Episode 33: Another Cold Snap

Phew! I got my shit together and recorded this week! It hasn't been terribly busy or anything, there's just a lot of stuff that I've been trying to get done. Like paying bills, and renewing Volvo tabs, and paying rent, and exercising a horse, and walking dogs, and running, and yoga, and baking bread... Plus the knitting and spinning and getting blog posts together.

WIPs

1. Glynis by Cookie A. in Madelinetosh Tosh Sock, colorway Olivia. Using HiyaHiya sharp interchangeables US1. 
2. Inglenook Fibers "Concord Grape" spin on my Jenkins Finch, Kuchulu, and tiny horn Turkish Spindles, and a couple of my Goddesses
3. Shetland Lamb Fleece waste

FOs

1. Romney, 2 ply, ~240 yards, 4.6oz

Wool Piggery

1. Three Fates Yarns Terra Sock in "Depth" & "Blondie"
2. Support spindle case from The 1764 Shepherdess

You'll find me at Fiber Market Day in Prineville, Oregon the fourth weekend of March! I'll be there, sharing a booth with a couple of my friends. 

Wordless Wednesday

Episode 32: The Written One

Well, I definitely didn't get a podcast recorded yesterday! I had plenty of time, I just didn't manage my time very well... I spent most of my morning spinning, went for a walk, baked some bread, cuddled my dogs and my guy, cooked dinner, cleaned the rat cage, did some more spinning... And, before I knew it, I was out of time to record a podcast!

I do have a lot of things to share with you, though. A few WIPs, a couple FOs, some stash (or wool piggery, as the Handmade & Woolen podcast call it), and an adventure.

Just to get the normal stuff out of the way first, I'm going to share my WIPs:

This is my Jenkins March spin, sorta. I'll be spinning at least 50 grams of this Inglenook Fibers "Concord Grape" on a variety of Jenkins Turkish spindles. The rest will be spun by my mini goose girl and February self love goddesses. The IF is a 60% Corriedale, 20% Mulberry silk, 20% Rose fiber blend. I'm spinning it quite skinny so it will probably take me the rest of this month and all of next month to spin. 

My February socks are off to a good start... near the end of the month... I'm down to the heel on sock #1! I don't know if I'll be able to finish these socks this month, but I'm going to give it a good shot. They're going to go everywhere with me. Along with the book... cause, ya know, I don't have the pattern memorized. The pattern is Glynis by Cookie A. The yarn is Madelinetosh Tosh Sock in Olivia. I'm using HiyaHiya sharps in US1. 

And then, of course, there's my Shetland lamb spin. This spin is so wonderful, but I'm kind of ready to be finished spinning it now. I love the spinning, I love the fleece, I love the feel of the yarn, and I still have just over a pound of fleece left to be processed and spun. I just want to be knitting with this yarn already! The yarn is a DK weight 3 ply. The pattern it's going to turn into is An Aran for Frederick by Kathleen Dames, which will be modified to have a different neck line. 

I have been working on my Bee Keeper's Quilt hexiflats. I did not get a picture. I have fallen behind a couple days. I'm 2 days behind now. I didn't mean to fall behind, but I was just so tired on Saturday! I forgot about the hexiflats entirely on Friday. I will catch up this week! 

I do have a couple FOs to share with you as well! It seems to be a rare week when I actually have something finished to share. I really want that to change... I guess I'll have to work faster!

I n-plied a skein of Romney! This is 4.8 ounces/136 grams with right around 400 yards. The single was a leftover bobbin of Romney that I spun for my circle shawl and never ended up needing. I left the bobbin full of singles for what feels like ages! The yarn is really dense, being spun from combed top. I still need to wash the skein, and measure yardage again. 

And I finished my singles of the Jenkins 10 Blend February challenge! And the blue singles are there for weight to be tallied on the scale for the challenge. 

Now, the adventure and the Wool Piggery are kind of combined. I went to Madrona on Saturday! I got up Saturday morning and drove all the way to Tacoma. I drove through snow, fog, and rain. It was kind of gross. But it was nothing compared to my way home! I spent a good time in fog so thick that I had to go 30 mph (in a 70 mph speed zone) because I couldn't see...

I parked at the museum and walked to the hotel where the fiber festival was held. 

I stopped at my favorite cupcake place. 

I met a few people that I've only interacted with on Instagram, and I think that we'll be good friends!

And, of course, I shopped. Now, most of what you see in this picture is for a swap. The flicker is all I was really looking for when I went to Madrona - the dog comb has been working, but it's pretty rough on a dog comb to be used for a few different fleeces! I figured it was time to upgrade, considering I will need to buy a new dog comb soon if I keep using it the way I have been. 

Other than the flicker, I'm not going to say which things are mine and which are for the swap! At least, not until my swap partner has gotten her package!

