Runner-up for Queen of the UFO's

Even a “Good” level of blogging. I somehow managed to miss August entirely.

Our summer was hot and stressful, with lots of unexpected happenings. Some of which were really freaking expensive, so that just adds another layer of stress to it all. Here’s hoping life is calming down and we get back into some sort of routine.

In between events I did keep busy with projects. I managed to sew 3 tops, a blouse, a sundress and 3/4’s of a second sundress (don’t have the right size zip to finish it). I knit a lot less than usual over the summer as it was sooooo hot, knitting was often uncomfortable. Still I managed 2 pairs of socks, a tee-shirt style pullover and a tank top.

I did get distracted from garment sewing by quilting. I need to make a new cover for my duvet, but decided it would be more fun to do a piecework top for it, rather than just plain. I haven’t found the fabric/pattern I want to use for that, but in my stash diving I resurrected a project from about a decade ago! I was working on that and was making great progress when my sewing machine experienced a catastrophic failure. Sigh. It’s going to be a while before I can save up enough to get that fixed. That is if it can be.

Our library does have a sewing machine (and a surger) that can be borrowed, so I might see about that in the mean time. Might also see what I can find in our local antique/secondhand/junk shops. I did look at Kijiji, but man people have unrealistic ideas on price! Unless they are rare/unusual old sewing machines are not worth that much. And pricing a machine that you picked up at Wal-mart a few years ago for more than what they cost new today is just stupid.

Question Of The Day:

September, 21 - Have you ever traced your ancestors? How far back can you go?

I haven’t, but a paternal family member has and they were able get us back to the first appearance of the family name in Canada. I don’t remember the date, but it was before Canada was a country. With that information they were able to go back quite a few more generations in England, even discovering some distant cousins. What they haven’t been able to do is find much on our Cree ancestors or find the link back to Ireland. We know the name is Irish, but our branch of the family just sort of showed up in an English town, with no indication of how/why.

No one on the maternal side has had a similar deep interest in genealogy. A few attempts have been made, but language barriers and the misspelling of names with immigration complicated thing beyond what anyone was interested in tackling.

Zed

P.S. It’s a very nice day today, 16C (60.8F) and sunny. Nice fall weather. However, later this week it’s going to be summer again with highs in the mid-twenties (78-80F). Weird! We usually have snow by now.

Out yesterday. Woke up this morning to white, nothing but white. Combination of low lying clouds and a light snowfall (maybe some ice fog?) reduced visibility drastically. A very good day to stay home.

Puttered about doing random chores this morning. This afternoon was spent in the studio. The first hour or so was spent sorting, putting away and general tidying. A discussion with Thing Two the other day made me realize I’m going to have to turn over the studio to them for a day or two fairly soon. They need to prepare and cut the fabric for their quilt before they can start sewing. It doesn’t make sense to drag all the needed tools out of the studio and set up elsewhere just for them. So, sharing the studio it is. Which means cleaning and tidying as it’s not fair to make them work in my mess.

I do plan to finish up my current projects first though. The vest is now all constructed and the topstitching is done. All that’s needed is buttons and buttonholes. And once again I can’t find what I need/want in my button stash. Why? I have a large stash, but some how I never have the right kind/size/number for my projects.

I think the pinafore dress has hung long enough that any bias edges that were going to drop have done so. I need to make some bias tape (nothing I have pre-made is right) for that and I have figured out a solution to the skirt lining issue. The lining that didn’t fit will be turned into a general use slip/petticoat/underskirt and I found enough lining fabric in a matching colour to cut out an entirely new skirt lining. All of that will be a few hours work.

I can’t decide if I will try to finish the trousers or if those should wait. Guess I’ll decide once I see how long it takes to finish everything else. Thing Two is okay with waiting but they shouldn’t have to wait for ever!

Question of The Day:

March 26 - In 1881 Guccio Gucci, the Italian founder of the Gucci fashion house was born on this day. Do you own any designer items (or is there something you'd love to have from a fashion house if money were no object?)
I do not. There’s nothing modern I’d want from any fashion house, but if there was some way to get a Dior New Look (1947) suit in my size, I wouldn’t turn it down.

Zed

P.S. High today was -4 C / 24.8F and instead of rain or snow this afternoon, we got sun! Not for long, but hey, sun. Oh and the icicles outside the studio are now kinda scary. One fell and it made a huge racket, good thing it fell onto the garage roof and not all the way down to the front walk.

Or maybe it’s just a continuation? I didn’t think to check yesterday. I don’t expect we’ll be too badly off, the worst of it (up to 25 cm overnight) is going to be quite a bit south of us and up in the mountains. Still, we can expect a few more centimetres on top of what we already have. Including ice ~ yay, that’s fun. Watched a neighbour nearly spin out taking the corner a just touch too fast. So glad we’re staying home.

