All posts by Sylvia

About me, Crafting

Bye, bye Pizza Oven

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An abandoned Pizza oven.

A corner landmark is gone now – sledgehammered into oblivion. There used to be a fireplace business on the corner that had the pizza oven and a couple of outdoor fireplaces on the corner. They went out of business shortly after I moved into the neighborhood.

The property sat empty for almost ten years. I don’t know if the owners retired or died but the oven remained. The property was bought a couple of years ago, but nothing was done with it until recently. It’s all cleaned up except for the remains of the oven. I’m not certain if the new owners even knew that was a wood-fired pizza oven. As far as I know it was only a display in front of the shop.

Life goes on and I get older. The youngest granddaughter is in college and moving into her first apartment. The parental units are concerned because she’s a full-time student who also works full time. I’m not worried because she’s had a plan since she was 13. She started working at 14 and unlike her parents, I know she has savings. She’s worked as many hours as she legally could and saved more that she spent. She’ll make it.

I signed up for a program of “chair yoga.” It’s okay, but I picked a bad time to start with my sore neck and shoulder. The weird thing is that in spite of the pain and stiffness, I have full range of motion. I guess I’m just peculiar.

The Boomerang Child is back at work after almost three weeks. The company must really like him or they have trouble hiring people. He likes it, so I’m not going to complain. Well, not too much.

I’m about 5 paintings behind on my painting project. I’ve been working on some new inventory for a sale that occurs in a couple of weeks. I always do well at the occasional sale event we put on. Part of the reason is I have my logo on the bags I use.

They’re small brown paper shopping bags with handles that I attach logo stickers too. Even if a customer only buys a $3 zine, they get a bag. It acts as a signal to others. I’ve had so many customers come up and tell me they saw my bags and had to find out what I was selling.

I am at the pricing stage for my newer items. I usually stick a tiny price sticker on each item unless a label won’t fit or stick. Those items get added to my price list.

About me

Catch-up

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I keep losing track of time. I guess it’s an old person thing. How horrifying. I get lost in something and suddenly, I’m going to be late, or I already missed something. Or I woke up early and then fall back to sleep and have to rush to get wherever I need to be.

Penelope.(2003-2022)

For instance, I started this a couple of days ago. And didn’t get farther than the first paragraph. The youngest grandchild is having a costume birthday party. I might just wrap myself in a white tablecloth and go as the goddess Hera or Clytemnestra. If I told people I was going to be Penelope, they’d expect me to be a tortie cat. Greek classical references there!

Much, much later… I went to the party as Marge Simpson. My granddaughter made her own Garfield costume. The party was held in her mom’s vacant rental which is in the process of being rehabbed. The floors were done and the walls painted on the ground floor. I didn’t look to see what work was done, or not done, upstairs. Not my business.

I decided the maker space needs to have an art show. I’ve taken the lead on this event, because we have a really perky person setting up a sale event for September and she’s making me crazy with her “hyperness”. I doubt if she has any diagnosed problem, but she’s so darned excited about this event, it’s like being trapped in a squirrel circus. I’ve spent time with more laid-back two-year olds at the DreamPark.

The Dream Park that was a regular item on the youngest granddaughter’s “Saturday with Nana” to-do list.

The Boomerang Child is causing me mental problems. I’m ready to kick his ass to the curb, but that would still leave his stuff in my garage and upstairs that I would have to deal with. I don’t understand. The last thing I ever wanted was to move back into my parent’s house. I did it when I was getting divorced and it was horrible. Fortunately, all my stuff was in storage in Wisconsin, so it was no problem returning to the city I called home.

My house is not big enough for two people, even though I was told by an elderly neighbor that six males were raised in the house. My mind boggles at the thought.

So that’s my check-in for now. Peace and long life.

Crafting

Halfway done.

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I currently have 50 mini watercolor paintings. Painting every three days or so is working. Some are blah, some are okay, some might actually be decent.

The first two mini albums. The upper one has 24 pockets and the lower has 26.

