Lawn Renovation!

 There are a fair few empty bare spots on our lawn. I am not sure why though it might be because we don't water enough.  Maybe we drive over the lawn too often? I don't know BUT  several weeks ago I spoke with Chris at BC Mulch and More.  She told me how to fix the lawn when I asked.  This is her suggestion:

Dragon fly exploring the newly laid compost!

1.  Go to Southern States to get some Contractor Mix grass seed.

2.  Use a garden fork to aerate the bare spot.

3  Spread the compost I was purchasing from her over the aerated spot.

4.  Broadcast on the grass seed.

5.  Water several times a day until the seeds are established.

This seemed like an easy project.

Not so!

The first issue was that Southern States only had grass seed in fifty pound bags.  That would have been way overkill.  At least that is my thought.

Southern States was in process of opening bags on pallets from another location and they were going to have and open bag the next day...so I came back.

They did not have a bag open.  The nice boy at the desk suggested I call before coming so I could save my gasoline.  I agreed to that.

A week later I did go back to the store and they still had not opened a bag but did it on the spot and sold me two pounds of seed.

This is the bare spot on the lawn I decided to address first.

Now the real fun began.  As I was aerating the soil it seemed like just about every other poke into the ground hit a stone!  R-r-r-r!!  Well, I continued then spread the bucket of compost and aerated again.  Next I got the seed from the house and broadcast a good bit of it.  Finally I got the hose out and sprayed the  ground in good shape.  As I am writing this I am looking at the clock and need to go and water again.

Here is the lawn with the whole process completed...except for all the watering projects!

Let us all pray that the seed takes hold and the lawn improves.  If it does, there are more bare spots...

DIY Diz!

This week I learned something new:  it is possible to pre-draft wool fiber through a diz!  What is a diz?  It is some small flat or curved "thing" with different sized holes in it which you can use to pull roving through or pull smooth fiber off wool combs to turn it into roving.  I wondered if I could use a large button to pull fiber through.  Yes, you can!

This is a plastic button that is about 1.25" in diameter (is diameter straight across?  I seem to have forgotten some of the fine points of math!). I used a 2.5 mm crochet hook to pull a little end of roving through one of the holes.  I then pulled the fiber with my left hand and held the fiber on the other side with a bit of tension on it to pre-draft the roving and make it easier to spin.  This worked like a charm AND the spinning is much more consistent.  Makes me happy.

This is what the "nest" looks like after dizzing it off:

So light and fluffy!  It makes really nice yarn.  Doesn't this make you want to take up spinning?!!!

NOTE:  If you want to watch me actually using this diz, I do a short demo on The Country Wife From Vermont  YouTube channel which will post on Saturday, 26 July.    This link might take you there, or you can just look for it by name.

This is the address for last week's episode:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzy5keNE5_c

Active Bird Nest In Our Tree!

 This morning Dear One was sitting on the front porch waiting for the police to come check up on us to see if we actually did have burglars or what. (We did not have burglars...someone just forgot to turn off  the security system before opening a door...fortunately the police are very nice about it.  I guess coming to a home where there are no actual crimes being committed is a restful thing for them.)

As I came out to see what was up, he asked if I had seen the birds in the tree. I had not.  I hear them every morning before dawn but figured they were sitting on the eaves of the house.  Not so!  There is a bird's nest in the tree!  I guess they are pretty happy I did not prune that high up in the tree last week!  I guess that makes me feel like a dolt that I did not spot the nest...

Can you see it?

Of course you can!  I love having birds around us.  They counterbalance the "other sounds" we hear from the pond...!

Tour de Fleece: First Completed Bobbin

 Here is the first bobbin of 2-ply yarn I spun for this year's Tour de Fleece.  I am taking things a little easier this year.  Last year I was stressed to the max trying to spin spin spin.  This year I am committed to fifteen minutes a day or at least five yards of Thetford Roving spun by the end of the day.

This yarn was the result of the blending board rolags I made at the first Tour de Fleece event this year.  I have now used up much of this thick and thin yarn on a project which I will unveil next week when it is completed!

The singles were spun on the Ashford Traveler that my angel friend Elsie gave me twenty years ago.  When it was time to ply I used the Ashford eSpinner 3.  That worked so well!  Of course, I only have two bobbins for that eSpinner so I had to first unwind the singles  on the full bobbin.  I am hoping to order another two bobbins from WooLee Winder for this eSpinner.  Then I will be set.  Famous last words, of course!

Beach Boy Skeleton!

 Here he is in all his beachy glory:

Don't you just love his adorable watermelon inner tube floaty thing?!!!  Of course, on principle I am against watermelons because they gag me but, I still think this  is cute.  

The library here in town is going to have a crafternoon tomorrow where they will take colorful buttons and craft a watermelon card.  Pretty cute.

And yes, you are correct, I do not like to eat watermelon.  Every year I try and every year it gags me.  Someone told me I just need to eat a really ripe local watermelon and I would love them.  Not so far...

