Dungeons and Dragons

Collective storytelling!  We started this story waking up captive on a ship.

After rescuing our animals and throwing the pirates overboard, we learned some disturbing information about the politics of the continent.

The campaign didn't last very long, but it was lots of fun. 

Pantsweather

An inside joke becomes a community holiday.  "Pantsweather" is both that time of the year when the temperature cools down and the personification of autumn.  So fall equinox came in with a "Welcome Home Pantsweather McGhee" party.

Party banner painted by Maddy

Alas for no photos of the mountains of maple cookies and cakes, apple cider doughnuts, carved pumpkins, the leaf-stuffed scarecrow.  Turns out that jack-o-lanterns make poor lighting for photography!

At the Clothesline

I think laundry is one of the best jobs on the farm.  Cold and rainy?  Work inside.  Warm and sunny?  Work outside.  Although I am sometimes guilty of using the dryer when I am in a hurry, I use the clothesline whenever I have time.

My favorite laundry task is hanging wet sheets on the line.  A dozen or more sheets on several rows of a long clothesline creates a cool, damp tunnel.  Maybe the breeze blows them against your skin as you walk between.  Sometimes I put on a flowing dress and do laundry barefoot.  Summer grass feels good on the feet, and a skirt that billows in the breeze connects the body to the wind.  Here I am, asking the elements of nature for their help in completing a task, and they provide.  Earth is nice like that. 

Our laundry line is in an area heavy with foot traffic.  Sometimes I chat with people walking by, and sometimes I can snag someone to hang out for a while.

the ever-wonderul Wren

Liberty!

For twelve years I've been wanting to make this Liberty Cap.  Twelve years ago I wasn't too sure about using double pointed needles and didn't know where to find red wool.  Twelve years, and all it took me when I finally tried was a week!

The pattern I used is popular among reenactors.  I'm not sure about its accuracy to French and American revolutions, but the association is still there: Fight the power!  The pattern is easy enough for a beginner, really, and it can easily be adapted to flat knitting on two needles.  Some use this pattern to make a Link costume, and I also think it would be good for a Night Before Christmas "...Mama in her kerchief and I in my cap...."

Oh, remember the fake Liberty Caps from last year's Bastille Day?

How To Catch A Rainbow

Wonderful Shannon is visiting for a few weeks.  Maybe she'll teach me how to catch a rainbow.

Fairy Mitts for a Best Friend

I have a dear friend in Seattle.  I do not live in Seattle.  We've been best friends for 18 years, the kind that might only be in touch once a year, and might be roommates.  But we're always friends.

Friend, mini friend, pride parasol!

She's very crafty.  This one time, she made a baby (some people are into cross stitch, some people are into babies).  Soon after, she made a gorgeous rainbow pride parasol, blowing a basic doily pattern out of the water.

Modeling on the bus.  Camera phone?

So I saw this fancy rainbow yarn and decided to make rainbow fairy mitts for her. A nice easy pattern that shows off the yarn, is small (and cheap!), and knits fast.  Love for a silly, nerdy woman. Wish I could be there in person.  <3

Growing a Broom, part 1

For seven years, I've fantasized about making a broom, and it looks like I might finally be doing it!

I sowed "Hungarian Black Seeded Broom Corn" seed from Southern Exposure Seed Exchange in May.  I've mentioned SESE before.  The beautiful thing about planting heirloom variety plants is that you can save the seeds to start another generation next year.  Of course, this is the way nature usually does things, but with our modern hybrids, the seeds do not contain the genetic information of the parent.  You cannot, for instance, plant a typical apple from the grocery store and expect the fruits of its seed to resemble the apple you selected from the produce section.  But non-hybrid, non-GMO varieties reproduce again, year after year.  We have seed savers of the past to thank for not giving up and letting the old varieties die out.  Southern Exposure is a great collectively owned business that is keeping up this tradition today.

I had little idea what to expect of the seed, never having seen a broom corn plant before.  "Broom corn" is a little of a colloquial name.  The plant does resemble maize-corn in some ways, but it is actually a kind of sorghum.  A spray of pliable fibers carrying seeds crowns the mature plant, and these fibers emerged as our standard broom bristles around the turn of the nineteenth century.  This is a black seeded variety; Southern Exposure sells two other varieties, a red seeded and a rainbow seeded.

Weeds too!

