Friday folderol and Saturday snippets

in which our plucky heroine sews like the wind...

I really wanted to make visible progress on the denim hat project before my Sewing Nomads zoom this morning. So I stayed up much too late last night, and barely woke up in time to fall out of bed and fall into my daytime clothing before waking up the computer. But, the hat is well on the way to being finished. All that remains to finish is the crown lining and the hatband, which I plan on working on tonight and probably tomorrow. While there are a few steps that can be done on the machine, attaching the crown lining to the hat, and attaching the hatband ditto, all require fairly awkward hand stitching inside the existing partially finished hat. I plan on taking it slow and careful, unlike last night when I ended up stabbing myself while basting the brim layers together...

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~ week 8 ~

So, I finished the shrug, and it turned out cuter than expected... I used the Shrugs & Kisses pattern (free on Ravelry), with the following modifications: I used size 0 needles; initial moss stitch 3 rows instead of 4; once changed to stockinette I knit till the length was 4cm not 5cm, then did the 4 border rows in moss stitch as called for. I think the shrug fits Nandina pretty well, and the pattern is very easy and fast to knit. If I had not already knit all my tinyfolk vests that fill this wardrobe niche, I'd be knitting more of these little shrugs...

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The big zucchinis that were in my grocery box this week have been transformed into small chunks of oven blasted veggie bits. I am thinking of layering them with some tomato sauce and cheese, as a sort of summertime faux-sagna.

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August SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	2 pillowcases	nut chopper handle	yard waste bin
2	yak print	elderberry harvest	-
3	tiny bell-bottoms	refurbish Felco	-
4	tiny camisole	-	-
5	small pressing tools	-	-
6	tiny playset	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. binder clips... I rarely use them for their intended purpose, but I often use them to close bags of foodstuff in the chest freezer, for example.
2. there are wonderful short stories by Ursula Vernon readable online...
3. the weather is forecast to cool down further in the next few days.

Time of Isolation - Day 1491

blueberry summer

in which our plucky heroine notices what is tasty...

Most of the fruit here is not yet ripe. There are green plums all over the prune plum thicket, and small fuzzy quinces starting to be visible. The apples are not going to be good this year, as I neglected to properly thin them when they were small. I haven't checked on the persimmon tree, but in this midsummer, suddenly I notice the blueberry bush...

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~ a modest harvest ~

This year is the best harvest ever. There are more blueberries on the small plant than I have seen before, and more came ripe in the last few days since I picked a few spoonfuls on Sunday. I was excited as I slowly added berries to the container before dinner, dreaming of eating sun-warmed homegrown fruit with yogurt as dessert. Then I dropped the container, and all the berries ended up in the mulch and spiderwebs under the bush. Oops! Now you can imagine our plucky heroine scrabbling to find each and every precious berry, which is exactly what I did. They now required much washing before I called them once again food safe; and rather than a delightful dessert, they will become tomorrow's breakfast

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I've started the process of altering/lengthening the sleeves on the horses blouse. This entails both removing the peplum from the current blouse so it can be used to alter the sleeves with the identical fabric, and creating a new peplum from the newly purchased (same print but different fabric and slightly different color) This will work because no one ever sees the peplum, only the upper portion of the blouse is visible under my pinafores. Much to my surprise, I had created the former peplum from a straight length of fabric, adding a curve by sewing in multiple darts!?! Removing the darts returned the fabric to a straight rectangle, which will be much nicer for extending the sleeves!

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Week 5 has us making a short sleeve cardigan, which can also be worn back to front as a short sleeve sweater...

I just knit many many tiny cap sleeve sweaters for week 2, and since I am trying to only use what yarn I have on hand, there will not be seven more little knit tops this week! I decided that using the Placket Tee pattern would be the best option for this week, and embellished the front opening with some very tiny buttons to add to the "cardigan" effect.

The only teal yarn I had was some Knit Picks Curio #3 crochet cotton originally purchased for tablet weaving. Knitting with cotton is more difficult than with wool, since it lacks resilience, but Nandina is very happy with the vivid color and silky texture! I did knit a second one in some vintage russet color wool, and that cardigan is set aside with the other dolly clothing to be sent to Young Kestrel.

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July SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	4 tiny knit vests	cleaned keyboard	recycle bin
2	tiny cargo pants	pruned grapevine	yard waste bin
3	very smol Birks	-	recycle bin
4	silkworm print	-	-
5	4 reversible skirts	-	-
6	Peach tinyprint	x	x
7	8 tiny tops	x	x
8	2 tiny cardigans	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes - 
1. medical paper tape, which I can apply to bug bites to keep me from ripping my skin off. Something bit me on the belly while I was salvaging the blueberries, and now instead of a little welt, I have a double layer white square on my tummy skin, and in a few days to a week, the itch will subside and my skin remain in one piece!
2. Did I mention pickled beets earlier? They make an excellent addition to salads. I need to remember to make some for the pantry, as I've eaten most of the former batch
3. The peplum of the blouse I am altering is actually formed from a darted rectangle, which will make using it to lengthen the sleeves eversomuch easier!