Tour De Fleece Started on 5 July

 The Columbia Spinning Ladies who took me in last year and have helped me tremendously in improving my spinning have a wonderful plan for Tour de Fleece this year.  Every Saturday in July will have an event/workshop to improve our skills.

On Saturday just past we learned how to create our own self striping yarn!  TJ, our leader, had a big pile of fiber and instructed each of us to take three colors that appealed to us to make the yarn.  I chose red, yellow, and blue.  Not very creative but...that is what I chose.

These are the rolags I made on the Ashford Blending Board I purchased earlier this year.  I had only tried blending on it once or twice before.  This was what I made on Saturday.  The next thing we did was to spin up the rolags into singles.  I did that.  When I came home I spent about ten minutes spinning some white singles to ply with the colorful striped yarn to tone it down a little.  I have not plied yet as there was more red, yellow, and blue to turn into rolags and spin into singles.

Today I finished blending up the remaining red, yellow, and blue fiber into rolags and now have six more rolags to spin plus a big fat "rolag" or maybe better call it a sort of batt.  I will spin that last.  If all goes well I will get this done tomorrow.  The spinning of these rolags, I mean.  I expect that the following day I will get to plying. Hopefully.  I will show the yarn off  after that.  One of the Columbia Spinners has already finished her spin and has knitted it up into a swatch.  It looks so good.  In my heart of hearts I hope to complete my spinning, plying, wet-finishing, skeining up, rolling into a ball, then knitting a swatch by next Saturday.  I will let you know how it goes.  At this point...not too sure that is a reasonable expectation, but I will try.  Will let you know!

The Ashford eSpinner 3 which is upstairs is where I am spinning the white Thetford Roving to use for plying.  Last night I spun up 5 grams of roving.  Today I spun 10 grams of roving.

Easy Felted Basket

 My sister had a birthday almost two months ago. I wanted to send her flowers but it was also Mother's Day time and I expected her boys would have sent flowers. I told her I was going to send her flowers and asked if she wanted them in a basket or in a vase. She said basket!

When I texted her ten days ago to ask her for a florist in her town she did send me the name of a florist  then said she would just as soon have seeds for perennial flowers.  I thought that was a great idea so I went to several stores to see what they had.  I found quite a few seeds for flowers I would love in our yard if I ever was going to become a gardener, which I will not be doing!  Too lazy/busy/too many other things to do, so no flowers here. I cannot even keep the potted plants alive on our porch...!

So I thought I would make her a basket. Since it was almost Independence Day, I thought I would use red, white, and blue yarns.

This is what I did:

Yarn used: 100% natural wool in three colors.

US #15 needles.

Easy Felted Basket (very small)

With one strand red and two strands white—Cast on 41 then knit one round, purl one round, knit one round purl one round then:

Knit 10, cast off 10, knit 10, cast off 10

Knit 10, cast on 10. Knit 10, cast on 10.

Knit for about 4 more inches.

Drop red yarn and join blue yarn. Knit four or more inches from cast on.

Purl one round.

K4, K2tog around.

Knit one round.

K3, K2tog around.

Knit one round.

K2, K2tog around.

Knit one round.

K1, K2tog around.

Knit one round.

K2tog around.

Break yarn leaving a long tail then weave through all stitches and fasten off securely.

Putting in washing machine with other items and using hot water and most agitation available. 

Remove from washer and shake to your satisfaction then let dry completely.  Pull into shape then stuff a small kitchen towel inside to help the basket hold its round shape while drying.

_____________________

Over the past few months we have received mailings, many in small boxes. One box I absolutely adored.  It was probably 3" or maybe 4" cubed. So cute.  Well, I put some red, white, and blue tissue paper inside then smushed in the little basket and the packets of seeds.  I used heavy duty shipping tape to close it up.  

Because I was so unwise to do this kind of packing job, I have decided to try again and make another basket, this time a little larger and also perhaps a rectangular one. (I have to finish a couple of knitting projects with time constraints first, though....) ALSO I will see if I can find some fragrant perennial seeds.  If anyone has any suggestions on what to get, please tell me.  Also tell me what seed-seller to go to for the purchases.  Many thanks!

Uncle "Skeleton" Sam!

 Our neighbors have scored again with dressing their skeleton for a holiday:

My opinion:  They do a great job in making the neighborhood more interesting.  I look forward to every new month or holiday to see what they will come up with next!  Love it.

Solar Dyeing Wool Report!

 On Friday of Memorial Day Weekend 2025 I put three jars on the deck railing with a little over ten grams of combed top of un-named breed of wool in for solar dyeing.  In one jar were avocado pits and peels.  The second jar had red onion skins, a lot of tiny ones that I found in the bottom of a potato bin at Aldi!  The third jar had four hibiscus herbal tea bags--a bit of a waste of good tea, but!  The jars were all filled with water to almost the top and some plastic stuffed in on top to submerge the wool in the water and dye materials.

Four weeks later I have opened the jars, emptied everything into the 13-quart stainless steel bowl my parents gave us for a wedding gift (our mother gave one to each of my siblings who all married in the same twelve months period all those years ago!) I then rinsed the wool and set it to drying.

