Some fiber work

   I have actually been doing some work with the wheel and the needles - I just never post.   I recently began some socks with a stretch yarn by Patons - Stretch Socks -  that I am really enjoying.  It is easy to use and knits up fairly quickly.

 I started working on them in the car on the way down to Ocean City last week.  This was a miracle in itself, as I usually get carsick if I try to knit in the car.  I always have Dramamine in my bag, but that makes me fall asleep.  The answer seems to be Seabands - I knew they existed, but only recently found them. They are bracelets which have a small bead that pushes into your pressure points on your wrists and helps relive/prevent the nausea. Yeah!
   I have also been dyeing and spinning some Corriedale rovings.  I have been playing with Wilton dyes - the gel type. They are a lot of fun because most of the colours fracture. The pure pigments stay pure - the Red red I used stayed, well, red.  Others like brown and black break into the dye components mixed to get that secondary/tertiary colour.  You get a very freeform, and sometimes unexpected, result, but all had been beautiful.

   To start the process I fill the crock pot about 3/4 full with water and a couple good "glugs" of white vinegar.  I then put the roving in - soak it  for anywhere from twenty minutes to 3 hours - depending on how busy I am that day or what else I get distracted by.  I then scoop a blob of gel dye out and dissolve it in a small jar with hot water in it.   I  pour the  dissolved dye into the  pot, gently moving some of the wool around with a knife/chopstick so some dye goes towards the bottom of the crockpot.

This is black dye fracturing

 Then turn the heat onto low and gently heat until the water/vinegar is clear meaning all the dye has been taken up by the wool.

 After that, some folks turn off the heat and let the wool cool before rinsing. I am not that patient.  I scoop the hot wool out and rinse the wool.  No dye runs out, but it minimizes the vinegar smell.  Hang it to dry and then spin or felt as you wish.

The results of a good sized blob of black dye.  For lighter/softer results, use less dye.

The red Red cam out pure, but irregular, so I poured yellow over the finished product and let that cook in as well - I love the results.

Brown fractures with orange and greens

The resulting coloured  wools spin up beautifully. I am really enjoying this and can't wait to start knitting up some of it.  I really like the brown, since burnt sienna is one of my favorite browns and this has a fair amount of that in the final product.

   The nice thing about this process is it is a safe way to introduce children to the fun of dyeing - the food grade dyes are not going to hurt anything (but their clothes - wear smocks!) and they have the excitement of seeing the coloured break into the base colours. 

It's Back!

 If you remember about a month ago I said we were getting my husband's grandfather's chair reupholstered after months of searching for someone who works in leather.  This was what it looked like then with its cracked leather and vinyl covered cushion.

This is what it looks like now.  The leather is a bit redder than the original, but we discovered that the chair itself is probably a hundred years old, so the leather might have been brighter once upon a time!

    This is what it looked like ten minutes after we got the chair home.  My husband is very happy to have his chair back and to be sitting in it as everyone seems to sit - sideways with one leg flipped over the arm.

Contentment

taking a break

   Popped down to Ocean City, Maryland this week.  All of us had school break at the same time (this has never happened before) so we spent a couple of days at the beach - in winter.  Sounds odd, but it is actually my favorite time of year for the beach; no crowds, no sunburn, just empty sand, seashells and lots of gulls.  We were also able to visit with some of our southerly family.   

     Our hotel had a huge indoor pool, so we swam a bit.  Took a jaunt to Assateague Island to see the wild ponies (as in Misty of Chincoteague fame).  Four of them were kind enough to be grazing by the road side as we drove past, allowing for the necessary photo op.  

  We spent a good deal of time on the beaches, collecting shells, inspecting dead horseshoe crabs, and chasing gulls.  It was a nice break. 

Typical of our kids, two together, and one going his own way!

bundled against the wind

Very cool to look at but potentially too stinky to bring home!

My Maryland boy!

This was NOT allowed to come in the car

Our eldest

Maple Time

  We have now had at least three days the were above freezing in the daylight hours (not necessarily three in a row, but that's okay) with frozen nights.  This means only one thing - time to tap the maple trees.  This is usually a family affair, but I was worried about missing the first sap rising, which is purported to be the sweetest, so I grabbed the tools and got to it.  Here are the necessary tools - very basic, really.

Hammer, hand drill, spiles and hooks

Don't forget the most important piece of equipment - boots!
There is still snow out there!

    I don't know why we do it this way, but when tapping the trees, we never use the battery operated drill, we use an antique hand drill that my husband has had for years. Using the hand drill takes more time, but you have a better feel for the tree with it.
   After heading out to the maples, I looked for the scars from past tapping and made certain I was a good six inches away from the scars.  I drilled out a hole about  and inch or so deep - it is easy to see when you have gone far enough since the wood fragments start looking mushy and wet.

