To Felt or Not to Felt

If you recall I sent out the request of to felt or not to felt early in the year.These are pics of my arghhhhh #*#!%#*#&&* mistake. I got up early this am due to the time change all raring to go. I planned to clean up the garden today as well as wash my beautiful Jacob fleece. Double bummer I tell you. I put it in the washer to soak on the soak cycle and the damn washer started agitating!!!! It wasn't supposed to do that...boohoo....waaaaaaah. I've got felt!!!! Luckily I only washed two thirds of the fleece so at least I have some of it washed properly. Beware of your washer, fiber mavens. You never know when it will turn on you and your fleece. I will never leave my washer again on the soak cycle!!!

I'm trying to decide what I can stuff with the felted fleece....waaaaaaah. Maybe I can wear it as a Halloween costume tonight...

Spinning and Old Portland Cat

As the pic above shows our very own Patty truly enjoys spinning on her antique wheel. It's clackity clack was music to our ears at the monthly spin in at Sue's R.I. Handspun. Patty showed us a wool baby hat that several of us just have to make.

We had the pleasure of visiting with Sue's granddaughter, son and daughter-in-law. Carol M. was there with a bag full of wonderful knitted garments. She brought along a delightful top down hat which Judy modeled and I want to make. Hear that, Carol? Carol also showed us a sweet baby gansey in Frog Tree alpaca yarn.

Judy was spinning some Barbie colored yarn with a delightful sparkle. I will try to post the pic tomorrow. Sue had her hands full ...she was holding her granddaughter who wore a charming ladybug outfit complete with antennae.

I spun some black wool mixed with alpaca and bunny fur! We missed Paula and Carol R :(.

Here is my very first pic of an Old Portland cat. She gazed below at the folks visiting her city. She was a delightful calico...sadly my zoom lens was not powerful enough for a real closeup.

Other Bloggers.....
Here's a pirate's hat, Matey!
Judith explains how to get started in beekeeping.

Of Wool and Cat

As well as knitting and spinning I love to do any craft that involves a needle. Above is my first attempt at a appliqued wool quilt.This is only the center panel. If you love quilt's, check out the gift that Gerald received.

Below is a wonderful pic of one of my favorite sheep...the Shetland. He is too wonderful!


Lastly I have a pic of my cat Ruth with her smuggest expression. Wonder what she's thinking? Any ideas?

Oh I Forgot!

I bought some lovely Romney roving as well....just 1 and 3/4 lbs. Wonder what I'll do with this?

Goodies from the Fair

Some have asked what goodies I purchased at the Fair. Of course, this is after I said I'd buy nothing. Well....in a way I kept my word. I did not buy any yarn...LOL. Below are pics of some luscious blue suri alpaca, wool, silk and angelina for a touch of sparkle. The next is some unbleached silk I plan to dye.

Below is some pin drafted Icelandic roving that I hope to spin into a laceweight yarn for a small shawl .

Lastly ...here's the cat crew!

More Rhinebeck Stuff

Here is a fun meeting with Judy,Laurie and Cassie at Grafton Fibers

Linda and Kim were also having a great time! Kim and I caught each other in the picture taking mode.

The obligatory Jacob pic.

At last we leave the two day fiber extravaganza! Next post I'll try to post the goodies I purchased.

Fiber and Food at Rhinebeck

What a delightful weekend I had at Rhinebeck last weekend. As you can see Judy, her sister Linda and I met up with some new fiber buddies and bloggers. Michelle, Burt, Linda and Kim like us bought fiber and other goodies.
The weekend started off with a rainstorm, but by Saturday afternoon the sun was out in Rhinebeck. Unfortunately, RI was getting a flood and DH was very concerned since our next door neightbor got 5 feet of water in his basement. We were very lucky not to get flooded.

I did not buy too much at the festival. I picked up some Romney roving, unbleached silk, blue Alpaca mixed with wool and angelina. I also picked up some lovely ceramic tiles of country landscapes. I was very bad in the food department buying chocolate chip scones and peanut butter chocolate bars!!!

When I get my Hello software working I will try to launch other pictures of Rhinebeck. 

