Plain and Practical

Getting The Stock Packaged For The Show

Here's some labeled Dreads and a full basket of ones needing labels printed:

and there's the spindles I made and sanded and painted and clear-coated:

and that doesn't count all the ones in the kits already:

today, making cross stitch blanks for bookmark kits, labeling the rest of this yarn, and leaving at 2:00 to go pick up the van we're borrowing for the trip.  Hours are running out.  Tomorrow I have one day to sew all the costumes, but everything is here, just need to buckle down and sew it together.  The Red Baroness one will take the most time, it has a ruffled bustle   :)     y'alls be good and get done what you can, then when you lay your head down to rest on your pillow, it's soon to sleep you'll be.  Peace.

Multi-Studio House

I managed to bake fresh cornbread and also do a lemon cake this morning, get a load of wash done and hung on the line, and soundlessly somehow this was left on the porch:

that's 140 pairs of size 15 bulky knitting needles.  They are fab.  If I make a lot of money at Penguicon I will see about ordering other sizes too.

And the rack of costumes is coming along, will be crunching on them tomorrow and Sunday:

and the little metal biplane to go on the hat of the Red Baroness outfit is painted and ready for assembling onto a black top hat, for the costume contest:

surrounded by roses, ribbon, netting and other delights.  I also have some little planes to sew into the costume, too, probably on the ruffled black and white striped bustle.

All the yarn that is going to the show, has to be washed and hung up by tomorrow morning, and I've got 15 more to spin today.  Y'alls be good, I hope you have sunshine too, and also productive, busy days.  Peace.

Setting It Up for Tomorrow

Which will be a spinning, spinning, spinning day.  Did eight batches of carding, here's three of them:

and boiled a pot of goldenrod for making yellow for Sauder Village show in June, tomorrow morning I can strain this and do the wool:

maybe card one more and then it's at the wheel I go to sit.  Hand spinning is one of the sweet and simple joys in life, it's work, but it's pleasant work.   Peace.

The Next Week Looms Large

because there's three days of show stock to build up, Four costumes to make for myself and at least Three to make for my friend who's going with us.  Here's the Bounty Hunter one I've started gathering items together for:

and I just primered a tin airplane that's going on the top hat of the one I'm going to enter in the contest at the Con, The Red Baroness:

gotta get red metal paint tomorow.  And here's Boo on the living room couch.  He takes up the entire thing minus the two pillows at the end, but kinda using those too:

Oh, my giant furry slug bug.  He is so very loved.  Peace.

The Livingroom Is A Mess

'an so's the kitchen, too.  I am finishing up dabbing on the sculptures for the show, and then clear-coat them outside.  Then on the kitchen table are these knitting knobbies and drop spindles being made for the Penguicon show, more than thirty of each:

I could not do this without the teachings from my husband.  He taught me some basic woodworking skills, like using a vice and a bench dog, how to set up a jig to hold items while they are drilled, little things like have two drills loaded, one with a smaller bit and one with a larger one, and use them in that order to drill big holes without splitting the wood.  These were made with coasters, beads, handles, curtain pulls, dowels from flea markets, beads from exercise and massage equipment and childrens toys.  Gluing them this morning, then different fun this afternoon.

After asking about two dozen people if they had any land I could browse for limbs and bits for making baskets and garden supports, one of my former customers has kept in touch, and this afternoon we're going to walk her bramble-filled woods and field and gather materials and start her on making her first basket.  She seems daunted that this could actually happen, but once I get her hooked, she'll be able to go for a walk in the dew of the morning, and at day's end be able to hang up a basket she created with her own two hands, independently, with only what God grew on her acres.  And I think that is a nifty thing.

Here's the Boo, he hung out with a friend and I in the living room yesterday afternoon, while we tossed around ruffly skirts and hats and leather vests and satin dresses, planning our outfits for Penguicon, figuring out what went on what hat to match what outfit, great girlly silliness that Boo found annoying:

yes, that's a little stuffed mousie under his arm.  I tucked it in to make up for all the noises we were making to disturb his highness there.

Will have some basket pictures for you later.  Peace.

Dab Dab Dab Dab Dab

I have painted until my arms ache.  I'm suffering for my art, LOL.

Now, time to package up sales, print postage, and have a little walk to the p.o., making weekend plans!  Just found out two dear friends are stopping by on the way back from Marion to southern Ohio, so a little straightening up, and cooking making, is in order.  Maybe pies instead of cookies.   Peace.

Been Busy Testing My Tetanus Shot

I played around in a metals scrapyard outside of London, Ohio, on Saturday, and got all the pieces washed, as well as the ones Kim from Uptown Antiques brought over a couple weeks ago.  I've managed to step on the rusty metal strips several times already in my bare feet.

This is the showcase piece of the sculpture show, Calmacht O m'anam, which is "courage" and "from my heart."  It's my favorite and it's only just taking shape, the large circular area at the top is completed, now for the lower left.

They will fit together as one large 6' by 7' work, to hang just inside the front door of the gallery, but actually it will be three manageable sections:

and the antique store up in Mt. Victory called and said he has more pieces for me, but I have enough for the show.  After this one is assembled, all the wood is going to be stored away in a shed--if pieces sell, then I can allow myself the joy to make more of them.

White laundry is waving on the new clothesline, the dog hair is dry enough to start carding it but am hoping it warms up a bit more, only supposed to go to 60 today and that's a bit chilly.

Saturday I'm going to pick up my logs for basket-making, the drawknife arrived for froeing the strips, and I found a Prepper's group to visit out by Buckeye Lake, it might be interesting to find people who like to can and dry food and garden and be self-sufficient.  We'll see.  Peace.

Red Face, But Good Things Otherwise

Red face, red face, I didn't read the printout correctly and the habitat did take off that charge.  Apologies for not reading the printout correctly but NO apology for the manager's handling of the call and insisting I drive all that way to return something when I didn't want to return anything.  I'll still be staying away.  Anyplace that doesn't price things for the customer, lets itself in for bad feelings eventually.

My Drawknife arrived, with a nice freshly sharpened blade:

and I got these knobs at an antique store (for repairs, not antique) and will be making eight drop spindles with them:

and I talked to Kathy Custer, signing on for a seasonal membership at the Farm Market here in Marysville this summer, there are three or four Saturdays I'll be doing other venues, but am looking forward to setting up just a couple hundred feet from my front door.  It opens in late May, so the first three weeks of that month are dedicated to spinning and making batts and drop spindles and baskets for that.

Best part of yesterday, other than the prime time with a good friend who's about to go back to work full time, was wondering into a side street in Delaware and finding a gallery with working artists and studios in the back.  The curator said that they have critiques every once in awhile, and are setting up one now, so I was able to join in and she'll call when the date and time are arranged.  They also do life-study drawing groups, and I'd like to keep in practice with drawing more than I have been, so that is an added benefit.

On 42 just north of London I saw a place with nice scrap metals for my sculpture and although there were some nice trucks there and the lights were on, no one answered the door.  We figured they were either watching the big game, or playing poker, LOL, definitely Manly Man pickups.  Will try there again another time.

There is little more satisfying than getting up in the morning and making a good long list of things to get done.  Even if they are only have finished at the end of the day, I thank the Lord for the energy and resources to tackle as much as possible!  Peace.