New Things, Old Things and Other Things...

New Things:

-I taught my first spinning class today! Two lovely ladies came from NYC and participated in my wittle coils class. They were eager, it was quite fun, and I hope another opportunity to teach comes up soon! I'd like to do a series of classes, covering techniques that build on each other, but I'm not sure there are enough folks around here who spin to really get something like that going.

-The Cortido is brewing in the pineapple vinegar I made:

-I finally spun up for a swap that is long overdue:

swap on the left, a fun little example for my class today on the right

Old Things:

-It is 5pm and I have had two visitors to my website today. No traffic is getting old. I am wondering if it is even worth it to keep the website going. When I had a Knitty Covet Central ad, I think I had maybe 30 folks per day. The site has been live for just about a year at this point...for those of you with your own websites, how long did it take you to get decent traffic? Do I need to saw off a limb? Sure, some days are better than others, but today is just saaaaaaaaaad.

-Snow.

Two days in a row. Before yesterday, we had bulbs coming up...a sure sign of Spring. Now, I wonder if they will have their chance at all this year, having been buried again. Really, snow...get the hell off my car, my house and my damn garden. You have had several months of these surfaces all to yourself, and now I would like the sun to shine on them. Thank you.

Other Things:

-My boy will be 3 next week. I'm not sure how I feel about this. He is quite sure, however, that he is a mammal, quite possibly a bear, and that when it turns April he will be cake with candles in it.

-I'm waiting a week and a half to hear back from the Farmer's Market jury. Ugh.

SQUID!

Ooooh, lookie what I got in the post! The new glass needles by Infiknitty arrived today and are now up in the shoppe, including these fabulous squid and koi:

Oh, how I heart them. There are also elephants, more mice on cheese, canaries and more koi.

I spent the evening waiting around Bratt whilst jurying went on for the Saturday Farmer's Market. Hence, getting so much done on the website. Yay for free wifi and a mexican hot chocolate. Anyway, I'm a little bit nervous. I must wait almost two weeks to hear back about my status. I know there aren't many open spots and I really, really want to do it this year. I've been getting excited about the idea of having a real booth this time (rather than lugging display stuff back and forth), with shelves and pegs and a rack for my scarves. Sigh. Wish me luck!

projects...

mmmmm....fermentation:

Pineapple Vinegar (for making Latin American Sauerkraut) and Apple Chutney
The best part is that only the skin and core are used to make the vinegar, so we were able to feast on the perfect fruit. I try to buy local and in season 90% of the time, so this is definitely a treat to splurge on an organic pineapple.

Car (affectionately referred to as the Vulva) has experienced a minor miracle. I think I must have miscalculated it's lives, and it was only on the 8th. Now, it must be on the 9th after a $65 repair. I went to the bike shop today...wondering if I can get myself back in shape to tote my little dude behind me the 17 miles into town, muchly uphill, on a hybrid bike. On a regular basis. Hmmmmm. I used to cycle Century rides often in the Bay Area, but that was many moons ago, in my life BC (Before Child). But, this idea is not entirely removed from the realm of possibility. It is not, however, going to be an adequate replacement for a vehicle,...but I would like to think I could be that burly again.

So, now that I've cried over spilled milk and been handed a towel, yet again, I will leave you all with this:

The Little Guy can always sum up a situation more succinctly than I. And he has an adorable tongue.

Oh, whoops. I said projects, plural, didn't I?
So, I'm working on knitting up examples of the French Girl patterns for sale on my site, with handspun yarns. Fantine has now been frogged into a giant ball:

...and will soon become Giselle. I have the US 35 circulars to prove it. I really hope it works this time, because I carded up a whole heckuva lot of batts to make a blue on gray version of the above yarn, and want to sell it as a kit.

And, have I ever mentioned how much I heart Ravelry? Am trading some handspun for a giant pile of discontinued Berocco Denim Silk for a summer knit. Yay!

Really, really, that is all. Night night!

