Winter finally showed up

 Last post I'd mentioned we were having a mild winter. 

Winter finally showed up this week.  LOL

Got my first snow day of the year today, so my weekend production got a boost.

I wove some on the green rug warp...

I wove some on the greens table runner warp...

I started ripping colored denim for rugs...

And I hemmed, measured and tagged some rugs...

These are corduroy.

Each time I go out to the studio, I try to do at least three things.

Prepping, weaving on 1 or 2 looms, and Finishing.

The snow will continue thru the night but I think I should be able to get to work tomorrow.

All for now,

  

Julie

It's Been Awhile

 It's been awhile since I did a check in/post here in blogger land.

Here are the highlights from the last 6 months....

*My last child/daughter got married in November.

* I retired as a 4-H leader after 36 years of doing that---

*I started remodeling the detached garage into a weaving space.

*More hours and responsibility at my "town job" as a 3rd auto parts store was added to the owners properties.

*Holidays and traveling have been much more manageable this year due to a much milder than normal winter.  Much welcomed as the winters the last few years were nearly unmanageable :)

*Started moving looms and stash materials into the new space even tho it isn't completely done. We aren't sure what to call said space -  don't want she shed. For a bit the kids were calling it the 'bitch barn' lol.  Mostly it gets called 'the shed' or 'the studio'.   Lately it's been tongue in cheek called "the loomy bin".

I don't have everything moved in yet... MOST of the stuff in the house is now out there, but very little from the storage trailer has been moved in yet.  I'm gonna need some muscle for some of it, but it's hard to find that these days.  Everyone is so busy with their own lives.

I'm currently planning out and applying to vendor events for the year - Some of the events I've gone to for years may fall off as they have steadily drawn fewer buyers the last few years.  I may try some new spots if I can find them.

When I get a few more things into the studio - and organized a bit more there will be pictures. 

For now, here are few pictures of the most recent finishes.

All for now,

JULIE

Grams Rugs

 When approached at a vendor event by an older woman who asked if I could help with her 'grams rugs', I visited with her about it and then promptly forgot about it --- lots of times that happens to me lately, LOL.

Several months later, I got a call from her.  She had decided it was time to do SOMETHING with her grams rugs.  They had been in a drawer for many years due to their condition, but she just couldn't bear to just throw them out.  

They were brought to me with the request to make new rugs out of them if possible - she understood I may not be able because of possible dry rot, but I told her I would see what I could do. 

She brought me 6 rugs ( I hadn't realized there were so many!)  But when I got a black and white warp on the loom I decided to give them a shot.

Here they are....

Before and After #1   (This was a crocheted rug, so a big change)

Lost some weft due to rot, but managed a nice size rug...

Rug #2

This rug was originally woven with a twill pattern.  I've got just plain weave capabilities, so this rug ended up longer than the original.  Brightened it up and I think it's a very pretty rug again!

Rug #3

Another rug that was woven twill that became a plain weave rug.  Cute rug!

Rug #4

With this rug I didn't know whether it would be good fit for me to re'new.... It was made with two different fabrics in kind of a bone color.  Original weave was twill and it was colored, so that is what gave this rug it's original design.  What I did was take the two fabrics that were just slightly different and dispersed them thru the rug so it wasn't just started with one and ended with another.  It is a simple understated rug that I think can be appreciated by many.

Rug #5

I somehow lost the original photo of this rug.  It was crocheted and so was circular rings of the blacks, grays and tans.  It was, and now once again is a striking rug.

Rug # 6

So this rug is not getting rewoven.  The fabric in this is dress/quilt cotton, and it is completely dry rotted.  I can't get it pulled out of the crochet without it ripping apart every foot or less.  I stopped trying so maybe someone can do something else creative with it to preserve it, or maybe it is just time to let it go!  I will leave that up to the owner :)

This was kind of a fun project, but a little nerve wracking.  I didn't want to 'ruin' these obviously treasured items.  I'm hoping when I get them to the owner, she will like them. 

All for now,

JULIE

Still here

 I'm still here.... just never seem to find time and desire to sit down and type at the same time.  

I've found a few minutes while the grandbaby is asleep so will try to catch up a little.

The winter that never ended finally did.  Vendor shows were difficult to get to, missed one totally due to being blizzarded in (yes that is a word in my world)  and another one, the drive both ways took 4 white knuckle hours instead of the normal 2 ish hours.  

Spring lasted all of 22 hours, ha, and then it was full on summer.  It was getting dry, but the last week or so we've finally gotten some moisture.

