Friday, September 18, 2009

Flying Geese and Digging Skunks

So, it's been pretty busy here fiber wise. The first rug of the 11 yard warp is fully in progress and I'm using it to experiment a little with some very simple inlay. I'm calling the rug Flying Geese. The real geese are starting to fly overhead, in small groups. We see a fair amount of ducks too this time of year. The skies are noisy, with honking, quacking and the usual cawing of crows and ravens. Autumn is ramping up and readying for her annual and much anticipated, extravaganza.

The easy inlay has opened up a lot of possibilities to add some fun embellishment without a whole lot of rearranging of tie-ups and such. I'm pretty lazy when it comes to that and Barbara is not the loom to pick to go under and change tie-ups on easily.

A lot of inspiration for the strip inlay technique came from this book. I have 3 rug books now and this is my very favorite one. I don't think there's a rug I don't like in it and the ideas it's sparked have been many.





My Mother's scarf is still on the loom but there really isn't much left to weave, maybe 10-15 inches. She's pretty short and doesn't like terribly long scarves. It will get a simple twisted fringe, nothing too dramatic.



I have been able to spin almost a whole bobbin of the pink BFL roving and am loving the softness and subtle variation of the semi solid. I'll start spinning the mocha colored roving and then ply them together.

The Queens room received it's second coat of paint and sadly, it will need a third. It's not the paint so much as the dark uneven colors of the faux finish under it. Two would do, but 3 will look MUCH better. I won't use the low VOC paint for the final coat. There were some things I just didn't like about it. It's good paint, high quality and the coverage wasn't compromised at all between this and a like quality regular latex. It mostly had to do with the slipperiness of the paint. It's hard to explain. It rolled out well but there is a quality missing about the feel, it also dries too quickly for my taste. Back rolling to remove any roller marks was difficult. The spreadability over the second coat wasn't as smooth feeling as I like but in fairness these are small complaints. If I hadn't painted so darn much through the years I doubt all this would be noticeable. If you need or want low VOC paint, don't hesitate to use one, but get a good quality one, as you would with any paint. Nothing is worse that working with cheap paint and the difference between a low quality and high quality is maybe ten bucks per gallon. Most rooms barely need a gallon.

Bob the tractor is off the injured list. He gave us a scare with the fuel solenoid not working. A $300 part we found out. Gene took the old one out and found a bad wire. An easy cheap repair thank god. Bea's knee sucked up a fair amount of working capitol this month.

And speaking of Bea, the blond bombshell continues to do very well. She's using that leg now as a little paddle about every 10th step, sort of like one would use a foot to push along while riding a scooter. She's resting on it while standing and putting a little weight into it. The vet has released her for long walks for exercise. She is adept at 3 legged walking and doesn't have the issues a heavier, bigger dog would have. Exercise is keeping her from worrying at the incision too. She still gets the soft collar on at night though. Right now she's sleeping under my desk, on a leash. She does want to jump on the sofa, which is a no-no.

Skunk Bond has been foiled the last 3 nights from getting in the tack room. Oh yes, he digs in, but there is no way to dig up because of the plywood lining the floor. Score one for the dumb human...finally!

9 comments:

Life Looms Large said...

The rug looks really good! When you typed "Flying Geese" I immediately thought of the quilting version of that pattern.

Great progress on the scarf and on spinning. I love long scarves, but I seem to be in the minority. My recent scarves for my MIL and my niece have both been short.

Bummer about needing to do a third coat of paint. Makes me love my Tuscan sunroom that much more! (Or get that much more resistant to changing it!!)

Good news about Bob and Bea!! Glad she's able to do some exercise walks. Dogs (and people) do much better mentally if they get outside and get tired on a regular basis. At least that's my theory....and it's true of Bailey and me! The "No jump" rule with couches is really tough. That was a hard part when my childhood dog was recovering. She did jump up there a couple of times....and then when she did, she looked so comfie we'd let her stay. Can you tell that dog training isn't my forte?

Your progress and productivity are inspiring!! Keep it up - I need all the inspiration I can get!

Sue

Cindie said...

your rug is wonderful! yes, the geese are honking overhead numerous times a day these days, the other day while dyeing outside they had picked up a stray bird (couldn't tell what it was) that was flying with them chirping along.

Jennifer said...

I love the rug also! And am very tempted by the book...

Glad to hear the bea is making some progress - even considering jumping up is pretty big. She doesn't realize the pain that would result, but hey - she must be feeling good to consider it!

Congrats on the score for the humans!

Theresa said...

Jennifer, The book is put out by VavMaganiset, the swedish weaving magazine. Camilla Valley Farms carries it: www.camillavalleyfarm.com/books/wbook6.htm

Thanks all, I finished up the "geese" and now just have plain weaving to do on the rug.

I will let Bea know all of you send well wishes. She is whining in her crate at the moment so in the course of our discussion, I'll pass them along. ;-)

Sue, did you get any weaving time the other night. Hope so!!!

Leigh said...

Glad to hear Bea is doing so well. Hopefully a full recovery is right around the corner!

I love the flying geese rug. Very clever. Rug weaving fascinates me yet I've never tried it. Hmm.

Sharon said...

You will be really surprised at how the BFL fluffs up when you full, unless it's for weaving and you don't plan to full it.

It's taken me a long time to recognize that weaving can be loose like your mother's scarf. I packed in a lot of meaningless artless stuff when teaching myself. I must have a rag rug or two in me - hope so!

Theresa said...

I like weaving rugs although sometimes getting all the rags organized and into strips is a bother.

My mother's scarf is quite open and airy. I think the cashmere would be way too hot packed in tightly and certainly way to expensive. If I wanted to do a denser scarf a closer sett would have been a must. This should rest lightly around her neck and cross over
her chest to lie well under a coat with just the scarf showing at the front opening and throat. That's the idea at least! :-)

Sharon, I still make artless stuff. I keep all my fuglies though, sooner or later a perfect use will be found for them...I hope.

charlotte said...

I love your rug, and I also like to work with this particular inlay technique, it gives room for almost endless variation.

Theresa said...

Sharon, you were so right, the BFL really fluffed itself up after washing. Looks and feels heavenly.

Charlotte, yes, there is so much that can be done with it. I have ideas for the next rug and the next....:-)