bee creative

layers

Been playing a bit...layers of images, fragments of photos.  The poem fragment is by Oliver Herferd.  It's been one of my favorites since I was nine.   The snow is all gone. It's warm and windy now. 

first snow

We've had a few flakes of snow drift down over the last couple days but today was the first day it was enough to be really noticeable.  I decided to go for a walk.  Here are a few of my favorite pictures that I took. There are more here.  My walk ended at the chicken coop to see if there were eggs.  There were, so now I'm making bread pudding. 

 

 

 

adding depth

Finished this pair of socks last night:

This is the second pair of socks that I've made with this variegated yarn and I wanted to change it up a bit.  My solution was to create stripes by alternating the variegated with a white yarn.  Love this so much more than the first pair I made.

Made me think about how combining two different elements can make something stronger and more interesting. 

mostly we grow towards the light

Just thinking.... 

frozen dye sample

Probably the wrong time of the year for my seaweed dye experiment.  No color.  I suspect that it's the lack of heat rather than the seaweed.  I'll have to try again during the summer.  It hasn't been above freezing for almost a week and we might have some snow today.  Sunny patches have been good.

square transformed

I have some very distressed books in my collection that need to be transformed.  One project is to cut lots of small squares and fold them into paper balloons. 

This one is for Jude, but I'm going to be folding a bunch for my tree and as a gift for a friend.  I'm planning on using small LED lights if I can find them.  Better for the environment and safer (no this is not recommended by the little sheet of directions that comes with the lights and yes I really did read them).

If you try this I'd recommend not leaving them on for long and not leaving them unsupervised.  If the light bulb puts out heat then there is going to be a risk. 

when the garden overtakes the gardener

thinking about context

As it happens, I feel the need to share one of my smaller projects.  I've been working on dish towels for one of my brothers (shsss don't tell!).  This morning I was working on this while watching the movie Our City Dreams, a documentary profiling 5 female artists.   Can't say that I like all of the art being created by these women (and in fact really didn't like some of it), but it's a very interesting documentary.  Made me think about what it means to be artistic, a craft person, about communicating and having something to say.  About how we are shaped by the environments we grow up in, the environments we live in. 

And I really had to appreciate the irony of knitting a dish towel while watching this movie.  Thinking about what message this dish towel sends, of what is valued (the yarn is organic cotton).  Of stereotypes.  About how we choose to live our life can be a political act.  Probably thinking too much.... 

what isn't top secret

Was hoping to work outside today but it was pretty chilly.

Did a little felting instead.  Cat proof ornaments.  I might gussy them up a bit.

Not as much as this one though.  Made years ago with a styrofoam base.  It occurred to me that I could use a felt ball as a more environmentally friendly base if I wanted to make more of these.  The rest of today is top secret....

a few notes

 

*My favorite new pumpkin recipe is from Farmfood by Daniel Orr.   

*If making ice cream without an ice cream maker (by putting the custard in the freezer and stirring every couple hours) the best results seem to come from recipes made with condensed milk.  Makes me sad because that's a little less local.  On the other hand ice cream that turns out a little grainy is great for milkshakes and smoothies.  I will certainly be field testing this some more.

*Sometimes it takes a little while to fall in love with something (although I always liked it).