Saturday snippets and bits

in which our plucky heroine has some extra spoons for a change...

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time in the tinyworld:

wanted to share the photo of the finished miniature SCAdian Viking style camp flag... I erred in my previous measurement, it is actually 2½" wide. I am quite pleased with how I was able to embed the applique stitches within the blue melton cloth so as to be able to have my heraldic badge motif show up clearly on both sides. (flag made from wool melton cloth, wool felt, horsehair, and embroidery floss; flagpole from bamboo lashed with hemp cord)

My next projects will be a book and a painted banner as prizes, and a very small bunch of sunflowers just for fun. While I've not seen tansy growing around here (I am pretty sure it is on the noxious weed list) I did find some small dried up alley plants with centers that look suitable to attempt the same sort of assemblage that the_small_house_project created for this lovely bouquet last year. I will have to add some paint to the dried weed centers, so this afternoon will be about playing with paint and gesso and glue

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Wednesday was also wonderful, as I had a nice long porch visit with Maeva and Ariadne. I was able to send off the various sewing projects for them, in exchange as it were for a box of homegrown produce: Zucchini and beans and Thai basil oh my! (I just finished a super tasty stir fry for lunch today with the last of the beans, and some rice noodles, a handful of frozen emergency chicken, and topped the sauce seasonings at the last minute with the minced up Thai basil) I think I need to add that herb to the short list. It tastes noticeably different than the Italian type... It was so great to have time to just sit and chat. At the very last, before they were off to their next stop, I was able to give them the small double sink originally intended for the kitchen here, it is probably the right size to fit in the remodel of the Ivy room back into a kitchen. I would way rather they have it and use it, than that it sit in my side yard for another decade...

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I splurged and bought a second set of measuring spoons recently. Because the set included "½ Tablespoon" which is something I want often enough that it has become annoying. I often make fractional recipes, because most are for a family of four as a baseline. And since it was a set, and not just that one, I had a lot of extra spoons. The (whole) tablespoon measure is just right for scooping out powdered laundry detergent, and thereby removing yet another minor annoyance... for years I have been using a partial "scoopful" in the washer, since it is one of those front loading HE machines that doesn't need a whole scoop. Eversomuch easier to have a right sized scoop instead of guesstimating!

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Did a tiny bit of pruning again, until the sun came out. Next up will be cutting back Feral Grape so I can reach the grapes before it is yellowjacket season. If it remains cool in the mornings, and I continue to be able to wake up early, I may actually get some of the needful pruning done. I also want to cut back the side yard ferns that keep trying to grab my legs in a most disturbing way.

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August SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	Kestrel apron	ironing cart	yard waste bin
2	tiny armchair	shims for molding	recycle bin
3	tiny plate rack	tub trim added	ancient printer
4	four hair snoods	pruned quince + plum	yard waste bin
5	snood and pillow	added bathroom hooks	recycle bin
6	indigo tiger dress	worm bin refreshed	x
7	tiny fairy book	bathroom wall touch-up	x
8	tiny Viking flag	x	x
9	x	x	x
10	x	x	x
11	x	x	x
12	x	x	x
13	x	x	x
14	x	x	x
15	x	x	x

today's gratitude - this morning was a precursor of autumn, and little Wellington had a nice long walk. Last night it cooled down early, and I was able to get the fans running for several hours before bedtime. Also, looking up whether is was possible to grow the Thai basil plants indoors, I found this blog post which makes it sound not too difficult. I think I shall check and see if the driveway plant sale a few blocks away still has a few Thai basil starts...

Time of Isolation - Day 918