Getting Ready, Sharing Plans

Here are some places we will be visiting and links to more info.

The Isle of Jura - So excited to visit this island! We saw it and its "Paps" while on Islay last year.  One year (not this one) we hope to climb one of the mountains. George Orwell wrote the book 1984 while on this island; it is renowned for its many deer as well as the Gulf of Corryvreckan, a whirlpool in the ocean off the northeastern tip. In addition to the island's whisky distillery, Lussa Gin is being produced in the stables at Ardlussa. This new endeavor is owned by three women who source their botanicals from the island and sea.
https://isleofjura.scot

Isle of Iona - This small island is intriguing due to its size, its close connection to MacBeth (the real one), the development of Christianity in Scotland, and as the resting place of Scottish Kings. We plan on doing the sites, plus climb Dun I (doon eee), the highest point on the island at 100 meters. Rumor is no restaurants or pubs are open yet so we plan on packing in some victuals to prepare at the B&B.
http://www.welcometoiona.com

The Isle of Mull - We will only see a tiny portion of this big island. If you look on the map we will be arriving at Craignure on the east, taking the bus south and west to Fionnphort for the Iona Ferry. We follow that road back from Iona, then north west to Tobermory. We will explore the grounds at Glengorm Castle visiting ancient Duns (forts, or fort shaped hills), then trekking to Dervaig, a small town a few miles across country. Along the way there are old town sites vacated during the Clearances and a circle of standing stones.
http://www.isle-of-mull.net
http://www.tobermory.co.uk

10 Days

It's just 10 days until our Hebridean Island redux. Woot!

The trial packing has started, to-do list writing is well under way, butterflies and crazy early morning wakefulness - all similar to last year! And I can barely contain myself!

Good thing Blue is my traveling companion - cool headed, well prepped with travel connections, sites to see, places to eat. He is the head of this adventure; I suppose I am the heart.

Rug Twining - Color Change

Countered twining is relaxing and lets my mind wander. It is great for listening to audio books, too. I have worked my way through a number of them over the last few years, including Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo.

I studied and learned how to change color in Bobbie Irwin's Twined Rag Rugs. Now that I have that figured out, watch out world!

But wait! I began to be intrigued by Ms. Irwin's description of same-pitch twining versus countered, so that's where I am today. This photo shows my warped loom (red vertical yarn) and my progress on switching same-pitch twining from right leaning to left leaning. This should make a really cool diagonally red and white striped pattern meeting in the middle. It will become more obvious as I work from the other side.

30 Days Until Scotland 2018

Well, we are doing it again: Scotland! More islands to explore, more whisky to taste, more ancient sites to visit.

This year's trip will include visiting three additional islands in the Hebrides: Mull, Iona and Jura. The more we learn about the Hebrides, the more intriguing they become. Each island is unique in geography, history and culture and provides Blue and I the opportunity for researching and appreciating each place.

This trip includes a few more days on the mainland in Scotland before traveling back to Haltwhistle in England for another day on Hadrian's Wall. We trekked a few miles westward last year; this year we are trekking toward the east to Housesteads Roman Fort.

We acknowledge that this is our crazy "thing". Enjoy our Blog updates if you want, or ignore them if you will.

Just 30 days until go time!

Rug Twining

I have always wanted to try weaving. I remember back in high school in a previous century I made a cardboard heddle and threw together a quasi backstrap. With a skein of kelly green yarn I wove a belt to match the dress I made for my graduation. I wore the dress and belt until they were out of style.

A couple years ago I made a rug loom with wood and nails. I researched twining, warped the loom and made my first rug  from old sheets. I use that rug still, but it isn't pretty, as those first tries seldom are.

My closet is full of cast off sheets and other materials donated by our local thrift store. They graciously give me stuff they can't sell but which are perfect for rugs. Sometimes I augment the free colors with sheets and materials I pick up at Goodwill and yard sales; old clothes are great, worn out scarves, sweaters, etc.

The quickest and easiest rugs are known as countered "hit and miss" twining, just using whichever color strip was next. I work from both ends so that the rugs are symmetrical in color patterns.

Because the loom is 24" x 36" all the rugs are the same size.

Lotus Flower

The kids and I were challenging one another to draw or create something every day. Here was the LOTUS FLOWER day challenge.

This is a variation of Drunkard's Path.

PS - You can see my rug loom under the quilt which is now taking up much of my time. See other posts.

Scrappy Quilt

Here's another scrappy quilt I started years ago and finished in September 2016. This pattern was from a Fons & Porter magazine.

I have always wanted to make a quilt that was full of movement and this one fits the bill. The yellow and burgundy pull the scrappy pieces together. This really does finish offthe boxes and suitcase of quilt pieces given to us a decade ago.

This is just a finished top and not quilted yet; another to do on the list.