Mid Feb status

About a week ago, I got home from a 5 day knitting retreat with the usual suspects... It was great to spend time with everyone! Lots of knitting, lots of food, glorious weather... K and I did some inkle weaving. I finished my band and got her started on hers. We'll see if it's her thing or not.  I also got some good progress on my knitted poncho; it's not going to be the forever project I'd thought it might be. 

The weekend prior to that, I gave a clinic in warping for card weaving for 7 people. I don't think of myself as a good teacher, and some folks got it and others didn't. On the other hand, this happens in classes with good teachers as well.  We'll see if we have any new card weavers! Now I have 20 cards warped up in purple and white crochet cotton and am looking for a longer project. 

I also decided to recarve my leaves block; I don't care for the look of the empty spaces and I'd like to play more with the mechanics of carving. I need to start that this week.

The embroidery on the last rice bag is done! Now all I have to do is assemble it and I can retire that box. Looking forward to this. 

Foodwise, I cooked a lovely cod dish with mash potatoes and roasted fennel to go with a bottle of Trebbiano we bought in Florence. For dessert, cute little lemon cheese cakes. That was Valentine's Day :)

Mostly lino printing

Ich möchte gerne ein Kaffee bitte!

Here's my latest postcard.  I was playing with Chatgpt to generate the image, so the art is not my own. Here's my artistic critique:

What I like: 

I like the feel of the image, it reminds of that first sip of good coffee on a cold morning...  The brown, a mix of burnt sienna and black, is dark enough to work well as a print but feels much cozier to me.  I'm pleased with it and happy enough to send it out.  I also played with making less of a mess while printing so there's less ink on the backsides. Specifically I wiped my hands on a rag right before touching any paper...

Room for improvement:

I might have done a better job cleaning up the chatter marks in the border. I'm generally a big fan of chatter marks but they may be a bit distracting. 

Molly Hashimoto uses a T square to guide her border lines; that's probably a good idea. 

I never get tired of these

I'm still struggling with small cuts and this has a whole bunch of them. I had to recut a lot of the small spiky bits and they're still not clean. The very small cuts toward the right of the cup should be more parallel. 

A couple of things to mention... First, it would be good to check on my inventory of postcards before I start printing! I printed 9 and ran out.  Which is too bad because the ink had exactly the right consistancy and was printing super well. I'd mixed in a new (to me) ink thinner (burnt plate oil) and had gotten it just right. The second run of 9 today was not quite as successful and I fixed a couple of spots with a brush. 

I got tired of printing coffee cups and still had some ink left, so I printed 4 general purpose cards with an old image which used the last of the ink.  I've been needing some cards...

I also test printed a block I carved out while listening to a lecture. I wanted to try out this method for leaves.  I found it difficult to space the cuts correctly, and even to put the cuts exactly where I want them.  That's why this practice is a good idea. I think I'm going to print in black or dark green on a light green surface.

I still need to carve something for the Molly Hashimoto class; I have two ideas sketched up but haven't gotten to them yet. 

In the non-lino world, I'm still working on the last rice bag (almost done with 3rd side) and nearly done knitting the first of two panels for the Age of Aquarius poncho.  The Alabama Channin class got pushed out a month. I started an Andean Pickup Band and it's come back to me quickly, including how to work with a pickup cross. More on that in a later post.  I also started putting drywall tape on the edge of my mosaic substrate, which is annoying complex because it is round; I did about 1/4 of the table before giving up for the day.

I made this chicken and rice with carmelized lemons; it was tasty! But way too much rice. I think next time I would add more onion/shallot and garlic, more red pepper, more lemon, and 6 thighs, and maybe reduce the rice to 1.5 cups (and 3 cups of stock).  

