Post 234 In and out

This morning I made another book of my blog posts. This time Posts 51 to 114. Blog2Print offers the option of keeping the original blog layout or compacting it. The latter obviously reduces the number of pages. Both text and photographs are retained but the text may not align with a particular photo. Yesterday I used the compact option. Today I tried the keep original layout option. It took a while to load, but I faster, I think, than yesterday. I have a pdf file of it but the print copies will take several weeks to come fromNew York.

I'm not sure that the original layout makes a better book than the compacted. The ideal would be to manually manipulate it on screen to get an appropriate print layout but I understand the economy of software that doesn't allow that.

It was a JEMS day today and I took Niamh and picked her up. There were six girls there today so numbers are gradually picking up. 

During the intervening two hours I watched a little boy in the Square  with a plastic projectile launcher. Jim and I had one of these we used to take to the park with Brigid and Fionn. 

Their wonder was much like this little boy's.

Niamh and I had milkshakes at Queen St on the way home and I caught up on all the netball and JEMS news. Anthony, Brigid and Fionn were on duty at the Surf Club this afternoon and Fionn had seven mates over for dinner. They entertained themselves with the home gym and a long visit to the park. A couple of them were sleeping over.                                                                                                                            There were hamburger patties, sausages and ribs in abundance, roast potatoes and a couple of really delicious salads. The boys ate together outside and the rest of us ate inside with some very stimulating and thought-provoking conversation.

I managed to finish the lorikeet feather. In the end I have five different greens in this as well as blue. I was planning on green and blue only, but decided it needed a tiny flash of red. I'm pretty pleased with it. 

The design for these feathers was based on the Arts and Crafts penchant for ostrich feathers. I've taken quite a few liberties.

The next one is the dove.

I've struggled a bit with the layout of this post. I hope it posts neatly.

Post 233

I caught a glimpse of a couple of lorikeets feeding in the tree behind my apartment this morning, grabbed the camera and opened the door to the balcony. To my surprise, there was Turtle, sitting on the rail, waiting for seed. This hasn't happened in a while.  

I left the door open, put down the camera and cast some seed. 

He was attentive but unafraid.

After a minute or two he jumped down from the rail and ate seed. He didn't venture close to me and the open door, but he did move around freely. He stayed for 5-10 minutes before surveying the landscape and heading to more interesting parts.

I am interested in the way his colour appears to change in different positions, according to the light and his movement. I am thinking about the colours I will use on my crewel dove feather. I was assuming greys, but there is a lot of brown here, and, of course, the distinctive black and white collar. 

I might have to go beyond the three colours to which I have been restricting myself.

There are a couple of good news stories to report this morning. The big one is that Jennifer's test results are back and she has tested negative to Corona Virus. Yippee! It was, of course, the most likely outcome, but is still a huge relief and cause of celebration.  Our Sit 'n Stitch was back on this afternoon.

Susan is still working on her blanket. It’s stunning and gets more so every week. We haven’t seen it spread out yet.

Jennifer worked today on a crocheted summer shawl. Unfortunately I didn't think at the time to photograph it.

I began by adjusting my Inuit applique, adding more grey fly stitches to the bear to reduce the impact of the yellow.  

Jennifer’s comment was that the bear is a meerkat. I think she’s right! I’m going to add a title ‘bear hunt’ to this piece so the intention is clear. It might, however, be better titled ‘Inuit hunter meets meerkat!

I went on to finish the Adelaide rosella feather. It’s interesting the way these feathers, which are in no way representational, do manage to give an impression

I moved my hoop on to the next feather. I'm going to try for a lorikeet, modifying the greens somewhat - away from limey greens - to blend with the Jacobean colours on the chair.

The minor , in the scheme of things, celebration today is that Jen, at Blog2Print not only allowed me to use the discount code on later books but refunded 40% of the cost of the book I made yesterday.! That is well beyond my expectations as a customer. 

I had a read of the electronic copy this morning, taking me back to the Stratford Retreat, our activities and developing concern about Covid19. It's so interesting to be reminded of the dilemmas I faced in deciding to return to Australia a few days early and the adjustments made in self-isolating. We've been on a long learning curve - and most of the learning does not relate to embroidery. 

