One of the Best

Dear Mom,

If I were to keep track of such things, Friday, April 15 would go on the list as One of My Best Days. Ever.

I, along with some of the usual suspects went to our first Fiber Event in Greencastle, IN. We felt like kids at Christmas, such was our excitement and anticipation of the day.If we had planned out each and every detail, we couldn't have made the day more perfect.

We left mid morning, in plenty of time to arrive in Greencastle when the event opened at 1:00 with a stop for lunch, and using every bit of restraint not to kick up dirt and burn rubber on the way out of the cul-de sac. Not that anyone was around to notice. But still. The idea of it was great fun and gives you a little insight to the jubilant moods in the car.

In a flash we'd arrived in Greencastle- and really is there any faster way to travel than in a carload of girlfriends?- and found a delicious, delightful tea room for our lunch right on the courthouse square and on the way to the Putnam County Fairgrounds were the event was held.
I don't know if the town had decorated the trees for the event or if Greencastle had been "yarn bombed" but several of the trees on the square were decorated with knitting.

The event itself was overwhelming in the best way. I experienced a head rush followed by a headache and at one point I thought maybe I should just sit down with my head between my knees. I even felt weepy. Not from exhaustion but from the frustration of having so much I'd like to do, so much fiber I'd like to spin, so much beautiful yarn I'd love to knit with and never ever have enough time to do it all. Considering all the temptations surrounding me, I was very prudent in my purchasing, and except for an angora goat and an angora rabbit, I left nothing behind that haunts me. Leaving the goats and rabbits behind really wasn't all that hard because:

#1. I didn't drive.

#2. They poop.

Here is what I did bring home:

Just kidding. I left these cuties behind, too.

This roving is from a local farm. I mean LOCAL. As in not far from home! Funny to drive all that way and stumble across a fiber farm that is nearly in my own backyard. This fiber is a Border Leicester/ Cormo cross, is a soft, beautiful sheep's gray and should be wonderful to spin- from Westfield Woolies.

This beautiful yarn will be this scarf.

Kauni EQ

In hindsight, I wish I'd taken a photo of the Fiber Optics booth. Kimber Baldwin's saturated colors were stunning. I lingered there and enjoyed chatting with Kimber. Kimber blogs about the day and you can see photos of her booth being set up. It was hard to narrow all those color choices down, but having the expert dyer close at hand helped me to make a decision. I bought these two skeins of Footnotes-

Footnotes- Straight No Chaser (gold) and Cabernet Nights

-and I plan on using them for this scarf.

As if all that isn't enough- and let's just pretend that there aren't already more than several pounds of roving already stashed away- I couldn't resist adding these to my spinning stash.

This is "Shimmy" from River's Edge Fiber Arts, colorway River Stone. The fiber is 65% Merino, 15% Tencel, 10% Banana (yes, BANANA!!) and 10% Milk. I love the feel and colors of this but also can't wait to be able to say I spun some banana!!

This lovely roving is also from River's  Edge Fiber Arts and is called Screaming Wild Monkeys. The colorway is called Bachelor Button, which is a perfect description of the colors. It is 70% Superwash Merino, 15 % Seacell, and 15% Banana. We spoke with the mastermind behind the fiber. She is equal parts mad scientist and artist and I say that with respect and awe.  Hers is a brain that does not rest. She Has It Figured Out and if she hasn't figured it out yet, she will.

I also ordered a jumbo flyer and bobbin for my spinning wheel from the Woolery so I can ply my yarns together into one skein rather that breaking it into two small skeins.

It took the entire afternoon to peruse the booths and then go back to select booths to make our purchases. Even having done that, it was hard to leave, and there were a couple of false starts back to the car as one or another of us decided that she couldn't leave without something, or without one last look at something else.
We stopped on the way back home at the Swizzle Stick, the bar companion to the tea room we lunched in. Another good meal, a glass of wine, good conversation and home by 9. Like I said. One of my Best Days ever.

Love,
Kim

And The Winner Is . . . .

Dear Mom,
The winner of the Starbucks coffee (and goodies!) giveaway is:
***drum roll ***

BIRDIE!!!!!!  :-)  Yipee!!!!!

