Green Pepper Fleece Socks

Cold feet?  Ever laid in bed waiting for your feet to warm up so you can go to sleep? 

Green Pepper Polar Socks

I Googled some possibilities, but finally sprung for the Green Pepper pattern for fleece socks.  (Amazing... I actually bought a pattern at regular price, but with a 40% off store coupon!)

I pulled a piece of fleece from my stash... a lovely lavendar... probably originally purchased with the idea of jammies for my daughter....

I traced what I hoped would work for me, as the pattern is multi-sized.  With only three pieces, the layout and cut-out went quick.  Much to my dismay, I could not find my stash of footie fabric with the rubber grippers.  I finally just sewed them up using my regular machine and a stretch stitch.  A quick try-on and I was pleased.  Now I'm contemplating making some for Christmas gifts but adding a little machine embroidery.

 Future pairs will definitely get gripper fabric on the sole.  One web site suggests using raised or puffy fabric paint in a zig-zag pattern on the sole.  As I have already sewn my trial pair, I may pull out some fabric paint and see what happens.  One other site said that it was lumpy/hard feeling and they didn't like it, but then I'm thinking of doing a double sole just for added warmth on cold floors.  Another suggestion was to use clear silicone in a tube from the hardware store and painting/working it into the fabric.

  

Pinterest Inspirations

Two nights ago I was being lazy or I can use the excuse I was recovering from a 4 day bout with flu.  Anyway, I sat semi-watching a movie on Netflix and perusing Pinterest.  I stumbled across a pin that led me to the blog of Megan Chaney.  Her clay artwork, inspired by nature, put some ideas in my head.

Last night I came home, got the kids in bed and disappeared to my studio and "let my hair down".  I made a stoneware tile.  For once I didn't calculate the shrinkage and try to make a tile that was in standard 4" or 6" size.  I used the slab roller for a nice uniform thickness and then I used an old plastic texture plate for faux wood grain.  I textured the tile and then broke out the oak leaves.  One I imbedded in the tile, the other I put a layer of clay on the back and randomly made it appear as if it was dropped on the tile.  I free-formed an acorn and used thin pieces of irregular clay to make a patch of bark.  One area I used raised clay to give a little flame pattern seen in oak lumber.  I used a bit of iron oxide on the barkish area.

This evening I came home and refined some areas.  It's a a bit of abstract tile.  I'm anxious to add it to my kiln that is almost ready for a bisque firing.  Right now I'm meditating on possible glaze/finishing techniques... I may have to look for more Pinterest inspirations!

Bone dry clay... ready for any last finish touches and a bisque firing....

Oh! The Insanity!!!

No, I am not sane.  I can't possibly be sane.  Why?  As my husband was kind enough to remind me, I never can do anything easy.  Now if that isn't calling the pot black, but then, I digress.

We, hubby and I, plowed in and constructed my eight foot tri-loom Saturday night.  Lapped the corners, marked, drilled and stained the maple.  We only used 183 brads per side.  Wow!  This AM the loom was ready and so this afternoon I got started.  This is where the insanity kicked in.  So far, I have made ONE tri-loom shaw on my 5 1/2'  loom built from scraps.  For my first project on the 8 foot loom, which looks HUGE, I chose to use Paton's classic wool yarn.   I also thought that this time I should show I can do more than over and under, so I chose to attempt a double diamond twill. 

This is the pattern out of Patricia Herman's Triangle Loom Weaving Twills 'n More

 Within three or four rows, I knew my yarn needed to be doubled.  Off came the yarn and I restarted with a double strand.  (This of course means I must be running back to the store ASAP as I will be short of yarn!)  I am carefully keeping the strands from twisting and all that.  That in itself is a challenge, but as I am not a master weaver, maybe, just maybe, I should not have made my second tri-loom project a double diamond twill.  I have removed probably as much yarn as I have put on by now.  However, I think I have finally made a break through.  My brain has started to grasp the repetition of the pattern and I hope the "do-overs" will now be minimized!

Paton's Classic Wool in Rosewood - Double Diamond Twill Pattern

 
I marked the repeat, 8 rows on a piece of painters tape and I stick one of my picks over the number of the last row I just completed.  So far, that has helped with the errors. 

The finished product should be interesting.  The yarn is wool and I don't want to felt it heavily, but I think I will felt it just enough to give a nice warm shawl.  With work, kids and a blouse I have in process, I dare say it will be a week or two before I get it completed.  At least  I've done enough so far I can start to see the pattern and I think I will like it.

Happy weaving!

Moyer Gould Woods

HUGE oak tree!

On one of the routes we frequently travel, there is the Moyer Gould Woods.  It is managed/owned by the Niches Land Trust and is approximately 70 some acres.  As it was a beautiful Saturday... sunny, upper 60's and breezy, I pulled in and we went for a hike.

Probably one of the most outstanding trees is a huge white oak.  This picture does not do it justice.  The next trip will involve a real camera and not a cell phone camera!