The Day Before Rhinebeck

Well, folks, you know it just had to rain to spoil my trip to Rhinebeck......argggghhhhh. Double bummer!! The weather will not deter me. The forecast sounds very rainy for the trip there. Saturday there will be rain, but you know what who needs sunshine to go to a fiber party :).

Just thinking of all those barns full of fiber is enough to compensate for the rain. Also there is the food....my low carb diet is going to suffer this weekend. The Chocolate Bar is a must visit spot as anyone who has gone to Rhinebeck knows.

The big item on my mind is what to pack. I hate to pack because I worry that I won't bring the right stuff to wear and be too cold or too hot. Yes....I must wear my slip stitch cardigan. it's sooo cozy and just warm enough.I think I should bring my Bodega pullover; it doubles for a waterproof jacket. I love how wool keeps the moisture from your skin.

The biggest decision is what to bring along for knitting projects. I will bring the woven stitch Jolie pullover which I have resurrected from the UFO pile. I'm knitting up the front after having to increase while doing woven stitch which can be a pain. I'm feeling very good about this project. I probably should start a mindless pair of socks....you know the kind that involves no pattern at all. Believe it or not I'm messing up razorshell pattern on my latest pair of socks. That could have to do with the fact that I tried to knit them at the ER Monday while nervously waiting for my mom's test results.

Wish me luck for the trip to NY....

What a Day!

What a day I had Saturday! I did my usual chores at home and decided to visit my mom to see how she was doing. After my visit I headed to St John's for the Spin Guild meeting. As I was leaving my car, I managed to swat the garage door remote opener out of the car and into a nearby puddle...agrhhhhhh *&*%$##@#....boy, was I angry. The dang remote was submerged in a 2-3 inch deep puddle.....just what an electronic device needs. I swiftly removed the remote from the dirty puddle, shook off the water and tried to dry it with my shirt while trying to high tail it into the church since it was raining. All the while I knew DH was going to be none to pleased if I came home with a wet remote.

I tried to postpone that thought and knit and spindle spun with the gals at the meeting. We had a good time eating food and comparing projects. Harriet showed up with a knitted charity cap. Marie was using her spindle to spin some gray wool. Renay managed to resurrect a lovely lime green sock to work on while there. Sharon S knitted a super vest with a gray/brown handspun rag yarn. We even had a new member named Marva who gave us her pattern for a wrister made with light bulky weight yarn that is knit a garter stitch rectangle. All so easy.

That evening I tried the remote as I approached the drive way. You know what happened....the door wouldn' topen. So....I had to face Ralph with the news; he was verrrry unhappy. After five attempts at drying the remote with my hairdryed, that baby worked like a charm. DH was verrrrry happy and so was I.

As if that wasn't enough, the final accomplishment of the day occurred Saturday evening when I finished my slip stitch cardigan. Yes.....ready for Rhinebeck!!! Below are pics of it in its unblocked glory. The close up helps you to see the pattern. I am blocking it as I write this morning. I just put it in a cool bath, spun it out in the washer on a very short spin cycle and blocked it out on my dining room table. Guess what, Judy and Marisa??? IT FITS ME!!!!!!!!

Knitting at Sue's

As you can see everyone had something to show last night as we knit and chatted at Sue's.Many of our daily trials and tribulations come to the fore when we gather each Tuesday. We are so fortunate to have such a special gathering of knitters ,spinners and other crafters, but most of all we have each other to hang on to when life grabs us by the arm and shakes us to the core. Today's blog entry is a tribute to this wonderful group!

The first pic is a display of Sue's marvelous handiwork. She has designed and stuffed several Christmas stockings for a Navajo tribe with knitted gifts ( hats) and more goodies. Sue always amazes me with her talents , but also the time she always manages to devote to crafts for others.

Here is another Wool Paddlers errrr.... Peddlers shawl knitted by Paula, Queen of Aran, in her own dyed yarn. If you go to her blog ,you can see she's been buying more yarn from the sea.

She admits to being enabled by our own Judy. BTW check out Judy's blog for her brussell sprouts pic and her ribby cardy. She and Marisa are knitting the same cardy. Marisa tells me she is close to putting in the zipper.