June vendor shows happened too,  Had a good show for the first weekend, selling more than my average year on the Saturday.  Then Sunday happened and not a thing went to a new home.  Weird.   Second show was slower than normal - Odd vibe there, not many people buying anything unless something really grabbed them.  Seemed show wide, not just my booth.

We've got a new little one here.  Buzz had a colt June 10th.   She held onto this one way longer than we expected.  She was huge and very uncomfortable.  We found one little one in a pen with 5 mares aged from 1 yr - 26 years wasn't working well (the little guy got bumped around alot with the flies being miserable)  so we decided to try mom and baby alone- so far so good, mom is enjoying the lack of competition and protection is a little easier on the both.  This will be the last baby for Buzz - this one was hard on her.

Flutter didn't produce a baby this year - either didn't settle or she sloughed one this nasty winter.  We aren't sure on the plan for her yet this summer, whether we will send her to stud or not is to be determined.

On the weaving front I have been doing alot of "special requests/orders"  reweaves, rags provided, etc and I'm trying to catch up on those.  Of course, less time weaving in the summer due to mowing, gardening, outdoor stuff.

This weekend my son is getting married.  My daughter (twin sister to the daughter I live with) is engaged and excitedly planning her wedding for Nov.   Busy busy busy.  No time to get bored.

Fall shows are booked with the possibility of adding a few - all depends on my mood!

All for now, 
JULIE

Snow day productivity

 Had another snow day where I couldn't get to work.  

So I worked...   at home~

Finished, tagged and priced 16 tablerunners.

Finalized the hems on the last of the specialty width rugs (28 inch wide)   I've got one 90 inch long, and seven 45-46 inch long ones ... plus 4 random color/fiber rugs from this warping.

And the cutest little helper while I was measuring and taking pictures...

All for now.

JULIE

PS.  Hope not too many more snow days.  I've missed 3 full days in the last 2 weeks.  Paycheck is gonna be light.

Special request

 So about a year ago...  I got a request for a denim rug with dimensions of 28 x 90.   Yes, I can make them that size, but I don't usually.  My normal width has become 24 inches wide.  

So after explaining that I didn't know when I would get to it, the "order" was made with the understanding that time was not an issue :)

2022 did not bode well for timeliness in regards to production of rugs.  I just plain didn't have time to weave as much as I wanted to.

But I finally got moved on to the 28 inch wide rugs.  I put about half the length of warp as my usual run and got busy.  

Here is the finished "special order" rug -

This rug left today, we'll hold our breath it arrives safely and is all that she hoped for!

Now I'm working on finishing up that warp so I can move on to greens and browns.

Some of the already finished rugs.  As you can see, I had a product tester while I was trying for photos :)

Pretty sure the rest of the batch will be denim.  Those are in progress.

So is ONE YEAR too long for a customer to wait for a special order?   I feel it is, that's why I take on so few of them.  

All for now,
JULIE

Winter blues

 Seems like I'm forever doing blues.

Blue jean rugs are a staple.

Popular with my buyers.

Easy to source materials.

Durable.

Good thing I like 'em.

This time around I happened to also be doing the blues on the table runner warp.

Photos just don't work that well in the winter.  The light is flat if it's a sunny day.

And if the sun's not shining, it is just too dang dark to get a good photo.

The runner shown is from a vintage table cloth.  It had a pattern that I 'managed' so it ended up with a pattern of it's own in it's new life.

The blues are done on the table runner warp - I'm doing a short run of mug rugs. 

As much as I really don't like making them, (too piddly)

I had many requests for them last year after I was out of them.

The Union Loom tho, is rewarped in blues for a special order.  I needed a width of 28 inches,

so I'm doing a run of those, too.  Just getting started on that. 

The winter blues are knocking on my mental door, too.   This time of year is a challenge for me.

All for now,

JULIE

Finally some finishes

 re'New x 2.  This rug is a mix of recycled denim jeans, 

and a denim jean rug that needed refreshing.

Here's a cute little rug made from a terry cloth tablecloth.

 A striped rug made from assorted bed sheets.

Many more rugs in the blue colorway also finished up,   Photos of each are on my facebook page.

Since this batch the blue warp has been woven off with a couple of longer runner style denim rugs and one other random one of a kind rug.

I also finished the blue tablerunner warp.  Those are being fringe tied now.  

One loom is being warped for 28 inch wide blue rugs, and the other is doing tandem mug rugs,

All for now,

JULIE

Winter

 So winter is officially here.

We had a very mild and lingering fall.  Until it wasn't.

