Farm Fresh Update

  Since I can't be with the Tuesday Weavers in person, I will give you all an update of what's going on down on the farm, as well as around Chez Kittywompuss.
  This is the guests' entrance to the Larder.  My side is on the left and Cheese Guy is on the right.  Sausage Guy is downstairs in the basement where he belongs.  When he comes upstairs, he leaves a messy trail.
  It was rainy at the beginning of the week, and though this picture was not the best moment of the clouds drifting across the mountain next door, it was the one I had time to take.  My view from my kitchen is ever-changing and always beautiful.
  This week it will be even more so, with the leaves changing more every day.  I will take a lot more this week and post them next Monday.
  Everything green and berry-like is done for the year; all the stone fruits have gone away.  The apple butter is done already, and how that flew by! I pickled 5 bushels of green tomatoes and had one left over, so I had to get resourceful:

  Green Tomato Chutney!  One bushel, minus the tomatoes that had the audacity to turn red (they became tomato sandwiches on fresh bread), made 63 8 ounce jars.  Not a lot, but enough to pay the light bill for a day!  And it smelled good.  I tweaked the pear chutney recipe, changing the spices and adding dried apricots.
  Last week, I found out that the humungous order for okra and pickled beets & strawberries was moved up to December 1st.  Shaking my boss by the arms (I can't reach his shoulders) didn't change anything, only to make him more resolute.  The good news is that the Mennonite men who are making everything else for the order have asked to make the 5 1/2 tons of granola, but the pickled beets and strawberries, both woefully out of season by now, must be made by me and my staff.  We are making the strawberry consomme this week, stocking up and freezing as much as we can, so that pickling can commence next week.  6900 jars...  sigh...
  But, Maggie, what have you been weaving?  Ummmm, well, it's like this:  I've been thinking a lot about weaving.  I vacuumed the loominaria yesterday and thought, huh, there's that warp that needs fixing.  I need to wind my warps for next weekend's dying meeting, and I really meant to do that this weekend, but I worked in the yard instead.  It was just too beautiful and too much needed done.
  I know what I want to wind, though!  I'll be dying a couple of bamboo shawl warps and maybe a scarf or two, and the contrast for the baby blankets that I'm going to make for my co-workers' babies.  The thought process has occurred, at least, which for me is half the battle.  I'll wind the warps in odd moments this week, and of course, blog about it next week.
  Until then, happy weaving!
Maggie

Whole Lot Goin' On!

Next Saturday, my baby girl is getting married!  She is an exceptional young lady, and I'm VERY proud of all she has done and accomplished.  She's teaches chemistry, biology and ecology at a local high school, and her husband-to-be is also a high school science teacher.  So...what does this picture have to do with all of that????  It's my job to bring the sangria!!!  The other end of the table has all the gallon jugs for the mixing part!  I just have to decide which pitchers we're going to be using.
  I don't have any pictures of me trying on dresses for the wedding....be very glad of that!  I ended up with a giant headache, and finally ordering the perfect outfit online.  I can't believe they have brought back all those horrible '60's prints that I'm sure I didn't like then.  And, they are just as ugly now!
  I have house guest arriving on Thursday night for the weekend, and we're having a family lunch next Sunday.  I've got lists on top of lists. 

  Two weeks from today we will be warp dyeing out back under the pavilion.  Since I don't have a swift, I'm using my kitchen chair!!!  I rolled the winding station into the kitchen and I'm winding my balls of perle cotton so I can measure my warp.  I got a bunch of skeins of this perle cotton when I bought Mz. Emily last summer, so this will be perfect to use for this experiment.  Of course, I need to finish winding my scarf warp for the TW challenge before I  wind the perle cotton.

And then there is THIS.....that ball of rags used to be my sister's tote bag.  Her bag was the first one I made on the wide warp, and I used a twisted rope for the handles.  (This was instead of using 4 different strips to braid and weave back in.....that came next.)  These totes hold a LOT of stuff....but something heavy caused her handle to pull out.  I did try to weave it back in, but that was a losing battle.  So, I saved the rags and I'll weave her a replacement.  In the meantime, I'm finishing this one up for her to use.  There's no such thing as too many tote bags!

