Bow weaving

I'm such a bad weaver at times. I took a class on bow weaving with Marilyn Romatka last June at the Black Sheep Gathering and never finished my project on the bow loom. I thoroughly enjoyed the class, Marilyn was a great teacher, easy to follow and understand and delightful but once I got home I just couldn't get back into it. And this is bad because I got a scholarship from my guild to take a class but in return I had to come back and give a program on what I learned - my program is in April and I hadn't done a thing up until 2 days ago.  I decided before another warp goes on any floor loom I was going to start weaving samples on the bow loom and get moving on this project. You see, I'm not one to do this type of thing last minute..........I'm one of those that likes to be prepared well in advance so I don't get last minute panic attacks.

So here is my double wrap around bracelet from the class last June - I love the way it turned out.  Next up was to make some bracelets that just go around the wrist once as samples for my April program. This will be a hands-on program and I want everyone to be able to finish it before they go home.........unless they visit a lot........then they're on their own to finish up at home. To make sure everyone gets moving quickly on weaving I'll be preparing the warps and threading the beads on........it's not something that takes very long but it can be a challenge for some people. So one day I'll put on a movie or two or three and sit and thread warps..........we have 45 guild members....yikes. And then I'll make the bow looms out of dowels, paper clips and duct tape.

Next up was this chartreuse - my favorite color.......I'm using 5/2 perle cotton..........

......then 3 more........these are all awaiting the jewelry findings. I might make a couple more bracelets so there can be one on each table for people to look at as they weave their own.........

.........this one is just started - I'm using a variegated 8/2 cotton from my stash and I'm spacing out the beads. I really like it. Originally it was to become a hat band but I'm thinking it might end up being another bracelet long enough to wrap around my wrist twice..........I'll decide for sure once I get more woven.

So, an activity I was dreading has now turned into an activity I can't wait to get back to tomorrow. I'm going to try some thinner cotton, maybe 10/2 with smaller beads........maybe I can find more novelty/space dyed yarns in my stash to try out.

Now to think of more uses for these bands - I've already thought of bracelet, necklace, headband, hatband, trim on clothing or bags.........a friend just told me someone she knows made a lanyard to hold her scissors so I'll add that to the list and most probably make myself one.

New towels in the shop

We spent some time on the coast, in the crazy horizontal rain, so I went to the loom and finished up the cottolin towel warp over there. My goal of weaving off the huge box of cottolin is coming along......of course now I'm left with some strange colors that I'll have to figure out how to put together.

Very spring/easter themed towels.....of course they'd be good anytime of the year.

They can be found in my etsy shop.

 

 

New books

 A box arrived this week with some new books I'd had in my Amazon wish list for a while. I can't wait to knit up some of the new shawl patterns in these books.

Friends JoAnn & Dee gave a guild program for their guild on the coast weaving ribbon to put in travel mugs. JoAnn sent me pictures and I immediately remembered I had 2 similar mugs in my stash that had been there for years and I was considering giving away..........not now, thought I'd play........

 I pulled ribbon from my stash and started weaving it overtop a piece of doublesided fusible. Not sure why pictures turn the wrong way when I've taken them with my camera, even though when I edit them they are fine...........oh well.........

Here's the finished mug - color is off, again from taking the photo with my phone. That will teach me for being too lazy to run up the stairs for the camera. Sometime this week I'll do the other mug - I've got some sheep ribbon to try out for that one.

Bits and pieces in my life........

This week I'm spending most of my time getting together with friends.......well, with the exception of the dreaded tooth sharpening (cleaning) stuck in there. I have several get-togethers planned for the month so although I won't be getting much weaving done I will be having fun.

Right after Christmas I started knitting on a Ione Shawlette in blue - that one is done, awaiting blocking. I've got this one in progress in this pretty rose color. Both of them are in a merino/alpaca/silk noil blend I picked up a couple years ago at a local yarn shop sale, I think it's a Louisa Harding yarn. I'll eventually show these again after I get them blocked......whenever that is........the two recipients of these don't read my blog so I'm ok posting them. My goal this year is to work on holiday gifts throughout the year - I'm not sure how long I'll keep up with it and not get sidetracked but already I'll be miles ahead of where I was this past holiday gift making season when I was in panic mode come November.

Last week at our spinning get together I started spinning some Ashland Bay merino I've had in my stash for a while. It was one of their specials a few years ago and I had the sense to put some aside for myself.....which I often forget to do before limited colorways sell out.  I had wanted to get some blending done on the blending board for spinning but that didn't happen so pulling from stash was a good thing. Not sure what this will grow up to be - I've got a pound of it to spin.

