Talk About Tuesday

 

In Which Adventures Were Had, Anniversaries Recognized, and Coffee Sipped.

This week I had a blast hanging out with my guy and my friends because they scooped us up for a quick jaunt around the midcoast! We stopped by JJ's Schooner Dogs in Rockland (I strongly recommend the 1/4lb all-beef hotdog with the hickory smoked bacon bits and some of Johnny's homemade pickled red onion and/or his homemade sauerkraut!), had lunch, and we even taste-tested the forthcoming Snapperoni (a red snapper hotdog mixed into a cup of mac & cheese topped with those same hickory bacon bits)! It was a blast, and I strongly recommend popping down there if you're in Rockland during the summer months.

I had so much fun, in fact, that I forgot to take any pics lol! Thankfully my guy had me covered, so here's my 1/4lb All-Beef Hotdog with Hickory Smoked Bacon Bits & pickled red onions and his Kielbasa with all the fixins!

Kielbasa with mustard, pickled onions, homemade sauerkraut and more!
Credit to Z.

The 1/4lb all beef hotdog with bacon bits & pickled onions!
Again, Credit to Z, who was the only one with the presence of mind to take any pics lol!

And if the delicious dogs at JJ's weren't enough of a splurgey trip of awesomeness, our friends packed our overfull selves into their car and took us to Camden and led us through the sugary wonderland that is Uncle Willy's Candy Shoppe! This fantastic little candy shop is exactly what you'd imagine from an old-fashioned candy store! The main floor sold handmade chocolates (their peanut buttercups are enormous, the fudge & divinity look exceptional, and the dipped nuts & espresso beans were gloriously shiny thickly-coated), as well as a lot of fun gummies and licorices, plus there was a small cooler filled with glass bottles of soda (including local "favorite," Moxie).

Upstairs at Uncle Willy's has a wall of Jelly Bellies, candy bars I've never even heard of, and a wall of bags of chocolates and candied nuts, among many other things. There was even a fill-your-own Pixie Stix kiosk!

I got a 1/2lb bag of Sixlets because sometimes you want spherical not-M&Ms that vaguely taste like Double Bubble on the outside. Z got himself a candy bar (Zagnut maybe? [Edit: It was a Big Hunk!] it was peanut nougat with peanuts in it) and a bag each of Boston Baked Beans (red, candy-coated peanuts) and something that was essentially the same as Boston Baked Beans but with added crispy bits embedded in the crimson candy coating. Our friends picked up some candies of their own, and we headed along a scenic route to ooh and ah over Mt Battie and the absolute beauty of Maine's lakes and ponds. Somewhere in the middle of Camden, one of our friends handed Z & I our first taste of violet candy. 

I've had candied violets before, so I knew some of what I was in for, but Z had never experienced the sheer bizarre nature of eating something that your whole being wants to tell you is probably straight perfume and not a treat. It's not unlike tasting Moxie for the first time, to be honest, because it's such an unusual flavor if you've never had it. 

The candy is very very different from the candied flowers, but only in so far as, to me, the candied violets having a more subtle flavor. The little pale violet tablets have a mint Lifesaver texture but the flavor is... well... it's extremely floral. It's like eating an entire bouquet of candied violets. It really lets you know you're eating a botanical.

And once you get the initial reaction under control and just surrender to the absolute floral assault, you may just find, like Z & I, that you absolutely love it!

To be clear, Z adores Moxie, too. I like the smell, and the initial flavor isn't bad for me, either, but man... that aftertaste on Moxie... it's so unappetizingly bitter to me. Like an earwax bean from Bertie Botts.

There's no earwax aftertaste to the violet candies. Just some faint floral notes that fade slowly like a nap in the sun.

I bet they'd be amazing crushed over some vanilla ice cream.

This trip was on Saturday, and I still have a palmful or two of the Sixlets. No word on the status of the candied nuts, but they were good enough that I'd bet they'll be gone soon if they aren't already ;)

If you're ever in the midcoast Maine area, those are definitely a couple of spots to check out, and afterwards, if you're still craving a small adventure, I'd give Birch Point State Park a peak or dip your toes at Crescent Beach in Owl's Head. I grew up going to both and I have to say, they're lovely places to enjoy the sea, if a bit crowded sometimes.

