Oh Me, Oh My!

This has been one whirlwind of a quarter! While my academic pursuits weren't particularly strenuous, I did a bit of soul searching (for lack of a better term) and am feeling rather comfortable with graduating earlier than I expected. I will finish in December of this year and hopefully start the new year living in another place.


As for my animal adventures, I have procured 6 baby chickens! We have five Rhode Island Reds and one Barred Rock chick, which we have named Moonshine. Aren't they adorable? They are getting to the stage where they aren't so cute (losing baby fluff and gaining adult feathers). Beyond that, I still have baby chicken and now an adult Jersey Giant. Most of these chicks will be going to good homes where they can be loved and lay plenty of delicious eggs.

This week, I also procured a TON of yummy yarns for weaving rugs and wearables. I plan to complete at least two projects this summer - a rug and a collapse weave scarf or the like. I'll update again later in the week, when I have more time...

The Whole Kit-n-Kaboodle

So! It's been near a month since I've updated this blog, but a lot has been happening (including me losing the connector cable to my camera). The most recent drama is that somehow our chickens have been escaping. One was found yesterday, but the other is still MIA. The longer she is away from home, the more I worry we've lost her for good. I'll be calling shelters today to see if anyone has picked her up. If you're on the westside and have seen a buff orpington roaming around, please leave a comment or if you know me, give me a call.

Update: Still no word on our buff.... Perhaps she'll show up in our backyard someday, but for now, we've resigned ourselves to having lost our beloved Buffy.

Here are some shots of my blooming backyard:


...and...


So, here is what I've got going in the form of projects:

This is one of my specialty yarns....

And below is my first attempt at dyeing anything


Here is the same stuff spun up for my weaving project!

*Sigh*
Speaking of spun stuff, I need to get back to doing that. My goal is to finish the turquoise and then start on the blue so that I can switch back and forth between the colors on my weaving project. Back to the wheel!

Seattle Weavers' Guild

My teacher asked me to attend a SWG meeting with her this week and it was so much fun! The presenter for the program was John Marshall who apprenticed under a mater dyer in Japan. Learning about his work has really inspired me. Next year will be all about fiber arts (gasp! I know it seems contrary to my previous plans, but I've got to follow what I'm passionate about, right?)

I've got so many pictures of the event I don't want to post them all, so I will list a few. All of them can be found on my other blog if you're interested...

More Awesome Fibery Goodness!

Yeah! I went to the Shepherd's Extravaganza over the weekend and found some delectable fibers. They were all alpaca and alpaca blends.... I found this lucious suri alpaca:


...as well as this nice silver/gray alpaca:


...and tussah silk/faun alpaca blend that I'm going to spin up and weave into a delectable scarf for John:


Speaking of weaving, my loom is finally here and I hope to set it up sometime this week!

I have to say that I really love what I'm doing and Brenna (my bestest friend) and I have been scheming about what we will do when we move to California. I have to say I'm wishing more and more for that day to come. 'Soon!' I cry, 'Soon!'

It Has Been a While....

...but not to worry! I've been busy. The past two days have been dedicated to cleaning up the yard. This week and last I was busy ordering dyes, fiber, and other odds and ends. I'm so excited! My father bought me a drum carder as a gift (seeing as he is so excited as well).... Here is a picture if you're curious:


Tuesday is when my loom will be arriving as well.... A 42" loom for only $250!!! Holy cow! I'll be taking pictures of that as well when I see it this weekend. I've been spinning lace weight yarn lately and to be honest, I never realized how easy it was! I have also come to understand why merino is the way to go for such fine threads.... the crimp and softness is just wonderful!



The blue hued bit is some of a silk hanky and the white is my lace weight single - and boy is that some lightweight stuff... I was able to get it as thin as thread once I got into the swing of things (sorry for the crappy picture though).



This is my 'specialty' fiber, which includes two types of bamboo fiber, cotton, ramie, soy silk, tussah and cultivated silk, camel down and nylon. This does not include my 3 pounds of wool and pound of mohair.... I'm gonna be a busy girl, no doubt!
Next weekend is when all the fun really begins. I need to order some more things for dyeing, but as soon as I get them, I'll be ready to test them out... The first part of this quarter has been a bit slow, but I can see it picking up a lot of steam by the end. Next week, I'll talk more about my garden and the out of doors.... The past few days have been marvelous with their sunshine and warmth and cooling breezes - I can't wait for more!

Finally!

So! I've started my ILC blog which you can find here -> http://spinweavedye.blogspot.com/

As the quarter progresses, I hope to be posting some pretty looking things... and perhaps some disasters, but that's learning, right?

Anyway, I've also (finally) set up an etsy shop! Once I get it all nice an' purty I'll provide a link... Until then, know that I'm working hard to get it all up and running!

Life is gonna move quickly this spring - I can just feel it. Can't you?

Buffy the Worm Slayer!

Well, it has been a blast being sick, but I think I'm ready to leave the party. As of late, I've been surviving off of tea, pancakes, Buffy and Xena. Yeah, you read that correctly. I finished DS9 and had nothing else to turn to... Don't judge me too harshly!

Anyway, I haven't done much work in my garden as of late with all the deceptive sunny days leading into frosty nights of doom for seedlings. I'm watching my little ones break through the soil of their little paper pots and attempt to reach the light. How vigorous and single-minded they are! Tomatoes, eggplant, and artichokes all clamoring to reach the "sun". Soon enough there will be an entire slew of little plantlets to put out in the soil and encourage...

As for fiber arts, I'm pulling everything together for my Independent Learning Contract this spring. I'll be doing some serious spinning, dyeing and even learn how to weave! How awesome is that?? My father is so excited he is willing to pitch in for a drum carder and even a loom!!! That is, after I've gotten around to learning how to weave..... Thank goodness the college seems to have an ample supply of looms at their disposal. Poor things need homes and fingers to work their threads; instead they mostly seem to sit around collecting dust. I'll be posting more as things progress and will actually have a second blog chronicling everything I learn and cover next quarter.