the story of shearing day

Up at 5:30 to pile on layers and layers of mismatched winter-wear. Long johns, jeans, sweater upon sweater, hats and scarves. A little while later she arrives and I hop into the car. Bleary-eyed, but quietly wild with anticipation, we hit a drive-through for some coffee and a quick a breakfast sandwich. After all, who has time to make breakfast on a big day like this?

A freeway and a few curving country roads later we arrive and step out into the cold. The farm is on a hill so the bitter chill of winter weather (still? it's March) swirls around us along with a few stray sparkling flakes. Magic. My heart jumps with excitement as we near the barn. I can hear the sheep bleating, not as gentle as some would think. They are hungry (no food before shearing), they are scared (why are we up and moving already?) and they don't seem to mind speaking their mind. Blurting out call after call.

It's funny how I love these sort of days but how unaccustomed to them I really am. I clumsily climb over the pen, limb over tangled limb, and introduce myself to Du-Roy, a white Shetland ram. I look at him and my friend unsure of what to do next. She explains to me what "rooing" is. Rooing?

It is the process of gently pulling away the previous years coat and exposing the new years' coat. The wool is thick, and soft, and greasy with lanolin. (Lanolin is an oil that sheep secrete, and before you cringe in disgust, go read the ingredients on your creams and lotions. Its probably listed.)

We wait on shearers and get to know the flock. A moving sea of sheep slowly become recognizable faces. There are two brand new lambs to cuddle and make over.  Soft and brown. A week old, but already bouncing, skipping, all energy and wool. Their new faces show none of the fear that is written on faces of the others. Red, the English Shepherd keeps his close watch on mom and babies, his eyes shift as we pass the lambs from person to person.

The shearers finally arrive and the real work begins. There are two quiet young men, tall and lanky, that do the actual shearing. All day their faces shift from the focused scowl of a worker, to the softened smiles of a caretaker. The rest of us are bagging fleeces, sweeping the shearing the stations, handing off the shots and medications for each sheep, and wrangling sheep back into pens.

Its amazing the differences in sheep personalities. We start with rams, their fleeces so big, you could just roll up in them and sleep warm for days. Rams, for the most part, fought very little. Then the ewes. Some were quiet and calm. They looked uncomfortable, but just seemed to lay back as the wool fell to floor, soft like a cloud. Others though, struggled and bleated and kicked and rolled. It was a wild fight, and sometimes I wonder, who is really winning?

When it came time for returning sheep to pens, I have things to learn. Some seem to know right where to go. Then there are others. With these, there is plenty of panicking, running, and grabbing, and that's just me. Some sheep bolt past the gate, while others run the opposite direction. A real chase down. Mimosa, a small ewe, standing about a foot and a half off the ground, has me on the ground in a matter of a few seconds. She darts into her pen and we both slowly stand, look at each other, and wonder what just happened. Equally traumatized. With time I am better. Realizing sheep need direction more than force. They need a calming hand, rather than a powerful one. The shearers seem to know this. One of them scoops up the smaller ewes in his arms and carries them gently to the pen himself.

When the sheep are all shorn and the wool all bagged. The sheep enjoy their new lightness, unfazed by the cold. They scratch and shake, and dance their own noisy freedom dance. They rub against each other, reacquainting themselves with what they mistake to be new pen-mates. (Really, they don't recognize each other now.)

 The llamas are next.

 Octavias (above) and Lucky. Both of which have been aware all day that some part of this would eventually involve them. And they don't seem to like it. The llamas stand and spit, and wobble this way and that, but in the end, they are shorn to, and return to their pens.

The wool is carried into the garage heaping armload after heaping armload. Bag by bag. Some other day it must be cleaned and carded.

 We say our goodbyes and head home, cold, tired, and smelling of hay and lanolin. But we are happy.

I arrive home and peel off the many layers in exchange for warm pajamas.

I am asleep, warm on the couch, in a matter of minutes.

havING too much of a good thing...???

