I had a productive week in some ways and in others I feel like there was not enough time. I think I just did not do a good job of balancing my to do list. I have a post almost ready to go about our Angora rabbits but I just did not have the time I needed to get it done. I hope to put it up tomorrow!

But there was knitting and playing with fiber!! Of course there was! But we won't talk about the housework that needs to get done......no let's not go there!

I finished my Snowfling Mittens!! Such a fun pattern! And thanks to my 5 year old for the great shot of me with my mittens!


I also cast off on the test knit I was doing for Susan Ashcroft. Everyone should knit this pattern! It is such a relaxing knit and the end result looks like far more work then it actually is! I used my handspun for it but it would be a great pattern for any type of yarn. It is the perfect size and it has been cold enough for me to actually wear it this week! (what happened to Spring???) It's called the Little Big Wrap.


Don't even ask me what I am reading........at the moment I am knee deep in cataloguing our spinning guilds library of resources. When I offered to take over the library I never realized the benefit of having these amazing books and DVD's stored at my house!!! 6 bins of them!! Maybe next week I will start sharing if I can chose one to start with!

I hope everyone that celebrates Easter had a lovely Holiday. Ours was a bit quiet and simple but sometimes those can be the best ones. Our chickens gave us a nice Easter surprise and starting laying and there were great big Easter hugs for our 4 legged friends.



There was a bit of spinning on the wheel this week but I am saving that for another post of it's own! I finally have a plan for Apricot the Alpaca's fleece and I want to share that this week!! But here is a sneak peek at what I have been doing.........


 Joining Ginny over at Small Things for the yarn along this week. Happy knitting!

Most of my time this week has been focused on a test knit for designer Susan Ashcroft aka stitchnerd on Ravelry. The pattern is Little Big Wrap and is set to be released in April. Not only has it been a delightful and relaxing knit but also a stash buster as I am using early handspun from my over flowing shelf of handspun skeins.



  Early handspun really means it was early on or actually with these skeins, in the first year of my spinning "career". Not sure career is the right word......no it's not .......but at the moment I can't think of another one.  So if you look at these early skeins and the skeins I am making now there is a big difference. Earlier skeins are not very consistent and tend to be a bit lumpy in spots. I am still proud of my earlier handspun. We all must start and learn and progress. And with spinning it is all about the practice. So when I look at these skeins I see how far I have come. All that to say these "early" skeins can still look amazing in a knitted project. I am finding that the knitting or weaving can make your handspun shine. And isn't that why we spin anyway. At least for me......I spin so I can create beautiful things and this pattern is really making my heart sing. It is designed to show off a beautiful skein of yarn, hand spun or commercial. I am excited to get this finished today and blocked. We might just have a few more colder days that I can actually get to use it!


I also finished my latest spin. I ended up with almost 900 yards of this lovely and soft fingering weight. I shared the fiber and the process in last weeks Yarn Along and here are a few finished photos.







I finally cast on for my March socks! Let's see if I can finish them before the end of the month! I'm just doing the Hermiones pattern on my toe up 2 at a time.

Mr. Happy Jackals

We are busy this week in the Rabbitry! I will be doing a post on how we harvest fiber from our angoras later this week. So if you are interested come back and check it out. I also did a post on the sheep shearing we went to last week and you can find that here.

So many of you are reading Knitlandia so I had to pick it up and start. I am really enjoying it!! Joining the Yarn Along over at Small Things today. Happy knitting everyone!

This past Tuesday Christopher and I headed out to a lovely farm in New Paltz NY. White Barn Sheep and Wool is a beautiful farm and fiber shop run by Paula. It was shearing day and we were invited to jump in and help and learn all we could about the process.


Paula has a herd of about 40 sheep. She has Cormo sheep and a cross of Cormo and California Red. This cross produces a fleece that is slightly coarser then the Cormo but still with loads of crimp. The red faced sheep are the cross's.






After the warmer weather  we have been having the sheep seemed happy to be rid of their heavy coats and after shearing they ran out to the pasture to sun themselves.






Just watching the shearing process was amazing. It is quite a skill and the shearer made it look easy. The sheep seem to just relax when they are placed on their backs and there is very little protest from them during the process.

After a sheep was sheared we took the fleece to the other side of the barn where tarps were laid out for skirting. Skirting means taking and removing all the really dirty bits and pieces of the fleece that are not usable. Mostly around the neck and rear area. Then the fleece is rolled up and bagged for sending off to the mill. It will then be made into roving and yarn which Paula sells in her shop.



 One benefit of working with the fleeces was the lanolin. I love the feel of the lanolin on my hands and although they were dirty they were super soft and moisturized! I also loved picking the fleeces up off the shearing floor. They still had the amazing warmth of the sheep radiating out of them!

Many people came by to help and young and old alike jumped in and took part in the process. Christopher helped to move sheep......carry fleeces and by the end of the day could skirt a fleece with the best of them.


As we were skirting I came across one of the cormo cross fleeces that just really spoke to me. That sounds silly but in a way it was true. It had beautiful crimp and not a lot of vegetable matter. I scooped up that fleece and put it to the side because of course I was bringing that one home! I love that I met the girl it came off of and was part of the process from the beginning. I now have 6 lbs. of fleece to process!



