Andrea M, mountain hermit

@mountainheartvt

Born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 💙 Shepherd, weaver, flax and hemp grower/ researcher. Natural fiber educator. Damn tired of the trump show. Vermont, USA. www.mountainheartvt.com for more info and my farm store.

1,737 Following2,663 Followers2,422 Posts

Bluesky

Is this your profile?Claim it and mountainheartvt.dirty.social is yours.Claim profile

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· 26d

Layover in Chicago. Air quality too horrible to consider going outside, so I'm stitching till it's time for my next train.

Trying to teach myself embroidery. You can't tell, but the young Amish folk across the room are busy on their smartphones. 🤔

Chicago Illinois, the Great Hall of Union Station.

Walking the platform. Dark, hot, noisy, and the air is choking with smoke from wildfires. Shiny silver trains on both sides of platform.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· 28d

We have officially foster failed! Please welcome the new family member, a 16-pound dachshund x chihuahua mix. WHAT SHOULD WE NAME HIM??? I have a few ideas, but they don't feel quite right. I welcome suggestions. 🐕

A small golden-brown dod with a white bib sits neatly on a chair. He is looking at the camera with eyes almost the same color as his coat.

The same puppy, more casually posed on the chair, with his nose and one long ear hanging over the edge of the seat.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· 28d

The sky is a horrible orange color today. #fireseason

A view of the sky, ringed by the dark branches of trees. The air is a dark yellow-orange, colored by the smoke of wildfires.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· 29d

This spider posed on measuring sticks, so I could see exactly how big she is. 🕷

A spider on a yardstick, stretching 1.75 inches from toe to toe. Screen and summer flowers in background.

The same spider, but standing on a metric ruler thistle. She measures about 45mm from tips of front legs to back legs.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 14

Puppy timeline cleanse

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 13

New Foster puppy just arrived. He's been in my care for roughly an hour, and I'm falling in love with him. 🐕

A small, red-gold dog with white trim poses cutely on a dog bed. He's a young "chiweenie," a dachshund x chihuahua.

Same dog, closeup of his gold face with matching eyes and a long nose.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 11

I will! Here's my other Lysne piece. This one also needed a bit of restoration, but was in better shape than the one I just got.

A wooden plate hangs on a wall. It has pretty Os-style rosemaling on a warm white ground.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 11

Just acquired this huge piece by Per Lysne. It's heavily damaged, so it was very affordable. I'm removing the varnish and attempting some restoration work. 🤞

A large wooden charger, almost 20 inches in diameter. It's painted with Norwegian Rosemaling by the early 20th century Wisconsin artist, Per Lysne. The writing around the rim is in Norwegian, and translates roughly to, "the feast is ready - help yourself!"

There are bright white patches in the inner parts of the design, where some kind of solvent was spilled on it in the past.

A closeup of the damage to the painted surface.

A closeup of some of the damage to the plate, taken before I begin restoration work.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 11

2 looms (one flax canvas, one wool) and smøring experiment with a mixture of tallow, tar, and ochre. #Weaving #sailcloth

2 warp-weighted looms stand side-by-side in a barn. The one on the left has a 2/1 twill weave in wool, and the one on the right is aflax canvas.

Samplesof woven wool twill saturated with a mixture of sheep tallow and tar (these are brown) and 2 swatches that are bright yellow (the same tar/tallow mix plus ochre). The swatches are laying on a table, on a sheet of plastic, in the bright sunshine.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 8

Thought I was making good progress sorting boxes of old family documents and pictures until I got to THIS. Time to walk away from this project again for awhile. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Floppy_... 😵

A little plastic box filled with dozens of 3.5" floppy disks.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 7

There's a small demon living under my loom. 😈

A fluffy tortico cat on her back, with her pink mouth wide open, to show off her fangs and bristling whiskers.

The same cat, giving me a baleful stare. I am sitting on the floor, trying to adjust the loom weights, and she is 'helping.'

View of the cat under my loom, guarding the loom weights.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 6

I have competition in the raspberry patch. 🐕

A tri-colored smooth collie with his head deep in the blackcap raspberry bushes.

The same dog, displaying the long, anteater-like snout he uses to eat raspberries.

The dog, eating raspberries straight off the plants.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 6

Raspberries are ripe. ❤️❤️❤️

Closeup view of a bowl of yogurt with blackcap raspberries and maple syrup.

A ceramic bowl filled with wild raspberries in shades of pink, red, and very dark blue. They look very tasty.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 5

Cat came back online today.

Screenshot of a weather app showing a temperature of 56 degrees Fahrenheit (about 13c).

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 5

Some dogs are afraid of fireworks. My dog is afraid of a toad sitting between him and the door.