So....back to my list of things to get done today.  That perle cotton isn't winding itself!!!!  And, it's taking up space in the kitchen!
Enjoy your October afternoon!
LouAnn

My prep for the Weaving Weekend

This is several skeins of pearl cotton.  My plan is to prepare them for the upcoming Weaving Weekend in an unusual way. 

 I inherited all this pearl cotton with my first loom.  That was many years ago, and I really haven't known what to do with pearl cotton in pink and beige.  Most of the weavers are going to  wind warps and probably space dye them to make wonderful painted warps.

My plan is to use my knitting machine to knit up blanks, like sock blanks. to make painted weft for shawls and scarves.

1.  Find knitting machine and try to remember how to set it up.

2.  Put skein on swift and wind into a ball.  (what a mess!)

3.  Thread knitting machine and knit a 6 inch wide blank, which will be good to do an 18 inch wide shawl.

Much Better!  I will knit up the rest of the pearl cotton in the next few weeks.   I will do some narrower pieces to for scarves.

 I have discovered that it takes 5 loaded Pattern bobbins to do the pattern, and likewise 5 bobbins for the Tabby.  That means that I can load up my tray and weave a whole Baby Blanket before I have to wind more bobbins.  I still have to get up and  advance the warp, but that doesn't take too long and I can get a drink and change the audio book CD I am listening to at the same time.  I  have finished 3 Baby Blankets and am on to the 4th.  I thought that this shot of the transition from the purple to the yellow was really cool!

That is it for now,  I  need to get some lunch and get ready to go get a load of hay this evening.  My buddy Linda gave me a good lead on some!  Yeah!  It is a good deal and it is in the square bales and not those great big round ones.  I really can't see me trying to manage one of those on my own!

Until next time, Happy Weaving, Tina

logged 20 miles walking and 15 miles jogging!

( The dogs are in lock down for stealing stuff from the neighbors!)

Almost There===Planning Stage

It was such a beautiful day, that I had to do some yard work. Cleaned up all the empty boxes from deliveries. I only had a few that were in the garage. In the basement were stacks up over my head. DH got those out on Tuesday. Anyway, for now I am through building or working for him.
I have spent the last couple of days planning. You know, I was a Planner in a manufacturing company years ago. Or maybe you didn't know.

Here is what I have on my plan.  A bunch of towels on 8 shaft. I don't have a deep blue, so I may have to use yellow instead.

Here is the two 10lb spools of twin that I ordered.  I have had this in my head for several years. I saw these pictures and keep them. Now to see if I can do something close to them.

Here is my latest purchase. I really love these two books. The  "Compendium of Finishing Techniques"  just came today.  I got the other on several weeks ago. A couple of other books that I got awhile back to help me with learning to adapt color is below.

I have that book, by VanderHolt on Summer and Winter, on order. Last I looked it is on back order .I am on my way to having my weaving library.
I have a few books on spinning because I am just trying to learn to spin with the help of Tina. When I finaly learn to spin, I can always add more books.

Until next week. Happy weaving.
Bonnie

Last warps

I have a show next weekend. So, this week it's all about how much can I weave yet that I can realistically finish before the show starts a week from Thursday!  Don't you love it when you've got enough warp, well, maybe a tad more than you needed but you can weave all the way to the end of the warp!

For this warp, I did some color sections and then wove with black. It's been a successful combination in the past and I did have a request for a top from these colors so I wove enough for a few again. When I have just a bit of warp left, like this time, I weave off the rest and save it with all my other scraps. When I have time, I sew jackets kind of patchwork style. I hope I have time this winter to do that again. I am about out of them!

In thinking about a last warp to put on the loom before my show, I couldn't decide between a more subdued color for winter or red. So, of course, I chose red. Then what colors for the warp. I didn't want to do a solid red this time. Instead I picked out six different colors from pale pink to hot pink and from peach to shrimp to brick. Weaving it all with red ties it together.

I've only just begun weaving this warp. Just one bobbin worth is done. I've got 2 lbs of weft wound onto bobbins and that's the project for today. That plus serging and assembling the fabric from the warp above it. I've already washed those pieces and they're ready to assemble. Guess I will be busy! Good thing I have some shows I taped on my trusty old VCR the last few days to watch while I weave!