Time of Isolation - Day 1468

Tuesday tidbits

in which our plucky heroine appreciates wonderful friends...

Beth said something really important at Crafternoon Sunday: about how not all of us are a Frodo, or a Sam, but there needs some to be Tom Bombadil too, and some to be Faramir. That the singers of songs, makers of beauty, and providers of respite are also heroes and heroines, and vital to the story.

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~ betcha can't knit just one... ~

While I was knitting a Placket Tee in pale green wool a few days ago, for Almandine, I was inspired to not join it together in the round while knitting it but just continued back and forth on the two needles, with the garter stitch border all the way down. I had thought, “Oh, I will just add snaps to fasten it”, but before I did that, I tried it on her with the opening in the front. The pattern makes the cutest Tiny Rag Doll sized vest!!

Then of course all my other tinyfolk began clamoring for vests of their own, in colors that coordinated with their wardrobe preferences. Since the only purple "yarn" I had was a skein of #3 DMC pearl cotton, I decided to try that for Kenya's vest. Much to my surprise, it knitted up into an acceptable fabric and gauge on my size 0 needles. I hate knitting with cotton, but these are small enough that I decided to "use what I had" and added three more little pearl cotton vests to the big tin box of dolly clothing. I like the additional color options...

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I've been thinking lately about creating a shrine to Anti-Weasel Serum, and what that might look like, and what it would need to contain... just a bit of spinning subroutine in my brain so far, but soon will be sketches. I can feel it getting closer to the world of form and design

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July SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	4 tiny knit vests	-	-
2	-	-	-
3	-	-	-
4	-	-	-
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. Mikki found the feature that was actually a bug that was causing giant blob interface overlapping both of my monitors Discord problem, and what was needed to fix it!
2. Stef was able to spend online time helping me find where the fixit chunk of code was hidden inside the laptop, and how to get it to let me do the tiny edit that would fix the Discord problem
3. Beth had words of Mighty Anti-Weasel Serum power, that I really needed to hear, and have recopied for future referral to.

Time of Isolation - Day 1452

perserverence furthers...

in which our plucky heroine is feeling somewhat better today...

A morning zoom call with my beloved sewing nomad pals was such a wonderful way to start the day. Our regular meetings are one of the good things that came out of the early years of the pandammit. I don't know if we would have begun to meet online like this otherwise, but our group has become one of the bright spots in my calendar.

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~ another knit top ~

Since all the other tinyfolk here got new knit tops, Almandine, who loves doing outdoor things like climbing trees and exploring the neighborhood, didn’t want to be left out… I made a different knit top, the “Placket Tee”. It has a bit more sleeve than the cap sleeve dress bodice (almost like a raglan flutter sleeve shape), a higher neckline, and is almost as easy to make! This top is knit from the same medium blue yarn as one of the skirts I made last week, so they can be worn together to look like a two piece dress.

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I found two new to me audio accompaniments for while I do chores: Mad About Miniatures is a podcast with a very enthusiastic host; the interface lets me slow down the pace to 0.75x, which makes the audio a bit more calm. I've only listened to two of the 41 episodes currently available, but so far the content and stories about different makers is enjoyable.  k3n clothtales is a YouTube channel, mentioned recently over at Now Sewing, The channel has many videos in the slow sewing vein, and a host that has a personable approach to hand stitching. I'm looking forward to exploring their content.

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Double pointed 4/0 needles are the equivalent of 16ga wire, FWIW, with really sharp tips on both ends. I've had to be really really careful not to stab myself while knitting with them. I rather love the effect of such small knitting, but I really dislike the actual process. Obviously not everyone feels that way about really tiny knitting, as witness the amazing works of Althea Crome. Still, “chacun à son goût”!

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After my success with ebonising the bathrobe hook backing plate earlier, I decided that a similar treatment for the hand towel clamp was in order. It was a rather more challenging, both because of the complicated shapes of the towel clamp, whatever finish had been applied by the original maker was very resistant to being sanded off, and because I had to detach it from its backing plate before I could sand off the finish and apply the vinegar/iron solution. Perseverance brought success at last, and one more small step for a completed bathroom refurbishment is done.

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June SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	musk ox print	horses blouse edge	yard waste bin
2	green linen Jedi tunic	kitchen light fixture	recycle bin
3	Nandina floral dress	Luxo plug	dead box fan
4	2 tiny knit skirts	plaid flannel slip	recycle bin
5	tiny knit cardigan	oak wall hook ebonised	-
6	Salish wooly dog print	towel clip ebonised	x
7	bathrobe hook	x	x
8	tiny batik skirt	x	x
9	sheep print	x	x
10	5 tiny knit tops	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. an unused toothbrush travel case has turned out to be just the perfect thing to store my set of steel 4/0 double pointed knitting needles.
2. I finally have a bit of a clue about how to proceed with the kitchen undersink, which needs to have the back wall closed in in a way to continue to allow access to the plumbing. More sketching will ensue, but eventually I will make a start.
3. Strawberry-rhubarb sauce. Last years preserves make a nice topping for some yogurt. There are a few containers of both strawberries and rhubarb in the freezer, which will get turned into the next batch of preserves and end up in the pantry for future treats. It makes me happy when I put up food that is such a delight to eat. Over the years I have gradually figured out what needs made up every year, and what experiments don't.

