Playing "Ketchup"

By the time you read this post I will be sleep deprived and on the road....It was impossible to choose a priority so I flitted all day from one thing to another.

• Finish new bacon and egg wool - done
• Felt two hats - done
• Crochet two seaweed hats - done
  
• Ply remainder of yarn - NOT DONE
• Still knitting kids hats - shit
• Doing laundry.....enough panties --good enough
• NO time to make lists.....

Please enjoy the new yarn pics....on the drop spindle


Getting Noddy......


All skeined and sexied up...

100 grams
70 yards
silk ply thread
white merino wool with merino ketchup blobs.
knit and felted bacon
needle felted eggs.

$60.00 -----SOLD

I know, I know, nothing but time on my hands....I'll be gone for a few days...Wish me luck at Filberg.....

Every Cloud has a merino sliver lining.

....okay only a joke that only spinners may enjoy.....but when this....

becomes this......

then the weather doesn't really matter.

This is a blend of merino, silver glitz, mohair locks, corriedale and silk thread.

2 skeins available
100 grams
72 yards
thick and thin spin
$40.00 -------SOLD

100 grams
58 yards, more puffy clouds
super thick and thin spin

$40.00 --------SOLD

Skeined up and Asia approved. She's really taken quite an interest in my spinning lately?

Transformation

With less than 0 hours to go, I just had to fart around with some mohair locks I received in the mail....

I managed to scrounge up a bit of white merino and a pale blue silk thread to create something of reasonable interest to the cat.


I call it Cotton Candy and by the way it floated through the air and stuck to everything while I was spinning it, I'd say the name was spot on....Oh and completed......

Candy Floss Hat

Did I say 0 hours to Filberg and counting......????

Today's Post Brought to You By the Letter "E"

At the end of every Whistler weekend, I come home and plug in the camera to download my pics and the same message comes up on the camera display....

"establishing a connection"

I have done this hundreds of times and this is the first time I ever really noticed the message, or that electronic equipment has spoken to me......Quick, prepare my tinfoil hat!

Yesterday was outstanding, not sales per se, but connections. The rain forced people into the tent, not just milling around the perimeter. It made people have conversations. It also got me tongued by a large Golden Retriever----more dogs stories later, I lost a well toasted Reuben panini as well.......

People are more vulnerable and open when their terrific hairdo has been vanquished, when they lose a bit of the extra personal space....

Hats off to all the folks big and little folks who took that risk yesterday.

I went up with my friend Mike yesterday. He rescued me and did the trip in one day. I had the chance to meet some of his family--- Voices and personalities to what was only a photo album recognition...They were lovely.

I'm still thinking about the rain, how cold, how cleansing, and how quickly it evaporated at the first glimmer of sunshine. Also the way the clouds painted so intensely through the sky. It made the mountains seem almost unreal. The sky was a wild, crazy blue behind them...

I will be in Filberg next weekend, and missing Whistler terribly. Another adventure as the "girls" keep me from tripping over myself, leaving half my stock behind and last minute emergency label sewing. This is generally done with a good view and a few nice bottles of wine.

Now, all I can think about is the inventory that did not get finished. So what's new?

Dead Clown

So much white merino and so little time. There's something to be said for a bin of bad colour choices left to the side. Dead Clown is my way of celebrating neon and all other colours best left to a clown costume. The ply yarn is a lime green silk thread....even this deceased fellow deserves a bit of glamour.

My favourite add on to the yarn was some electric coloured Lincoln Locks I bought on an Etsy Shop. They reminded me of the typical clown wig which sort of got the whole thing started. I will have this yarn with me in Whistler tomorrow, drop by and have a peek.

Yarn stats
74 yards
100 grams
$40.00 ------SOLD

Due to the Pemberton Festival this weekend, there was no hotel available under $300 in Whistler. I'm all for spreading a bit of money around the local economy, but seriously....no can do. Mike and I will be leaving at dawn and trekking down 99. Hopefully it will be just us, a few eagles, and that the Tim Horton's at the north end of Squamish will be open when we pass.

A caffeine addicted girl can hope, can't she?

The Most Important Meal of the Day

In glorious yarn form.

How do I love thee yarn, let me count the ways... I love your crisp white merino goodness. I love your big blobs of ketchup, needle felted free range eggs and crispy bacon..... and your orange yolk, silk ply thread.... I just love you, love you love you.

There are a full carton of eggs here and six bacon strips (Canadian). Spindling the ply was a two person job, but it was definitely worth a laugh and yes, I hung out at the yarn store to do it...I have a whole new level of inspiration there.

