well begun, maybe half done?

in which our plucky heroine transmogrifies cardboard...

It is very frustrating that canning jars have for many years been no longer sold neatly enclosed in cardboard boxes, but rather in a cardboard tray wrapped in plastic. Cheaper for the manufacturers, but less useful for ongoing storage. Not having great luck with even sourcing appropriately sized plain boxes, since even the purpose-made storage is designed more for quarts and pints, rather than my preferred half and quarter pint jars...

For at least some sizes of empty jars, they fit fairly neatly into the produce boxes, with the only issue being the butt-ugly pink/yellow/black exterior printing. So, taking Karen's suggestion as inspiration, I've been turning the cartons inside out, to show a plain kraft paper exterior. There still needs to be some additional reinforcement, and probably cardboard box lids as well, but there are now four partially completed shallow boxes, just right for four dozen jars to live under the kitchen sideboard and bakers rack, instead of scattered on the countertop and worktable. 

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>

We've had few days respite from the intensity of summer, with cool grey mornings and even a day with actual rain, but the weekend is forecast to necessitate an "Extreme Heat Watch", though thankfully with nighttime bringing at least some cooler air... Time to become crepuscular again.

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This is interesting, and I plan to watch the various episodes as time allows: "Patternmaking in Public Places"

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While talking to Leslie yesterday, we somehow got on the topic of tetra-pak drypoint printing, and it seems to me that would be both a fun art form to try, and something that could be used for yet more of the tiny Advent Swap treats. I've been wanting to try out the little "Open Press Project" printing press, and have an assortment of pieces of tetra-pak saved from former containers of broth. There is even a jar of the right sort of ink that was a sample/gift from the art store a while back. Here are a few links:
Tetra-Pak drypoint tutorial , tutorial (what Canson paper to use), and information from the Open Press Project on juice box printing...

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August SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	-	tiger block	greenwaste bin
2	-	bright rayon top width	recycle bin
3	-	-	recycle bin
4	-	-	-
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
- experimental chicken with cashews: "edible though not choice"
- Ursel has an Oxo salad spinner she doesn't use and will give to me
- reconfiguring produce boxes to store canning jars

Time of Isolation - Day 1844

Monday miscellany

in which our plucky heroine remembers that a hole is to dig...

Today, went and did outdoor/yard tasks first, once awake and before breakfast. There is much research that getting outdoor light into eyeballs first thing when starting the day is helpful for better sleep hygiene and sleep/wake cycle. Actually doing this has been an unrealised goal of mine for ages. It was less awful than expected, better for mental health than screen time and shall work on turning it into a daily habit.

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~ informative, not failure ~

The secondary concept for this project was as "a blue print on a yellow background", but the next proof (once carving and detailing the print block finished) was unsuccessful. My blue ink is translucent, I discovered, yielding green-on-yellow instead. While at first impression it felt like failure, further thought shifted to "what did I learn here"... a much healthier point of view. to find a place where the desire to try is stronger than the fear of failing

It is very much the maker experience that not everything attempted works out as initially hoped. I'd never used the blue ink before. Indeed, straight out of the tube it was more of a cyan color, and even with some violet ink mixed in, it didn't turn really blue. I shall need want to do more experimenting with both ink color mixtures and possibly a different brand of ink, but in the meantime, this print must needs remain instead as a counter-changed black and white design, as my initial concept called for.

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So what did our plucky heroine actually do in the yard and garden this morning: the biggest thing was to empty and move the large blue planters (made from a 55 gallon barrel cut into two halves). Dug out the weeds and dumped into compost, dug out the dirt and added to raised bed, then moved the planters away from where I want the FoT tree planted. I also picked up and stacked the random empty pots. And removed the entire temporary backyard clothesline so no one gets tangled in it. (I'm short, most folks less so) Finally I repotted the baby rhubarb into a larger and deeper pot, so it can continue to expand it's roots... eventual plan is to put it in the ground.

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As the tiny crock pot was busy turning the corned beef into dinner, I also cooked a batch of quince pieces on the simmer burner. Once those were well softened and turning pink, they were mashed to a rough puree, measured out in 1 cup increments and put in the freezer, ready to turn into several batches of fruit bread. The banana bread recipe from my childhood works just as well with other fruit puree, as I have made it with persimmon pulp and with various sorts of squash puree. Banana is so strongly flavored that it needs no additional spices, but most of the others get some form of poudre douce (usually cinnamon and nutmeg, those being my favorites, sometimes ginger, and never cloves, because I don't want food that makes my mouth numb)  ancestral banana bread recipe

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March SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	6 dozen cookies	grey pinafore	art exchange
2	lino block carved	pruned marjoram	many dead weeds
3	tiny faux patchwork quilt	slipper soles	recycle bin
4	quince pie	bicycle derailleur	yard waste bin
5	multiple lino proofs	"a-y-a" replaced	recycle bin
6	x	worm bin bedding	recycle bin
7	x	cleaned hallway air grilles	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. two hours of body doubling via zoom this morning with Karen, and I was able to do the most currently vital admin tasks I have been putting off for months. It took less than an hour. 
2. past past me put a chunk of corned beef in the freezer; it is in the crock pot and destined for dinner tonight, along with yellow potatoes and green cabbage turned into colcannon.
3. sometime today the hole digging volunteer(s) obviously arrived and did their digging, as the spot for Future Persimmon now has a hole (with a flag next to it), instead of just bare ground with a flag