Another view of the albums.

My studio is quite crowded. I’m thinking of putting the drafting table in the shop’s free area and bringing in another folding table. The drafting table is a couple of inches too high and can’t be adjusted any lower. Plus I need another flat surface more than a tilted surface. I have a couple of easels if I need paintings tilted.

I covered up the logo on my lab coat. The kitty patch adds character to a nice cover-up for messy crafts.

I’m rather messy when I’m painting or crafting. Actually, I’m rather messy everywhere. The only two places at home that are not messy are my bedroom and the bathroom. My house is a little short on storage space. People in the 1920’s didn’t have a lot of possessions and no one since has upgraded the storage. My need for storage is for craft supplies and yarn.

I cleared out my Craft room at the house to make a bedroom, but it turns out I’m trying to stuff way more things than I have room or storage for into what is actually a smaller space. I can’t go as high up with the angled ceiling since I can’t use the end wall without blocking the stairs. I have a desk against the half wall, but can’t go higher because then I can’t reach the light switch for the area.

I did not plan very well. An alternative is to get rid of the dining table and chairs and move the crafty stuff to the living room. Another alternative plan is to move two of the tall bookcases from the living room to upstairs and then move the craft tables and their attendant storage pieces to the living room.

At any rate, I have too much stuff and need to weed some of it out. Hey Makerspace— incoming!

Crafting

He got a job!

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So the boomerang child is once again employed. I hope this works out. If you sense a bit of underwhelm, it’s because he has quite a shaky employment history. The longest he’s held a job is just under two years.

More tiny paintings

I’m still painting. I have three paintings to do and the second book will be filled. That will be 50 out of the 100 paintings completed. I’m also working on some larger pieces— 9 by 12 inches.

My soap making class was cancelled due to a lack of interest. I only have one person registered for my paper making class on Saturday. Maybe my teaching fee is too high. I think I’ll make some feedback forms to find out what members want.

Mostly me, My own damned opinion.

Newest painting

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It’s different. it has a colorful background and a slightly stoned looking cat.

Goofy cat

I’m still doing the painting project. So far I have 40 paintings. Some are okay, some are bad, and others are just plain weird. There’s no particular theme. I’ve probably done more cat paintings than any others because they’re rather easy. No one cares if the cat isn’t realistic. I swear sometimes my own cat doesn’t look realistic. When she sleeps, she’s so calm. But when she’s awake – bitey scratchy thing.

I allowed my son to move back in and his old habits are already coming back. I really wish he could stand on his feet, but there’s something broken. I can’t fix it. All I can do is wait for the crash. sometimes I think I’ll out-live him. As a parent, that makes me sad because I can’t fix his problems. That’s not my job anymore.

Sometimes, I’m ready to raid my stashed liquor, but common sense takes over. When I die and the kids find all the stashed alcohol, they’ll probably think I’m a secret alcoholic. Not so. It’s stashed because it will be drunk by my son very quickly if he finds it. I rarely have a drink and since I’ve been on multiple medications, I don’t want to risk a bad interaction so I abstain.

I guess I’ll start mowing the lawn. My son won’t get to it. I never understand. I have bad knees, brain damage, bad wrists, ankles that give out, and excruciating pain in various other parts, but I manage to get things done because they need to be done. Otherwise, my house would be a hoarder dump, people would avoid me because I would smell bad and look dirty and I’d just be wandering around mumbling.

Oh wait. Parts of my house look like a hoarder dump – I need to finish my re-arranging of the upstairs areas. I smell bad because I had my morning routine disrupted by a trip to the ER and then to the free clinic. And here I am mumbling at you.

So I’ll end here, go do some organizing, mow the lawn while I’m still stinky and then take a shower. And mumble at you another time. Peace and tranquility to you.

Crafting

Crud!

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I’ve had some sort of crud for the last week — mostly dizziness. I still seem to have it. I had 2 bookbinding classes Saturday. Attendance was light. I know one person was refunded, but two other people didn’t show up.

