Monday Message

"Decide as a family that there will be no vacation or holiday next year unless you have your year’s supply. Many Church members could buy a full year’s supply of the basics from what they would save by not taking a vacation. Take the vacation time and work on a family garden. Be together, and it can be just as much fun."
(Vaughn J. Featherston)

It is almost planting time, are you going to have a garden?

There still is much flooding going on in eastern Iowa. It seems there is no end to the trials all around the world. We need to be ready to help each other...there is no shortage of need. We may not be able to do huge things but we can do what we can to help, even a smile and prayers can help if we can do nothing else.

I have still been spring cleaning a bit and organizing as I go. I have always believed having something you like to collect is a good thing but as I have been going through clearing out with this spring cleaning I might be rethinking the collecting thing. I think I collected too many things. Yes, collecting is fun but is hard to clear out. During this time I saw a commercial for a show, this lady had such a huge collection she needed to buy another house just to house it. Just how much is too much? Well, I know my clearing out will help others who are going through a hard time and that kept me going.

How are you coming with your skill building?

Mary Ann shared this link with us...

https://knitfreedom.com/?fbclid=IwAR3-RnEsxZISuUYIjedQudv4hywd8llRi1ceu_BXyqdrDDhoHzDeHtjVenM   

It is a great site if you knit or if you want to learn.  

I have been working on knitting up a skein of sock yarn. I only had one skein of this and want to see how long of a sock tube I get.  

Then once I get close to the other end I will do ten rows of ribbing and bind off. I plan to do the afterthought everything socks. I will pick gray or blue and do the heels and toes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNVKoPw0lcU - here she will show you how I will do it.

This will prepare me to using my sock machine to do the same thing...

I will crank out a sock tube that will be like the one I showed above then I'll repeat the same procedure. This is a skill I have been teaching myself.

The sock machine will do ribbing heels and toes using these parts...

Maybe down the road I will want to do that but I really want to crank tubes and do the afterthought everything socks.

At the same time I am trying to learn to spin thinner to make my own sock yarn because over the last few years sock yarn has skyrocketed in price.

Along those lines I have been watching this gal's podcast. This one happens to be her dying cotton crochet thread which it just happens to be like I use in one of my favorite bobbin lace bookmark...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0543_HU25JY&t=1411s  

I'd like to learn more on dying my own fiber. I also have been gathering things I had on hand to use for dedicated dye equipment like separate pans, a salad spinner, rubber gloves, plastic measuring spoons and stir spoons tongs, scale and dye and such.

I have my fleece for spinning all on this shelf waiting to be dyed or spun.

With most of the spring cleaning done I have been able to do a little weaving as well.

This is a bobbin lace bookmark I made for part of a gift. I am still learning and probably always will be. I knew I would like to learn bobbin lace I just never expected to love it so much.

What skills are you working on?

Keep looking for sales to stock up as you can.