Now off to knit and gab/catch up with a friend that just drove up the driveway........decisions, decisions......can I knit on that shawlette without errors, resulting in ripping and correcting errors while watching a Netflix movie and gabbing. Yesterday another friend came over to sit and knit and catch up and I had trouble concentrating on the lace pattern while gabbing and we weren't even watching a movie. I might have to pull out the simple sock knitting or spin instead..........

Yummy chenille........

Black chenille shawl warp wound today, awaiting the threading of the heddles and reed........kind of boring to weave all black but the end result is a yummy black classic shawl so it's worth it.

Just as I was downloading the warp picture above I glanced out the window and saw this great double rainbow........

 .......here's the other side of it.......

.......and here's a close-up. Have you ever stood at one end of a rainbow? I've never been that close but my husband has been and said it's warm. I wanted to chase one down a couple weeks ago a we were driving home from town but he nixed that idea as it would have been many more miles than it was looking.........one of these days......

 

 

Updates in the etsy shop

 Newly listed hand-dyed, hand-woven scarves available in my etsy shop

Newly listed Mix & Match Citrus Towels available in my etsy shop

A bit of this, a bit of that........

....to start the new year. We decided to head to the coast after Christmas for a week. We walked the beach each day looking for treasures, Sam painted, I wove, knit, finished listening to an audio book and read......I've had it with painting at the moment.

I finally finished up the cottolin towel warp that was on the loom over there - brought this stack home, have washed them, they're now waiting to be hemmed and photographed for the etsy shop.

In my continuing effort to blow through my cottolin stash I put this towel warp on. I don't know if anyone will like pastel towels but they're really pretty, I might even keep 1 or 2. It's getting tough mixing colors from what cottolin I have left but I'm always up for a challenge.

Here's the first of the towels - I'm guessing I'll get 4 of them in this plaid design, the rest will have solid color wefts using up spools of the colors I've got.

In my effort this year to be ahead when the holidays come at the end of the year I'm starting to work on gifts - ask me again in a couple months how this plan is working out. Here's a knitted shawlette in the works. It's a very fun pattern to knit, soon I'll be at the stage where I do short rows to shape it. Not liking these Lantern Moon circular needles - they're beautiful, feel great in my hands but, and this is a big but, the join to the cable is horrible, not smooth at all so I'm fighting with them as I knit. I think I've got another size 5 circular in my stash so I'll be looking for it this evening.

We had to take a different, way too long, route to the coast due to a huge landslide. The upside to it was seeing different scenery including at least 60 elk and hundreds of geese at an elk viewing area. Unfortunately on the way over we didn't stop for pix when they were all standing majestically for photo ops, today they were all laying down. I'm still trying to figure out how they know to congregate in the area where the viewing stations have been built.........

Happy 2016

Another year has come and gone..........no new year's resolutions here, they just set me up for failure so I do what I do all year long, re-evaluate and work toward change......I don't always get there but I do set goals and work toward them. Right now my biggest issue will be remembering to write 2016 when I write checks until it's ingrained in my little pea brain......

My best to you all in the new year............

Melt in your mouth cookies......

These cookies are not what most people think of as biscotti but they're what I grew up with in my Italian family. My Nani (grandmother) told me that Biscotti meant little cookie - not the twice baked Biscotti we all know of in the stores and bakeries........actually I never knew about the twice baked ones until around 20 years ago. These Biscotti are melt in your mouth cookies - one of my favorites. In our family they were only made for Christmas but I've been known to make them all throughout the year using different colored sprinkles, such as reds & pinks for Valentine's Day.

Biscotti

5 cups flour

3 eggs

1 cup butter

1 ½ cups confectioners sugar, sifted

1 tbs baking powder

1 tbs almond extract

1/8 tb salt
 

Sift flour, sugar, salt and baking powder into bowl. Cut butter using fingers into dry ingredients until mixture resembles a coarse cornmeal. Make a well in flour and break eggs into it. Add flavoring. Knead dough about 2 minutes or until smooth.
 

Add a little more flour, if necessary, should the dough seems too soft and sticky. If too stiff, add about 1 tbs milk or as needed. Dough should be medium soft.
 

Take a handful of dough. Roll out into an 18 inch rope, ½ inch thick. Cut into 1 ½” pieces. Place on a greased cookie sheet about 1 ½ inches apart. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes – do not let brown, bake until right before they brown. (Caution: it’s best to watch cookies after 8 minutes) Remove from oven. Cool 5 minutes and frost. Sprinkle with multi-color sprinkles. Sit to dry. Store in an air tight container.
 

Basic frosting for Biscotti

1 lb confectioners sugar

4 tbs boiling water

¼ tsp almond extract

1 tbs butter
 

Mix until smooth and spread on cookies. If frosting is too thick, add more boiling water, a little at a time. Decorate with multi-color sprinkles.
 