Time of Isolation - Day 1703

the banana bread recipe:
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ cup dry milk + ⅓ cup water
(or ⅓ cup wet milk)
½ tsp salt
⅔ cup sugar
1 cup mashed banana
1 egg
1 teaspoon vinegar
⅓ cup melted butter
½ cup chopped nuts (optional)

9 x 5 x 3 loaf pan (or 2 mini loaf pans), lightly greased
bake at 350F for 50 to 60 minutes or until done

Preheat your oven.
Sift all the dry ingredients together (not nuts, though).
Mix all the moist ingredients together in a good size bowl.
Add the dry ingredients to the moist all at once, and mix
Quickly mix in the nuts (once wet and dry are mixed, the sooner you get the batter into the pan into the oven, the lighter your bread will be.)
Fill the pan(s) and bake.
Begin testing as for cake at about 50 minutes.

Let cool before slicing, very important.

Sunday snippets

in which our plucky heroine wants the headache gone...

but despite that, a whole assortment of things happened today.

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~ repair ~

The wrongly carved letters were cut away (along with the "y" between them) all the way through the lino block. Then looked through my lino scraps for a piece that was perzactly the same thickness, and transferred that part of the design to the surface. Inked it very carefully before carving them, cutting the "a-y-a" out, and making sure everything fit together properly.

The last step tonight was cutting a backing of thin plywood, spreading wood glue over the surface, and aligning the lino/plywood sandwich with the repair in place before weighting it down to dry overnight... Tomorrow I will paint a few layers of acrylic paint over the plywood for water resistance, and then it will be ready to attempt printing proof number two!

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Last night I had a dreadful headache, so made sure of abundant hydration and went to bed early. Woke up still with a headache but not as bad? WTF? (usually a headache means I've a fever, but my temp is normal) It seemed to be intermittent, but quite persistent, so I gave up by midafternoon and tracked down a bottle of aspirin.

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"Botanically Unhinged Gardening" was the title of a pair of zoom meetings on Saturday. Sharon explained a new-to-me idea of stacking planting pots vertically to get more space; basically plant something in the upper pot, and cut away the bottom of that pot placing it into a lower one that is also filled with soil and compost - lots more root space without taking up more square footage. Brilliant!

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Started on the flooring for Caer Cardboard Art Gallery - gluing coffee stirrer sticks to a piece of black bristol board cut to the size of the floor. It isn't at all fast to do, but will look very good when finished. The larger wire cutters are just right for cutting bits to length. This project is doable handwork while zooming.

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March SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	6 dozen cookies	grey pinafore	art exchange
2	lino block carved	pruned marjoram	many dead weeds
3	-	slipper soles	recycle bin
4	-	bicycle derailleur	yard waste bin
5	-	"a-y-a" replaced	-
6	x	x	-
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. aspirin - which can be swallowed without being tasted. I gave up after a day and a half and took one. It toned down the headache quite a lot.
2. Neighborhood has a new manga cafe, and a beautiful new pottery studio. I rode past them both yesterday.
3. the bundle of coffee stir sticks is finally being used

Time of Isolation - Day 1695

double dang

in which our plucky heroine notices an error...

~ oops! ~

Error fortunately reparable, with some changes to the block... Somehow the two letter "a"s in Maya were drawn in reverse, and carved in reverse, and I didn't notice it at all until this first proof printing tonight! My guess is that when the graphite transfer happened it was vague enough right there and I drew them in wrong way to at that point.

Anyhow, I do not need to recarve the entire block, thankfully! What I think I can do is to cut away each of the wrong letters, glue the carved block to a backing, cut two new small sections the size of the cutaway portions and carve the corrections into those, then glue them in place instead. I can't think of any reason why it wouldn't work, assuming the linoleum is of equivalent thickness. Still rather frustrating though.

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March SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	6 dozen cookies	grey pinafore	art exchange
2	-	pruned marjoram	many dead weeds
3	-	slipper soles	recycle bin
4	-	bicycle derailleur	yard waste bin
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	-
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes - 
1. my bicycle is back home again, all rideable and shiftable, and it was a just right for riding day to pedal home on...
2. figured out a way to repair the block carving error
3. hoping that some ibuprofen or aspirin, some extra hydration, and going to bed early will deal with this dreadful headache. I am grateful that I have no other vital chores to do tonight, after I bring in today's laundry.
4. sunny and breezy day meant laundry mostly dry

Time of Isolation - Day 1694

wishful Wednesday

in which our plucky heroine wishes that there was some way to shift to a better timeline..

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~ partly carved ~

Slowly but steadily, progress is happening with the new block, now almost three-quarters of the way carved... Not yet sure if I want to give the block a wooden backing, or leave it as is. A backing makes it easier to handle, but thin lino is simpler to register on the paper. Don't need to decide yet, and can always add a backing later on if that seems like a good idea.