This is what we have:

The white fiber on top is where we started.  Sample number one under the white is the avocado solar dye.  It actually did take up some color.   Sample number two is the red onion dye.  Sample number three is the hibiscus tea.  That gave the most color.

So-for an experiment which held high hopes but not much in the line of expectations, I am pretty happy!  

This weekend the Tour de Fleece starts.  One of goals I have for Tour de Fleece is to card each of these samples then spin them into a tiny skein of yarn then knit a sample and see what we have.  Yay for Tour de Fleece and goals!

The wonderful Columbia Spinners who have accepted me into their midst have a great plan for every Saturday during TdF for learning new skills.  During all the other days I am hoping to really improve my spinning to create a more consistent yarn so it will actually be useful for knitting.

Last year's Tour de Fleece  product yarn is not yet all used up. I did knit a shawl with most of it that initially I did not like at all.  Now, months after the end of the Spin It To Knit It Along, I am feeling somewhat better about it.  The remaining yarn from last year is now in the back of my mind for using to weave a shawl sometime this year.  We shall see.

It is Fireworks Season! Again!!

Multiple times during the year since we have moved to South Carolina, we have seen many many little mobile fireworks stores.  They are everywhere!!  They moved in nearly a month ago.  Again.

Here is one of them:

This happens to be the back of the fireworks trailer that is in the Neighborhood Walmart parking lot.  If you need any pyrotechnics, come on down!!!

Any occasion seems to be the time for fireworks here.  A few times in the past few months we have been sitting in our upstairs tv room and have first heard, then seen, fireworks across the pond from us.  This past weekend we heard then Dear One stepped to the front window so see them two streets over from us. I have decided that on Independence Day I will just lie in bed having opened the blinds and just watch from the bug-free convenience of our comfy bed!

May you all have a safe and happy Independence Day!

Mini Yankee Doodle Chicklet!

Ginger Balch at In Sheep's Clothing, a yarn shop in Torrington, Connecticut, has come up with another darling chicken/chicklet pattern!  I purchased the kit two weeks ago and had it in hand within a week.  This is what I made:

 She included everything in the kit but I thought I needed a "Liberty Bell" instead of the little Christmas bells she included. I found them online for not very much money.  I am so happy how it turned out though the next one I make I will insert a tiny bit of stuffing inside to make the chicklet poof out a bit.

It was on my mind to make a ton of these and hand them out to friends BUT common sense came to me. I already have **two projects with time crunches so...maybe for next year if anyone would like a Mini Yankee Doodle Chicklet...but you have to let me know so I can put it on a list!

**The two projects with end dates are The Woolly Thistle Vest Knit A Long which ends early to mid July and the Hoadie's Sweet Vanilla Sock Test Knit which ends 12 July.  Both of those dates are coming right up.  The socks are toe up socks.  I love them. They fit really well.  I am ready to start the legs which will only be about four inches, maybe five.  Since I wear "combat boots" so I can walk, I need the cuff of the sock to come up a few inches above the top of the boot.  We shall see how far I go!

The Woolly Thistle Vest KAL is more taxing as the vest has to cover a lot more territory. I am at the point of dividing for the armholes/front/back.  I plan to steek for the armholes and for the sort of scoop neckline.  Since I am creating this pattern myself there is no guarantee that it will be any good at all...hoping for the best.

DIY Tensioning Device For Rigid Heddle Loom!

 Today I cut four pieces of PVC pipe to use as a tensioning device along with two pick sticks and lots of flat rubber bands for the 16” Ashford Rigid Heddle loom. It worked!

Lilac GreenStalk Vertical Planter: Set Up, Filled, Planted

 Before going to the FamilySearch Center this morning I put the wheels on the swirly base for the lilac-colored GreenStalk Vertical planter.  Of course I did not see the instructions, I just followed someone who showed what to do on YouTube.  Sadly that person did not mention staggering the locking wheels and i did not notice the difference so all three locking wheels are on one side.  Oh well.  It will probably be okay, right!?

 When I returned home from the FSC I mixed together the organic potting mix with some wonderful compost from BC Mulch and More.  While there I was instructed on how to get our lawn to look like a lawn instead of a back lot.  I hope to get started on that soonish.  Must speak to dear neighbor first.

After mixing the soil I filled the containers, placed the containers and their individual watering containers on top of each other then finally planted 2 Contender string beans in 12 holes and planted two zucchini plants and four yellow marigolds the latter six in the bottom layer.  I hope to plant some flowers or maybe some lettuce or more kale in the top layer.  Just not today.

After completing this job I picked the blueberries which really were ripe this time.  The two Brightwell plans produced best…and taste delicious.

First Time Warping Rigid Heddle Loom For Kitchen Towels

 For some time I have planned to weave kitchen towels.  Yesterday I got step one finished.

Today I finished it up...a long process.  If you are a rigid heddle loom weaver you can see that there are some problems...but I am hoping for the best anyway!

