Big sweater, little sweater

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And a hike in between.
I finished the front piece of daughter’s Irish Moss Sweater. It’s a beautiful pattern, still not quite memorized.

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Yesterday, I took most of the day off. I took a six mile walk with hiking buddies, spread 400 pounds of topsoil in my new raised bed and planted 110 daffodil bulbs.

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Today, I completed my Ob/gyn AND menopause certifications. Another interesting fact: menopausal women tend to lose hearing in their left ear first. What’s that you say?

I’m working on a sweet baby kimono sweater. I bought the pattern because I loved the textured band and couldn’t figure it out when I saw a sample. Now I know.

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Now, I’m off to another swimming (umhmm) session. My mantra is: BREATHE! Farewell.

No rest

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I love Sundays. The end and the beginning of the week. I’ve had a chance to mull over our farm share and start cooking: bagels; chicken pot pie; and brussel sprouts to freeze. There’s a rhythm to working with a weekly bounty.

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Next I hit the books. You will be happy to know I had to answer this question to remain Board Certified:

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I answered it correctly and only have four more articles to read. Most of the articles are relevant and interesting but the questions? Not so much.

So I took a break and wound the Malabrigo worsted yarn on my nostespinne. Luscious.

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Overdoing it?

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Physically and craftily.

We joined a Master Swim Program and had our first session this week and I nearly drowned. Not really but I am not in swimming shape. I have never been a competitive swimmer. And I don’t swim freestyle. It was pathetic. My goggles flooded, my legs cramped up. Despite being given an easier program than everyone else.

Which leads me to my next issue: lots of projects. Including a new one. I may try to sew a bathing suit. I went to a fabric sale today and the woman had an old bathing suit pattern which is perfect for swimming and bathing suit material. I’ll be the only one there that made my own bathing suit. In red! Easier to spot on the bottom of the pool.

I also discovered a new ( to me) local (less than 50 miles away) yarn store, Plattsburgh Yarn and Gifts. Sweet little shop, which carried the Malabrigo yarn I wanted for a baby Kimono and the Plymouth Encore for a colorful blanket. Plus their business card had instructions for the kitchener stitch on the back!

My new sewing machine was able to churn out this little gem of a bowl. It has cloth wrapped around clothesline then zig zagged together.

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I’ve almost finished the front of my Irish Moss sweater. I haven’t used a cable needle at all and have tons of cables, including four over three.

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My friend gave me a wool coat, which had washed funny. First I checked out whether it fit me but since it didn’t, it became strips for a braided rug.

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I received another request for an amorous deer hat. The deer heart is pickling away and very tasty. It looks like I’ll be enjoying it on my own.

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Geraniums look great.

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The christmas cactus I bought a year ago is getting ready to bloom for the first time and I bought at least a hundred bulbs and 350 pounds of top soil to spread in the new raised bed Tim built.

And there’s fiber to spin, quilts to sew and a Board recertification exam to complete. Where does the time go?

Adirondack fall

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Adirondack fall is a brief lovely season. With six weeks until winter, we had our first light snowfall this weekend and the temperature dropped to 17 degrees f.

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My Irish Moss sweater is well underway. There’s a tiny chance I may memorize the pattern, but not yet. I love the alpaca-merino, soft, light and warm. So does Shirley.

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I got around to pickling the venison heart today. I boiled it for several hours with a carrot, onion and celery, then poured a brine over it and let it sit under a weighted plate all day. Next it’s to the fridge. Tasted yummy.

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We’ve received a bounty of winter squash from our farm share and I baked my first pumpkin pie of the season. My Oxo good mill did the hard work. Funny how the pie came out though.

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We’ve had a few picnic dinners in the cabin but haven’t screwed up the courage to sleep in it yet. Lots of excuses- have to get up for work, too cold, forgot my sleeping bag, etc. one day. Tim writes about it here.

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Tucked away

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We spent at least five hours yesterday tucking in the boat for the winter. It had been hauled out of the water and perched, just a little wobbly, in its cradle.

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It takes a full size ladder to reach the deck because it has a five foot, fin keel. Our mission was to cover the boat with an oiled canvas tarp, which seemed to weigh just under a ton!

