Found a nicely matched pair of whitetail deer antlers on our walk around the property. Male deer naturally shed their antlers in late fall or winter after rutting season. Often squirrels and other rodents around here will chew on the antlers after they drop, so nice to see a pair in such good condition. These will no doubt be turned into antler art the next time I’m inspired.
flower skull mosaic
My latest creation… Bison skull mosaic — inspired by Norwegian rosemaling.
felted clogs
Crochet is more fun than knitting in my book. However, I couldn’t find a crochet pattern I liked for felted clog slippers so I went with knitted pattern. The pattern looked wonky before I felted it, no doubt due to my novice knitting skills. To felt, I put the knit slippers into a mesh bag with a clean tennis ball. The bag and ball help the fibers rub together and tangle into felt. I put the mesh bag into my front-loading washer set to hot, and added a little Woolite. The Woolite helps the fibers slip past one another, for more uniform felting. At least that’s what I think it does.
November 21, 2016
yarn swift & ball winder
If you’re spinning your own wool or purchasing yarn in hanks—a hank is a large coil of yarn, rather than a ball or skein—investing in a yarn swift and ball winder is worthwhile. Winding balls of yarn by hand takes forever, and you don’t get that easy pull-from-the-center strand a skein offers. I got my swift and winder some time ago when I was crocheting a large winter white afghan that ended up taking 45 hanks of wool. Forty-five hanks would have been beyond tedious to wind by hand. Clamp the swift to a table or counter, place the hank coils around the swift, and raise the center knob to expand the width of the
November 19, 2016
first farmers’ market
Growing sunflower greens and pea shoots has been a success, so decided to dip my toe into selling at the local farmers’ markets. I wanted to be sure I had at least a couple reliable crops to sell through the summer and into fall, especially since my big garden ambitions were downsized this year. I applied to three local farmers’ markets, and so far have a reserved space at the largest one in Kalispell, Montana. I’m selling the sunflower greens and pea shoots, as well as any extra tomatoes and chilies from the garden as they come into season. In addition to produce, I’ll be selling skincare oil and my bison
April 26, 2015
leftover yarn project
Cold Monday night is a good time to crochet a beret. Still yarn leftover for a pair of mittens.
winter crochet project
Several unplanned days being snowed in off and on over the last couple months makes for lots of time to finish lingering projects. I started this sampler square crochet wool afghan almost three years ago. Admittedly, most of that time it’s been stashed in a craft closet. Each square is a different pattern. I knew I’d get bored doing the same stitch over and over. Before connecting the squares, I soaked them in a diluted solution of hair conditioner and water, rinsed, and blocked them. I pinned the damp squares to an interlocking rubber floor mat. Blocking makes the squares flat and even, and helps the pattern show up better. Once the squares were dry,
January 26, 2015
bison skull mosaic
I picked up this skull from a local bison rancher. It was in pretty rough shape. With a little 40 volume peroxide, elbow grease, and time, it cleaned up nicely. Looked like a perfect canvas for a piece of art to me…. My first bison skull mosaic. Big and impressive in person. Fitting tribute to the bison bull who contributed to the stock of free-range beef in my freezer.