Q4'25 finished list 13/36

The "ugly duckling" towels

1) The Poppy table top. I think this table has been well celebrated, no need to continue here 

2) Postcards with the 6K year old pot motiv.

3-7) 5 towels, 4 of which now live happily somewhere else. Here's a photo of the two I liked the best. The light blue is actually a grey (but reads blue next to the other colors) and the bright green is mustard. I tried them together but didn't think the colors would look good together; I thought the mustard would overwhelm and the grey would wash out, but for some reason I tried it anyways. Super glad I did. 

Chemo cap to a Hungarian cancer center

8) Napkins, quantity 2/6. Why am I counting these as one item, but the towels separately? Not sure, it just felt right. Someday I'll hem the other 4.

9) Hat for me (there's no photo yet but the hat debuted in Europe and was quite warm).

10) Hat for charity; I knit the Hurricane hat in a worsted weight cotton. To be frank I was disappointed that they were only able to collect 40 hats (and some folks did more than one!) from the 120 of us on board.

11) Baby Sweater in a useless wool.

12) A wreath. Do I count that? Since it's not persistent?

13) A tiny weaving in a tapestry class offered by K.D. 

Did I add that right? 36 items this year?

I was going to rush to finish these items that are "almost" done, then decided not to rush just to mark them off the list.

• A sweater that needs buttons.
• 4 napkins that need hemming.
• A headband that needs finishing. 

I do have some ideas of what I want to work on in 2026; but also need to figure out how to keep momentum with all the travelling I'll be doing. More on that later.

Q3'25 Finished list (7/23)

Probably my last gnome

It feels like I haven't done much this quarter! But according to my list, I've done finished a few larger projects and some smaller ones. Here's the list:

Lily (photo in prev post).

The scarf from the Alabama Chanin class, and I've yet to photograph it.

Two Monksbelt towels in 10/2 cotton from Unspun and leftover 10/2 cottons (photo in previous post). Three more are woven but not yet wet-finished or hemmed; I'm saving them in loom state to show at the October Weave In. 

Art basket

Another knitted Gnome. 

Two baskets from a class I took with Barbara Shapiro; one is quite small and the other is here. It's clear to me that I need some technique practice. But when you make one basket every 3 years, you don't get good at it.

I have a few things that I wanted to or tried to finish. They're almost done.

• The next block is carved and ready to print the next run of postcards.
• The blue sweater is still missing it's button.
• The table is almost done; it lacks a 1.5" border (which is going to be super hard to make look right) and grout.
• The 3 additional towels can be completed (hemmed) after the weave in.

Things I'm definitely going to work on in Q4:

• The baby blanket warp from the hand painted warp ready to go on the loom; baby due in December.
• Hosting a Weave In in October, so there will be napkins for that. 
• Structures group is working on woven Sashiko, so I might try that.
• I'm heading to Oregon next week for a class with Julie Weisenberger (Cocoknits) and the sample project is a baby blanket, so that's coming. 
• DH is agitating for a new bistro table top for the pool deck. 

Note I'm also playing piano, working out a lot, and spending about 2 hours a day learning German. With the two trips I have planned and the whole holiday thing this is going to be a busy three months!!!

Almost done!!!

And f I have extra time:

• 2-3 more prints, hopefully a 2 color print in the batch. I'm thinking a monarch butterfly. Maybe some fish. Probably worthwhile thinking about the rest of the year
• 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.

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

I'll continue to include the UFO LIST from way back just to keep me honest... Not shorter this quarter but.... it will be.

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 a decision frog or finish! 
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 a 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 thought of another but can't lay my hands on it or remember now what it was so...

• Sewing:

• Spinning:
• Ugh. I need to eval

Mosaic:

1. A table: Unsure of how I want the background to be
2. Stepping stones: there's an area I made that needs rework.

Q2'25 (4/16)

Not a lot done...

• 
• Another rice bag (there's a separate post on this).
• Two Gnomes (pictured along with the first one). I did dye 9 different colors of yarn for the gnomes, so that's something, right? And I have a lot of yarn that'll be leftover. Thinking of a sweater.
• Alabama Channin class sample (no photo). This is an intriguing combo of cotton jersey, stenciling and hand embroidery; I've completed the sample and am ready to start on the scarf kit. Thinking of doing some more of her projects (and in fact, just ordered some fabric!)

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

I had a lot on the list from last quarter that I didn't do. I came back from the CNCH/Scotland/Portland triple header with some sort of non-Covid ick, and so far haven't been motivated to do anything much in the studio, or really anything much at all.

There's a CNCH class sample: I have a bobbin full of singles from the CNCH class, not sure what to do with these.

I do have the following that I'm working on:

• Lily Sweater, designed by Dan Doh. It's an oversize lacy pullover in linen; I've got it all done except for one sleeve. 
• The April cardigan still just needs button and the ends woven in...
• I cut the rest of the leaves for the mosaic table, now I need to make some design decisions and get to work on finishing it.
• I'm pretty sure I plied up a bunch of the singles I had sitting around but I can't remember? I'm sure they're here somewhere.
• I've started warping a loom but it's slow going.