A nighttime view of a smooth collie dog standing well back from the door I am holding open for him. There's a large toad sitting at the threshold, and he is very afraid of it.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 4

Current workspace. Thankfully, right next to a minisplit, so comparatively cool and dry. The linen sample is crazy; sett was too open, so I'm experimenting with adding warps. I've added almost 100, and narrowed the weaving by 15cm. Looking a bit more like it should. #Weaving 🧶

A two-sided warp-weighted loom in my studio. Lit with pendant lamps and colorful twinkle lights.

A linen canvas weave on one side of the loom.

Closeup an area in the cloth where I have darned in an additional 8 warps to try to close up the sett.

The wool weaving on the other side of the loom, a 2/1 twill.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 2

Gonna need to reboot the cat when it cools down. #toohot

A fluffy tortico cat lays on her back on a wooden floor. She's exposing her belly to the air and trying to keep cool in a heatwave.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 2

Orange cat with tired human eyes says, "you know what, its my fault for having a phone."

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jul 2

My first attempt at cleaning an old oil painting, with the "after" picture getting photo bombed by Luna.

An old oil painting on a wooden board. The subject matter is a snowy winter scene, depicting a cabin at the left side, a snowy foreground, and a lone figure with a cane, walking away from the cabin. I took this picture after I'd started cleaning the painting,so three of its 4 corners look lighter than the rest of it.

My flashy tortico cat intrudes on my attempt to take a picture of the cleaned painting.

The painting after cleaning. It's still showing a dark winter scene,but the White snow is brighter, and more details are visible.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jun 30

I was gifted a vivid dream about my grandmother (she died in 2002). I haven't seen her in a dream for a good while, so it was nice. As we receded from each other, I kept saying "I love you!" And I could see her say, "I love you, too." #death #loveistheonlythingthatlasts

A photo of a photo of my paternal grandmother.

It's a picture of an old woman standing on her front porch, with a brick wall behind her and astroturf on the concrete steps. The old lady has a very pale face, round glasses, and tightly permed hair dyed a somewhat blond color. She is standing with one hand on the iron railing of the porch steps, and is smiling at the person, probably my dad, holding the camera. She is dressed in black slacks and a black sweater vest, with a striped blouse underneath. She's wearing a black belt with a gold buckle.

The photo was taken at her home in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, maybe in the 1980s.
My grandma was one of my favorite people, and I miss her still!

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jun 28

Oh! This is why!

A baby tanager in the grass, partially feathered, giving me the stink eye, just like its mom.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jun 28

I'm out here, just trying to enjoy my coffee before the day gets too hot, and a female tanager is yelling at me nonstop. 🐦‍⬛

View of the branches of an old sugarmaple tree, with morning sun on the leaves and blue sky beyond. There's a dot of scarlet in the tree.

Closeup of the tree, with a bright red male scarlet tanager and a less colorful, but much more vocal female tanager.

Partial list of this morning's birdsongs from the Merlin app.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jun 28

Learning a little sprang, and got some weaving time on the 2/1 twill. #fiberarts 🧶

My hand holding the edge of a small sprang project on a frame.

Closeup view of a 2/1 twill weave in gray wool. There's a T-pin at the selvedge.

A warp-weighted loom with the gray twill weaving on it.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jun 27

My friend with the incredible åkle she just completed weaving. She gathered a bunch of us to celebrate its "birthing" today, when it was taken down from the loom. #Weaving

A woman with long gray hair stands next to a large, intricately-patterned weaving on a warp-weighted loom.

Two elderly people stand in front of a warp-weighted loom, where a finished weaving is rolled up on the beam.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jun 19

My digs for the weekend. :-)

View of an 18th century bed chamber, taken from the vantage point of the bed. Plaster walls, 12-over-12 windows with blue trim, a red door on one side, an unlimited fireplace on the other. Greenery outside.

Looking out the open door of an 18th century tavern. Shady natural light, wide, pine plank floor.

Sunshine, blue sky, green trees, and an antique white church building at left of frame

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jun 15

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jun 13

Co-worker

A juvenile gray squirrel watches me from inside a small loom. Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, as is proper. Morning sun is shining in from an adjacent window.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jun 13

The air is cool and dry, there's a breeze, and birds are chatting outdoors. Baby squirrels explore the barn while the resident cat is on vacation at the seaside. After days of heat and humidity, my I feel my will to live returning. #paradise #Vermont #frfr

View from inside a barn, looking out through a partially-open door. A breeze is floating a screen curtain. In the foreground, an old chair with a seat of woven oak, and a table with a blue-and-white checked cloth.

A linen warp being lashed to a dowel, laying on the blue-and-white tablecloth.

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jun 12

Let this smiling peony brighten your day. #flowers 🌸

A white peony in full bloom. There are hot pink markings in its center that make it look like it is smiling, with one happy ant exploring near one "eye."

Andrea M, mountain hermit@mountainheartvt· Jun 10

Going through old boxes of family documents, and I didn't believe my dad when he said my grandfather invited MLK Jr. to speak at a supper club in Sioux Falls, SD in 1961. But he did! It's true! Pics from the local paper, Jan 12, 1961. 🤯 wild.