Time of Isolation - Day 1449

escapism

in which our plucky heroine considers a media fast...

There are days when in the face of all the myriad devolutions, just getting out of bed feels like a challenge. This doesn't stop me purposefully noticing what human efforts are made to the contrary, and to do my small mite as a counterweight as well, but... if the pixel world wasn't the only way I also intersect with my friends, if it wasn't where what remains of my social activity takes place, I would turn it off entirely for a month.

I imagine that there exists one of those long complicated compound German words for "the despair of being aware of multiple disasters". Years ago we had a saying "time is what keeps everything from happening all at once". It feels like time is failing at that task nowadays. Despite my determinedly making an effort every day to notice the things to be grateful for, the arc of this timeline feels headed towards extinction. I am well aware that on almost all the various axes, the planet is beyond the tipping points, but sometimes I need to not have my nose rubbed in it. Our species opened Pandoras Box generations ago, and the gemstone of hope that remains feels worn to a ravelling...

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~ week 2 ~

The garment for week 2 is "a knitted sleeveless top". My first iteration, instead of the suggested pattern, was to use the top portion of the "Cap Sleeve Dress for Tiny Rag Dolls" pattern (created by fearless group leader Dawn). Knit up in fingering yarn on size 0 needles, it is so fast and easy that I couldn't stop until I had made three of them. For the pale blue one on the right, I didn't even use skeined yarn, but some hand-dyed scrap thrums leftover from a tablet weaving project. I don't mind weaving in the ends, as the color was perfect to coordinate with the rayon batik skirt.

As the suggested pattern (Modified Stickatil Barbie #275) is more complex and entirely much too large in scale and size for my tinyfolk, I am attempting to further adapt it. Rather than in fingering weight yarn as the pattern calls for, which would result in a rather too wide tunic or dress, I am using some of the laceweight yarn and the 4/0 needles leftover from when mending Sister Gigi's gloves. The pattern itself, even at that smaller gauge, is still too wide, so I'm attempting further modifications. Wish me luck; if the upper bodice still turns out too wide, perhaps it will fit Almadine (who has a wider upper torso due to her spun cotton sculptural fox head and shoulders)

So, I decided that my first attempt at the #275 would be my “official” entry for this weeks knit top. Even though I may someday still want to brave the 4/0 needles and try again for a better fitting version, this one turned out to be rather wearable, after a few additional post knitting modifications.

My modifications created an almost the right size garment, save that parts of it were still wider than was useful, but I could fold over the much too wide opening edges into a sort of knitted facing. After I blocked #275, and stitched down the "facings", it occurred to me that instead of my usual tiny snap closure I could use a small hook and eye, which would give the effect of a tiny version of the fancy Scandinavian pewter clasps sometimes used on knitwear. With the opening at the front, 275 makes a good vest; with the opening at the back, a slightly loose knitted top! I’m calling my modified variation a success.

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The Introvert Song, by the Sugarcoated Sisters

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~ straight to the heart ~

The dobro, the singing, the arrangement and all the other musicians... this is one of the most stellar (in both senses of the word) cover versions of a beloved song I've ever heard.

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June SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	musk ox print	horses blouse edge	yard waste bin
2	green linen Jedi tunic	kitchen light fixture	recycle bin
3	Nandina floral dress	Luxo plug	dead box fan
4	2 tiny knit skirts	plaid flannel slip	recycle bin
5	tiny knit cardigan	oak wall hook ebonised	-
6	Salish wooly dog print	x	x
7	bathrobe hook	x	x
8	tiny batik skirt	x	x
9	sheep print	x	x
10	4 tiny knit tops	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. I love how the Yeti water bottle my SIL gave me a few years ago keeps water pleasantly cold overnight.
2. I am not currently sick
3. I might have some work coming soon.
4. I can generate tiny dopamine hits by making dolly clothing

Time of Isolation - Day 1448

a bit of basketry

in which our plucky heroine takes things in hand...

Nandina wanted an Easter basket, to hold the chocolate bunny we've had for a number of years now (yay Playmobil!) and that seemed like a good sort of project to do during various zoom meetings today.

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The base and spokes are made from narrow strips of cardstock, cut from outdated business cards, and the weavers are button and carpet thread. It took a few hours to gradually weave the basket, which is 1:12 scale and about ⅞" in length. After first interlacing the cardstock base, I switched to twining the basket sides with doubled carpet thread, and finally finished the upper edge with a very narrow inner and outer border of cardstock glued in place, and once the "spokes" were trimmed, the borders were overstitched with linen thread. Finally, a narrow band of cardstock was wrapped with more thread and glued in place for a handle

The basket works really well to hold a selection of holiday treats! It took me a while to figure out what else to accompany the pseudo-chocolate bunny, then I thought of adding colorful "chocolate" eggs... The candy at the drug store was already marked down today, and I found a small bag of multicolor foil-wrapped eggs. After some trial and error, I figured out how to get the foil off in useable pieces, and how big to crush some foil into egg shapes, before wrapping the egg shapes with another layer of smoothed colorful foil. The overall effect is quite effective and springlike, particularly when combined with the miniature forsythia I made last year...

