Tag: Tools

Watching paint dry

PiaChit Chat

Literally. Is what I was doing yesterday.

First, I forgot to give my boards (for the painting wip storage thing) their last coat of paint the other night, so I had to do it early morning (6 hours’ drying time). The garage is too cold and messy, so I’m doing this on my dining work table in the living room. Which means, cats are going to investigate – so I had to sit and watch (until I quit, locked them in the kitchen and went for my shower).

wallboards

Then I wanted to try matching the wall colour where I’d filled in holes. Most of the holes were only pin pricks from nails, but you know, even if you wipe, some filler gets onto the wall (structured wallpaper). I was a bit scared to use black in my mix, so I definitely did not get it in first attempt even if I tested on a small portion elsewhere – must have faded a bit there. Each time I tried a new layer, I made the circle slightly wider, to blend it in a bit, right? Not. So I ended up with multiple large splotches on the wall in varying shades of “cream”. I’d like to renovate the room whole house and just paint it white, but that was not today … Of course we all know that most colours dry up a bit darker, so I was having a hard time containing myself from trying new layers and also anxious to know when I’d hit the mark. Perhaps it dries a little faster if I keep an eye on it? I did, just in case. To the point of burning my omelette – which I had to go eat in the bedroom would you believe it, because the cats were very much asking for a third breakfast if I tried to sit down.

Molly can't sleep without rearranging the entire sofa. I didn't have the heart to wake her up and tidy up before taking a picture.
Molly can’t sleep without rearranging the entire sofa. I didn’t have the heart to wake the old girl and tidy up before taking a picture. It looks like this all the time. Now you know.

Anyway, I eventually broke out the black and it went a bit better. I can’t match the gloss, but it would be nice if it’s not the first thing you notice about the room. I even resorted to using “glazes”. And now it simply has to be good enough. Most of it will be covered in pictures anyway, which was the whole point of the board exercise: To be able to store, dry, hang various small paintings out of the way, to be able to move and rearrange without making new holes every day, and make it slightly decorative as well.

wallpaint

The idea is to hammer nails into the boards instead of the wall, basically. And not have to measure the height every time, just the three options, take it or leave it. I couldn’t find my box of little nails for the purpose, so I have yet to show you the finished result.

wallend

G casually asked me if the house is going to end up looking like hippies live here. I didn’t have a definite answer. It’s very much a Danish thing that you should conform, the norm is good enough and no reason to want or be more. While I’ve never really conformed, I have felt restrained at times, both physically (tiny house) and otherwise.

Well, I’m fed up with being less than me. It has nothing to do with feeling better than others, simply that I want to be all of me. Not just some parts of me, the acceptable ones, the managable ones, the inconspicuous ones. And if being me right now involves turning this tiny house into a workshop with looms on the wall and arranged for storage space rather than a modern show home, so be it.

Swift but not big enough

PiaWeaving

I knew when I made the purple warp that it was too long for my swift, which only takes 2 meters. And I didn’t make a cross, so I had to wind it into a ball somehow!

Well, I have the long poles for warping. They have holes in them the same size as the rods I used for the swift, including the one in the middle! I have clamps, coffee, sleepy kittens, what could go wrong?

longswift1 longswift2

So anyway, enough of that, I’m still playing with paint these days, just had to try this out before calling on the help of a person with long arms.

Yarn tools

PiaChit Chat

I love it when things can be made from the “what’s in the woodshed” principle as well as having more than one purpose. I’ve previously shown you my blending hackle, here it is without fun fur on. I made the tines from welding rods and sharpened each one by hand, they’re very strong:

hackle2 hackle1

I also have a homemade swift. I tend to never get to the point where I polish and paint these contraptions, although I do love beautiful tools. I’m simply too busy using them, that’s all, and I know I’m not much of a carpenter anyway.

swift1

I use the pegs from the swift with these crude pieces of lumber to warp both directly and  – eventually – indirectly. In summer I’m going to find a wall space outside to fix them vertically, as this will make running the yarn back and forth much easier on my back than leaning over the table.

warp02
direct warping a wide loom with multiple pegs

warping01
Measuring  a 3 m. Ø skein for space dyeing a pooling warp (or so the plan goes). By moving the pegs AND the bars further apart, I can make virtually any length of warp I desire, there are 8 pegs total. One can hold the cone of yarn!