Mid January status and new cookbook challenge, apparently I'm real busy

Slightly wonky basket, perfect for a beer cozy 

I made a basket in workshop taught by Barbara Shapiro. These are Japanese flower knots which are totally intimidating and seem impossible until you've made 4, then they're addictive. The base is a hexagonal weave. The basket benefitted from being sprayed with water, then allowed to dry with a pint jar inside; it's much less wonky now! Made from craft band, a Japanese recycled paper product. It was so addicting that I ordered a roll of the paper band (arrived) and a book from Japan (not arrived, and in Japanese) so I can try to make some more baskets.

Poor woven band

I finished a cardwoven band in 5/2 cotton (and a mystery fiber), started last year when I did the demo for a guild study group. For some reason I was incapable of counting to 8 reliably but I like the difference in the band as I varied from 4-12 or more turns. BTW, these always look better when ironed (this has been ironed). 

I'd intended to go to the Serendipity Spinners meeting this month with my little e-spinner, only to find that the drive band was busted. I thought I'd ordered new ones... and went looking... I found evidence in my email that I'd ordered bands and an extra motor, but could not find them in the studio.  I found them later, in the first place I looked, just after I'd ordered more (they're just O-rings) off the internet. I did go to the meeting, and I spun some on some blue wool I'd gotten at one of the SOAR conferences. I'm spinning really thin so I can weave with it....

Rice bag #4, Side 1... will it ever end? 

Still working on the Age of Aquarius Poncho; I'm guessing I'm about 16" into the 18" piece, which will be 1/2 of the finished poncho. It's going much faster than I'd anticipated. 

I'm taking another Molly Hashimoto block printing class but German has started and I'm fully occupied with that. I need to get organized...

I'm also working on that 4th rice bag; I have 2 of the 4 panels ready, and the base is ready to go.  I'm having fun with the stitches I learned in the first Alabama Channin class. When that's finished, I can put away the rice bag box; that's part of a (very) slow effort to declutter the studio.

There's a new cookbook challenge... I'll pick a cookbook this time, or ask DH for his recommendation, then cook from it, but only in months when I'm home enough. This month, I'm cooking from Madhur Jaffrey's Instant Indian Cookbook.  I made the Ground Lamb with Peas and the Stir Fried Green Beans in a South Indian style. and served it with rice and an 11 year old Gangloff Condrieu; the pairing was excellent.  I didn't cook the beans in the Instant Pot, and didn't precook them at all; instead I stir fried them in the spices and left them super crunchy. I could eat these beans every day.  In February, I'll go back to Georg Lang's Hungarian cookbook to try out the paprika I brought home with me.

What's up for the foreseeable future? 

• I have some prints to make for my class.
• Next Friday, I'm taking another Alabama Channin class, this time on beading. 
• I have to finish warping my loom and get that project underway.
• I'll work on the Poncho while watching TV in the evenings and while knitting in public.
• I'm giving a mini clinic on how to warp up for card weaving on Feb 1, so I'll warp up another band in 10/2 cotton. 
• K and I are going to play with Andean Pickup on the inkle loom while at our knitting retreat in early February, so I need to get ready for that.
• I have to get back to the mosaic studio. I don't think I'm ready to start tiling but I have to work on the substrate to make it rounder, and add the drywall tape to the border. I can realistically do the edging as well before I'm ready to transfer  the design and start laying real glass.

I've also got my Goethe class, the homework for my other German tutor, and I need to get out on the bike to prep for the bike trip in early summer. Yikes.

2026 New Years Resolutions?

It being the New Year and all, I should probably try to figure out some goals for the year. Yep, they're going to look a lot like last year, but hey, I'll spell them out anyways. 

I'm also feeling a little out of sorts; when I travel I lose momentum and can't get back into a rhythm. And travelling isn't as much fun as it was, it makes me a little anxious. These are mindset issues, and I must fix them.

Two things that will take up a lot of time in 2026;  learning German and getting in shape for that bike trip in June. I'm on it!!!