In the past few quarterly recaps, I've added the list of unfinished projects and things I want to work on. I'm going to omit that this time and see if it changes how I feel about getting things done.

Q1'25 FInished list (12)

My Pebble Beach Shawl matches the
Anthony Murphy
painting in the bedroom

Apparently I haven't been photographing things, as I'm finding a lot of mentions of items without any documentation. So this will be photo-heavy. What have I finished this quarter?

Knitting:

• Modular vest: it's proved to be a great little vest for around the house, keeping me warm when I'm a little chilly. 
• Pebble beach shawl: "finished" 7 years ago, but I hated it and put it away with plans to rip it out. I found it last month and don't hate it anymore. Hard to count it as a finished object since all I did was block it and weave in the ends, but will do so as it's no longer in the studio but living in the closet.

Modular Vest

• A gnome.

 Printing:

• An edition of snowflake postcards
• An edition of quail postcards

Weaving:

• 2nd pennywise runner (with issues)
• 4 towels; 3 with carrots, 1 with corn (not pictured).

Carrots hanging out in the kitchen

Spinning

• The Diver's Cove roving is now a 2 ply lace weight yarn, all except for the dregs on one bobbin. I'll ply that with something leftover from another effort.

Other:

• Bunny shopping bag: I used a machine embroidery pattern by Urban Threads with bunnies and carrots to make a shopping bag/tote using yardage from my stash. Why do I have carrot fabric in my stash? I have no idea. The bag is super cute, and is going to the same charity as the carrot towels.

FOR Q2:

I'll still be out of the studio a lot but should be able to finish:

• The April cardigan just needs button and the ends woven in...
• I have a bobbin of merino/tencel singles that I've started plying, more blues.
• Would be nice to ply up some of the oddball spools
• I'm taking a spinning class at CNCH, not sure what the result will be.
• 2-3 more prints, hopefully a 2 color print in the batch,
• Doubleweave pillows; pattern is drafted, yarn is on the shelf waiting.
• A waffle weave project for the study group.

And hopefully make some progress on:

• The pink hawaiian baby quilt
• The in-progress table
• And maybe some stepping stone. I'm rethinking designs.

(19 things as of 12/25/24)

Q4 and 2024 Finished List (10/29), and December cookbook challenge

First, the cookbook challenge! Last night I used the Santa Fe School of Cooking Flavors of the Southwest recipe for Lamb Adovada with chipotle sauce and carmelized corn... The recipes serves 10, so I used 1/3 of the meat it called for, 1/2 of the marinade ingredients, but made full versions of sauce and the corn. I served it with roasted fingerling potatoes and a beet and apple salad with a lime vinaigrette, and a 2016 Sea Smoke pinot noir. The lamb was from Dixon, which probably has  the best lamb in the region. DH declared it restaurant quality (which made me smile). We both felt the sauce and corn served 4, the lamb was about right for 4 servings as well. Note that the sauce does not need the extra chipotle that I added.

A quick mention of bread and all things wheat... I not only made sourdough for Christmas Eve, but also cinnamon rolls for Christmas morning! Two issues... I screwed up weighing the flour (don't judge me) so had to eyeball the appropriate amount; I think I added too much; the buns were just slightly dry. Second, I missed the part of the recipe that said to leave them out on the counter for 2 hours after sitting in the fridge all night, but managed to leave them out for 45 minutes and we just had breakfast a little later.  Everyone went back for seconds! But sadly, I feel like I'm suffering from the wheat, and need to kick it out of my diet for a few weeks to check. I think the right solution is to keep using this wheat, but not on a daily basis; maybe a couple times a month?

On to the list of what I've accomplished this quarter...

Done:

 

Six of the unfinsished objects from my list (UFO's)

• The tote bag from the embroidered pieces I made a few years ago, now proudly transporting groceries for K.C.
• 3 purple ikat towels.
• Those two hand towels (of four) that I made a year or three ago but never hemmed? Yep, they are hemmed and on the shelf waiting for guests.

Some new stuff:

• Komebukuro #1 and #2
• More cards for Christmas, same tree as before, and a few more Zig prints
• The Weave-In runner

So 10 things this quarter and a total of 29 for the year. I may have to stop counting each towel, they're quick once they're on the loom and it feels a little like cheating?

What's up for 2025?

• More cookbook challenges: I need to keep my head in the cooking game to not lose my skills; plus it's just fun.  I'll keep baking bread, just not as much.
• More physical effort; I need to be in better shape, and some weight loss would be good too. Having a e-bike makes riding from the house possible, and DH found a lock that makes leaving the bike to go into a shop or cafe possible; this'll let me run some basic errands on bike. Did I mention 90-120 minutes of exercise makes me sleep really really well?

