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The fabulous Syne Mitchell of WeaveZine asked me if I was interested in dyeing some yarn for her upcoming rigid-heddle weaving classes. “You betcha!” I said, and sent her off some yarn to weave a sample with to see if it worked for her purposes. Unfortunately, it proved a wee bit challenging for new weavers to deal with (a bit too fine for a 12-dent reed, worms a bit when woven and washed, also very stretchy), but in the hands of a master like Syne, well . . .
It’s a soft, warm, smooth fabric with an ikat-look effect due to the yarn being handpainted in a regular pattern. Syne cleverly arranges the warp to make the colors line up in interesting ways.
What’s always fascinating is how yarn changes when crossed with another color. The warp skein was navy blue, bright green, and yellow, which you can see in the fringe. The weft, or crossing yarn, was a pale lavender that I thought would play well with the paler parts of the navy. The final look is cool, spring-like, and just wonderful! Syne sent it back to me to show off to my customers, but they have to get it off my neck first. Thank you, Syne!
And a better yarn for her classes is on order.
A recent late breakfast/early lunch that had real staying power!
Thaw a black bean burger and pan-fry in a bit of oil till crispy. Set aside on a plate. Fry an egg in the same pan, and put some grated chedder cheese on top to melt. Put it on top of the burger. Heat a small tortilla in the same pan and slip under the burger. Heat some salsa in the same pan and pour over the top. Easy! Delicious! If I had a food cart in Portland, I bet I could sell a lot of these.
As I mentioned recently, we had a bit of snow. It’s been quite cold since then, so the snow remains in shadier spots. But where the sun has a chance to do its work, green is poking through.
The lake was beginning to freeze in the shallows
but it won’t last. Take this a metaphor for bad times, for the winters of discontent that we go through from time to time. With luck, the sun’ll come out tomorrow.
Happy New Year!
Moominmama's Memoirs 