Kathryn's Brain

Fiber Arts Friday: A Simple Hat??

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:48:00 +0000

When I ripped out my bandana cowl a couple of weeks ago, I was traveling and still had plenty of knitting time ahead of me, so I decided to cast on a hat.

I've made this pattern a couple of times... back in my baby hats for adult-sized head days. :-)

The pattern is written to be made flat, but I prefer to knit in the round. So it's probably best to say this hat was inspired by that pattern, because honestly I didn't really follow the pattern all that well.

Hmmm.... are we uncovering something here? Oh, no. We already knew that engineers don't follow directions very well. Even if I'm not practicing, I am still recovering. ;-)

Anyway, the detail isn't exactly as designed and the hat looked more like a bucket than it's supposed to, but I thought it was still pretty cute.

Then I blocked it.

Gently, mind you. No pins. No stretching. I just soaked it, layed it out flat and turned the edges down. I thought it would help even-out the stitches a little. Which it did, but geez... big hat, Big Hat, BIG HAT!

It's really hard to take a picture of yourself in the mirror
when you can't see because your hat is too big.

Seriously, what is up with me making big stuff lately? Remember this gem?? Ugh

I'm afraid this one may be frogged too.

Maybe it's the yarn?

It's nearly 4 skeins (including what's in the hat and used to be in the cowl) that is left over from the Plumber Sweater I made a while back. It's a soft, commercial, alpaca yarn. I really like working with it. But I think no matter how much I want to finish it off, it wants to stay in my stash.

Although, I am sorta thinking that a turn in a hot soapy bucket of water with a plunger might serve as a warning to the 2 1/2 skeins waiting to torment me. ;-)

Happy Fiber Arts Friday! :-D

Just for Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 22:30:00 +0000

A friend in Minnesota wanted to see how Clementine is growing up, so I took my camera out to see what I could capture...

I captured the "puppies" showing off.

Wonton beating up Noodle

These girls love, and I mean LOVE, to wrestle.

Can you see the smile on Wonton's face?

Posing for pictures

The Alpaca Dog likes to get in the middle of it too.

He's the small dog now, but he's still the top dog. Wonton still has a smile on her face. :-)

And of course I got a few shots of Clementine and her friends. :-)

Clementine with her momma, Kocoa and Daisy

All of our girls having breakfast together

Apple wants to make sure we don't forget that she is cute too

Clementine be four months old next week.

We'll be asking the vet to come out in the coming weeks to make sure all of our "pregnant" dams are in fact pregnant and to give everyone their annual vaccinations.

We are also starting to make plans for breeding Noodle next year. We will have her hips and elbows certified. Then, assuming all is well, we plan to breed her in November-ish.

Fiber Arts Friday: Spinning Llama

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:58:00 +0000

I have spun Huacaya Alpaca, Suri Alpaca, Paco-Vicuna and Baby Camel so llama was the last of the domesticated camelids I had to spin.

I picked this batt up at the Estes Park Wool Market last spring.

Much like the Paco-Vicuna I spun in November, this llama has a beautiful color variation.

It is softer than I expected and quite easy to spin even though the batt had a lot of vegetable matter in it... so much actually, that I'm seriously considering moving that picker higher up on my to acquire list. :-)

The final result is 2 ounces and 79 yards.

I'm not crazy about the little curlie-ques in this yarn. I think they are there because I was trying to pull out the VM on the fly and therefore continued to treadle. Oops. That being said, it was a nice fiber to work with and I would like to spin llama from a roving sometime. :-)

Be sure to check in with the other Fiberistas over at Wisdom Begins in Wonder because it is Fiber Arts Friday!

Thinking and Writing, but not Posting

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 20:56:00 +0000

I have a lot of things going on in my brain... as evidenced by the 90 drafted blog posts I have.

But I have not been posting much.... as evidenced by the 5 weeks of only FAF posts.

Some of this is because I've been getting ready for going live, now live and in the midst of hyper-care with a software tool that I've been working on for the last several months.

Some of this is because I don't talk about my client's business here.

Some of this is also because I think that Project Management, in and of itself, is not very interesting to write about.