    Next, just tap in the spile and wait for the first drips of sap.

Note the mushy looking wood fragments

Setting the spile

the first drops of sap

No sap buckets? No problem - cut a small opening in a milk jug, then recycle it when you are done.

 Three of the bigger  big maples wearing their late winter accessories

   It being a warmish day - high forties, I  went down to check the bees.  The girls should have been trying to take some cleansing flights, but I saw no activity and was filled with foreboding.  I knocked on the Blue hive, put my ear to it and heard nothing.  I took off the outer  and inner covers and saw dead bees on top.  Plenty of honey still capped, but the girls are definitely dead.  If there are any alive somewhere in the bottom of the hive, they were certainly being silent and still.  I checked the Flower hive and found the same thing  lots of honey, but no activity - no life.  sigh...very disappointing, but it is part of the nature of any agricultural venture that Nature deals your hand from her deck.  

   It seems plausible, considering the cold winter we have had, that even though there was food, the bees could not break cluster to move around to get to it.  Feeling a little let down, I went back up to the house and ordered two more packages of bees.  My local bee guy sells nucs as well, but he makes them from splits of his own hives.  The packages ship from Georgia, I believe.  Considering what I found, I cannot be certain he would have enough live hives to split, so two packages it is. 

     For now, the focus is on the maple trees. In a couple weeks or so we should have enough sap to boil down for syrup. Our sugaring off is as low tech as our tapping, but we have fun. More about that later. 

Have a good night!

Manners - where did they go?

    Fair warning this is a rant.  Can someone please tell me where manners went?  And why??  I am getting so tired of dealing with rude people - more importantly, rude children.  Now, I am not saying my children are perfect or exhibit positive behaviors at all times, they do not. No child does.  But the consistency of bratty, rude children I am seeing is getting greater, and we, as adults, should be ashamed of ourselves!
   Example: recently my son attended a birthday party.  I shall not be more specific since he has attended a few recently, and I am a coward who will not name names!  Anyway, the entire class seemed to be invited.  The birthday child did not acknowledge the presence of many of the children, only a small clique.

Question #1:  If you do not want to play with/ hang out with the others, why invite them? No one says you must like everyone in your class.

When I told my son to get the birthday child's attention and wish them a happy birthday, the child ignored my son, even after he tapped the child on the shoulder three different times (since it was a noisy place where the party was being held).

Question #2:  Did no one teach the child to  just say thank you, even if the person conveying the greeting was not the favorite friend?

At present time, the mountain of gifts were torn through with no idea of who gave what, as the birthday child tore off all cards and cast them aside.  A desperate older sibling or friend was trying to read the cards, but to no avail.  THEN the birthday child COMPLAINED because there was not enough candy in the gifts!

Question #3: How would you feel, birthday child, if someone did this to you after you'd spend time and thought to get a gift?

This is just one incident, there are more - don't get me started on cell phones, texting, etc.  Even VERY BASIC things like saying, "You're welcome, " after a person thanks you, seem to have fallen by the wayside.  Why?  It is so easy to be kind and polite.  A simple thank you, or looking someone in the eyes when they address you can change the energy in a room.
   If anyone can answer my questions, please feel free to post.
Thanks for letting me blast - it will keep me from saying it to the parents of the child, which, as we all know, would be rude.

today

     Finished the balaclava for my youngest son last night. It is HUGE!  He loves it.  I made an adult sized hat because he hates things that are too tight and I figured it will continue to fit for years to come.

 It is so long in the neck that he can fold up the bottom to have a second face/neck covering!

At least he will be warm!

   The birds are very happy that the feeders are filled.  We have hanging feeders, feeders on posts and one on the fence (it can't make up its mind - hee, hee).  This year I hung a suet cage out, and I will do so forever more.  The woodpeckers love it.

  We have always had the occasional one at the feeders, but the suet has attracted two or three at a time, on a daily basis.  I am finding the nuthatches and even the blue jays, whom I adore, are all enjoying the suet.  The cardinals have become very territorial in regard to the fence feeder, and the male will sit on the top of the evergreens and chase away the sparrows and chickadees when the female is eating.  

My ferocious cardinal guarding his territory -
the picture was shot through glass and snow, so a bit fuzzy

None of the smaller birds even try to feed when the male cardinal is at the feeder.  I think he is taking lessons from the jays! 

CAAAAATTTTT

  
Why does this animal think I am her mother?

Why does she feel the need to stand on the keyboard so I cannot type, but she sends emails saying 9999999999999999999 in the subject line?

Why do cats feel that if they are not the center of attention it is their God given right to become so??

Why is it very difficult to stay annoyed at her?

sigh - I guess I am a sucker for a loud purr...