Where have I been... what I'm I doing...

This is one of those months. I have been coming and going, meeting myself in the middle and not staying home much.... and when I do get home... by myself... this happens.

The Prospector and I have been camping at Spicer Meadow Reservoir on Ebbetts pass for two weeks and I came home for three days last week, for a social get-together with friends, to water the garden, check on a few things and bring some supplies back up to our campsite. Well, I headed to town to do some shopping and pick up mail at the Post Office and this is what I drive down into at our entrance. Sometimes mother nature doesn't really cooperate with us very well.

It appeared that one old Pine tree fell against another and they both came down.... in the middle of the night... without a sound... without wind, rain or tornadoes. Well, we don't have tornadoes very often, here in California, but someone I know suggested that a bear could have been rubbing its backside on the tree and pushed it over against the other one. Ha, ha, ha... That's as good a story as any. 
So thanks to a really great neighbor with a chainsaw, I was able to get out, drive into town and return home again. He and his friend cut the trees away and dragged them to one side with a chain and a truck. We will, now, have to deal with cleaning up the cut Pine trees that are lining our road. We have awesome neighbors.

So I'm not really caught up with anything at this point. I came home, with the dogs on Wednesday and Steve arrived today. It's good to be home... but now the RV needs cleaning out. And... there's laundry to do etc., etc., etc.

SOooooo... I need to finish a "second day" post about the Nuno Felting/Botanical Dyeing class that I went to at the end of May. My last post left us with wrapped Nuno felted scarves that were rolled up with  Eucalyptus leaves inside. Remember?

We drove home after a long day of making a Nuno felted scarf and preparing the scarf for Botanical dyeing.
On Thursday we arrived to find that the scarves had been steamed and dyed in the leaf tea and were now ready to open up. What excitement.
I may be missing a step here and there, because we also went to lunch and wandered around the nursery and shops... in additions to all of this scarf making. My brain is missing little parts of what we did, and when. But that's OK because it was a few weeks ago and I'm lucky to remember what I had for dinner last night.

We always had the friendly and informative instructor talking to us about the process and answering any questions that we had about what we were doing and what was next. She was so excited about what she was teaching. It was contagious.

She talked to us about the cooking process... and what would happen to our scarves.

She wore special gloves that protect the hands and arms when working with the hot leaf tea. I thought that I could use a pair of these when I feed my chickens.  Rhode Island Red is getting a bit too demanding. That hen is a terror. She jumps at me for the lettuce I bring them. She is going to be on my endangered species list if she keeps it up.
How would you like to have a porch like this one to do all of your messy crafts? I would die for all this space.

This is part of an old fruit processing and packaging building. It is huge and accommodates all kinds of businesses now. The next one down is a ceramic store with planters, fountains and statues. This huge building was the High Hand Fruit Shed in Loomis, CA. above Sacramento. Now, there are more houses than fruit trees around here, so the whole place has been turned into a Nursery/ restaurant/ mall , with lots of shops. Talk about "repurposeing". This building is having its second life and what a great idea for the owners.
This is where the cooking was done.

So... we took our scarves wrapped around each pipe and we slowly undid them. This was the fun part. We laid them out flat and removed the leaves and let the breezes on the porch dry them while we cleaned up the classroom and talked about what we had done. There were smiles all around.

Each had its own distinct patterns and designs. Each was beautiful and unique to the person who make it.

All were done a little differently. All were so beautiful. The orange places on the scarves is where we used those round eucalyptus leaves that wouldn't absorb the tea when we were laying them on the scarf... and the instructor said, "Try it anyway." Yep. That's the one. Beautiful, clear imprints of the leaf in a very lovely color. It's amazing how the fabric allows the leaves to imprint their natural patterns into the fibers. Magical really.

This is one end of my scarf. This is where the copper pipe left its mark (the darker color) and where the string and rubber bands that were wrapped so tightly onto the pipe made their imprint... or I should say resisted the color and left their mark, like a negative photographic print.

The scarves almost looked like snake skins. So interesting and organic.