I can also use the pegs and bars to strap poles onto if I want to make a navajo style warp for my large tapestry loom.

I meant to include an image of my homemade tapestry loom, but we ran into a small problem and didn’t get it finished on Sunday. I’m going to have a look at it and see if I can come up with a new idea for the last bit. It’s functional as it is, but I want to include multiple leash rods I think they’re called. Homemade shedding device kinda thing.

I also made a few spindles before I got my wheel. I don’t use them very often now I have to admit, but they work very well, especially the 14 g which I used to make a lace shawl. I too dream of Goldings and Bosworths, but I’d rather have more fiber.

lace6

Drumcarder – I haz one

PiaPå dansk

I’ve been so amazingly lucky recently that family members have chosen to share some abundance with me. Not only did my mum replace my 10 y.o. camera with a shiny new modern gizmo, I also have a new fiber tool. While being an owner in itself doesn’t ring my bells very loudly, I’m whooping at the thought of all the stuff I can DO with these toys. Never mind that I’ve hardly had any new clothes in a decade, I’m warm, clean and not too offensive.

The large drum is easily removed and replaced, so you have the option of coarse or fine cloths. I’m mordanting the last of my Dorset fleeces to be dyed and then everything gets run through the machine. Among other things.

I’ll be in the wool room if you need me. (aka living room aka paint stoodio)

drum carder

Kartemaskine

Lykkens Pamjulefis, det er mig! At blive tildelt overflod bare for glæden ved at give og modtage, ikke for ejerskabets skyld som sådan, men alt det man kan udrette med det rigtige værktøj og godt humør. Og nu mangler jeg hverken det ene eller det andet! Den store tromle kan nemt skiftes, hvis man vil have en grov- eller fintandet.

Så hvis ikke I kan se mig, så ved I nok hvad jeg laver… Der er sat en gryde bejdse over med det sidste Dorset råuld og så skal hele balladen ellers igennem maskineriet. Og naturligvis foreviges med det fine kamera, jeg har fået af min mor, da det gamle var ved at stille træskoene.

Postcard a day 1

PiaChit Chat

This is a thing I’ve decided to do. Not really every day, but rather on the days when I’m too busy, too tired, too distracted or too something else to haul out the serious painting gear and have a go at that. Or any other creative thing for that matter. Such as this week which seems to insist on being slept away mostly, I’m a complete zombie. Lovely weather and all, I’d much rather break in my bicycle! But there’s no forcing it, I’d not be safe in traffic.

postcard01

I have no idea how many people are running a something-like-this-along, most likely 100’s. But I just set the challenge for myself to feel like I wasn’t missing out on picture creation while I do other things, as well as taking the pressure off making a “real” big painting in case any of that nonsense happens. I may do a search on the topic one of these days, but I’ll be more likely to just sit and browse pretty pictures for hours or days instead of making stuff, so for now I won’t.

I’m also not going to post every day or even regularly, just when I feel like it. This is meant to be a treat for myself, not a competition or an exercise. And sometimes other matters are more pressing or I’m simply having so much fun doing other stuff that I forget. 😉

If you want to -along you’re more than welcome to, and we can do the linky thing and all that, but I refuse to make any rules or schedules, just so you know! Just post your cards and comments – or we can swap!