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Time to begin planning the sleeves on my knitted cardigan. I will need to figure out both the size/shape needed to knit, as well as what gauge and row gauge I get with the yarn I will be using... Why do I need all this before diving into the sleeves... well I am hoping to get a similar effect to the original stripe sleeve bolero that is my inspiration I cropped the photo to just show one sleeve, then desaturated it to get just the lights and darks, so I can more easily substitute the colors I have for the colors in the original

I need to know how many rows I have to work for the length of the sleeve, so swatch knitting is in my immediate future. Not sure if I want to also do the sleeves in garter stitch, or knit in the round in stockinette. (note: if garter stitch, every 2 rows/1 ridge = ¼", so 8 rows to the inch) So many choices/decisions... I might roughly mock up sleeves from some knit fabric basted into the body of the cardigan, to get a sense of what shape will work, and if I need to modify the body before adding sleeves.

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March SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	red enamel samples	bathroom undersink access	some driveway moss
2	turn buttons	contrast numbers on oven knob	recycle bin
3	6 tiny books	paint frame black	yard waste bin
4	2 velour sports bras	frame gift painting	recycle bin
5	Stromgard enamels	front yard dandelions uprooted	recycle bin
6	velour sports bra	x	yard waste bin
7	indoor hat	x	yard waste bin
8	stitchbird brooch	x	recycle bin
9	print knit top	x	x
10	tiny Easter basket	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. I learned some basketry earlier in my life, when I was living in Seattle and took classes at The Basketry School. It has always felt more like being reminded of what I already knew, in a peculiar and primal way. I actually make my first basket at around age 5 or 6, when we went to the New Brunswick craft school at the Bay of Fundy when I was very young indeed.
2. being able to go back to sleep in the morning, when extra tired, is a great blessing.
3. tap water that is safe to drink, and that is available with the turn of a faucet. Never not grateful for that...

Time of Isolation - Day 1365

hail, hail, the rain's still here...

in which our plucky heroine has been working steadily...

... and after a late night of enameling work, sleep remained elusive. I did my best to function today, then decided that a bike ride in a rare sunbreak would be a good way to clear the sleep deprived cobwebs. Before I knew it, the occasional raindrop turned into small bouncing spheres! Thankfully not enough to be painful, and thankfully not long enough to require getting off the bike to walk home. But still, when I got home I put the kettle on for a nice hot cup of pink hibiscus tea.

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This past weekend I finished the borders on the body of the cardigan, including the button band loops for the toggles. sewed them on as well, so I could try it on. The armsceye is rather odd, probably due to all the variations I've added, but I'm telling myself this is intended as outerwear, so ending up with loose fitting sleeves is okay. I'm really happy with the neckline, which fits closely but not tightly; I don't want to make something that requires me to also add a scarf or cowl every time I wear the cardigan

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March SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	red enamel samples	bathroom undersink access	some driveway moss
2	turn buttons	-	recycle bin
3	6 tiny books	-	yard waste bin
4	2 velour sports bras	-	recycle bin
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. some extra tasty Fuji apples, one of which made a great snack with some sharp Tillamook cheddar
2. the front closure on my future cardigan turned out really similar to my initial sketch
3. I was able to take a nap in the afternoon.

Time of Isolation - Day 1347

sleeping in on Sunday

in which our plucky heroine might be caught up on sleep...

I woke up this morning more or less at a good time, but for some reason I became incredibly sleepy after breakfast, went back to bed and didn't wake up til halfway to lunchtime. Totally missed my usual Sunday morning activity, and barely pulled myself together in time for Crafternoon.

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despite the howling winds last night, that kept the turbine ventilators all awhirl and clattering (which may be why I was so very exhausted this morning, despite the driving rain and cold, there are definite signs of spring on the way... On one of my walks around the neighborhood during one of the rare sunbreaks, I saw this crocus growing, and blooming, from a crack in the sidewalk! It must have germinated from a seed, since the space between one side of the cracked concrete and the other was far too narrow for anyone to be able to plant a bulb, even as small as a crocus bulb...

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Today I tried the "3-ingredient mac-and-cheese" that was described online recently on "The Recipe with Kenji and Deb" podcast. It was, as promised, very easy indeed. I cut the suggested quantity in half (3oz. instead of 6 oz.), to make a serving for just one person, and used sharp Tillamook, and rice elbows instead of regular wheat pasta.

It turns out I could have started with maybe 2½ oz pasta, and I could have been careful to use somewhat less water to start with. It never occurred to me to use evaporated milk, in fact, I never used evaporated milk before in all my years of cooking. I carefully poured the rest of the milk into my silicone cube trays and froze it in 3oz portions to make it again in the future. The recipe really was about as fast as blue mac-in-a-box, but so much better. I'll definitely make it again.