Barbara commented on the post yesterday about Ann's loom, wanting more information on it. It's a rocker beater loom. The beater sits on a beam on the base of the loom and kind of looks like a rocking horse at the bottom. It's a very cool loom to weave on and the beater, altho massive, just swings back and forth.  The harnesses are attached like they did on the old barn looms. Maybe we should post a picture of our old barn loom that is right next to it. Allan usually weaves on it and it's a massive old structure that weaves great rugs as well.

So, DD is recuperating slowly from her surgery. This one was more painful than the other one was. She is a trooper and, altho she really wants to get out and do things, she is being patient and doing what the doctors have told her she can do. One week down, about 3 to go before she can put any weight on that leg. The count has really begun! Physical therapy this afternoon again.
Outside in the last few days we've begun to see the leaves change. The dogwoods are getting pretty and some of the oaks are starting to show their colors. Guess in the new couple of weeks we'll be getting to the peak of color for down here!
Carol

Tuesday To-Do List

#1

Adjust the shelves.

#2
Crate the thread.


(Then the crates with the thread were put on the shelves!  Sorry, no picture of the great looking shelves.....I'll get that next week!)





#3
Hold your tongue just right when you're weaving rugs.

Right, Ann????

#4
Carol needs to cut more weft for rugs.










 #5

Weave the last rug on this warp, Bonnie!

#6
Find out what's going on with Marta & Ila.













#7

Get Lanny's scarf warp on the loom.

It looks so beautiful in the lease sticks!!!!




As always, this is a BUSY place.  We did manage a planning meeting for our Fall Retreat at the end of the month....warp painting will be so much fun with this group!!!

We hope your weaving is going well, also!!!
LA for the Tuesday Weavers!

Ahhh, The Weekend!

 I usually don't have weekends off like most people.  I usually have weird days off like Tuesday and Wednesday or Monday and Tuesday.  It enables me to be a Tuesday Weaver, which is great, but I miss all the wonderful things going on Saturdays and Sundays.  Here in east Tennessee, there are always things to do on the weekends.

  This Saturday, I was able to participate in the Foothills Fall Festival, and had so much fun introducing people of all ages to the magic of weaving.  I was also able to attend that uniquely American weekend ritual, shopping at Home Depot.  Now, I know they're open every other day as well, but there's something special about traveling the aisles at Home Depot on a Saturday.
  Since the temperature has started downward--though not very far downward this weekend!--I've been spending more time in the yard.  The guy I hired to mow this summer did a mediocre job, showing up every three weeks, and mowing down camelias and sage bushes in his hurry.  I cranked up my mower and took back control of the situation a few weeks ago.  This weekend, I scalped the hedge on one side and had to go to HD for some Round Up, the only thing my garden Guru, Jeff Ross, said would work on my Bermuda grass problem.  Problem being, it grows everywhere I don't want it to be.

Fall is prime planting time for trees, shrubs and perennials here, so how could I resist buying a few?  Kill Bermuda grass and replace it with something beautiful!  I got a rhododendron, six azaleas and a Dogwood tree.  I planted them and watered them in well yesterday, and have sketched out the plan for the rest of the backyard.  I also moved the Oak Leaf Hydrangea that's been struggling in a shady corner.  I plan on having as little grass of any kind as possible by next summer.  That area behind the Dogwood is going to be lots and lots of perennial flowers.  That dog behind the Dogwood will have a narrow, very long corridor to the left of the tree to do play and do other things dogs do in backyards.
  All this is a long way of saying that I haven't woven a pick in the last two weeks!  But I have made plans!  I was so inspired by Tina's baby blankets, and knowing two of my co-workers are having baby boys born this coming February, I've decided to wait on the double weave sampler and plan some overshot baby blankets.  I've been wanting to use some of the bamboo I bought earlier this year in a woven project, and I think it would be perfect, since it's anti-microbial.  I just need to decide on the pattern color:  blue or white-on-white?  Maybe both?  Now, THAT would be cool!  Blue borders with white-on-white centers!  Makes me want to go wind an warp!  See you later!
Maggie