Wildlife

I know Christmas is just around the corner because I've had my first reindeer sighting.

Reindeer are usually pretty scarce in these parts, but over at the mall there's quite a congregation. That's where I was this morning.

I usually avoid the mall as much as possible, but I decided to look for a Christmas sweater...so I can be a real fashionista for the holidays.  Unfortunately, I came home empty-handed.  Nothing was quite my cup of tea, I mean eggnog.  But I did purchase 4 pairs of Christmas gift socks for nieces and sisters-in-law.

Mr. Gadget and I are leaving town for Christmas and Big City Girl won't be far behind. We'll be spending the holiday with Mr. Gadget's side of the family in northern California. It's all part of our changing-things-up project.  We don't usually give gifts, other than cash ones to the nieces and nephews, but this year, since we'll all be gathered around the Christmas tree, we think a little something for everyone is in order.  And whatever I purchase or create in Connecticut will, of course, have to fit in my 50-pounds-or-less suitcase.  

The knitting is finished on the fringie from whimsy and I'm now happily hooking.  It looks a little pathetic at this stage, but I'm hopeful it will blossom into something wonderful...or at least charming.

I've also re-started the Red Beast, although I know I told you it would be in the back closet till 2016.  I'm using smaller needles this time, and I'm going to keep a close eye on it to make sure it doesn't get rambunctious. Rambunctious. That sounds like an old-fashioned word. Maybe something my Grandma Ferna would have said.  Like maybe when she was babysitting a gaggle of grandchildren. 

So....while I'm driving around town I tend to notice things.  Like how most of the cars on the road now are neutral colors--black, white, gray, tan, etc.  Red and blue ones have almost become endangered species.  I sometimes wonder why the cops give tickets to people going too fast on the local highway on Sundays, but disregard the Monday to Friday speeding commuters.  And I'm puzzled by why a new frozen yogurt store is about to open down the street when we're approaching the coldest part of the year.  Snow, sleet and freezing rain never stopped me from eating frozen yogurt, but what about the rest of the population....you know, the ones who wind around Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts....in their neutral-colored cars....waiting ever-so-patiently for their steaming cuppa pricy joe. And what about my neighbor who parks in a handicapped spot at the senior center but recently managed quite well to get up on her stepladder in the garage to retrieve something.

Now I'm getting pretty steamed up.  Too bad there's no place nearby where I can get a single serving of frozen yogurt....

White stuff

We're getting some light snow here in Connecticut.  It's a great day to stay home and play in the Treehouse.  I had plans to do some much-needed clean-up, but as usually happens I've gotten sidetracked.  It's all my friend Wendy's fault.  She sent me an email and in it she asked if I had seen the new fringy scarves.  Apparently it's something that's trending in the fashion world.  Or not.  Fashion is a subject I'm not well-versed on.  But she's been making them and she mentioned it's a good project for using up fancy yarn scraps.  So I found myself on a two-hour computer tangent looking for fringies as she calls them.  And I found a cute pattern--strictly from whimsy--that I think I'll start.  It's actually a combo of knitting and hooking.  Believe it or not, I used to be a good hooker at one time.  Rugs.  RUGS! 

I made several throw rugs back in the day out of cheap worsted yarn, so they shed and shed and didn't hold up well at all.  But that was when I had concrete block and wood bookcases and paper lanterns and other things you could get on the cheap to furnish early apartments.  I even taught an old boyfriend how to hook a rug, and as soon as he learned the technique he left me for someone else---who, I'm sure, was not in the least bit creative.  But at least he has a cheap, shedding rug to remember me by.

So I ripped out the Red Beast last night while Mr. Gadget was watching a man-movie and I was in the Treehouse watching The Dead Files.  That Amy....she's good at getting evil stuff out of a house.

I'm not too bad at it either.  In no time at all I had him reduced to rubble.