The resident cat, Petunia, came in to see what was going on and approved of the finished product.

"Meow, ladies. Nice job."


I will take some photos of my scarf when I have time and show you some close ups of the leaf imprints.

 For now I leave the four of us standing in the covered part of the nursery with our completed masterpieces around our necks and smiles on our faces.

We had so much fun.

Nuno Felting and Botanical Dyeing workshop

I had so much fun this week. The Prospector went to Reno with our son, his mom and sister. They had a great time and lost an appropriate amount of money. I held down the fort (the chickens and dogs) and did some playing around myself.
On Wednesday I joined two friends from our SCAT art group (MJ and Janice) and traveled to Loomis, CA. to take a workshop at the Tin Thimble, called Nuno Felting and Botanical Dyeing . The Tin Thimble is inside the old High Hand Fruit Shed.

 The three of us and another lady named Cindy, learned how to make a long scarf out of white silk and wool and then dye this scarf with Eucalyptus leaves. Our wonderful instructor was Sharon. She owns the store and she is the most positive and creative person I've every met.
The first day we laid out the silk scarf on sheets of plastic and added a thin layer of wool roving and pieces of silk, yarn and other fabrics to it. White on white... for the moment.

Looks kind of bland, doesn't it? We all did our patterns a little differently. Each of us had a different design.

We sprayed the silk scarves and wool with soapy water and carefully rolled them up on a PVC pipe. Then we wrapped the rolled scarf in a towel tied it with cut up tee shirt strips and they went into the dryer  to tumble ( no heat) for about 20 minutes. We did this about 5 or 6 times and in between each trip to the dryer, we unrolled the scarf and re-rolled it from the opposite end so the felting would be even . This is a different way to felt. I have always done it the "old fashion" way and rolled the item by hand. The dryer takes all the hard work out of hand rolling. It's really a great way to felt. When we determined that the scarf was felted enough, we squeezed some of the water out and started slapping the scarf on the table... kind of like making pizza dough. We took out any aggressions that we could think of as we pounded the scarf on the table... 25 times. "There, take that."... WACK and, " I really don't like the way you always have to be right?"... WACK and,  "This is for the people on Facebook who are always posting Photoshopped photos and outrageous statements... believing they are the gods honest truth."... WACK,WACK, WACK. See... it's the best therapy there is. Kind of like working out with a boxing bag. Well, I've never worked out with a boxing bag but I think I know how it would feel. It's probably more of a "THUD."
So, here we are, pounding out all of aggressions and feeling great about it. Some of us got into it and did a few extra "WACKS." and we all totally understood.
We did a finally rinse with some vinegar and towel dried the scarf. Then we put the scarf in water with some Alum, which would be the mordant that would allow the fabric to accept the dye and leaf prints. Potassium aluminum sulfate is the best alum to use for craft dyers and artisans. It was all pretty scientific and magical at the same time.
Before lunch we picked out the leaves we wanted to use from a wonderful assortment of Eucalyptus that Sharon supplied. I had no idea that there were so many different Eucalyptus trees. Most smelled wonderful. We also made a Tea from old pipes and rusty nails that we would dip our leaves into when we laid them on the scarf.
Oh, lunch was good. We each ordered something from the High Hand Restaurant and shared it with each other. Good, good, good. Shrimp salad with goat cheese and pears, crab cakes, pizza and a chicken burger with some kind of delicious cheese on it. We ate all this while we waited for the mordant to ready the scarf for our leaves.

After lunch we each carefully laid out the leaves in the pattern that we wanted. They were all  pretty amazing.

Then we dipped each leaf in the iron water and replaced them on the scarf.

All the fresh leaves accepted the iron water except this one. I was so sure that the leaf wouldn't "take" on the fabric, but our instructor Sharon told me not to worry and to use them anyway. She said Eucalyptus leaves have lots of natural dyes in them and would leave a good imprint. So I put them down in the middle of my scarf.
We had a choice of wrapping with an iron pipe or a copper pipe. she showed us the difference with examples of completed scarves. 

