tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-82711115818589508402011-10-11T16:19:13.638-04:00my little shack of creativityLizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.comBlogger371100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-703625861047747382011-06-21T20:59:00.003-04:002011-06-21T20:59:00.375-04:00

Here's a very tasty and refreshing salad to make when you have an abundance of Sugar Snap Peas. This recipe comes from Martha Stewart. 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice 8 ounces of Sugar Snap Peas, strings removed, finely sliced on the diagonal 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil coarse salt and freshly ground pepper Combine first three ingredients. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.   (

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-38611563329540562962011-06-19T19:34:00.001-04:002011-06-19T20:30:18.020-04:00

  Where does the time go? I think it gets scattered around the garden, gets sucked up in the vacuum cleaner, blows out the window on the drive to work, wanders off in the grocery store, gets stuck in the pages of magazines and books I've been reading, lies tangled up in my latest fiber project... well, you get the picture. It's almost summer, and of course every day has been full of stuff and

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-24232629059596175452011-06-07T21:05:00.000-04:002011-06-07T21:05:56.938-04:00

Strawberries from our garden! It's been a busy spring here at the TeaShanty. Fruitful, one might say. I've been out in the garden, busy as a bee. But now that our exuberant, and slightly soggy, spring has slowed down a bit I hope to get back to blogging on a more regular basis. There are lots of photos I'd love to share with you, and I've started a new wee tapestry project. So check back soon

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-28560131430445475912011-03-10T17:09:00.002-05:002011-03-10T17:12:36.165-05:00

Yes, rain INSIDE the studio is generally considered to be WRONG. Also, bad, expensive and vexing. I snapped this shot in the studio on Sunday. It was raining outside. Also, inside. This only seems to happen when we get a hard rain from the North/Northwest. Which is the direction that most of our interesting weather seems to come from. Looks like I'll be dragging out the ladder and the

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-12748772397744269872011-02-27T20:56:00.000-05:002011-02-27T20:56:14.468-05:00

So, the bean tapestry is off the loom, and I've trimmed it up and steamed it. The good news is that the bubbles seem to have gone away and the whole piece isn't as horribly misshapen as I had feared it would be. Actually, it's all good news. I even have a vague idea of how I want to mount it - but I'll need to consult with some folks about how to go about it. And probably I'll need to rummage in

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-38598150873663090172011-02-18T19:11:00.000-05:002011-02-18T19:11:06.807-05:00

Just wanted to share this brilliant idea from the great blog Design*Sponge. As a collector of cast-off treasures (i.e. other people's junk) I really appreciate this great idea for making a cold frame out of old windows. Read the complete post over at Design*Sponge for construction details and more photos. I'm off to rummage in the basement and see if I still have any old windows lurking in the

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-72500820913720760492011-02-06T20:57:00.000-05:002011-02-06T20:57:47.227-05:00

Here's what the bean tapestry looks like from the back. Yup. It's done. Right now it's "resting," tension off, relaxing it's little warp and weft yarns. Next week I'll trim the back, hem it, block it and then figure out how I want to mount it. (I know I should have probably thought of that first, but there you go.) It took me over a year to finish this relatively small tapestry. I'm hoping that

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-89358147706340813252011-02-03T17:07:00.001-05:002011-02-03T17:07:00.143-05:00

Sunday was an exceptionally balmy day for January. I took a walk to the public library to return a book (A Rare Benedictine, by Ellis Peters). Here are a few photos I snapped on the way home. Main Street Baptist Church. It's for sale, if you're in the market... The first buds of spring! Main Street, with our fancy new light posts and cross walks. This the main business block of our 3-

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-18969309420571509062011-01-30T20:28:00.000-05:002011-01-30T20:28:15.807-05:00

Almost starting: Spring! Yes, the trees are starting to bud in late January. At least on Main Street in my little town. It was in the fifties here today, so no wonder the poor trees are all excited. If you click on the photo you can see a larger version. Almost finished: The Green Bean Tapestry! I started weaving the top hem this weekend, so soon I'll be cutting it off the loom. Perhaps