We saw evidence of the old house.   An old sidewalk... Old concrete porch with the stubs of a long gone yew.  Some vinca groundcover was still apparent and I am curious as to whether any old perennials... bleeding hearts, etc. may appear next May.

The old carriage trail turns into a nice little trail down the side of a hill/bluff overlooking the Tippecanoe river.  Initially it looks as if it's old pasture that is returning to woods, but once you get past the old fence line you see some nice shagbark hickory, oak and I saw a couple of beech.  The path run along the river and then cuts back and forth up the side of the side of the hill with some moss covered conglomerate bedrock outcroppings.  At the top is a nice bench that the kids enjoyed.  

I believe next spring we will have to make a point of revisiting it.  The leaves were thick, but I could see evidence of wild ginger and hepaticas as well.  The site is also reported to have dutchmans breeches, blue phlox, jack in the pulpit, red trillium, hepatica, mayapples, and fire pink.

Making a triangle loom

A few weeks back... actually August, we were on vacation.  On the way out to Missouri we stopped at Rockhome Gardens.  There was a vender inside that had a triangle loom in action and she had some completed projects as well.  Being a crafty person, I was intrigued.  I started some research and my engineering husband started calculating.

After we got home, progress lagged or really never even started.  That's when I take matters into my own hands!!!  Hubby was gone on business so I headed out to the garage to see what I could see.  Hubby has been building some cabinets, so there was some nice "scraps".  OK...maybe 2 eight foot pieces of red oak 3/4" by 2" is a bit more than a scrap, but after I grabbed and cut, well...

I took one of the 8' pieces and cut it in half.  I then cut a lap joint - by hand - so the 90 degree joint would be stable.  I clamped those and then laid the other 8' piece across the top to make my hypotenuse.  I marked the overlaps with pencil and again made lap joints by hand.  Now if you check out the web, standard sizes seem to be 6' and 8'.  Mine is not exactly standard, but I wanted to build the biggest I could with what I had!

I started marking the nails and then messed up and the kids demanded food, so I had to stop.
Once the hubby returned the next day, progress resumed.  I erased my bad markings and started all over.  This time I got it right.  I spaced the pins on the hypotenuse 1/2" apart.  I used a square to mark the pins along the side.  If you do a bunch of web searches, it's a little confusing, but the pins/nails along the side are closer together than on the hypotenuse.  When you're done, you should have the same number of pins on all three sides.

Then hubby helped set up the drill press and I drilled holes.  A LOT off holes I must add!


















After nice neat uniform depth holes, hubby put a socket extension in the drill press upside down.  It then worked to uniformly press each nail in to the exact same depth.












I will admit hubby assisted but anyone, with a little persistence, may commandeer the work shop and build their own as well!

After the loom was glued, screwed and dried I rummaged in my stash and found a couple of homespuns.   Talk about dumb luck, I was just barely able to finish.  No fringe, but I have ideas...

I have since invested in one of the few triangle loom manuals out there and found a few things I did wrong.  We also purchased some nice maple to make a full 8' triangle loom.  As I've had the maple for at least a week or two, I guess I'm going to have to take matters into my own hands again!

I would suggest a book available on Lulu.com by Barbara Herdman called Tri Loom Weaving.  It shows the basics of weaving and has a real nice chart on how much yarn to plan on for the size of the loom.

The Eagle has landed!

I vowed that I would contribute, but the summer has come and went....  I have seen many fun things at our lake cottage...  but I have not posted.... NOW I must!!!

Today, as we left the cottage, I looked over into the woods of the Boy Scout camp and about had heart failure!  There on the forest floor, just kind of hanging out, was a HUGE EAGLE!  It was only 15-20 feet off the side of the gravel lane and fiercely watched us as we gawked out our windows.  I even rolled down my window and it didn't seem to bother it one bit.  It finally walked/strutted and kind of hopped a short way, almost disdainfully, but didn't fly.  We watched and watched and then we began to wonder if something was wrong.  Maybe it couldn't fly!  I cautiously and slowly got out of the truck and casually and slowly walked toward him.

Obviously, if he couldn't fly, we would have been calling the DNR.  I know better and would never consider attempting to help a hurt and endangered animal.  However, never fear, fly it did!  It was magnificent to see such a huge bird lift into the air.  It flew a short ways in the woods and then back up the road to land in a huge oak on the corner of our property.

Our neighbor was out with his mower and leaf vac and when that eagle flew right in front of him, it definitely got his attention.  We walked back up the road and watched it in the tree.  After awhile, it must have been tired of being stared and gaped at, he flew off above the trees and over the river.

We chatted a few minutes with the neighbor and as we were heading back to our truck, two bald eagles flew over.  I don't know if one was the eagle we had been watching, but I'm guessing it was and this was it's mate.  It made for quite the afternoon.  I have never seen an eagle, out of captivity, that close.  WOW!

Now for the irony.  My cheap carry everywhere digital, at home.  My expensive digital Canon, at home.  My take everywhere smartphone, at home.  No pictures!  Can you believe it????