One done

On October 29, 2021 By CarynIn Craft

I finished one of my buffalo down fingerless gloves. This is a waiting-in-the-car project, as I only work on it when I’m parked waiting for school pickup. I love the nålbinding Dalarna stitch because it is relatively simple and results in an even fabric (rather than distinct rows). The buffalo down I spun on a tahkli spindle is a two ply; the first glove uses yarn that was spun z and plied S. The yarn for the next glove was spun s and plied Z, so it will be interesting to get started on that and see if the behavior is different. The buffalo down is so fluffy, and I have no problem wearing it next to my skin. It is pricey, as each buffalo processed for meat only yields about four ounces of down. One glove used about a half ounce.

Fingerless glove made from hand spun buffalo down using the Dalarna stitch

Giant Flower Fly

On October 28, 2021October 26, 2021 By CarynIn Wildlife

Virginia Giant (Sorry for the fuzzy photo)

I was working in the garage when what I thought was a yellow jacket darted in front of me. My first move was to step calmly from the garage to let the insect get out, but it didn’t get out. It hovered midair, turning to keep its eyes locked on me. Hm. That is not yellow jacket behavior. So I circled it, and watched it pivot to continue to face me, round and round. My phone camera wouldn’t focus on the (relatively) small body, and I wasn’t moving closer without ID. It finally ran out of energy and settled down briefly. iNaturalist told me it was a Giant Flower Fly, and another user further classified it as a Virginia Giant. It uses its coloration to capitalize on the fear inspired by yellow jackets. It also does quite an effective job at intimidation with the bold stare and mid-flight menace. Eventually it left the area; I can assure you that there are no delectable flowers in the garage, so it was best that it moved on. But at least I don’t have to search the garage for a nest.

Fall sculpture upgrades

On October 27, 2021 By CarynIn Cats, Craft

As I predicted, my meadow fall sculpture is a continuous project. I added iris leaves to the bodice, and pumpkins at her feet. She is now also bedecked with an antler crown from two of the smaller antlers I obtained this week.

The neighborhood cats find her fascinating as well, as they sit by her feet, or maybe she offers the only hiding spot in the open meadow! I was hoping to get a better picture of the white cat, but I moved wrong and she (?) took off.

Antlers!

On October 26, 2021 By CarynIn Craft

I stopped by my neighbor’s garage sale during a walk, mostly just to chat because I knew several of the people there already, and a bag of antlers caught my eye. I have one antler at home that my Dad found on his property years ago, and I have been hoarding it, not willing to cut it into pieces because I only had the one. Now I don’t have to worry. I probably went a bit overboard, but I should have antler crafting material for ages. I don’t see a table top full of antlers, I see potential nåls, crochet hooks, maybe even spindles!

Antlers purchased at a garage sale
(We’re in Texas y’all)

C’mon, I dare ya

On October 25, 2021 By CarynIn Wildlife

We have one delivery person who puts our packages on the ground inside our fence rather than on our front porch. My youngest picked up the package and we saw that it had a passenger; a very irate passenger that did not at all like having its picture taken. Since no one was willing to open the package with its tiny defender, I took it and offered escape. The preying mantis was very willing and eager to leave the package and walk back to the fence. Much different than the beetles and geckos we release only to find they don’t want to leave the stick or hand.