Paula is so knowledgeable and is more then willing to share what she knows with others. She has created a community of fiber enthusiasts and a place where others can learn and grow in fiber arts. I am planning a trip back very soon.

I will leave you with a little video of the shearing.........

Some days there is more time for sitting and crafting then others but really I do sit and knit and spin almost every day. Because on the days when I don't.......well those are not good days. Not like I become mean and nasty but that I am aware that something is missing. Something which makes me sit and be in the moment and become aware and create. I am a person that needs that .......every day. With 7 kids living at home and 5 of them being home schooled our days are full and busy. Making that time to jut sit and create is so good for my mind and my spirit. I know most of you will totally understand and relate!

I was spinning last night and looked up over my bobbin and spied my youngest daughter sitting at the loom weaving on her scarf. I wish I had my camera right there to snap a shot of that but I have it in my memory and that is good enough. My kids need this time too and that is what I truly love about our fiber arts. The whole family can join in and participate. We have seasons were everyone is knitting......lately there has been a lot of needle felting and weaving. And spinning is being learned as well.I find my boys especially love to work with their hands and they might not sit still with a book for long but put them at the loom and they are absorbed for an hour or more.

I believe we are created in God's image. Our God is the most awesome creator of all and so of course we have a need in us to create as well. So making time for that creating is important and I am realizing that more and more!

I have been caught up in spinning this week. We are having an Unexpected Combo Spin a long in the Three Waters Farm group on Ravelry. The color combinations have been amazing and I had to jump in! I decided to use a braid of super fine merino in the Sunbleached Colorway and Light in the trees on organic polwarth. I'm spinning up a bobbin of each and will ply them together.

Sun Bleached Bobbin

 

Light in the Trees Bobbin

 The spin is going along quickly and I will be plying these together over the next couple of days! I'm very excited to see the resulting yarn!

I am also working on a test knit using hand spun. It is a crescent shaped shawl. I always love knitting with my hand spun and this pattern is so much fun. I will let you know when the pattern is released.


Yesterday my son and I attended shearing day at a local farm. I will be doing a blog post all about in a day or two. If you are interested come back to hear all about our adventures! This is one of the cormo cross sheep we had the pleasure of meeting!


 I picked up Knitlandia this week as everyone else has been talking about it! I'm hoping to start reading it today! I'm joining Ginny over at Small things for the Yarn Along. Happy knitting everyone!!

It's been a busy week. I am finally feeling stronger and the weather has been warming up and that means hiking and spending more time outdoors. I got one of my mittens done and it fits perfect. I was worried between the extra yarn from the color work and then the lining. But it really fits like a glove.....sorry I had to go there!!


I was able to cast on the second mitten mid hike yesterday. The kids and I took a trip to Promiseland State Park and hiked Conservation Island. We brought a picnic lunch and the kids explored on the beach of the lake and Mom sat and knit. It was almost 60 degrees and I enjoyed feeling the sun when it peeked out. Spring is on the air and we are all so ready!!

I had a lot of fun getting started making batts with Apricot the alpaca. I could not resist getting some on the wheel right away and I was not disappointed!
I pulled apart the batts and made little nests of fiber which spun up like butter! I am in the process of sampling to see if I want a 2 or a 3 ply yarn.




Our guild met this past Friday and one of our members who is a master spinner gave a program on spinning singles. I brought along a braid of Shetland in the fall leaves colorway from Three Waters Farm. I tried to spin consistent with a slow treadle and my hands moving faster. Trying not to let too much twist into the fiber. I was a little worried when it cam off the bobbin as it looked over twisted. but after a warm bath and a little thwaking it balanced out and became a very soft and beautiful yarn. I am leaning towards knitting a shawl with this.




Here are a few photos from our last hike. Apparently I am raising monkeys.....so yes this is my circus and yes....those are my monkeys


I'm joining Ginny for this weeks Yarn Along.....Happy knitting my friends!

 Two weeks ago the flu swept through here and took us down in a mighty swoop. Now the kids bounced back fairly quickly. But with my immune system still so weak I have not been able to get my health back to normal yet. You know you are really sick when you can't even knit on a plain sock to pass the time.It was brutal.
The past few days I was able to get knitting again and I finished my Waiting for Rain Shawl. To say I am happy with it is an understatement! This is my new favorite shawl and one I will be wearing a lot. It is just the right size and I love the color combo. It was a very fun knit and I highly recommend it!



Yesterday I cast on a pair of colorwork mittens. I only knit here and there but one mitten is almost done! I still need to knit the liner but I might be addicted to colorwork mittens so fun and fast!


We had some warmer weather this past weekend with some hints of spring in it! The kids and I are heading out hiking again on a daily basis. I am hoping it helps to bring my energy level back up! It was not a bad winter here but we are all very ready for Spring to arrive!


Being so sick there was no spinning this week but we did wash Apricot's fleece and we plan on getting it on the drum carder this week. It is going to make some super soft lovely alpaca yarn!



I'm joining Ginny over at the Yarn Along and I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone is up to this week! Happy Knitting!!