Onion bhajis, fungi, silo art and sashiko

 Yesterday's walk yielded great fungi

 and the concrete rabbit still hanging in there, aren't we all.

And I made the  bhajis, after the chickpea flour arrived. They're usually deep fried, which I don't do, so I found a way to bake them.

And used tzatziki as a dip. With shrimp. I know there are readers who will ask why didn't you make rice for the shrimp to rest on? I would have if I'd thought of it, but I often forget,  rice rarely coming to mind when I'm not making curry.

The bhajis were okay, and next time I'll use a slightly reduced oven heat, maybe 350°f, rather than the 400°f of the recipe, which browned them a bit too fast, the inside not done quite enough. But they were good, spices in the fried onions as well as in the chickpea dough. Definitely going into the rotation. There's another plateful like this for today.

Special request to Oz blogistas, have you seen any of these? 

Yes, I know it's a huge place, and chances are slight, but just wondering what you might be able to tell us about them.

Just home from my much cancelled and reset covid booster, using the other arm from the rsv arm. This might impede my stitching, we'll see. The pharmacist admired my cheerful pink jacket, said she really likes to see color around. Same one who did last week's rsv, bright yellow jacket that time.

Meanwhile I've started on the sashiko surrounds

Happy day everyone, wear cheerful clothes, it's nice for the people sticking needles into you, or something.

A few more flowers

Sandy, sashiko and stumpwork

Sandy, enormous storm system, hurricane-close winds, inches of rain, local tornadoes, broke overhead ten years ago today. 

We've had big storms before and since but the hour upon hour of screaming wind, roofs trying to lift, houses demolished, trees bringing down power lines everywhere, cutting people off for days, roads everywhere blocking evacuation,  that was one I'd like to forget but can't quite. 

Damage is still evident years later. There are still people fighting to get the insurance payout for their demolished homes.

So, thankful for today's calm cool sunshine let's move on to the newly arrived edition of Tatter and a lovely kit and class offering

Tatter is an online magazine about hand stitching and natural fibers. You've seen sashiko stitching in work I've done, a peacefully calming stitching form.

It originally was a way of reinforcing warm outdoor work clothing in layers against the Japanese winter, and of repairing and preserving garments. Done in beautiful formations, it's also a stitching art. 

If you fancy trying a bit of embroidery, it's definitely possible as a starting place. A simple running stitch in a contrasting color, often white on blue fabric. Definitely worth a look. 

This reminds me to take a look at my jacket of many embroideries, a gallery in garment form, to see about finishing the sashiko stitching I marked out 

Also my goldworked signature piece which used to grace my exhibits, in its own frame , and some butterflies. These are goldworked, done as stumpwork, wired so they can be posed.

Tatter always reminds me of something I need to do, along with the energy needed to do it. 

Soon I'll need to organize a way to hang the robe better than on a clothes hanger.

Happy day everyone, do what you feel like doing as well as what you have to do today. If you're lucky, they're the same thing.

Dyeing, sashiko, knitting, Textiles and Tea

Yesterday was a day of feeling tired but doing it anyway. I finished Pair Fifteen, from Batch Four of the Sock Ministry. 

One more pair then this month's parcel goes out. Still some yarn left.

And I drew the sashiko designs on the dyed tee

and stitched them. Wearing it today to the library movies.

On the subject of natural dyeing, a couple of people are interested in knowing more. I wrote about this a lot, way back in my art blog, but here's a note anyway, on a very good reference book I use

with a suggestion from one page. She's got a lot of those " try this" ideas.

Yesterday's Textiles and Tea featured

who's a dynamo of energy and talent, trained as a classical painter, switched to commercial art, that's graphic design, then crocheted and wove and knitted her ideas, often incorporating more than one art form in a garment. 

Here's her idea of a lot of fun waiting to happen

She's written numerous books of designs in all her art forms

She loves pattern as you see, and is fearless in trying new ideas, and teaching them. She's been an online teacher for years, long before the pandemic. Take a look at her website, fun on wheels.

