Not much happenin' around he-ah -

I've been busy carding up the CVM fleece I purchased from White Barn Farm and nearly killed my hand doing it too! I have piles and piles of batts that are clean, but still feel very lanolin rich. I decided to go ahead and card it up anyway, I kind of like the feel of spinning in some of the grease if not the whole dirty fleece! It got a little bit neppy and I was kind of disappointed with that, but it's not too horribly bad, now at the risk of showing you my messy, messy fiber closet here is a picture:

My dh, Chris had set up my carder on his workbench in the garage, and I finally, finally was able to work with this machine without risk of the cat and dog getting into it, or killing myself at the kitchen counters, so, I just carded and carded until the fleece was gone. . . then when I went into the house to put it away, well, hell I didn't really have room and I felt guilty that my other two spinning projects would be put on the back burner, so I just plain put it away, and took out the Elektra - how's that for discipline?? I also carded up some of a Finn fleece I have, but the picture is really crummy so not going to show you all that one.

The fiber came in a box, an it was quite something getting the fleece out of the house to sort through. (Think crazy cat and psycho puppy here trying to get to that animal in that box!) There was not one spec of vm in this fleece and not one piece of crud (if ya know what I mean) it is fabulous and I would recommend this site again in a heartbeat. They are pricey, but to me it is also saving or helping to save an endangered sheep breed. So, to show you that we recycle everything here is a picture of that box the fleece came in:

What would my blog be without pictures of Nitro? I know, I need to show updates of the Bailey Blue-mister, but, it's raining and cold and nothing will come out good today I don't think. Oh, ok, it's just an excuse. She's been too squirrely to get good pictures of lately!

On to my fourth repeat on the DFS Scarf and a good ole' movie and we'll be all set this afternoon! Now if we could just have our 75-80 degree days back I will be a happy camper!

The Spin Goes On . . .

Well, as you saw from last week's post I had a bit of plying to do! My efforts resulted in 280 yds of Elektra and 304 yards of the Autumn Wool Mohair.

After the skeining process, which I entirely hate, I set the twist and these are the results:
I really love the way the yarns are coming out and I just can't wait to start knitting with them. I now have enough elektra to start the vest I have been going on and on about, the total yardage so far is approximately 693 yards. I think that is enough to get started, however, I have so many other projects on the needles that I feel quite guilty about starting something new! Here is all the Elektra I have spun up:

I can't say enough about Lisa's talent with color this yarn is just lucious!

It's never ending Elektra around here!

I love this stuff, don't get me wrong, but it feels like I am spinning and spinning and spinning and the bag is never ending! I keep emptying the basket and then predrafting more . . . I have finally gotten two full 8 oz bobbins and I am working on plying to empty them out again. I want to start knitting with this, but I really feel like I need to know how much I really have in yardage before I begin. I plan on a vest with a celtic cable in the back as a main motif, and plain 2x4 ribbing every where else. . . we'll see if the yarn wants to be this! Here's my work in front of me at the moment:

The brown bobbins are the wool/mohair blend I have been spinning on the Joy, I obviously have ADD, can't stay with one type of wool at a time. Or project for that matter. . . I am, as always working on two projects at once . . . or is that three? Anyway, I'm working on Debbie Bliss's Lara, in Berocco's Ultra Alpaca in pale pink, and I'm working on Arches - a mutated version as I didn't like the Arches for myself. I didn't use the Alpaca Silk as I have heard that the yarn isn't all that great and pills as soon as you wear the sweater once!

This weekend the dogwood tree bloomed and it was really pretty:

I couldn't get really close as it was raining and I didn't feel like getting wet! We had a mild hail storm this afternoon, but we managed to get the whole 1,000 feet of invisible fencing in the yard, so the Bailey Blue will be safe in the yard by herself when she gets older.

Caryn had a district band concert and she looked lovely for that:

See that necklace?

Got that in Mexico from Sergio Bustamante. . . yes, I spent way, way, way too much.

Oh well, live and learn I guess. Got slightly robbed as the US price was presented as Peso's - oh crap, only found out when I got the credit card bill. But, the good news is, I'm still married! See you all next week -

Spring can beautiful and deadly -

I am not getting as much knitting done, as I would like, since we just finished our year end at work, but things should quiet down and get back to normal now I hope! The tornadoes have kept us up at night (due to the fear factor) but so far we have escaped the path of destruction so far. It keeps getting closer, and closer! I think it's time to sell and get a house with a basement!! The past few years we lost two of our Bradford Pear trees that framed the house, and we replaced them last year with Crabapple trees. This is the result of our efforts:

Bailey is still in her puppy mode, herding our cat Nitro everywhere. And he does not like it one bit. Chris was working on the fireplace, putting in gas logs. So, guess what our pure white cat does? Well - I'll tell you it will take months for him to be pure white again!! He really is a mess underneath!

I have been trying since last evening to post this, and I just now got the photos to load!

Happy Spring, ya'll! Off to try to figure out how to continue my DFShawl after the first Chart B is done!

Mexico is not for me -

I was quite shocked at the condition of the towns we stayed in, Toluca and Lerma, which is the place we have puchased a plant. We went with the intention of teaching our basic software we use for reporting and financials. That all went just fine, until we found out after we got back to Mexico City that the plant had arranged for a different software to be used, and so you know what? Traveling with the President has it's perks (of the company that is). We canceled their contracts. Huh! I bet they were surprised on Monday morning when we were all back in the States!

So, not much knitting or spinning going on, but I have some back log to show -

Love, love, love, my elektra:

and my wool kundert spindle:






and my Bailey Blue: