The brass manifold I use to route water to the coop and raised bed garden started to leak. I went to unscrew a hose from the manifold and part of the manifold broke loose, lodged inside the hose. It is not the first time this has happened. The hose on the top of the manifold was also corroded and frozen in tight.
Photo description: garden hose with the end ruined by a broken off manifold junction.
This time I ordered new hose ends, solid brass with a metal band clamp. I cut off the offending ends of hose with kitchen shears so I could replace the connectors.
Photo description: heavy duty garden hose cut off above the manifold, since it wouldn’t unscrew.
Pressing the connector against the fence post helped me wedge it into the cutoff hose. The female end was a little tricky with the loose ring, but attaching the male end made it stable enough to use the same technique. It really helps if you remember to put the band clamp on before attaching the new connector. Spoken from experience. I also used silicone tape in the threads this time.
Photo description: new brass manifold with repaired hose connectors.
The whole procedure was relatively painless and quick. It was definitely better than replacing the whole hose. I even replaced both ends on the hose in the chicken coop, that never did connect well.
Photo description: new hose connectors on the hose in the coop.
In one of the drawers of the Singer model 66 cabinet, there was a metal wire hook. Very strange.
Photo description: Inside of a wood drawer from a Singer treadle cabinet, with a wire hook attached to the screw for the wood knob.
I asked on a couple FaceBook groups what the purpose of this hook was, and had many guesses, but no firm knowledge. I also signed up for the email list for TreadleOn.net, which talks exclusively about people powered sewing machines. It took a few days, but then a couple people chimed in with their informed guesses. From what I can piece together, this was intended to hold bobbins, and was an original Singer part 56267, as pictured in an illustrated plate (shown below) from MillardSewing.com.
Photo description: Illustrated plate of Singer sewing machine parts.
From what we could gather, this part was only produced for a short time. Users found it annoying and often removed it. Many people answered my question with better solutions for bobbin storage.
My hypothesis, as a long time crafter and person who sews, is that the hook was intended for bobbins, but not for storage. It is mentioned in the Singer manuals, frequently and with urgency, that bobbins should not be wound with additional thread. The old thread should be removed before winding on a new color. I have personally seen evidence that the sewing machine users blithely ignored this advice, because ALL (yes, all) of the bobbins from my model 27 and model 66 had multiple colors of thread. I believe the Singer engineers fashioned this hook to make unwinding the bobbin easier. I tested with this in mind, and it works beautifully for that purpose. A single bobbin can be threaded on to the hook, it holds the bobbin securely while letting it spin, and while unwinding the thread, the bobbin does not jump across the room and hide under the dresser, as happens every time I have unwound a bobbin previously. Maybe users found the need to not waste thread more urgent than the smooth operation of the machine. I don’t know. The modern solution is to have a plethora of bobbins, minimizing the need to unwind. I will be keeping the wire as is, and will use it for unwinding. I do appreciate good engineering.
Our chorus was taking a private paper vote and we have a member who reads braille. Making the ballots inclusive was important to me and appreciated by her, and it only took a 15 minutes. I found a braille slate on Amazon, which is a small frame and stylus that makes it easy to get the right spacing for the braille dots. The frame is inexpensive, so I didn’t need to invest in a Braille Writer, which would be good for larger projects. The trickiest part is forming the letters, called cells, backwards. I printed the ballots on card stock because the thicker paper holds the embossed braille better, then used the braille slate to mark “yes” and “no” on each ballot so they were all the same. The ballot was read out loud to all members, then we all marked our ballots with pencil.
Photo description: Braille slate and stylus and a piece of paper where I wrote with ink backwards in braille cells and with printed letters.Photo description: Card stock with the pressed dots and an open braille slatePhoto description: Front side of the ballot with “Yes” and “No” printed and in braille.
My message here is that often small changes in the way we do things can make big differences in creating inclusive environments. Could she have orally given her vote? Yes, but it wouldn’t have the same feeling of privacy the other members have. Another option to a paper vote would be that we all could have sent in our votes electronically before the meeting instead. There are many different approaches to solving problems, and it usually only takes a little thought and consideration to make processes accessible and inclusive.
My eldest ordered a size large costume online; when it arrived it was a YOUTH large. Oops. There wasn’t time to return and reorder, and all the critical identifying marks were on the jacket, so we ripped some seams and turned the buttoned jacket into a vest.
Photo description: Right arm hole of black jacket with sleeve removed and a gusset added to the side.Photo description: Same right arm hole, trimmed with black bias tape.
We obtained a black shirt and black pants to go under the vest, and I rather like the crop vest with the long shirt. It is a subtle stylized version of the character.
I’ve made it to the split of the arms and body on the cardigan I’m knitting! This is momentous because after I separate the stitches for the sleeves each body row will have less stitches, which will make progress seem faster. There are a couple ways to hold the stitches for the arms, waste yarn, or a stitch holder. I found some pony bead elastic in my stash, which is a thick, but hollow, rubberized cord marketed for stringing beads. The end of this cord fits over the tip of my needle, making it much less scary to slide the stitches off the needle and onto the cord.
Photo description: Black flexible cord slid over the tip of a Prym circular knitting needle, in preparation for sliding stitches. Two cats in the background in close proximity.
The cord comes in long lengths, making it possible to cut it as long as I want it, which in this case is large enough so the garment can be tried on during construction. In the package there are also small connectors that slide into the ends of the cord, closing the loop.
Photo description: Knit stitches slid onto the cord and the cord closed with a clear solid connector. One cat in the background. Thor pushed his luck, Izzy noticed and told him off.
Critters and Craft 