Sunday, May 6, 2018

Plans exceed hours available, as usual

Weaving tidbits from this weekend: who wonders how to wind bobbins of thread without a bobbin winder?


There's that mystery solved! I've weaved the length of one and a half cardboard separators. I think there were five, unless there were four.


And, I've learned something I would never have thought of. This is a four harness, six treadle loom in a direct tie up. One of my first looms was a four harness, four treadle direct tie up. One treadle moved one harness. I never lifted my feet to operate that loom.

Twill: 1-2/2-3/3-4/4-1; plain weave: 1-3/2-4. I slid my feet across the sequences required. In doing so again, I realized I could weave for longer periods with less pain, simply because my feet are always firmly on treadles, not lifting from treadles, which requires back support. If that tip ever is passed on to someone who could use it, great.

Perhaps I might have emptied the loom this weekend, as forecast. However, Saturday morning was consumed with Laura's driver's license test. We have another licensed driver in the house.

Saturday afternoon and a couple more hours today went to the garden. I'm pleased.


Laura spent four hours at Kay's, the old house, working in that garden. She returned with plants. I am not a fan of daffodils, but she brought some miniature daffs, for color.


The Solomon's Seal we started with failed, so she brought a new stand of that.


This is a chive escapee from the pot of chives we brought to the old house in 1988, that Ann christened "Grandma's Chives", and so they have been for thirty years.


This is an Oriental Poppy. Our dad loved exotics, as you can tell by the abundance of colchieum, and he had a large bed of these orange poppies. We took one to the old house, thirty years ago. This is it. It never thrived. Kay "lent" it to us, to see what we can do.


I do complain of the lack of anemones, but Laura did plant close to a hundred bulbs. There are three small stands of them.


Another plant that needs cheering on:  a hellebore gifted to me by Ruth, just before Christmas. We took a chance and plunged it into the ground before we set out for Wisconsin. The big leaves are left from the original plant. The tiny bit in the middle is new growth. Let's hear it for hellebore!


It's not summer without mandevilla. This year, red, white and apricot.



And, pig still loves the ranunculus.

25 comments:

  1. Appears you have been busy both inside and outside.

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  2. Congratulations to Laura on getting her licence. And to you both on work done inside and out.
    I am still in mad planting mode. And may be for some time.

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  3. Congrats to Laura on getting her drivers licence!

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  4. Yay Laura! Congratulations!

    You had a busy weekend. I'm glad you can weave with less pain with this loom. The garden is coming along well and Pig's pot of ranunculus is wonderfully bright.

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    1. This loom is borrowed, and except for the tie-up, is frustratingly difficult. But, the cleverness of a direct tie up to ease back strain would never have occurred to me!

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  5. Yay, Laura. Congratulations! It sounds like the weaving is going well too.

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  6. Yay for spring! Looking forward to seeing your weaving projects completed.

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  7. Oh Joanne, you run rings around me. So glad the garden is coming along. I fear where I live it is going straight to summer with a very short spring. If La Nina is still out there, it's going to be a hot one.

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  8. Congrats to Laura for getting her driver's license! Garden sure is colorful!

    betty

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  9. It's all so colourful now, like a giant patchwork, the ranunculus are beautiful. I gave up on my bulbs, the flowers were beautiful but just didn't stand up, flopping all over the ground instead.
    Congratulations to the newly licensed driver :)

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  10. Getting a license to drive is a major event in ones life. Congratulations, Laura.

    It is nice that you can surround yourself in your new home with plantings of yesteryear. Like you, I treasure those the most.

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  11. how creative winding thread on a screw driver, ha, I have never grown poppies but one of these days I hope to, hope you post photos if they bloom, we dug up a bed with bulbs then covered it over with ground cover cloth and they came up threw it much to our surprise: scilla, daffodils and a couple of tulips. Try some scilla they are quite full and last a while. I finally found some garlic chives, had onion chives but like the pink flowers of the garlic chives.

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  12. Aren't those ranunculus wonderful colours?
    I love Solomon's Seal - had a nice patch at the farm. Sadly I have absolutely no shade in my new garden and it really needs shade to flourish.

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  13. Odd that you planted so many anemones but so few actually grew. Something in the soil that doesn't agree with them?

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  14. Dear Joanne, you never cease to amaze--whether it's your commitment to social justice and change that brings good for all or your delight in weaving or your diligence toward everything that you set your hand and mind to. You inspire me. Thank you. Peace.

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  15. Love the method of winding the bobbins. I need to get back to writing and visiting the blogs I love.

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  16. I had never heard of hellebores until last year. I am now a convert. I think I love the leaves more than the flowers. Congrats to Laura for passing her driving test.

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  17. Pretty plants. Love the pig sculpture.

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  18. The weaving is sailing ahead, Congratulations! You're showing brilliantly what can be achieved when you really set your mind to it!
    And congratulations to Laura , too. A big step towards independence.

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  19. Loving the happy pig at the end !

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