And finally some of this is because I've been working on some things that I'm not ready to talk about yet.

Some of these things are evolving, growing and developing. So I am hoping that I will be able to move some of my thoughts and ideas beyond the draft stage soon. :-)

Fiber Arts Friday: Peaceful Knitting?

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 15:27:00 +0000

This was supposed to be a small bit of peaceful knitting to get me through the end-of-the-year-crazy-ness.

I was using a much smaller yarn and needles than the pattern recommended. I did a swatch and made some adjustments to the pattern.

I'm not entirely sure when I started to think that something wasn't right. But I kept knitting, trusting in the edits I had made.

Finally on Saturday I decided I had to try it on. I moved the cowl from the needles to waste yarn. I used a crochet hook because I was traveling and am certain that tapestry needles are not allowed in the carry-on luggage. For the record a crochet hook works, but it's much easier and faster to do this with a tapestry needle.

My suspicion was confirmed... my cowl was huge. :-/ The finished cowl is supposed to be about 12 inches long from the top to the point. At the time of this photo it was about 18 inches and 75% complete. So frogged, it has been. :-(

The Bandana Cowl is a lovely pattern. It is exactly what I wanted... very simple but with enough short-rows to keep it interesting. I enjoyed working it and am sad that I did not do this pattern justice.

I will make a few more adjustments next time. Or perhaps, I will just use the recommended yarn and needle size. ;-)

Please be certain to head over to Wisdom Begins in Wonder to see the wonderful-ness that everyone else has been up to for Fiber Arts Friday.

Fiber Arts Friday: Swatching

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 22:56:00 +0000

I've had and idea for a project in my head for quite some time. It requires hand-spun yarn, which I finished spinning last summer.

I had been pretty convinced I would use the linen stitch, but I wanted this project to be simple and reversible. So a review of my stitch catalogs and a few swatches later, I think I have a plan.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: Bear Hair

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 14:19:00 +0000

Yes, that's right. Bear Hair. Black Bear Hair found by my cousin's son in their back yard last September.

Yes, that's right. Black Bears in the back yard. They live in Colorado too. :-)

If you remember the Rocky Mountain Goat I posted about a few weeks ago, this is my same cousin with the same son. It might mean that my cousin and her son have become my very own personal rare fiber dealers. ;-)

This is only 1/4 ounce. There is absolutely no crimp, but the shine is gorgeous and the color is just beautiful.

I attempted to spin it straight on my wheel, but the hair is stiff so it didn't go too well. So I'm not sure how I will get this spun or even if spinning is the right thing to do. I suspect blending it with something will be the way to go, but I haven't done any blending yet, so suggestions are absolutely welcome.

If you had access to Black Bear Hair, what would you do with it?

While you're thinking about that, please check in with all of the lovely Fiberistas over at Fiber Arts Friday and have a great New Year's Eve!

Fiber Arts Friday: Elevation Profile Scarf is Finished!

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 15:02:00 +0000

I feel like I had been just a few inches from completing the Elevation Profile Scarf for quite some time. So last weekend I decided it was going to be finished. Sunday had me binding it off... I wove in the ends, wore it around the house for a bit then set it in the block.

I really do like the drape of this fabric. The yarn is a blend of Yak and Merino and I knit it on slightly larger needles than the yarn called for.

This was my first time following a pattern that was written with only charts. It was also my first time knitting with two colors at the same time.

Once I figured out what I was doing, it wasn't all that difficult. Although I was not working on this project exclusively, so occasionally I forgot how to make the transition between the colors after I had set it aside.

I love how the selvedge is turned out.

It's so easy to make this beautiful edge... just slip the first stitch purl-wise for each row and then move the working yarn to the back. I will definitely use this technique on future projects.

And now that the scarf has been blocked, I've been wearing it almost exclusively... and since I'm not about to take a photo of myself wearing it, you'll just have to happen to see me walking around town. ;-)

I really like this pattern a lot, so I believe I'll do it again... with perhaps a single color. I think the texture of the pattern would show better with one color that's a little lighter in color.

I wish you all a Merry Christmas, Happy Chanuka and Happy Fiber Arts Friday. May you eat well, be warm and enjoy the company of the people you love.

