lydamorehouse: (ichigo irritated)
Tie-dyed fabric close-up, many colored stripes.
Image: A piece of tie-dyed fabric hanging on a clothesline. It is a classic rainbow striped number.

Yesterday, it was lovely outside so I decided to tackle a project that I'd been meaning to do for awhile. After the whole medical craziness of Monday, arts and crafts were just what I needed to de-stress.

Several weeks ago, Shawn picked up some sheets on the "buy nothing" Facebook group for our neighborhood. They had looked decently blue in the photo, but when we bought them home they were a very washed out barely-there color. Shawn had been planning to use the fabric as an accent for some of her rugs and was vaguely disappointed. On the drive home, I asked, "What if I tie-dyed them?" Shawn got suddenly very excited by the idea of trying a rug made out of tie-dyed material, and so we got serious about finding a tie dye kit that was easy and color-fast. Shawn found a kit for kids on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Tulip-One-step-Tie-Dye-Party-Kit/dp/B01FV60TAS/

I will say, this could not have been easier.

tie-dye on a clothes line
Image: a bunch of fun patterns of tie-dye on a clothesline.

I will admit to having had WAY too much fun. In fact, my hands are still purple because I blew off the instructions to wear gloves (in the Before Times, I would be mortified. Right now? I'm still very much, "by the time people see me, these will be back to normal." Not actually considering that, you know, I might go off to buy coffee this morning.)

Purple and blue close up, kind of spiral?
Image: Purple and blue close up, kind of spiral?

It totally worked to de-stress me.

Some medical updatery under the cut. 

Read more... the short of it: we got the appointment for Thursday )
Will keep those who want to know posted on those developments.


more fabric on the lines
Image: more fabrics on the line (in shadow, apparently, but hopefully you can see the general patterns.)

The other thing I did last night was attend the Lammy's, the Lambda Award Ceremony. They had a Discord and so I actually connected with some folks in the SF/F community, which was nice. I am just going to continue to say that I am often surprised by how much I truly enjoy online events. This one was very "bare-bones," in that they broadcast the actual awards on YouTube and hosted a short-lived Discord. The cool thing was that people came in from all over the world. I hung out in the lobby for a long time watching people come in and there were people from India, Botswana, the UK, and... dozens and dozens of places all across North America. This is the thing, I don't know that the Lammys is usually such an international event? I certainly never bothered to go when I would have had to travel and pay for hotel. 

The Nebulas are also this weekend and I'll be attending that... as is something called Cymera, which you may recall, I added a reading to? I have no idea if they accepted it in their Open Mic, but hopefully so. Fun times!
lydamorehouse: (cap and flag)
Actually, I'm sure the judges at the State Fair aren't stooooopid, but the fact that they did not ribbon this gorgeous rag rug is, well, a sign of some sort of deficiency, I'm sure:

an orange and brown rug against a green background

It was really hard to photograph decently because of the way they had the rugs displayed. You remember how you used to buy posters in those racks, where you'd flip through? That was all the rugs. They were all so tightly packed that there was no way for me to stand directly facing the rug. So, you get this funky angle.

People are asking on Facebook what Shawn makes her rugs out of. My answer: "Rags? I mean, Shawn goes to the Good Will Outlet and buys a cart full of interesting cast off clothes, bed sheets, etc., (usually cotton, but my grandmother used anything) and cuts them into strips, and sews them together into a long ball of fabric.  Then we use a floor loom (Newcomb Fair Loom) to make the rugs."

I took this picture on Friday when I went to go see Mason's robotics demonstration. I happened to catch the very first demo, so most of the robots weren't actually up and running. Mason emcee'd for his team and did a great job. He seems to have inherited my ability to talk off the cuff in public, which is... well, a mixed blessing, since it means people always look to you whenever something like this is needed. Mason is, unlike me, NOT an extrovert (he's an extroverted introvert, VERY different,) and so he came home completely peopled out and EXHAUSTED. In contrast, I would have come home bouncing, asking, "When's the next one, I want to go MORE!!" 

But, after watching the demo and stalking the competition in the Creative Arts Building, I wandered around a bit. I'm not much of a State Fair person. The most fun I had was texting all the crafty people I know in my life with pictures of the blue ribbon winners in their area--I know someone who makes lace, another person who does wood burning, and a third who builds model rockets. I kept snapping pictures and saying, "You should enter at the Fair! You're way cooler than this!!" 

In the education building, I talked to the guys at the ACLU booth and stared curiously at the "Optimist Club." I have to admit that I didn't go talk to the Optimists, because with an innocuous name like that, I had a little trepidation that they might be a stealth religious group. I have since Googled them andI am still not entirely sure. But, I was feeling wary because I'd already gotten cornered by an evangelist at the bus stop on my way to the Fair.

Sometimes being a former Unitarian (who is also a Gryffindor) is difficult. It means when people ask me things that I know are traps, I walk in anyway.  

Her: Nice day.
Me: It's gorgeous. (It really was.)
Her: The Lord made it so.
Me: (Already disappointed in the direction this conversation has veered.) OH. Yeah, fine. I suppose so.
Her: I know He did.
Me: Yep.
Her: Do you know that Jesus is real?
Me: (Resisting a "well, actually," that involves Biblical history, but still tripping down the primrose path, anyway,) I have heard something about it.
Her: Are you a sinner?
Me: (Laughs) Oh, yes, probably.
Her: Do you know where sinners go?
Me: The State Fair?