The iron pipe would leave a darker space at one end and have more black on it. The Copper pipe would be lighter and have a browner tone. We wrapped our scarves and leaves, carefully, around the pipes and tied them as tight as we could possibly tie them with rubber bands and heavy twine. 

You can see a leaf sticking out of mine, below.

They all went into a steam bath for one hour and into the tea of leaves overnight...  I think. I'm a little lacking on this information, but Janice wrote it all down and is making us a copy. So I will know in a week or so if I goofed. 
We left our bags, towels and "stuff"  in the classroom and headed home.
 This drive back to Jackson was almost two hours long. I was glad I didn't have to drive. "J" drove the winding country road home and I watched from the back seat to be sure she wasn't nodding off. She never did.
The second day I would be driving. I would go to bed early. Class would end at 2:00 p.m. instead of 5:00 on the second day. I knew that I could make the drive over and back because we would have beautiful, finished scarves and we would be all excited about the process... and I would drink lots of coffee before I drove home. We finished the first day in anticipation of seeing the rest of the dyeing process in the morning. Still... I kind of wished we had gotten a motel room there, near the workshop. 
The dogs were glad to see me and get fed. The chickens were glad too... I think... hard to know with chickens. After dinner I crashed. I was in bed by 9:00 p.m.  Unheard of.

Next time, I will write about the second day and all the excitement of unrolling the scarves.

Confession time... The felted failure.

This morning we had a strange, but beautiful, sunrise.

 Low clouds, heavy with rain, letting the sun peek through for just a few minutes. It didn't last long. The dark clouds won again and the rain came upon us for a third day.

It occurred to me that this was one of those strange but beautiful days when I had the time to show all of you my dark side and that Farmlady can really botch up one of her artistic endeavours. She doesn't like to talk about her mistakes. I don't think she is alone in this.
(She's going to tell this story in the third person so it doesn't hurt so much.)

Over a week ago Farmlady decided to try making a large Nuno felted scarf. She read quite a few websites on the subject. She had taken a class last fall and successfully completed a beautiful scarf, with the help of a wonderful artist named Lorri Scott.  Farmlady had done lots of felting and thought that she knew the in's and outs of putting one together.
So, that morning, Farmlady laid out the bubble wrap on top of an old towel and meticulously choose the fabric. She ironed the pieces and, laying them upside down on bubble wrap to form the design of the scarf.

When she got it just the way she wanted it, Farmlady began to "glue" the pieces together with small amounts of roving.

When the felting process is completed, the wool will hold onto the fabric and bind everything together. She made sure that every piece of fabric was overlapped and had the wool roving in between.

Then she covered all of it except for the middle and the ends, with a thin layer of the wool roving and covered the whole scarf with a piece of nylon tulle. She got a spray bottle filled with lukewarm water and some liquid soap and sprayed the whole scarf, using a plastic bag, over her hand to pat and smooth all the wool down. This is a long process. The tulle would be removed later when the wool started to stick to the fabric.

When the fabric and wool were thoroughly saturated, she put another piece of bubble wrap on top and rolled the "scarf" up on a piece of a yellow pool tube that kids like to float on when they go swimming.

 Farmlady tied it with some fabric strips  and then she began to ROLL. She rolled it for quite a while, stopped and opened it, checked... nope , no adhesion yet. So she rolled it up from the other end and ROLLED it again. Checked,.. nope.. nothing.
Rolled some more. Checked...
NO... NOTHING.
She finally went out on the porch and ROLLED the whole thing with her feet... always an alternative if your arms get tired.
NO>>> NOTHING.
Farmlady was getting tired .
Finally, after quite a few times, ROLLING and UNROLLING, she laid the "scarf out on the table and check to see if the fabric and the wool were going to "become one".
Was this a fruitless endeavor for some unknown reason, or was she just tired? It was starting to stick and she knew that she should continue the ROLLING longer, but... she didn't.
 As soon as she thought it was sticking at all, she filled a plastic bag with very hot, almost boiling water and dumped the scarf into the bag. She shook it. Rolled it... slapped it around in the sink for a while. CHECKED IT....
NOTHING!
 She pulled the scarf out of the bag. The ends didn't stick. She had to take them off.... The lovely eyelet fabric in the middle too.
Still, nothing happen... so she threw the whole thing into a mesh bag and into a small soapy load in her washing machine. YEP! She just did it. She was tired of messing with it.
After more that 5 or 6 five minute intervals, the fabric started  to "scrunch". and within about 30 to 40 minutes the scarf was finished felting.
Farmlady was finished too. She rinsed out the scarf and rolled it in her hands. She realizing that she had made a mistake. She wasn't sure what the mistake was. The cotton fabric maybe?... although it did finally "scrunch" up and do what it was suppose to do. The wool?... that she had ordered from a farm and was not the cleanest roving she had ever used. Or, and this was probably the real "confessional" reason, HER OWN IMPATIENCES.
So she ended up with a very funny looking "scarf".