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-73406590190153793422011-01-29T11:33:00.000-05:002011-01-29T11:33:52.265-05:00

I just had to pass on this link to a great blog, Life Looms Large. The author has given me permission to share her post with my small but mighty group of readers, so I'll just whet your appetite with this photo that her husband took at the Merrimac River Eagle Festival last year. There are more great photos of the eagles, and eagle watchers on her blog. Mrs. Life Loom Large has interesting posts

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-7427301143039453332011-01-18T20:00:00.004-05:002011-01-22T18:56:17.148-05:00

As the few of you who read my blog (you know who you are!) know, I sold my old Schact loom this summer and purchased a friend's Louet loom. (Not a tapestry loom after all, but I'm still waffling about keeping or selling the Glimakra.) Along with this lovely new loom came every possible gadget that one might want or need, and two of some of them! One of the new-to-me tools is an AVL Warping Weel.

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-12904958285168149612011-01-15T11:36:00.001-05:002011-01-15T11:37:19.204-05:00

Another eagle sighting in Happy Valley. More snowy days this week, but not enough to keep us home. A trip through Happy Valley gave us another eagle sighting. He was soaring over the fields and these old barns. I've always been attracted to old buildings. As we say in our house, I never met a hovel I didn't like! When we travel I tend to take lots of photos of buildings. I like whole buildings

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-21720518964343329402011-01-10T20:00:00.000-05:002011-01-10T20:00:34.468-05:00

No red vests for this guy! With plumage like that he's already the star of the valley! For the past few weeks on our way to work in Happy Valley, Lawre and I have been greeted by this handsome fellow. This morning I had the camera close at hand. The tree he was perched in was right next to the road and we got fairly close - though I still had to use my zoom. Then I guess we got too close, or

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-31385822306531868542011-01-08T22:29:00.001-05:002011-01-08T22:29:57.420-05:00

I realize that it's a little late to be posting about Christmas decor, but I wanted to share a few photos of our Christmas ladder. Read the CB2 blog featuring the tree. I got the idea from a CB2 holiday catalog. CB2 is the ultra-contemporary branch of Crate and Barrel. Very cool stuff. Anyway, we had this wonky wooden ladder that I didn't trust to be safe for climbing anymore and I said to

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-50095907479401273062010-12-30T19:20:00.000-05:002010-12-30T19:20:42.706-05:00

My friends Lawre and Rattlefox (not her real name!) came by today to dye some fluff. We all had a half pound of the same fiber, some drool-worthy Blue Faced Leicester and silk blend that came from Carolina Homespun. Really pretty stuff, white and glowey. I arranged my roving in a zig-zaggy pattern. Lawre's was in long lines, and Darcy made a spiral with hers. R. picked the colors and we all

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-28094843585478258672010-12-28T16:15:00.001-05:002010-12-28T16:17:58.298-05:00

So, it's been a while. Ok, it's been months. But now I'm back, and I wanted to give an update on the bean tapestry. I finally got back into the studio this month so some progress has been made. Really, there's not that much more to go, maybe two inches or so. If the weather stays above freezing I just might get it done before New Years eve. Coming down to the end - the eggplant and the

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-45652353330055843772010-04-08T13:32:00.003-04:002010-07-31T19:20:44.025-04:00

Update 7/31 My loom is now SOLD! and will be going to it's new home very soon! I have decided to sell one of my floor looms to hopefully fund the purchase of a tapestry loom. If you know of anyone who might be interested please feel free to pass along the details. Schacht Spindle Company 46" Standard High Castle 8 shaft Jack Loom - Maple :    12 treadles    double warp/ back beam    Loom

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-64993618784666528922010-03-28T20:39:00.000-04:002010-03-28T20:39:27.120-04:00

Well, it's been a while hasn't it? Yesterday I taught an Introduction to Tapestry workshop for some wonderful and talented folks at Reynolds Homestead. This was the first time I taught this particular topic, and I'm still pretty new to tapestry myself, so saying that my stress level leading up to the class was a little high would be entirely accurate. But it went really well! At least I think