And having all of these balls of yarn on hand motivated me to order myself a ball winder.  It will wind this rubble into neat little balls with flat bottoms so they'll sit nicely on a table instead of rolling all over the floor and me having to chase them.  And while I'm waiting for the winder to arrive, I'm going to start the fringie from whimsy. It's gonna be pretty boring for a day or two while I do the knitting part, but once I get to the hooking.....there's gonna be all kinds of excitement....

A vexing predicament

 

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  Ours was good, all things considered.  Since this is our first holiday season without Tech Guy, we decided it would be wise to change things up a bit, so we went out for Thanksgiving dinner.  We found a nice restaurant with some New England charm.  It's possible the pilgrims may have eaten there....We asked Big City Girl to order the wine.  Seems like only yesterday we were putting her in a high chair.

So....big surprise.... I've decided I like going out for Thanksgiving dinner.  No frantic food shopping, no long hours of cooking, no annoying clean-up, no pressure to make soup afterwards, no nothing!  I sat in my recliner and knitted instead.  Which brings me to the vexing predicament. 

Back in 2008 I started knitting a red cardigan sweater that at some point in the process became known as The Red Pest.  It just wasn't cooperating.  When I began the blocking process I saw that it was too big.  Not only that but the left and right sides were not matching up. So I did the only thing a reasonable knitter would do.  I ripped the whole thing out.  And then I stood over a hot stove (remember how not fond of this I am?) and steamed all the pesky bumps out of the yarn.

Now it's 2012 and I decided to begin another red sweater with a pattern that seemed fool-proof.  It's knitted in the round from the neck down which is especially nice because there's no assembling required when the knitting is done.  Also, it can be tried on along the way.  So I began knitting and donning and knitting and donning and was quite pleased with how well it was coming together.  Then I started the first sleeve (also knitted in the round) and was making good progress when suddenly it started to taunt me.  It was as if it was speaking to me. "Let's see how she feels when she realizes one of us will fit around both of her arms?" it chortled.  

So now the 2008 Red Pest has morphed into the 2012 Red Beast.  Again I'm faced with that "What's a reasonable knitter to do?" question.  I guess I'll rip the damn thing out and throw the yarn in the back closet.  Then I'll buy me some expensive chocolate.  I don't think there's any point to revisiting this issue until at least 2016.

Sent packing

Here is a sampling of my recent cast of characters...who've been ousted from the Treehouse and sent off for a little vacation at the old hotel.  Maybe we'll call it an attitude adjustment opportunity, although I will admit this was a fairly well-behaved group this year.  Please forgive the poor quality of the photography.  Taking pictures is the last thing I do....and always hastily....before setting off up the road.

 

I've made several nun dolls in the past and I always enjoy hearing why they appealed to the buyer.  One lady purchased one because it looked just like her aunt.  Another....a very talented artist who sells her oil paintings at the hotel shows....said she just loves to collect quirky things.

 He's dressed in a print of frogs doing yoga.

Cat dolls always seem to sell.  That's because the world is full of cat people.

This is my favorite morning lady so far.  Her coffee cup....which say "Got donuts?"...is full of coffee--which I made from the cat fabric.

Sorry about the photo quality on this one.  Sun was coming in through the blinds.  Her outfit is dark blue with tiny black polka dots.

So now I'm tired of making dolls.  I don't think I could make another blessed one.  I have stuffing on the brain, arthritis in my fingers, and threads and bits of fabric stuck to me everywhere.  Just like the characters, I'm in need of an attitude-adjustment op.  I'm thinking a nice comfy deck chair would do it, but since there are no cruises on the immediate horizon, I guess I'll knit. 

Back from sea duty

Mr. Gadget and I are back from our cruise.  Everything was very nice...in spite of the two days and three ports that Hurricane Sandy deleted from our program.

We had an easy trip to the pier in Manhattan...with only a 15 minute wait in line at the Henry Hudson crossing into the city.  The police were only allowing cars with at least 3 passengers to pass and we had 4 cruisers and 1 driver so we were good to go.  As a result, traffic along the West Side highway was very light which allowed for a quick trip the rest of the way.

Here are a few pictures:

Sailing along the Hudson River, just after leaving the pier.

