First Week in February

The snow is melting a little more, day by day.  If I didn't know any better, I'd think it was late March.  I have some daffodils coming up next to the house foundation.  About the only place the snow hasn't receded is in the deep shade of the conifers.  Our driveway is an ice-skating rink which makes going out for the mail an experience.  The hens were in front of the garage the other day and I tossed them some lettuce leaves.   In their haste to get to the treat they came running, but when they put their brakes on, they skidded right into each other, bowling all of them over into a feathery pile.  No one was hurt in the incident, but it was rather comical to watch.  I think I need to run around with a feather pillow strapped to my behinder just in case.  We all know how graceful I am. Not.

The sunsets have been gorgeous this month. 

 I'm enjoying this weather as much as everyone else, but it still makes me feel uneasy.  I don't believe we are done with winter.  Ok, I'm not a ground hog (or a meteorologist) so this is not an Official Opinion, but I predict we will see winter return in a big way before too long.  I was driving home from the grocery store the other day and saw a teenage boy walking down the sidewalk wearing a tank top and shorts.  Ah, the Optimism of Youth.  It was 45 degrees out.  Of course, for Wisconsinites, that is really warm for February.  We're weird like that up here. And I can't forget last spring when we were hit with a 17" snowfall in April.  Our weather is weird like that up here, too.

I wish I could buy stained glass in those colors.  Every few minutes the colors change.

Speaking of stained glass, here's the pattern for the Tiffany reproduction Laburnum shade:

Paper holding pattern

This pattern is 662 pieces per repeat.  We have the first repeat done!   It's sort of like building a big, glass jigsaw puzzle.

662 down, 1324 to go.

Now all we have to do is make two more repeats.  I tried to get a picture of the way it looks lit from behind, but didn't have a lot of luck.  Here's a quick look:

This picture was taken before I had all the glass on the holding pattern, that's why there's 'holes' in the design.

On this first repeat, I used rather light yellow glass with slightly darker yellow for the flower shading.  The second repeat has much darker flowers and the third repeat will be a slightly different variation of yellow and near-oranges yet again.  The idea is to mix the shading up a little to avoid monotony in the shade as you go around it.  I have looked at laburnum flowers online but have never been privileged to see an actual laburnum flowering, so I have to admit I'm not completely sure this is the way they should be portrayed.  I'm just hoping for a reasonable facsimile.

Every year we send in pictures of our completed lamps to the stained glass lamp art group we belong to for hopeful inclusion in their annual calendar.  We've been lucky four years running and have had small pictures of our shades included.  It is an honor to have our work in the calendar.

 Speaking of photos, photographing stained glass lamps is a long-drawn-out exercise in patience and sometimes, futility.  We drag the dining room table up to the wall, set up a gray fabric background and a bunch of lights and take literally hundreds of pictures until we finally get one that looks like it does the lamp justice.  During the last week of January, we spent days (well, nights, really, since being dark outside helps) shooting pictures and screening them.  The job becomes beyond tedious.

There I am, obsessing over the way the lamp looks, trying to make sure it is as dust-free as possible.

I have some dental tools I use to pry any goop out of nooks and crannies.

We think (hope!) we have a fairly good picture of this shade and sent it off for voting last week, along with the quilt panel.  Maybe it will be in the 2013 calendar, or maybe not, but at least we gave it a try. 

The 2013 Calendar hopeful.

The moon was full tonight and I took the doggies out for a walk after supper dishes were done.  I tried to entice Carl to come along, but he was under the hood of my car, tinkering with the power steering pump.  The dogs and I headed to the Back Eight and we all enjoyed the brisk night air.  The temperature was around 20 degrees which is chilly, but there was no wind at all.  The stars were brilliant in the deep blue sky and the moon was so bright it almost hurt to look directly into it.  The blades of grass in the hayfield were all diamond-dusted and the moonlight glinting off of them was mesmerizing, like walking through a field of sparkling gems as far as the eye could see.  I wish I'd had a tripod along to take a picture.

Joel took this picture around midnight....if you look closely, you can see the stars.  And if the melt-down continues, soon you'll see the entire lawn, too.

But winter ain't over yet.  Not by a long shot,  no matter what Punxsutawney Phil says.

It was really cold out there tonight, and Kantankerous Karen saw her shadow.

I'm predicting more snow.


We'll see if I'm right.