It's hibernate in the A/C season here. I feel for the people who plan summer trips to Disney at this time of year, it's just gawdawful. And the interior of my car is filthy but I can't bear the thought of sitting in that oven to clean it. The dirt will remain until the heat breaks.
I received some Amazon gift cards (my favorite presents) for my birthday and hoarded them for a week or two until I decided what I wanted. It had to be something I'd normally not buy for myself, so no books or movies or soy curls for vegan crockpot barbeque. It had to be something different and something creative, because I spend my days staring at GIS mapping and spreadsheets and physically crave color and texture when I get home from work. So I thought and I thought, and ended up with an itsy-bitsy loom. Also a book of pattern ideas.
Though it's 100 degrees most days I'm still on the log cabin afghan binge, because that's why the sainted Mr. Carrier invented air conditioning. I've somehow promised afghans for each granddaughter by Christmas (and I'd still like one for myself) so I'm spending many hours in a sweatshop of my own making. I've nearly finished the first afghan and it has generated a lot of golf ball sized balls of leftovers. It dawned on me that the little Zoom Loom would be both fun and a way to use up those golf balls, and that has proven to be the case. When I need a break from the afghan factory I create a little square or two. They are fun and addictive, and I'm going to crochet a border on each little square and then assemble them into throw pillow covers that will more or less coordinate with the afghans. I have some charcoal gray and cream leftovers that will be perfect for the warp and joining colors. The square below is one of my first "learning" squares. On this one the warp was a bit of lavender left over from something else.
Now that I think I have the loom figured out, I'll start being more deliberate in my color selections with an eye toward throw pillows that will actually be assembled sometime in 2017, because let's get real here.
The Disney booking ninja found a great rate at the French Quarter and we jumped on it for the last weekend in October. By then it will still be warm enough for swimming but not heatstroke hot. We aren't doing any fancy sit-down meals this time, just quick service meals, which are often really good. I'm already dreaming of beignets and coffee for breakfast. Mmmm....
Ellie remains fabulous. When I woke up this morning she was sleeping less than a foot from Sophie and both were fine with it. Sophie IS being a bit of a bitch about guarding her food dish when Ellie walks by, but Ellie just retreats. She's bigger, smarter and faster, and she humors the odd little dog. Best cat ever.
Oh, oh!!! Be sure to check out this very good website for little loom patterns as well. http://www.eloomanation.com
ReplyDeleteBought one of these for younger GD Kirby, she lost interest very quickly (but may rediscover interest later), but Anne and Darcy (nearly 11) were intrigued. Mother and son worked together to set up the warp, and start the weaving. Kirby at 9 and a half is possibly a little too young - although I remember weaving on wobbly cardboard looms at an earlier age. I like to 'throw' something unusual into the birthday present business, you never know when you will spark an interest in something. Avoid the heavily merchandised stuff like the plague, they have plenty of other people who will give them that stuff.
ReplyDeleteWe are looking forward to a serious cold front rolling in from the west, across the Great Australian Bight, these fronts pick up a lot of cold from their starting position out in the Southern Ocean.
All the best,
Gae, in Callala Bay
By the way - my parents met while both were working for Carrier's Sydney office. In the late 1930's, and ruffled a few feathers at Carrier - Dad was (at that time) a relatively lowly Accounts clerk, and Mum was the MD's personal secretary. Dad moved on to an Accountancy position with another firm, just before the outbreak of the war. In those days you studied Accountancy 'on the job' and by correspondence.
ReplyDeleteGae, in Callala Bay
Great minds, and all that -- that is exactly the same loom I bought for Kirby, and exactly the same book I bought for Anne as a reference.
ReplyDeleteGae, in Callala Bay
I'm going to Stitches Midwest in about three weeks, and one of my classes will involve weaving squares on some kind of little pin loom, joining them, and then picking up around the edges to knit a lace border. (The end project is a stole.) I have a few vintage Weave-Its that I bought on ebay. I'm a handspinner, and I would love to make a blanket out of handspun with all of my little balls of practice yarn and dyeing samples, and I think the pin loom would be perfect for that. I love those little looms because it allows you to use every last bit of yarn with almost no waste. Have fun!
ReplyDeleteIt is hot and humid here, too. I mowed the lawn this afternoon and felt like I was in a sauna. It's just gross---I hate it when you get hot and sweat and the moisture just lays there. Yuck. What is it you say about feeling like you are standing in front of the exhaust fan at Satan's dry cleaner? Good way to describe the weather in Iowa today.
So funny how many tiny loom people commented here, in my tiny backwater of the internets! I'm going with my idea of a crocheted edging before joining the squares - crochet will stand a little bit taller and create a slightly three-dimensional effect that I think will be interesting, whenever the hell I get around to assembling it. For now it's the log cabin sweatshop. It's almost mid-July and the clock is ticking. ;-)
ReplyDeleteWaddaya mean - tiny backwater? Yours is my first port of call on Safari every morning!
ReplyDeleteGrinning,
Gae, in Callala Bay
Aww Gae, I'm so flattered! Seriously, I am.
ReplyDeleteCatherine - you are the antidote to the America we see on the news, a window into the mindset of the normal, reasonable Americans that have to be out there. Not all that different from the normal reasonable Aussie.
ReplyDeleteWe have our fair share of wing nuts here too, we even have a small (but very vocal) group that actually ADMIRES America's gun laws (or lack thereof!).
The son of good friends of ours has just returned from New York, after a two year work stint in radio. Working amongst well-educated and otherwise reasonable Americans who thought he was CRAZY because he refused to obtain and carry a gun. He had a safe and happy two years, gained wonderful experiences to put on his CV, and came home safe and sound - apparently against all the odds.
It's a weird world,
Gae, in Callala Bay
http://www.politifact.com/virginia/statements/2016/mar/07/bill-clinton/bill-clinton-says-percentage-gun-owning-households/
ReplyDeleteGae, let me know if the link works for you. America has a helluva lot of guns, but only 31%-45% (the high number comes from the NRA) have guns. Basically, a third of the population is armed for freaking Armageddon and the rest of us kinda tiptoe around them, trying not to scare them. They are a jumpy and paranoid lot. So much so that while I'd like to get back into my political groove on this subject, I really don't want the attention. People who publicly advocate for gun control get death threats.
Meanwhile, a 7 year old boy got into the family gun safe and accidentally killed his father with a loaded assault rifle the other day. That poor child. Because they really believe they have to have military style weapons to "protect the household," these tragedies are barely one line on the news. FreeDUMB!
I live in the Midwest, and I think most Midwesterners would say that New York doesn't really represent the rest of the people that live in this country.
ReplyDeleteAnd when did you start your blog, Catherine? I think I somehow found you because you had a Yorkie and wrote about knitting. (?) I have been reading you for years---I must have gotten in on the ground floor of the bossy little dog house, so to speak.
Have you watched "Longmire" on Netflix? I binge-watched it last week while I worked on my Zick Zack scarf. Why didn't someone tell me about that show sooner?
Longmire is on my list, but it'll be a while. I'm working on afghans while binging on House of Cards. Damn. I started my blog in 2003 (holy shit) while my husband was dying and I was desperate for a distraction. It just kept going, never getting famous but keeping a steady stream of the faithful, the bored, the easily amused.... I spent a couple of years in the middle writing much more about politics along with dogs and knitting, but grew tired of arguing with morons on the internets, and swore off cold turkey after my head went all 'splodey.
ReplyDelete