Spent time in the studio this afternoon, but didn’t really accomplish much. I’m feeling a bit meh with my current makes. The trousers are stalled until I can get somewhere to buy a zipper. I thought I had one that would work (navy not black, but close enough) however, it’s too short. I need a 23 cm zipper and it’s only 18 cm. And of course the only 23 cm zippers I have are either a clashing colour or they’re too heavy for the fabric. I absolutely do not want to cut down a dress length zipper for this, that’s such a waste.

The vest is still giving me fits, I spent several hours pressing and fussing with it trying to get everything to lay correctly. It was so bad I turned it inside out again (fully lined and I’m bag lining it) to tack down some of the more trouble some spots. I’ve left it to (hopefully) settle over night, tomorrow I plan to close it up and then maybe just top stitch the crap out of it.

What I really want to be doing is fun costuming stuff. My latest rabbit hole is medieval clothing. I really, really want to try to make a kirtle/cotehardie/gown. Not at all practical, but to be fair, I’ve never been that good at practical.

Question of The Day:

March 23 - National Chia Day - Chia seeds have many health-boosting properties including helping to lower blood pressure, to balance blood sugar levels and are packed with fibre. Have you ever eaten Chia seeds?
Yep, probably some unknowingly in purchased seed bread or other prepared goods. Recently we received some in a Food Rescue package and Thing Two has been adding them to assorted dishes.

Zed

P.S. High was -7C / 19.4F but that was still warm enough that the snow was melting off the roof and the roads were wet and slushy.  There are some pretty big icicles hanging just outside the studio window.
 

Today. Our day spent in the city is always hard work, that requires a lot of standing (usually on hard surfaces) and my poor body, especially my feet, does not want! But, eh, it is what it is.

However it did mean I spent less time in the studio today than I might have. My next few steps require a lot of standing, of course. I did what I could manage today and set myself up to jump right in to things tomorrow. I did let myself get a bit sidetracked by starting the project journal entry for this. I can draw/trace and colour while sitting down!

Question of The Day:
February 17 - Today is the beginning of Real Bread Week - have you ever made your own bread?

Yes I have, completely by hand and also with a bread machine. I’ve also made doughnuts, cinnamon buns and other fun yeast based things. In the last few years, Thing Two has taken on the bread making duties and generally makes a couple of loaves a week via the bread machine. The repertoire has expanded out to pizza shells, naan and even bagels.

Zed

P.S. Warm, relatively speaking (+2C / 35.6F), today and the snow is melting off the roof. I can hear water running in the gutters.

It’s been a day of them. Starting before I woke up too.

Thing One had sent a text with questions about a knitting pattern. Unfortunately pre-coffee I am not much help. Eventually I’d had enough coffee that everything clicked for me, but then I had to try to describe the issue! I teach knitting sometimes, but without the visuals, it’s really hard! Long text and a phone conversation later, it got sorted out.

Then, about lunch time, it was Thing Two’s turn, with questions about a possible quilt from their fabric collection. We spent about 45 minutes discussing/planning out a quilt. This eventually led to rummaging through storage, decanting fabric from bins and Thing Two emptying out a closet. Then it was questions about what to do with everything (we decided not to just shove it all away again).

In all this, I didn’t get any work done on my projects. However, we’re getting rid of some stuff, some things are tidier and Thing Two has a great plan for a new quilt project, so I’m calling it a win.

Question of The Day:
February 13 - Shrove Tuesday - will you be having pancakes today? Do you make your own crêpes?

I shall! There are butternut squash pancakes tucked away in the freezer for just such an occasion. I haven’t made them in ages, but yes I make my own crêpes, also waffles, blintzes and french toast!

Zed

But cold. It was -16C / 3.2F when I got up this morning. Very glad I put the third quilt back on the bed the other day (I’d gone a whole week without it). We’re supposed to get above freezing today, but who knows!

Totally jinxed myself yesterday by not only making specific plans for my time in the studio, but by writing them down. I totally sidetracked myself, sigh. ADHD, the struggle is real. At least it was a related sidetrack, just several steps ahead of what I’d planned to do. I did get some of the lining started, but I set up nothing for the next stage. Ah well, I’ll get some more studio time tomorrow.

Question of The Day:
February 10 - Do you own an umbrella or do you hate using them?

I have a couple, but rarely use them. Here rain is usually accompanied by a whole lot of wind and I’ve yet to find an umbrella that can withstand that.

Zed

Except not. We studiously avoid manic here.