Fiber Arts Friday: The Fiber Fool and Nourishing Knits

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 14:20:00 +0000

I met Kristi Schueler a few years ago on Twitter. Hubba and I were living in New Mexico and planning our return to Colorado.

Kristi was a knitwear designer based in Colorado. I was smitten. :-)

After Hubba and I got settled in our Colorado home, Kristi and I realized we were almost neighbors. We met a couple of times. She helped me overcome my fear of cables. I was still smitten. :-)

She invited me to join her knitting group. I was intimidated.

I came a few times when my travel schedule allowed. I was at ease.

Kristi wrote a book. I want to tell you about it.

As a matter of fact, a few of us will be talking about it. Today is the first post in a blog tour highlighting Nourishing Knits. Kristi will be announcing a couple of giveaways over on her blog today, so you will definitely want to check that out.

Nourishing Knits is jam packed with delicious recipes and beautiful knit designs. I have had the pleasure of being on the receiving end of some of these test recipes and the name for one of the patterns came from a suggestion I made. :-)

The Alpaca Dog has been a taste tester as well. One night, he knew there was something in my bag for him as soon as I walked thru the door... He devoured it and begged for more. This dog doesn't generally care for treats, so let me tell you... If you get this book for nothing else, get it for the Bow Wow Biscotti. Your best friend will thank you. :-)

It's pretty easy to write about something that's fantastic. The trouble is finding the one piece I wanted to focus on. I have 5 or 6 of these designs in my queue. Not just the favorites. They're in my queue. That means I will make them. It's only a matter of time.

The one I've been thinking most about knitting next are the Challah socks.

I am a new (and excited) sock knitter... and Kristi helped me overcome my fear of cables... and the socks in the book are made from alpaca. So really, I do think this is the perfect choice. :-)

I have selected a charcoal/green Malabrigo to knit this pattern. I hear Malabrigo is lovely to work with, and now that I've wound the skeins into cakes, I'm getting excited. :-)

I'm about half-way into the first cable repeat for the first sock. I am trying to follow only the charts, but I am cheating a little and looking at the written out instructions every now and then. Since I don't have a lot of experience with charts, I want to make sure I'm reading the marks correctly.

I do have to say that I like following the chart in the round... it means I'm always reading it from right to left. :-D

And I love seeing the roots of cables forming...

I am enjoying these socks so far and am looking forward to some dedicated sock knitting this weekend. :-)

If you don't already know Kristi, follow her. You'll learn something. You'll be inspired. You'll have good food too. :-)

The Fiber Fool on Twitter
The Fiber Fool Blog
Designedly, Kristi on Facebook
Designedly, Kristi on Ravelry

And of course, be sure get your copy of Nourishing Knits soon!

Photos courtesy of Kristi Schueler

Then once your finished checking out all of the Nourishing Knits goodness, please also check out the other fiberistas who have linked in for Fiber Arts Friday.

Dogs Working

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 13:43:00 +0000

Our girls don't look much like puppies anymore. They love being out with the alpacas and are growing into very good protectors.

We take them on walks and to the Farmer's Market to ensure they remain well socialized. They enjoy other dogs and people when we're out. But when they are with the alpacas, they are definitely working. I have no doubt that these girls would fiercely protect me, Hubba, the alpacas and each other if the situation ever presented itself.

I have not posted any photos of them in quite a while. Mostly because they generally don't stay still. Which means that usually the only thing I'm able to capture is a black blur.

However, Hubba and I have been able to snap a few over the last couple of days.

Clementine and Wonton enjoying the sun while everyone else was enjoying breakfast

Noodle

Noodle and Wonton working hard ;-)

The girls are just about 1 year old now. Wonton, in a couple of days and Noodle, next week.

Noodle, me and Wonton

I can't tell you how much we love these dogs. They were absolutely the best choice for us. :-)

No Christmas Knitting

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 19:15:00 +0000

I was feeling quite proud of myself...

Several months ago I had decided there would be only one, perhaps two knitting projects for Christmas. The Christmas related knitting stress would be very small and I hadn't attached much expectation to either project.