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During Crafternoon today, while we were chatting I kept on knitting the I-cord borders on my current cardigan project, and managed to finish both rows of the black edging, including the button/toggle loops. Now those are also stitched down in place, and I am ready to start designing and knitting the many colored stripey sleeves. I expect that this technique of knitting in the yarn ends, that I last used when I made my Solitary Foxen scarf, will once again prove to be very useful:

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March SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	red enamel samples	bathroom undersink access	some driveway moss
2	turn buttons	-	recycle bin
3	6 tiny books	-	yard waste bin
4	2 velour sports bras	-	recycle bin
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. easy peasy mac and cheesy
2. signs of spring, flowers and many birds in the trees
3. supper for breakfast, breakfast for supper

Time of Isolation - Day 1345

oh so bizzy

in which our plucky heroine enjoys a rare treat...

The guest space here at Acorn Cottage held guests overnight on Friday. We did things together, we cooked and ate a meal together... my internal batteries of well being are no longer entirely running on empty.

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~ well underway ~

The black Lettlopi yarn that arrived recently is doing just what I'd hoped for, providing a distinct edge for the body of the cardigan. Knitted on I-cord is a good way to border a garment, being both stable and flexible. The vintage wooden toggles, that I tucked away for safekeeping in the box full of assorted Lopi and Lettlopi yarn (and promptly forgot I'd done so) will finally get to escape the button basket and fulfill their destiny!

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Friday morning we girded our loins for a trip to Costco, which is always a challenge. I only ever shop there two or three times a year, for the few necessary staple items only available there, and it seems each time it is even more crowded, to the point of seeming like bumper cars inside the store. I was bashed into by other shoppers who backed up without looking. Thankfully the parking lot, while crowded, is less fraught! 

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Later in the day on Friday, my friends and I prepared and ate a Thai-inspired dinner: variations on Pad See Ew (noodles with broccoli and chicken in a sweet savory sauce), and on what they call Swimming Angel Baby Rama (spinach with a tahini coconut sauce). We made changes to adapt to our assorted food sensitivities, and while there were no prizes for authenticity, it was all Very Tasty indeed. I turned part of a jar of mango apricot juice into small gelatin desserts, inspired by the mango jello I used to enjoy 30 years ago at Sun Ya in Seattle.

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The engraved champlevé pieces to be enameled arrives via courier. OMG, the renowned Mr Dawson has outdone himself, creating heraldic images at such a small scale. And apparently intends me to add cloisonné details to something no bigger than my fingernail. I suspect know that will require thinner wire than what I normally use, if it is even possible! Time for more experimentation...

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March SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	-	-	-
2	-	-	-
3	-	-	-
4	-	-	-
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. a successful trip to Costco, thanks to friends. It gets more exhausting and overwhelming each time, but there are a few staple items that need bought two or three times a year: usually TP, pecans, and Tillamook bricks. This visit I added in eye meds, and some grass fed ground beef.
2. VISITORS!! I had almost a whole day with my friends (before they had to head out to to play music for the dance at the event tonight) We even fit in a bit of just walking around the neighborhood together, in the sunbreaks between the rain or the wintry mix.
3. Today I found both the things I misplaced. The toggles for my new cardigan project were in the box of Lopi yarn. My current bujo was tucked in with the cookbooks instead of with the other past journals.
4. The leftovers from the Thai-inspired dinner we cooked yesterday made a delicious lunch, and then a delicious dinner for me today. Made me smile to remember cooking and eating together with two friends. A now Very Uncommon and Rare pleasure that I never take for granted these days
5. I managed to clear off the dining table, which had become one of those Horizontal Surfaces of Magnetic Junk Attraction for far too long. Now it is once again a place where meals can be eaten, or writing or drawing take place while looking out the front window to see the weather and the botanical activity, and possibly the antics of Bob the wayward squirrel
6. Borrowing the Fiskars paper trimmer is another treat. It is so much easier to cut the strips for making miniature text blocks! This (older) style trimmer uses a regular large rotary blade, and clamps the paper in place while you trim, so comparatively safe and very effective. I am going to prep as much as I can before they pick it up on their way home tomorrow.

Time of Isolation - Day 1338

restored to wholeness

in which our plucky heroine has been running errands, doing chores, and getting some backlog work done...

two loads of laundry washed, dried, and put away, ordered and picked up prescription refills, called gas company re their compulsory meter upgrade timing (which will entail removing both rainwater barrels, sigh and alas), a trip to medical land, and suchlike, as well as time spent in the workroom enameling

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~ "all better" ~

Back in 2014 I made this SCA Laurel medallion for a dear friend, and last year the regalia (though thankfully not my friend) had an unfortunate accident and was cracked on some concrete. Enamel, being glass fused to metal, can last for centuries, but like any glass, can be damaged by impact. While I learned long ago to not attempt to repair other people's enamel work, every part of this pendant was the work of my own hands, so I knew well all the materials and techniques used, and could safely do all that was needed to make it whole again.

When I removed the cloisonne enamel cabochon from the setting, even more of the red background cracked and fell away. This often happens after stress fractures in the glass. Fortunately I still have some of the same red enamel originally used, and a day in front of the kiln and at my workbench saw the piece restored to wholeness once again.