I'm also been cooking pretty much nonstop since December 18th. It's been fun but I've had enough and am ready to going to go back to cooking a couple of times a week.  But I will be resurrecting some sort of cooking challenge; maybe one where I pick the cookbook?

As for the studio...

The Easy Stuff:

• There's a blue sweater that just needs buttons. I can't celebrate it's one year anniversary unfinished.
• I'm in three classes: a basketry class, another Alabama Channin class (embroidery), and another Molly Hashimoto class (block printing).  All three classes produce samples/products. These will happen.
  
• 4 napkins still need hemming.

Some Things that Need to be Done.

• 

  This is the dawning of the Age of Aquarius Poncho

  I'm partly through warping for 2 baby blankets, one of which is for a baby that has just arrived.
• I'm working on the Age of Aquarius Poncho, great for TV and travel knitting. I suppose it doesn't 
  "need to be done" but I need an idiot project.
• The bistro table for the pool deck must be done. I have a design, I have a substrate. Now I just need to get to it.
• I need some cards in my stationary stock. 

Other Things in Progress:

• I've carved 2 blocks and need to do test prints.
• I'm working on the Dissent sweater, nearly done with the yoke.
• That headband from the knitting cruise...

Other Things:

• More prints. Although I have 2 almost ready to test print, and will do 2 in Molly's class, so that puts me in a good position. I'm also thinking about holiday cards.
• Another rice bag, then I can get rid of the box of parts. The pieces are quilted and waiting for embellishment.
• Another little gnome, then I can get rid of the rest of the class yarn and get rid of the box all the bits and pieces are stored in.
• Doubleweave pillows; pattern is drafted, yarn is on the shelf waiting.
• Quilt the pink hawaiian baby quilt
• Finish one of the unfinished quilts. (Niemeyer?)
• Stepping stones.
• Stranded mittens.
• I bought some yarn for sweaters; one from a indie dyer in Budapest, and the other for a Julie Weisenberger sweater. I may cast one on at the retreat in Feb knowing that it'll take awhile for me to get to the idiot knitting.... 
• I'd like to weave a couple of throw blankets.

===================

I'll continue to include the UFO LIST from way back just to keep me honest... I added a few things.

Knitting: 

1. Anna Zilboorg Sweater- I need to fish it out and make a plan 
2. A Capella- frog and return the yarn to the yarn pool 
3. Sunset and Sand- needs frogging! 
4. The jacket with the embroidery that needs rework. If I recall correctly there's an issue with the collar, and the sleeves, and I'm not sure what else...

Weaving:

1. This is super easy, since it's either on the loom or not...  
2. There are have three ikat warps (two from Indonesia, and one from a friend) that need weaving. 
3. There are a number of warps I pulled for a dyeing class then got sick and missed it.

Quilting (Can the list really still be this long?):

1. Fan blocks: I've been dithering about what to do with them for 25 years or so.
2. The first Judy Niemeyer quilt (straighter pieces): I may need to figure out setting strips but otherwise I think I photoed a layout and I should be ready to finish the top.
3. The second Judy Niemeyer class (curved pieces): I stopped while piecing the top together but I did photo the layout; so I need to remember what I was doing and do it.
4. Judy Niemeyer place mat kit: it's in the bookshelf, waiting to be made.
5. Chili pepper quilt: Ick. Maybe donate?
6. Around the Twist quilt: It's done except I think a couple of the corners need sewing? This'll probably go to donation
7. One or two Hawaiians? (small) that need quilting One blue, one pink Where is the blue hawaiian?
8. A cute but fussy quilt that I started in pinks and blues but I'm not sure I'm precise enough to finish
9. I pieced a baby sized black and white drunkards path 35 years ago? Maybe more? It needs borders then quilting..

Sewing:

1. I bought a jacket sewing class
2. I'd like to do some Alabama Channin type embroidery on garments.

Spinning:

• Ugh. I need to eval. Spin all the stuff?

Mosaic:

Something 3d? Using Paltiya?