A small group of us run an SCA arts and science event every May, with the whole May long weekend full of different classes. This year of course, with the pandemic social distancing rules in place, we've had to cancel it. We decided to make it a virtual event. We'll see how it works out. It's been a huge amount of computer work though, and some days it feels like I've done nothing else but sit in front of the monitor.I spun up 100 g of grey ramie. It's nice yarn. It was nice to spin, although sometimes it seemed I was wearing it as much as I was spinning it. It's very fine and clingy, especially since the weather has turned cold again and the humidity is low.
The lemon tree is flowering. The tree is loaded with flowers. Every day I check out to see which ones have newly opened. I've been helping Mother Nature by taking a cotton swap and rolling it in the pollen tipped bits (stamens?) and daubbing it on the central spikey thing (stigma?). I've done this in the past. It usually results in fruit setting. Often the tree blooms in the summer, and the bees do the job for me. I do like being able to pick a lemon and use it, so helping it along is okay.
I'm finishing up spinning the brown cotton. I'm pretty sure it's the last of the good coloured cotton sliver that I have. I will miss it. It's something I'd have to order in from either the west or the U.S. since I haven't been able to find a supplier locally or in central Canada at any rate.
I'm dressing the loom. It's a fussy colour pattern gamp. I was going to put it on hold, and do waffle weave tea towels, but nope, I decided to do the projects I'd listed in order. I'm sort of regretting it now. It's going to be fussy to thread the heddles. I'm now thinking they'll be fussy to weave. Since I've seen the finished project, I know they the pattern makes for spectacular towels though.
The only thing about small projects is that it doesn't feel like I've accomplished a lot. I still haven't started on my new dresses for Westfield, nor a new medieval gown, that I've been promising myself.
your entry reminds me of the big bag with brown cotton in my stash... and I think there's loads of white stuff as well! I tried to get more of the green I had as a sample, but the only german supplier died years back and his wife closed the shop:( and the postage from USA is so expensive - that it'll remain a dream, I think:) I liked the colour, esp. after boiling it, because it became a lot darker!
ReplyDeletedid you dye the ramie yourself or did you buy it grey? I've only recently found it in colours, it used to be only white on offer! I love spinning it, but it's probably better for weaving than knitting, utterly unelastic as it is?! and I still have 16 lemons on my little tree - left it outside all summer and it set nicely. they last for ages on the tree, but I can see new growth - I think I have to pick them soon! it always drops a lot of leaves, when I put it into the glasshouse over winter and I am too lazy to play bee:) but it's still very cold at night, so I'd have to carry the big pot in and out for weeks:(
I purchased the ramie already dyed. It is a stock colour that the shop has. It's not difficult to dye, but I find that it compacts a lot, so if I can do so, I purchase it dyed. Just easier that way.
ReplyDeleteNot warm enough here to put anything in the greenhouse over the winter without actually heating it. However, my little tree survives inside. In a few weeks, I'll put it outside for the summer. This year it lost hardly any leaves when I moved it inside in September. I was super careful about keeping it watered though.