Note: you can substitute anise extract for almond extract. My Nani put drops of yellow food coloring in the dough – I don’t. My Nani also split the icing into two bowls and put red food coloring in one, green in the other – I don’t do this either – I like my icing white. I have fond memories of helping my Nani make the Christmas cookies each year – we usually had around 15 different kinds that came out Christmas Eve on huge silver trays. There were tins and tins of cookies that kept filling these trays throughout the holidays. These are one of my favorites – they just melt in my mouth.

 

Mele Kalikimaka

This years inkling ornament is my little hula dancer, Lahela, which translates to sheep's friend. Some family and friends have been getting my inkling creations for years, there are 24 different ones in the collection.  And I'm sorry if some of you that read my blog haven't gotten them but they are a limited edition and in order to get on the list someone has to die and no one wants to wish that on anyone. I've decided that this year is the last year I'll be making them - I'm out of ideas after 24 of them.........if I ever come up with new ideas I'll pick it up again but right now I'm spent..........

It was a good holiday..........

Santa was good to Bailey this year......hmm, what's this?

 .....oh, it was a rawhide granola bar........but wait, what's up there????

 ......it's a new Buster!!!!

 

 Bailey said he's not sure why he got a new Buster because his old one was broken in just right......he just couldn't see that old Buster was threadbare and had a stink about him that no one in the house could stand any longer.......and he wouldn't have made it through another trip in the washer........

......ah, life is good.........Bailey hopes you all had just as wonderful a holiday as he did...........

On the loom.........

In-between massive loads of laundry I got another painted warp on the loom. I threaded it to an 8 harness two block twill, both warp and weft are 8/2 tencel.

Here's the first scarf - I'm using a black tencel weft

Second scarf which I almost got finished I'm using a sage green weft

 

 

A White Christmas

This is what we woke up to this morning, still snowing hard......looking like we'll have a white christmas this year. Looking at the forecast for today we had decided to postponed our traditional Italian Christmas eve dinner as getting to our house will be difficult as it is, and cousin Jim would be coming from 45 miles south having to come over a pass to get here. We'll try for Saturday as the weather should be better by then.......should be.......

Now to think about what to do with my new found time since I'm not cooking today.........maybe getting a painted warp on the loom and hope the power stays on so it's not too dark to weave...........

Another great day......

I've been having some good studio 'nesting' days lately. Today was another great day as I finally wove off a painted warp that's been sitting on the AVL for months. Obviously selling roving is getting in the way of my first love......weaving.

I found this draft on handweaving.net. I don't remember the name of it off hand and would have to walk down the stairs to the studio to get it.......and I've already gone up and down the stairs 3000 times today.......if someone is interested in knowing the name of it please leave a comment and I'll get it posted later - it is a 16 harness draft. Fuchsia weft here.

Here's the same fuchsia weft at the next color change on the warp. I forgot to take a picture at the final color change.......oh well........

Here's the start of the second scarf on the warp, rust weft here. Warp and wefts are 8/2 tencel.

This is the next painted warp to go on the loom. This will be woven in an 8 harness two block twill. I'm loving these colors I dyed........if one of the finished scarves speaks to me once woven I may have to keep it for myself. This is the next painted warp in the queue but might not be the next warp to go on the loom. I also want to get a shawl warp on the loom. But then there are the holiday cooking and get togethers so nothing will be happening right away.......

New towels in the shop

I spent a little time at the embroidery machine this weekend getting some towels done and up in the etsy shop. I'm actually a bit ahead of time for Valentine's Day - what a novelty!

I had a crisis Saturday when the machine decided to go wack-a-do. The needle would get stuck down, the machine would shutter and shut down. I got it running again to finish up the towel I was working on but when I started the next towel it happened. I love this cheap little Brother machine, it's been great, no trouble at all.....until yesterday. I called Sam to the rescue. He did what we should never do - he opened up the top of the machine, studied it to figure out how it works, cleaned and oiled it but it was still hanging up. Then he brought out the canned air and started shooting it in there. He spotted half of a very thin washer sitting on top of a gear.......but where was the other half??? More canned air and the other half fell down into the bobbin case. No way could he figure out where the washer was supposed to go but being so very thin it doesn't do much other than to act as a spacer.........and the machine is working perfectly again! Obviously that little piece of washer was sitting somewhere it shouldn't have been causing the problem.  I've put the washer in a zip lock bag so whenever the machine needs to go in for service I can bring it along. So Sam was the hero yesterday........what does one do if they don't have a handy husband/partner???

Nesting.......

I've been doing some long overdue nesting and have been having a grand time. I did a bit of this and that today and then late in the afternoon I decided I should start embroidering some towels. I'm actually thinking ahead, very rare, and working on some for Valentine's Day. Tomorrow I'll get back to them - in addition to Valentine's I'll be stitching more sheep, spinning wheels and trees. All will be listed in the Etsy shop as soon as they're finished.