Lower Manhattan and the Freedom Tower...with a brightly lit building in front.  Buildings on the left were still without power.

Formal night. Ladies in little black dresses....except for the one who didn't get the memo.

The beach at Grand Turk...from our ship and over the bow of the Holland America Eurodam.  We figured that GT is where old cruise ship deck chairs go to retire.

The view from one of those retired deck chairs.  Our ship on the left (the Caribbean Princess) and on the right the Eurodam.

A colorful shopping area in Aruba.

Mr. Gadget and I with our winnings....a bottle of champagne from the frequent cruiser gathering....which we shared with our friends at dinner.

And just so you don't think we have too much fun, this morning I had a colonoscopy. Mr. Gadget's is later this week. I'll spare you those trip reports...

Trick or treat

Mr. Gadget and I are still on dry land but treading water.  Our cruise has been postponed twice, and it now looks quite possible we'll be departing on Friday.  The cruise port in Brooklyn is flooded and will be closed through the weekend. Princess is trying to arrange for a berth in Manhattan and we should know something soon.

We have been extremely lucky to have only lost power for a couple of hours yesterday morning.  We are well inland from the coast.  If you've been watching the news you've probably seen the devastation at Breezy Point, NY with so many homes burned to the ground.  Mr. Gadget's parents lived there for many years, and we have fond memories of spending time there when our kids were young.  Their home was a small beach bungalow...as many were and are still....that they winterized and lived in year-round.  No matter how many family members came to town, there were never too many for my mother-in-law to cook for and feed at her long picnic table in the dining room/hallway, and to somehow find sleeping places for.  The current owner has done some remodeling, but has resisted the wave of scraping and McMansioning.  It looks much the same as it always has and, fortunately, it has been spared.

Meanwhile, I've been working on stuff.

A new morning lady.  She has an expression that says it all:  "Where the h@!#* is my coffee?"

And a couple of paper mache santa head ornaments that I made with some leftover pulp.  Not great, but there is potential.

So now we'll play more of the waiting game to see what's in store for the week ahead.  And no matter what it is, we'll count our lucky stars and be grateful.

A quick update

Thought I would post a quick one before we lose power.  The weatherman says we should be having the heaviest winds starting in a couple of hours and continuing through the night.

We feel fairly well prepared, especially since we now have a generator.  And thankfully, it's not January.

We haven't had word on our cruise, but the cruise line (Princess) advises they should know by the end of today and will let everyone know.  Thankfully, again, we don't have to fly into town.  Some have had to cancel, or hope the airports will be open and flights will be operating early Wed.  Our only concerns are whether the ship can return to NYC on time (it's now in Boston) and how flooded the roads will be enroute to the pier.

Meanwhile, there is lots of light in the Treehouse and I have handwork projects, plus many books to read.

I'll try to post from the cruise (I'm thinking positive), but if you don't see me for a while you'll know I'm out there having some sort of a water-related adventure.

A paper mache day

Today I did some painting on my paper mache Santa.  First, a coat of burnt umber.

I really have no idea what I'm doing.  I'm flying by the seat of my pants to use an old cliche.  Next, I add the colors.

Santa still needs lots of work, but I'm fairly pleased with how he's turning out.  I'm not happy with the bag color, so I'll change that.  And the fur around his hat and on his coat needs to be a little darker to distinguish it from his beard.

I'm also working on a couple of paper mache Santa head ornaments. They are hanging in the pantry closet to dry.   The great thing about ornaments is the little hanger on top.  They can be hung up to dry all over at the same time.  Does that make sense?  Rather than having to turn them like a piece of meat on the grill.  These are just an experiment....kinda like most things I do.

So I think I mentioned that Mr. Gadget and I have a cruise coming up.  We are planning to leave from NYC next Wednesday (Halloween) for the Caribbean.  There's just one little detail that concerns us:  the hurricane.  The 4-day cruise to Bermuda ahead of ours on the same ship has had an itinerary change, but so far the cruise line hasn't decided where they'll go.  Maybe Canada, or maybe a cruise to nowhere....where you just float around for a few days.