  

  2025: year of the busy hands

• German. I'm enrolled in German classes.
• More printing: I really like printing! What's holding me back is art skills.  I am finally ready to admit that not making art does not make for better art. I've made a list of things I want to try on linoleum block, and plan on making a series of post cards to send to friends. 
• In 2024, I made a goal to make some things for fun and give them away. A scarf and a baby blanket went to charity auctions; another baby blanket found a baby; two towels went to friends. I'd envisioned a box of thinks that I could pull from when needed (ha!). I enjoyed making and gifting, so expect more of it. 
• Finish more of the unfinished projects, and make sure the list is up to date. First up, a vest that ONLY needs seams and buttons.
• Weave up some of the free 10/2 cotton (more on that later).
• Mostly, stay busy and keep my head out of the political news.

Q3 '24 finished list (7/19)

Motif from a 4000 year old Iranian pot

Let's face it, I'm not going to finish anything else before EOQ tomorrow...  This quarter I finished:

• Red fabric and a shirt from it just in time to wear to Sweden (counting as two items)
• A swedish rag rug while in Sweden
• 2 runners, one of which now lives in France. I'm keeping the on with too many mistakes :) It doesn't look much different from the sample on the loom I showed in an earlier post.
  
• Cowl using planned pooling, which looks like flowers on a brown background.  I don't have photos yet. 

  Crappy watercolor but fun cards?

  
  
• I carved a stamp depicting Zig, and made a small run of cards, Zig, the dancers, and my frog. And I took an old watercolor drawing and chopped it up into a few cards as well... Now I have a dozen cards plus 4 or 5 postcards.

--------

September's cookbook challenge was Plenty: I made the Veggie pie, which was pretty much a quiche with roasted tomatoes, onions, zucchini, eggplant, peppers, and feta. I'd make that again. 

--------

I think I said this a few posts ago, but I need to shift some of my attention from making things to working out; I've lost a level of fitness and frankly it's now or never. I need to revisit my time and priorities... But I'll still be working on things. 

I'd like to spend more time printing... so I'll be looking at a periodic goal to carve a new stamp or learn a new technique.

I'd like to work through some of the stuff that's on Craftsy.

I'd like to set a periodic goal to work though that list of unfinished projects I came up with last March.

SOOOOO.... having said all of that, this is what's on my list for Q4. Note that having said I'd devote more time to it, the list has gotten longer than any other quarter.

Finishing: 

• Those two darn towels I just can't seem to finish.

Printing:

• I need a Christmas card, and have no ideas.
• I'd like to carve a block depicting G&M's Zig.

Knitting:

• I frogged and restarted the Modular Color Vest. It should go fast, it's thick yarn; I'm about 1/4 done with it now.
• The Day Dream sweater (Frogging, need to start over), or another sweater.

Spinning:

• The Diver's Cove roving is singles, needs to be plied.
• I have a bobbin of merino/tencel singles that need to be plied.

Weaving:

• A basket? I have the materials
• I've loosely promised some vegetable towels by April or so. It would be nice to make one or more veggie bags to go with it.
• I have double weave pillows designed and colors picked out... I need 2 for me and two for K.
• An Ikat (DH is working on a warp shifter for me)
• Placemats for the lodge using rag rug techniques.
• The poppy table, so I can start the table by the pool. I came back from France with some ideas.

Sewing:

• The tote bag from the embroidered piece I made a few years ago.
• Finish a started quilt
• Work more with the embroidery class I started.

I'm including the UFO LIST from March just to keep me honest... And yes! It's getting shorter.

Knitting: 

• Anna Zilboorg Sweater- I need to fish it out and make a plan 
• A Capella- frog and return the yarn to the yarn pool 
• Sunset and Sand- needs a decision frog or finish! 
• 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:

• This is super easy, since it's either on the loom or not...  and there are projects on both looms. 
• However, there are two hand towels that need hemming. 
• I do have four ikat warps (one I dyed, two from Indonesia, and one from a friend) that need weaving. 

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

• Fan blocks: I've been dithering about what to do with them for 20 years or so.
• 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.
• 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.
• Judy Niemeyer place mat kit: it's in the bookshelf, waiting to be made.
• Chili pepper quilt: Ick
• Around the Twist quilt: It's done except I think a couple of the corners need sewing? This'll probably go to donation
• One or two Hawaiians (small) that need quilting
• A cute but fussy quilt that I started in pinks and blues but I'm not sure I'm precise enough to finish

Sewing:

• I have all the pieces ready for a big grocery bag, just do it

Spinning:

• Honestly I have no idea.

Mosaic:

• A table: Unsure of how I want the background to be
• A stepping stone: there's an area I made that needs rework.

Clearly I'm not counting raw materials (quilting fabric, knitting yarn, weaving yarn, tiles, sewing fabric). Let's not go there.

Q1'24 Finished List (6)

I'm late posting this... I left just before the end of the quarter for a 3 week trip around Greece. More on that later!