I've decided to share my progress on FB, despite my media diet, so as to reach more people and hopefully generate more interest. I wasn't sure what organisation I was going to suggest to folks, but it will probably be World Central Kitchen, as their good works are world wide, and they are highly rated (A+) by Charity Watch. Though of course in these times, there are many many organisations that could use our help...

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Did a modicum of gardening today, by cleaning up around the marjoram plant in the front yard. It was becoming overgrown by dreadful lawn grass, and needed all the last years flower stalks trimmed back as well. The new garden kneeler/seat works well. Weeding this one plant is such a small thing to take me over an hour, but "proficere lente sed proficere"... I salvaged all the little leaf clusters from the pruned marjoram stems, and dried them in the dehydrator, so now my herb and spice shelf has a small jar with a tiny label "marjoram"

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I mixed up the dough for Nena's "chocolate crinkle cookies", which is cooling overnight in the fridge, so I will have treats to bring to the bike store boys... Tomorrow I will bake and the house will smell delightful.

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I've tried, but I still can't skip, though my body remembers the motions, it just remains earthbound. I can do the other thing, that is sort of like flying lead changes, but I can't skip. Maybe if I keep practicing, I will be able to again. There is hopping involved in actual skipping, and my legs don't want to do that .

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I cooked both the zucchini from the previous grocery order, some as roasted chunks, and some as long roasted wedges. This condensed them considerably. My intent is to make a tomato-y cheese-y bake from them, so I hope I have some tomato sauce in the pantry

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March SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	-	grey pinafore	art exchange
2	-	pruned marjoram	many dead weeds
3	-	-	-
4	-	-	-
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	-
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. Ursula Vernon's book Swordheart just hit #5 on the NYT Bestseller List!
2. Rainbow heart chime in my pocket all day.
3. today I learned that hashtags are a thing on Blue Sky. I will use them, going forward...

Time of Isolation - Day 1691

Sunday snippets

in which our plucky heroine is somewhat effective...

Pink hellebore is blooming in my front garden, and other springtime bulbs are showing green leaf tips. The snowdrops are almost done for the year. It is educational to look through the blog posts of past years, and notice when various things have bloomed. Maybe there could be a chart?

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~ image transfer ~

Today's art activity started with taking the proof of concept drawing, adding a thick layer of graphite pencil, and then transferring the image to the actual linoleum. Because this is only ever partially successful, the next step is to refine and darken the lines with a marker; I usually use one of the Pigma Micron pens in an appropriate thickness.

Once that is done, actual block carving can ensue, and progress happened during Crafternoon. Much of the smallest easiest letter forms, (light on dark background) are completed. The Very Small Japanese carving gouge was exactly the best tool for the job, and I am quite glad I acquired it last year!

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Took some time this morning to go out in the yard and pull up a good assortment of already dead weed stalks. It was damp but not raining, and the ground is soft. Also began hacking back the overgrown fern clumps next to the north side of the house, and around the external part of the heat pump. Did enough to get a bit out of breath, but not so much as to cause continuing pain. Incremental progress is still progress.

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Yesterday being so warm, it seemed a good chance to get the duvet cover washed. I was worried about getting it dry without the tumble dryer, but a few hours on the clothesline gave a good start, and I dragged it into the house and hung the damp but no longer wet thing over the shower curtain rod. While it meant one night with a flat sheet instead of the proper duvet cover, it was dry by morning! Pretty sure it is the heat pump moving air around the house that does the trick. It doesn't ever feel particularly "warm" but it isn't cold either (I could make it warmer with raising the temperature setting, but that would also raise the electric bill) I am starting to wonder if I need to replace the tumble dryer at all? Though it would be a probably be good thing to find out if it is repairable...

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March SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	-	-	art exchange
2	-	-	many dead weeds
3	-	-	-
4	-	-	-
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	-
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. Was able to repair accidental gouge in lino with wood glue
2. There is a whole bag of cooked winter squash cubes in the freezer, and there are more winter squash still in their transport box. Cooking the squash thoroughly makes all the difference in how tasty the resulting puree is. The rest of the squash needs to be turned into squash cubes soon!
3. Spring flowers planted in the front yard, including the wonderful pink hellebore that Sharon gave me years ago

Time of Isolation - Day 1689

Friday fragments

in which our plucky heroine has such helpful friends!

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~ art exchange prints ~

I probably ought to have done these earlier, but I thought there were some of my earlier prints in my files. So, a few new ones for the art exchange, this time in a springtime violet color. As I didn't want to wait days for the ink to cure, instead I laid them on some parchment paper and ran them through the convection oven for several hours on extra low, so the warm dry moving air helped the linseed oil dry out overnight.

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After lunch it was time to meet with Kate... she brought over some small fancy padded envelopes for the art exchange, and we enjoyed a walk in the sunshine and much conversation about various creative endeavors such as dyeing textiles and various aspects of block printing.

