light looked so pretty through the trees. As my camera soon made me realize, the light was a bit harsh being almost 11:00. I spied a leaf- covered trail nearby and climbed through some branches and over a small hill to find trail that I've never seen before. The light on the trail was also very strong so I walked down to a shady spot and to my surprise, I came upon a bridge!






I've walked near this area countless times and never knew this beautiful little bridge was so close to home! A dirt path covered in leaves wound through a clear river bottom forest. When the river is very high, this area may flood so that towns down stream do not. According to a sign on the trail, there used to be a neighborhood and a boat launch here but decades of terrible flooding wiped out the houses and you can't even tell that this area was ever anything except a forest. Pj called me on his lunch break while I was on the bridge and he said "Oh yeah, I've been there. I've taken the kids there a few times." so I guess I'm the only on who didn't know about it!



While exploring the trail, I came upon a second little bridge and an elderly man walking a little white and gray shih tzu. I said good morning and like the lady yesterday he asked, "Did you find any beautiful things for your photos?" I said "Yes! It's so pretty here and its funny, I didn't even know this trail was here!" he said, " Oh yes, the two foot bridges. It looks like a tree fell on that one." and he pointed to the second that I hadn't crossed yet. His little dog barked and growled and he said "She growls at anyone who doesn't give her enough attention!" The wind blew through and a shower of leaves danced down through the branches and he and his little pup went on their way.

I love that feeling you get when you pick up again on something that you used to really love doing. Every once in a while, I'll be cleaning out a box and at the bottom, I find a remnant of  something like a dried up piece of clay that I painted or broken pieces of jewelry that I kept because I'd definitely get around to fixing and wearing it again. Sometimes I do finish one of those projects or start that hobby again and the feeling when I get it all set up and get working on it is so great, its like returning to a favorite vacation spot or driving through your old neighborhood. So comforting and you wonder why did I ever leave?


Today that happened. My mother in law reminded me the other day that I haven't blogged in over a month. Before that, it was still pretty sporadic. I don't believe in making excuses or reasons for things. They either have priority and you do them or you don't do them. I've been saying "I want to blog again" for a long time but saying and doing are two different things!

This morning,  I put myself together and took my tripod and camera for a short drive to the park. I'm home alone now that both kids are in school so the sky is the limit as far as where I go and how I spend my time. Its a beautiful autumn day and since I've been sick for the past few weeks with pneumonia, I thought I had wasted my favorite season quarantined in my bedroom with Netflix. After a very cold morning, the sun warmed everything and I thought "If I don't go out right this second, it will be snowing and the trees will be leafless before I know it!"  My sink of dishes and cluttered rooms will be there when I get back but the day won't wait.

This park has a beautiful walking trail that cuts through a bit of woods next to the Missouri River. In the summer, we take the kids here for picnics and if the water level is low enough, a few sand bars will peek out of the muddy river and we enjoy hours of skipping rocks, finding fossils and getting our feet dirty. Today, though, I thought I would take a walk through the woods, all by myself.


There's a folklore tale that my mom told me that says if you can catch an autumn leaf before it hits the ground, you'll have good luck in the new year. The woods were so quiet but every once in a while, a little breeze pushed through the trees, dropping gold leaves through the branches. I did manage to catch a little one! I also found some berries to match my brooch!

On my walk back to the car, down the trail, I came across an elderly lady with a walking stick. She watched me put my camera away and fold my tripod up. She said "Did you see anything wonderful today?" I said "Everything! It's all beautiful!"