The yarn is Maurice Brassard 8/4 cotton.  The loom is a 32" Ashford Rigid Heddle Loom.  I have warped 220 ends and plan to weave at 10 ends per inch.  I am trying a houndstooth plus some plain weave and some stripes. I hope it won't be ghastly!  We shall see.

Kale! Quite a Few Varieties...

 A couple of months ago I was in a store where seeds were sold.  I saw a packet that had multiple kale varieties.  I hoped I would have some curly kale and some dinosaur kale.

This was our kale meal for tonight...the first time I have harvested from the GreenStalk.  Last year the bugs got the kale.  Miserable things!  There are at least five different kale varieties in this dish...one of which is the looked-for dinosaur kale but NOT the curly kale.  I might plant a few more seeds later in the season and see if I get curly kale.  Either way, this was a delightful mess of cooked kale for supper!  At least I for one enjoyed it!

The second harvest of wax beans was on the table for supper, as well.  I cooked both the kale and the beans in the 3-quart Instant Pot.  It appears as if that piece of equipment is on its way out.  Last week, for no reason I could ascertain, the top black knob "blew" twice.  I washed everything and put in a new gasket.  Today the IP did not come up to pressure.  I may do some online investigation to see if I can figure it out.  If I cannot, I will say goodbye to this one.  And probably not replace since we have an 8-quart plus a 6-quart Max that zi use for pressure canning leftovers.  That works so good for us since we can can in pint jars, four at a time.  Works great.

So: solicitation for help:  has anyone had Instant Pot problems they were able to fix? I would love to know what you did.  Many thanks.

Another Small But Satisfyling Harvest!

 Here is another photo of the back deck harvest 2025.

They are called Sun (Something), though not Sun Gold. I have not been able to find those here.  The harvested tomatoes have all been consumed.  I hope there will be a few more.

When I purchased the plant it said the variety was very productive.  I guess that meant when it was planted in the ground.  It is in a pretty good-sized pot on the deck.  Maybe not enough dirt.  

If someone has suggestions for container planting for maximum harvest, I would love your suggestions.  Still, I am pretty happy.  I really cannot eat as many fresh tomatoes as I would like to. Back in the old days many years ago I ate tons of them every day...four, five, six full-sized tomatoes. Yummy!  Developed skin allergies and then intestinal allergy SO...I don't need more of that kind of thing. The medicine does enough unpleasantness without my help.  It is sad, though...

First Blueberry Harvest!

 Last week we had our first blueberry harvest which made us very happy!

Yes, it is a small bowl and there are not very many berries.  And yes, they are not as sweet as we hoped for BUT that is because in retrospect, they were not really ripe.  They just looked blue in comparison to the other berries.  We will check again later this week and hope for sweeter berries.

Wax Beans Ready To Pick

 It is great that these beans are ready to eat.  Of course,  there are only about ten beans, but Dear One will be happy when I pick them and cook them!

Don't they look yummy!  They are growing in the GreenStalk Vertical Planter.  I just ordered a lilac colored planter to put some flower into.  I think.  The planter we already have has the string beans, basil, strawberries, kale, and volunteer marigolds growing. I will use the marigolds for wool dyeing since I loved the gentle yellow color last year.

The GreenStalk people have added Lemon Yellow and Blueberry color to their line-up of planters!!!

Woven Placemats Completed

 A friend's daughter is now married.  When I learned of the upcoming nuptials I decided to weave some placemats for the young people.  Well, they are done so I guess I shall share the details.

The yarn used was Knit Picks Dishie yarn in Azure and Linen, I think.  At least that is what I put in the Ravelry page. 

The Ashford 16" rigid heddle loom with the 7.5 dent heddle is the loom I used.  I warped the whole 16" width.  I do not remember what the length was that I used for the warp length.  The plan was to weave six placemats plus the loom waste, whatever that length was.

The striped mats are for the wedding gift, mainly because the gingham mats have too many problems with them.

The last two times I have woven a project I have been inclined to spend more time weaving. I do actually have a few projects in mind!   We shall see...Weaving is actually easier on the hands than knitting!

Solar Dyeing Experiments Starting!

 One night I was up knitting and happened to see a solar dyeing video.  Then another and another.  I decided it was time to try it, since I have planned to do it for ages.

On the left is hibiscus tea bags which I think will give a really deep pink since the water is already pink after one hour!  The middle jar is avocado pits and peels.  The one on the right is red onion skins.  I am looking forward to seeing how they do.  I will need to wait 3 or more weeks. I can be that patient.  I think!  I put 11, 12, and 13 grams of unnamed wool fiber into the jars.  The thought was that once they are dyed I can spin them into striped yarn.  Of course, it will be a very short strand of yarn but it will make me happy.

Now I need to check them every Saturday, open the jar, add in more water if needed, then close up the jar again. I am hoping for no mold problems...