The day of my mother's memorial services it was very blizzardy and cold, but we got both my dad and mom interred in their final resting place.  There had been an ice storm and some snow, so everything was covered in almost an inch of ice and a bit of snow with a stiff wind.  

After that the weather moderated a bit, but last week we got another ice storm that turned into a wet snow event that shut down roadways and work.  I only made it to work on two days last week.  Roads and interstates were closed and the weather was miserable.

Pictured after that storm is a view going out our drive.  All the pine trees are very heavy with ice and wet snow and a huge mature deciduous tree that went down during the night.  It had three different trunks and they all went different directions. 

Daughter Leah took these photos.  She braved the cold to see what the aftermath was.  This is a cow that was out finding a bite to eat.  The rest of the herd was down along the trees staying out of the wind.

The next morning she went out to talk to the horses and see how they were doing.  The snow was knee deep on the flats and many drifts around sheltered spots that caught the blowing snow. 

The son in law gets to fight the drifts and cold and machinery to take care of the animals.

So now this week, we are on another winter weather event.  We are now in the deep freeze.  it was actual -19 degrees F yesterday with wind chills in the -40 or worse.  Today it is only -12, but the wind is still blowing.  The interstate has been closed for the most part of 2 days, and there is no travel advised.  

The heavy snow and ice from last week is still hanging on all the trees and buildings, so the trees continue to break from the strain of the weight and the wind.

This morning my shower drain was frozen, but I was able to get it going again with only a little work.  We are burning copious amount of firewood to help the electric heat keep up with this inefficient house, but my bedroom is as far away from the heat source as you can get.   Makes it hard to get out from under the covers in the morning!

As far as weaving goes, I'm trying to put in some time, but it seems I get to do all the ending details in regards to my parents' life.  I just received notice that I am "in" at a large vendor show in March.  I've got some weaving to do!  Not only to get inventory to sell, but also to make a dent in the stash of salvaged materials that have piled up ~ literally ~ in my weaving space.

My biggest joy these days....   Mr Jhett with Santa.  He was maybe kinda ok with standing next to him, but it was a big no with the sitting on his lap!  Love my little cowboy :)

All for now,
JULIE

Unmoored

 My apologies for the lack of posts this past year.  

The final decline and passing of my father this summer had taken al ot of time away from my time at my weaving activities.

I always had in the back of my mind, if not immediate thoughts, were of my mother and how I could help her.

Yesterday was a hard day. My mother has joined my dad in heaven after only about 3 months apart.  Her health has always been a little iffy - breathing and heart issues as well as kidney function lately.  We had been working on getting her breathing back to normal the last month or so, so she could go visit the grandkids in Canada, but she had a quick decline that would have needed a ventilator, but she made the decision to receive comfort care instead.  Her condition made it very hard for the doctors to keep her comfortable without impacting her ability to breath/get oxygenated and maintain her blood pressure.  So it was one or the other.  She was aware and her spicy self thru the pain and struggle and when she realized she couldn't handle the struggle until my brother and her sister got there, she made the decision to let go.  After the pain was relieved, she was able to rest peacefully and quietly slipped away.  My sister and I, along with my 3 kids were there with her.  My brother didn't get there in time, and neither did my sister, but we are glad her suffering was over. 

This picture is of my parents and one of my girls at one of the last events that dad was able to attend.

We will miss them both, but are happy that they are together again in their new heavenly home. 

I will probably be a little unmoored for awhile as we navigate thru final arrangements and the new day to day without them in it.

All for now,

JULIE

An Apprentice

 Yesterday I had the pleasure of being the supervisor of the young man.  Mom and Dad were weaning calves...

I don't do bunches of production work on weaving during the summer, but there wasn't much I could do with a busy little guy needing most of my attention.

What to do, but grab some denim strips and start cleaning the strings off!

I don't usually do this as a separate step, I usually just grab a 'dirty' strip, clean it off and sew it to the previous one at the sewing machine.

I figured this was something I could do with a busy little guy underfoot.

Jhett had a ball unloading the clean strip tote and carrying the strips around.

Mom came in to check on us and take a bathroom break and found us being productive.  Thus the photos.

I have 3 vendor events left for the year. I have enough inventory, but  I feel like I didn't weave enough this summer.... some colors and size choices are slim.   I'm making it a goal for this winter to weave up as much as possible so that I won't feel the need to weave much at all next summer.  Ya know, get enough inventory for all the shows I normally do. 

 Maybe I can enjoy some riding and fun stuff next summer then?\

All for now, 
JULIE

 

Been awhile

 It sure has been awhile since I sat down and thought I should post a few thoughts...

