Monthly Archives: February 2016

2016
02/29

Category:
Garden
spinning

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Spinning

IMG_4053This is hours upon hours upon hours of work though it doesn’t appear that way.   It is 2 plies of dog hair  -about 60% and 2 of sheep wool.   I’m not sure what I’ll make yet, but the yardage estimate is  285 yards if 4 ply.

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Then I tool the flyer on my Hansen’s electric spinner apart and cleaned it thoroughly.   It is now ready to work again.

The frogs are in full chorus now – they started day before yesterday.   I love leaving the door open at night and listening to them.   However, that means it is time to start the early garden and I’m just not ready for that yet.   I need the earth to dry out some first.   I could work in the hoop house, but that takes energy as well.

2016
02/28

Category:
quilts

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A finish and the Barn Door

IMG_4051 While looking for another fabric, I saw this box on the shelf.   I thought I had accounted for all the kits and started items, but NO.   This box had mostly fabrics with patterns and then this one placemat.  Years ago, I took a beginner class in paper piecing.   I didn’t like this pattern and I didn’t like paper piecing.  So this went to a dark hole.   All it needed was binding and that was in the package.   It is now finished.

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Then I made a few more “Hole in the Barn Door blocks”   I quit when I was taking them apart as fast as I was putting them together.   Another day, I’ll work on it again.

2016
02/26

Category:
quilts

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Sunbonnet flimsies done

 

 

kjIMG_4047The dark border really complements these little girls.  All 3 of the quilts are now on hangers and ready to quilt.   I also took the other quilts off the board and put them on hangers.  Then I counted.  I now have 10 quilts waiting in line.   Hopefully next week I can get started on them.

2016
02/25

Category:
Foods
Life

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Strawberry jam

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We’re nearly out of strawberry jam and with my DH, that isn’t acceptable.   So  now with 6 more pints, we may make it until strawberry season.   I just did not make enough last year for gifts and us, but fortunately, I still had frozen berries in the freezer.  I believe I have almost enough to make it to next season

So with some catch up housework and babying this cough, and some spinning,  I had enough energy to go check the bees since the temperature got up over 60 degrees.   The poor bees did not make it through the winter.  So I want to rototill that area and plant a bee friendly area, then next year, we’ll get bees again.

2016
02/24

Category:
quilts

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Churn Dash play

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Since I’m still coughing up a storm and can’t really concentrate on quilting yet, I decided to play with some 10″ squares given to me.   I took 8 squares, folded them in half and cut them using this GO cutter die, which yielded 4 blocks.   This is what I have so far.  (too much on the wall to hang these up)

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Until I get a middle done, I won’t be sewing the block together.   These squares are reds, gold, beige and greens.   I think I’d like to find ornament embroideries to made the centers.   And yes, when I say the word embroidery, it may well take until next Christmas to get it done.  I also need to think about sashing.   In addition to which, when I quit coughing, I have quilts waiting to get quilted.

2016
02/23

Category:
food
Life

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No running, jumping, or ladders

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Today was the last visit to the doctor who repaired my ankle (at least until he sees something he doesn’t like on an annual x-ray)    It’s marvelous the inventions that are now available to us to help us live a more normal life.  My instructions  are no running, no jumping, and stay off ladders.  Other than that, have a normal life.    That is good news and he is also happy with my 10,000 daily steps.

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We came home hungry and nothing was prepared,, so I pulled out a jar of canned potatoes, added seasonings and milk and put in VitaMix for a short time.   We heated that and Bill claims it was good enough to market.  Of course I didn’t think to take a photo until it was mostly gone.

2016
02/22

Category:
Life

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Sharing

There will be no post tonight because someone decided that sharing her cough and sore throat was important.    So today was spent doing my walk, coughing and coughing and resting.   Tomorrow should be better.

2016
02/21

Category:
farming
Foods
Life
spinning

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Spinning and making raisins

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The hot wire has now been extended.   Maybe that will keep Beau on the side he is supposed to be on.   He so loves us and thinks he needs to guard us, which would be okay, if he didn’t follow the car out the gate.

IMG_4029The raisins were miserable to get off the screens.

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However we now have another 20 cups of raisins made from our own grapes.

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I tired of doing the same spinning, so am now doing some small pieces of various colors, then will go back to the sweater yarn.   I have also decided I need to spin another piece of wool to add to the sweater yarn so it will be 3 ply.

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2016
02/19

Category:
quilts

COMMENTS:
2 Comments »

Yeah! it’s Friday

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And here is the third quilt with Sunbonnets.

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She also sent this red fabric which I did not realize was for a second border.   I like it,  so the plan is to put it on the three quilts done so far.   I’m going to hold off on making the last one for right now.   I MUST get the quilting going as too many quilts are stacking up.  They are now 6 deep  on just this board.

Have a wonderful weekend.

2016
02/18

Category:
farming
Life
quilts

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Tired Thursday?

I am so ready to have this be the end of the week so I can have a Sabbath Day’s rest.   One more day.

Today we spent much energy and time toting the rest of last years hay over to the sheep pen and spreading it out so they could stay out of the mud.   I don’t remember having this much mud before.   We have fewer sheep and more mud.   I guess it’s all that rain.

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My sister did a marvelous job on all these Sunbonnet’s.   She had the first one all put together and the second one, I finished with the sewing time I had today.

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The sashing is all cut out for two more and there are 35 little girls left, so I think I’ll do another one like these two and then put a solid corner on the last one – but wait – that means I need 16 girls and there are only  15.   I wonder if she has any of these fabrics left -though I doubt it.   Any thoughts on how I can make 15 work out?   If I added another girl from my fabrics, it wouldn’t match any of the fabrics she used.     Tomorrow, I really need to get back to the quilting, as I now have 5 quilts hanging on the board with one on the machine and 4 more hanging in the closet ready to be quilted.