Thursday, September 27, 2012

The Rest of the Story

I finished the last two 2x3 rag rugs today.  I'm pleased with them both, but the one on the right was from a king-sized sheet I bought at Goodwill.  They use some kind of fumigant that has a nasty sweet smell.  Ordinarily it's just annoying but today the entire time I was weaving my allergies plagued me to the point that I was sneezing pretty badly by the end.  I love the rug but I'm not going through that again.  Even after I pulled them from the washer and drier I could still smell that chemical.  I'll have to try a different thrift store next time.
The good news is that I had enough warp left to tie off for a dummy warp.  I've never taken rag rugs to a craft fair, only place mats.  Ian says the problem is that so many people don't sit down at a table to eat together anymore that they don't want place mats.  Let's see if they want rugs.
This is the latest shell I've knitted from the pirate-booty fiber gift exchange at Spindle Camp in June.  The photo is a bit staged since I had just washed my hair and I wasn't wearing the sweater anywhere, but I really do like it and I have worn it.
The Ronco dehydrator that Ian ordered for me arrived within two days so I've been using both to double-team our aging produce.  Gretel says she thinks she's had hers for 30 years.  At first I didn't think there would be much difference, but oh boy, there certainly is.  Mine dries more quickly and also the food doesn't stick to the trays.  I think the change in plastic was more than cosmetic, or else 30 years of use has changed Gretel's trays.  We have Amazon Prime so the dehydrator and Farberware mandolin were $43 dollars with no shipping charges.  I'm really pleased.  I'm drying the zucchini chips that Cindie suggested and sampled one a little bit ago.  Yum!
This is what 20 pounds of tomatoes looks like after they've been dehydrated.  It's my understanding we can store them in glass jars in the garage over the winter.  They're supposed to be good for a year, but I hope to have cooked with them before then.  I think I'll prefer the frozen tomatoes in cooking but there was no more room.  I need to give the produce a rest tomorrow.  I need to give me a rest!

2 comments:

LA said...

Those tomatoes will be so nice this winter! So sorry about the sheet...I hope there's another Good Will store in your vicinity.

Benita said...

Very pretty shell.

I get what you mean by the Goodwill smell. It takes several washings before I can wear clothes bought from there because of that smell. I hate it! It gives me a headache.