By the end of the evening this is where I am up to on the lorikeet feather. I'm a bit short on lighter greens, so might need to visit Create in Stitch tomorrow.

Post 232 Messes

First up today I emptied the dishwasher. This included a baking dish that fits on its side in a cupboard beside my oven inside another dish. In removing that dish, without a light in the cupboard, I knocked over the full 1 litre bottle of olive oil I had stored in front of the dishes. Of course, the glass bottle smashed on the floor, and all the oil leaked out. It took a while, and a lot of paper towel, to clean it up.

By this afternoon I had replaced the oil. Back to a tin. I had chosen a bottle on Monday because it was smaller and took up less room in the cupboard. Mistake.

 I had Pilates today at 1pm. I also had a technician coming to service my air conditioner before Summer sets in. This had been arranged for 8am last Monday - before our partially-blocked off street gets parked out by workers on the building site next door, but the company reorganised the time to 11am today. At 10 past 11 I got a message that the technician was running late. He arrived at 11.50 - carrying his tools and ladder from his park some distance away. 

The good news is that he did a thorough and competent job of servicing, and located, and addressed, the cause of the frequent blasts of cold air I had in the last month or so of Winter. We worked out that I would be better off having an annual service before Winter rather than before Summer. 

The downside of this, of course, was that I couldn't rush the process and my travel time to Pilates was being eroded. I phoned and explained, agreeing I'd come as soon as I could. I got there about 15 minutes into a 50 minute session. Martine is terrific. Fortunately for me there were only two of us in the class today, so I got plenty of attention and a productive session. 

I went on to North Adelaide to replace the oil and get some cooking salt. The receptionist at Pilates, who previously worked in hospitality, tells me that throwing salt on the spilled oil helps to absorb it before using paper towel to mop it up. I needed salt anyway.

Back home I finished adding the hunter to the Inuit applique. I'm going to add more fur to the bear. I don't, however want to over-embellish it. 

I then spent half an hour or so trying to buy a subscription to Office 365. I opted to download the app which is supposed to mean no password but the purchase requires scanning a QR code and the app doesn't give me that option. I'm caught in a loop. Another mess to sort out!

Jennifer was the one who introduced the term 'mess' today. After discussion, much thinking and rethinking, she went for a Covid test today after having very brief hay fever symptoms. It means, of course, that she has to isolate until she has the result. It's a hard call, when she has no symptoms anything like her long experience of the virus and there is no community transmission in South Australia. It seems so unlikely that she has a return of the virus. Yet...there are so many twists and turns in this virus evolution.

I spent a couple of hours sorting another mess I got myself into a few days ago. I have been trying to create a book from the first 50 posts on this blog. There are not many companies that do this - only two that I know of. One of these, Blog2Print, recently had a discount offer, so I gave it a go. I spent a number of hours working on it but received an error message at the end. Eventually I contacted their technical advice and this morning they had a suggestion that I delete and start again. This is what I did this afternoon - it took time, but it worked! I finally ordered a print and a pdf copy. I was elated. Unfortunately, in my elation, I completely forgot to apply the 40% discount code they had offered me! Damn! I'm not sure if I will want to print the whole blog ( It would take, I think, 7 volumes around 190 pages each) but I have asked if I can use the discount on a future book.

It won't be lost on some readers that I have managed to get the layout of this blog out of the mess it was in a week or so ago from the transition to the new interface. Success has come partly through improvements to the layout by developer, and partly by my learning the 'tricks'. 

I actually feel encouraged at the end of a day of messes. For much of my working life, I spent a good proportion of my time either sorting out messes or anticipating and avoiding them. There's a lot of relief in knowing I can still clean up messes.

I left the bear and hunter aside this evening and worked on the Adelaide Rosella feather. It's not quite finished but gives an idea of what it will look like. 

Rain is forecast for tomorrow and our Sit'n Stitch has been cancelled while Jennifer waits for her test results.

Should be a good day to stitch and read.

Post 231 World Embroidery

     

The weather has warmed up here. 31C today and 20C overnight. Time to change over to my Summer quilt.

The weather has warmed up here. 31C today and 20C overnight.  I woke up this morning and decided it was time to change over to my Summer quilt. I stripped the bed, replaced the underlay, the pillow under-cases, the sheets and pillow cases.