With a hole in the middle.
Did she hear laughter in the air?  Probably.
Will she try to remedy the situation?... Of course.

She realized that it could become the summer blouse for Miss Gray, a rather lovely mannequin that belongs to a friend of hers.
Or, she could make a new bodice for Bear.

Bear only has a heavy sweater to wear and summer is coming.

The felting process is a strange one and you cannot be impatient with it. Farmlady thinks that she could also hang this felted failure in front of her the next time she attempts a Nuno felted scarf....

  ...as a reminder that some things take time and patience... and a large amount of effort.
 "ART", as in life, requires making mistakes and doing things over and over until you get them right.
Farmlady slept many nights on this. She had dreams of making a scarf that held together and looked beautiful. She will try again and if she gives herself another chance, she may learn a bit more about the process of things and having to reconcile oneself to the way something is accomplished.
PATIENCE is of great importance.... Farmlady really did learn a lesson from this.
If you have an opinion on any of this, she would love to hear it.
.... She is listening.

Dangerous Places.

This is a dangerous place for me to go.

I should know better. I went in to find eight buttons for my gray vest. I came out with more buttons than I needed.

and some beautiful flannel fat quarters  (Fat quarters are precut, quarter yards of fabric.)  that I probably didn't need.

But they were on sale... and they are beautiful... and they were already cut... and, well... look at them. I will do something with them.
A friend brought me a rag quilt a few weeks ago . It's a lap quilt and she has been wanted to show me how to create one. So now, I'm ready. I just need a "back" for the quilt, some old flannel for the inside, some thread and scissors (I have these), and the time to spend the day with her so she can show me how to do it.
It wasn't like I didn't have a plan... and these gorgeous pieces of fabric might not have been there when I went to this store again... and the sale is only until the end of the month. So.....

Then, I went to the On A Mission thrift store in Jackson. I LOVE this place. I needed some tulle for my Nuno felting. Well, this may be a "thrift" store but this is also another dangerous place for me to visit. I found the tulle and some... other really wonderful stuff.
Yes, It seems that I needed these other things too.
I found some clothes to use for the fabric.

All useable for nuno felting and adding to scarves. I love this print skirt, above. It's a cotton gypsy print and will be great when scrunched up in a scarf.
This skirt is a J.Jill that actually fits me.

 I don't wear skirts anymore but if I did... it fits.I love the almost "eco" print look to the linen fabric. and the bottom edge has brown lace on it. I paid $3.50 for it. I will use those bottom edges for a scarf and the print for the pieces of the scarf. I can use the zipper and surrounding fabric for a small purse to match the scarf. Oh, the ideas... from one skirt. It's endless.
I also bought a top made out of gray stretchy jersey .