So I leave you, wishing you a happy day everyone!

New clothes for old and Misfits box

Today, before I got up, I was thinking about what to wear, fancied the jacket I'd altered from a sweatshirt, then realized I'd cut it months ago, but not finished the fronts.

So a search for some form of edging ensued, I found this, which a knitting friend tells me is blanket edging satin, works fine for my purpose.

So breakfast was about stitching.

I found I didn't like the top corners of the fronts, so I altered them to work this way, and I like it fine now.

Wore it to my knitting group this afternoon, in fact. I'll see, after I wear it a time or two, if I want to remove the cuffs and edge the sleeves, too, with a narrow band of ribbon.

This is a different project from the denim vest and sashiko stitching, which was yesterday's adventure.

Here's the back (the front will be occupied by pockets with sparkle, no need for more) and the French curves I used to draw around. The pen marks will vanish with heat.

Then I stitched around the shapes, white several-ply thread on the faded denim. It looks subtle and as if it's always been there. I like this effect.

And I really loved working with a hoop again. It's been a while. When I put in the lining, I may run white topstitching in sashiko around the perimeter.  

Food happened, too, fish and chips! 

Cod baked in seasoned panko, roast yellow potato fries, vinegar on. As soon as the curry leaves touched the hot food, the scent was amazing. I also had an amazing burst of energy after this meal. In fact I attribute the sashiko stitching to it.

Today I had another section of cod for lunch, chunked and added to a bowl of curried cauliflower soup, turning it into kind of fish stew, and very good it was.

When I got home from knitting group, fun as always, after returning the orchid to next door and pruning the massive fiddle leaf fig, which was brushing the ceiling, while I was there, my Misfits box arrived.

Just as well, since several items, the salad, blueberries and chocolate chips, were part of the supper I'd planned. To be exact, tuna and chickpea and green salad, heavy fish motif around here, then blueberries and chocolate chips over plain yogurt.

I hope to finish that second sock this weekend, do the finishing, then mail off the current four pairs to Knitting Ministry HQ.

Many marches tomorrow to protest the danger to Roe v Wade. My state has declared we will not work with any demands from non abortion states to penalize anyone coming here from out of state for health care. No extradition, no penalty, no putting people in danger. 

It's ridiculous that a person can be a full citizen in one state and a deprived felon in another for the same actions. People who say the states should decide don't grasp the principle of human rights. Your rights shouldn't depend on your address.

 Fight on, be like Ukraine! Happy day, too. We can do both.

Misfits box and sashiko

Misfits arrived in the evening, too late to blog, so here it is

Salad today. The carrots are sweet to taste, very fresh. And there was a stray red potato which found its way in uninvited.

Today's Tatter is about sashiko, stitching that serves many purposes. It's artwork and is used for repairing old clothes, also for creating warm winter gear by stitching together layers with many rows of fine running stitches.

I tried my hand at it a while ago, using a design the Embroiderers Guild supplied.

This is a book cover, with a brocade fabric. The cover is straight, the picture crooked, sorry, better stitcher than photographer.

This is an embroidery form that can be as simple or as complex as the stitcher wants. When we did sashiko at the Guild, a six year old granddaughter did her own version. She really liked doing it. 

So if you want a project for kids, this is one. Not just for girls, boys like this too.

Meanwhile I need to get on with that book cover and insert pages into it. It's been a while. Or it might become pockets on that Robe of many stitches which you haven't seen for a while, the one with all the embroidered pieces appliqued, and sashiko on the front, more to come there, too.

You can see the design I  drew on the left there, waiting for stitching. There's even a needle stuck in there to remind me.

Maybe I'll take a stitching interlude between sock knitting. The light's better now, friendly to embroidery.

The current sock harvest is here

one more pair and I'll send them off.

Pray for Ukraine, for the spirit of resistance and to preserve their art as well as their people. It's vital to life.