My Sweater

That wool that I dyed and spun became a rather nice (to me) sweater. I believe I mentioned the sweater's pattern designer in another post? We had a slightly bright day and I tried to take  photo.    

The button I have had on hand for years. You cannot tell, they are that aurora-like colored background under clear glass. I rarely button up my sweaters and coats, I still put in the buttonholes and attached the buttons just in case. The sweater fits well over a regular long-sleeved shirt. 

I have a thing about not throwing away slivers of soap. I buy handmade soap bars. I know... you can put them in a netted bag and use them until gone. Instead, I found online the instructions for melting the grated leftover bits and pouring them into a mold to make new bars. I had slivers made with goat's milk, "regular" base, herbs and ground oats added, even colored. The gritty brown bits are from a leftover oatmeal face scrub bar.
I found the soap mold at Ben Franklin's Craft store down in Sandpoint. I went with a plain mold. The instructions said nothing about oiling the mold. I still wiped the inside with apricot oil. I melted about 1 cup grated (about 4 oz. on the scale) leftover soap bits. I warmed 1/2 cup of filtered water in a double boiler, then added the soap bits. It seemed to not be enough water and it became too thick. If I was making soap balls, it would of been perfect. Next time I get enough slivers saved up, I will first let the grated soap bar bits soak in the warm water overnight. Because I did not, I ended up adding about 3/4 cup more of the water as I melted the soap on the stove. Once I took it off the burner, I added a few drops of lavender, rose hips seed and sandalwood essential oils. Those are supposed to be for middle-aged skin. (laughing) I spooned the goop into the molds and let them cool all afternoon before popping them out onto a spare cake cooling grill. I made a few bubbles from what I can see. It smells nice. I set the grate in a cool, dark place for a few weeks so the bars harden well.

So... am I thrifty or downright cheap?

I may get the little Pomeranian girl pictured below from Hall's Little Acre. She has Pomeranians and Pekingese. I have not seen such healthy pups since I got Maggie. All the adult dogs were out in the snow. they are adapted to our environment. They smelled great, had bright eyes and were friendly. They did not bark except for a brief greeting. I was with Mrs. Hall, the breeder, there was no need for more than their greeting. No yapping, either. I will give more on the puppy if I get her next month. she will go through a health check and more because she had a rough birth. If she gets a good report, she comes home with us.

The photo above was taken a few weeks ago. The bleary photos below taken with my cell phone last Monday.

 She was very curious. She responded properly to various things well. She wagged her tail when I was giving her butt scritchies. She tried to get into everything she could. She whined a moment when I returned her to the puppy area. She looks to be a lavender parti-color. I did not care about that, just her personality. she has plenty of it. Mid-February she may grace our home. Himself may agree to another a little down the road. We will end up with the twins of evil? (laughing) this one will go to puppy socialization things and obedience school. Doing things with other canines of various sizes is healthy. I will either make her food or mix it with the good stuff. All doggie cookies and jerky I will make. I also found a cedar oil based flea and tick spray, plus for treating the inside and outside areas. I detest the current stuff on the market. Poisoning the dog so one can travel to avoid cooties seems stupid.

Back to making the new grandson-to-be a sock monkey and a cotton cap....

Deb

I am a bit ecclectic. This blog is whimsical musings about my various interests and sharing things I am learning. If anything, it will be a good sleeping pill, no?

5 comments:

  1. cute! and when you get her we can then have a playdate, somewhere in Oregon, as we are getting a Pyr. pup next week to give Spinner back up.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Your sweater is gorgeous. How did you spin it to get such super striping? Did you dye it too? The soap is great and you aren't cheap, the word is frugal. That puppy is adorable and I hope by the time I'm writing this she is all yours!

    ReplyDelete