After Saturday came Sunday, of course, and that saw me getting the longer parts of my buzz shaved down by one of my older siblings (THANK YOU!!! That one tuft was tickling my ear so bad!), and then came Monday.

Monday was what it was, as you probably saw on my blog. I also did not sleep last night. I finally fell asleep around 4:30AM, which was a real pain, but that's life sometimes.

Today, I was lucky enough to catch a ride with my mother and return a bunch of bottles, then I took that money and turned it into oddly religious cheddar popcorn and Peanut M&Ms. When we got back, my mom took Evie outside, and I realized it was our cat's Gotchaversary! On this day 11 years ago, my mom & younger sibling brought home a very cautious and weirdly foot-obsessed cat. Today, she's more interested in demanding half & half and cuddles. And beating the absolute tar out of our neighbor's barn cat.

Poor Sky caught those paws again today, and when my mother swooped in to defend the poor lad's honor, Evie hissed at him!!!

What a cantankerous turd lol. He hasn't really threatened her at all, either. He's easily half again her size and a successful hunter, so I doubt she'd fare well if he decided to defend himself, but he never, ever does, and usually after we "ground" Evie by bringing her back inside for the day, he'll call mournfully into the windows until she comes and sneers back through the screens.

She needs to chill lol.

This coming week I plan on working more on those stupid straps for my Secret Project (the interminable Mushroom Purse), drawing or painting something (there's still time for you to put your 3 bucks in on whether it'll be an Animal, Vegetable, Mineral, Geometric, or Location based picture!), and possibly having more adventures. We'll see how naughty Evie continues to be, regarding the other cats. Thankfully the last time I saw Orange Boy (a newer fluffy orange cat who I once saw limping) he seems to have healed all the way up from whatever misfortune befell his foot.

Thanks for wading through this wall of text this week, guys. That's about all the news updates I've got for y'all!

Go Enjoy Something!

FC

Thursday Art Walk

 

In Which I Show You Progress & Errors!

Alright, I've been following YouTuber Nianiani for a few weeks now and I've learned so much! That picture with the seashells I posted a while back? Based on one of her tutorials. Couldn't have done it without her.

So I decided to try more of her tutorials!

She's got these lovely fruit, flower, tree, and even bunny tutorials but I am very hot. Today reached 87℉ (30.56℃) and it was so humid that it felt over 100℉ (37.78℃). I wanted to go to the freakin beach, but I didn't wanna go outside.

So I decided to try two of her tutorials involving the ocean!

The first attempt was a seascape with trees and a beach and it was lovely! But I literally could not make my paints cooperate, and since she utilizes quite a bit of Buff Titanium (a well-covering off-white tone I do not own yet), alas, I had to abort.

Attempt the Second was simply an aerial view of a wave coming in to shore. A study on the interplay of blue and gold (not Ted Kord & Michael Carter). A... highly complex layering experiment.

That I botched.

Twice.

Now, fortunately, Watercolors are fairly forgiving, regardless of what you've heard. They are forgiving, but they are also hard to substitute, and if your painting calls for pans and you have pencils, you're going to have to become... creative. Especially if you have committed the cardinal sin of painting without swatching your tones first.

Which is what happened to the first two tries I made at this piece.

Which I'm also not finished with yet.

Because I'm not in the AC anymore and my bedroom is a toasty 85℉ (29.44℃) plus an uncomfortable level of humidity. I have no one to blame but myself for being too stubborn to sit downstairs at the couch, battling the cat and wearing headphones. Yes, I'd rather have my inner knees sweat than my ears.

I'm dumb like that lol.

So here they are - my attempts at watercolor!

Try #1 at the Wave; Watercolor; 2021

What went wrong here? Well, you may notice the visible sketch lines in the background, but the other problem is... the blue is too irregular and too small. You'll see why if you watch the vid or see picture #3 lol.

Try #2 at The Wave; Watercolor; 2021

So what's wrong with this? Uh... kinda same problem - blobs too tiny, background gradient not very good.

The Wave; Watercolor; 2021

As you may be able to tell, this is the version I'm going with. Is it perfect? No. But I love that gradient I've got going from the deep water to the shore. I love the soft sand gradient. I am satisfied with the third layer of paint accentuating the ripples of the water. I can work with this.

Bonus: This was actually my first try at the Seascape painting, but I was able to rework it! I'm very, very happy about that.

Now, I'm about 7 minutes into the tutorial, so that should tell you how long this took between all the failures, life stuff (food, coffee, cats), and just waiting forever for paint to dry. Seriously. At one point I had to just... walk away for an hour while one of the layers dried. It wasn't even that wet! It was just that humid.

I hope I can get this finished in the next week or so, so keep an eye out!!!

Also, since I just got an iPad, if you're reading this and know how to do art on one, please let me know the best free app you can think of for painting on iPad!

That'll do it for me, tonight (wow it got late...)

Go Enjoy Something!!!

FC

Fiber Monday: Cozy and Scrappy

 

In Which I Made A Thing

I have probably annoyed you all at this point with my repeated harping on my recent descent into tea drinking, but here's the thing...

It's getting cold, and I hate cold tea that isn't supposed to be cold.

Solution: Tea Cozy!

But there's one other problem - my teapot has a vertical handle, and 99% of the patterns I've found for tea cozies are for pots with handles on the side, not the top. 100% of the vertical-handle patterns I did find and could read needed money, which I respect, but could not afford at the time!

New Solution: Make my own pattern!

So I now present to you - possibly the ugliest tea cozy on earth.

Made with leftover yarn I cannot identify

Here is the free version of the pattern:

TEA COZY

MATERIALS

• Yarn (any size – pretty sure mine was DK/Light/3)

• Hook (I used a 3mm)

• Yarn needle

• A ribbon or other closure (optional)

STITCHES (US TERMS)

ch = chain

sl st = slip stitch

sc = single crochet

hdc = half double crochet

dc = double crochet

INSTRUCTIONS

START: Ch as long as you need to go around the narrow bottom of your teapot, sl st to first chain to form a loop, trying not to twist. I needed 90 chains – yours may be different depending on hook, yarn, and teapot!

Round 1: Ch1, sc in each ch, sl st to first sc

Round 2-?: Ch1, increase around evenly (so if you have 90 ch, you sc in the next 14 sc, then sc twice in the next sc, repeat around), sl st to first sc of each round, ch1 to start the next.

When your sc increase rounds reach the bottom bulge of your spout, we’ll switch from crocheting in the round to crocheting in alternating rows!

Remember to fit to your teapot constantly so that you don’t get any nasty surprises at the end like “oops, too small, no cozy for you!”

Pattern Rows

Row 1: ch1, sc across

Row 2: ch 1, turn, sc in first sc, then alternate dc and sc stitches around, making sure the dc stitches pucker outwards like a bobble or popcorn stitch! My pattern was sc in first sc, *dc in next, sc in next 2 st repeat from * until last 2 stitches, then dc, end with sc. You may want to have more or less sc stitches between your dc stitches, depending on how wide your rows are.

Row 3: ch 1, turn, sc across

Row 4: ch 1, turn, hdc across

Row 5: ch 2, turn, dc across

Row 6: ch 1, turn, hdc across

Row 7: ch 1, turn, sc across

Repeat from Row 2 until you pass the top of where your spout attaches to the pot

When you pass the top of your spout, sl st in to the first stitch to resume crocheting in the round. Repeat the pattern rows until you reach the top of your pot, hopefully ending on a Row 5, 6, or 7 repeat so you can use that for your ribbon.

When you’re done, just tie it off and weave in the ends.

If you don’t have a spare ribbon or cotton strip laying around, you can, of course, make one by crocheting a long chain in the same yarn or one that would look nice with it and tying that off, weaving in the ends, and using that as a cinching tie. I prefer my cotton ribbon because it isn’t stretchy.