These are the things I finished in Q1:

A wool scarf from Graceful yarn that has been donated to a charity auction. What's exceptionally cool about the piece is that I now know what I need to know to weave up some fabric for a shirt.

Who doesn't need color on their loom bench?

Two baby blankets from Cotton Classic knitting yarn, one of which has gone to live at one of G's niece's houses.

The sheep shirt and a shirt in aqua Malay batik (which went on vacation with me)

A rug sample from Nancy Kennedy's rug weaving class, which is on my loom bench.

Not done: 

• There are two towels somewhere in Studio that just need hemming. I can't find them.
• Shiny sweater: I have one sleeve to go, and I need to reknit the bottom hem.
• Two spinning projects: the goat is still not plied, nor is the brown and multicolored singles from the roving I bought at KAFF. 
• The double huck scarf is almost done, I just need to finish the fancy multicolored end.
• I also started a cowl while on my trip but didn't get very far.

When I bought a handmade rug in Greece, I tried to tell the shopkeeper to let the weaver know the rug was going to the home of a weaver. I showed him the loom bench photo and told him it was mine, and he understood. 

It occurs to me with all of the travel I have planned for this year, I'm going to have a tough time getting anything done....

Some Q2 goals:

• Finish some of the unfinished stuff from Q1; maybe even find those two towels!
• Install upgrade on sewing machine and take this class: https://sewing-mastery.teachable.com/p/bernina-pinpoint-placement-master-class
• Finish the Shiny sweater.
• Make a cute grocery bag from the embroidered panels.
• Double weave pillows x 4.
• Yardage in Bronson lace.

Q4 '23 Finished List (4/21)

What's on the finished list for Q4?

• Two summer and winter rugs (see next blog post
• 8 Christmas cards (simple yet lovely)
• Ikat class piece
• Test pieces for Graceful yarn. Do I count test pieces? Sure. It was a 2 yard warp, and completely separate from a project. Kind of like a mini-project. I'm counting it. 

I've already started on the 2024 Stashdown... I have the Graceful warp ready for threading, and half of a warp wound for two Very Bright baby blankets in Tahki Yarns Cotton Classic. I'll have to buy some weft to go with the blankets, but it'll put a major hole in my Cotton Classic stash!  I'm also boiling an ikat to get dyed today or tomorrow which will be towels; that gets rid of an already-pulled warp and will use up some more of my 8/2 cotton stash.

As for the rest of the crafts I aspire too, I'd like to touch on each of them in Q1. I haven't identified a list yet (and I may not)... There is some low hanging fruit:

• The shopping bag with the embroidered panels.
• The two additional towels that just need hemming.
• The sheep shirt.

Things I'd like to finish/do:

• The mosaic table in studio b.
• Upgrading my sewing machine and trying some more embroidery (maybe that class?)
• A new shirt pattern.
• A shirt pattern for Scott.
• The Shiny sweater
• A project for the study group: I would like to take a profile draft and implement the design in bronson lace; maybe snail trail? In 18/2 cotton OR Graceful.

And I'd like to continue to use some of the images I picked up on my trips this year. Not this one. But I thought the post needed a photo!

Q3'23 finished things (7/17)

Done:

• 

  Two yards of 1/2" band

  Camp shirt from Kuala Lumpur batik
• Camp shirt from paper yarn
• Afternoon Tea Shawl 
• Sample from Inge Dam class at CNCH
• Card Woven Band
• Knitted Cowl
• Diversified Plain Weave sample for the study group.

I was listening to KQED a few weeks ago and heard an interview with  Jennifer Breheny Wallace, on her book "Never Enough: When Achievement Culture Becomes Toxic -- and What We Can Do About It"

The talk focused the effects on our children of expecting constant achievement from them. What occured to me is that the people I'm in weaving classes with are likely the same parents she talks about. These are the people that expect to produce an expert piece the very first time they try a technique and who do not give themselves room for experimentation and the possibility of failure. This is just my opinion, not having read the book, but the same parents that are expecting this of their children are expecting it of themselves. 

Two key phrases resonated with me. One, that our "failures and setbacks become indictments of our worth to ourselves and those around us". The second was the affirmation that "I am not my achievements and I am not my failures."

I bring this up in the this blog because I am often paralyzed by the need to produce the perfect piece and I don't give myself enough room for experimentation. I'm not currently okay with mediocre or failed results, and I think that blocks my growth as an artist.

Given all of that, is counting finished projects on a quarterly basis toxic for me? I don't think so. Failed projects count the same and successful projects, and I need a representation of what I've been up to.  So I'll happily continue with this, but will also try to stop the dithering and get stuff done!

In the Queue for Q4 and beyond:

Weaving:

• 2 rugs on the big loom.
• The piece from the Mary Z class
• A double faced cardwoven band.
  