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-20662267947165959132010-02-28T19:24:00.003-05:002010-02-28T19:28:39.549-05:00

Yes! I'm finally weaving the eggplant. Also, lots of tan background. You probably can't see it in this photo, but I'm blending three shades of tan in the background in various combinations. I'm also weaving random "shapes" with the colors so that, hopefully, the background won't read as one flat color, but will have more visual "texture". Due to the wretched state of my sinuses, I only had one

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-61587891227294841302010-02-21T21:48:00.001-05:002010-02-21T21:48:39.558-05:00

Spotted just this weekend in my front garden -- the first sprouts of the year. Go daffodils!! Makes you want to shout and do the happy Spring dance, doesn't it? We had balmy temps here all weekend, in the 40's. Just enough to get a good melt (and the daffodils!) going.  In other news, work continues on the tapestry. The beans are done, and I've moved on to the background. I'm not entirely happy

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-70441802581520069472010-02-09T14:27:00.000-05:002010-02-09T14:27:41.128-05:00

Those of you who know me personally know that I harbor a not-so-secret love of chickens.  I think they're just swell. They make funny little noises. They're pretty to look at. They eat bugs. And oh, those eggs! Today I found the coolest thing EVER for keeping backyard chickens. The Eglu by Omlet USA. So, incredibly cute, clever, and cool! Great for just a few hens, I think it would be

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-80921000278584307982010-02-07T19:45:00.001-05:002010-02-07T19:46:03.579-05:00

So, here we are. Just those two tips of beans on the right there to go, and then we're into the eggplant and background. My friend Kristy suggested that some people snap the tips off the beans. But as anxious as I am to get to the eggplant, I think I'll keep those bean tips right where they are. Besides, if I don't have to unweave too much they shouldn't take too long. Right? We had a whopper

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-56577252992249434312010-02-05T19:26:00.001-05:002010-02-05T19:27:44.382-05:00

I spent part of my snow day today at the frog pond, ripping out some knitting. I turned two scarves, one ill-fitting hat, and a vest that was too heavy and too big back into yarns with potential. (That's Gracie behind the pile.) It was a pretty satisfying activity. I uncovered the knitwear (or unwearables) in my recent studio cleanup. Instead of washing them and finishing them properly when I

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-20821067068679755582010-01-31T16:21:00.000-05:002010-01-31T16:21:12.826-05:00

Ok, I know it doesn't look like I've made much progress since last time. I did get the start of that top bean in the upper left corner started. Also, there was some un- and re-weaving done. And, I spent some time trimming up the loose ends on the back of the piece. We had more snow this weekend - several inches - and it was just too darned cold out in the studio on Saturday to spend much time

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-30257767841579471372010-01-24T19:25:00.002-05:002010-01-24T19:29:54.471-05:00

Lest you think I've been idle for the past two weeks, here is an update on the tapestry. The beans progress. The bubble remains. Oh, there's been the usual fits of unweaving and reweaving and unweaving again, but all in all I think it's coming along ok. The egglplant is in sight now, and I'm looking forward to weaving with purple yarn, just for a change of pace. In other news, I have a new

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-23530621209738235782010-01-11T18:54:00.002-05:002010-01-11T19:11:09.857-05:00

I have a bubble in my tapestry. This is distressing. Can you see it? It's there in the top green bean on the right where that black line zigs and zags. Here's a closer look: Now you can really see it, right? I think this all started to go south when I was weaving the tip of the green bean just below there. I really struggled with the colors in that section, so perhaps I wasn't as conscious of

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-63404811263020238542010-01-04T19:32:00.001-05:002010-01-04T19:33:05.913-05:00

It's very Winter here today. Cold, cold, cold! and spitting snow. It's lovely outside, with all the snow still lingering on the ground and sprinkling down from the sky. But darn it, it's cold! I'm not even taking the dogs for their weekly outing at the Flying Fur. Pyper tells me he'd rather just snooze in the closet anyway.... This picture is from a photo I took after our big snow in December.