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Mindy sent me a message, and Larry came by on his way home from work, and took my bike (and myself) over to the bike shop. It was no problem for him to winkle the bike into the back of their vehicle. Later that evening I heard back from the bike store, and was delighted that all they think is needed is to replace the derailleur, and straighten the mounting bracket. They are going to even out the rear wheel, which doesn't have a broken spoke, and they don't think the chain is damaged. Cost of all these repairs is very reasonable, and should be completed sometime between Monday and Thursday next

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February SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	"wing it" vest	more broach handles	recycle bin
2	tiny valentines	black keyboard covers	recycle bin
3	heartfelt ornament	turtleneck collar	squirrel nest
4	dragon garland	laptop drivers	recycle bin
5	strawberry rhubarb sauce	rainbow fibulae	yard waste bin
6	running horse prints	bucket handle	-
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. Bike is now at the bike shop, the damage was not excessive, despite how bad it seemed at the time, estimate for repairs is quite reasonable, and the work should be done by next week.
2. the convection oven works well to speed-cure prints
3. all the art exchange envelopes are packed and sealed ready for their trip to the post office and out into the world... there were eight participants (including our plucky heroine)

Time of Isolation - Day 1687

proof of concept

in which our plucky heroine zooms along...

Sundays and Tuesdays are my most social of days, when I need to balance my time visiting in the pixel world well, and remember to eat in a timely way. Fortunately I've done well at making up meals, or parts of meals, ahead. Tonight's dinner had all the parts, being the remainder of my tiny meatloaf, some tasty mutual aid squash, and steamed bok choi.

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~ quite legible ~

I was concerned that the counterchanged dark/light would reduce the text to unreadable, so decided to do a more detailed iteration of my sketch, to test. Much to my pleasure, and as I have checked with various other folks as well that the words are easy to decipher, I can carve the block with confidence in the resulting print. Now to locate linoleum of the right size...  

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February SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	"wing it" vest	more broach handles	recycle bin
2	tiny valentines	black keyboard covers	recycle bin
3	heartfelt ornament	turtleneck collar	-
4	-	laptop drivers	-
5	-	rainbow fibulae	-
6	x	bucket handle	-
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. Helga offered me a Costco run, which is sorely needed.
2. we now have nine folks in the Spring Art Exchange (I am so softhearted, when a message came today saying that they had all their pieces ready and could they mail them tomorrow, I had to say of course!)
3. My proof of concept drawing shows that the counterchanged text is very readable.

Time of Isolation - Day 1682

Friday fragments

in which our plucky heroine is full of designs...

and today I trust that my cold is really fully on the mend, as my energy is beginning to return. Since it was the last day for a while without rain, I chose to head over to Ikea for a most self-indulgent treat, a whimsical glowing Dala horse lamp. Which turned out to be a fairly frugal indulgence, since it was marked down to $7.99! It will make a good nightlight for the hallway here at Acorn Cottage

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~ believe ~

The random carousel that is my designerly brain tossed this image to me earlier this week as I was drifting off to sleep. I had to immediately leap out of bed and do a quick sketch, lest the concept be lost before the next day. This idea will become number 4 in my "Making Art For A Change" series...

I did three postcard size block prints back in 2020 and 2021 as the start of the series. My idea was to have folks contribute to a particular cause, and in exchange, I would mail them an art postcard. A sort of triangular good works... they get a bit of original sart and can deduct the donation, a good organisation gets some extra money, and I get to help facilitate more donation than I could on my own, by sharing my creativity

Back then I had folks donate to "Don't Shoot Portland" which was a black led group working for social justice, while PDX was in the middle of being occupied by police and paramilitary disruption because of the protests happening

Nowadays, there are so very many directions that are being damaged both on purpose and from inherent change to the planet I am a bit at a loss to suggest just one group... I have some time to think about it though

.
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I was surprised to find out that John D. MacDonald, known for the Travis McGee series, as well as other writings, wrote a book "The House Guests" about the two cats he lived with! I had no idea, and when it turned up in my Libby app in the "if you liked James Herriot we recommend these other books..." I was curious. Turns out that I have no cognitive issues with reading at all, I just get bored and DNF if the writing is poor. MacDonald is an excellent wordsmith and storyteller (I already knew this), and though I would not normally have put "cat biographies" as one of my preferred reading genres, it was a most enjoyable book.

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I'm wanting to rearrange various storage aspects here, but being stymied by lack of infrastructure, which has been a sore point for nigh on the last twenty years, ever since I moved here. Part of the solution is to discard or give away what is not being used, but for things that are in regular use, needs must to somehow rearrange current spaces and create some small cabinets or shelves to better use the easy-to-reach spaces towards the back of the countertops. Were I taller, the upper cabinets would be more accessible. As is, I can barely reach the back of the very lowest shelf, or the front of the next, so am forever folding and unfolding the stepladder.

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February SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	"wing it" vest	more broach handles	recycle bin
2	tiny valentines	black keyboard covers	recycle bin
3	heartfelt ornament	turtleneck collar	-
4	-	laptop drivers	-
5	-	rainbow fibulae	-
6	x	x	-
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. Whilst zooming with Ursel, we somehow stumbled upon the whimsical Dala horse translucent light from Ikea
2. the self checkout attendant at Ikea was not helpful at all, but the customer service clerk was a gem... able to track down my venerable "Ikea Family" card, (issued before I had a mobile phone) and thereby saved me more than half the cost of my purchase (two Dala horses - one for me and one for a friend)
3. creative designing brain is conjuring up various possibilities for artwork as well as for small home improvements.
4. - Stef's surgery went well today, huzzah!!