I killed it...

I think I really did it this time. Car is officially driven into the ground. My mechanic told me I'm better off making payments on a new or newer car than to keep bringing it to him, paying hundreds and hundreds just to prevent the inevitable. Car death. If I still lived in Berkeley, this would not be a problem. Unfortunately, I currently live a half hour from civilization...so, about that new ride. Buy or lease. Lease or buy. Try to find a cheap used car somewhere down south where there's no rust? It'd be worth the bus trip, right? Crap.

Well, here's some yarn pics to take the edge off:

Sari Skunk
There are a bazillion purty hairs of color in this, but sari silk is a total bitch to photograph. At least with my camera. You can almost see it in the close-up. Anyway, it's my favorite from this week, except for this one:

Gentle Landscape
This one is softer than soft and lighter than air. I would marry it if it wasn't...yarn.
Can you tell I'm on a core-spinning kick?

I really want to have more to say, but I'm exhausted from the stress of the day...being stranded SUCKS. I hate having to rely on a gas-guzzling machine just so I can have a bit of a life. Fortunately, thaw is still occuring, although we have snow in the forecast for this evening and the next few days. It is not likely to stick, but it is disappointing. Anyway, as soon as I have dirt to play in, I won't feel the need to ride into town as much...the garden, the sandbox, the warm, soggy air. Spinning in the sunshine....

i'm so in love...

with this man. And yes, C is well aware.

No update today. I know I said "Thursday," but what I really meant was "Sunday." Really. It was very foolish of me to think I could do all manner of preparations for a First Day of Spring (yay!) feast and take pictures and update, too. I am not Super-Woman. Nor am I Sheera. Bummer.

The red onion skin dye turned out...not how i expected, but still very nice. I was hoping for rosey pink, but ended up with an antique gold kind of color, and the eggs that went into the same dyebath became, not red, but a dark chocolate brown. Pictures, update...all that stuff on Sunday. Really.

So, the stats are:
Spring: 2
Winter: zip!

Snow was in the forecast two days in a row, and twice the snow did not happen. Go Spring! Keep it comin' baby.

Re: the feast: Seriously yummy and worth an entire afternoon in the kitchen. And I heart small gatherings with good friends. And I want to eat lavender shortbread every day. And I wish I could like wine.

happiness...

...is a new pot.
and some kitty grass.

so i spun up a blank canvas...natural white cotswold gently plied for a nice, soft drape...to be dropped into a red onion skin dyebath along with several blown-out eggs. i am hoping for a deep rose pink. the eggs, theoretically, should turn dark red.

i think i'll spin up one or two more, as i'm sure that the color will be lovely no matter what shade i get. one of the local farmers at market saved gigantic bags of onion skins for me last fall, all sorted out yellow and red. i was hoping to have a chance to spin enough white yarns to play with the yellow skins, too, but i don't think it's going to happen before wednesday when we dye the eggs. instead, i will save the skins for later and just use orange peel for the eggs.

anyway, before and after later this week.

c got the job! big sigh of relief.

Volvos don't last forever.

I think the subject line pretty much sums up my day. As soon as he said the word "transmission," I knew that it was over. I had a feeling it just wasn't healthy to have become good friends with my mechanic, to have his number memorized simply because I have dialed it so often in times of need. Anyway, the car is not worth transmission work, hell it's probably not even worth an oil change at this stage of entropy, but point A and point B are so damn far away when one lives semi-rurally that I simply must have a vehicle. So, just a shout-out to the universe: This monkey needs a new ride.
Soon.

On to prettier things...here is a preview of tonight's updates:

Hopi Red Dye
Spun from the lock from a luscious bag of cotswold from hollyeqq. I don't think I'll ever card a lock again.

On the left: Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me: Merino and silk chiffon, and on the right: Railroad II...because I had to make another. Had to.

and more lock-y goodness, because I have Spring on my mind and am dreaming of our vining roses coming back to life:

Heirloom Rose
I don't think I need to tell you where this fiber came from. :)

All will be up in the Shoppe tonight (probably late), and on Etsy tomorrow...