Things have been (extremely) busy at my day job and I haven't had much extra mental capacity for quite some time. So I felt this was the best plan.

Now, a few months later, the primary project's current status is "lame." It needs to be deeper and bigger. I don't have enough interest in making the corrections now, so it has been shelved and may be resurrected for next year.

The second project was started and f-d up, re-started and f-d up again. I've decided the yarn I selected was not the best choice, so it has also been shelved as well.

Therefore, there are no knitted gifts from me this year and frankly, I feel ok about it.

HEV Questions

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 16:43:00 +0000

Last week I was given a Toyota Prius as a rental car.

I was excited. I had never been in one, so I was anxious to see what it was like.

I didn't hate it.

I didn't love it.

That's pretty much my reaction to most rental cars... with the exception of the PT Cruiser and HHR. I hate those cars.

I don't want to write a review about rental cars, but driving this car for several days brought up a few questions for me regarding Hybrid-Electric Vehicles.

What is the actual mileage while the IC Engine is running?

The engine started and stopped a lot on my commute each day. The starting and stopping, especially at traffic lights invoked memories of being a new driver with a very old, poorly maintained, manual transmission car.

If the rated mileage is 50mpg, I should have paid 40-50% less in gas. I paid only 20% less.

There is the possibility that the car wasn't full when I picked it up, but that is always true. My rental car company does not have a good process for ensuring the cars are full prior to pick up.

What are the emissions when the IC Engine is running?

We hear a lot about HEVs having terrific gas mileage, but we don't hear much about the emissions. If I remember correctly, the IC Engine creates most of it's emissions when first starting up.

So if the engine starts and stops 10 times on each commute, does it create more air emissions than a similar engine that is only started once?

What happens to the batteries when the car has reached it's useful life?

I know batteries have come a long way since I researched HEVs in the early 1990's. Do they get recycled?

What about maintenance?

Is there an availability of non-dealer mechanics that are affordable and skilled? Are parts reasonably priced?

While the Prius is not in the pool of cars we would consider when the time comes to replace the ones we have now. It doesn't mean an HEV or EV wouldn't work for us. I would just want to have acceptable answers to my questions and be able to fit Hubba's racing chair in the car without having to take the wheels off.

Fiber Arts Friday: Rocky Mountain Goat Fiber

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 15:02:00 +0000

I've been wanting to share this fiber with you all for a while. :-D

In early June, my cousin was on a hike near Breckenridge, CO. She and her son found this Rocky Mountain Goat fiber strewn across some branches and wondered if I would be interested in playing with it.

1 1/8 ounces raw Rocky Mountain Goat Fiber

My first reaction was H*** Yes, Hand it over! But I restrained myself until I knew what she wanted to do with it. We finally connected in July and I spent a few hours each weekend working on it over the summer when I could.

I did an initial skirt where I removed the twigs and most of the guard hair.

The guard hair is quite coarse.

The down is on the left and guard hair and twigs on the right. I was expecting to pull more guard hair out, but this was only the first pass.

I gave it a good bath and a few changes of water, then hung to dry for a few days.

After the initial skirt and bath, the fleece is down to 3/4 ounce and oh-so-white.

Now I'm in the middle of opening up the fibers and doing a more detailed pick with a retractable dog brush. I'm about half finished.

The second picture is the opened fiber. It's so soft.

It will most likely be next spring before I'm finished, but I've been wanting to share it for quite some time. :-)

I hope you are having a terrific Fiber Arts Friday. Please be certain to check into what everyone else has been up to over at Wisdom Begins in Wonder.

Fiber Arts Friday: Paralympic Medal Socks

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 13:17:00 +0000

I've been saying for more than two years that you might be inspired when reading through the Fiber Arts Friday Blog Posts. Well, back in July I was inspired to make a very specific project.

This post by AllyB included a pair of socks that just about knocked me over. She referenced this post by ScoutJ for the custom yarn used to make the project.

Well, with it being more than a year since the original yarn post, it was no longer available and I didn't find anyone on Ravelry willing to part with theirs.

So being a recovering engineer, I can usually find a way to get something done... I Facebooked a friend who is a knitter and dyer along with many other wonderful creative things and told her about my idea.