Knitting:

• Sand and Sunsets
• Shiny sweater

Quilting:

• There are a couple of quilts I'd like to finish. And I want to continue to explore continuous line designs with my embroidery machine.

Sewing: 

• Stash reduction (this would go better if I stopped buying fabric).
• Sheep shirt
• Shirt for Scott

Other:

• There are mosaic and linocuts I'd like to work on. I've started on the dancing girls. And I worked a tiny bit on the table.
• It occurs to me that I have a minimum of 2 nieces, their spouses, and 2 grand-niblings that live in cold climates. Maybe scarves this year? I suspect I'll also have to start thinking about a baby blanket...

Q2'23 Finished Objects (7)

Comboweave yardage

Looking over my Q2 list, I realize that I've become awful at photo'ing my finished objects... Maybe I should make that a prerequisite to calling them "finished"? There was some spinning, too, but it's hard to thing of a finished skein as a finished object...

It does feel good to be finishing things... Here's what I've done:

Weaving:

• 2 pillow tops in beiderwand
• Comboweave fabric, finished on the last day of Q2; this is 8/2 tencel, sett at 27 EPI; colorful warp was dyed in a Kathrin Weber workshop, the rest is commercially dyed. It's twill and basketweave.
  

Knitting:

• Dan Doh's Permutations poncho (alas no photos)
• Sommerloch (also no photos yet)

Quilting:

• Machine quilted runner

Sewing:

• Shirt in linen (no photos... sensing a trend?)
  

Other projects

• Limoncello
• We sleeved and hung 3 of the Ikats on the walls!

And here's what is in progress:

Weaving:

• 2 rugs on the big loom; loom is threaded and I'm ready to start weaving.
• I'm pulling a warp for a class with Inge Dam at CNCH (local weaving conference); the class combines weaving and card weaving in one fabric. I've admired her work and book for quite awhile so I'm excited to learn this. I'll need to have the loom ready to go for the first week in August.

Knitting:

• 
  Still working on Sand and Sunsets... I got a manicure prior to my nieces wedding only to realize my nail polish matches my knitting! Scary, no?
  
• I started two things at the knitting retreat: I'm half way through a shawl (perfect travel airplane knitting) and I started a sweater. The sweater will probably have to wait until Sand and Sunsets is done, but I think the shawl will be my drag around knitting.

Quilting:

• There are a couple of quilts I'd like to finish. And I want to continue to explore continuous line designs with my embroidery machine.

Sewing:

• I have one camp shirt cut out and partly sewn, and would like to finish the paper one before the end of July.

Other:

• I'm taking an online ikat class from Mary Zicafoose in September.
• There are mosaic and linocuts I'd like to work on.
• It occurs to me that I have a minimum of 2 nieces, their spouses, and 2 grand-niblings that live in cold climates. Maybe scarves this year? I suspect I'll also have to start thinking about a baby blanket...

Q4'21 Finished Things (7)

I was so narrowly focused this year on finishing the Pub Quilt (which is in the closet right now for the Christmas Quilt season)... After I'd completed it I felt somewhat disconnected from my other projects. Anyways, I'm back on track now. For Q4, I did the following:

• Made a tablet woven mask lanyard
• Practiced my woolen spinning by turning a blue batt and some green wool into yarn.
• Took a class in ruler quilting, making a really ugly quilted table runner.
• Took a class in reduction lino print making, and made a 3 color print.

Wove two ikat scarves.

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

With the 29 projects I finished during the rest of the year, the total for 2021 is 36! That's really high for me, considering 2 of those were a queen sized quilt.  There are a few things very close to completion that I almost powered through today but then decided I had other priorities, and a silly number isn't everything.

For 2022, I'd like to do more mosaic, more printing, some sewing and some band weaving.  On my mind right now are:

Owl wonders why there's no 
cat time in the 2022 list?

• A vest
• There's fabric that is still on the loom from the second overshot class.
• A vest made from that fabric.
• A cardwoven band to adorn the vest.
• Paper yarn
• I spun paper to knit with but ran out of paper... I just got more paper so hope to finish the yarn in Q1.
• I'd like to weave a paper sample from it, and start knitting something from it.
• Spin the silk I just bought for card weaving.
• Spin more cotton.
• Play with Paltiya.
• Fix the two needlepoint pillows that are falling apart.
• I finished two guest room towels in Q3; the other two still need hemming.
• A summer sweater that K and are I talking about
• A shirt for S
• I need to perfect the pattern then
• Find Fabric
• And sew him a shirt

Let's add to this that I'll have a wet studio by the end of Feb, I need to pick up the pace on my workouts, and I'm learning to play piano. And with any luck, we'll be able to start travelling again in 2022. 

Q3'21 finished things (4)

Nothing to do with anything, 
but still a pretty sunset

Done:

• 2 huck baby blankets
• 2 of 4 of the hand towels for the guest bath; the other two are siting on the loom, unhemmed.