This one doesn't fit me, so I don't feel bad cutting it up. I mean it fits, but I'm max on the "stretch" and it looks a little young on me. I've got to be careful about this. I don't want folks to say, "Did she even look in a mirror this morning?" Sometimes you have to act your age. Yea...Darn! I don't think "cute" is what I'm about at this stage of my life. You have to be careful about "cute" in your 60's.
All of the edges on this shirt are ruffled  and could be added to a scarf. There is lots of fabric here and grey goes with everything.
I did buy too much. So, shoot me. It's all inexpensive and fun. I also bought some small bags of fabric to send to a friend who quilts and is living in the middle of nowhere in southeast Oregon for the winter... with not a thrift store or fabric store within hundreds of miles. She is living on a ranch in a cabin and the one thing she did bring with her is her sewing machine.
She's a quilter. She carries a sewing machine like she carries a gun. It's her MO (modis operandi, mode of operation, etc.).  In those parts you never know when you're going to have to sew up a pair of pants or kill something. Besides, it's kind of hard to quilt cowhides and coyote pelts.
When I got home I realized I had over done it with the fabric. I just need someone to show me how to do this quilting stuff and then I will be ready... with my fabric... and that first quilt will be BEAUTIFUL.
In the meantime, I will cut and patch, sew some trim on  and tomorrow you can help me pick out some buttons for my latest felted scarf.
Take care.

Beginnings and Endings ... and a Time of Transition

This is the beginning of a Nuno Felted scarf. I went to a local fabric shop called the Sewing Cottage. I only went in to buy some needles for my sewing machine. I came out with all these fat quarters of beautiful fabric too.

Then today I had to go into town for some paint and I decided to stop at the thrift shop. 
Well... those fat quarters are beautiful but very expensive at the fabric store. They were about $10. a yard and added up to about $20. for 8 or 9 quarters.
All of this, at the thrift store was way cheaper.

For about $8.00 I bought all of this. If you just need scraps and you're not too particular, this is a really inexpensive way to buy fabric. Some of these are hankerchiefs and they're beautiful. With Nuno Felting, I'm more interested in the color and texture than the patterns. I found some great pieces to start my project. I will always check the thrift store first from now on.
I have some beautiful fleece and roving that I've been saving for the occasion.

Fleece is washed, uncarded wool from a sheep but roving is carded and sometimes twisted into long strands.

This is wool roving that has been dyed from light to dark shades of pink. Both of these bags of wool have been dyed.
I can blend the colors by carding it again and mixing the strands together.

"Oh, be still my heart."

Isn't this beautiful stuff?
The fun begins.
*************************
I had to finish the painting of the POTTING SHED first. The outside is done now and weatherproof.

 Now I can paint the inside at my leisure. Which means... sometime before the weather turns on us.  There are a lot of acorns on the ground this year and I think that means a rough winter.
But...
Come on rain.
It's time for you to put some fears to rest for the winter.
We want the new grasses to push through the burned area so the deer have something to eat.

Momma and her baby are looking for something to eat.

I don't know why they hang around the fire zone. There's is nothing there for them.

 And we want the weather to change bringing the cold that makes Rattlers go back into their dens for the Winter. 

This four foot monster was sunning himself on our driveway yesterday.
This was a big mistake on his part.
He is now in snake heaven.

We hate to kill these beautiful creatures. They have a right to be here but we cannot let them wander around the house area. Not near the chickens and the goats... Not near our dogs.
It's a hard call and I'm always sad when we have to kill one. We have been very lucky the last couple of years. When we first moved here we had up to 7 or 8 a season.
This is only the second Rattler this summer.  The other was a baby and it was on the road last week. They're moving around right now. We are being very vigilant.
This was a big one and old..

This snake had lived many years and shed many skins. Its rattles were broken off. I'm sure that it saw many battles and fought hard. This was one battle it could not win.
I'm sorry Rattle Warrior. May you find green grass and many mice in the next world.
**************************
And for all of you who are shaking in you moccasins over these last photos... here is a change of pace. 

Some strange looking, small people have appeared on my piano.

 Strange ladies with funny hats... And this one, below, with the blue eyes
Kind of scary...

...but the pumpkin head guy doesn't seem too worried so I guess I won't be either.
And, to Carl's undying annoyance, a CAT has taken up residence on top of the bookcase.

And it looks like a cat that is not to be messed with. That's kind of a scary grin.
I don't know where these creatures came from... but I suspect that it has something to do with HALLOWEEN. 
Don't you?