Seriously, as much as Facebook frustrates me, I can almost always reach someone there.

She liked it, so we set about on the details.

The yarn was finished in October. We made arrangements for me to pick up the yarn and then I worked furiously to finish My (well, Hubba's) First Socks.

The big secret that I didn't tell you about before is that those first socks were really a template for these socks. :-)

I wanted to be certain I had a pattern that worked for him, but I couldn't let him know about the real project until it was ready. I finished them right before he got home from Guadalajara so I decided to give them as a welcome home present. :-)

He's pretty stoked! Especially since his first socks have gone on their own adventure.

So again, I used the Sock It To Me pattern plus the amazing Olympic Colorway from Wattsolak.
If you like what we did, please visit her on Etsy, Ravelry and Wattsolak.com. I'm sure you will love her as much as I do. :-)

And when you're done doing that, please head over to Wisdom Begins in Wonder because it's Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: First Knit Socks have gone Walkabout

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 20:17:00 +0000

Hubba loved his hand-knit socks so much that he took them to Guadalajara while he was there for the Para Pan American Games.

It was quite warm during the day, but very cool in the mornings. The Athlete's Village did not have heat, so he was happy to have some woolies with him.

Then one day last week, he was showing them off and bragging on me. :-) He wanted me to knit a pair as a tip for the massage therapist. :-) Then sometime later he didn't have them anymore. :-( He was heartbroken. :-( He traced and re-traced his path, but didn't find them. :-(

He called me with the sad news and then asked if I could whip up a pair before he got home. lol.

Well, my answer to whipping up a pair of socks in a few days is Not Possible, but I was working on a secret that I'll tell you about next week. ;-)

I hope that someone picked up the socks, that they fit that person, and that he or she will have warm and toasty toes for a long time to come.

I do wonder where the socks have gone now that the games are over... Argentina? Canada? Brazil? or maybe they've decided they like it in Mexico??

It's Fiber Arts Friday, so please go see what everyone else has been up to.

Fiber Arts Friday: Spinning Paco-Vicuna

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 14:25:00 +0000

I picked up what I thought was a cloud of Paco-Vicuna at the Taos Wool Festival a few years ago. It was in the silent auction, and I HAD to have it.

It was my first ever festival acquisition.

I was a brand new spinner, so I was really nervous about messing it up. Which means it has sat quietly in my stash ever since. But now that I have a lot more spinning experience, I felt like I was ready to try. Or at least I had reached a point to where my fear of risk was balanced by my sense of confidence.

I have to say I'm not crazy about this preparation which turned out to be shredded chunks of batting and not clouds.

But I do love the how color changes in the yarn and I'm looking forward to see what this will look like woven up.

Since today is Fiber Arts Friday, you know what I'm going to ask... so please go visit everyone else and tell them how awesome they are. :-)

World Wide Moment - 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 18:41:00 +0000

I finally got my World Wide Moment Photo posted... I was at home on Friday, 11/11/11 and the weather was beautiful, so I took a photo in the most peaceful place I know... our farm.

You can see the photos that others have submitted here.

Fiber Arts Friday: Elevation Profile Scarf Continues

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 14:41:00 +0000

The Elevation Profile Scarf has been neglected while I was working on Hubba's first pair of socks and taming recycled yarn. And now it's being (mostly) set aside for a couple of secret projects that I won't tell you about... at least for a while, anyway. ;-)

Isn't that how it goes? The thing we're doing for ourselves always gets pushed to the bottom of the list. :-/ Of course this means I currently have three knitting projects "in work" plus one spinning project for a total of four. This is my self-imposed maximum.

Anyway, I have made some progress since the last time I told you about this Scarf...

I had a few more episodes of ripping out on the second half of the third chart. It was really bunching up in the valley, so I added a few rows without any increases or decreases to alleviate some of the stress between the two extreme ramps.

The scarf is in the "doesn't require a whole lot of thought" state now... I've been doing the same two rows for about a mile and a half... Ok, not quite that far, but I still have about 15 inches to go before I start the final chart.