And, speaking of tomorrow...it is another day off for C and we will be pouring over seed catalogs, oh yes, planning our summer garden. He's been gathering saplings out back for building a hoop house for our veggies and two chicken-tractors for our feathered friends to range about the pasture in safety. Baby chick-chicks will be coming, too. I think this will be our best (and last) summer in Vermont. We are so excited about it that I think we might actually, for reals, burst. Tomorrow I send off my application for a booth at the Saturday Farmer's Market in Brattleboro. When I vended there two years ago, with just yarn, I ended up bowing out during the hottest months of the season. No one wanted to look at wool when it was 90 degrees with a billion percent humidity. But, this year, I have a whole slew of felt projects planned (some still secret, but I promise I will share soon), that I think will be attractive to the summer crowd and keep things interesting during the knitting 'off-season.'

Hey, look at me procrastinating.
Night night!

work day (*yawn*)

The boys were gone most of the day, so of course, I made yarn and played with felt. It was not an unusual sort of day, but I'm so exhausted I can barely see. Why am I not in bed? Because, ironically enough, that's the place where I can't sleep, no matter how tired I am. This too, shall pass (I hope).

Anyway, here's a preview of some thingses in tomorrow's shop update:

Treasure Chest
A mystery wool treasure carded with some fluffy white coopworth, alternating between corespun and wrapped with threads.

Everything Nice III
Super, super bulky! Like, thicker than my pinky finger sometimes. Mad fun right here, oh yes.

Some scarves were completed, too...pictures tomorrow, when it's NOT SNOWING. Seriously, was snow really necessary today? Just for the record: I am officially sticking a fork in this Winter. Done. Finished. Bring on the crocuses and my black-cap raspberries. I want a picnic with iced tea by the river and sunblock on my Irish skin.

Felt and Cookie

okay, so the snow wasn't so bad...it was the biting wind that nearly prevented me from taking pictures of the new spring-length Nuno scarves...but I braved it, oh yes. I thought my fingers were going to fall off, so yarn pics are put off until later in the week (or until I can figure out how to get decent shots with my homemade lightbox).
Here we go:

Lust
I chose this name for the scarf because I nearly tossed away my wedding ring when I opened up this bag of squishy-gorgeous merino locks from Holly EQQ. Yes, they were that purty. They're all mashed up with some gray silk chiffon. 'Spring-length' means 40 inches, as opposed to my usual 50-60 inches. I prefer this length, so may just keep going with it unless somebody complains...makes them a bit less spendy, as well as being darned cute.

Iris II
More beauteous wool from Holly. This time paired with lime green and chocolate brown silk chiffon strips.

Railroad
Organically-raised merino blend wool with a bit of black corriedale lamb, chocolate brown and pin-stripe silk chiffon.

Okay, that does me in for the night.

Oh, but wait...funny story, for reals: We've been reading through The Sesame Street Library since the little guy is totally obsessed with numbers and letters right now. C does a hilarious, and quite accurate Cookie Monster voice. Tom Waits comes on in the music rotation the other day, and the little guy's face lights up as he points to the speaker and says, "COOKIE MONSTER!!!" Now he's the littlest and biggest Tom Waits fan in the universe.

A bitty update for the Shoppe:



This one's dedicated to Jacey, and is my ode to the spittlebugs that bubbly-spit all of our daises and black-eyed susans in the summertime. I needed some sunshine and greenery on my wheel or I would start losing my over-wintered marbles. Warm today, but we'll be getting more snow this weekend. Boo!

And here's some corespun Lemongrass:



Various wools, tussah silk noils and sari silk.

I even went so far as to also list these items on my neglected Etsy Shop. So, felt and some more yarns to come on Sunday (if the weather cooperates for photos), and probably more felt in general for the next bit of a while, since I got my load of fibery yumminess from Holly EQQ this week!
See my boy do the fiber dance of joy and then collapse from fiber-glee-induced-exhaustion:



Thanks, Holly!