Before I left home around 10.50 am to go to the Guild for World Embroidery Study Group I had washed the quilt and hung it on the line.  It was dry when I returned home at 1pm. Now is the time for me to add the 75 hexies I made earlier this year around the edges.

I washed and dried the sheets and pillowcases this afternoon. The underlays can be done tomorrow.

We had a great meeting of the World Embroidery Study Group. There were nine members there - back to pre-Covid attendance. This is especially good in view of two regular members being absent because they have broken or dislocated arms! 

It was a terrific team effort. We had a PowerPoint by one member outlining Inuit history and traditions and a workshop on Inuit applique by another member. The computer was set up by someone else, another was Covid Marshall. Everyone joined in as it suited them and helped to sanitise at the end. It is a great group and every single person expressed their pleasure at meeting, learning and engaging.

This is my effort, obviously unfinished, but on the way. I didn't, unfortunately, take photos of what others were working on, but there was a variety - birds, abstract forms and sea creatures. 

The plan is to put them together to display something of what our group does for the Guild Exhibition next year.

I did a bit of work to finish my bear this evening. I didn't get the jaw right. He doesn't look fierce enough. I don't think I can alter that so will have to live with it. I'll try to add the hunter i

in the next few days.

I was anxious to try out my Adelaide Rosella colour scheme on a feather so worked a little to try it out. I think it's going to work.

Tomorrow is service of my reverse cycle air con and Pilates.

Post 230 It's all about the preparation

I bought these yesterday at Frewville. They are quite small but such a lovely colour, and very frilly. They are opening slowly in this warm weather and I'm hoping to enjoy them for several days.

My major task today is to prepare for the World Embroidery Study Group tomorrow. We are looking at Inuit embroidery. Margaret has prepared a PowerPoint and Junette is bringing felt and templates for us to try out some appliqued shapes.  

Unfortunately, Margaret has broken her arm and has a hospital appointment tomorrow morning, so has emailed me her presentation. I now have that on a memory stick for tomorrow, along with a short presentation I put together on terminology. I've also gathered some threads, scissors and bits and pieces I've promised individuals. 

Serendipitously, this morning I received a digital copy of the latest Piecework Magazine, with an article on Inuit string games traditionally played on cord made from animal sinew. It's a form of what some know as Cat's Cradle. Not, of course, embroidery, but an interesting study. The figures traditionally made by Inuit families are canoes, ice floes and other local elements, but not dissimilar to figures we made in Australia 60 years ago. The author's research suggests that the hand actions associated with these figures become imprinted and come back almost automatically after decades of disuse. Perhaps we should try it out.

I went to Unley shopping centre this morning to pick up a top that I'd ordered online but saved postage by picking up in shop. I dropped off my soft plastic recycling, collected the parcel and popped into Coles to see if my favourite ice creams were on special. They weren't. Raspberries and strawberries were cheap, however so I got some for my breakfasts. 

It's a small, very pleasant shopping centre, with plenty of space and people being careful.

The building work has continued all day with a concrete pour happening. Anthony was right when he suggested the wooden struts were to support concrete walls.  I did have an hour away but the noise did not disturb me. Steady motor noise blends into the background, especially when I am concentrating on something.

After getting ready for tomorrow's meeting, I moved my attention to feathers.

Today's effort was a Galah feather. I feel much happier working a feather to a particular bird.

This morning my friend Vivienne suggested woking an Adelaide rosella. I think I might try that next.

I'm planning to stick to three colours. It needs to be simple and impressionistic rather than representational. Now that the Galah has worked to my satisfaction I will try this one.

After that I might just have a go at the lorikeet. And there's always a dove.

Post 229: Feathery decisions

 

I finished the second feather today. I've been thinking, as I stitch, what colours to use on the other seven I have to do. This one is a bit pinker than the photo indicates. Do these relate in any way to real birds or are they a stylised feather in a Jacobean style? I thought if I introduced greys into the next one it would be a reference to Australian galahs. 

That got me thinking about lorikeet feathers 

Lorikeet genes don't seem to abide by the "blue and green should never be seen without a colour in between" adage. Could I work at leeast one of these in these colours?  I'm in two minds, but very tempted.