Which was probably not what I should have said, since I was then "graced" with a whole bunch of "This isn't a joke, ma'am," talk and questions about what I believed in. I finally had to say, "Look, it should be clear that I really do not want to talk about this right now." To which, she FINALLY took the hint and turned her attention to the next person willing to meet her eyes.

It must be that time of year because I had one come to my door a few days ago, too. 
lydamorehouse: (Mistaken)
In a few minutes I have to get up and fetch kitty litter (oh, the glamorous life I lead!) Before I head out, I wanted to post some pictures of our adventures with the Newcomb Fair loom this weekend.  

For those of you just tuning in, Shawn and I inherited my grandparents' loom via my folks a couple of years ago. It's a big loom. I don't know the exact dimensions, but it's as tall as me, certainly, and as wide as I am tall, as well. (Which, if you don't know me in person, is just a little over 5'.)  It's big enough that the best place for it is in the corner of the finished section of our basement:

the loom!

As a bonus, you can see our goofy travel posters. We have interspersed real travel posters with NASA's space travel poster, Rivendell, and Hogwarts. 

But here it is in process. At some point I will post a picture that shows what it looks like when the threads are all the way through the machine, so you can get a better sense of how it works.

There's a big beam on the back where you spool all your thread. Now, each individual thread has to come off the loom in a specific order and so you have to wind the threads on IN THAT ORDER. How is this done, you ask? Several steps, but the basic process looks like this:

Shawn with the spools

Shawn sets up this gift device with dozens of spools of thread. We're using black and white because we're currently weaving what's called The Hollywood pattern. We bought color thread and at some point may experiment with other patterns. Then, each bit of string is threaded through this nifty device that keeps them coming off the spools in order...

thread guide

You can see Shawn's carefully printed out notes (thanks, Mom!) that mark in what order the black and white threads come off the spools and into this guide.

Then, there's a crank on the side of the big spool that I crank at least 50 rotations of.This winds everything on, through the guide, onto the beam. (Side note, with my new dyed hair and that little smile on my face the extent to which I look EXACTLY like my grandmother is a little bit uncanny.)

happy but cranky

Ultimately the spool is completely covered (not shown, us having to rearrange the threads to accommodate the special pattern of this particular rug style AND the one weird section, 13, I believe, where there is ONE less thread.)

finished spool
 
That was a big chunk of my Memorial Day. 

It was actually a perfect day for such a big undertaking because it was cold and rainy and dark outside. There really wasn't anything better to do. I certainly couldn't have gotten any more work done of the garden; I would have been drenched. 

After all of this, Shawn napped and I made us a big roast chicken dinner, which was quite lovely and hit the spot on such a chilly day. 

Now "ALL" Shawn has to do is tie each one of those threads to the ones already strung through the heddles and then carefully pull them through the machine. I will try to get pictures of that process, too. Because it really is quite the operation. Unfortunately, I can't really help her with this part, because it really does have to be one in order, one at a time. If I started on one end and her on the other and we ended up meeting in the middle with strings that didn't connect, there would be gross sobbing and probably more than a few recriminations. Best to just do it, piecemeal, a bit at a time. It'll probably take Shawn the rest of the week to do it, because it's such picky slow work.

But when it's all done she can get back to work.

This is the first year she's going to enter a few of her rugs into the Minnesota State Fair competition, so there's some pressure to make some good ones for next year's show, too!
lydamorehouse: (swoon)
 Death by a thousand cuts?  Eh, probably not, but today didn't exactly start out as smoothly as I'd planned.  

We're getting geared up for a trip to visit the in-laws in Indiana and I had wanted to get the car checked over before we took it on the road.  I dropped everyone off as usual at work/school, and headed for Dave's Auto.  I asked them when they might have time for me, but, alas, it was not today. In fact, probably not until Wednesday, which I agreed to, forgetting that I had to work. It occurred to me half-way home, and when I reached for my cell phone to call them back to cancel, I realized that I'd forgotten my phone at home.  I gave up and got myself a conciliatory coffee at Cladaugh and then made my way back home.  

Having had planned to spend my day dealing with the car, I was at a bit of a loss as to what to do, but--you know, it's not like there's a shortage of things to be done, so I'm currently sitting at the laundromat waiting on a final load of rag rugs to finish washing.  Then, I'm going to dash over to the Super Valu or whatever the gas station is across the way and vacuum out the car in prep for the trip.  

We're not even entirely sure we're going to do this trip, after all.  Yesterday wen we were pulling out the air-conditioner to take back up to the attic for the season, Shawn's back went out again. She's in the delicate phase, where she FEELS like she can do all the things, but one wrong move will set her all the way back. She did the ONE WRONG MOVE.  If she's not feeling better by tonight, we will likely cancel the trip because 10 hours in a car is _not good_ for the back.

Mason and I were sort of looking forward to the road trip, because ROAD TRIP! Plus, I was going to make a special effort this time to find postcards of Indiana to send to my various pen pals.  But, we might still be on--even though it will mean leaving without having a chance to have the car looked over. Fingers crossed for things to turn out for whatever is best.

Okay, I think that's my buzzer.  

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