Christmas brought an ice storm to our region. Then it warmed. The sparkly, ice laden branches dripped ice and it sounded like it was raining. My neighbor’s birches haven’t straightened up yet and I hope they survive. I’m conflicted because they look so pretty as bowers.
Now the temperature is plummeting again. Our roof has been making some sort of explosive noise now and then. Not to worry? I didn’t see any big snow heaves on the ground and am not sure what causes it.
The cold weather, of course, gives me the opportunity to stay inside and play. I was on my own for a few days last week and confess I stayed in long johns and slippers for most of (more like all of two) the day. I managed to put winter garb over my warm clothes and ventured out with microspikes on to take some photos. The base surface is a sheet of ice. These thaws and freezes have acted like a Zamboni to make a smooth treacherous surface. Microspikes are little crampons which slip over your boots (or crocs to the hot tub) like galoshes. They allow me to walk the ice almost fearlessly.
I had a few requests for knitted gifts and tried my hand at slip stitch knitting. Both hats have a twisted braid brim and I think I’ll use this instead of turned hems (my second favorite hat brim) whenever I can.
Then I’m back to the loom where I have a few towels to finish weaving. I was dismayed to find my warp was crooked because the warp stick got caught on something. So I get another wonky towel. I give away the good ones and keep the “seconds”. If you saw my linens, you’d think I had no idea what I was doing. Do I?
At least I’m not getting blisters on my keister anymore thanks to a little cushioning on the weaving bench. Now I look forward to a new year filled with unions, reunions, births and PROJECTS!
Island and North Country Life 
I really like the twisted braid brims on the hats. How do you do it?
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Thanks, I do too. It’s a technique used in twined knitting, using two strands of yarn. You bring them both to the front of the work and purl a row using each strand alternately. On the first row, you always bring the working yarn OVER the other and in the next row you always bring the working yarn UNDER the other. Things get twisted the first row and untwist the second. If you use a contrasting color before and after in stockinette, it really stands out. There’s a link to it here.
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