GOLD!!

I have a package of gold leaf but its high cost has made me hesitant to use it. I like the gilded flash look of gold and just discovered that by starting with a layer of silver foil and quickly encasing it with the right transparent , presto! it looks like gold. These nuggets are hand shaped with a little brass palette knife(once a mustard spreader). This creates a faceted surface with much more light bouncing off it. I SO much want to make myself a bracelet of these.... but I've taken a vow not to add to my excessive supply of bracelets.

Retro Socks

If you are not a knitter, you might think these retro socks have some complicated color work going on.

Ahh, but if you are a knitter then I can't fool you. All the color changes are in the ball. It is "cheater yarn" because it is easy to do knitting but has an interesting color pattern going on. It makes knitting plain socks not so boring, I keep waiting to see what color round is coming around the bend. I'm using size 0 needles for longer wearing socks. I am heading down to finish off the toe where I'll face the dreaded kitchener bind off. (You knitters know what I mean.)

Now that our daughter has moved to the cold environs of Chicago I can knit up warm things for her- Yeah!!

Yes, it IS a dog bed!

After throwing out our dog's old bedraggled bed and replacing it with a cushy clean one we have yet to convince him it is a bed. He will sit in it if we give him a cookie but never looks at ease. Maybe it doesn't smell right, maybe it seems too plush...... ah but to the cat, Whisper, it WAS a bed upon first sniff.

Beads Don't Have To Be Jewelry

I keep finding new ways to use my beads. My mailman appreciates the change to my mailbox.

Hollow Beads

I've been trying something new, blowing glass. These are large shell focals but are light because they are hollow. They make great simply wired pendants and I like wearing one just slipped onto a silver cable choker necklace.

This black shell is dusted with reactive raku frit and a gold powder which gives it a subtle metallic shimmer.

Signs of Summer

I know it's summer when my garden pathways get shouldered out. The warmer nights push everything into a growth spurt . Plants tumble into the walkways and slow our progress walking through the garden. The fragrant white nicotianas are over 7 feet tall, the old fashioned triple orange daylilies are everywhere, incredibly bright. From the shady spots spread plate sized clematis. And my most favorite flower for June - the gardenia! The large bush has hundreds of buds, every day I pick a dozen to bring into the house. The other plant that makes this a most fragrant month is the Easter lily. I always buy a potted plant at Easter and later tuck it into the garden and forget about it. They return every year and multiply happily. I just have to remember to cut off the pollen on the plants that lean out to greet us- what a stain it makes!

A Fun and Fragrant Day

Since I spin, I end up with lots of extra dyed carded fleece. I've seen a UTube video showing how to felt wool around a bar of soap. It looked fun and easy and hopefully would use up lots of wool. These are two batts I'd made as samples but didn't like well enough to continue carding more. I used a bowl of hot water, one of cold, and a bamboo sushi mat for a textured surface to rub it on. The bars turned out great though it hardly made a dent in the heap of fleece. I also made a ball cat toy. ( I used a ping pong ball with a slit cut in the side so I could insert a bell.)

My second fragrant fun today was weaving lavender wands. I have a plant that produces really long stems perfect for weaving a satin ribbon through the "cage" formed when the stems are bent back. When they dry they get put in my lingerie drawers or in with pajamas. Just a little squeeze refreshes the sweet smell. One picture shows a wand in the half finished stage.