Wow, it's been so long since I have posted here. So much has happened and I keep myself very busy creating new things. I guess I will have to try to get focused and do better about taking pictures and all that goes with getting back on track here.

This is a picture of my friend Debra and I spinning at her shop Funky Spun in Santa Isabel. She has closed the shop as of today, and I will miss it so much. I loved to go there and spin and chat with other spinners. I am spinning with a drop spindle in this picture because I had hurt my knee and was giving it a rest. It is all better now so I am back at the Wheel.

I have a new lap top computer too and am having trouble finding my pictures. I'll keep trying and am sure I will somehow figure it out.

Been working at the Del Mar race track all summer and now I am home again. It's only been a week, and already I am back in full swing of classes and knitting and spinning and making myself crazy.

Staying Busy

Before

Wow, I have been so busy. What with finishing my new "Studio" and knitting and spinning, I just can't find time for much else. I did get my sheep sheared finally. Had a pro come to our place and do it. He sheared 11 Sheep in 1 hour. That is 5.45 min per sheep. I couldn't believe it. I will have him do them every year. It took me 2 hours for one sheep at my fastest. It is such a bargain I hope I don't have to shear them myself again. Besides the bad "haircut" most of them had from my efforts. Now they all look like goats.

After

I have been working on socks and lots of hand warmers. Now that I have my room, I am working on some of my own fleeces. I have been dying some, then picking and carding. What fun. I love the whole process. Then I get to spin the wool and knit it too. Wow, I feel like a real artist sometimes. But still don't seem to be very good at picking colors.

My cousin was here from Oklahoma this last week. What a thrill to reconnect with her. She had lots of info about my Dad's family (her dad and mine were brothers) and I loved hearing the stories. I have longed for this conection for a long time. Wow, I found out my yarn addiction is heredity. My Dad's( youngest of 17 children) oldest sister Theresa was an avid knitter. Always knitting and surrounded by yarn. That just tickled me, because I always wondered about it. None of my Mom's family does anything like that. One of my maternal grandmother's sisters crocheted, but just once in a while. I have always been attracted to yarn in some way or another, even before I could crochet or anything.

I started out just having yarn and braiding it and making things out of it. Pretty bazar things really. Then I learned to crochet at age 25 and went crazy from there. At 40 I tried to teach myself to knit and was pretty frustrated. Someone told me about machine knitting and the rest is history. After 12 years of that I was introduced to spinning and I just got in deeper. Now I do nothing else and just hate the way life gets in the way of all things YARN. I am always happiest if I am surrounded by yarn and all fiber arts. And now I have a room for exactly that. I am a very happy camper indeed!!! More pictures to follow.

Spin on..................

A Homemade Zucchini Spindle - Spin-Off

A Homemade Zucchini Spindle - Spin-Off
This is the best. I love my Turkish spindle, but this is so
cool. Makes me look at vetables in a whole new way.

I can't stop laughing.

AN OTHER SURPRIZE JACKET!!

Elizabeth Zimmerman must be proud. Her lovely jacket is everywhere.

Amy made another surprise Jacket
She is dangerous. I have created amonster. Great Job!

These are two rugs that I finished. The Red blue one is

a Twined rug made of cotton fabric. Or a Rag Rug.


The other one is a woven roving

rug made of unspun wool. Both

are being used in my house.

This is Tess in her Surprise Jacket. It is orange her favorite color

but I'm sure it won't be her favorite jacket. I really had a good time

making it.

I am working on some yarn right now to make some hand warmers.

It is white morino and silk and very nice. I am also working on learning a new

way to knit two at a time. I need to take a picture of that too.

That's all for now.

The pictures of Cousin Donna with her Mom "Aunt Millie"

I tried to upload these to Facebook but it wouldn't do it.

Hope you like them. My Mom has the originals for you Donna.

Wow, it's been a long time!

This is the roving I spun into
yarn for Amy.

This is the yarn I finally got done.













This is the Surprise Jacket that Amy


knitted out of the yarn.

Wow, what a team! I'm so happy to see this project. We did good kiddo!