Starting to think about getting back to weaving and have another sewing project planned, an afghan/throw for me.........need to shop for fabric for it so it may be a while.

It's been a grand day

It's been a grand day even though it's been raining pitchforks and shovels as my friend JoAnn would say. After getting orders boxed up and to the post office, yes people are still shopping for gifts, I edited many photos of a total of 8 scarves so they could be listed in my etsy shop.

An ice-dyed, stenciled dragonfly scarf is one of the new scarves listed.......

.....and an ice dyed, starfish and sand dollar scarf........other scarves listed but not pictured here are hand-dyed, stenciled and handwoven/discharge dyed.

Oh yes, I did go out wearing these leggings and no, I'm not 20 years old. Of course the only place I went was to the post office wearing a knee length coat over them. They're kind of fun for wearing around the house but a little out there for me.

And this was what I've been looking at all afternoon while knitting and listening to an audio book - perfect activity for a chilly rainy day. I'm really thinking I need to do this more often, usually I'm so driven.........it's time to relax a bit.......

Felting Landscapes Kits

In-between working on holiday sewing today I put together more Felting Landscapes kits for my Etsy shop. I had run out of two of them and then decided to put together a new one. And of course, since first putting together kits many colors had been discontinued by Ashland Bay so I came up with new versions. 

The new kit is the top one - Sunflower Power. Then revamped kits - middle is Sand in your shoes, bottom is Rain Forest.

Coming down the homestretch on holiday sewing - then I can get back to weaving - whoo hoo.

Snow - what a novelty!

Woke up to snow this morning - not a lot but it's snow. We didn't see one flake here last winter, not one flake.........and very little in the mountains. The year before we had one snowfall and that was it. The past few days we've had torrential rain which, other than driving in it, has been wonderful. Keeping my fingers crossed that our wet winter continues to help end this going on 4 year drought. When out on the deck taking this photo I had a hummingbird buzz me, thank goodness the feeder didn't freeze......will have to watch that and bring it in at night if the temps go down...........

Now off to work in Santa's workshop..........the perfect day for it........

History

 This past weekend we were over on the coast and decided to go to the new location of the Coos History Museum.....as in Coos County, OR. We were there fairly early on Sunday which meant we had the museum to ourselves, others were coming in as we were leaving - it was great.

 Ok, not sure what's up with Blogger and pictures with turning this one sideways. I didn't have any better luck using the drag and drop option for adding pictures either - that wanted to put them side by side. Oh well.....hopefully this won't be a continuing issue. Anyhow - back to the photo - this is a huge cedar dug out canoe - very impressive.....just turn your head sideways to view.

Turn your head to see Bailey too - he was trying to sleep on the couch but I kept insisting on taking pictures........

Spent yesterday morning getting wool roving orders dealt with - weighing, bagging, tagging, putting into inventory and back in the etsy shop. What a job it is but this time Sam helped with the weighing part of it - with the process we've come up with it takes 1/3 of the time to do the job with two of us over me doing it alone. Selling roving is a big chunk of my income but I'm thinking about taking a break from it (at least online) to see how I feel about the time it takes away from weaving and other fiber arts/crafts..........sometime after the beginning of the year I'll put that etsy shop on vacation hold and see how I feel about it......right now I'm getting pretty sad about how little time I have to weave and do other things I've wanted to do.

It's been raining here but not too bad like a few hours to the north of us where there's flooding happening. We're supposed to get more rain later and again for the next several days but we're definitely not getting the worst of the weather here in the northwest.

I hope everyone is ready for the holidays - I've got my mailing done and am almost done sewing.....guess I need to figure out Christmas Eve dinner soon but I've still got time for that........

Elves hard at work......

I've been absent from making blog posts as I'm been busy in Santa's workshop. Unfortunately I can't show what I've been creating but it's all been at the sewing machine this year, several different projects. I still have a few more gifts to sew but since they're for my mother I've got plenty of time - no mailing involved.

Some fun little gifts.......sorry, can't show what they are but I definitely will after the holidays along with a link to a YouTube video to show how they're made........

......holiday cards from hand-woven fabric in progress......

......and gift bag making. Those Trader Joe's bags I get when I've forgotten to put my reusable shopping bags back in the car don't go to waste - they become my gift bags for the holidays.....my tissue is old sewing patterns, no need to waste that tissue either........

This afternoon I had to run up to the post office and to the store. I pulled the mustang out of the garage and thought, wow, my feet feel so comfy.........well, I looked down and I was wearing my sheep slippers. I felt compelled to go back in the house and put on real shoes. If it were just the small post office 2 miles away I wouldn't have bothered changing but I was going to town to a big store with lots of walking around and it's pouring rain......thought real shoes would be in order.