Now, enjoy your week! I'm off to the horse barn and work for the day! See you next weekend!

Fireweed & Nettle, for some handspun

I am incredibly interested in herbal things. I like learning the ayurvedic uses of herbs, learning what the herbs mean and how they can be used holistically.

Milla, of The Woman Who Married a Bear and Fireweed & Nettle, set up a way to barter with her. Trade and barter is a way that I love to live. My partner, Ty, & I try to set up barters and trades throughout the summer with the fruits and veggies that we grow and preserve. Trade tomatoes for apricots, jalapenos for huckleberries, etc. 

She was interested in trading her essences and elixirs, her magic, her medicine, with people who could trade their own. Well, as interested as I am in learning how to do those things, I haven't ever made any. I do, however, spin my own yarn. And I spin my own yarn from sheep that are local to me. I go from the very start, a raw fleece, and end up with beautiful skeins of usable yarn. I offered this skill that I have, yarn making, for a couple bottles of her magic and she accepted! I was so incredibly excited that Milla accepted my offer! 

I received a bottle of the "Firelight" Chai Spice Elixir and a bottle of the "Be So Sensitive" flower essence. They are beautiful. 

Now, I just need to hold up my end of the bargain and send her some yarn! I am so in love with the Shetland lamb fleece that I've been spinning, I really want to send her a skein of that. I also have some Merino, some Coopworth, some BFL, etc already spun up... I just need to pick which ones I want to send to her!

Wordless Wednesday

A Struggle

I count everyone who has fiber in their hands as friends. I think of us as a big, generous, full of love, life, support, ready to celebrate, ready to mourn, always there family. It's been a struggle the last months, with all the election stuff, the administration in office now, the policies and changes that are just all over the place. The kind of love and support that has been seen, not just in the US but around the world, has been incredible! I don't care to talk about politics much. It's an intensely personal subject, and one that can cause a lot of arguments. I don't like arguments. I don't like adrenaline. 

Really bad arguments actually make my head pound, my whole body go sweaty and hot and cold, and I begin to feel nauseous. I try to avoid that. And, most of the time, I can!

Photo cred: Voice of America - Brian Allen,
taken from the Pussyhat Project front page

I just want to say, "Thank you." To those of you who have contributed in some way already, for those of you who have planned to contribute, and those of you who stand in support, whether that support is silent or not. Thank you. 

Our fiber friends, our fiber family, even those who are fiber worthy in our lives, we're all in this world together. We may not all agree on everything all the time, but we all need to get along and to function together. 

With all that said, I'm so excited to share this hat that a friend of mine made for me! She used a Montedale fleece, so it's actually soft enough for me to wear! She doesn't knit, I don't felt. This was the beginning of a wonderful trade. I will be knitting her a pair of Peace de Resistance mittens in return. I have a few pairs of these mittens planned - now we just need to see if I can get them knit in a somewhat timely manner!

Episode 31: A Busy Week

I don't really feel like I did anything more than I normally do, but I was exhausted last week! It doesn't feel like I got very much done at all.

WIPs

1. Shetland Lamb Fleece spinning, plying, and swatching
2. Alma Park Alpacas "Cafe au Lait" spin on goddesses
3. Jenkins 10 Blend spin
4. IF "Concord Grape" beginnings
5. BKQ hexiflats

I got together with my friend Leslie, she's the one who has the Shetland fiber flock, and she was so happy to see what I've been spinning with the lamb fleece! I will also be helping her with this year's shearing in a couple weeks. 

All the snow has started to melt too, which is amazing. Ty & I took Molly down to the river this morning and we did a little canicross. I ran, he roller bladed, and we had Molly alternate between pulling me and pulling him (and just running with us, cause she was pooped)! We're thinking about green things popping up out in our garden, and about what we want to get in the ground first (early radish and some beets) and when (probably a couple weeks). 

Exciting things happening here! And next weekend I'll be in Tacoma for Madrona! Stay tuned for video podcast scheduling around that... 

Wordless Wednesday

Episode 30: Real Progress is Visible!

Hi guys! This was a good episode. I had notes, I knew what I was going to talk about, it was good.

Mentions:

The Cottage Notebook - blog, audio podcast, e-zine
Shannon Okey Patreon Experiment
The Dancing Goats

WIPs

1. Casta by Shannon Okey using Tahki Yarns New Tweed in Olive Green
2. BKQ by tiny owl knits/Stephanie Dosen
3. Jenkins 10 Blend
4. Shetland Lamb fleece spin - 12.4oz plied! for An Aran for Frederick by Kathleen Dames

FOs

1. January Socks!
2. Jenkins Blue

Backburner

1. Alma Park Alpacas "Cafe au Lait"

Wordless Wednesday