snow-capped moon

The November full moon was at apogee, the farthest distance in its orbit around Earth. That makes it appear to be the smallest full moon of 2012 for all of us here on Planet Earth. And as we are also going into the longest nights of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, last night was dark indeed.

My girl is on her path under the stark white moon in a black night sky on a 3" x 3" itty canvas. I'm thinking maybe she has a magpie guiding her -- strangely, I found this 2" feather on the living room floor yesterday and set it aside. After I painted these little mountain snow-caps, I remembered the feather had a snow-cap, too, and that made me pretty happy for some reason.

This is the 13th moon in my itty full-moon painting series. All 13 will be hung together, hopefully this weekend.

I'd love it if you would share your full moon art by leaving a link in the comments or emailing me a file!

And thanks for visiting here and happy weekending. xo

full moon making:

~Over at Ancient Cloth, Marie whispered a lovely full moon post.

~Deb at Bee Creative has a really great photo of the moon and Jupiter.

~Kathy, the Woodland Quilter, stitched a Full-Snow Moon cloth and began another unique winter wall-hanging (made from hands and feet!).

stuffing croutons

This is good. I read somewhere that leftover stuffing could be made into croutons so I tried sauteing chunks of stuffing in ghee. As a comparison, I also slow-baked some smaller clumps in the toaster oven -- and decided they are delicious both ways with the baked ones crunchier.

Then I made a salad with just things on-hand -- romaine lettuce, parsley, green onions, black olives and Gorgonzola cheese. I added a couple of spoonfuls of cranberry sauce and some fresh thyme to a basic vinaigrette dressing. Sprinkled dried cranberries on top. And another spoonful of cranberry sauce on top of everything, what the heck. This is good.

If I'd thought ahead, these last pears (from our pear tree) would've been a nice addition but they've been in cold storage and are hard as a rock. Toasted nuts, too, but I was too lazy.

And a happy full moon to you -- I'll be making some full moon art later on. Join me?

Also posted on Fight Back Friday over at Kristen's Food Renegade.

glittery moonday

On the kitchen counter tops this morning -- banner-making on one side and kefir-making on the other -- glitter everywhere. The baby's shoes were left behind last week. I'm not a scrapbooker but find papercraft to be relaxing, almost meditative -- placing shapes and letters and colors this way and that. Not to mention the beautiful papers, old and new. Haven't picked a word yet so I don't know exactly how long we'll be eating glitter.

This is a new batch of kefir. I've tried making it before but something went awry and it didn't turn out right. Fermented foods are good for us but a person can only eat so much sauerkraut.

Today is a waxing moonday in Taurus. Slow and steady we go, sinking roots every step of the way. Whatever is begun under the sign of Taurus tends to be long-lasting so this is a good time to plant seeds or begin new habits or even start up a new batch of fermented foods. Other key words for Taurus -- patient, creative, stable, practical, and obstinate.

The jaw and neck areas including the teeth, ears, voice, and thyroid gland respond to the influence of a Taurus moon. That means we should remember to avoid activities that might stress those parts or if a problem already exists, the healing response may be strengthened.

Our next full moon occurs mid-week -- I'll be making some full-moon art and I'd love you to join me and share your art, too -- stitching, painting, writing, photographs, etc. Just leave a link in the full-moon art post or email me a file for the drawing down the moon page.

Have a nice week. It's a cold, dark day here, just right for slow and steady.

thanksgiving 2012

Snapshots of Thanksgiving 2012 for the 13 of us starting with our tradition of crafting before dinner and ending with a bedside stack of knitting books. I'm going to curl up with these three books and a nice pumpkin spice latte to look for my next knitting project. It's tough work but somebody has to do it.

Thank you for visiting here. And I wish you some very happy weekending. xo

in the middle moonday

It seems like everything I'm making is either partially started or partially finished. But this piece for the larger flying dreams cloth is right smack in the middle. Sometimes in the middle is the easiest place to be, not that many decisions to make there. 

Today is a waxing moonday in Aquarius. The Aquarian effect helps us make improvements, encourages us to be more intellectual and less emotional, and prompts us to exchange solitude for socializing. This is a good time for brainstorming, too -- group work will benefit from our Aquarian imagination and enthusiasm.

Aquarius affects the lower leg, our calves and ankles. Even slight stress on our legs may cause symptoms -- I know firsthand because my legs ached last night for no reason that I could come up with. At the same time, leg problems may be more easily relieved now. Remembering to stretch our legs and put our feet up might be just the right thing.