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I was really happy with how the "what to do with the leftover salmon" option I came up with... adding some mashed potato and long cooked onion leftovers turned the salmon into something that was easy to make into patties... one on a plate with Dubliner melted over the top was Just Right, and the other went into the freezer to become future meals.

The frozen meatloaf patties I made earlier work just as I had hoped to become an easy dinner on nights I am working. Cooked slowly over the simmer burner on the stove, it gradually browned on the outside as the interior thawed and cooked. Some zucchini chunks were also cooking in the little convection oven, and so all I needed to do way to take a break from my workbench every 15 minutes or so, stir the veg, and turn the meat, and dinner was done with minimal effort on my part.

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The cardigan project is, at this point, about halfway done... Earlier this week I ordered a skein of black Lettlopi for the cardigan trim bands, which will be the last remaining part of the body before I start in on the striped sleeves. That skein of yarn will be the only one purchased specifically for this project, as all the rest are from my box of assorted Icelandic wool, much of which is leftover from previous knitting. I'd hoped to use the "black sheep heather" color wool for those edge bands, but there just wasn't enough contrast with the chocolate wool of the body. I keep looking at the original inspiration bolero photo that inspired my project for ideas, though my own cardigan has strayed substantially from that spark...

Once that yarn arrives, I will refer again to two different YouTube tutorials on applied I-cord: This one is a little clearer on where to pick up the stitches and how to turn corners, and this one is a little clearer about how to pick up more than one stitch at a time, and a particularly good way to do the decrease portion of the I-cord.

Before I knit the stripey sleeves, I'll use the suggestion of my pal Leslie, and test stripe color patterns by winding various yarns onto a piece of cardboard, taking a snapshot, and then simply unwinding it and trying several different assorted options. Much less troublesome than actually knitting samples.

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February SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	Jedi tabard	wall storage bathroom	recycle bin
2	5 jars marmalade	wall storage utility	recycle bin
3	tiny camel print	dark of night neckline	recycle bin
4	superb owl traybox	3 separating zippers	-
5	grey acorn brooch	bathroom access hatch	-
6	pinch pouch	wool pinafore	x
7	wooly bear brooch	Goran Laurel	x
8	teal acorn brooch	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. more partially prepped meals in the freezer: salmon patties, and meatloaf patties have made cooking dinner this week much easier. I need to do more of this kind of preparation.
2. I am not dead, mostly due to my own quick reflexes and decent situational awareness... While on my way to the bus stop after my medical appointment, I was walking across the street in a crosswalk, with the correct light and all the other drivers stopped when a delivery driver came careening through the intersection without stopping. I jumped backwards and screamed. The truck came close enough to me that I felt the wind of their passage; had I been one of those folks who look at their phones instead of their surroundings, I would have died. The adrenaline was such that I totally neglected to get their license plate number...
3. There was enough bead cable to restring the necklace that goes with the repaired Laurel regalia...

Time of Isolation - Day 1332

more signs of early springtime

in which our plucky heroine goes for a walk...

...and notices more of the very early buds and blooms. My neighbor Carla of the Green Thumbs has a rather spectacular Edgeworthia growing in her front yard above the garden seat. The charming buds have now become clusters of two toned yellow flowers, and I only today realised that they are scented as well. So lovely!!

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~ shrinking violet ~

I had to hold my phone almost at ground level, to get this photo. I'm not sure why most of the violets in my yard are pink, and I have no idea where the few white ones came from either... but the white ones are the first to open in the spring, weeks before anything other than the snowdrops, and they are very welcome indeed.

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Can't remember if I made a note of it prior, but after I finish the textile livestock block set, I want to make a series on the Lunar Year animals, and maybe one of the western Zodiac symbols as well...

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~ partway ~

The body of the cardigan has been altered and stitched together, then steam blocked to smooth the whole thing out and get it ready to have the I-cord edges knit on. Those will be black sheep heather color, with a narrow inner band of teal. I'm also going to do value and color studies for the sleeve stripe patterning. I've got a decent assortment of Lettlopi colors to play with, (some more than others), and I may use some vintage wooden toggles for buttons, if they look well once I have started on the I-cord border edges.

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February SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	Jedi tabard	wall storage bathroom	recycle bin
2	5 jars marmalade	wall storage utility	recycle bin
3	tiny camel print	dark of night neckline	-
4	superb owl traybox	3 separating zippers	-
5	grey acorn hat trim	bathroom access hatch	-
6	pinch pouch	wool pinafore	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. baked salmon with lemon butter caper sauce is a very tasty dinner, especially with some asparagus and steamed Yukon Gold potato...
2. The music CD I ordered for my February treat arrived today and is currently playing. It has been years since I heard any It's A Beautiful Day, and this has both the album of the same name, and Marrying Maiden. Double the listening pleasure!
3. I found the tiny camel linocut block, and started designing the next one in the textile livestock series.

Time of Isolation - Day 1328

Monday miscellany

in which our plucky heroine divides the day in two...