And now for my Misanthropic Rant of the Evening:

If you are familiar with my shop, than you know that I source humane fibers from small family farms. This is because I have a deep respect for all the creatures on this planet. And do you know what else? I DO NOT FEED WILD ANIMALS. Here is the story I heard on Vermont Public Radio this morning (minus the expletives I am likely to insert):

A beautiful moose took up residence in a Vermont apple orchard over the last couple of months, attracting many moose-oglers. Well, the moose had to be euthanized this week after it collapsed and nothing could be done to save it. Why? Because the stupid #*$%ing idiot people who came to look at the big pretty moose thought it was a grand idea to feed it. And what did they feed it? DONUTS. Fucking donuts. What, seriously, what is the matter with people? Is it really that cute to watch an animal eat junk food? Well, they killed it, the poor thing.

It's like when my son was a tiny baby and people would offer him ridiculous things to eat, like it was going to be so cute to watch him try to eat ________(insert inappropriate food for babies here).

Yes, I've been stewing about this all day. And no, I don't think it's fair not to give people the benefit of the doubt. Maybe they were perfectly nice people who were feeding crap to the moose. BUT, they weren't thinking, and this world would be a much better place if people thought about how their actions affected the lives of others. That is all.

I'm takin' my time, but I don't know where...

Since this is my view from the kitchen window, I haven't really felt like a new year has begun. I still feel like hibernating, huddled up in a blankie by the wood stove, sipping hot cocoa and plunking away on my first sweater.

So, naturally, I've shifted my calendar to reflect the reality of my environment...the 1st day of Spring is my new New Year. It's a couple weeks away yet, but I can feel the shift...this snow may linger for some time, but the weather is adopting that oh-s0-spring-like unpredictability...rain, sleet, slush, snow, rain, sun, sleet and a helluva lot of ice.

Anyway, the weather-shift is definitely stimulating an attitude-shift. It's lighting a fire under my creative arse, and ideas are flowing fast and furious. I'll make myself crazy if I try to make something of every single one of them, so I've been biding my time and not forcing anything. The ones that need to stick will stick, and I will promptly get to work. For now, I'm an observer and just trying to make sense of the projects I already have going and sorting out what is worth finishing/hanging onto and what I can let go of. My mental studio space is ready for a Spring overhaul.

That said, I updated the Shoppe with some fabulous glass knitting needles by Kim of Infiknitty and a few handspun-compatible patterns from French Girl Knits.
These were snatched up before I could blink, but how freaking cute are these??!?:

Methinks there should be more wee mice on cheese in the Shoppe. I just want to eat them.

I will be posting yarns on Thursday and Sunday this week, so check back. I'm trying to decide on a regular day of the week to post, as it will force me to be more disciplined about shop updates. Sunday will likely have some felt, also.

In non-fiber-related craftiness, the kiddo and I are working on some projects:

Cute-as-buttons Peter Rabbit fabric cut into heart shapes, on its way to becoming a sweet mobile, handsewn and stuffed with wool. The progeny is helping me with the stuffing part.

And...

Eggs! Even with five thousand feet of snow on the ground, our chickens decided that Spring has already sprung. This gives me hope and I wish they'd let me kiss them. Whenever we use a white egg, I'm blowing it out instead of cracking it, so's we can dye empty eggs for Ostara/Equinox. Red cabbage water is my favorite natural dye, as it yields a gorgeous robin's-egg blue.

I promise next post will be laden with yarn porn. I was naughty and didn't take pics of the raffle yarn or custom orders. I've also been messing about with all the new tricks I learned whilst playing with Jacey the other weekend, and making lots of little skeins for my Endless Blanket Project.

Sleepy. Migraine a-comin'. Need cocoa. I know I shouldn't, but I don't care.
night night!