Birdie, please send me an email at bills3girls@hotmail.com so that I can get some of your information!!

Spring break this week--we are going to my favorite creek slogging park.  Pictures tomorrow!

Love,
Wendy

More shawl pictures

Dear Mom,

Turns out taking a picture of the prettiest shawl I ever made is harder than I thought it would be.

My clothesline plan turned out lots of pictures like this:

I don't even want to tell  you how many attempts I made trying to get a picture of this thing hanging on the clothesline on a breezy day before I gave up. Sometimes I wonder about myself.

I ended up taking a picture of the shawl modeled by the Reliable Elle.

I am taller than Elle, so the shawl won't nearly touch the ground when I wear it.

I've spent most of the last two beautiful days outside working in the yard, trying to help the lawn recover from last summer's drought- spraying the chickweed and dandelions that are trying to take over and planting grass seed. We lost two small spruce trees and a little white pine seedling that the Young Lady brought home from school 4 years ago. I found a spot for the pussy willow I've been wanting and started cleaning up the perennial beds. I don't know if it is due to the weather or the drought or both, but it seems that things are late in sprouting up this spring.

We're continuing to move forward with our spring cleaning plan. The upstairs is nearly finished! We worked on the Young Man's room over spring break and the kids bathroom is finished, too. We've started the prep work on the upstairs hallway and stairway, but are taking advantage of the good weather to get some outdoor projects done- namely, a major fence overhaul that we hope (please, God?) will keep Patsy from jumping out. This weekend's forecast has colder temps and rain coming in, so we'll be back at it with paint brushes and rollers in hand.

All that yard work hasn't left much time for knitting. I did pull out another shawl that had just been started before getting pushed aside. My notes indicate that I started knitting it in July 09. I am determined to get this one finished, too. Not enough progress on it to show a picture, but when there is something worth sharing here, I will.

Love,

Kim

Catch a Falling Star is Born

Dear Mom,
It took about 5 1/2 years from start to finish, but I think it may be the prettiest thing I've ever knitted.
It is the Catch a Falling Star shawl from the book Knits from the North Country.

In the summer of 2005, we took a family trip to Niagara Falls. We visited the lovely Canadian side of the falls and while we were there we hunted down a local yarn shop. The Knitting Habit was appropriately well stocked in Canadian wools. It was there that I found the book and purchased enough Briggs and Little Sport yarn to make the shawl. I tried to put off starting the shawl, telling myself to finish other projects first, but the beautiful pattern and that wonderful wool wouldn't be put off and I clearly remember starting the shawl when school started that fall. As a sort of celebratory treat. I would imagine that 80% of the knitting was completed in the first few months. However. Each row of the shawl adds stitches. The instructions are written out rather than charted and reading the pattern required my complete concentration. No TV. No conversation. No stopping until the row was complete. And the longer the rows, the more time I needed to find to do that level of concentrating. Eventually, the shawl was put away and occasionally brought out for another try. I don't know how long this last stretch in time-out lasted, but I do know for certain that it hasn't been worked on since Patsy came on the scene.

Anyway, after finishing your mohair sweater I was a bit lost there for a bit. Having recently relocated all my yarn stash when we traded the Young Lady's and guest rooms, this shawl was fresh in my mind and I decided to give it another go.

I had a moment of near panic when I discovered that the sticky note I'd been using to mark my place in the pattern had lost that which made it a STICKY note and I needed to decipher my knitting and figure out where I'd left off. I took a deep breath and luckily found my way pretty quickly. In fact I had just over 40 rows left!

As I tend to do, I mapped out some daily goals, figuring that if I stuck to them I could have the shawl off my needles in a week. I did better than that and bound off my last stitch last night! The shawl is currently blocking on the only floorspace that was big enough to both accommodate its size and keep it

protected from a dog who may decide that wet wool is a great thing to nap on. I've not been able to get a good photo of the entire shawl, but once it is dry my plan is to pin it to the clothesline and hopefully get a picture that does this beauty justice.

Here, though, is a picture that shows off the lace work. I have the shawl blocking on a white king size sheet. I've used my blocking wires that aren't really blocking wires (they are stainless steel tig wires from the welding supply) and pinned them through the sheet right into the carpeting.