Time of Isolation - Day 1680

friendship Friday

in which our plucky heroine has an unexpected treat...

This is a very fragrant season: the last of the summer jasmine is still blooming, some (but not all, I wonder why) linden trees are delightfully scented, and here and there I find honeysuckle vines, which although they are rather thuggish plants, have a strong pleasing fragrance. I wonder if there would be a good place to plant some honeysuckle, maybe along one of the back fences?

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My phone rang this morning and it was my dear friend Rois... she and Chance were going to be heading over this way today, and would I like some company... Yes indeed! I've not seen them for several years and I miss them so much from when they lived in Beaverton instead of on the other side of the mountains, and we would get together for projects and crafts and cooking and suchlike. We had a nice long porch visit, and it was good to hear that things were going well in their lives. They had their two dogs with them, and were headed over to visit Sol and Ruby afterwards. Seeing friends in person is so rare these days.

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I have been making good progress at tidying the remainder of the house, the living room is almost ready for its "portrait", and the sewing room not far behind. I intend to complete all of this by the 14th, whereupon I can start actually looking through the various boxes and bags of "stuff". I did put about a bag of random unnecessary old greeting cards and envelopes in the wheelie bin. I only saved out a holiday block print card made by my late young friend Seb, which brought back bittersweet memories.

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~ where I wish I was... ~

For so many years, the Oregon Country Fair was the hub that my personal wheel of the year revolved around. It was, for me, a glimpse pointing towards a reality where if other choices had been/could be made, the world would be different in a way that bent towards the arc of life. I miss being able to be there so much (as much as I miss the feeling of hopefulness), though that chapter of my life ended long before the pandammit...

Today I carved the most tiny of OCF peach stamps, with the intention of making wee little Fair shirts, a few for Kestrel's dollies, and one for Almandine. I might have to send a tiny patch, or flag, or something to Ånni, who had to stay home from Fair because sick doggo...

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July SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	4 tiny knit vests	cleaned keyboard	recycle bin
2	tiny cargo pants	-	-
3	very smol Birks	-	-
4	silkworm print	-	-
5	4 reversible skirts	-	-
6	Peach tinyprint	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. tiny hemostat is such a useful tool.
2. my collection of Sharpie markers were a gift from my SIL Barb, and have been everso handy. I sometimes use them to "dye" doll fabric garments a different color
3. Rois and Chance. I am honored that people I admire so much want to be friends with me. (I think I first met them back in 1989 or so, shortly after I met Mr Dawson, back when they still had their Akita dog Nick and were living in Portland)

Time of Isolation - Day 1462

estivation is the way

in which our plucky heroine remains hiding indoors...

It isn't great, but it is the best I can do until the temperature moderates a bit. I've been going out very early in the morning for a bike ride. I have concerns... every day the forecast keeps getting worse; I hope we aren't going to have a "heat dome" like we did in 2021, when over 250 people died in the PNW. When last I checked, the current heat wave extends into the middle of next week. Forecast for Tuesday is 104 F (40 C)

※※※

With tie-dye + new cargo pants + a new pair of Birks, Opal is now ready for whatever (imaginary)  summertime festivals and adventures may come her way...

※※※

I continue to amuse myself by making more dolly clothing. It is dopamine candy. I've almost finished making  knit tops and reversible skirts for the whole crew, planning to complete the whole 13 week challenge for all four of them, not just Opal. (and an extra three to send to Young Kestrel for her dollies)

It wouldn't be sensible for me to plan and sew an entire new wardrobe for myself, but I can indulge my love of wardrobe planning in this 1:12 scale mode instead. The limitation I've put on myself is to only use fabric and yarn etc that I already have. Plus, if I find I have scraps that are too small for dolly clothing, I know they are too small to save, which will help with my desire to declutter.

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~ a little buggy ~

"Silkworm" is the most recent of my textile livestock linocut blocks. As always, block is ⅞" square. There are a few more yet to carve, but it won't be much longer before I'll be able to print an edition of the miniature book.

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My wireless keyboard was becoming cranky. I tried the simplest remedy first: Turn upside down and shake. Since I cannot remove the keycaps to clean the interior thoroughly, this was what I could do. There was noticeable very tiny gritty substances that fell to the tabletop, and fortunately, whatever had been causing the bad behaviour must have been removed, since all the keys are functioning properly again.

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July SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	4 tiny knit vests	cleaned keyboard	recycle bin
2	tiny cargo pants	-	-
3	very smol Birks	-	-
4	silkworm print	-	-
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. a bit of anti-weasel serum video sent by a friend
2. had a chance to chat with Mikki on Friday
3. a delicious dinner, a sort of soup/stew made from various precooked ingredients taken from the chest freezer, and seasoned with condiments to end up vaguely Thai style... Since I am not wanting to heat up the kitchen in this weather, continuing to cook ahead and freeze components is the way!