On the topic of natural dyeing...the lichen a dear friend gave me is now being "processed"...which means I have started removing the lichen from the sticks she picked up from her lawn after a wind storm.  I am thinking now that there may be plenty of lichen to do the "real lichen dye" process, ie filling a glass jar full of lichen, filling it half full with water then another half full of ammonia and letting it sit 3-6 months.  That means I should have purple dye this fall!  I really look forward to that.  This time I won't bring the dye bath to a boil...only a simmer.  The last time that heat killed the color.  So sad.

PS. I guess I should have completely removed the labels from the jars.  It has rained a good deal the last two days so perhaps tomorrow I will see if the rain has affected the labels to make them easier to remove then remove them.  Does anyone have any suggestions about how to completely remove labels?  Many thanks.

Memorial Day Skeleton

 Here is the skeleton clothed for Memorial Day.  I appreciate these people who take pride in our servicemen and women and share their feelings.

Here is hoping you had a safe and happy day remembering those who served from your own family.

Alligator Barrier Seems To Be Coming Down...

When I came home from a very long extra shift at the FamilySearch Center today Dear One told me I should look out the window.   This is what I saw:

 

What you are seeing is the pond clearly in view now.

The lovely neighbors on our left side have cleared out most of the brush behind their house.  I won't show you our back line!  I have always been so happy to have quite a hedge of brush and crape myrtle trees between our lawn and the pond where at least two alligators live.

It will be interesting to see what develops from now.  I sincerely hope the alligators do not feel that they can now come racing up the bank from the pond and onto the lawn.  I have scary dreams about this happening.

Swatching For A Mitered Square Blanket

 The blanket I am currently working on, and hope to finish in the next week, is making me want to get started on a mitered square blanket.  I have watched Cheryl Brunette's mitered square afghan YouTube videos multiple times and think now might be the time to get started.  This is the year I have mentioned for using up all the yarn so a good time to get rolling on mitered squares.  I am making progress on the using it up project: the acrylic is almost half gone.  The wool yarn, fabric, and fiber is another story altogether...!

Since I definitely buy into the idea of knitting swatches before knitting a big project, I thought I would make some swatches for this blanket and get an idea of what I like and what I don't like.

These four swatches taught me things I wanted to know.  The upper left swatch is knitted with an odd number of stitches...in this case 31 stitches.  This necessitates, at least for me, moving stitch markers.  It is a nice-looking block with a nice definite diagonal line across the front of the square.

The rest of the swatches are even numbers of stitches--30 stitches here, and uses one stitch marker in the middle.  The bottom left swatch was knit to two stitches before the marker then SSK was done, the marker moved and a K2Tog knitted then finished the row.

The bottom right swatch was knit the same except that I switched the SSK and K2Tog so...knit to two stitches before the marker then K2Tog, slip marker, then SSK.  I liked the look of this better than the opposite one.

These first three swatches used the cable cast on.  I did not really like how it looked so the upper right swatch was cast on using the German Twisted Cast On, 30 stitches with marker between stitch 15 and stitch 16, then K2Tog, slip marker, SSK, knit to end of row.  All the alternate rows on all of the swatches were plain knitting.

As far as I am concerned, the upper right swatch is the one I will use.  

OH, BIG FORGET!  The first stitch of every row was slipped purlwise with yarn in front and the last stitch on every row was knit through the back loop.  This gives a beautiful chain for picking up when it is time to add in the next square.  

There are many videos for making mitered square blankets/afghans.  I suggest watching a few of them, then make your own swatches to see what you like.  I used the same yarn and the same needles so I could really tell. In this case it was I Love This Yarn and US 8 needles.  I think it is entirely satisfactory.  I will probably watch Cheryl Brunette again and follow her number of stitches to cast on since I like the idea of multiple size squares in the same blanket.  I just think I will use these easy to follow decreases because the stitch marker stays in the same place all the time so no real thinking is involved.

Please feel free to comment on my decision.  I might still change my mind since I am not ready to start...

Magic Coaster! Very Easy Crochet Project

 This week our daughter sent me a video on making Magic Potholders.  The YouTuber is Play Hooky With Me.  I decided to give it a try with some scrap yarn that was just sitting beside my handwork chair waiting to be used up.  This photo showed what happened!  It only took a couple of hours, maybe. I did not keep track but I did complete it before bed that day.

The yarn I used was I Love This Cotton.  It was crocheted with a 3.5 mm crochet hook. 

I do not know if anyone can see my page on Ravelry, but if you can, here is the link. I know I can see it but it is possible that if you don't have a Ravelry login, you might not be able to see it.  If you don't have a login,  it is totally Free.  I started in 2007 with an eye to keeping my knitting needles organized and also my yarn acquisitions.  That did not last...however, that is one of the things I intend to do...at least enter all my knitting needles so I will stop buying more....If I already have the size I don't really need another set, do I?!

Anyway, I would appreciate it if someone who does not already have a Ravelry account would go to that link and see if they can get to the page.  Many thanks.

Barley Bread?

 A dear friend leaving the area gifted us a big bucket of barley. We have made barley soup several times. Today I made barley bread.  It looks ugly but turned out really well…nice and soft!