Today really felt like spring, albeit a bit too early. The clouds cleared away and the sky was a clear light blue; it was warm enough that I left my mittens at home when riding my bike. There are definitely a few of the early white violets blooming in the front yard, and while the trees are nowhere near starting up, I can see the faint tinge of red in the ornamental plum, and there are buds expanding on the forsythia

As sleep has been remaining elusive, I decided to give in to my midafternoon desire to nap, but set an alarm so I wouldn't sleep toooo long. Instead, I woke up after about an hour and felt much better, and an hour lie-down is not so much that bedtime will be disrupted.

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~ soaking the roots ~

Saturday was the day to pick up native plant starts... which turned out to be a handful of unprepossesing sticks with roots at one end. Since some are for Ursel, and I've not figured out where best to put the two mock orange starts I bought for Acorn Cottage, they will be temporarily safe by "heeling them in" in two large pots on the front porch. Before tucking them into their mulchy beds though, they needed to have their roots given a good hour long soaking in buckets of water, as seen here above. Always something new to learn and to try!

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speaking of trying new things, here are some kitcheny ideas:

I really liked the recipe for "meatloaf for one" from last week. It occurred to me that shaping it into burger patties instead, and freezing them, would be a great timesaver, as patties will thaw more quickly (and offer more surface area for awesome sauce)

I'd like to try this lemon cake for two... and Smitten Kitchen never disappoints, maybe her pineapple upside down cake but with candied quince instead of cherries

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It isn't the right time of year to collect acorn caps, but in the autumn, when more acorn caps can be found, this might be fun... this artist uses them for miniature bowls, painted with nail polish to give the effect of ceramics...

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It seemed like more work than necessary to turn the shrunken wool pinafore into a vest, at least for now. If it is cold enough that wearing it is a good idea, then it can simply be an extra pinafore layer! Now the pockets are repaired and reattached, and that is good enough. Maybe a decorated upper pocket in the future, but that sort of thing is perfect for handwork...

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Evening progress continues on the cardigan, and almost all the alteration panels are completed and attached (center back steeked and stitched, front edges stitched in place, all slightly steam blocked. Just need to finish and attach the panels on either side of the neckline. Next up will be adding the I-cord borders in turquoise and black, before the deep dive into the land of stripey sleeve knitting. I'll probably not run the borders around the bottom edge of the cardigan, for reasons of design and comfort...

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February SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	Jedi tabard	wall storage bathroom	recycle bin
2	5 jars marmalade	wall storage utility	recycle bin
3	tiny camel print	dark of night neckline	-
4	superb owl traybox	3 separating zippers	-
5	grey acorn hat trim	bathroom access hatch	-
6	pinch pouch	wool pinafore	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. not only do I enjoy riding my bike, but I have a bike to ride. It isn't fancy, but durable and a bit battered, rather like our plucky heroine herself.
2. my cunning plan to alter my current knitting project is working out in a way that is making it look even better.
3. all sorts of fun ideas for hat trimmings... I am partway through making the wooly bear caterpillar brooch. There will be some beaded moths, and maybe some little clusters of mushrooms, perhaps a tooled leather feather or two, and, and...

Time of Isolation - Day 1327

a sigh of relief...

in which our plucky heroine catches her breath...

Today was a better day as far as getting information about mom... I am now on the list of folks that get text messages from her hospice nurse, so there was a message today of how the vital signs are all within her normal range, as well as a very cheering photo of Mom smiling. Plus today Sister Gigi and I were able to have the delayed video chat with her, and she (Mom) was more interactive than she had been for a while. There was even one or two actual sentences of more than one word.

Such are the tiny victories we grasp and cherish. Perhaps since she is now on thickened liquids (difficulty swallowing is a sign of physical ongoing decline) the increased hydration will help her overall well being. It does my heart good to see her though, needs must on video, and today's "visit" showed me a flash of Mom still there, somewhere inside her tangled neurons

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It was so cold and blustery today that I was thinking a cozy dinner of meatloaf, mashed potato, and cooked greens would be just the thing. I found this one person meatloaf recipe and it turned out wonderfully; the only modification I made was to add about a little less than a half teaspoon of gelatin along with the other dry seasonings, and to use my own homemade awesome sauce for the glaze. It made enough for two meals...

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I cleaned the louvered doors of the utility closet, both the fronts and the back sides. (the backs of the louvers never show, when the doors open they are folded to the inside) Those inner sides were quite extremely thick with dust, as they had been untouched since I moved here (clears throat... nineteen years ago); in places the dust was too solidified to be vacuumed away, so application of cleaning spray bottle and dustcloth, and in some corner spots q-tips did the trick. To my defense I point out that unless one purposefully detaches the doors from their guide track, there is no access to their inner sides...

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~ something new ~

Somehow when the weather turns wintery, I am once again filled with the desire to knit.... This project has been an on again off again change it up and start over again one for a long time. When I realised I had again miscalculated the dimensions and the gauge, I could only toss it back into the box of yarn for a while.

But then I took out my copy of Twisted Stitch Sourcebook with the thought that adding some panels to the body and neck edges would be a great way to salvage all the knitting. The body, knit crossways, already had several vertical panels of double moss stitch aka box stitch along with the garter stitch, so some additional varied texture would seem intentional.

