Spring '17 Quidditch Update -- RAVENCLAW WINS QUIDDITCH CUP

Ravenclaw Chasers rocked and socked the pitch in Spring Term 2017 and we soared our way to our first Quidditch victory since Fall Term 2015!

The first match honored Helga Hufflepuff and the Quaffle, and we were thrilled to come in first.  What a great way to start the season!  Then the second match, starring Salazar Slytherin and the Bludger, was a real nail-biter. Slytherin won first place for their Founder and we barely edged Hufflepuff for second place by a two point margin.

In the third match, featuring Godric Gryffindor and the Snitch, it was our turn to roar with a strong first place finish.  The fourth match celebrated our own Founder Rowena Ravenclaw and her marvelous invention of the Quidditch Hoops.  We did Rowena proud and blitzed the pitch to finish way out front in first place.

The fifth match showcased all four Founders.  We really poured it on, and while we finished in second, we were well ahead of third place this time.

The other Houses were very worthy opponents, and we salute all the Chasers of Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin.  Well played all!!

We thank the Cup Quidditch Referees for their interesting, creative, and very educational prompts.  I know we all learned a lot about the history of Quidditch.

Deep thanks to the Ravenclaw House Quidditch staff, and the the PickleCake, for all the love and support.  

Most of all, we thank the many Ravenclaw chasers who played this term!

WE DID IT!

Thank you greenheron and freemiki for this wrap up of our winning Quidditch season!

Advanced Studies Update -- OWL Mistress Edition!

lsgarner gave us a wonderful Advanced Studies wrap-up the other day but I wanted to call attention to some AS students who have reached a significant milestone this term.  I am speaking, of course, of those who have reached the coveted status of OWL Mistress!  We had an amazing FIVE Ravenclaws achieve OWL Mistress this term!

First up, Aridella. She knitted three gorgeous shawls, vanishing 1884.5 yards of yarn for her Transfiguration OWL:

Next,  BrineyDeep.   Briney saved Charms for last -- she has admitted she does not like knitting lace.  For someone with that preference, she has done a fantastic job on this pi shawl:

Cyprienne is our third OWL Mistress this term.  She opted for Transfiguration, too, vanishing a whopping 3880 (!) yards of yarn for this Log Cabin blanket:

folk comes next in the OWL Mistress line-up. She chose Herbology (Botanical Option) for her final OWL.  Her delicate baby blanket features an 872 stitch picot edging:

Last, but most certainly not least, our final OWL Mistress of the term is NoNeinNyet.  She squeaked on at the last day with her Muggle Studies cardigan:

Love that lace edging, NNN!

CONGRATULATIONS to all our amazing OWL Mistresses!

For all projects, click on the student’s name to see the complete OWL submission.

Advanced Studies End-of-Term Wrap Up

As we have come to expect, Ravenclaw had an outstanding Advanced Studies turnout in Missions, OWLs, and NEWTs.  

Missions:

48 Ravenclaws successfully completed their missions, while another 11 managed to get to at least 25%.  These broke out as:

Twelve ‘Claws  went undercover at the Department of Magical Transportation.

Five ‘Claws successfully blended into the Tour de France.

Twelve ‘Claws were able to evoke the English countryside.

Nine ‘Claws recruited agents on the Knight Bus.

Four ‘Claws assisted the Commander on Deck 3.

Four ‘Claws held down the (blanket) fort at 12 Grimmaud place.

Two ‘Claws successfully produced maps for the Order.

OWLs:

61 Ravenclaws completed an OWL this term and an additional 13 at least made it through midterms.  The successful subjects were:

NEWTs:

And finally, our most Senior students, tackling the hardest projects, the NEWTs.  Six Ravenclaws successfully passed their NEWTs this term.  

Picklemommy finished this astonishing invisibility cape and the hat to go with it:

 

Fortunately she was able to use magic to let us see it!

MissJaneJetson made a fabulous Find Your Fade, a lovely sweater and a cowl:

TriGirlJ produced some lovely shawls:

Roocmc commemorated 80s Wizard wear with 3 bright accessories:

LeahandtheDragon spun some very fine yarn and used it to make a fabulous shawl:  

Kaypendragon explored garments inspired by magical creatures:

Congratulations to all our Advanced Studies students!

Thank you lsgarner for reporting on Spring 17 AS!

What's Happening This Week -- July 31 - August 6

July Classes -- DUE BY MIDNIGHT 7/31

NEWTs -- 100% DUE BY MIDNIGHT POT 7/31

OWLs -- 100% DUE BY MIDNIGHT POT 7/31

Class Tetris Photo Contest -- Through 7/31

July Great Hall Badges  -- Through 7/31

July Great Hall Activity -- Through 7/31

Prefects’ Challenge  -- Through 7/31

House Cup Staff Application -- Due by Midnight POT 8/3

Ravenclaw Staff Application -- Due by Midnight POT 8/7

Mad Science Nominations -- Check out the Mad Science Hall of Fame

Here.  Nominations are open through 8/7.

Spring Term Feedback Survey

House Cup Break Month Activities --

              The Bunkhouse

              The Lodge

              Postcard Swap

June Project Showcase

It's been a crazy summer, and the months of June and July have flown by!  I can't believe the term is almost over, and I STILL haven't posted the Pickle Badge winners for June.  So without further ado, let's get this done!

