FIRST TUESDAY ART GATHERING

The first Tuesday of the month brings together a wonderful group of women artists who share, inspire and engage in activities.  This past Tuesday we met at Colored Pencil Artist, Monica Jagel's home.  Before we began a project Monica had so generously put together for us, we did a 'show and tell'.  I brought along several of the weaving projects I had been doing, and have posted prior to this.  Acrylic painter (and now studying oils) Susan Cushing brought along some of the work she is doing in the class she is presently taking,

here is a painting that is, in part, a study of shadows/shading.


 

 
onica had some lovely dresses she made for her granddaughter with matching dolls.  These are additional dolls she is working on. 

We then began a project of making either jewelry or ornaments using a special glue and clear plastic 'covers' and metal backings.

Here portions of a card are selected, glue placed on the back of the plastic and pressed down on the image wanted....

Here are some finished products of mine.

I have also been working on a commission for a woven bag, which is now complete.  I finger-wove a strap for the bag, above finger weaving in progress....

...the completed strap...

...and the completed bag.  The bag is woven with cotton warp and wool weft, and the flap is 100% silk.  The inside is lined with cotton, and also has three pockets.

Perhaps I have said this before, but it is so good to be weaving once again!!!

RISOTTO ALLE PATATE CON SALAMELLE

Cold, snowy, rainy days bring out the urge to hunker down in the kitchen and make something warm and delicious.  Something that takes time to prepare, real slow-cooking, without the slow cooker.

Risotto with Sausage, Marsala and Potatoes
(to serve four)

*Three links mild Italian sausage, out here in the mid-west Johnsonville is pretty authentic.

*2/3 c. Marsala wine

*1 med. onion sliced very thin. 

Pierce the sausages in several places.  Heat skillet (I use cast iron and don't add oil at this point) over medium heat add sausage and cook until browned on all sides, about 10 minutes.  Add Marsala and about half the onions, reduce heat and cook covered until pan juices are reduced by half, about 25 minutes.

 

*5 c. vegetable broth (hot)
*2 tbs. butter or olive oil
* 1 bay leaf
*1 medium Yukon Gold potato sliced thinly
*1 1/3 Arborio rice
* 1 clove garlic

In sauce pan heat oil or butter, add onion and bay leaf, cook until onion softens, about 5 minutes.  Add potato, cook 2 minutes longer.  Stir in rice, cook, stirring frequently until rice is slightly toasted, 3-4 minutes.  Add the chopped garlic.  Now begin adding the vegetable broth 1/2 c. at a time, stirring until completely absorbed before adding the next 1/2 c.  Do this until rice is tender, yet firm to the bite.  (this should take about 20 minutes or so.) You may not need to use all of the broth. 

Remove risotto from heat, remove and discard bay leaf.  Season with salt and pepper, cover and let rest 5 minutes. 

Meanwhile, reserving the pan juices, slice the sausages into thin slices.  Top the risotto with sausage and the pan juices.  I sauteed broccoli and served that along side.

This is an amazingly delicious meal, with deep and complex flavors.

Ended with a fresh banana cream pie, topped with Organic Valley whipped cream. 

WEAVING AGAIN

I finally cut an incomplete project I started many months ago off the loom.  I then retied the loom,

found this old wool blanket, and using my rag cutter

cut it into strips which I

wove on the newly tied warp.  The above photo shows the work in progress,

this is a close up of the weave.  I love the color play, and the fact that the back side is predominately beige with the rainbow 'flecks', as the blanket was beige on one side and this lovely bluish on the other.  With careful placement of the strips I was able to get a two-sided rug.  It is about 50" by 24" in size.

Below is the remnant that I cut off the loom prior to weaving this rug, here it is finished on the ends.  I did not really like this piece, although it was OK.  After much thought and a close look around the workshop at all my wool stash, 

it became this wall hanging, entitled

'Deep in the Pines'

It is so good to be weaving again, and for this I am thankful today!!

