Tidbits Tuesday November 10, 2009

Because it is very apparent that I, eldest daughter, have inheirited the DNA Pack Rat gene from the Matriarch Supreme of the fam, it should come as no surprise that things in piles behind closed doors and elsewhere can reveal WONDERS!

This is a tiny, but choice, one.

It came from a bag stuck in my summer T-shirt drawer in my dresser.

Now, this place has been in a little bit of an uproar lately, so it’s no surprise that some things might’ve gone out of the line of sight for awhile.

We’ve had some roof and window damage due to last month’s heinous Nor’easter caliber rain storms: leakage, bubbling paint and one really rotten window frame. We hardly ever get storms blowing in from that direction but lately, there’s been more and more activity in the Big Windy. Lot’s of time’s been spent with contractors and estimators — why just yesterday another roofer came over and pronounced us ill. It’s a sneaky situation that combines a little flat roof over our shared bay windows and some lintels not especially mortared tight anymore. This is, as they like to say, a multi-pronged job which will probably take a while to balance out.

Meanwhile, I’m waiting for our friendly painter to come over and paint all our outside doors. Because it’s so inviting (and traditional), we’re making our front door BLUE like the color as the one in the film Notting Hill! I’ve been in love with this for years and it’s time to make this naughty building do something amusing for us for a change :)

For your amusement, enjoy a moment with these blue doors. I can’t get enough of them…

There’s been some presto change-O in the hut as well. I flipped bedrooms, trying to minimize nightside noisesome noises, and now the studio is where the master bedroom was. That room was painted last fall in a medium taupe color and its working well as a workspace.
 
The littler bedroom has become a soft navy blue (Benjamin Moore Paint Color HC-145 Van Courtland Blue). I wanted a dark, quiet, cozy cozy space and the walls and ceilings are all the same color — the room isn’t very big but has high ceilings and now it really looks balanced. My painter was so very skeptical at first — he insisted the ceiling should be lighter, but more colorful heads prevailed.

But back to the Pack: that collection of socks I found in a bag came into the house via Rhinebeck and when I unpacked my suitcase, they were packed by the rat into the wrong drawer.

These lovelies were my main score, but it was too warm to wear them when they landed so they went under.

I was not-so-much on the yarn front in New York because after I was there for about 5 minutes, it was evident that the grounds were so huge that I’d be carrying everything along with me. Bad Planning on the bag front. But when I saw these socks, I could not resist.

One of the main reasons I started knitting socks (and if I was a lady of leisure, that’s about all I’d make) is that basic wool socks are very hard to find via retail in women’s sizes. Now my alter-ego photo self works outside year round and Halloween is the date where the woolies and snuggies and longies make their appearances.

With less time than ever to knit some new footwear, (which I have on the needle, hee), it made perfect sense to scoop up some of these from Steam Valley Fiber Farm.

The colors — so very gorgeous — hand dyed by owner Phylleri Ball. The fiber: 50% Border Leicester Cross / 25% Mohair / 25% Nylon! The wool is sustainably raised on their Pennsylvaina farm and the yarn (and socks) are milled by another small producer.

But best of all? On the label is the name of the sheepies whose woolie goodness will be protecting my peirogies this winter: Firdance, Valentine, Myrtle, Tansy, Grace, Oreo and last but not least RJ!