Next to the skin soft! And she smells good too! I really think I have nailed the formula for my wool washing liquid soap and just in time for this fleece and her soon-to have-her-turn-in-the-sink sister; Sophie.
Here is the first dozen rolags done up. I'm surprised how pale her colors went when diversified by the carding...but isn't she pretty!
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Madeline covers the front deck
My 8 year Anniversary gift was 2 Romney fleeces from a neat gal up the road. This darker one is Madeline. Although it was only lightly skirted, I still lost just a small amount to ruthless practicality. Her locks average 6 inches and go from deep grey to lighter grayish white to tan to cinnamon brown. I'm going to try both carding and combing her. I haven't decided yet but I'm thinking that plied up with a single of the red-headed Bruno alpaca might be nice!
Friday, March 16, 2007
Knitting yes - Spindling no
Yes, you really can knit with a cat on your lap. Freaky Kitty loves to be on my lap - no matter what I'm doing. I call it her "Freaky Time". Bless her heart...she's not a normal cat in any sense of the word. My daughter rescued her from the recycling center - in a sodden cardboard box in a heavy rainstorm. The note with her was washed out so we have no ideas on her history. My BF calls her "The Snitch" because she just has to know where the other cats are, what they're doing and more. If one of them is at the door, she lets us know. When he was flat out with his back injury, she perched on the nightstand and was his self-appointed nurse maid. All it took was a groan from him and she was at my feet yowling to let me know he needed me. I tried a couple of nice, normal kitty names but she would only respond when I would tell her "you're such a freaky cat". Sooo..."Freaky" she became!
Who's watching whom?
Chancey and Mr. Giz like to sit and look at each other I guess. Actually, Chancey is into the warm air blowing off the heater in front of the dragon habitat and the dragon, well, he's just nosey. It seems that Bearded Dragons are very sociable creatures and Mr. Giz is no exception. Since he's moving back home in a few days, I drug his habitat out to the living room where he could see "the happenings". I laid out my sheet and combed the last of the mohair (It's finally all done!) and I swear, he watched every step. He got bonus entertainment as Heather; the Chicken Lady and her 3 kids stopped in for a visit.
Bruno: Baby Alpaca fleece
My first raw fleece! Yes, that's a kitty tail walking away. The cats aren't too interested in the alpaca smell. I just love it...fresh air, green alfalfa and gentle creature...all wrapped up in an oh-so-soft yet sassy red-headed fleece! He's proving to be an absolute dream to spin too...almost like butter melting in my hands. This delightful fiber helped me to over-come that mind block I had for doing a consistent long draft. Sure wish I'd tried alpaca roving weeks ago!
This particular fleece is that of Bruno; a fine young male from Hideaway Heavenly Acres in PA. I really like how she lists all of her fleeces with the animal's name. It's become important for me to know that since it personalizes the whole fiber processing, spinning and eventual knitting. I don't know how to explain it any better than that...it just seems right!
This particular fleece is that of Bruno; a fine young male from Hideaway Heavenly Acres in PA. I really like how she lists all of her fleeces with the animal's name. It's become important for me to know that since it personalizes the whole fiber processing, spinning and eventual knitting. I don't know how to explain it any better than that...it just seems right!
Happy Yarn Cat
Sweet Girl had way too much fun helping me to frog a really ugly scarf. I had just indulged the Clan with some organic catnip so this was all my fault. But it's all good...I enjoyed it as much as they did!
While winding all of this back up and sitting at the computer desk, I was over at one of my favorite Yahoo Groups; Spindlitis. This is an absolutely great bunch of people, as are the folks at the Spinning Group too. They are all always quick and easy to share with advice, ideas and smiles. I'm glad I found them and hope I don't make them too crazy.
While winding all of this back up and sitting at the computer desk, I was over at one of my favorite Yahoo Groups; Spindlitis. This is an absolutely great bunch of people, as are the folks at the Spinning Group too. They are all always quick and easy to share with advice, ideas and smiles. I'm glad I found them and hope I don't make them too crazy.
Valentine's Cyclamen
Snugly protected in my little greenhouse, I had fresh blossoms on my Cyclamen for Valentine's Day. By spray-painting water jugs black, I use passive solar energy to keep everything comfortably above freezing temps. Although this was snapped a month ago, the greenhouse now holds about 5 dozen seedlings including 2 full size window-bozes of already sprouting marigolds! Woohoo! Food for the dye pot!
Nostepinne Progress
I took this pic a couple days before Valentine's Day and even though I haven't finished either end beyond medium sanding, I'm already using it. Winding a center-pull ball on this tool isn't so hard but making both top and bottom the same sure is a fun challenge! Well, since I'm using it mainly to ply from, that doesn't matter much. And you know the ole saying: "Practice makes perfect". And I've got lots of fiber to spin so I should get better and better.
Better Late Than Never
I promise I'll get into a regular posting routine here...honest. It's just that there's been so much going on. From the BF blowing out his back, the Landlords from Hell, the Crazy Neighbors X 2, the BF's back surgery and, oh yes...my baby girl got engaged! We're looking at August 11 for the wedding. Am I really old enough to have a child of marrying age?!? I guess so. Sigh. Well, it's a good thing that I only feel that old just every now and then, huh.
What with all that's been going on, I've still been planting seeds, sorting and washing fiber, spindling a wee bit and not knitting much at all. The Shawl That Doesn't End hasn't. But I did manage to crank out some simple dishcloths and polishing towels for the church kitchen and have baked a heck of a lot of my Magic Cookies (recipe upon request). As far as chasing Spring, I've gotten 5 dozen seedlings started for the gardens. Yes, plural. Not only will I continue with the Bucket Brigade from last year but will also borrow a friend's rototiller and help Heather; the Chicken Lady as well as Sandy and Steve get their plots going with space as my reward. After all, bucket-grown zuchinni only produces 1 or 2 fruits a season and that's not enough for me!
OK...have been uploading pics while doing this entry...should have more to show for my time upon my return.
What with all that's been going on, I've still been planting seeds, sorting and washing fiber, spindling a wee bit and not knitting much at all. The Shawl That Doesn't End hasn't. But I did manage to crank out some simple dishcloths and polishing towels for the church kitchen and have baked a heck of a lot of my Magic Cookies (recipe upon request). As far as chasing Spring, I've gotten 5 dozen seedlings started for the gardens. Yes, plural. Not only will I continue with the Bucket Brigade from last year but will also borrow a friend's rototiller and help Heather; the Chicken Lady as well as Sandy and Steve get their plots going with space as my reward. After all, bucket-grown zuchinni only produces 1 or 2 fruits a season and that's not enough for me!
OK...have been uploading pics while doing this entry...should have more to show for my time upon my return.
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