There were simply a ton of awesome projects in June, and so this list is very long...  But here are the winners of the Golden Pickle Award, given to the projects that stood out to me!

kvaustin knit an exquisite lace shawl for Arithmancy:

celizabethlill knit a lovely pair of cabled socks for Arithmancy:

BarnOwl knit a delicate lacy scarf for Arithmancy:

momtoaaandm crocheted a fabulous lacy top for Arithmancy:

Bacs made two beautiful shawls, a crocheted one for Arithmancy and a knit one (with a matching skirt!) for the Headmistress Challenge:

WillowGlade wove a collection of magnificent tea towels for Arithmancy, Astronomy, Charms, DADA, Family and Consumer Science, and Potions:

aknittingstory also knit two marvelous shawls, a lacy one for Arithmancy and a rainbow lacy one for Family and Consumer Science:

elekanahmen spun some wonderful yarn for Arithmancy, DADA, and Potions:

nerdyinplaid knit a fantastic shawl with a lacy/cabled edge for Arithmancy:

CymraesCrochet made an awesome gymnastics performance leotard (designed from the recipient's hand drawing!) for Astronomy:

fricknfrack has been making delightful things with felt, including a doctor's kit for Astronomy and parts of a quiet book for Muggle Studies:

hnick spun gorgeous yarn for Astronomy and designed and knit stunning socks for Muggle Studies and Quidditch:

gardenmama knit a splendid pair of scrappy colorwork socks for Astronomy:

MeshaMarie painted an awesome view of the Seattle skyline in the style of Van Gogh for Astronomy:

HelpfulKitten did a spectacular job dyeing some fiber for Charms:

ahanson08 knit a fabulous shawl for DADA:

Topfrog knit a magnificent shawl for DADA and made a fantastic bracelet using viking knitting for Quidditch:

softnshiny spun a gorgeous gradient skein of yarn for DADA:

neetsey crocheted a beautiful gradient shawl for DADA:

suzannemm made a collection of delightful stuffies, a snail for DADA, a Loch Ness monster for History of Magic, and an octopus for Quidditch:

morningwynd spun some lovely yarn for DADA and Muggle Studies:

snippybits crocheted a wonderful pair of slippers for DADA (I love that they have durable non-crocheted soles!):

winemakerssister spun several stunning skeins of yarn for Family and Consumer Science, History of Magic, and Potions:

freemiki made a charming felted horse for Family and Consumer Science:

NoNeinNyet knit an exquisite lace shawl for Family and Consumer Science:

TwistedSticherFGE spun a marvelous skein fo yarn for History of Magic:

llim sewed a fabulous coin purse for Muggle Studies:

FeoragRuadh sewed a splendid pencil case for Muggle Studies:

zisch304 knit a spectacular pair of colorwork socks for Muggle Studies:

PoodleParade made a beautiful quilted pillow for Muggle Studies:

LeahandtheDragon spun a gorgeous skein of yarn for Potions:

caranam knit a lovely pair of fingerless mitts for Quidditch:

S2five wove a magnificent gradient scarf for Quidditch:

SaskiaBr knit a fantastic brioche hat for Quidditch and made an awesome fabric covered box for the Headmistress Challenge:

LadyJhia knit a marvelous pair of beaded lace fingerless mitts for Quidditch:

Twillow knit a pretty pair of slippers for Quidditch:

aniek1 designed and crocheted a charming toddler dress for Quidditch:

ogiuntini wove a fabulous table runner for the Headmistress Challenge:

kneedleart dyed a stunning fabric scarf for the Headmistress Challenge:

MariaCrafts made a delicate beaded necklace for the Headmistress Challenge:

There were a few experimental/educational projects that have earned the Electric Pickle Badge!

elekanahmen cleverly used dried daylilies to dye some yarn for Family and Consumer Science:

winemakerssister posted a very informative explanation about 3-ply crepe yarn with her turn-in for Quidditch (which was also an incredible 3984 yards of singles):

I also got a good laugh at a few turn-ins (and I'm probably showing my inner 12-year-old with a few of these).  These projects have earned the Darth Pickle Badge!

Alfiriel actually made underwear for Muggle Studies, and awesome rainbow colored underwear at that!

HelpfulKitten continued the rather hilarious undergarments theme with her bra for Muggle Studies (it's beautiful, too)!

wendebular went for socks instead of undergarments, but she also created the very amusing game of Pin-the-Sock-on-the-House-Elf for her Headmistress Challenge turn-in (which also is pretty awesome, because she is making minisocks to match all her big socks)!

And of course, we had a bunch of overachievers again this past month, who taunted the Mallet of Sanity and won, thus earning the Pickle of Sanity Badge!

intallcotton used an incredible 1090 yards of yarn to knit her blanket for Arithmancy!

LadyJhia used an amazing 938 yards to knit her shawl for DADA!

indigoroses spun an impressive 1599 yards of singles for her Family and Consumer Science!

neetsey used a spectacular 3231 yards of yarn to crochet her blanket for Muggle Studies!

winemakerssister spun a phenomenal 1911 yards of singles for Muggle Studies!

cn32 spun a noteworthy 1650 yards of singles for Muggle Studies!

bigsnakes used an unimaginable 5110 yards of yarn knitting scarves for Quidditch!

wendebular used an extraordinary 1450 yards of yarn knitting her sweater for Quidditch!

Bacs used a remarkable 1228 yards of yarn crocheting her blanket for Quidditch!

suzannemm used an unbelievable 2125 yards of yarn crocheting her blanket for the Headmistress Challenge!

WillowGlade used an astonishing 4754 yards of yarn weaving towels and napkins for the Headmistress Challenge!

Congratulations to all the badge winners for June!  It won't be long before I'll be back with July's winners!