Here it is. More or less!

I did not see the metal bread tins so I used the silicon pans.   They did work, just not well.  

The recipe was called “Best Barley Bread”.  I just don’t seem to have saved it in Notes.  I will post it when I find it.

Growing Things On A Rainy Day!

 It has been more than a week since I have taken the time to write.  It has been a very busy time.  

Today is a lovely rainy day.  I just took this photo of the GreenStalk vertical garden on the back deck.  I love the lilac colored planter.  I suggested to Dear One that it might be a great spring gift but then I thought about the fact that I have not really used the produce from the last seasons so I guess I will see if I can make one GreenStalk successful then add a lilac one next year....

 

There we go, though I have absolutely no idea why there is no background.  I don't really mind since there is a lot of "stuff" on the deck, though the picture I actually thought I was going had a lovely view of the rain-wetted decking.  Oh, well.

Here is the GreenStalk with wax beans looking good; some basil really going to town. The strawberry plants on the top layer are doing well, too.

There are some tiny kale plants in the second layer but they are totally invisible here.  There are very sturdy marigolds that are volunteers from last year, too.  They look promising.  You can just barely see a few green leaves on the right side of the second layer.

When I went out to investigate the garden this afternoon I noticed that the deck railing planter where I had started a packet of kale seeds earlier had been devastated...probably by the squirrels that visit from time to time to see if they can pick up something just lying around for them to steal.  Those hummers.  Well, as Alissa says, "Squirrels need to eat, too."  Yes. they do.  I am so sorry they scarfed down the last of the kale seedlings, though.  I intended to transplant them shortly.

Today I have been wondering how to use the basil this year.  Does anyone have any suggestions?

A Prior Weaving Project

 Here is a placemat I wove last year using I Love This Cotton. I really do love this cotton yarn for placemats on our rigid heddle loom. Three color plain weave.

This still brings me joy every time I put this on the table…

Another Wall Quote

 Today I visited a dear lady and saw this quote on her wall which she kindly allowed me to photograph:

I love it!  I would never say "All work and no play", either.  I hope everyone reading this takes time for some play every day.  I don't mean spend ALL your time playing but a little play keeps the spirit happy.

Every Day Is A Happy Day

 

Yesterday when I got home from a doctor appointment there was a beautiful birthday bouquet waiting for me from my angel sister. I love these flowers. It is a bit of a funky view of the bouquet but you can see how beautiful they are.

Today the sun is shining.  The lawnmower man is going to arrive soon.  We get to go see the doctor today for Dear One.  I like to go because if tattling is needed, I can do it!  I think we all have times when we don't want to spill the beans entirely to the doctor because of potential unpleasantness, but... the doctor cannot be useful if she does not know the whole story...thus, I am accompanying!

Granny Squares Project

 This weekend I started crocheting granny squares for the first time in ages. Well, I have crocheted a few grannies in past months but only as samples. Now I am crocheting for a project. I hope to get all the squares crocheted this week then join them into a small blanket. We shall see how this goes…

The thing I am doing differently this time is that as soon as the crocheting is completed I am sewing in the ends.  This will make for a quicker end to the project.

If you would like to see the specifics you could go to:

Thecountrywife.blogspot.com

There you can see all the projects I am working on and the ones I have finished.

Large Potholder Loom With Wool Loops

 Recently I foolishly purchased another loom...a large (10.5" square loom by Harrisville Designs) potholder loom.  I had seen that it was possible to find wool loops, which seemed like a good idea at the time.  Immediately I warped up the first batch of loops and have been using the pot mat.  It works really well.

Yesterday I looped up the loom for the second mat.  Sadly there were six loops missing.  I did contact the seller and was assured they would add some loops to the mail asap.  I look forward to them arriving soon.

Warping Day, And The End Of A Project!

 This morning I began another project to use up lots of yarn.  I thought!  I found three full skeins of I Love This Yarn from Hobby Lobby in Navy, Medium Mossy Green, and Linen.  Well, those might not be the actual names but that is the closest colors I can suggest.

The first order of the day was to empty the kitchen island and scrub it immaculately then measure its length. I thought it was 60" long.  Turns out the creators of the island skimped on the length by three inches.  Makes me mad if I think about it, but it works so, bucking up here at this late date!

Now came the warping of the 32" Ashford rigid heddle loom.  The plan was to make a baby blanket of about 30" by 45".  I thought I would use the random 2, 4, 6, 8 warping thread pattern.  Which to me meant to start on the two selvedges with 8 ends navy then 2, 4, 6, or 8 white threads, then the same with the green then back to navy and green.  So I followed that plan.  

In the meantime since the last time I warped the loom I have learned that it is a good idea to have each end thread be in the holes not the slots.  This is what I did.

Another tip from a weaver was to take bulky weight yarn and double it over, keeping a loop at the left end of the loom, and using it that way for packing the end of the yarn by the apron rod.  I did that, too, and it seemed like such a great idea.  When the weaving is done it will be so easy to pull out those threads. And keep them for next weave...