We had to try to drape it just right so the snow slides off it and doesn’t build up on the deck. We should visit it often during the winter to make sure this doesn’t happen — but we don’t.

Lucky for me, I got to spend most of the time under the cozy tent we created while Tim tied lines under the boat and was very busy.

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I managed to enjoy the view and take some pictures, in between sewing the canvas with an awl and stabbing myself in the thumb.

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It’s a good thing I was under the tent because it started raining and I got to make sure it kept me dry, while Tim did his thing out in the elements. I even caught a faint rainbow.

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And we did it just in the nick of time because last night it snowed in the mountains. We could see it as we looked back from the ferry to Vermont.

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Not for the feint of heart

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Once again the Universe delivers.  I traded a deer hat for deer meat.  I received a heart, three chops and two steaks and may have had the better end of the bargain.   Yesterday I made the chops.  I seared them on the stove,  put them in the crock pot with tomato sauce, brown sugar, onions, mustard, apple cider vinegar and cooked them forever.  They were delicious.  Lean meat, good taste.  I intend to pickle the heart, which Tim is too squeamish to eat.  I’m OK with any muscle, but draw the line at filter organs like kidneys and liver.

It’s good to be home and cooking and crafting here.  I made a mini apple pie the other night.  A friend is a potter and she made a small pie plate, which is just perfect for the two of us.  Besides, I only eat pie the day it’s baked.  I’m such a princess.

Apple pie

BFF 2013 (3)

 

I finished two children’s hats so I can finally begin my daughter’s next sweater.  I’m still a little concerned the pirate hat may be small but we’ll see.  I can always make another one.  The aviatrix hat is so sweet, I may need one for myself.  I made it with Koigu, nice and soft merino.

Gift hats

 

I wound wool and knit a gauge swatch (three times) for my daughter’s Irish Moss sweater, by Alice Starmore.  Apparently I’m loose.  I’m using a merino, alpaca blend, Mountain Vista by Classic Elite.  I think I’ll focus on this and spinning for a while.

photo 1 photo 2

 

I was dismayed to learn from my quilting group that I can’t use the quilt I am quilting for a baby because it has a polyester, flammable fill.  So I’ll let the adults burn up.  They also pointed out my border fabric is POLYESTER and should definitely by ripped out.  Boo Hoo.

Hand quilting

Hand quilting

I think I may just hide it under the binding!

I’m not as upset as this cat, which was chased up a tree by my cat.

Loki and a cat up a tree

 

The interloper finally scrambled down the tree, they caterwauled for a while and then were off for a run.  Loki made it home unscathed and feeling pretty  proud of himself.

Through the lens

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I finally had a chance to look at some of the photos on my camera – not my iPhone, which was the only electronic device I had on the island.  It’s easy to post from but I keep my words brief.

We were up in the lantern room at Seguin on a foggy day and I had fun with the prisms.  It’s a first order fresnel lens, large enough to stand inside when you had to change the oil, or now the light bulb.  It was built in Paris and imported and has nearly 300 separate pieces of glass.  Someone polished them to a sheen this summer with the Lighthouse keeper formula: distilled water, rubbing alcohol, a drop of dish soap.  Works like a charm.  I forget the official proportions though.

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I’ll enjoy looking at these photos forever.  I think the person who shined it spent a brief time on the island while her father was a keeper.  So she had the chance to clean the lens I am sure her father shined in the past.

My new green machine

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My, new to me, Husqvarna Viking sewing machine shipped to my office while we were in Maine. I work with such great people that we all, excitedly, gathered round while I unwrapped my purchase.

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It’s so retro and green. Look at this plaid fabric lining the case.

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It was manufactured in Sweden in 1959 and was under warranty until 1984. Lucky for me, it sews like a champ right out of the box.

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It can even sew buttons onto fabric!

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I love it because it’s mechanical, not computerized and I can see its working parts. I justify this purchase because it has a powerhouse motor, which I will need to sew new cushions and a sail cover for the boat.

But I’m sure I’ll find lots of other projects for it. In Sweden, they even use it to sew a form of Rya rugs. The mind boggles.

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