The ketchup was an afterthought to help fill the long gaps of white in between the deliciousness and the way I eat my eggs.

I did manage to cross a few things off my to do list...but this was the highlight....and this one is for sale. Yarn stats as follows:

Merino Baby
120 yards
136 grams

More than enough yarn for a complete hat and scarf project, and if you're looking for a bigger project, might I suggest a sexy egg yolk yellow compliment yarn.

------$80.00. ----SOLD

I had an inspiration today which has already been titled. Please stay tuned for Dead Clown --- the new yarn. I think I will try to utilize Fridays for new yarn day.

Enjoy the weekend all.

Ice Cream and Knitting

On the water in False Creek, looking towards the park, Judy enjoys her raspberry treat...shared all round. Hot weather, wool, beach and ice cream...Perfect.

My friends live for the moment and our plans are always on the fly. This week's destination decided by none of us having access to a car...Except Pearl who traveled the furthest. Our picnic was light, little sandwiches, cheese, flatbread, carrots and some awesome black olive hummus.

Due to the wind, I think I inadvertently consumed a fair amount of fibre as well.

The monkey yarn was such a hit (thanks for the words of encouragement) I have opted for a newer, faster, better yarn which involves the following:

Felted bacon and eggs, including two green eggs. An homage to Dr. Suess. The base yarn will be a blend of naturals...seriously, with a dozen eggs and strips of bacon on the ply, what colour should it be...Time to step back and show a slight bit of restraint, right?

While Pearl was deciding on the perfect colour for the free range yolks, I was busy felting peas in a pod for Filberg..

These are the days that I treasure, a destination, a project and friends to share it with. Aside from the morning errands (which I did not enjoy because it involved actual thinking, math, and diagrams) Pearl, you talked me off the ledge! the day was exquisite.

A quiet moment for Toni. No chevrons, no crochet hook, just soaking up the breeze and sunshine.

Today's project list is enormous...

• Finish neckwraps
• Source out pin backings
• Finishing with Pearl
• Labels for Birkeland
• Lunch with Claire
• More finishing.
• Spin "Best Meal of the Day"

Yikes...

Monkeying Around

I went to work with Pearl yesterday....friend, teacher and knitter extraordinaire. What a whorled, what a whorled....It's one thing to work in my studio, it's quite another to knit in a yarn shop for 8 hours. I have never been this productive or had so much fun.

As well as knitting yarn directly from the shelves, and shamefully rubbing quite a bit of it against my cheek, I was divinely inspired.......Which meant finally unleashed for you all.....my new hand spun .

Barrel full of Monkeys

The first ply was a lovely hand spun of natural merino and corriedale spun on the Kiwi. The 2nd ply, due to the chunkiness of the monkeys was done on the drop spindle. Plied on to fine angora in rusts and browns from which the monkeys are lovingly dangling.. Spindling in the store was fantastic as incoming customers really just could not figure out what was going on. Seriously, my little friends were airborne. Each layer of wool started trapping them into this wee yarn prison.

I have been thinking about this yarn for months, searching out just the right rovings, ply yarn, perfect monkeys ---I spent more time thinking about this than my finances (which is clearly not good). I am immensely satisfied---- like if I smoked, I'd be smoking one right now.

Now on the niddy noddy....

Now in a skein.

Yarn stats

125 grams

58 yards of pure monkey goodness.

I may or may not sell this yarn. It is making me really happy right now.

The Filberg Festival

It just hit me. Filberg is basically a week away...Holy fat crap. Due to a brisk selling season, my inventory is a bit low. Don't get me wrong this is NOT a complaint. I am thrilled that people are getting me as the designs are a bit off centre this year ---but not enough inventory for such a well attended show is not a good thing...

I just keep thinking that the yarn gods will provide. My artisan hands will not give out and the inspiration will be continuous and free flowing. Perhaps my problems lies more with the inspiration. I can't contain myself long enough to make 5 of anything and I'm always in the middle of graphing out a new design...This does not bode well for production work.

Sleep annoys me (unless I'm dreaming about yarn). It forces my hands to rest when they want to be doing something else. Unfair....How to steady myself and stay on course for this show? Any suggestions...John suggests not spending so much time blogging, but this is my one true decadent pleasure outside of knitting or spinning. It's the diary I never had when I was eight.

Filberg, filberg, filberg,

Oh, how I love you and your large and lovely grounds, historical buildings, appreciative customers, wonderful sunshine and inspirational artisans.

