Purling Oaks

Fiber Fair recount

The Midwest Fiber and Folk Fair was great.  Vendors were both inside and outside of the McHenry County College facility.  Charlynn and I were able to catch up with each other as well as engage in some quality fiber shopping.  Charlynn purchased her first spinning wheel.  *evil laughter*  (Yes, Stacey, she blames me.)  She also started knitting her first pair of socks.  Here's a summary photo of Charlynn's purchases (minus her Kromski Minstral wheel)  My work here is complete.......

Oh, well, you want me to tell you what I bought at the Fair?  I did spend quite a bit of time with Elf and Sandy at Red Fish Dye Works.  Two fun, yet incredibly calm women.....as well as talented in the dye department.  Here's the bed-full of my loot. 
My camera doesn't do justice to the Red Fish yarn and roving (oh, and hankies).  I love the llama cookie cutter.  The Rust Tex tube and CD are a kit for dyeing with metals.  The booth had some lovely results; I hope I can come close to reproducing them.  Stitch-markers, silk roving, alpaca black and white fiber, cotton fiber for towels, weaving tool, and a few other items. 

The new Crocs performed well and my feet were happy despite walking all day on Saturday.  We had some fun fair food including a funnel cake.  YUM.  Charlynn's neck and shoulders seized up so we also enjoyed the chair massages offered.  It was a fun visit that was far too short.

DH had some fun in a local trout stream on Saturday so tonight we enjoyed brook trout for dinner.  Delicious!  I'm living right, I suppose.

Lucky

I'm so glad I blogged about heading to northwestern Wisconsin.  I got an email from kmkat saying she lived up in that part of the state, where was I heading?  The next day I read her reply and she is *so* near-by where I'm working and hoteling.  Our schedules had a convenient match-up and we met up Tuesday, after I was finished with work.  We originally were going to meet at 5 pm at the cool coffee shop/art gallery/etc store but they closed at 5 pm.  Hmmmm.  Never fear.........we are in Wisconsin.  We just walked down the block to the new sports-bar, each had a beer, and we knit and talked and had a very nice time.  

I could insert a photo here but I'm just going to link to this blog entry of Kathryn's because her photo is much more flattering to us both.  When you read her blog entry, you'll read  we found we have more in common than just knitting.   I did more frogging on my sock than knitting but Kathryn made great progress on a lovely bamboo yarn sweater.  Chance favored me this week with a meeting with Kathryn.  Lucky me!

I think cats can read...

Look what my twin, the Marvelously Evil Stacey, sent me!  She's so creative.   I love the stitch markers!  They are very cool (or should I say hot?) and quite seasonal with the "bite me!" and the SOS08 markers.  Here's the whole package with the very clever handmade card and hollyhock seeds.  Thank you, Stacey!  I know exactly where I'm going to start a few this week. 

I think Black Dot can read.  She was VERY interested in Stacey's stitchmarkers.  And here is what she was trying to do to the black marker..........

It was a lovely day on Monday.  We had very low humidity, blue skies, and temperatures right around 80 degrees (F).  I made a bunch of calls and emails for the basement-related reconstruction, read through the great studio re-organization contest entries, and then ran errands and did some shopping in Madison in the afternoon.  When I returned home, I wandered around the yard, camera in hand, primarily to properly blog my Stacey-gift.  The cats were following me and DH as we discussed the chain-sawing of several large trees that fell in the recent storms.  Blue and White Dot were wrestling, as they do regularly, and I was able to capture the fun with the video feature on the little camera.  Watch for the hanks of fur on White Dot's paws.  Fuzzle enters into the video near the end to check out what the boys were up to.

Please enter the CONTEST!

Progress in knitting and gardening

I made some measurable progress on Forest Canopy on Friday.  I believe I have about 21 more rows of the main body ahead of me.  My good luck stitch markers from Nora accompanied me to the big city, but I am finding that yarn-overs and markers are not the best combination for me.  Here's a better look at the shy little guys.  They are very difficult to get a good photo of. 

The fixation footies are a little farther along than
what you see in this photo.  I just started on the toe this morning.  This was taken Saturday morning before the rain started. 

My flights home from San Francisco were delayed Friday because of the storms in the Midwest but I made it home just before midnight with a good amount of knitting accomplished.  I enjoyed a few Saturday hours of warmth and sunshine in the garden before the storms moved in.   I like a good thunderstorm but this is just too much.  I think it rained and stormed for about 20 hours.  We are happy with a break from the rain right now but it looks like more storms are on the way.  As a reality check, a house up the road from us lost a roof, so we have a lot to be thankful about here.

Our power was out part of Saturday afternoon and all of Saturday evening with the house coming back to life about 2:30 AM.  This morning, my ISP was having difficulties delivering Internet connectivity but that problem was solved by early Sunday afternoon.  I also spent a little quality time with a wet vac but that is best forgotten.

My gardens are coming to life.  The beans are sprouting and we plan to have broccoli rabe from the garden for dinner if the electric company cooperates. 