postcard03

I started out with a piece of watercolour paper that I dipped in my woad vat while testing if it was exhausted or what. It was indeed a wee bit tired (not that I know if a fresh vat would have made more of the paper, I’ll have to test that later), so the next day I dribbled some of the plant watercolours on it, tore it into 4 pieces and had a go with a glue stick because I hated what I’d done with the dribbles. I’m sooo rusty at this collage thing. And I know I should probably stick to one topic rather than trying on all the things I’m rusty at, but it seems I can’t help it. Ok, I haven’t really tried very hard not to, so I don’t know if I could.

postcard02

I also considered to just copy cat a lot of stuff to keep the flow until I get into it properly, I don’t like to but I hear it’s great for cranking your skills. At the moment, the exercise is primarily about accepting that I make poor choices and that my cards are sometimes useless in the decorative sense. Maybe I’ll have an “ugliest card” competition at the end of the year where you can vote for all the monsters. 😉

postcard04

This tiny format is a HUGE challenge for me as well. I want to cram all sorts of things on there, which is impossible. And why postcard and not just “a tiny image a day”? Well, I like to pretend I’m making something useful I think. And I know I’ve framed pretty postcards and put them on the wall, so really, it’s just a name.

Maybe I’ll put old stamps on the back and write pretend messages to and from imaginary people….

Then there’s an entirely different matter. I appear to have developed a slight hand tremor. I can feel it if I try to draw or knit with small needles for instance. Why I have no idea, it doesn’t run in the family that I’m aware. So I guess I should not count on any type of precision work in drawing etc. but have to develop a style where it doesn’t matter. I hope this is it, though, I’d hate to give up making things with my hands. I’ll have to pay attention to how tired I am when it happens. It’s certainly not very good for calligraphy or fine scissor work either! 🙁

postcard05
Some old pieces of tissue paper with ink. I thought they might be more interesting with some doodles on all that white space, but can I?

Et postkort om dagendanish

…har jeg tænkt mig at lave som projekt.

Jeg har overhovedet ikke kigget ret meget eller for nylig på de 100-vis af lignende websider man kan finde derude, for så får jeg aldrig løsrevet mig fra at bare sidde og kigge og beundre. Men jeg tænkte jeg kunne bruge det som en slags livline, så jeg føler at jeg trods alt laver noget billedagtigt i de perioder hvor der ikke rigtig er plads til det. Som denne uge der insisterer på at være zombie-sæson, i det gode vejr, hvor jeg hellere ville ud at lufte min cykel lidt. Men jeg ville ikke være trafiksikker, der er ikke noget at gøre…

Ikke noget med at vise dem hver dag eller regelmæssigt, bare når jeg gider. Hvis nogen har lyst til at dele lignende projekter er det super, men der er ingen regler!

Jeg begyndte med et stykke papir som jeg havde dyppet i vaidgryden da den var ved at løbe tør for farve. Så driblede jeg lidt andre farver på, det blev grimt, så limstiften kom frem…

Det er meget meget længe siden jeg har lavet collager kan jeg godt mærke, og jeg tror aldrig jeg har arbejdet så småt, så det er udfordring på mange planer. Måske jeg går i gang med at kopiere nogen yndlingskunstnere, det siges at være en god måde at forbedre sig på, og så sker der da lidt når min egen fantasi ikke ruller som jeg vil det. Nu må vi se.

Jeg farvede også lidt papir i cochenillegryden, og jeg tror jeg hiver mine bladtryk fra sidste år frem også og klipper lidt i dem – eller laver nye.

Måske sætter jeg gamle frimærker bagpå og skriver fiktive beskeder til og fra ukendte og indbildte personer…

Til gengæld har jeg på det seneste opdaget, at jeg ryster en smule på hænderne. Det er ikke noget der ligger til familien, så jeg kender ikke årsagen, men jeg kan ikke tegne særlig nøjagtigt, og jeg kan mærke det hvis jeg strikker på tynde pinde. Ret irriterende, jeg håber ikke det udvikler sig yderligere, og så må jeg jo bare finde en tegnestil hvor det ikke ses.

postcard06