I've decided on my next sweater project- another vacation yarn purchase.Instead of making the sweater I originally planned for this yarn, I am going to adapt this sweater. If you've clicked on that link you may have noticed that the sweater pattern is not in English. Fortunately, the graphs speak a universal knitting language. I'll be reworking all the math anyway- the sweater is written for Lopi yarn, a heavy weight yarn, and the yarn I'll be using is pretty fine (less bulk,you know). And if worse comes to worse, Merrily Mary Lee sent me this knitting translation website. I am also inspired to finish another shawl I started a couple of summers ago. That one has way more that 40 rows to go, but its another pretty one.

Love,

Kim

P.S. If you haven't already done so, don't forget to leave a comment here if you'd like to try to win some Starbuck's coffee from Wendy!

Starbucks Coffee And A Giveaway!

Dear Mom,
It has been over a year since I became one of these.
While I am still incredibly spoiled, it has been much harder than I thought making the transition to a real working Mom.  I stay home during the days so I am always available for my children if they are sick, have orthodontist appointments, snow days, spring breaks and summer vacations.  But I am gone several evenings each week and I miss cooking big meals, attending to homework, tucking and kissing "babies" into bed.
I have earned a promotion to shift manager, I have great insurance for the family, I have a 401(k) plan that I can call my own, I can make a fabulous doppio espresso wherever I may be, and I have so many invaluable friendships that I would have missed out on otherwise.  I have also learned that, even at the age of 44, I can still learn a new "trade" (yes, you can teach an old dog new tricks!); I can draw from inner strength that I didn't even know I had and I can still make each day new, fun and full of love and laughter!

(Photo montage courtesy of iPhone---not the greatest quality but I do have lots of fun!)

In honor of Starbucks, coffee lovers and personal growth---a giveaway!!  I don't think we've ever had a giveaway on our blog and I'd like to start!!  (Bonnie Jo's win inspired me!!!)  :-) 

Leave a coffee comment and I will randomly choose someone next Sunday afternoon (April 17th) to receive 1 pound of Starbucks Anniversary Blend coffee and probably some other Starbucks goodies and surprises!!

Good Luck!

Love,

Wendy

All Done.

Dear Mom,

All done! Your mohair sweater is off my needles, washed and dry. Elle is wearing it until the next time I see you.This sweater is as light as a feather and softsoftsoft.

I hope it fits and is what you wanted it to be. I certainly enjoyed making it for you.

I rarely find myself confronted with the dilemma of what to knit next, but this is exactly where I am. Usually I am knitting away full speed ahead and planning the next project. Nothing really excites me right now. Last night I cast on April's Socks during Dancing with the Stars and knit through that sad Butler Basketball game.

This is Vesper Sock yarn- called Great Googlie Moogle. I put a purl row in there and now I don't know why I thought that would be a fun idea. I may rip back.

I'll go hang out with my yarn. That should shake off this funk. If nothing else, I know I can find a shawl that needs to be finished.....and a scarf.....and another shawl.....and a sweater......
Love,
Kim

I Won!

Dear Mom,

I won a blog contest!  Terry Golson was spring cleaning, and she generously decided to have a give-away contest to re-home some items she hasn't used in a while.  The prize was this charming hand-stenciled cotton runner. 

Terry is an animal lover and an author of many cookbooks and an adorable children's book, Tillie Lays an Egg.  I found Terry's Hen Blog one day while viewing the live-streaming webcam of her flock of hens.  Terry loves to speak about her backyard poultry keeping, and she has even appeared on The Martha Stewart Show! 

I have been a follower of Terry's blog for a long time, soaking up her advice and enjoying her pictures, recipes and animal stories.  You can imagine how excited I was to win her blog contest!

The package was sealed with a hen sticker!

Ooooo, lots of other goodies, too....I feel like a kid on Christmas morning!  The package included a note card featuring Agnes and Edwina Hen.

Look at these clever one-of-a-kind magnets made from pages out of vintage books!

And here is the eagerly anticipated table runner!

Time for a photo shoot!