A radish from the former micro-greens, now probably better called macro-greens, though just as tasty.  Does anyone have a good idea of what to do with chive blossoms? 

The wild phlox are glorious right now.  And, yes, the nettles are pretty happy with themselves, too.  The pretty and the painful.  Let's all be careful out there.

Friday's fiber fun

Friday found me in the Jeep with my DSIL Anne, Anne's SIL Meg, and Meg's Aunt Kathy venturing North seeking yarn.  Our first stop was at Yarns by Design, in Neenah, and my mom met us there to join the fun.  This shop is one of my favorite fiber merchants and the customer service is wonderful.  A few cones of Maysville cotton rug warp jumped in my basket along with Deborah Chandler's Learning to Weave.  Then I saw this sample by/from Sivia Harding.....

It is the scarf size of the Norwegian Woods pattern, knit with Sea Silk.  (I posted this photo with permission of the designer.)  The flash of the camera accented the pattern but it washed the green/gray of the yarn.  I fell in love with it.  The designer describes the design as depicting a forest progressing from winter into spring.  The pattern and some more Sea Silk came home with me.  How ever did I come to this position of having Forest Canopy and Catharina Faroese shawls on the needles, Icarus and this pattern in waiting, plus the Stacey Lace Along yarn in waiting?  I think I have a few people of influence in mind.  Thanks, really. 

See how happy I am?   That's happy not hysterical, by the way.  Here is our happy group just before leaving for lunch at the great Mexican restaurant down the block.  (clockwise, from upper left:  Meg, Kathy, Mom, Anne, Moi)







We explored a local soy soap and candle shop, then hugged Mom goodbye so she could go home and let the dog out.  The four of us then hopped in the Jeep and impulsively headed North again, this time to Iris Fine Yarns in Appleton.  This is another great yarn store, also with great customer service.  IFY carries different yarns than YBD, so visit both when you are in the area.  I came home with a little HABU silk & stainless steel yarn to experiment with as well as a complementary bamboo crochet hook!  How cool is that? 

It was a fun day filled with great conversations about knitting, blogging, Ravelry, books, and even natural dyeing.  We were able to wish Anne a happy birthday, too!  Of the five of us, I'm the only (admitted) blogger and raveler, although I think Kathy may soon join the blogging community.  I'm looking forward to our next outing.

DH has been working in Fort Lauderdale recently and has been influenced by the foods he tried during his travels.  Last night, he made picadillo and it was very tasty.   It was a nice finish to a full and fun day.

Fixation with footies

I decided on the ankle socks.  I'm using this pattern (pattern number 6) with Cascade Fixation Spray in Harlequin.  I started out with US 3 dpns and 56 stitches but that was ripped just past Rockford.  I'm now using 48 stitches and US 2 dpns.  The yarn is very stretchy and this combination seems to fit over my foot without too much extra fabric.

Our trip to the Chicago-area was worth the time and effort.  We attended the Ordination of Deacons held at St. Cletus Parish in LaGrange......since the ceiling of Holy Family Cathedral fell in several weeks ago. *yikes*   This was the first Mass I've ever attended and I found it to be quite interesting.  The Archbishop of Chicago was there, too, to add to the special nature of the event.  According to DH, it was about twice as long as a typical one.  A friend and former (two-levels up) supervisor (now retired) was ordained as a Deacon yesterday.  Definitely a career-change, don't you think?  I think it is an interesting path to take, especially for a guy in his late 50s. 

Since I've been thinking of potential new careers I may want to take up in about five years or so, his achievement has altered some of my internal stereotypes of what paths are open to me (or anyone).  Not that I'm thinking of the church as a career now, but this new career of his is *so* different than the one he held with my employer.  It makes me realize that I should expand my horizons.  He's was so happy yesterday....I'm so glad for him and that DH and I were able to witness the ceremony.



As you can see in the first photo, the irises are in full bloom.  I have two more patches of irises just like those.  So, I'll say it again, I would love to share some rhizomes with you (and you and you and you) later this summer.  I have to divide these irises and I have no idea where to put them all.  Please email me or leave a comment if you would like some for your garden.

Saturday surprises

Saturday, I met Nora in Verona at the Sow's Ear.  I thought I was early but it turned out I arrived at the same time as Nora.  First, she lured me closer with the promise of a closer look at her newly blocked shawl.  Then she brought out a large garbage bag.  A garbage bag that looked suspiciously familiar to one that I used to know.  She gave it to me and I looked inside to see Artemesia's fleece, 2008 vintage.  I did my best not to cry and scare Nora.  Nora, Stacey, Joan, and Cookie conspired to find a replacement Icelandic fleece for the one that was lost a short while ago.  Friends, I am so touched by your thoughtfulness.  Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!  See how lovely (and large) it is! 

And here is a view of the creamy underside with the fleece folded.  White Dot is performing a quality control check.  He found it meets his very high standards.  He's not quite sure why Nora got the heebie-jeebies when she touched it.