Now it was on to the weaving.  I wove a little less than two inches then did the hemstitching then kept on  weaving.  By the time I had woven 6-7 inches I knew absolutely that I was not going to use this yarn to make a baby blanket. At least not a woven blanket. Sad.  Oh well.  Good to learn it now.  

This yarn was just too nasty for weaving though perfectly fine for washable knitting.  I will now take the yarn off the loom and begin a knitting project. Oh well, again.

Here is the loom all warped up.  Well, at least the first part of the warping process is done anyway.  Next I had to wind on with paper separators.  That worked just fine.

Here you can see the shuttle ready to weave.  You can also see that the heddle has been threaded, the yarn tied onto the apron rod and the red packing yarn installed.  The first inch-plus weaving is done and you can see the hemstitching is in process.

Here you can see the icky weaving and the hohum pattern.  Everything I have woven before was cotton that had such a nice hand feel to it.  Except that one shawl that was woven with bulky weight yarn.  Too bad.

Quick Carrot Pineapple Juice

 Today I tried a new-to-us recipe in the VitaMix.  The recipe comes from BlendingForGood.com.

Place ingredients in blender jar in order listed:

1.5 cups water
1.5 cups baby carrots
3 cups chopped fresh pineapple including central part
Thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger
1 thick slice fresh lemon, skin included
2.5 cups ice cubes.

Blend for 60 seconds then serve in tall glasses.

It is pretty good.  It is not sweet.

Quotation in a Wall

 Today was bloodwork day. I snapped this photo of the wall.  Well, three times I tried moving the photo here but it would not work. Here is the quote:

NOTE TO SELF

Your feelings are valid.

Your boundaries are important.

You are doing the best you can.

It is okay to ask for help.

You are worthy and lovable.

You are allowed to say no.

You are capable of amazing things.

It’s okay to start over and try again.

And I will add my own:

You are loved.

How I love our family, our friends, and all the kind people who read this blog and make sweet comments. 

❤️🦋🌺❤️

The Spring Skeleton

 Just love these creative neighbors:

This is the fifth iteration of this skeleton.

Family Friday: An Old Photo

Earlier this week Dear One and I were talking about putting pictures into the Memories section of FamilySearch.org which is a wonderful huge online family tree where everyone is invited to connect their family and ancestors for free.  Always free.  Besides the tree there are many databases and records freely available to all to assist in your family history research. 

One of the best parts of the FamilySearch.org tree is the ability to share family photos, documents, recipes, audio files on Memories.  Once the files are uploaded they are safe and available for all to enjoy.  If there are living people in photographs, users are encouraged to keep the photos private rather than public.

Here is a photo Dear One showed me this week.  When we went to the local FamilySearch Center we immediately went to the copier/printer and accessed the option of "Scan To FamilySearch" so we could put the photo on the printer glass, signed in with our FamilySearch account username and password then scanned the item directly to our FamilySearch account Memories section.  So great. So easy. Free for anyone.  If our small local FamilySearch Center has this option, I expect most if not all FamilySearch Centers also have this option.

Here is the photo we put up:

This is a picture of Dear One's mother with her big brother right behind her. Can you tell what her brother is doing?!!

Strawberries Growing On The Deck...

 A couple of weeks ago when at Lowes I saw a rich-looking strawberry plant.  I grabbed it up, took it home and put it on the shelf in the kitchen.  For several days.  Eventually I planted it in the green garden tower whose name escapes me at the moment.  And left it for two days.  When I got back I noted that it was very very wimpy looking so I doused it in water. I had forgotten that you need to water things every day when their foundation is plastic.

The strawberry blossom had bitten the dust by the time I watered it and the three runners had been burned to a crisp. I apologized to the  dear little plant and watered it. And have watered it again and again.  Here she is:

This makes me much happier.  Since the strawberry farms are in full picking mode, I am hoping this little guy recovers enough that we can have one or two berries from our own deck.  If we play our cards right and the plant puts out runners....well, maybe more than one or two berries.

OH-- it is a GreenStalk garden tower....a vertical garden and it works great as long as we water and fertilize the water occasionally.  If you follow the link you will see they have pink towers and blue towers.  Boy, would I like one of each!  Don't you think they are beautiful?!!  I do.  Not a lot of room on our deck for more though.  At least not in Dear One's opinion...even though I removed the huge old plastic "tree" planters we used for tomatoes and zucchini last year.

Popovers Are Swell!

Last week my sister sent me her recipe for popovers.  Popovers were a real treat from out childhood.  She made a quadruple batch for a "Family Home Evening" she and her husband host every week.  This morning I tried the recipe, but only a single batch for us.

They came out perfectly:  nice and crisp on the outside and soft on the inside ready for a nice spoon of jam.

Popovers

1 cup bread flour
1 cup warmish milk
2 warmed up eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend well--at least 30 seconds.  

Grease a popover tin or muffin tin.  Fill wells one-half full then bake for 20 minutes then reduce temperature to 350 degrees F. for an additional 20 minutes.

