It's officially Winter in Arizona - and we have the Frost to prove it!

Yes, Frost. Actual freezing of stuff.
Yeah, I know...it's not Snow or anything, but for Tucson, this is pretty chilly.
(See this blog for pictures/comments regarding Arizona "Snow").
I'll have to wait to see if the sheet-draping I did last night will save my plants from frost-bite.
The last two years my plants up on the porch - next to the house - froze almost solid.
Yep, I lost a few. The Arizona-type plants, not the foreigner/back-east plants. Some took 6 months to recover.
I think it was the wind-chill rather than the over-all temperature. (sigh)

Aside from the plant frost-bite concerns, the white stuff was beautiful.


Lace-edging the Cat's Claw:













Gilding the Bouganvilla:













Frosting the Barrel Cactus:










Sparkly and Spiny:




















The real stuff up on Mt. Lemmon:








Watch as I figure out how to use my Camera...
















A belated Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all!!
(Brrrrr....)

Ok, I wasn't going to follow this blog but....

I like to see what Blogger recommends in their blogs of note. If I'm intrigued, I'll usually I add the intrigue-ment to the "Blogs to Explore" folder/pile.
This one, "The Big Storm Picture", I sent off to a couple of folks because the pictures are STUNNING but I didn't add it to the Explore-pile because
A. It wasn't about knitting, food, cake, or the basis of wicked dry humor.
B. I read it all the way back to the first blog which was November 8, 2008. i.e. nothing to explore...
C. I don't watch Storm Chasers every week

However, I keep going back to look.
And I have always looked at the sky a lot. A lot - a lot.

And the gent posting the blog obviously has some profound knowledge of the skies and weather he photographs. Educational Opportunity!
And "stunning" doesn't do these pictures justice. They are amazing, humbling, and sometimes sad or scary. Well worth the look.
And a second look.
And...yeah, I'm going to follow the Big Storm Picture Blog. Done deal.
Woof - amazing, lovely, grand, pictures!

Arizona Snow

Arizona Snow - it drifts, it floats, makes snow snakes in the street, can be tracked inside, collects on your clothes and hair, it whitens the yard, fluffs through the doorway, hides behind the pedestal sink in the hall bath....
It's the seeds from the Desert Broom.














The Desert Broom is more formally known as "Baccharis sarothroides".
It's a weed to many of us in Arizona.

I rather like the fluff. As noted, it's generally the closest we get to snow in Arizona.

As a plant...it's squirrelly.
It is a serious pain to eradicate and it seems to have a respectable sense of self-preservation - it excels at growing out of patches of Prickly Pear Cactus...where you can NEVER get to the root to pull it out. (This gent has taken some lovely pictures of Prickly Pear Cactus.)
And the fluff can stop up a pool filter pretty quickly.

However, I saw this lovely drift of Desert Broom seeds and Bouganvilla petals/leaves and I had to show you:

I've been a little crafty of late...

Yes, I've been a little crafty of late...and due to the season, I can't post everything lest some surprises be ruined. However, here's a couple I can post 'cause these folks don't know about the blog and I'll be delivering the gifts this week.
I've been trying out Cat Bordhi's Moebius Baskets...and I think this light teal one proves what I heard about lighter colors not felting quite as well.














It still came out reasonably well and I stitched some beads around the edge to add some sparkle fun.














And I also finished the Lace Ornament from the Knitted Ornament Class I was pondering a couple of blogs ago. It came out alright, but I'm about convinced that I should steer clear of lace-work for a while. I seem to be in need of better knitting skills to do lace-work. Oy/SIGH.
(Or maybe I just need better "tinking" skills...)

The color of this fiber is about the color of a friend of mine's much beloved Mini Cooper. (grin)
She drove her first car into the ground whilst she valiantly paid off her student loans. So after the debt was cleared, she gifted herself with a spiffy, tricked out little Mini Cooper - which suits her personality. She is delighted with it - going to rallies and coming off very sporty in a silk scarf with the convertible top down. Yep, I should get a picture of the Mini Cooper Maven...
But here's a picture of the ornament I made for her.














Lastly, I saw a nifty picture from Ireland of a crescent moon with the planets Venus and Jupiter in attendance on Celtic Memory Yarn's blog. So when I saw the similar celestial arrangement in the South-Western early evening sky over Arizona - I knew what it was! (No, I haven't tried taking a picture - per Spouse of Jo at Celtic Memory Yarn, I'd need a tripod and a time-release...(insert more photo technical jargon here). It's beyond my abilities - I'm just delighted when I manage to photograph stuff in frame...)
Have a lovely evening - go look at the sky tomorrow night!