In our case, we may be delayed--like we were last year on this same cruise---when it snowed.  So much for October being a great month to travel.  Luckily, we don't have to fly into town for this trip like many do, so we should be ok.  But it sure would be nice if this ended up being the typical big weather hype that ends in nothing much.  The Weather Channel has to provide plenty of drama and suspense so they can compete with shows like Dancing with the Stars and The World Series.  We'd be happy if they declared The Sandy Show a dud---like a bad sitcom--and canceled it for the season.

Got yarn?

Sunday was a perfect day for a trip to Rhinebeck ...so unlike that day a few years ago when the cold and drizzle made us wish we had taken every hand-knitted item from our closets and drawers.

Being at a fiber festival is always a great opportunity for people-watching....many of whom wear interesting outfits nicely accessorized with colorful hand-knitwear.

Some even provided inspiration for future dollmaking.

Such a sensible nun she was....wearing smart and stylish hiking boots to match her habit.....but no knitwear that I could see.

The fiber was plentiful and colorful, but the buildings were crowded and dark, so I got pictures of the next best thing.  The eateries.

 

These sights, but mostly the aromas, made us hungry so we stopped for lunch. Then we shopped, or should I say "browsed," and one of our threesome bought a pair of knitting needles.  None of us bought yarn.  At 2 o'clock we headed for the exit....with nary a bag of fiber to stash in the trunk.  This was a first. I'm not sure we still qualify as real knitters.  If there were knitting police they might have demanded that we surrender our licenses.....or worse...issued a warrant for our arrest for bad knitterly behavior.

Out to pasture

I have no pictures for this little ditty of a story I'm going to tell, so here are some unrelated ones of my current dolls-in-progress.  You don't mind, do you?


I'm a coffee drinker, but Mr. Gadget insists on drinking tea.  He has one of those electric kettles that boils his tea water on-the-quick.  He's a man who hates to wait.

In recent days the kettle has begun to sing. It's not supposed to do that.  It's not a pleasant sound.  It has also taken to leaking, so once the puddle has cooled it must be wiped up.

"I think it's time to toss the ol' kettle and get a new one," I suggested to him just this morning.  "You know, when I get to the age where I'm singing and leaking you'll know it's time to put me in the home."

So I must confess, I've been sewing instead of blogging lately.  I'm whipping up a few things for the Christmas craft show at the old hotel.  The organizer of the show, a nice lady named Georganne, must know I'm a sucker for compliments.

"I want you to sew, sew, sew," she told me.  "It just wouldn't be a great show without your characters!"  In fact, she said I could even deliver a few last-minute guys on the first day of the show.  So I decided I'd make a hundred or so.  Well, maybe not.  I'll try for an even dozen.  But I won't be sewing tomorrow.  Tomorrow I'm going here with my knitting buddies.  Please don't tell Georganne.

Trick or treat

Santa will be ready for painting soon, but first he needs a bag o' toys.  He'll be holding that in his right hand.  Again, I resisted taxing my EK's (elderly knees) and so the perspective is a bit off.  Maybe I should just use a higher shelf....duh....

Today I drove up to the old hotel...and what a beautiful day it was with the sun out and the colors in full bloom.....to retrieve my unsold items and a big check....well, I was hoping.  It turned out to be a nice sum...about what I usually do.  Unfortunately, my paper mache items didn't sell.  Maybe I had the prices too high and that put people off.  Those items are more labor-intensive than the cloth dolls, so I priced accordingly.

So the paper mache santa pictured above will be the only one I do for the Christmas show, and I'll step up production on the cloth dolls.  I like to think I'm a smart businesswoman; I understand supply and demand.  Just don't ask me about stock options, pork barrels or hedge funds.

I get a little tired of making the same old dolls, but I do have fun changing them up now and then.  I have another morning lady in the works.  Remember the last one?

I found some flannel with a martini-glass print, so she'll have some jazzy jammies, and some neon green slippers with jewels of some sort.