I had never actually tried the twisted stitch technique before, but it turned out simpler to do than I imagined. It helped that I chose a four stitch eight row motif, but I am well on the way to making single and doubled panels to either stitch in place, or in the case of the center back, steek and then stitch in place. At this rate, I will be able to start on the stripey sleeves before too long - once I design the multicolor stripe patterning. It will be a joy play with colored pencils, and turn some of the skeins of Lettlopi into a good wardrobe component.

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I've an idea to turn the shrunken wool pinafore into a long wintertime vest. It was accidentally run through the laundry quite a few years ago, and at knee length is too short to serve as a pinafore. If, however, it were split down the center front and the raw edges bound, and some kind of buttons or toggles were used to fasten the front... that would be a rather quick and easy way to add yet more useful warmth to my everyday life. I might even be tempted to add some embroidery. 

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February SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	Jedi tabard	wall storage bathroom	recycle bin
2	5 jars marmalade	wall storage utility	recycle bin
3	tiny camel print	dark of night neckline	-
4	superb owl traybox	3 separating zippers	-
5	grey acorn hat trim	bathroom access hatch	-
6	pinch pouch	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. a warm dinner on a cold day: homemade meatloaf glazed with Awesome Sauce, cooked greens, and homemade mashed Yukon Gold potato.
2. I did manage to get outside for a while just to take a walk. And while it wasn't the most pleasant day out, I didn't get wet, and there are a few yards where unknown trees are starting to flower, and here and there some parking strips have bright crocuses flowering. Get some crocus bulbs for next year??
3. Leslie very sweetly shared a number of pages on the Discord about how to take care of rhubarb. Apparently from what I read, I have been doing it all wrong all along! It wants lots of sunshine, and lots of rich well drained soil... I may try transplanting the poor thing yet again, this time into a big planter pot in the sunshine, with lots of compost and worm manure mixed in...

Time of Isolation - Day 1324

well begun

in which our plucky heroine starts various projects...

Today's first task, after my morning routines, was finishing the very last of the sewing on fasteners for the Jedi outfit. My next sewing commission will be making the sunhat for Maeva, and my next sewing-for-me will be either starting a new hat, or working on the toggles for the raincoat, depending on when the leather pieces from Elanor show up.

So there has been some looking at fabrics on the resource shelves. Some fleece liners for the UFO house boots project will be a fairly quick and useful winter addition. I started those boots way back when I lived in Olympia, put them aside, added non-slip soles, put them aside again, and only thought, these would work better if they had another layer of insulation. They were originally designed to be worn over two layers of ragg wool socks. Compression socks are nowhere near as "fluffy. Using some of the floral fleece that Acantha sent me would be a great option.

Once it stopped raining, I rode over to the post office after my video chat with Turquoise; I somehow forgot to include the tiny books I made for Kestrel in the box I just mailed out to the Mud Bay folks Monday. Oh well, can't run the clock backwards and do it properly... I suspect that Kestrel will enjoy getting a little package addressed specifically to her.

After other housey chores once I got home, then it was time for my regular video chat with Elanor. I love that some of the days in the week I can count on online social time.

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~ cosplay commission ~

I've been working on these pieces for a while, for my friend Tullia who does Star Wars cosplay. I look forward to seeing photos of her wearing this, with all the additional accoutrements, maybe even later this month...

I'm also really glad to have finally finished this sewing commission, which comprises a four piece set of clothing. (I have a few SCA regalia metalwork and enamel pieces that are next up in my workroom, and I suspect that they will be faster to complete than this was). Many folks do not realise how much time it takes to make garments, when a particular result is desired and there are no readymade patterns to use (which is the case if the wearer is a non-standard size, or wants a non -standard object). This is my niche.

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I found a source for a sample book of real marbled paper, the pieces are supposedly about 3" x 2", each of which would be large enough for at least one miniature book cover...

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I follow the artist Carson Ellis on Instagram (because I adore her artwork and illustrations) so I found out that a new song by the Decemberists was just released today. I am not really familiar with the band, but now I want to look them up online and see if I enjoy their music as much as I liked this.

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I've started design work for a new tinybook : "fiber livestock" with blockprinted images of sheep, goat, rabbit, alpaca, camel, and musk ox (and maybe the wool dog of the indigneous PNW peoples). I had so much fun making "F is for fun", and am looking forward to carving all the very small (⅞" sq) linoleum blocks for this new one; it took me a while to come up with a suitable idea...

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February SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	Jedi tabard	wall storage bathroom	recycle bin
2	5 jars marmalade	wall storage utility	-
3	-	-	-
4	-	-	-
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. a dinner casserole using baked eggplant slices instead of lasagna noodles, right now it smells so delicious baking in the oven!
2. I will never run out of ideas for things to do. My designer brain is always running options for housey projects, crafty projects, and art to make...  
3. it occurred to me that I can improve the far-too-loose neckline on my Dark of Night pullover by adding a few rows of applied I-cord around the edge. Looking at my Ravelry project notes, the pattern as written created a very loose neckline to begin with, I added a border of ribbing to close it in a bit, but now it seems that wasn't enough. If it is cold enough that I want to wear a woolly pullover, I want my neckline and chest to be covered

Time of Isolation - Day 1314