This was my Binding Single Pages class. Only 3 signed up.
Another set of single sheet books.

The morning class was Bookbinding 101.2 – Binding Single Sheets. We did three types of bindings. The first was a Perfect Binding. Thats the type of binding you have on a paperback book. It’s a glue binding where PVA glue is brushed on the edges of what becomes the spine.

The three students created their own covers out of cardstock creased in the center to form a spine which was then glued to the text-block. The paper used for all three of the text-blocks was copy paper cut to size. For more advanced classes, I use medium weight sketch paper. I also charge more per student.

The second book was a simple form of the Stab Stitch. Two of the students used two holes and one used three. When I do my class on Japanese binding, we will use more intricate threading patterns and chipboard for sturdier covers.

The third book was a combination of sewing and gluing. It makes more of a scrapbook-type book. The pages were sewn together with a 3-hole stitch and then glue was applied to the thread to secure it. An additional layer of glue was applied to the spine to hold a separate piece of card-stock as a spine. The covers were then applied to the spine piece with glue.

This a great way to keep kids artwork together in a book form. For the covers of that type of book, I would recommend chipboard covers cut to the size of the largest piece of art being bound. The chipboard could be covered with wrapping paper, rather than pieced together card-stock. A coat of Mod-Podge or thinned white glue could be brushed on the covers so they would last longer.

The second class was basic bookbinding where my 4 students learned how make a book with three signatures and how to attach the signatures to a simple spine. I didn’t get pictures because I started feeling off again. All I know is that whatever I have is not Covid. I’m going to have to find out if I have an ear infection since my balance is off.

After everyone left and I had cleaned up,I decided to spend time in my studio. Mistake! I sat down and almost immediately filled my tiny wastebasket with barf. Fortunately there was a plastic bag in there. I sat for awhile and then carefully drove home and went to bed.

My own damned opinion.

Time to feed the cat and other musings.

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The Gingersnap has a routine. There’s 15 minutes until she is fed and she has already tapped my arm. Next she will touch my knee and stare up at me while licking her lips. If it were morning and I was in bed, she would do the poke where she manages to hit my forehead practically dead center with one claw.

If that fails, she bounces to various pieces of furniture and shoves things to the floor. Once I get out of bed, she will lead me to the kitchen, frequently looking back to make certain I am following. Once in the kitchen she will stare at her dish stand until I fill a bowl and set it down.

If it’s her evening mealtime, she will come to wherever I am, to do the arm tap and knee touch. If I don’t comply, she will jump up on the counter, desk, back of the couch, or table, and sit and stare until I head for the kitchen.

Right now now, I’m being glared at. How dare I leave her alone for FOREVER with only three bowls of food to last for 78 hours! She could have starved! Of course there was still food in one bowl, but that doesn’t count. The other two were empty! The amount left in the bowl was the equivalent of the amount she gets in a normal feeding, but she could have starved.

I went on a road trip to visit my now closed alma mater, Northland College (1892 – 2025). Keeping the college open was no longer sustainable, even with a reduced curriculum. One hundred thirty-three years and now shut and abandoned. From the outside, it looks like everyone packed up for the end of the week like normal, except the campus was dead silent. No people except for a maintenance person in a truck.

They didn’t stop and ask why I was wandering the campus. Honestly, I might have burst into tears if they had. There were only a couple of empty campus vehicles parked near one of the buildings.

This was my first Wisconsin home for two years – Anna McMillan Hall. The second floor window to the right of center was my first room. The second room was in the rear.

I found a Civics textbook in a resale shop up there. I don’t even know if they teach civics anymore. With what’s happened in the last three elections, I would say that Civics has gone the way of Handwriting, diagramming sentences, and Social Studies, along with Literature, World History, and Geography. We have become a nation proud of our ignorance. The great technologies that were to give us access to the world’s knowledge have made us more ignorant, gullible, and just downright stupid. We now lack the ability to sort out truth from misinformation. Just my opinion.

