Not ready for prime time

The idea was that it the shelf unit (what is that called?) would make the dining room cozier and more inviting. I am not sure it does that at all. I may move it to the wall on the right of this picture, you know the one that is to the right as you enter from the front door, where the bench is in the next shot. And then what to do with the bench? Perhaps that will be solved when I move the shelf. I suppose it can go to the studio...

I am sure we will be using this room MUCH more than we have all summer, now that it is cooler. I have already set my laptop here in my chair by the fireplace. And the white chairs look so much better here than the Poangs, being brighter.

I don't know why Dave put these facing the railing, but of course they can be changed.

The black chairs went (1) into my bedroom and (2) the studio.
The little stereo that used to be in the living room went upstairs to Dave's room and the TV set up has the receiver under the dvd player has FM (Npr comes in clearly, and all I really listen to) so I can really get big sound, if I wanted it. Eight speakers, surround sound. O my. The dvd player also plays cds. All of the stuff I want in one place.

Knitting up the Melody yarn...

It was great tv night and I had new yarn to try out, so what will I make? I wanted to try this Bainbridge scarf...

which you can see here to understand what it is that you are looking at. Open the .pdf and see what intrigued me.

I used big needles and decided on a seed stitch which is reversible, but I am not too happy with the fabric after all and probably will frog it. It is dense and not supple. I need to make something that is looser, almost lace-like which will be a challenge since this is quite a bulky yarn.

After writing this last sentence, I decided to try it on, and wrapped it twice around the neck. It is a big circle. I took pictures of myself wearing it and now I think, maybe this is worth keeping, and not adding the ties, which I have just enough yarn left to do.

It will really keep the harsh winds away...because it is dense and not lacey. So there.

Garlic Basil Butter

I made a mistake and bought unsalted butter, so of course I had to use it for this basil butter. One stick of unsalted butter, two cloves of garlic, a handful of basil leaves, no stems, and a half teaspoon of kosher salt. And as a second thought a few gluggs of EVOO. Whirl in the processor.

The plan was to add a dollop of this stuff to this bland potato soup I am making. But I also had this ready to crumble on the top…

Well, it’s raining and one needs sustenance.

My house quilts, old and new

  

It’s good to know where I have been and where I am going. The new pieces are much simpler which AMAZES me. I am not good at simple, but have always tried to get to there. I particularly love this series because it transitioned from the pine tree block into the house block almost by itself. Also the earlier house quilts are larger, about two or three inches per side, and that made me add more pattern.

Looking at these together reminds me that I really did conquer the series problem.

The Perfect Solution

I didn't realize that I had another turbo shaker, filled in this case with pepper. The holes are really too small to get any pepper out of it, so I used that other container, which is like for parmesan cheese. It got empty and I was about to refill it with pepper when I noticed my still full turbo shaker. Why not dispense with the pepper in there and replace it with salt, thus giving me a new turbo?

Duh.

I washed it out very carefully of course and now await the perfect dryness so I can load salt into it. The old pepper container, well, I just added the old pepper to it and feel that was good enough.

Dave's Sable

This is to show that it is blue not gray, which I thought from the online pictures.


Both doors open with a click! Including the back lift gate.
It has a feature which tells you how many miles per gallon you are currently getting. My best read was 20.8. That's not too bad, but I think it will improve with out the seats in. They all come out.

Upload your pics....PLEASE.

The Pre-reveal

This is the finished room, at least as finished as it can be with the energy that I had left today. We put up a rolling curtain on the outside of the window, rather than inside, and it was leftover from when we moved in. This will keep the hot afternoon sun from heating up the room too much. Very easy to roll up in the cool morning.
This will also be the end where you will sleep, and of course we will move the stuff out of that corner, so there is room to walk around the bed.

There is still painter's tape around the fixtures that touch the ceiling. We ran out of ceiling paint and there are still a few spots which need a second coat. I'll be going to Chatt on Tues. and will stop at Lowe's for more. I have removed the pendant lights until later when I can figure out where they go. I just want it to stay clean and open for a few days.

As you enter the room the Alex and printer are right there, plugged into my new wall socket, and then the sewing table and sewing machine are also plugged into it too. Behind that is the drawing table or work table, depending on what I am doing at the moment.

On the other side of the back door is the rolling cabinet and taboret which will move to wherever I need them to be at the moment. My easel is still on the porch, but I will bring it in and find a place for it too. The stereo sits on the bookshelf where the reception is iffy, but where I can plug it into my computer for FM stations or whatever.

The white walls will get artwork soon. I have the hooks and the ladder so all I need is time and energy.

The tv will probably be hooked up to its new wall mounting unit on Weds when both Dave and I will both be home. Then I can breathe a sigh of relief and get back to creating.