Okay, so I saved some of Meg's eggs and a few her beautiful feathers...and I keep them in a teacup.

This runner will be a great Easter decoration.  Thanks, Terry!

Love, Bonnie Jo

Marching on....

Dear Mom,
It took two weekends, but the master bedroom, bath and closet can be checked off the spring cleaning list. At times, some of that closet cleaning and under the furniture cleaning felt like an archaeological dig. We found a tv remote that had been lost so long ago I'd forgotten we ever had it. I was ruthless and except for my wedding dress and a few sentimental things, I got rid of anything that hadn't been worn or that fit poorly or that looked unflattering - or at least the most unflattering stuff; one could argue that the men's oxford shirts I wear aren't exactly flattering. In other words, there is very little left hanging on my side of the closet. There are plenty of sweaters though!!
The bathroom got a fresh coat of paint, and even a simple thing like a new shower caddy made a big improvement.
I made a new shade for the window. I really lucked out on this one and found a fabric remnant that had the colors I was looking for and just the right amount of yardage. For less that $30 we have a new window treatment.

We'll continue our trek through the upstairs. I have to say that the results feel GOOD. Less really is More. Less dirt, less stuff, less clutter, less confusion. More control, satisfaction, space. This could become an addiction.

I thought I'd show you the progress I've made on your sweater. Back in January you told me you would like a cream mohair sweater similar in style to Primrose. Finding the right yarn took a little time and then POOF! I got an email alert from WEBS and lo and behold, there was the Ironstone Mohair I'd been looking for on sale. Stuff like that almost never happens.
Anyway, I swatched last week, did some MATH, and on Saturday evening I popped in Season One of Glee and started knitting.

Last night I got past the yoke shaping and things will move really quickly now. This may be finished sometime next week!!

I wish I could take a photo that would let you feel how soft this is. Knitting with mohair is not the easiest thing to do, but it isn't a chore either. Especially when the results feel so scrumptious. I caught myself considering ordering more colors of this yarn and making blankets. Actually, I was thinking of this blanket. As if I need more yarn. OR another project.

Love,
Kim

This is That Sweater

Dear Mom,

The pattern is written, edited and up for sale! It can be found on Ravelry and on Warm Thoughts.
Now, back to my regularly scheduled housework.

Love,
Kim

March socks

Dear Mom,
They were started late, but March's socks are finished. Yes, Yes, they do look a little different, don't they?!
They are a perfect example of why one needs to check DYE LOTS on the yarn label. I remember purchasing this yarn on vacation- on our way to Myrtle Beach, years ago, in a lovely yarn shop in Hendersonville, NC. My Hero coordinates our pit stops with yarn shop visits if at all possible, and I remember this was one of those. And that despite all reassurances that I could "take all the time" I needed, I KNEW there two children and a husband anxious to get back on the road and get to the beach. Obviously I skipped the "check the dye lot" part of my yarn purchase.
I'll keep this odd pair for myself. My feet and I won't mind the slight difference in color, and the socks will still be just as warm.
Love,
Kim

Simmering Potpourri

Dear Mom,
Potpourri is one of those words that doesn't look right no matter how I try to spell it. One R? Po-por-eee. Two RR's?  Pot-Poor-rEEE. You cannot pronounce it the way it is spelled or spell it the way it is pronounced. Spell check came in handy on this one.

When I was at the Spin Workshop a couple of weekends ago, a fellow classmate asked if she might borrow my niddy noddy overnight and return it in class the next morning. Of course she could!
When Melissa returned the niddy noddy she gave me some of her home made simmering potpourri as a thank you. I thought, WOW! What a nice and totally unexpected completely unnecessary thing to do!..... I think I want to be her friend.
The potpourri is wonderful. I asked Melissa for the "recipe". She gave me several. The ingredients are all things you probably have in your kitchen and spice cabinet. I have her permission to share the recipes with you.

The combination Melissa gave to me was this:
orange peel (literally- the peel off of an orange.)
broken up cinnamon sticks
a few whole cloves

Put it all in a saucepan with enough water to cover and simmer away. Just be sure to check and refill the water- it evaporates quickly. Use it for as long as you like, until it looks yucky. And then make some more.