In Progress:

• 2 more hand towels for the guest bath; okay, they just need hemming
• The Pub Quilt! I'm on border 4 of 4, then have to bind it and do a litttttttle more quilting on the inside. Honestly, nothing else is getting done 'cause I'm obsessed.
  

Still on the list but what was I thinking?

• Make the Get Weaving Vest pattern in handwoven or stash fabric. 
• Start an overshot throw in champagne and white for the den.
• Make more progress on the new mosaic table (more than just one poppy).
• Okay, I did a second poppy but that was it.
• Make another grocery bag! 
• Make a piece of Andean Pebble weave that's wider, on the loom. 
  
• More towels for another towel exchange, maybe using info from Tien and Janet's class.
• 2 Ikat scarves, for M. and for C. (these are tied but not dyed or woven).

Q1 '21 Finished things (17)

I have been unusually productive this quarter; I don't know why. I'm not going to question it though. All of the finished things were made from stash! Yet why doesn't my stash feel lighter?

Owl contemplates this
quarter's accomplishments

The Finished List:

• Double Your Pleasure Cowl
• 4 sets of 12 merit badges (that's 48 badges); I'll count them as 4 objects. 
• 1 set of 2 Adulting awards 
• A baby sweater 
• 3 overshot runners
• 10 oz brown/purple yarn, "Wood Nymph" from Wonderland Dyeworks. 
• Mittens for G from Anna Zilboorg's Magnificent Mittens book.
• Mittens for M from the same pattern book, from a kit that's been in my stash forever,
• One yd of warpwise shibori fabric in tencel, which was my Study Group project.
• Doily from a textile fragment that had been haunting the studio.
• I used the embroidery machine to embroider two hockey skulls and put them on a quilted grocery bag.
• An 80" band of Andean Pebble weave. 

--------------

Here's what's either in progress, or on the wish list from Q1 that didn't get finished. I could probably power my way through one or two of the first 3 but given that I'm not short on finished objects for Q1, I'll push them to Q2. If I finish anything before the end of the month (3 days) I'll edit this.

• I'm not done with the doubleweave class sample
• I have one more towel on the loom, then this will be done.
• I have a 2nd band of Andean Pebble Weave on the loom.
• I didn't make any clothing from stash or handwoven. 
• No bed covering.
• I'm working on getting the pub quilt ready for quilting but am probably a month away.
• I make meager progress on the new mosaic table (just one poppy)

--------------

For Q2:

• Get a vaccine appointment.
• Finish the doubleweave class sample.
• Finish the towels on the loom.
• Finish the 2nd band of Andean Pebble Weave on the loom.
• Make the Get Weaving Vest pattern in handwoven or stash fabric.
• Weave Baby Blankets.
• Start an overshot throw in champagne and white for the den.
• Hand towels for the guest bath.
• Make the pub quilt quilt-able.
• Make more progress on the new mosaic table (more than just one poppy).
  
• Make another grocery bag!
• Make a piece of Andean Pebble weave that's wider, on the loom.

--------------

For the last Red Sage meal of this month's cookbook, we used a squab recipe and substituted duck breasts.  I marinated them in a gloopy preparation heavy on orange juice and ancho chile and DH grilled them; we served it with polenta and wild rice cakes fried in ghee and sauteed red chard and onions, and paired it with a 2013 Seasmoke Pinot Noir. DH declared it a restaurant worthy dinner! I'm not sure I'd go that far, but it was a nice meal. The polenta was interesting; as it fried, little bits of polenta would explode and skitter across the kitchen; it reminded me of tiny popcorn kernels.

Q4 Finished Things (6), 2020 Finshed things (29)

Not a lot of things done this quarter! I spent a lot of time working on samples and techniques. I did finish 4 handwoven kitchen towels, 1 quilted bag, and one handwoven wool blanket.

That feeling of being in pandemic captivity

I also sampled a bunch of quilting techniques, and worked on how to join motifs on the embroidery machine. I'm nearly done with a knitting project, and nearly done with an embroidery project. I prepped the substrate for my next table top, and have spun a little more than 5 oz of wool (I have another 5 oz and plying before it becomes yarn, so not taking credit for this yet!). 

What's clear is that I do better with goals... I'm working on Q1 2021 goals shortly!

Q3 2020 finished things (9)

Here we are again at the end of a quarter. I confess that I find the EOQ exciting and the push to finish the "almost done" projects is amazing. I oddly do not find it stressful. Here's the list:

• The evil eye mosaic is done, and I grouted the color stick although I'm not convinced the grout will stay adhered to the piece. I think it's fun to see the color stick in this plant on the deck.
• Finished the woven jacket with knitted sleeves.
• Wove two ikat scarves.
• Made masks:  2 pink ones to match the ikat scarves, and two testing out some methods. I'm only counting Masks as one item regardless of how many I've done. Otherwise it feels ridiculous.