This is how life feels right now. Like maybe everything is too good, too wonderful, too strong, and vibrant and alive. The worrying side of me wants to wonder when the bottom will drop out, but surprisingly and wonderfully, that side of me is not winning.

Life is not perfect right now, not even at all but its good. So so good. (Did I mention life is good?)...

I am coming off of a wonderful summer filled with spinning (I bought a wheel!....more on that later), baking, growing tomatoes and what seems like a million other green and lovely summer things, spending time with my wonderful grandma, sweet red wine, fires in the back yard....Just goodness all over.

This week I started my student teaching, well unofficially. My official Kent assigned day is September 4th, but I have a fabulous cooperating teacher who has welcomed me into her room. I've spent the last few days at staff meetings, getting the room ready etc. I've been so impressed with how positive the staff there has been. Its been a refreshing and terrific change in comparison to some schools I've been in through out my experiences. Tomorrow the kids show up, and the real (but good, so so good....like everything else) work begins. I can't wait. I am surprisingly unnervous (yep, I made that word up) and I'm completely excited.

I've started running again, and for the first time in 5 yeas (5!) it doesn't hurt my back. There is lots of walking and panting involved, but lots of smiles too.

So life for now, seems like its too much of a good thing, but its not too much and I love it.  Smiles all around and happy Tuesday everyone!

lettING go...

You start out knitting for yourself.

From the needles comes a scarf,
a hat
someday a sweater.

From your own hands , and the clacking of metal on metal comes warmth to get you through a thousand winters.

It's independence , self sufficiency.
You can stand alone.

Then you discover it.
The joy of knitting for another.

With skill and time
comes a gift.
Something to ease grief, or welcome one into the world,
Something that celebrates or mourns or both.
Something to soften and warm and brighten,
in those long winter months ahead.

Each stitch, a prayer.
The wool moving through your fingers like beads of the rosary.

Holy and sacred. Giving life and goodness.

You started out alone,

and you needed to. Learning to stand on you're own is all a part of it.

But the next part, is watching something you created, something you labored over, something you touched and admired
move from your hands,
into those of another.

doING this and that

So, summer has been way busier than anticipated, but this doesn't mean its bad.

First of all, I'm in love. Seriously. I'm not even kidding. I'm in love with my crock pot. I pretty much cook everything all the time in it. If I had more than one crock pot, I would probably be cooking breakfast, lunch, and dinner in them, along with all of my snacks and maybe even beverages. This happened because I found this website. This lady used her crock pot everyday for an entire year. This could easily become me. I also feel it's important to tell you how much of a victory this is for me. Shortly after Dave and I got married (that almost 3 years ago...yep, I said 3 years!) I had two EPIC failures with the crock pot and it was banished to my pantry for two more years, until recently. Now I'm making, meals, beverages (Gingerbread Latte's? Yes freaking please!), and I'm thinking I'm going to move into desserts soon. It's basically the best thing ever. Go to that website, its the best thing ever.  Here it is again, just in case:

http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2007/12/alphabetical-listing-of-recipes.html

Second, I'm so (so so so so so so so so) excited about student teaching this fall. So excited. I met with my first cooperating teacher (I will have two, one for language arts and one for social studies). I met the lady I will be teaching social studies with this fall and it went so incredibly well. She was so happy when I came into her room. She gave me a tour of her school--and she sent me home with this:

Ok, So it's not the best picture in the world, but that's basically a giant stack of lessons plans, curriculum etc. for me to go through to start planning!!  I am both overwhelmed and excited by this. It's US History, mostly exploration, which is exciting (how many times can I say a form of the word "exctied" in this post?). Seriously, I can't even wait. I'm both terrified and excited for this fall and really, it can't come quick enough for me. I might be more excited about it than Christmas, which for anyone who has read this blog in the past,  you know how big of a deal that is.

 I'm still doing various nerdy wool activities like this:

I dyed this alpaca wool. It looks gross and matted here because it was gross and matted here. I still have to card it. If you aren't motivated enough to click on the link, in short, carding is a process by which the wool is made "smooth" again so that it is ready to be spun into yarn.