I'm looking forward to seeing what this baby looks like after blocking. It's recommended in the pattern and after seeing what happened to the Traveling Woman Shawl, I have to think this will look awesome when it's finished. :-)

Be sure to visit everyone else over at Wisdom Begins in Wonder because it's Fiber Arts Friday.

Feeling Patriotic

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 14:00:00 +0000

I dropped Hubba off at the airport yesterday morning.

He's headed to Guadalajara, Mexico for the the Para Pan American Games later this week.

I couldn't help but feel patriotic as I drove away.

I left Hubba on the curb all decked out in his USA Track and Field garb.

I really wish I had taken a photo.

The New York City Marathon Experience

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 22:27:00 +0000

Here's a link to a great article about one man's experience with the New York City Marathon last weekend.

He intended to run, but due to injury could not. So he volunteered to escort the wheelchair athletes. This was his first time in the role, so it was quite an experience for him.

Please take a few minutes to read the article. It's very well done. :-)

Hubba was there. He finished 25th.

The World Wide Moment is Coming!

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 18:49:00 +0000

Friday is 11/11/11.

The World Wide Moment is at 11:11am EST on 11/11/11.

Please join me and a whole lot of other people in taking a photo for peace during the World Wide Moment.

The website is here. There is a link so you can figure out what time that means for you.

Peace :-)

Fiber Arts Friday: I am a Very Lucky Girl

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 12:16:00 +0000

So, I had a whole different post planned for today, but lookie what arrived on Wednesday. :-D

Yep, that's right. My new cat! :-)

I was on a teleconference when the Mail Lady knocked on the door... The Alpaca Dog jumped up and fiercely announced his presence. I, of course, neglected to mute my phone. Ooops.

Anyway, as soon as the call was over, I went to the door because I figured the cat probably wanted to get out of that box... I opened up the package to find a lovely pair of hand-knit slipper socks, a couple of perfect items to go with them and no cat. :-(

Oh ok I confess... I told Beth that she should let Edgar Allen Poe Cat stay with her because he would miss her.... and frankly Noodle has more than enough cats to keep her occupied with our one Pankcake. ;-)

I do have to tell you that this timing was absolutely perfect! We woke up to another 7 inches of snow on Wednesday morning. So who couldn't use a pair of cosy-hand-knit-socks, hot tea and delicious chocolate on a day like that??

Of course in true Colorado fashion, the blue sky and sun came out and were working hard on turning that snow into water by the time I took this photo. :-)

Just so you know, the socks fit perfectly. :-D

AND, just so you know the whole story... I was working from home on Wednesday, so my fashion was much more about comfort and warmth than actual fashion. I won't show you the entire ensemble, but you get the idea...

Ambo, it might be time for that intervention you threatened me with so many years ago. ;-)

Anyway, as you know I have recently gotten on the sock-knitting-bandwagon. I have not made any for myself, yet. Of course I've only made one pair so far. So I'm not certain that counts as being "on the wagon," but I can tell you that I have a (secret) second pair in work, a list that includes at least 4 more, a couple of sock pattern books and a growing sock-yarn stash to support a new-found obsession... So I am thrilled to have a pair of hand-knit socks to call my very own. Especially a pair that was made by someone I adore. :-D

And I almost forgot, these socks are hand-knit from hand-spun yarn. Yep, I'm a very lucky girl.

If you're a regular reader of Fiber Arts Friday, you already know The Awesome that is Spinster Beth. But if you're not, go say hello. I think you'll like her too. :-)

And while you're at it, please say hello to the other fantastic Fiber Arts Friday Fiberistas!

My Clothes

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 22:06:00 +0000

I was thinking earlier this week about how my clothes have changed since we became full-time farmers. Mostly I was thinking about it because we had our first snow event of the season and I had forgotten how often I change clothes in the winter these days.

First, The Snow Event

It was seriously an event. Nearly 9 inches of heavy, wet, spring-like snow at our house... which is next to, not in the Rocky Mountains. They said on the news that the water content of our normal snow is 10 inches of snow = 1 inch of water. It's why people love to ski Colorado.... Champagne Powder!

The snow we had last week was 10 inches of snow = 6 inches of water.