• 
  I also bought a new sewing machine with an embroidery unit. I confess I was a little confused when I brought it home as to what I'd do with it. So I enrolled in an online class and learned all kinds of things while making this tiny 20" square wall quilt! This lead to a bunch of exploration on line and a list of new techniques that I want to try. I'll explore this more in another post.

I also finished two major pieces:

• The woven jacket with knitted sleeves.
• The Festivus quilt. I'm trying to figure out when I started it and I've determined it was before 1995, based on the completion date of a smaller quilt I'd started about the same time. I'm going to guess '93 or '94, probably the former. It's gorgeous and I'm thrilled with it. I'm going to leave it on the bed for some time even though it feels a little early for Christmas...

I have partial progress on some of the other goals.

• The table design is done; I have all the glass, and the substrate is ready to go but it's been too hot or too smokey to want to work in the garage bay.
• I explored doing Zentangles on fabric using fabric pens from Sharpie and using gel glue resist. I need to have a dye day to take them to the next step, and this will give me the info I need for the Number One shirt
• Make masks for family in Utah: what can I say, they're partially sewn together. I'll get on it. 
• Trial another shirt pattern (Patternworks Akita). The pattern is printed and taped together. I find this an unpleasant process. So now I need to trace off my size, make a muslin, etc.. It's almost time to start trialing vest patterns instead.

No Q4 goals yet, I'll give some that thought and publish later in the week.

Q2 '20 Finished things (9 or more)

My time to work on things has been curtailed a bit by pandemic and other activities. For awhile, I was doing my own housecleaning and yard work; thankfully I've surrendered that back to the experts. Still, I'm cooking a lot more often, and more project menus, and I've been working out a lot more because it helps me sleep at night. DH has also involved me in a few house projects, and I've spent a lot of time in the Guild library, and in fostering Guild social activities. So I expected to see a list with very little "finished" things on it and was super surprised to see that I've actually done a lot!

Wonderful handmade cotton fabric!

• I aspired to do a shadow weave fabric of my own design for the study group, and in fact spent some time researching shadow weave and came up with a couple of fun designs... but then decided to reverse engineer a pattern from a shirt one of my guild mates was wearing as an exercise to see if I could do it.  I wove this is mostly 20/2 cotton and one mystery yarn. It's approximately 14 inches wide and very very long and it's destined to become a shirt or vest!

It's almost
opalescent
in real life

• I finished spinning 250 grams of silk I dyed more than 10 years ago. It's not particularly even and is under plied in some areas... But I had fun and have a great feeling of accomplishment. 

• I wanted to finish the Festivus quilt but didn't realize exactly how much work it would be! I did finish quilting all 12 of the blocks (well, mostly, I'll go back and add a little more to two of them), and I'm about half way around the border. My biggest impediments to finishing are Owl and Ziggy who think it's a great frame for laying on my lap.

Hand dyed, hand decorated and
hand sewn mask now in the
collection of a master gardener.

• I wanted to do some other sewing thing. Does 38+ cloth masks count? I made 18 for the niece in ABQ to give to those who need them, 5 for DH and I, and the rest to friends and family. I must confess, I really like some of my masks.

• I completed a muslin for the Shirt Number One in size large (pattern loaned by a friend)... It'll need some dye on it... but the sewing is done. I'm unlikely to make another one of these; it's too boxy; but it probably would have been better in a softer fabric.

This fabric doesn't exist
anywhere else!

• I deep cleaned the studio and found a shirt I started while still at Canada College... The choice: find a place for it to live or finish it. So I finished it. The fabric was printed to my spec by Spoonflower, and I tailored the pattern to fit. The broadcloth is a bit stiff but causes the shirt to stand away from my body resulting in a cool, comfortable top.

• I started knitting the Double Your Pleasure cowl; I'm just started and already will have to unknit some of it. But I'm liking the pattern so far. Pictures will appear in later posts.

• An ikat project is dyed and about to go on the loom.

• I finished a black and white scarf in crackle. I learned a lot about crackle but not sure if I want to do more. I had some issues with the beat and the sett as well, so not proud of this scarf. 

How can I not have a colorized version?

• I carved a frog stamp, water colored and stamped post cards, then released them into the world. So far I've gotten lots of positive feedback!

• And I can take "make peanut brittle" off of my bucket list. I crumbled up most of it and added it to peanut butter ice cream; that was a little too sweet, but the peanut brittle was glorious.

• I made a small piece of garden art and it failed. But as a recent guild speaker commented, if you're not failing 50% of the time, you're not trying!

I got no traction on these list items...

• The eye mosaic; and there's another partial piece down there...
• The woven jacket with knitted sleeves.

I'm unsure how to count what I've done this quarter... Do 38 masks count as 38 or as 1? Do 17 postcards count as more than one? I'll take one for each of these, knowing that a lot more were made...

