what I read in April 2022

305 Lost Buildings of Canada by Alex Bozikovic and Raymond Biesinger

I love the idea of preserving these lost buildings in print, but it would have been much better with photographs of the buildings, where possible, and more detailed illustrations, where no photos are available.

The Art of Circular Yokes by Kerry Bogert

My favourite method of sweater construction. Some very nice patterns.

Best East Coast Jams, Pickles, Preserves and Breads by Alice Burdick

I don’t make a whole lot of any of these things, but maybe I should. A nice collection.

Helen McNicoll: A Canadian Impressionist by Natalie Luckyj

A great introduction to an incredible artist. Now I need to learn more about her.

Hello, Habits by Fumio Sasaki

A boring, self-indulgent rehash of other people’s research on habits. I’ve probably read a dozen other books on habits that are more useful than this one.

High Vibe Home by Kirsten Yadouga

Declutter. That’s pretty much it.

Lazy Baking by Jessica Elliott Dennison

I am lazy and I like baking so I thought I’d love this book, but I didn’t. Just didn’t suit my tastes.

Nature Crafts by Yukinobu Fujino

Bizarre and impractical “leaf designs” from six Japanese floral designers. I actually laughed out loud at how weird some of these designs are.

The Obesity Code by Jason Fung

He asserts that high insulin levels are the cause of obesity and the way to lower them is a low carb diet and intermittent fasting. I skimmed a fair bit because I just don’t buy that more meat is the answer.

One Tin Bakes Easy by Edd Kimber

Now this baking book I liked a lot. One worth buying.

Pattern Motifs by Graham Leslie McCallum

A great resource.

Rag Rug Techniques for Beginners by Elspeth Jackson

An interesting variety of techniques for using fabric, but nothing that interests me, other than rug hooking.

The Rug Hooker’s Bible by Gene Shepherd

Some good information, but a strangely amateur production.

Strong Poison by Dorothy L Sayers

Another Lord Peter Wimsey book. I enjoy these well-plotted mysteries, but wish Sayers had realised her use of slang and unconventional punctuation would make certain passages hard to decipher for future readers.

When Someone You Know Has Dementia by June Andrews

A lot of really good, practical information and advice.

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my mourning dove friend

I went bustling out onto the deck this morning to give a little pep talk to my lettuce and spinach seedlings and came face to face with this beauty:

The mourning doves are usually pretty skittish, but this lovely lady (I’m pretty sure she’s a lady, but I could be wrong) let me get within touching distance. Not that I did.

Look at that colouring! Gorgeous.

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and so it begins

The forty million bulbs we planted last November are just beginning to poke their heads up and the prizes for earliest risers go to:

Glory of the Snow
Striped Squill
Snowbreaker crocus, I think
More Glory of the Snow
garden

books are like lobster shells

“Books, you know, Charles, are like lobster-shells. We surround ourselves with ’em, and then we grow out of ’em and leave ’em behind, as evidences of our earlier stages of development.”

– Dorothy L Sayers, from The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club

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my first hooked rug

The March midday sun is a bit harsh here; it’s prettier in person.

This was another partially finished project that had been sitting around for years, making me feel guilty about my lack of perseverance. In this case, finishing it meant ripping out everything I’d done and starting over, so it was in fact more ‘beginning a new project’ than ‘completing an old one’, but whatever. At least I didn’t shove the whole thing back into the closet.

I’ve always had this weird hang-up that others are allowed to make purely decorative pieces, but my crafting has to be practical, and it’s a waste of time and materials if the finished object isn’t wearable or functional. But working on this unabashedly useless object helped me get over that. It’s nice to look at and that’s enough. I think I’ll soon start another.

crafts

give up

I look at Twitter once or twice a day to (1) get some idea of what’s going on in the world and (2) more importantly, save the funny memes. Like this one:

laughs

ripple scarf

Recently, I came across a bag stuffed full of half-finished projects I’d abandoned for one reason or another and instead of shoving it back where I’d found it and forgetting about it for another five years, I resolved to either rip out or finish each and every single item. This is progress.

First out of the bag was this ripple scarf, which needed another, oh, six feet or so. The labels were long gone, but I’m pretty sure it’s a Fleece Artist hand-painted wool, mellowed out with alternating stripes of some anonymous black wool.

Taking decent photos of knitwear is hard.

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