Crafting

Caught up

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Latest three paintings.

I’m not sure if I’m improving or not. My progress seems inconsistent. I’m hoping that it’s not some sort of symptom of old age. Of course, if it was, I don’t think I’d know it. That’s probably normal for my age.

Here are some pictures of my studio.

Back wall
Another view
Last view

I think I mentioned that the space is 48 square feet 6ft by 8 ft. I have a selection of watercolor and other art books, canvases, card-stock and other art supplies. I also have a box of containers of pho and some energy juices in case I miss dinner or lunch.

The light bar on the wall is held up by five layers of heavy duty double-sided tape. It seems that every three weeks, the tape needs to be reinforced with a new layer.

I need a new strategy for that light.

Bookbinding, My own damned opinion., Painting & Drawing

I’m a bit behind in my paintings

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Partly because I was setting up my studio, and partially because I’ve been in a lot if pain lately. Probably because of setting up my studio and too much lifting. I keep forgetting I’m old.

I made a book to hold the second group of paintings.

This one has 26 pockets to bring the total to 50
Latest paintings

There are cats for the most part.

I’m currently 2 scheduled paintings behind. I’ll catch up. I’ve also been clearing out fabric scraps at the Makerspace. I’ve emptied one bin and have the bin equivalent in unusable scraps in a trash bag to take for recycling. I still have two bins to sort.

I’ve been winding the lengths I’m keeping on pieces of mat board and standing the wound fabric upright in the bins. It’s much easier to see and touch the fabric. I didn’t bother to measure the lengths. For right now, I just want to get usable fabric organized. You wouldn’t believe how many tiny scraps were in the bins. Why was someone saving a 2” by 2” scrap of felt?

There were all kinds of tiny scraps. I suppose they could have been stitched into a “crazy quilt” but I doubt it would be worth the effort. If one of our sewists wants to take the bag and stitch the scraps together, I’m all for it. I have my own bag of scraps waiting for me to sew. I don’t need to add to my hoard.

I hate to give stuff to Goodwill. One of the local agencies gives vouchers to women to get clothing there. But the pricing for the donated items has gotten outrageous. Or so I’ve heard. I don’t shop there. I’m going to check with one of the local Hospice organizations that operates a resale shop. If they will take my clothing, I’ll give the extras to them.

My next project needs to be weeding out my closet and dresser. I probably have enough extra clothes to dress an entire homeless women’s shelter. My youngest granddaughter took half of my sweaters. She would have taken them all, but she doesn’t wear v-necks.

I almost never wear anything but tee shirts, flannel shirts, and an assortment of leggings, knit pants, and sweat pants. If the clothing exchange still existed, I would take my stuff there. When I retired, I gave them 7 bags of my work clothes so women who needed nice clothing for work could make use of them.

Tomorrow, I’ll take pictures of the studio.

Crafting

I didn’t realize how long it was between posts.

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I’ve been having a devil of a time with the shop light in my studio and the concrete wall. Even though the light weighs less than 5 pounds, the double-sided tape I was using wasn’t strong enough to hold it, in spite of the claim of holding up to 10 pounds. I used double layers of the tape and the light fell down,

I added an extra layer of tape and the light stayed up for two days. Finally, I bought a different brand of tape which is rated to hold up to 38 pounds. The light fell down. At no point had I removed any of the prior strips of tape. I bought another roll of heavier tape and applied enough to create a 4-strip deep layer and added several more of those thick layers to the back of the light. It hasn’t fallen yet. Yay me!

I like the light. The two led panels tilt down so I have bright light on my desk. There are six outlets and two USB charger ports. It’s working quite well now. I’ve been spending most of my time at the shop. The internet has been wonky so I haven’t posted from there.

I made a book to hold the paintings I’ve done so far. The paintings slide into the pockets. The idea came from a woman on YouTube named Joke Hardenbol. Even though I don’t speak Dutch, her instructions were easy to follow. I left a like and a comment on her channel.

By the way, the light is still on the wall.