Time of Isolation - Day 1457

hot town summer in the city

in which our plucky heroine does her best to keep cool...

I keep thinking it is Saturday, not sure why. I've been running the heat pump, as it is 90+ on the shady front porch. So far, the house has stayed at a comfortable temperature. I have my fingers crossed for the next several days, when we are forecast to be in the triple digits. Hoping not a heat dome.

No fireworks stands on every corner means less explosions in the city. While it was rather loud last night, in the better part of valor I waited until morning to run over to the grocery before it got really hot out. I wanted to get some salad greens, and also bought a new tomato plant in hope of some homegrown treats. No Juliet left alas, but they had Oregon Spring, which is also good one, if very different.

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~ festival footwear ~

Opal has the biggest feet of all my tinyfolk! So when it was suggested that Opal needed a pair of tiny tiny Birkenstock sandals, I carefully cut slices from a cork, using a serrated knife, and then sanded a few of the cork slices smooth. Tracing around her feet to start making the pattern. Some thin leather for the uppers, and and black Bristol board for the outer soles.

I started by cutting the prepared slabs of cork to shape, then glued a layer of Bristol board to reinforce them. Once dried, I began fitting the narrow leather strips and glueing them in place to create slide on shoes. I really find the miniature clothespins really useful for tiny clamps; I used Tacky Glue for the whole project, it was setting up fast enough. Once all the straps were attached and dried, I fitted tiny bits of Bristol to level the bottom of the sandals and glued that in place as well. Finally, I added a third layer of the black Bristol board to cover the whole bottom of the sole fully, it really gives the effect of the rubber sole of full size Birkies. Since there was no way I could add an actual buckle to the straps, I approximated it with carefully drawing on each strap with a gold metallic pen. The tiny sandals really add to her outfit - I'll be taking some more photos outdoors, but not until the temperature drops!

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The Carrier Bag Theory of Fiction, by Ursula LeGuin made it really clear to me about why I adore some novels and find others tiresome. The essay seems to me to reverberate in an adjacent way with The Mushroom Hunters, by Neil Gaiman

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Next in the textile livestock series is "silkworm", and I am going to print the linocut proof later today, and hope there isn't too much revision necessary. Carving a tiny caterpillar is hard!

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Fifty years is a long strange trip indeed...

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July SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	4 tiny knit vests	-	-
2	tiny cargo pants	-	-
3	very smol sandals	-	-
4	-	-	-
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. the house is pleasantly moderate in temperature
2. I had everything needed to make Opal some Birkenstocks
3. The skirret is still alive, I have been remembering to keep it watered.
4. I found another fairly new Little Free Art Gallery that is within biking distance, when it isn't too hot. 4720 NE 26th. Looking forward to checking it out!
5. Someone used my Very Basic (two rectangles of garter stitch) Tiny Rag Doll Poncho pattern that I posted on Ravelry, and came up with their own variation.

Time of Isolation - Day 1454

project or process...

in which our plucky heroine can take a hint...

While I went riding out to the Tiny Gallery in St John's earlier, I also stopped at most of the little free libraries I saw, so I could measure their height (between 38 to 42 inches average). In one of them, much to my great surprise, I saw a few assorted oversize books about jewelry making and metalwork. Not the usual LFL content. I took several of them home with me for further perusal, and there was one, "Soldering Demystified" that is going to be added to the Acorn Cottage reference collection. I've only started to read it, but there's practical information in there I've never read about before. Perhaps it is time to return to the workbench...

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I've been doing some sketches for how to re-do the backing under the kitchen sink. My intent is, once all the sink repairs have been completed, to put in place a similar (removable) undersink to what is under the bathroom sink. Modified, of course, to fit the different space and configuration. I've been mulling this over for weeks now, and finally have a few ideas that may be possible. There will be rather a lot more sketching done before any plywood gets cut; ideas on paper are much less onerous to re-do.

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~ tinyprint Tuesday ~

getting there... this weeks tinyprint for the textile livestock series is a sheep (obviously). I'm right pleased with how my use of several different sizes of tiny drill bits create a texture that evokes "wooly". I still need to carve llama, and silkworm, and maybe yak and vicuña. Then it will be time to print my second miniature handprinted book...

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Being rather taken with the results of my bathrobe hook project, it occurred to me to attempt something similar with my handtowel holder, which is also oak. Not as amenable to the treatment, since it apparently has some sort of resistant finish. First I tried gently sanding it - nope. Then I tried wiping it down with denatured alcohol - nope. Much more vigorous sanding allowed the ebonising fluid to access the oak in patches. I'm going to continue attacking it bit by bit, as there is no visible way to tell if the surface has been sufficiently abraded. When completely ebonised, it will look rather wonderful, just getting there will take more time than hoped.