Now...here's a prolific knitter aka Barbara T.... once again knitting one of her famous Manos sweaters. It's a top down sweater that makes sewing up a sweater unnecessary. I note this as I am now sewing together slip stitch cardy.

Is the sheep cute or what!!! Barbara T brought it along last night. We decided to display Carol R beautiful scarf on its back. She plans to wear this scarf with her new wool barn coat which she has neglected to show us. Carol made the coat, I believe, last spring. Come on, Carol, bring this coat to the knit in soon :).

Last but not least here is a baby surplice I've been working on lately in a soft cotton acrylic that is so squeezable. You know how that is, fiber lovers.

Blog Fog

I know I haven't posted in rather a long time. I'm dealing with Blog Fog. Somehow I've been in
no blog period. Thankfully that is over.....Yesterday I had a good time demonstrating spinning at the Hearthside House in Lincoln, R.I. There were many visitors out for an afternoon of crafts. I find that children and men are most fascinating with the art of spinning. I was able to spin a whole bobbin full of creamy wool while Sandy C spun alpaca. Across from us was Chris S working at away at some wonderful rug hooking. Sue D was greatly missed :(.

Naturally I had to use my new camera a Panasonic Lumix FX7. It's all Judy's fault for doing all the foot work checking out different cameras. I think I'm very satisfied with this camera.I thank all those who contributed to the camera fund for my b-day present :).

Last Wednesday Judy, the sock and I visited the sea after eating some Four Seasons' delights.The weather was delightful and I got some camera lessons to boot!

Saturday at The Big E in Springfield

The tradition of butter sculpture continues.

I just love black and white cows and I know Carol R does too!!!

The Oreos!!!

This sheep was so sweet...

A number of reenactors were present.

Here is the prize pumpkin.

I'm Back!!!!

As some of you may know, I was temporarily severed from the web. That's right my computer crashed as they say. But luckily my computer is back on board thanks to one of the folks with whom I work. The biggie is that all my information is intact. Beware...computers can crash so save always and often to CD or disk. I've learned how dependent I am on the web...it's scary. I was actually feeling withdrawal. I missed my cybercommunications, my desktop, the web and all my information. Boy are we hooked.

Here is proof that I'm still knitting. Not a cat carrier, John, .......two sleeves for slip stitch cardigan. Marisa, John and I are headed up to the Big E this weekend to partake of some fair food and check out the livestock as well as our fair entries :).

Mystery Project Finished

Your guesses were off the mark ....LOL! Here I am modeling the project from the back. I had great fun making this. Now I'm back to working on my wool quilt. Sadly I'm off to work and can't quilt or knit until much later when I hope to go to Sue's Knit In.

Sunday Afternoon Knitting

Well.... gang I am almost finished knitting this mystery project. Can you guess what it is going to be?I started it 3pm yesterday afternoon and have about 8 more rows to complete it.

Pi Shawls R Us

As some of you may or may not know I joined the EZPi group at Yahoo because I love knitting shawls and this group plans to make an event out of a making several shawls. One of the group members asked for pics of the shawl so it gave birth to an entry devoted to EZ shawls.

This Pi Shawl shown above was knit many years ago out of unspun Lopi. I also knit one for my daughter that I named the Empty Nest Shawl. These shawls were knit with a lopi that is somewhere between a dk or light worsted weight. I used E. Zimmermann's Pi shawl pattern in Knitter's Almanac. I decided on using her suggested Gull's Wing pattern which is an easy lace pattern as well as a garter stitch border. The shawl is a no- brainer that produces wonderful results. It is so large that I sometimes use it as an afghan or folded in half as a TV shawl. It's wonderfully cozy. As you can see Bennie, my cat, loves the shawl as well.

If you love lace and shawls here are some links to check out:
Wendy's Lace Links
Knitting Geek
About.com
Interweave Knits

I was asked by Jamie my SP5 and Cathy what I plan to do with the handspun yarn in the last entry. I'm thinking of making some long wristers using a pattern in Classic Elite's new booklet. Yes.... Carol R you've enabled me as usual :).