I still haven't decided about the gray-or-no-gray issue, but I'm leaning strongly toward the gray.  I decided to mention it to Mr. Gadget, since he was looking down on me from his 6-foot height and noticing the roots.  He wasn't too receptive at first, but he softened...probably because he knows how I am when I'm in the throes of chipmunking.

He started separating strands of my hair--not unlike a chimpanzee grooming his significant other--and discovered it wasn't all gray, but rather salt-and-peppery.  I told him I would do a little research to see what my options might be for helping me through the awkward months.  I guess I could get some of that Halloween spray-on color--maybe something in a purple or hot pink.  Do you think I could get away with that till Easter?

For the birds

Big City Girl was visiting over the weekend and Saturday we went to the old hotel craft show to check on how I was doing....and to see if all of my stuff had flown out the door. That is a common bird-like phrase familiar to crafters who sell their work, and one that has a nice, melodious ring to it.

Since it was early on Saturday, and it was a 3-day show running through Monday, my stuff was pretty much still there, or a least as nearly as I could tell.

So, of course, I assumed that nothing was going to sell and nobody would like my paper mache items and everyone was tired of seeing my same old dolls and I would soon be retiring from this crazy crafting business.

But on Sunday I received an email from someone who had purchased a couple of my dolls.  I had decided this year to put my email address on my tags...something I haven't done before.  The buyer was delighted with his purchases and had gone back for more--only to find that they had fledged. Did I have more, he wanted to know, stashed away at home or in my studio?  My studio!  Boy, how artsy-fartzy is that!

I wrote back to say that no, I didn't have any more dolls in my usually-vast inventory, but that I would be making more for the Christmas show and I would have more to offer then.

And I signed off and hurried right up to the Treehouse to see how fast I could crank up production.  So, the crazy crafting business is alive and well and I'm happy to have something to crow about.

Don't let the turkeys get you

Sometimes when I'm toodling around town I come across something that makes me say, "You'd never see that in California."  Yesterday on the way to my knitting group I had to brake for turkeys.  You'd think when they noticed a car bearing down they might quicken their steps.  But no.  They were like a gaggle of teenagers with attitude.

So, the Paper Mache Santa Project is moving along nicely. I've added a layer of newspaper, and now I have to decide on the arm positions before adding more paper. Later, while I'm wrist-deep in goo, I'll ruminate on the pros and cons of a decision I have to make in the very near future.  Before Oct. 23 to be exact.  That's the date of my next hair color appointment.

Should I, or should I not, go gray?  I'm so tired of the bother of keeping one step ahead of the roots.  I'm tired of not being happy with the color I end up with.  Actually, I'm not too unhappy with what I have now, but I'm unwilling to go through the torture of having it done again (multiple scalp stabbings with a crochet hook.)

Is this a good time to do it?  There is never a good time, I'm convinced.  Will I look older? Probably, but I've been noticing gray-haired ladies lately and some look darn good. I wonder if I could wear a hat all winter? Shave my head?  Get a wig?  Hibernate like a bear? Or just ignore all those who look askance.

Now that I think about it, hibernating sounds like a good choice.  That will save me from having to make two difficult decisions....the hair color one, and the one where I have to decide on which turkey, I mean presidential candidate, to vote for on November 6.

Hold the starch

The Paper Mache Santa Project is underway.

I know they're unrecognizable at this stage, but soon they will come to life--filled with Christmas spirit and hopefully no mold.  I used a dollar-store vase for the one on the left, and a Costco olive oil bottle for the other.  No need to spend money when the recycle bin is handy.  That's one of the great things about paper mache.  If you forget to take the empty bottles and the old newspapers out to the curb, you've got craft supplies at a great price.

So you know how Mr. Gadget and I love to cruise.  I've probably mentioned it before...  Since we usually go with the same cruise line, we accumulate frequent cruiser points that enable us to have certain perks.  And it just so happens that after our next cruise (on Halloween to the Caribbean) we will have reached the top of the ladder, so to speak.  Visualize a short ladder with 4 rungs.  We're presently on number 3.