I guess the little leaf cloth up there is finally getting its legs. Wishing you a nice week.

various things

Whole Foods has bundles of bittersweet vine in now. I think I need to plant some of my own next year, I love it so much.

The green sweater would be finished if I had not obsessed so much about the shoulder seams. One side has been stitched and unstitched four times using different methods. Since this sweater is a solid color, it stands out if it's not right on. I even went to the yarn shop to see how their sample sweaters were sewn but that way didn't work either. Ended up with this. Almost there.

I made a big pot of beef stock. It simmered for about 30 hours total. Then I made a batch of French onion soup with some of it and froze the other 4½ quarts. The finely-chopped carrot in the soup is a nice addition -- the recipe is from The Grassfed Gourmet Cookbook by Shannon Hayes. I haven't decided what to do with the tallow yet but it won't be wasted. I'm thinking the birds might like it mixed with some birdseed.

A new 3' blue spruce made it through its first summer, a hot and dry one at that. Such a brave little tree. Even though we've already had icy temperatures and snow, many plants in the garden haven't given up yet. Today I realized a potted jasmine vine was still out on the patio. It looks fine -- not blooming, of course, but nice and green. Does anyone in Zone 5 or colder over-winter jasmine? 

Thanks for coming by and happy weekending. xo

moonday rolls

Two silk eco-dyed bundles -- one rolled, one unrolled. I'm so curious about that eucalyptus bundle because I've never used eucalyptus before, but I'm giving it a little more time. The unrolled silk is from a mix of red leaves -- it has swaths of mauve/purple that I really like, if the color holds it'll be a nice component for something. No mordants were used on either of these and both were steamed. I've decided to finally start recording the results of my eco-dyeing, maybe with a little swatch stapled to the page even.

Last week I went to Goodwill looking for silk or wool clothing to cut up for dyeing and found a pair of white wool slacks lined with white cotton. I took the scissors to them in short order. A stack of wool and a stack of cotton are now ready to roll. I just wish the slacks would've been a larger size! 

Today is a dark moonday in the sign of watery Scorpio. This is a highly psychic time when curiosity, insight and intuition run strong -- and when desire, sensitivity, and emotions are intensified. Scorpio is no shrinking violet.

Scorpio rules the reproductive organs and pelvic region. Our increased sensitivity may make problems in these and other areas feel harder to deal with. At the same time we are also more receptive and healing treatments may be more effective. 

I think using our intuition is a very good way to start the week.

moonweb stitching

The first threads of a moonweb took hold last night on a white silk organza mooncloth. The basting stitches showing on the black velvet might be made into tiny stars, we'll see. I like the feeling of a web taking form from my fingers. I like feeling like a spider. This morning I decided that the next frame threads must be done correctly, like a real spider does them, shown here in an animated graphic. No proper web begins with radius threads.

The tree stump reflecting itself in the mirror reminds me of the one on my design wall. The round mirror looks like a porthole in the wood fence and that is really the only reason it's there. 

Thanks for coming by and happy weekending with nice weather. It's due to snow here so I'll be in my favorite chair spinning at least one web. xo

hearts-a-bustin moonday

I came across this 5' volunteer shrub in my backyard this morning, funny how things seem to suddenly appear like that. The seed capsules are lovely. I think it's Euonymus americanus, also called hearts-a-bustin or strawberry bush. I had no idea.

I've been wanting to stitch around the edges of the green cotton chenille rug for a while -- it's just blanket stitching with cotton t-shirt yarn. 12 stitches at a time, no thinking required. Now I wish I had some magenta t-shirt yarn. That's my little camera case made with the blue.

Today is a waning moonday in the sign of Leo. Self-confidence rises on Leo days, good for making presentations or otherwise being in the spotlight. Playful, expressive, outgoing, and heartfully generous are other fine Leo qualities.

Leo affects the heart and circulation and the upper back. This means that healing in those areas may be enhanced and at the same time, they are also more susceptible to stress. I'm thinking about what will be good medicine these next days.

It's a nice synchronicity to find the hearts-a-bustin shrub today -- a reminder to keep an open heart and mind. And how we sow seeds by letting go.

I wish you good weather and a happy heart.

knitting green

This is how the coffee table looked this morning. That green sweater that I started two or three years ago -- it's been so long that I've lost track -- is close to being finished.

I decided to try a green hexipuff for the beekeeper's quilt, a slightly different color. The holey sea stone from Lyn is a sweet holder.

Thanks for visiting and happy weekending. I'll be right here knitting green. xxx