Cold day, but wait a day..

Yesterday I noticed I had very little butter to last till the Thursday delivery, so I needed something for my toast. A little pot of strawberry jam happened.

I make small quantities, no need to get carried away. And these really small amounts have great flavor. Just strawberries, lemon juice, sugar. Also great with yogurt.

I took a longer walk, different direction this morning, to try to settle the pesky sciatic/ piriformis whatever going on, and the wind and temp were so cold. 

Back in gloves and hat and warm jacket. By Tuesday they say high 80s f. Hm. It can't decide. But I found a lovely azalea, my favorite variety with big white flowers. This one had an extra feature.

And there were handy things at the dumpster, this one probably vital for weaving and other tools, so it's home now.

Perfectly clean, looks unused. It might replace some other storage thing for my art stuff.  

Home again I got into a bunch of weaving research, found new sources and here's what resulted. The Vesterheim Museum is a great find.

She's a young Swedish weaver, pattern band maker and now heddle carver. Watching her carve a heddle reminded me I would like a sunna heddle, with short slots for the pattern threads. It's easier than the regular heddle I've been using.

Then I thought instead of yet another outlay, I'd try making one from cardboard, using an old tissue box.

I'll try this with threads and see how it goes. Not as sturdy as the usual wood and plastic, but worth a try. 

I might even get back to weaving my current band, too.  

Happy day everyone, try all the things! Sez Ted and Big Ursy and Pony and Ursula.

Mystery plant revealed and weaving goes on

I spent the morning threading up for a new woven band, and have a design picked out from Susan Foulkes book. 

From this

To this 

I think I'll wait for my new Sami Stoorstalka Gehpa shuttle

to get to work on this. The Sami are people in northern Scandinavia, and these shuttles were originally made from reindeer horn. Mine is some modern substance.

And I got a surprise in the living room. A while back I brought in some azalea to force bloom. And today it did. 

Outside the azaleas are barely beginning.

The rain stopped and I got out for a walk to ease my aching back -- threading is engrossing and when you stop, you realize you can hardly straighten up.

And here's the dogwood, and miniature violas

Then, on the patio, one of my app-owning friends tells me, this is Sweet William.

It was probably among the seeds I strewed last spring, since I believe they come up from seed in the second year. I love Sweet William, so I'm hopeful.

Lovely day today and another Guinness movie planned this evening.

Happy day, everyone, watch what you invent, it may surprise you. See plot of TMITWS sez Ted and Big Ursy and Pony and Ursula. They're not planning to create anything other than havoc.

 

Skirt update, shy azalea and burgers

I made two burgers for supper yesterday, as you see. Pretty good, but I think they need another name. I'm not interested in pretending something's meat when it's a delicious something else. 

They worked out fine, browned up well, with a bit of Dijon mustard and ketchup, all inserted into the pita bread you see. Half a dozen others are now in the freezer, ready for next time I feel like them.

And here's this morning's sightings

A dove more concealed than ever by the henbit and

A shy azalea, engulfed by ground cover and daylilies.

I realized after a couple of people yesterday said skirt? what skirt? that my recent passing mention had escaped everyone. Also I forgot you're not all at the knitting group hearing me boring on about it. 

So here's a screenshot of the first thinking I was doing ages ago, at that time thinking felting.  Now I think weaving and knitting will do it

I have the paper pattern somewhere. The idea is from Sarah Swett, but I'll adapt it. I'm still doing the straight panels like hers, we'll see how many, and the current weaving I showed you is one of them.  The shaping is done by the wedge-shaped knitted sections, yet to be spun, plied and knitted.

There! All clear. I think.  

This afternoon is the knitting group. Last week I didn't do pictures, no new work, except a lovely new member, wardrobe director for a local ballet school, stitching  bodices for an upcoming performance.  

I didn't think it was proper to take pictures before they were public property, seen by their audience. She was hugely entertaining with stories of her life and work and dealing with last minute design changes by the ballet ptb, involving miles of orange frills and that sort of challenge.

Happy day everyone, and here's a puzzle involving a phenomenon most of us may not be adept at, speaking personally, anyway 

Puzzle on, funny clues please! 

Misfits box, azalea gone wild, weaving stage two, and burgers

 Today's Dove sighting

Still patiently sitting, the calm before the feeding frenzy.

The weaving is moving along, and today I unrolled the panel and realized it's plenty long enough for a skirt length, including waist and hem allowance. 

See the skirt I handmade a while back, laid on top, for length

I woke up this morning thinking about weaving pockets for the skirt, rather than knitting them. 

So today I figured that when you want another item off the same warp threads, you just leave a space and continue. Which is what I did.  

I left enough warp to have a fringed hem and maybe pocket. I've no idea if the weaving police will get me for this, but this is where I am. Pocket under way.

Once the pocket's done, the two current pieces will be freed from the windowsill and finished.

Then I'll do the same thing again. Once the current Sock Ministry pair is complete, I'll send it off then get to work on the knitted parts of the skirt. 

I'm spinning a while each evening to keep up yarn supplies. The colors will work nicely with the woven sections, I think, all rich but not shouty.

And, not having enough to do, I found an interesting idea for burgers using ingredients I have, so that's what happened

Onions, garlic, mushrooms, walnuts, chopped fine with a knife, since I don't have a food processor, unlike the YouTube lady. 

I started the pan with avocado oil, salt and chicken stock powder, then added in the doings. Fried ten minutes, then into a bowl to cool, with panko, an egg, ketchup because I don't have Worcestershire sauce, unlike the YouTube lady. 

It's chillin now in the fridge till I get some out to cook for supper, using a pita bread because I don't have sesame seed buns, unlike the YouTube lady.

The Misfits box arrived, and was hoisted into the house

The contents arrayed on the counter for forthcoming attractions. The apple juice and fancy raisins will go into a planned chutney, to go with a planned fish curry, using some of the tilapia in the freezer. Take that, YouTube lady!

After all this, the day having started with early morning fasting blood work,  I was ready to get into the sunshine and walk about admiring the quarreling birds duking it out for nesting rights, and this azalea

Which is not a giant cake, though you may wonder.

And now my time's divided between reading this

And this

One an eBook the other a bookbook.

So I think I'll get a cup of tea and wander out to the patio to do that.

Happy day everyone, enjoy all the things!