Month: June 2020

Mask variations

On By CarynIn Craft

My cotton fabric stash is gone, transformed into masks and donated to a local children’s hospital and given to friends. I had to break down and buy fabric (gasp!). Good quilting fabric is expensive, by the way. Although I liked the pattern I used for the donated masks (they were relatively easy to make, stored nicely, and had filter pockets), they were bulky with the pleats and after washing were a bunched up mess because the wire was sewn in. So I started mixing and matching patterns to see if I can come up with something better. Looming on the horizon is the potential for my kids to go back to school with masks. I need something easy to wear and wash.

Mixed pattern mask with tie sleeves

One of the top features I like in a mask is tie sleeves, so that it is easy to trade out kinds of ties. This is important for us as we move forward because ear loops work for one kid, but not the other. And if the ear loops start to irritate, we can switch to a different strap method. Here is a quick video on using a U shaped wire to thread the ties. In the mask above, I used this basic pattern, but extended the sides to give room to make the sleeves (thanks Mom for that idea!). I also printed two more copies of the pattern and made overlapping mouth and cheek sections to allow a filter to be slipped into the mask. I like this filter pocket better because the cotton is between the filter material and the mouth of the wearer. The idea for this came from this pattern.

Removable wire pocket

The other thing my masks need is a removable wire, so I can take the wire out before I wash the mask. As it turns out, by making the inner layer with three pieces, then sewing along the edge (wider at the top to accommodate the wire), it forms a pocket with two access slits. It takes a little wiggling to get the wire in and under the cheek sections, but once in it stays put. Getting the wire out isn’t terribly hard either, just fiddly. A wire slightly longer than the mouth section with the ends curled works well.

Alternate strap method
3/8” elastic with buckle and figure 8 slide

The final thing we are testing is an alternate strap method to ties or ear loops. My youngest wears glasses and hearing aids, so ear loops are out. Tying straps behind the head is also fiddly. So we are trying 3/8” elastic in a loop. The loop is adjustable with the use of a figure 8 slide, and clips together with a buckle (although once at the right size, the elastic has enough stretch to just pull it into place).

No, I don’t think masks can guarantee not catching a virus, but they do a great job reminding me not to touch my face!

Oh, what did I get into?

On By CarynIn Craft
Box cover for Dura-Craft Ashley doll house

It seemed a good rainy day project, maybe stretching to a few days. The instructions said easy assembly. My youngest was enthused and helped me paint it her favorite color: pink. I convinced her not to have the entire thing a solid pink, mainly by promising to paint all the trim white myself. Oh so much tiny trim.

Pre-painting tiny dollhouse parts

My grandmother gave me this dollhouse after I was married. My husband found the kit recently when he was cleaning out the garage. I’ve had it for probably 24 years. The Dura-craft dollhouse company went out of business in 2005. The copyright date on the instructions is 1992. I discovered these last two facts after the project was spread over two tables and a bench in the middle of the house.

Cutting the oh so tiny trim around oh so tiny windows

I discovered on day two, after the painted parts were dry, that the company and I have different definitions of “easy assembly”. Each piece of tiny trim needs to be cut to size. I have some good wood glue, but even that needs some time to set before going on to the next step. So it will take awhile to get everything assembled using a stop and go method. My youngest does come by and show interest and helps, which keeps me going. I may also be getting a wee bit obsessed. My youngest wanted wall paper inside, “Pink flowers” wall paper. I designed a repeating pattern in Photoshop and then shrunk it down to doll house size and printed it. I then used Modge podge glue to attach the paper to the wall, and other coat of glue on top to protect the paper. Maybe a little obsessed…

Custom doll house wall paper

Chickens: 1 year plus, what has worked and what hasn’t (pt 5)

On By CarynIn chickens, Coop
Coop and runs

Coop: My husband built the coop and I love having a shed sized building to house the chickens. We can walk in which makes cleaning out easier and catching chickens easier. There is also plenty of room for storage. I originally planned to section the coop in half so that I could house a mother hen and the chicks in one side separate from the adult flock. I don’t think that is going to happen, but having the option is nice. I do hang a waterer inside, but all the food and the rest of the waterers are outside the coop. (I have 5 water stations for 11 chickens. Texas summers are hot.)

Runs: My husband also built four runs off the front and side of the coop. The main run, which is open all the time, runs along the side and across the front. This is where their food, water, and dust baths reside. I have three other runs with latched doors. The original idea was the center run would be a garden, but with the surrounding trees it doesn’t get enough light. The next idea was to rotate the chickens through the three runs so they would have fresh grass. After carefully tending grass growth for a week, it takes the chickens one day to take it all down to bare earth. Ugh. I am currently leaving the farthest run open all the time (this run is the chicken’s favorite because it has the most perches and overlooks the meadow) and alternating growing forage seed in the other two runs. The runs are enclosed with hardware cloth that is also buried about a foot down all around the coop. Inside the runs we used less expensive poultry wire. There are swings in two of the runs, and the chickens do jump on them occasionally. What they really love are the natural branches lashed to the framework.

And I wondered why the other branch broke

Situating the coop and runs in the low point of the meadow has given us some drainage issues, but some creative ditch digging solves most of the unwanted flooding, except in really heavy rains.

Using a wooden dowel on an outside latch – fail

Something that definitely failed from heavy rains was the rotating latch on the outside run door. The tolerances were a little tight, and when the wooden dowel swelled from moisture it would get stuck in the pass through hole. Eventually the dowel tore in two from being twisted when wet. Oops.

So I think that is it for now! I’ll probably think of other things to share later, but a 5 part post will have to do for this week. Tomorrow I’ll go back to my regularly scheduled program of random rotating subjects.

Chickens: 1 year plus, what has worked and what hasn’t (pt 4)

On By CarynIn chickens, Coop
Grandpa’s Feeder (left) and Cheeper Keeper (right)

Grandpa’s Feeder: This was a good investment. Yes it was a little pricey, but I have near zero feed waste, which will be more significant after a few years. The chickens access the gravity fed feed by standing on a treadle that opens the lid. Training the chickens to use it went well. At the beginning there were only two or three chickens that could open it after the introductory period (Grandpa’s Feeders provides excellent instructions), and the rest would wait until it was open to eat. After a year, I think they can all open it on their own (although I haven’t done a thorough study on that). It sits just outside the coop pop door on a bed of bricks. I do dust the bricks with diatomaceous earth. I fill it about once a week. Since it is under the overhang on the coop, it stays dry even in the worst weather. I did put in stakes as side guards to keep chickens from reaching in to eat without standing on the treadle, and a hinged “roof” to keep chickens off the top also to keep them from eating without using the treadle.

Cheeper Keeper: This automatic door is awesome. It opens at dawn and shuts at dusk. I don’t have to remember to open the coop in the morning! Because the chickens can go out in their own into the runs, I don’t usually to go out and check on them until mid-morning. This works really well for hectic school mornings. This was also worth the investment. At night, the chickens all put themselves to bed on the roost, well before the door closes. In the summer I do open the people door to help the temperature in the coop drop after sunset (I have a temperature activated oscillating fan inside, but the extra air flow helps), so I go out to close that door at night.

Hey, guess what? There will be more tomorrow!