Do Not Open Oven Door until baking is complete unless you want your popovers to collapse and be unpleasant.

We let our popovers cool for about 10 minutes before pulling out of the tin.  Raspberry jam was so good dolloped inside, plus a little butter.  

NOTE: If you do not have bread flour use all-purpose flour with one Tablespoon of vital wheat gluten mixed in.

The Country Wife From Vermont--New YouTube Channel Name!

 In two weeks I have gone from a YouTube watcher to a YouTube channel creator!  Funny... And I just changed the name of the channel to The Country Wife From Vermont so it is not confused with the play by W. W. which seems like not the thing at all. I started reading a summary of that play and instantly wanted to be totally disassociated with that.  Not that I was associated with it but when I told people the channel was The Country Wife, that play is the only thing that came up...

This is a late-at-night post to begin a new week with up-to-date news.  Everyone is welcome to view the channel and encouraged to subscribe and comment.  I truly hope this channel will be useful to anyone who watches.  I hope we can all make improvements in our lives and are willing to share how they are progressing. 

 I hope the channel helps me, (and you, too!) keep my nose to the grindstone as far as home and life organization and getting my health together.

Do good.  Be good.  Do it now!

XOXOX

Snapdragons, Maybe?

 Today we were at the temple and saw these beautiful flowers out front.  Are they snapdragons?  Thanks for helping me identify them.

Swatching For Double Knit Button Band! Very Fun!

The sweater I am working on for the Knits That Fit course by Tonia of Nerdy Knitting calls for a ribbed button band.  I don’t want to do that. A year ago I saw a sweater with a double knit button band. I just had to knit that sweater so I purchased the pattern for a chunk of change. I then saw it was knitted with fingering weight yarn. That would take me about six years to knit in my size…so I scrapped that idea. Every pattern I have seen with a double knit button band has a V-neck. I like that neckline for shirts but I want a crew neck in a sweater to keep warm. I wondered if I could knit a double knit band on this crew neck sweater so I made a swatch!

Here is the cute little crew neck sweater swatch with a double knit button band…knit with two different-sized buttonholes so I could decide which size buttons to use…not these specific buttons but these sized buttons. Dear One liked the size of the yellow button. What do you think?

The steek went fine but I used the crochet plan for reinforcing the steek. I did not like that method nor the leftover stitches which made a bulky mess. In class tonight Tonia shared that she had needle felted her steek swatch and loved the simplicity of this method and the results. I have a good mind to make another swatch and steek with needle felting, though I totally can take her word for it…

Ran Out Of Yarn—If You Can Believe It!

 Today I went to the eye doctor. Love her and nice people there but it is always a significant amount of time invested. I ALWAYS take knitting with me so I don’t get into mischief. I specifically put the purple shawl in the car to work on and brought it into the office with me. After paying the upfront costs I went into the waiting room and pulled out the shawl. I was less than one row across when I ran out of the lavender yarn! 

So annoying since I expected a long wait. All of a sudden I remembered the sock project in the car so I excused myself, went to the car, retrieved the sock bag, returned to my seat and proceeded to knit for another five or six rounds before I was called.

As I was sitting there knitting I began a big fight with myself about buying another ball of lavender instead of only using what yarn I had at home. Checking my calendar I saw that this is the Hobby Lobby yarn sale week, so I lost the fight. I went to Hobby Lobby and bought one ball of  lavender yarn. I will use that up and call the shawl big enough. The second strand will be a mystery…! I really won’t buy any more yarn for this project. I will just slide in partial balls of yarn already in my collection.

First Strswberries of the season!

 Dear One brought this lovely box of strawberries home today!  I have eaten four so far. I was actually planning on eating strawberries for supper. He suggested pizza…

We did not have any ingredients except for crust so off to Food Lion I went.  Came home with pizza plus!!! He is happily munching Chester’s Chili Cheese Fries, some sort of chip-like thing. He will have eaten all his calories before he even gets to the pizza, I think.

First Solar Dyeing Project!

 Just finished, more or less, the first solar dyeing I have done!  I am thrilled.  I skeined up a ball of Patons Classic Wool and tied it in four places.  In a quart Ball jar with lid I placed one cup tap water and 1 Tablespoon of vinegar and stirred well. Next I added four or five drops of blue gel food coloring and stirred well.

Adding about half of the damp yarn I dropped on four drops of yellow food color then four drops of red food color then shoved in the last of the yarn.

After carefully filling the jar with water I put on the cover then shook the jar to make sure there was water everywhere.

Next step was to put the jar on the back deck railing in the sun for three days.  I brought it in every night so it would not chill down too much.  Heat is a big part of solar dyeing. I am thinking this summer will be a great time to solar dye!!!

This morning I emptied the jar in the sink and found that the dye bath was entirely clear! That is good news. I then washed the yarn and hung it to dry.   

Here the yarn has just been rinsed.

The yarn is hanging to dry.

I will be happy to see what happens when I knit it into something.  I wonder what I should knit...any ideas?