You should have a nice sweater for your teapot now!

Go Enjoy Something!

Talk About Tuesday - I'm a Winner lol

In Which I Am Very Tired But Very Happy

 It's been quite the week. It's only Tuesday, but it has absolutely been A Week. I spent a lot of last night awake and anxious (don't drink coffee after 9PM guys, it's a trap!), my hormones are out of wack, I can't quite maintain focus for more than 20 minutes at a time, and my innards are wracked with gas (bc I think the mustard mayonnaise might be going by in my Yakisobas...). The world is, once more, falling apart at the seems. Eddie Van Halen has died. Johnny Nash, who sang "I Can See Clearly Now" has died. Half of the US government seems to have COVID-19. There's been at least one other Burder (bird murder) in my backyard perpetrated by our local hawk or falcon...

But I'm actually pretty upbeat and happy today.

That's pretty much 90% because I have a fantastic partner, but the other 10%? That's because I'm maintaining productivity no matter how distracted I am. Today I did crochet, drew, inked, wrote, sang, did a terrible little dance that scared the cat, prepped spicy noodles for my partner, prepped yakisoba for myself, made several very nice cups of coffee, and yes, missed the call for dinner twice because I was so into what I was reading and writing today.

I also got something in the mail that helps a bit ;)

See, a while back, there was a competition I entered to name some gaming dice for Skullsplitter Dice, and I actually succeeded in naming one of the new sets at the time - Astral Sliver! A lovely name, and lovely color. But get this - since I named them?

They sent me a set!!!

The color is a lovely amethyst with flecks of golden glitter, and it's totally not named Astral Sliver because I made a typo based on the poor colors on my aging monitor. I legit thought these were purple and silver. Instead, the gold is a lovely soft tone, and the sheen on the purple is incredible! They really are lovely dice :D

As for the set itself, the multiple d6's give you a chance to roll up a character sheet, backstab for extra damage, drop rocks or logs on your players, or just have that fun feeling of throwing a handful of dice around nice and quick (as opposed to most sets where you just get the one d6 that you have to reroll multiple times). There's an extra d20 in there, too, for criticals or other decision making rolls (or if one of them starts throwing ones like a total jerk - dice have personalities, yo). So you've got a very full set to begin with - and then there's the goodies!

*these might just be for Namers/Kickstarter backers, though!

In my lil parcel of goodies, I was given a sweet Skullsplitter pin with two hefty prongs on the back and a really nice black finish behind the shiny metal, and a neat green d20 that I'm digging a lot. How on earth did they know green was my favorite color? It's pretty dang cool, I have to admit. I'm not used to seeing dice with a matte finish, either, which makes it extra special and neat! It may be a Fey Lord's Boon d20, and if so, that's quite the gift, so I thank Skullsplitter and Blue Shift Media from the bottom of my dingy little heart (an organ I use so seldom I just forgot how to spell it five or six times) for this sweet, sweet set of dice.

Now I just kinda want to roll up a non-human Bard and play some D&D :P

That'll about do it for me today - I am still working on my Witchtober drawings (though they are hard to get through - inking takes a lot out of me, even as badly as I do it lol), and tomorrow I'll probably actually have a Wednesdaymania entry, so watch out for that!

Go Enjoy Something!

FC

Thursday Art Walk: Digital Inclusion

In Which I Have Continued My Experimentation!

I don't think I've rendered Dedbert in Digital yet, so here you guys go: my attempt at a Dedbert digital painting.

"LGBirbTQ"; digital, 2020

I'd like to return to this idea when I'm a better artist in digital - some of the balloons are really wonky, and I want to do more shading on Dedbert, but since this took all of my hand strength and patience, I think that's a very good first go for the Birb Himself.

Check out some more art today, if you're feeling down in this rainy nonsense (it's really gross here right now, I'm sure it's lovely where some of you are and I won't lie, I'm jelly as heck), and even if you're not feeling bleh, still look for good art wherever you can find it!

Art is awesome.

Go Enjoy Something!
FC

Also, this design is available on my Redbubble!