Nora and I enjoyed our yarn shopping, coffee-drinking, sock knitting and chatting.  (I actually accomplished two rows this time.  *g*)  Nora was stopped by a yarn shop employee for appropriate shawl admiration.  It is lovely.  I think Nora is going to do a full post on it soon so this photo will just whet your curiosity.   (It's wonderful what bloggers can do with a public utility box and a self-timer.)

Nora had to head off to her family event far too soon. I started home but stopped at the garden center to support the local economy.  When I got home I found DH had gathered these for the table. 

Aren't they lovely?  Blue thinks so.

 

I am so glad I blog.  I will always be able to remember this wonderful day of surprises and friendship by just reading my archives should I ever misplace this memory in my old age.

Oh yes...............DH knows exactly where the fleece is and what it looks like.

Friday's flower feature

Grape Hyacinths!

This was certainly a good year for bulbs around the yard.  I think the cold and very wintery weather somehow encouraged the bulbs to have a better than normal display this spring.  Or the frost just heaved them closer to the soil surface....

Have a marvelous weekend everybody!  I'm looking forward to a meet-up with Nora at the Sow's Ear in Verona tomorrow.  On my way home I'll be searching for vegetable plants and compost for the garden.  I usually start tomatoes and annual herbs from seeds but was too darn stressed lazy to do it this year.  Wish me luck in finding some nice plants!   

I met "The Girls!!!"

It's been a busy weekend, friends.  Nora, who claims to have little knitting or fiber background until recently, has become a fleece broker.  She made it known that friends of hers had Icelandic fleeces available for sale.  Hmmmm, Icelandic fleeces?  Sounds interesting.  I guess I could use an expansion of my fiber knowledge. 

So Saturday, I ventured west to visit Terry and Kate Moen near Richland Center.  I went to pick-up two Icelandic sheep fleeces.  I followed Terry's directions most of the way but when I was almost there I decided to take the advice of the woman with the English accent in the box on my dashboard (Garmin Nuvi GPS).  Probably not the best Idea I've had lately.  Oh, I got to Terry and Kate's all right.  It is a DARN good thing I was driving a four-wheel drive vehicle since I took the shortcut they call the "goat path."  *sigh*  It is a single-lane, gravel and mud track.  (At first I was thinking that they *really* live out in the country!  Then I was just hoping I would not get stuck.)  Turns out the lady in the box told me the worst way and there is a perfectly fine road that I could have taken if I had followed ALL of Terry's directions.)  Well, at least I know I can drive in 4WD when it means something.  *g*  I was going to wash the Jeep anyway.........

Here's what I came to see:

They are a little shy........

But if Terry adds some grain to the feeder and you give them a little room, they will come closer even with a stranger in the barn.  Aren't they sweet?

Reflecting perhaps, the new owners in that they are very different but also very similar, are the two fleeces.  I like the lighter fleece and Stacey chose a chocolate fleece.  What you cannot see, is the deep dark chocolate on the reverse side of her fleece.  I think she'll see a nice variation of yarn shades in the finished yarn.

This will be my very first adventure in producing yarn from the source, a fleece.  I will certainly document my future efforts in producing yarn.  I'm not sure yet if I'll separate the short and long (and I mean LONG) parts of the fleece or spin them together.  My first impression is that the fleece is, um, sheepy.  *g*  It is a natural smell, not quite like wet socks, not offensive, but not quite what my husband considers sexy.  A spinner or knitter may have a differing opinion......

The shearer is coming to shear "the girls" at the end of this week.  So, there will be five more fleeces available according to Terry and Kate.  Let me or Nora know if you are interested and we can put you in touch with the folks with the good stuff.

Happy Birthday, Brother!

Today is my DB's birthday.  I have only one brother and I'm very fortunate that I got this one.  You all have seen him pictured here lately.  He was celebrating his birthday today with both of his sons and he sounded very happy and relaxed when I spoke with him.  Happy Birthday, Eric.  May you have many pleasant adventures in the coming year.  I love you!

Daffodil Sunday

Today was the day the daffodils decided to bloom.  I'm glad I was home.

California dreaming

Here are a few of my favorite photos from my vacation:

DH on the ledge.

Stacey looking back at me, wondering what I'm doing with the camera.  (as if!)

Stacey going for the 300 yard target with the big black rifle thingy.

Stacey shooting with her LEFT hand and doing a pretty decent job.

(I know this photo didn't get the approval stamp, Stacey, but Dr. E emailed it to me.  We were so smiley I had to include it.)

What can I say?  I love this guy.

DH, me, and the 2 DNs in San Diego on the harbor cruise.

Birthday cake with Stacey

DB and his #1 son

It was a fabulous vacation.  Family is very important to me so spending time with family is always a good time whether we are working or playing.  The timing was fortunate that DNs #1 and #2 were available for most of our visit.  Meeting Stacey and being part of reintroducing her to shooting has to be a highlight.  She is so enthusiastic, fun, and talented.  Our fibery adventures on Thursday were frosting on my cake besides being able to celebrate her (mumble mumble)th birthday with her.   Very good memories, all.  And even a little sock knitting.