Let There Be Light. And Warm Toes.

FYI, if there’s a Harbor Freight store anywhere in your vicinity, take a minute and go inside. They have flashlights for 99¢ right now, and they’re ideal emergency lights. They’re pre-loaded with batteries (which last a long time, by the way). They have a folding hook on the back, so they can be hung from a nail or Command hook. They also have a small magnet on the back. We keep a couple stuck to our fridge, the one spot we’re guaranteed to find even with the lights out. They’re surprisingly durable, too: I’ve dropped them more than once onto our tile-on-cement floors, and they came away without a scratch.

If you miss the sale, it’s not that big a deal, since regular price is only $1.49. In fact, if you need to buy anything hardware-ish, every now and then they give them away with purchase.

We’ve got a bunch of them, in the car and scattered throughout the house. They’re super bright and inexpensive enough to buy a basketful.

I haz slippers! I haz socks! I haz whatever-the-hell-they-are!

I honestly don’t know what to call these, but I managed to construct a set of hand-sewn coverings for my feet. They’re ugly as sin. They’re wool and rayon. They keep my feet warm, therefore I don’t give a rip what they look like.

These are prototypes, anyway. They’re unfinished, rough, stitched together by hand, and the size needs to be adjusted by a fair amount.

I’m wearing them anyway, at least until I get a better pair made. I’m working up a re-design for the next set, though. I plan to double the fabric on the sole, bring up the sides so they’re ankle-high, and add a button and loop to close them at the top. Yeah, we’re gettin’ fancy now. I kept the paper pattern I made for these and it would be pretty easy to make those changes.

I’ll be making at least one more pair in the immediate future, which should both go faster and have a much better result, because I have a sewing machine! G found an older machine on Facebook Marketplace late yesterday afternoon. It meant 65 miles round-trip after work last night, and worth every mile.

I’m gobsmacked by what people are asking for a used sewing machine, especially considering how mediocre some of those things are. I don’t understand why, either. A brand new, heavy-duty Singer is 200 bucks on Amazon, with free shipping. I’d already warned G if we didn’t find a good used machine for a low enough price, I was going to buy one of the new Singers.

I have to admit, though, the vintage Kenmore we bought for $25 makes me much happier.

It looks and runs like brand new. I joked about wanting one of the old treadle Singer machines that only sews straight stitches. (Okay, it wasn’t a joke – I still want one of those.) However, having a zigzag and buttonhole stitch is a lot more practical..

I love anything electronic where computers are the heart: laptops, televisions, etc. For anything in the scope of tools – including sewing tools – older and running is always better than new and cheaply-made.

I wish I could claim ownership of the bed at the top of the page, either owning the actual bed or creation of the design. From what I understand, this was an AI image. And when I saw it, my brain started immediately trying to figure out how it would be made in real life.

It absolutely could be done. I’m thinking cast aluminum for its strength and relatively light weight. That much aluminum, even assuming the footboard was hollow, would still weigh a ton – and those wings would have to be reinforced and/or mounted on the wall (probably the latter.) It would still be amazing in-person, wouldn’t it?? I want the bed, and a suitable castle in which to use it. I found another nice house in Iowa that should fit the bill nicely. I’ll try to get some pictures downloaded and link on another entry.