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-75294774966280508472010-01-01T06:00:00.117-05:002010-01-03T16:07:46.353-05:00

So, here we are in 2010! How the heck did that happen? It was a studio day today! Hooray for that. What a great way to start the year -  doing something that I absolutely love! The tapestry is coming along nicely. Or at least I think it is. I have a few concerns about some ridges that have developed, but not enough concern to want to do a significant amount of unweaving. Hopefully it will

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-57217958373536690482009-12-28T11:51:00.001-05:002009-12-28T11:52:17.905-05:00

Further proof that my husband and I are made for each other...

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-42907862692736632152009-12-08T21:34:00.003-05:002009-12-08T21:34:00.291-05:00

I got some hot chocolate mix at the grocery store the other day in honor of our 1st snow of the season. Of course, I had to read the ingredients on all the mixes in the store. I ended up with some from the health food section. The mix is by Canterbury Naturals and it has only seven ingredients. The only one that I'm not sure about is the xanthan gum. What's a xanthan? Anyway, this got me to

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-44478215695615955092009-12-07T07:22:00.002-05:002009-12-07T07:22:00.760-05:00

I love cast-off things. They make me happy. These guys sit on the top shelf of the book shelves at my house. The gargoyle came from the thrift shop ($1 !!), and I pulled the lovely old bird cage out of someone's junk pile. The bird is a Christmas ornament I received as a gift - so not junk - and she always seems to be gloating a bit.

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-27286286156042868602009-12-06T19:20:00.001-05:002009-12-06T19:48:13.063-05:00

Hiya! Had a bit of a late start in the studio today since it took a while for it to get warmed up out there.  The little wood stove that could does a pretty good job, but it was pretty darned cold here this morning! To pass the time I embarked on a semi-annual cleaning project - the book shelves. My husband and I are book people. We love to read, and we love our books. As you can imagine, they

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-6776466420682470172009-12-05T12:21:00.001-05:002009-12-05T12:22:10.979-05:00

It's snowing! It's snowing! Oh, how I love the first snow of the year. This one is proving more than adequate: We've got several inches of white fluff - so, good coverage, and very pretty. The roads are sufficiently slushy to discourage going anywhere - so, it's a cozy-at-home day. I've got cookie dough in the fridge, and hot buttered rum mix in the freezer - so, treats are a go. I'll be

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-1385795940609899212009-11-29T19:44:00.001-05:002009-12-06T19:48:44.747-05:00

Another studio day today, more or less. Progress continues on the greenbeans. Today I had a good go at the third bean. Inching along, inching along....

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-21485098420965004242009-11-22T20:40:00.006-05:002009-11-22T20:56:10.394-05:00

It's always a happy day when I get to spend it out in the Shanty. I got out there fairly early this morning and got the wood stove going. That's the only heat I have out there right now, and when it's cold it takes an hour or two for the place to get toasty. But once it warms up, it's the coziest little shack in the world! Today I tidied up a little bit, did some preliminary planning on a

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-7902158237906218062009-11-20T16:29:00.002-05:002009-11-20T17:31:49.612-05:00

When I got up this morning I thought I'd just grab a quick bowl of cereal for breakfast. Then I opened the back door to let the dogs out. Crikey! It's cold out there this morning! And windy. Brrrr! What a great excuse to cook up some of my home-famous Apple Cider Oatmeal. Good food fuels the creative fires. And we all know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day! So, here's my

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8271111581858950840.post-21771193838569379902007-12-06T20:35:00.005-05:002011-06-19T19:44:25.260-04:00

Here's a list of books I like: Findings by Kathleen Jamie - A lovely collection of essays about natural history set in and around Scotland. My favorite, "Darkness and Light," takes you on a trip to Orkney at the winter solstice to visit the Neolithic cairn of Maes Howe. Lots of lovely stuff here. Anything by Jane Austin. Seriously. Go. Read. Now. And if you aren't in a reading mood, secure a

Lizhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07079138484228587416noreply@blogger.com0