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I continue to play with the tiny doll wardrobe challenge, because a gal has to get her dopamine somewhere...; Tomorrow we find out what the garment for week two will be. So far, I've played around with a simple stitched skirt (modified from the pattern given) and added a simple knitted skirt as well. I'm probably always going a bit off plan, as the difference in size and favorite textile techniques require. Our plucky heroine basically doesn't crochet, and a fair number of the upcoming patterns will have me happier if I can substitute in either a knitted garment, or something completely different but more to the taste of my tinyfolk. These link to both the wardrobe plan for the 2024 Summer Mini Doll Wardrobe-Along challenge, and the "13 piece Whatever's Clean" wardrobe plan from The Vivienne Files, that the former plan is inspired by. I intend to dance somewhere in between, as the whim takes me, and the supplies I have on hand allow.

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June SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	musk ox print	horses blouse edge	yard waste bin
2	green linen Jedi tunic	kitchen light fixture	recycle bin
3	Nandina floral dress	Luxo plug	dead box fan
4	2 tiny knit skirts	plaid flannel slip	recycle bin
5	tiny knit cardigan	oak wall hook ebonised	-
6	Salish wooly dog print	x	x
7	bathrobe hook	x	x
8	tiny batik skirt	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. an excellent reference book on soldering showed up in a little free library on my bike ride Sunday evening
2. I can still see well enough when I take my glasses off to be able to do most of the sorts of close work I enjoy. (And if more is needed, I do have a big LED magnifying light)
3. Starting to learn about role playing games, in a very simple "dipping my toes into the water" way. With two of my faraway friends, who are also experienced gamers, we are going to be playing Golden Sky Stories. This is adding another online video connection time to my schedule, which gives me a something to look forward to. Four years is a long time to be in this spaceship. 

Time of Isolation - Day 1446

partially tinyprint Tuesday

in which our plucky heroine has a more balanced day...

A good mix of social time, creative time, and productive time.

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~ artist proofs ~

I've been working on this print for the textile animal series, and thought it would be good to document some of the steps... Always starting with a little (⅞" sq) pencil drawing that gets transferred to the lino, then carved with various gouges. The first attempt obviously needed some serious attention: the border was so narrow it clogged, the eyes were two different sizes, and the "fuzzy" effect didn't really show well... The second attempt fixed the border, improved the size of the eyes and the contour of the curled tail, and made obvious where the fur outline still needs work. In addition, the dog needs eye "highlights", and a shorter interior contour of the front leg. So, not yet finished, but getting closer...

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Tonight's dinner: stir fried up the thin sliced pork shoulder, with onions, the last of the asparagus, and a bunch of bok choi. Rehydrated some shitaki, and sliced those up really thin. Seasoned it all with tamari, ginger, garlic, a bit of dark brown sugar, and some oyster sauce. Served over rice noodles, and garnished with some cilantro and a sprinkle of toasted sesame oil. Eat it up yum! Actually put enough of the stir fried pork aside for two additional meals, (I cook that separately from the veg and combine at the end) and put about half of the rest aside for another meal)

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~ day 11 ~

It must be my lucky day, the miniature swap was this framed painting of a four leaf clover!

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This essay is very much worth reading, good food for thought, and a different perspective...

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June SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	musk ox print	horses blouse edge	yard waste bin
2	green linen Jedi tunic	kitchen light fixture	recycle bin
3	Nandina floral dress	Luxo plug	-
4	-	-	-
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. a really delicious dinner tonight... I used some of the groceries acquired yesterday, and some from my delivery today. So I am triply grateful: for food acquired, food delivered, and for my years of cooking that let me make tasty food improv style...
2. not sure why I first stuck the expansion rod over the kitchen sink years ago, or what inspired my adding the wire shower curtain rings, but is sure has proven a super useful way to hang things to drip dry over the sink, mostly small utensils like peelers etc, but I also wedge paintbrushes into the chainmail scrubber that hangs there so they can dry bristles down
3. A cooler day, and partially overcast. Much more to my liking...

Time of Isolation - Day 1433

half done well begun

in which our plucky heroine has an anti-weasel serum kind of day...

Today in the mailbox there was an unexpected missive from OnBayCreek, who so sweetly sent my tinyfolk a bundle of miniature garden seed packets. The glimmer really made me smile. Maybe I need to make some seed trays for the Tansu Terrace greenhouse?

Then this evening, Jennifer and Scott came over so that he could take a looksee at my funky kitchen light. I'd only ever met them online, after the pandammit started, but what wonderful folks! Scott ended up getting the new fixture working. While I still want to have someone take a look in the attic above the junction box, by using some heat shrink tubing to cover the damaged wire insulation he was able to make the kitchen light safe to use.

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~ day 6 ~

Today the tiny gift for the Solstice miniature swap was a petite portrait of a red poppy; the parcel was decorated with a little floral button...

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~ 4 tinyprints ~

the first four of my eight "textile animal" prints: goat, musk ox, camel, and Angora rabbit. (all ⅞" square linocuts) Still to come are alpaca, sheep, indigenous dog, and silkworm...

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Was very busy this morning: spent about two hours this morning pruning the places where Feral Plum has been sprouting up around fences around fences, cutting back the dead branches from Wanda plum tree, and starting on apple pruning and thinning... Unfortunately stabbed my thumb joint rather badly with a plum thorn, ouch! By then it was really getting too warm and sunny, so a shower and then a late breakfast and then I was so tuckered out I took a short nap.