HALLOWEEN

Thank goodness for grandgirls who want Nonna to make Halloween costumes!  Since hand surgery last January 31st, I have done little handwork, virtually no weaving, limited sewing, and up until this month, no knitting.  The sewing projects for Halloween allowed me to be creative once again.  I plan to tie up at least one loom in the next week or so, as soon as the garden is put to bed.

In the mean time, I have gathered lovely autumn leaves and fashioned them into roses, easy, beautiful project.

And for the costumes...

Elsa wanted to be a Teddy Bear, and she said, you need to make a red bow for around my neck so they know I am a Teddy Bear and not just a bear.  At a local rummage sale I purchased a pair of child's footed PJ's, took them apart for a pattern, and along with an old brown wool blanket, and some died terry towels, made this Teddy Bear costume!

Iris wanted to be a pumpkin, which at first disappointed me, as I thought it might be too simple a project, however it became fun.  Her two 'boys' at first wanted to be salt and pepper shakers, which I thought would be kind of fun to do, but then they 'decided' they wanted to be pumpkins just like her.

Iris, Daisy Will and Thomas...

On Friday, as they were just down the road at the Kickapoo Valley Reserve at a Home school event, along with their good friends, Quinn and Abe, they all came here to dress before heading to town to trick or treat.

Elsa, Iris and the boys ready to head to town...

Cowboy Quinn, Davey Crockett Abe, Elsa and Iris!

 

 

LITTLE BITTY (POST)

As I am super busy completing Halloween costumes, this will be brief, that is until the costumes are done.

In the mean time these itty-bitty cuties were found in our hay mow.  There are four of them, eyes not opened yet, two completely white and the other two orange.  I saw a calico roaming around the barnyard last week, and now know she was looking for a place to give birth.  I am so excited about this, as are Iris and Elsa...as for Freddie, well, not so much!

GLORY…GLORY...ALLELUIA

Colors peak exponentially,

excite and stir

in ways

the green lush

of spring,

the white stark

of winter
cannot do.

Fall…
the season my eyes
feel
the alleluia,

and my blood

joins the chorus,
full-throated.

Autumn holds

a promise…
a secret…
buried deep,

in decomposing leaves.

Joanne Adragna Shird

This area in which I live is abundant with blessings year round.  And despite winter being my favorite season of the year, when I stepped out my back door and hiked the fields and woods on our property just the other day, I could not help but feel Autumn's  vibrant beauty, and be grateful it precedes winter.

...just up the hill outside my back door...

...invasive, but lovely....

....this speaks of the glory....

...a truly fungal year....

....over the hill and above our adjacent rental property...this is a field we rent to neighbors where they have planted soybeans ...the rusty color is deep and beautiful...

...this shot overlooks our home from above.  You can see the vineyard, the barn, and peeking at the right, our house...and can you see.....the sky!

...overlooking our rental house from above the soybean field....

Sometimes all of this beauty overwhelms and rights all that is momentarily amiss.

 (I just couldn't resist adding this photo from a hike a couple of weeks ago...our Woodland Nymph.)

PASTA SUPPER

Friday evening, Oct. 3rd was the 9th annual Pasta Supper for the Kickapoo Valley Reserve's Dam Challenge, which was held the following day.

I eagerly made the pasta sauce for this event

two very large pots simmering, filled with meatballs, pork roasts, beef roasts and Italian sausage...

which eventually were 17 ice cream buckets (85 #'s of meat sauce and 16#'s of meatless).

I babied my zinnias for a couple of weeks, covering them in the evenings against the possibility of frost, and they made it...

stunning colors

set upon the waiting tables.

Salad prep room, tomatoes and basil also babied, tomatoes from my garden and from my friend Sharon, too.

Serving up the meat sauce over mostacioli.

 

The first wave of diners relaxing and eating.

And as always the annual photo of the girls and myself at the pasta supper, thanks to my friend Janet! 

This is truly a fun event, and I love being the one to prepare the food for this crowd.  Just wish my father, who also loved to cook for a crowd, was able to be here, too.