This summer has been interesting... My "plans" (or the things I said I wanted to do) didn't really get to happen.

Summer is always busy - mowing, gardening, work, etc etc...

Not much time riding - my daughter and I had said we would do a weekly haul to the local arena and ride the young ones, but not once did that happen.  

What happened was my father took a turn, and went to the hospital and then nursing home.   He has now left us and is in his heavenly home awaiting us.  I spent alot of time with my mother during this period of time.  Driving her to whichever facility he was at, and then trying to work on final arrangements and details.   That is still ongoing, not sure how long all that will take!

The usual summer events, like 4-H Achievement Days with my club,  local team roping events where I was the 'little cowboy wrangler' and a few other summer type activities still went on and got through. 

Weaving took a back seat, good thing I was working on denim rugs.  They are kind of no brainer rugs...  Just weave until the length I want is achieved and start another one!

Here are a dozen finished rugs that are right at 2 x 3 foot.  My most popular size in denim.  Good thing I've got these done as I have a show this weekend, and another in 3 weeks.

Also have restocked some tablerunners, especially the patriotic ones.

I was struggling with the camera and the editing function on the computer, but decided it is what it is and left them with all the mess surrounding :)

Update on the yearling babies.  Not so babyish anymore.  They are in an awkward stage. 

JH RumbleBee  barn name Hemi at about 14 months.  We haven't been supplement feeding them, this is just on the available graze in our oddball spots that we throw up an electric fence.  They've put a little extra cover on since these pictures, but we think we need to start giving them a little grain before winter.  They are currently full of cockleburrs that are a never ending battle in these random spots.  This picture was immediately after a hoof trim.  These guys are doing great considering the minimal handling we've been able to give them.

JH Lil Cricket Bug   barn name Cricket at about 14 months.  She is just a bit shorter than her brother and she's a bit finer boned, too.  Her mother is a twin, so I'm not surprised that she is a bit smaller.  That saying, these two are pretty close to being as tall as their mothers... They are being baby sat by their great aunt Queenie who is 23ish?   The mare moms are at the stud pasture - soon to be picked up and brought home.  Hoping for two more nice colts just like these next spring. 

All for now, 
JULIE

Tying up loose ends

 This weekend has been a catch all kind of weekend.  Lots of little projects that needed finishing...

I got the last of the garden in.  The beds are overfull, but I decided to see how things would turn out even squished together.  I added 3 turned tractor tires this year.  One has strawberries and the other two went to squash and pumpkins.

My asparagus survived its first winter and we had one small meal from a cautious picking and the rest will grow out in this second year.  Next year, depending on its winter survival, we should be able to eat all the asparagus we want!

The rhubarb seems to have taken well, too.  I haven't harvested any yet, but will soon.

Next weekend is my first outdoor event of the summer.  I took the time to tag and measure and price all the finished items.  Now it will be just gathering everything up and hoping for decent weather.

Here are a few of the last of the brown and green warp rugs...

We finally seem to be over winter.  Had frost in spots last weekend, but today it's been hovering at 85 degrees.  We had about 24 hours of 'spring'.   LOL

On the looms next - both of them - will be blue.  Blue denim rugs and all kinds of other blue rugs and runners.

All for now, 
JULIE

Not enough time, energy or money....

 Seems to be my life lately!  LOL

Not enough time to do what wants or needs to be done....   At least mowing season hasn't started yet, but it will this week.  We've had a terribly cold and wet spring - if you can call it that.  Horses aren't really even shedding out yet.   Today was a sunny day without crazy wind, so daughter and I messed with a couple horses.  Mostly beauty shop - aka scrape some mud off and pick out the winter cockleburrs.   The grandbaby went with dad to check fences with hopes of him taking a nap.  

Not enough energy - that's me -  I have big hopes and lists of what I want to do, but usually run out of steam before I get anywhere near to what I want to do.

Not enough money -  anyone know how to win the lottery??  LOL

Everything we want to do takes some dough.  So much around here needs fixing or updating.  We can't work enough hours to get the $ we need to do the updates which would end up saving us time.   Sigh.  Oh well, eventually! 

Today I found a few minutes to take pictures of finished rugs and runners.  

Had a little photobomber tho.

Eight months old.  Trying to walk...  He's on the move constantly. He has decided he likes human food better than baby food.  We are struggling to find the formula that works for him.  But I guess that's a common thing these days.

Here's a picture of some colored denim rugs I think are kinda neat.

More finished projects are on my facebook page.  renew.rugs.

All for now,
JULIE