Melissa also suggests the following options-

Grapefruit peel with bay leaves

Lime peels with broken cardamom seeds

Lemongrass that has been smashed well and cut up for a citronella scent.

Cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg.

When I saw Melissa at Open Spin the weekend before the workshop, I knew she was somehow familiar to me, but I couldn't place her. When she started talking about her rugs (she is a Hooker!), the light bulb flickered on and I remembered. WAaaay back when I took the rug weaving class Melissa walked in with a few of her hooked rugs. They were impressive, inspiring, unforgettable. Works of art. I hope to see more of her rugs someday.

And this has nothing to do with simmering potpourri, but look at what I found at the Tractor Supply when I went to buy more Orvus wool wash:

Cute CUTE little baby chicks.

And even CUTER baby ducks.

Think of the neighbors, Kim.

And the dogs.

And the POOP.

Pictures will have to do. But ohhhh.

Love,
Kim

That Sweater

Dear Mom,
You know that sweater?

The one you can wear as a jacket in the spring? Or toss on over a turtleneck on chilly winter days?
The sweater that covers your bottom and wraps around you just enough that you can wear it as a robe on days you feel like hanging out in your jammies?

And it looks nice belted around you, but nice open, too.

The one with a collar that fold over but will just as easily stand up to warm the back of your neck when you feel a draft?

And it has pockets for a hankie and a cell phone....

...... or dog treats and an ipod.

And the sleeves fit easy enough to slip your arms in and out, but not so loose that they hang into that pot of soup you're stirring on the stove?

You know that sweater?

Well, THIS is THAT Sweater.

Pattern coming soon!

Love,

Kim

Random stuff

Dear Mom,
Today the sun is shining and before I leave to go to the dog park (with my knitting- thanks, Carol!) I have a photo of the guest room, taken in good light, to give you a better idea of the colors.

We are so enchanted with this room that both My Hero and I confessed to walking in, looking around and then closing the door behind us when we leave so the room will stay this nice!

Speaking of the dog park, I need to give an updated Patsy report. In this case it has been no news is good news. March 9th marked the 4 month-iversary of our meeting with the behavior specialist. It was the day that Patsy could be free of her house rope forever- or more realistically, for most of the time except when we decide she needs a little reminder or we need to be certain of control. We have also graduated from weekly phone calls to the behaviorist, to weekly email reports, to semi- weekly emails to our current status of "Call if you need me, and I'd love to hear about Patsy occasionally" reports. In other words, we've sort of graduated! The last thing we added to our arsenal of tricks, and the thing that seemed to tip the scale in our favor was a Motion Collar. This thing is fantastic and I wish I'd had one a year ago. I think we would have thwarted most, if not all, of Patsy's behavior issues if we'd known about it and how to use it. Not to say that the way things progressed hasn't been good. The motion collar delivers an irritating buzz- not a shock. I would compare it to that feeling you have when you hit your funny bone. We control the buzz with a handheld remote, and we can control the level of intensity that Patsy receives. Barking on walks and in the car has been significantly reduced, as has her bad habit of jumping the fence. Eventually, with consistent use of the motion collar, these behaviors should be eliminated, just like dogs with invisible fences often stay put even when not wearing their collars. Patsy is not a perfect dog, but she is a much mellower, well-behaved girl than she was 5 months ago. Things will only get better with time (and age).

I couldn't sit on my new spinning knowledge for long, and Tuesday evening I spent some time literally picking through my bag full of dirty fleece, separating the locks, getting rid of unmentionable bits and pieces of straw and burrs. It took some time to fill a mesh laundry bag with about 6 oz of wool, which I then washed. It dried overnight and last night I flick carded a small portion and spun it.
This photo shows a lock of dirty fleece, a cleaned lock in the middle, and a lock that has been carded beneath them both.

Here is a closer look at the three of them together-

And here is what I spun last night-

I should have weighed the washed wool to see how much the 6 oz of dirty fleece yielded, and I didn't weigh how much I actually carded and spun. I should also keep track of my time, just out of curiosity. My best guess is that it took 4 hours to make the yarn on the bobbin. And I loved every moment of it.

Love,
kim