The trees still had most of their leaves, so there were fallen branches everywhere. We had many friends without power for more than 24 hours. It was the coldest night of the season at a low of around 15F. Fortunately those friends all have fireplaces so they were not cold.

We were very lucky and only lost internet for a couple of hours during the big melt and only have one broken branch that I now need to remove from the tree. But wow, it was certainly an event.

On to the Clothes

Prior to being a full-time farmer, I lived in a city. I had my going to the office clothes and my comfy at home clothes. But for more than 10 years my going to the office clothes and comfy at home clothes were the same because it was normal to wear shorts and t-shirts or jeans and t-shirts to the office. I do miss those days.

Eventually we purchased a few alpacas that we agisted at a nearby farm so a group of going to the farm clothes were added... or rather, removed from my going to the office clothes.

The going to the farm clothes were often torn or stained and of course the boots had poo on them.

Now that we're full-time farmers, live outside of a city and I commute to a client office where proper office clothes are the norm I have several more groups of clothes.

In the Summer

There's the proper office clothes that look good in the summer heat and the indoors *^%-freezing, air-conditioning. They are easily removed and replaced for passing thru TSA checkpoints and generally need to be dry-cleaned.

Then there's the comfy at home clothes and farm clothes. These are often the same unless it's been raining and is therefore muddy outside.

I wear shorts, t-shirts and flip-flops for the majority of the summer. I often find myself in the corral wearing jammies and flip-flops and toward the end of the summer, I occasionally forego the flip-flops and find myself in the pasture without anything resembling shoes at all.

I have my clean shorts and t-shirts for going out and my dirty shorts and t-shirts for mucking, feeding, weeding and other farm chores. All of these are sent through the general wash without much care or worry.

I do have a pair of hiking boots that I use for working around the alpacas. They generally have poo on them too. Alpacas can have very sharp toe nails and Flip-flops don't go well with them. Let's just say, I know this from experience. :-/

In the Winter

I have the proper office clothes that look good over layers of long-johns and under layers of woolies. They are also easily removed and replaced for passing thru TSA checkpoints and yes, also generally need to be dry-cleaned.

Then I have the comfy at home clothes and the farm clothes. I have old ripped and stained jeans, long-johns, snow boots, big coat, winter gloves and woolies that are dedicated to farm chores. These things all get donned and removed in the mud room which is really just a shelf in the garage. These are all machine washable and are cycled through every few days.

The comfy at home clothes are jeans, t-shirts and sweaters.... but often they're jammies. Yep, I will often be on a teleconference with technical developers and business users in other countries and time zones wearing my jammies. I do like this part. :-D

So I guess the big difference between not being a farmer then and being a farmer now is the mud and snow management. There isn't nearly as much access to mud in the city as there is on a farm. So anything that gets muddy or snowy stays out of the house. Which means that when I am home and going in and out of the house quite a lot, I am therefore changing clothes several times each day.

Cria Face

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 14:24:00 +0000

I caught Clementine hanging out with her brother, Big Thompson, the other day. Is it just me, or are cria faces the cutest thing on earth??

Side Note: Her fiber is no where near as crimpy as her brother's... what a difference the sire can make!

Fiber Arts Friday: Adding Twist

noreply@blogger.com (Kathryn Ray) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 12:46:00 +0000

While I was working on the Recycled Wool Nightcap I swore to myself that I would add twist to and relax the recycled yarn before I used it again.

Before:

I'm not sure if you can see in this photo that it's really acting like 3 strands of yarn rather than a 3-ply yarn. But you can definitely see that the kink from it previously being a sweater is still very much present.

As you can see, I still had a lot of tiny balls left over from the Recycled Wool Project. So I separated the yarn into bigger balls and smaller balls, tied them together as I was plying and then gave it a good long soak.

After:

I now have 1268 yards over 3 skeins and 7 5/8 ounces of recycled lamb's wool in a lovely 3-ply yarn, all ready for my next project.

I will make a mental note to take more care when separating the panels of the next sweater I recycle. Fortunately the plan I have for the yarn means the knots should not be issue... let's hope that's true.

In the meantime, I hope you are having a lovely Fiber Arts Friday. Be certain to see what everyone else has been up to over at Wisdom Begins in Wonder.