I had access to a small plot of land that had already been tilled and harrowed.  Since I wasn't going to be driving any farm equipment between rows, I figured exact row spacing was not necessary, but I aimed for around three feet of spacing.  I sowed the seeds about 1/4 inch deep and four inches apart (May 30).  I made sure they got water.  And they came up!

I used a scuffle hoe between the rows to keep weeds down.  When the plants were a few inches high, I thinned them to a one foot spacing and started to hoe between plants as well.  Now look at them!  About three feet tall, they are bigger than I am when seated.  I've done some gardening before, but this is my first gardening attempt that is "all mine."  I am pleased with the progress!  Fingers crossed that these babies will continue doing well!

Quiet Solstice: Litha 2012

"Hey, it's solstice tomorrow.  We should do something."

"OK.  What?"

"Henna.  The pond.  Both."

I find the solstices (and to a lesser extent, the equinoxes) the most significant days in the entire year.  No matter your religion or philosophy, the solstices are always there, observable, real.  They remind us that life has ups and downs; that we experience dark and light in turn; that our lives may be short as we hurtle through the void, yet we stand together with our faces turned towards a star.

Blessed be.

phrase with a triple meaning

Sunday Afternoon Pizza

Besides making a really great Goddess-God couple, these two are fantastic chefs.

There must be a cheesy crust.

Mix the toppings.

Make it beautiful.

Make it delicious.

Hey friends, when will we be having this again?

Spinning Wheel, Trial One

Early last year a friend lent me her spinning wheel and gave me roving to try out.  I'd become pretty proficient in drop spindle and wanted to move on.  Wheel spinning is pretty popular at heritage festivals and craft fairs, not to mention a decent skill for a woman working at a historic site, so I wanted to learn.

Thanks for the help, Heather.

 I have a few neighbors with wheels and some roving too.  Maybe a handspun sweater is in my future.

A few of us beginner musicians are making music (and magic) every week.  Our motto is "We suck, and we have fun."  And it is great fun.

"Saxon" Cables

My first cables beyond the basic twist.

 A warm hat!  Just in time for summer!


As I type, the heat index is over 100F where I live.  But that skein of yarn could not wait.  I want to use up my stash and move on with my life!


This is perfect for my hair.  A too small, too stiff cowl fits my head and lets my bun poke out the back.  Win.


I'm also pleased with the cables, but I am looking forward to pattern-free, stockinette knitting now!

Nesting: A Rag Rug

Finished!

I have a plywood floor.  I really like it, honestly.  But a little rug by my bed is just what I needed.  Ripped up sheets and curtains, purchased secondhand.  Freehand single crochet.

An earlier stage

Want to make this?  All it takes is a knowledge of how to crochet circles and rectangles.  I started with a desired length and width, subtracted the latter from the former, and chained the difference.  At the end of the chain, a half circle, or 3 single crochet.  Single crochet across the bottom of the foundation chain, then another half circle.  End of first round.  Each successive round consists of two straitaways with no increases and two half circles with three increases each.  Or you can simply increase "when it feels right."  My rug used up three curtains and three bedsheets.  One-inch strips and a size N crochet hook make a fairly dense fabric.  Final measurement about 25 x 50 inches.

One Dress, Revisited

Here's an old friend from last June, my One Dress!  In 2011, I wore this dress every day in June but one, a particular festival day.  In 2012 I made up for it by wearing it on the missed day!  A Plain cap and a matching apron give it a different look, and you can see how much it has faded from use in a year.  I continue to experiment with Plain dress.  The Regency-ish apron gives shape to the unfitted T-tunic dress, although the current length and placement of the straps cause them to fall down constantly.  I think shorter straps (and a higher waist) will fix it.

My community knows that the best way to welcome summer is with facepainting, drinks, and music.  I spent the afternoon lounging on the grass and generally enjoying myself.  While this is not a true Solstice festival (it is a bit early), it serves reasonably well.  And, almost halfway through the calendar year, it is a proper foil to our massive New Year's party.  Happy Summer.

First Beltaine

a little Playfulness

 

Earth

Goddess

(and God)

Maypole

Friends

Joy!

Empty Wallet, Full Heart

Sign reads: LEMONADE 1 CUP = 1 HUG

We could bring up our kids to be capitalists, or we could give them a different education.

Beauty in Winter

I've had some wool scraps for a while.  And I've had this bonnet in mind for a while.  Finally.



Also, it snowed.



We went sledding in the pastures.



It was great.  Even a little romantic.

Bonnet around my neck!