Oh, Filberg, how I hate your demand for my handwork and making me worry that I may sell out. Who am I kidding....?This would make me love Filberg even more. I can hardly wait to see the customers that make this show stand out so much from the other shows that I participate in. Come to the Comox Valley and check out this show. You'll see what I mean.....

Gratitude

The West Coast hosts a summer like nobody else. I have been in Facebook, catching up on comments from my friends who are locked up because of rain, are hating the rain or otherwise seem held hostage by weather.

When it rains in BC it is beautiful, when it snows here, it is a wonderful treat. While I was enjoying the breezy sunshine in the Farmer's Market yesterday, there were snowboarders trekking up to the glacier. Such contrast and yet perfectly "normal" for BC.

I sold something yesterday I didn't want to sell. Not my body, at this stage there is not much resale value left in this old model ;), but a piece I had just completed and barely had a chance to fondle. Like an elusive lover, it quickly slipped through my fingers and found itself in the arms of another....


Which brings me to the real reason I am posting today. Gratitude.

• The lovely woman who bought my piece actually did take me seriously and sent me a photograph of it. Received with much thanks.
• Someone I taught how to knit a few weeks ago came to the market with a card yesterday thanking me for sharing my gift of knitting with her. I never thought of what I do as "a gift". What a beautiful reframing of my craft.
• Someone requested a custom hat and then did not want it. Why gratitude? It is a new and charming design which will now be retooled as my new children's design for the fall.
• The big fat speeding ticket we got on the way home. A financial reminder to take things slow.

Thank you!

FOUND - Lost Lake

Another weekend on the road. Thought I was starting to feel like a travelling salesman, and then we found this.....

In a Perfect Whorled.....

......beautiful handspun yarn grows on trees.

Imagine ---an entire day in the backyard, full sun, 3 girlfriends, spinning wheels, crochet, knitting and sewing. Pineapple tea and sandwiches and a fantastic show and tell.

Judy just returned from a trip to England. While she was sharing her stories the fibre goodness surrounded us.

The breeze moved the yarn in long waves and the scent of Eucalen and the lavender from the garden filled the air. It doesn't happen often, but when it does, it is magic.

A Ham in the Mail

Before I talk about anything else today, I have to post this....

My insane friend Leanne from Oddwear crocheted a ham hock for me. For the record it is about 2 feet in length. I have barely stopped laughing since I got this in the mail and it is now the proud centrepiece of my dining room table. I can hardly wait until John gets home! A helicopter pilot/instructor, writer, goddess, hat designer and all round incredible friend --Leanne is the ultimate example of limitless energy and fun. I wish she had been at the Prudence Mapstone workshop!

For documenting and for sale, this is my completed freeform hat in all it's regal splendor.

Here are a few more angles(of the hat)

I am calmed by a wonderful sense of completion, and it has propelled me into a new spinning cycle. Not frenzied....calm, happy yarn.

A Sunshine Coast Bus Station

Hanging around Pender Harbour

Large Bug Crossing

Artisan Hands and Fibre Landscapes

Intertwined and connected by a love of colour and texture, 15 got together and made magic happen. At the helm, fibre technician, teacher, designer and as sweet as Quebecoise sugar pie -- Prudence Mapstone.

These are the hands that led us on an exciting journey.

Hosting this gathering was Yvonne Stowell from Fiberworks Studio in Mediera Park on the Sunshine Coast. What makes her studio and gallery so spectacular is that all the courses and workshops are taught in a yurt. There is something inviting and contagious about sharing in a circular environment. The energy created by this space was absolutely electric.

Loosely structured, yet packed full of information and inspiration, Prudence had all of us designing, knitting, crocheting, laughing and exchanging. It exceeded my expectations in every way. I cannot thank John enough for his gift to me, worth far more than the workshop itself was the fact that he took two days off work after Whistler to bring me there so that we were able to explore the Sunshine Coast at the end of each day.

John, finding his own inspiration in Sechelt at the beach.

All of the women in this class were exciting, vibrant, and rich with talent. I admired everyone's choices for colour and texture and would have run off with everyone's scrumbles, if I thought I could have made it out of town with them. This was all the samples placed together. How perfectly it all fit together.

This is what my head and hands collaborated on in the two days.

My "sampler" included all of the following: silk, angora, camel down, alpaca, Turkish angora, merino, bamboo and several "bits" of leftover hand spun in mostly merino.

On the ferry ride home, I ran into two ladies from our group. They were looking out over the water and imagining "scrumbling" the landscape. How perfect.