What's up for Q3? I'll put the last quarters leftovers on this quarters list:

• Complete one of the started 3D mosaic project.
• Finish the woven jacket with knitted sleeves.
• Would it be too much to finish the border of the Festivus quilt?
• Dye the Number One shirt.
• Trial another shirt pattern (Patternworks Akita).
• Carve another stamp for August.
• Weave the two ikat scarves.
• Spin the wool for the scarf I'm making with Carol.
• Design and begin work on a table for the grill area. It would be nice to use it this season.
• Weave a sample for a coverlet.
• Make masks for family in Utah.
• I'd like to explore doing Zentangles on fabric, and also making fabric wrapped rope baskets...

Q1 '20 Finished Things (6)

For Q1, I clearly did a small subset of what my goals were... between an overly aggressive list and being distracted by the pandemic, I still managed to complete 6 things:

Wove a Rebozo from the yarn I dyed in Fresno.

Created a small and a large mosaic piece during my Esalen Class.

Knit a pair of socks from 20 year old yarn.

Knit the Lake Breeze Sweater AND put a zipper on it.

Finished the 2nd table top to match the first one .

This totally cracks me up

I also had some progress on:

The eye mosaic: I have some of it glued down and a plan for the rest.

The Festivus quilt: I've got a number of blocks completely quilted, working through those.

Shadow weave fabric of my own design for the study group: It's slow to warp, as I'm lacking the concentration, but I'm about 1/2 way through the warp.

And these are still on the list:

Finish the woven jacket with the knitted sleeves (I need some courage)

I need to do some other sewing thing (I have a top pattern I want to trial)

And I need to pick up a spinning project.

For Q3, I also would like to start an ikat project and start knitting something.

Q4 finished things (5)

I'm very pleased with my new table top.

Once again, a list of the things I finished this last quarter.

• Rep runner from a guild library magazine, for a guild study group, pictured in an earlier post.
• Two baby blankets (same warp, different wefts) in a weave structure called Summer and Winter, one for a grand niece and the other for a friends first grandbaby.
• I grouted a mosaic table top for the kitchen deck today! It just needs sealer and to be mounted to the base that's been waiting for it; DH even removed the crappy piece of plywood that's been the temporary table top. It needs a name, and a coordinating 2nd table top. Then I'll move it to the garage or someplace safe until after the house painters have finished.
  

  

  Christmas quilt top, just in time for New Years!

• The Christmas quilt top is done and partly basted! I'm declaring the top as a done thing because of the effort involved, and when it's quilted it's gonna count too. Expect that just before Christmas next year.
• I also started working making pillows out of the old worn out Kilim that I rescued when mom was going to throw it away. Sadly, she was right; there's no 18x18 inch pieces that I'd like to have as pillows, it's just in very bad shape. So that's off my list.

So I finished 26 things in 2019. Wow! What's in store for 2020? I have some ideas, but will have to think about it!

Q3 done things, no photos. (11)

I can't resist adding this photo of the
only pomegranate on my tree!

All of the photos of this quarter's objects are in other posts... So I'll summarize here by category.

• I knitted Mystic River (lacy short sleeved summer jacket) and the Devan baby sweater.
• I made a tablet woven badge lanyard for guild meetings and a tablet woven strap for a wine bag, and finished the wine bag.
• I wove a random ikat scarf for DH and took a class in ikat, in which I made a scarf for the dresser. I also finished weaving the black and white fabric on the small loom, that I'll store until I'm ready to use for something. It failed as a scarf. 
• I made a 6" square mosaic sunflower and a larger mosaic picture with bubbles.
• I finished two 3D mosaics in Wilma's class on concrete substrates I made; I have several more substrates that need to be mosaic'ed. Photos in a later post.

Here's what I'm thinking about for Q4. It's primarily themes, not specific objects.

• a rep woven item for the study group.
• one of the item listed here should be from a Guild library book.
• something knitted
• the two baby blankets
• one table top
• something on the loom that delights me
• sew something
• something tablet woven

It's the end of Q2 '19 (5)

I spent way too much time making this cute little mug bag.

Realistically I'm not going to finish anything else by the end of June four days from now so I might as well sum them up now.

• I finished the little cell phone bag to carry my phone about when I don't have pockets.
• I tried to weave a doublewidth blanket from stash yarn and ignored all the things I know about yarn and it failed. I'm still counting it as a project that is complete. And the scraps went into my mug bag
• Scraps from the above failed project above became mug bag, with the addition of a cardwoven band that I wove 2 or more years ago, a piece of marbled fabric I made YEARS ago, and a kumihimo braid I just made to coordinate with the band. It's just big enough to hold a coffee mug. I freely admit to having sewn the button on in July but will count it as Q2.
• I knitted a pair of socks that are warm and wonderful.
• I finished the rep placemats for the new kitchen but might relocate them to the lodge.



Awesome placemats, crappy photo.

• I'm not counting the 6 class samples from The Weavers School.

Q3? I'm still thinking about it, but I suspect it will include some mosaic work, Mystic River, and a card woven lanyard for the guild meetings. The rest is to be determined!