Blessed cool, bracelets and Lively

So much cooler today, and tomorrow more so.  Last night we had lashing rain and high winds with thunder and lightning. 

I looked out to see the solar lantern swinging wildly back and forward as the Japanese maple was whipped about.    Both looked fine this morning.

I even got a bit of gardening done, pulled out and disposed of a lot of vines which were choking shrubs out front. Evidently the torrid weather just suited them. 

And I made a little bouquet.

Daisies, lemon balm, wandering dude, English ivy.  The daisies are a bit tired after the heat. But there are plenty of zinnia buds, and the hibiscus looks promising, with multiple buds. Out front the little patch of black eyed susans is budding up. And the daylilies are about halfway through blooming.

Today's reading is a great, if harrowing, Penelope Lively. Note you can choose your spelling.

It's thoughtful, unsparing, analytical and prime Lively.

And I am determined to get the hang of the bafflement of the easy, easy, beginner, your cat could do it, knotted bracelet.

I have finally found out what's getting between me and succeeding. These are points none of the videos mention. I think they seem so obvious they don't think about it.

One, you need the right thread. My weaving cotton wasn't very knottable. Now I'm trying a mixture of perle cotton and embroidery floss, working better. If I had more perle thread I'd use it. Paracord, of which I have none, might be even better. 

Two, nobody shows exactly how to tighten the knots. I made the mistake of tugging both ends equally, which made the knots lopsided and pulled the wrong color to the surface. Once I grasped that you hold the anchor thread firm, and slide the other thread up while tightening it, things improved.

Three nobody explains the path of the thread as it travels across, in the candy stripe design. Does it go over or under the last thread?  I got this eventually, on bracelet three, which you see. 

Four, this was my own mistake I invented, I kept forgetting which was the traveling thread and started moving the wrong one before I realized this. This is how threads get all out of order and you can't make stripes, and you get a lot of practice in unknotting.

I have developed some expertise in unknotting at this point and I'm bloated with pride that I have, by George, finally got the candy stripe design, more or less.

Wobbly but more recognizable. Diagonal stripes are emerging. And I'm finding knotting isn't hard on my hands, a big plus.

Happy day everyone, it's okay not to get it right away. Anyway that's my story.

She's right, you know, sez Ted and Big Ursy and Pony and Ursula.