I did get serious about working on stuff again and the tee shirts are finally finished. I had gotten so frustrated I had to take several days away from the machines to keep my stress levels down. I even had time to do a bit on Thing Two’s PJ’s. I should be able to finish them next time I’m in the studio. Which might not be until Wednesday, just depends.

In other news, I started on my next test knit today.  I'm loving the look of this!  I'm holding two different yarns together and they're working so well together.  I can't wait to see how it looks as a finished garment, I think it's going to be lovely.

Question of The Day:
February 5 - World Nutella Day - yay or nay on the chocolatey nutty spread (and what do you spread it on, or do you spoon it from the jar?)

A very definite yay. It’s pretty darn expensive here, so we rarely buy it. Sometimes the store brand is on sale and we’ll go for that. There is a difference though. I like it on toast (no to the spoon in the jar see: expensive) and for a very special treat, in a crepe.

Zed

But in spite of it, did get the 2^nd t-shirt cut out and finished the knitting on another UFO! Just have to weave in the ends today and I’ll have a(nother) nice warm cardigan.

The interruptions proved to be quite useful too. We unearthed the rotary cutter (with extra blades) I’ve been looking for since our move almost 7 years ago!!!! Also re-discovered a bunch of great yarns including some vintage stuff I’d forgotten Mom had passed down to me. Speaking of passing stuff down, we found a bin with a huge lot of acrylic I was unlikely to use any time soon, so Thing Two (who can’t wear or work with wool) happily took that.

Question of The Day:

January 18 - Do you like Chinese food - what would your ideal meal consist of and would you eat in a restaurant, get a takeout/delivery or cook your own?

I do, though if given an option in terms of Asian cuisines, I’d go with either Vietnamese or Thai. These days we pretty much never eat out or order in, so it’s all home made “inspired” options. Neither of us is well versed enough in any of these cuisines to claim any sort of authenticity. Pre-pannini Dad used to come down for meetings and such at least once a month and we’d always go to the local Chinese buffet for lunch. Pretty tasty and filling, but very Westernized, it reminded me of every small town Chinese diner I ate in as a kid. Dumplings, Won Ton soup, Singapore noodles, mixed vegetables, Sweet and Sour Chicken (with it’s totally not natural sauce colour) and Ginger Beef. Okay, the ginger beef is a more recent addition, it was developed in Calgary sometime in the '70's, but has become much more wide spread since.

Zed

But really freaking cold and I’m not enthused about getting out of bed. I do have a pretty long to do list so I really should. I did get into the studio yesterday and got a pretty good start on Thing Two’s PJ’s. If I get moving soon enough, I could get them finished up today.

Question of The Day:
January 12 - It's National Pharmacist Day. Agatha Christie trained as a dispenser during the First World War. Have you ever read any Christie novels?

I’m pretty sure I have. At one point I worked through just about everything on my Mom’s bookshelves (including stuff I’m sure I was not supposed to read) and she had many Christie novels. That was eons ago though and I remember very little of those books.

thefridayfive 

1. What is your current main mode of transportation? e.g. car, bike, subway, walking, etc.

My very elderly car – a 2002 PT Cruiser (Chrysler). Physical limitations mean walking and the like are out and there are no public transportation options where I live (smallish rural town).
 

2. Are you satisfied with your current main mode of transportation (answer to question 1)? Why?
It’s okay, but I do worry it will break down on me (again).


3. Do you think you'll change your means of transit soon? e.g. buy a car, get rid of your car, walk more etc.? If so, why?
Short of winning the Lottery (hard to do when you don’t buy tickets) not any time soon.


4. If time, distance and money were not factors, how do you prefer to get from point A to point B?
I’d love it if someone could develop/discover teleportation tech, until then I’ll just have to make do with a car.


5. What was your worst transit experience?
Oddly enough this was a topic of conversation the other day. It would have to be the car trip we had to take when we moved from Saskatchewan to Alberta. It was stupid cold (-44 C / -47.2 F) and we had a car with a malfunctioning heater, so we rode wearing full winter gear and wrapped in blankets/sleeping bags.  To add to the discomfort, the youngest had picked up a bug, so spent most of the trip throwing up. Ugh.

Zed

New Year's Day is the first day of January in the Gregorian Calendar. Samuel Pepys began his diary on January 1st 1660 - have you ever kept a handwritten diary?

Not really.  Over the years I was given assorted "pretty" diaries, but generally only wrote in them for a few days (maybe a couple of weeks) before abandoning them.   I kept a daily planner for years, but that was different.  It was about appointments, schedules and task lists.

This year I'm setting up project/planning journals (hoping to keep track of everything - hah, good luck with that!)  However, that's still not the same as a diary.

Zed