The feathers are going togo around the horse-shoe shaped top edge of the chair. I don't think it works if they are all in the pink/grey colour range. Greens and blues might work, but I might need to modify the vibrance of the green in particular.                                                                                                                  I'm still thinking about it. The next one can have grey introduce so I can continue to think as I stitch the next one or two.                                                                                                                                                            I went to Frewville this morning, mainly to get olive oil and milk along with some bakery items for the kids after school. it's still a very nice place to shop. I notice fewer people wiping down their trolley than a couple of weeks ago, although pretty much everyone sanitises their hands before selecting a trolley.

The rest of the day was occupied with preparing the food for tonight. I did intend to take a photo but I lost that thought when the chance was there.I scanned a few photos that had been on my "What do I do with this? "pile and tidied the table to use it for the meal. I also used Blog2Print to upload the first six weeks of this blog to a book. It previewed OK but then crashed when I tried to order a copy. After it failed 3 times I sent a message to the technicians. No reply as yet.

It was a warm, sunny day with a cloudy sunset.We needed the shade blind on the Western balcony while we were eating. 

A few things to do tomorrow in preparation for the World Embroidery Study Group on Wednesday

Post 228 Mostly food and feathers

I've been experimenting today with the construction of this blog post, after my battle yesterday with my embroidery blog. It appears the new tools work best if you load one photo at a time, add text and continue in this pattern. They do not work well if, as I have long done, you load photos as you take them and attempt to add text later. It's a relief to work this out. I'm adapting to a new routine.

Today's goal was to prepare the eggplant parmigiana for tomorrow. Out of a fifty year habit I still salt eggplant before I cook it, even though I rarely use salt in cooking. After I have sliced, salted, soaked, rinsed  and squeezed the moisture out, I now spray them with oil and cook the slices in the oven rather than frying them as I once did.  I am a very habit-ridden cook but it occurs to me it might be time to shed this habit. Next time I will at least try without the salting process, since science seems to tell me contemporary eggplant does not benefit from salting.

The other trick I have to practice is taking the eggplant slices out of the oven before they burn. I'm gradually learning to use the timer on the oven! Today no burning.

Yesterday I succumbed to laziness and, instead of making an extra trip to the butcher as I normally do, I bought the lamb shanks I wanted at the supermarket. As well as abundant packaged meat, this supermarket has a butchery counter, where you can buy unpackaged meat from the display. There were no lamb shanks in the display, but I rang the bell and enquired when the attendant appeared. She called the man in charge of meat, who appeared with a tray of lamb shanks vacuum packed into lots of two. 

I expressed my displeasure, hesitated, but bought them.  

Even as I bought them, I knew I would not make the same mistake again. I have three good butchers available to me and visiting one of them is not a lot of extra effort. The lamb shanks are fine but I ended up with a pile of plastic packaging to wash so I can dispose of it in the soft plastic recycling. Lesson learnt.

I had intended to cook the lamb shanks from scratch tomorrow, but last time I cooked this I was very tired by the end of the day, so I did the preparatory work today. It took a while to brown them, and, even with the exhaust fan on, creates a bit of smoke. I worry about setting off the smoke alarm. Fortunately it was a very pleasant day today and I could keep the balcony door wide open as well as having the exhaust fan on.  I got the ragu made, covered the dish and refrigerated, ready for several hours in the oven tomorrow.

I've been watching my two frangipani plants for signs of Spring growth. Today the bumps I've been watching turned into very definite leaves. I'm hoping for a few more blooms this year, but regardless, it is great to see these lovely, shiny, green leaves.

I spent the rest of the afternoon finishing the first of my feathers, then moved my hoop on to another one, which I'm planning to work in lighter pinks. I also sent out the reminder notice to the World Embroidery Study Group of the Guild which meets this coming Wednesday.                                                                                                                   

 I prepared this post earlier in the evening today in an effort to get the layout right. My plan was, after I've cooked the salt and pepper squid I bought yesterday for my dinner tonight, to try to sort out the summary post to my embroidery blog  then knit. I succeeded in the former, but ran out of time to knit.

It's been a lovely day in terms of weather as well as what I have achieved. At this time of the year it is a privilege to live in Adelaide in an East-West facing apartment. It will be less pleasant when it is 40+C, so  I'm making the most of it.