Got up and started on housey chores, vaccuming, moving things out of the kitchen countertops. Laundry from the line is now all folded and put away, etc. I cleared away all the various preserve jars that were stacked around the kitchen, and need to reorganise the pantry, or find a different storage place for all the jams and fruit. I am thinking that the linen closet may be better used for food storage? something to think about anyway...

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June SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	musk ox print	horses blouse edge	yard waste bin
2	-	-	recycle bin
3	-	-	-
4	-	-	-
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. Scott and Jennifer, online SCA friends, came over tonight and fixed the light in the kitchen. They are just as delightful in person as I had found them to be on the internet.
2. the clerk at Freddies kindly scanned in a membership card app so I could get the dollar off on the quickset epoxy (needed to attach linocut to wooden backing)
3. OnBayCreek Dawn sent me a surprise gift for the tinyfolk - garden seed packets. There needs to be a gardening vignette!

Time of Isolation - Day 1428

ᕿᕕᐅᖅ (qiviut)

in which our plucky heroine picks up the carving gouges...

It has been a while since I worked on any linocut prints, and it has been feeling like time to get back to it.

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~ tinyprint Tuesday ~

4th in my series of eight textile livestock miniature linocut prints - musk ox, source of qiviut fiber... This print is a proof, as I still need to mount it on a wooden backing handle, which will let me get a clearer image. I still see some areas that need worked on, but it is a good start. I'm pleased with my idea to show a night sky and snow as background...

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Did a bit more on the Star Wars cosplay clothing. The adjustments have been made on the cardboard pattern pieces, and the wool tunic has had the seams opened up where the sides need taken in... Still aiming to have it done by this Friday

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~ Day 4 ~

Very small sliced oranges and an apple half are a good start on a miniature fruit basket...

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June SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	musk ox print	horses blouse edge	-
2	-	-	-
3	-	-	-
4	-	-	-
5	-	-	-
6	x	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. Lisanne and Leslie both are willing to convert the .pages to PDFs so I can access the content. I have the best Sewing Nomad pals!!
2. An observant West Kingdom Laurel noticed someone had made a medallion copying my Pelican medallion design (exactly!?!), and asked me about it. Now I shall send my concerned and appalled comments to the necessary people. Theft is never okay!
3. the floor lamp works pretty well as general lighting in the kitchen

Time of Isolation - Day 1426

treading water

in which our plucky heroine is still sad...

Mom is still alive, still failing, but gratefully she is in no pain. Hospice allows the use of morphine, which means that for the first time in years she is probably not in pain. I am not there, a purposeful choice, but one that my family does not understand.

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~ tinyprint Tuesday ~

Third of the planned eight in my "textile livestock" miniature print series... the Angora goat, source of mohair. (⅞" square block linocut)

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My keyboard stopped working. I finally remembered that it has a battery compartment, and realised that said batteries were original, and had lasted for years! After checking in several local shops, none of which carried rechargable batteries (which I found disturbing), I returned home with the smallest pack of AAA I could find. Now my interface is functional again. But when did rechargables become so difficult to find?

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Almost finished with the sunhat for Maeva project. It still needs the chin strap loops attached to the inner lining, between the inner crown and brim, needs the inner and outer layers secured to each other, the edge binding added to the brim, and reinforcing stitchery in circles between the edge and the crown. Oh, and I need to make the chin strap. Today I will learn how to apply the plastic Kam snaps, which will allow the chin strap to be detachable. Fortunately the kit I ordered has 10 sets of 25 different colors of snaps, so I can choose the least likely color to practice with.

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As part of my mourning journey, I am going to finally tackle turning the files of Mom's writings into a book, or books. I will never not feel bad that I did not do this years ago, when she first asked me about doing this for her - she wanted me to illustrate her writings, and I felt completely inadequate to the task. I was a fool, and it is too late for her to see the results.

An initial glance made me realise that there is more material there than first thought, as the folders contain writing (essays and poems) going back to when she and Dad were courting. And of course, everything is in hardcopy only. I will need to transcribe it all into digital form, one page at a time; I will probably organise it by decade? It still feels overwhelming, and beyond my ability to do well, but I am the only one in the family who can do it. I wish I had the confidence that was mine as a girl, the idea of illustrating Mom's work is daunting

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May SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	4 tiny books	half front yard mowed	yard waste bin
2	10 tiny books	more front yard mowed	recycle bin
3	tiny footstools	replace cloudlight bulb	dead rosemary
4	acorn bowls	clean large paper lantern	yard waste bin
5	angora goat lino	pocket brown pinafore	-
6	mini cushions	reframed raindrop print	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x

today's gratitudes -
1. new Japanese .5mm carving gouge works really well
2. the weather has moderated, so my legs are a bit less painfully swollen. I need to get out and walk more, to see if that will help turn this around.
3. I found another jar of pickled beets in the pantry, which greatly improves salad. Might have to look up the recipe I used and make some more for future summer meals

Time of Isolation - Day 1409