Visit Knitgarden. I was struck by her September 14th comment about peace and her garden: "It is a peace that surprises and has no plans or expectations." I liken the peace that she mentions to the quiet time between friends when no conversation needs to occur. Or it is the experience when involved in a creative moment where the left side of the brain engages and you are totally absorbed in time. May we experience this peace often.

Spinning Results

Last night I finished spinning some lovely dyed shetland.

Hot Weather Sunset

What a spectacular sunset occurred last evening on my way to Judy's house to pick up my long awaited Three-Cornered and Long Shawls by Sigridur Halldorsdottir. Since I was heading west the sun grew in the sky up the hill on route 44. Judy, I'm sure you know what I mean. What was so stunning was the orangey-red fullness I witnessed. There were no pink clouds streaking the sky ...only a gray haze! It was breathtaking. When I turned onto Austin Avenue, I lost sight of the sun until I approached the apple orchard; again the sun was another striking sight hanging over the fruited trees. It never fails to cause me great joy....this daily occurrence. Add to this I picked up my new book (Thanks, Judy!) and squirreled it away to enjoy with my evening snack.

I love the many patterns it holds. The pic to the right is just one of the lovely patterns done in two natural icelandic colors.

After the sunset ride I headed to Sue's R I Handspun to knit with some buddies. Sue was checking out patterns, books and magazines; she also showed us a Harrison sweater she is sewing together. Patty was reworking the sleeve of her grandson's naturally dyed sweater. Carol R was sewing together her wonderful Mountain Mohair sweater.Paula was working on purple Opal toe-up socks while Lois started Opal socks in another colorway I want to knit. I continued work on the slip stitch cardigan. I also worked on the Tiger and created a bit of a frenzy. Several skeins of Opal were purchased to make socks. These socks are so much fun.
The pattern is so easy and the results are stunning.

The Tiger is Back, But Not at the Zoo

Yesterday I spent several hours at the Roger Williams Park Zoo. It was a great day in the sunshine checking out the many animal exhibits there. I am of two minds when it comes to zoos. Like many I feel sad to see these exquiste creatures enclosed, but I do appreciate a chance to see animals I would never be able to see so close up and personal. RW zoo seems to have made a good attempt at not putting all their animals in cages as in the old days and has attempted to
place them in more natural surroundings. I marveled at the cheetah, a South American penguin,python snakes, and several giraffes.I even got to see a Shetland sheep!!! Sadly I neglected to take my camera...can you believe it.

There were no tigers which brings me to my latest knitting project......

In case you haven't heard Opal got wise to the fact that it's customers wanted more Tiger. They finally released it, and thanks to Sue at R.I. Handspun I got a skein. I've begun a pair of socks using a simple wave pattern and I'm loving it.More mindless knitting to perk up my knitting slump. I'm also determined to work on two nameless sweaters that could be worn soon.

Energy

On another note.... energy costs have been soaring so I'm trying to think of more ways to cut them down. In the 70's DH and I began buying fuel efficient cars and this will be continued as well as cutting down on unnecessary trips.

I'm also fond of recycling and will try to find more ways to increase this through recycling clothing and reusing paper and plastic bags. In case you haven't heard, most of the major market chains in R.I. are collecting our plastic bags. These bags will be made into plastic products that will make park benches,decks and more. In fact I've seen some of these products at Roger Williams Park this weekend, and they are very durable.

Next is working on ways to make our house more fuel efficient. This will mean lowering the temperature which has been a balmy 68 degrees to whatever we can stand. As I am an inveterate knitter, I have much in the way of woolens to wear :). I need to explore ways to cut down on heat loss through our fireplace which has a glass enclosure that still permits cold air to enter our family room. Any ideas out there to handle this one?

A Quick Knit

I finished a no- brainer scarf in a few days! Here she is just in time for the fall. It has lovely drape and can be worn several ways.

Last night I attended the Oceanstate Knit and Crochet Guild meeting. Quite a few of us turned out. We discussed how we want to have a speakers such as Debbie Newton, Judy Pascal or another name that escapes me now. Jackie showed up with so many lovely baby sweaters. Kathy also brought two knitted helmet liners for the troops. Dorie brought us lovely small bags to store knitting tools or a small project.