One day I got to thinking. I seemed to remember taking a couple of cruises long ago, before Mr. G and I were married, on this same cruise line. So feeling rather silly, and a little bit greedy, I called their 800 number.  Would they consider, I asked, adding those cruises to my permanent record, even though it was back in prehistoric times?  After some consideration, they said they would.

So with a great deal of glee, I informed Mr. G that on our upcoming cruise I would be up on rung #4 while he would have to dangle on rung #3. This means that he will be in the sorry state of having to observe me as I enjoy free laundry service, priority boarding on the tenders to shore, and a stock of free booze in the mini fridge.

Well.  As you might imagine, he wasn't too happy to hear that.  So after listening to him whine for an hour, or maybe a day, I told him I would take pity on him and share some of my free booze. I'd even be willing to attempt to sneak him on the tenders as my date. But I informed him in no uncertain terms that I intended to draw the line at the laundry service.  It wouldn't be pleasant if stories got around the ship about the weird lady on Dolphin deck who wears boxer shorts.

Dump day

Today I delivered my crafty items to the old hotel for their show next weekend.  Sometimes I refer to this as dump day. Before I leave I usually tell Mr. Gadget, "I'm going up to the hotel to dump my stuff."

The drive up the several miles of two-lane curvy road was somewhat exciting with an Audi behind me in a big hurry, and a Jeep ahead that continuously crossed over the double line.  But I made it safely and met up with Caleb, a nice young man who was happy to check off the 37 items on my inventory sheet with his mom quietly supervising.

So, here are some of the 37--starting with the pumpkin.

 

 

It's not quite this bright in real life.  I thought it worthy of the show, and if it doesn't sell it'll be home in time for Halloween.  

You've already seen this one in my last post.

This gal was made out of paper mache and paper clay.  I used a plastic Coffee-Mate container as a base.  That's vintage tatting around the top of her dress--made years ago by my grandmother.

I used a styrofoam cone as the base for this one. Her head was originally intended for the librarian, but it was too small.  She was also made of paper mache and paper clay.

This is my favorite witch face.  I sculpted it out of paper clay and used it with my trusty ol' cloth doll pattern.

I'm definitely done with witches for this year.  I guess it's possible to over-witch.  I feel like I've got a haggy hangover.  Next year maybe I'll wise up and start my witch-making process in January and move along through the year at a more leisurely pace.  But first I've gotta make a few Santas...

Ready for take-off

I call her the bowling pin witch.  I used duck cloth for her bowling-pin shape, and added arms with paper clay and a wire armature.

I made her hat out of duck cloth too, and then painted her with acrylics.

Her hair is dyed sheep's wool and the broom is a twig with sissal twine bristles.

 

She's holding a pumpkin made of paper mache.

Stay tuned.  More witches will be making their debuts soon.  It's getting pretty raucous here in the Treehouse with all the cackling.

Stem your enthusiasm

 

I managed to get down to pumpkin level on my EKs today to take this photo of more pumpkiny progress.  That's not a bad stem in my humble opinion.  But bear in mind, this is a learning pumpkin.  The stem is probably a little too big for this modest-sized veggie.  I'm going to leave it be though...because I've had sticky-fingers enough for one day.

I'm in that twilight zone of craftiness where I don't know if this is going to be good enough to sell at the craft fair, or whether it will end up in the disappointment category of home decor.  In a week or so the verdict should be in.

I've come up with an idea for a new project, but I won't start it till I'm done with the witches.....and they've become very demanding this weekend.  One didn't like her face so I had to do a little dermabrasion.  Another worried she'd drop something, so I had to add more clay and drill a hole in her hand....OUCH!  When I'm done I'm going to make a few little snowmen out of empty pill bottles.  As one becomes elderly one is likely to amass quite a collection.  But that's a wintertime project and it's just barely fall--and I'm starting to see some colors popping out.  It's an exciting time to have a treehouse...