Finally, I have other lame and less exciting things going on this summer. I have two summer classes (that right, not one, but two). One is going on now everyday for 3 weeks (the homework for which I am procrastinating right now) and the other is next month for the whole entire month. I don't really love it at all. Also, I have to take two Praxis II tests this summer, one for social studies and one for language arts. Yuck. That's all I can really say about that.

In the mean time though, I'm going to continue my wild affair with my crock pot, as well as being excited about student teaching, as well as processing, spinning and knitting wool. 

So that's pretty much the summer....

How many times did I say excited???

rockING it in Maryland

So, as some of you know, last weekend it was once again time for the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival. Just like last year, it was awesome. Maybe better, now that I've been there once and had more "focused" approach.


Some of my favorite moments:

Dave's cousin took this picture claiming it was me "picking up men" at the sheep and wool festival, and I have to agree that it looks incriminating...however, what was really happening, was that he was explaining to me about some of the fleeces as well as telling me about his flock of sheep (and I mean that literally). Last year, I had a long conversation with another old man. This is becoming a part of the tradition. Old people are awesome.

This is a picture from the sheep dog demonstration. I didn't take the time to sit through this last year, but I'm so glad I did this year. It was absolutely amazing to see what the dogs were capable of and how much they loved it. It made me want sheep and dogs (maybe I'll buy them next year at Maryland....Right Dave??? Right?)

This (not this exact one) was my big purchase this year. A drop spindle! I'm spinning now. I would have loved to buy a wheel, but that's like a $300-$500 investment so.... I'm saving for next year. In the mean time, I'm spinning using a primitive, but very cool method. I love it. I love the history. Women in ancient Greece (and a ton of other places) used drop spindles to spin fiber to make clothing and other items, while watching sheep. After reading about some of the history of fiber, I love it even more.

Along with the festival, we spent a day in DC. I was total nerd the whole time as demonstrated below:

Me, as a squinty-eyed, smiling tourist in front of the White House. I fit right in with all the eighth graders. Obama wasn't home, I was secretly hoping he would be there, invite me in, and we would talk about education and basically become good friends, and he would totally invite me back to talk to congress about education and I would basically change the whole world.....a girl can dream can't she?

Instead, I just became more of a cheesy tourist and got my picture in a fake Oval Office in the gift shop. I hate how excited I look in this picture...I was taking this way too seriously. I was the only non-child or non visitor from another country in line for these pictures...yes, that's plural, I have set of 5 pictures of me looking "presidential". It's ridiculous.

So, that was Maryland. I totally feel like a narcissist posting all these pictures of myself, which is why I don't normally do this. That's probably why its better to wait until you have kids to have a blog, at least I could post pictures of them doing stuff, instead of nerdy pictures of myself.*

Also, it's worth mentioning, while riding in the car we had a book of White House trivia. Through out the course of our Q and A session, I discovered Lou Hoover was the most kick ass first lady ever. You should look her up. I'm pretty sure the Depression would have ended way sooner had she been running the country instead of dumb old Herb. Seriously, look her up.

*Mother, this in no way means I am planning on having children at this time...

readING rundown

I don't do reading posts as often as I'd like or as often as I finish books. I want to get better at this. As a future language arts teacher, I feel it is part of who I am and what I do to get people (students, adults, anyone really) excited about books. Here's two I've read, one I'd like to, and one I just heard about.

This book was beautiful. I didn't expect myself to love a book that is narrated by a dog--but I did. The perspective of Enzo as he recounts his life with the Swift family is one that made me laugh and cry. It was so very moving (again, I was surprised that a book about a dog could do this). It deals with love, and loss, and unfairness, and redemption. I just loved this book.

This book refilled my "hope tank" like no other book has in a long time. I swear it made me a better person to read it. Amber Appleton is a teen whose life is anything but fair, but seeing how she copes and comes through grief is so hopeful and reviving. I also loved her perspective on her faith.  She has a very raw and unrefined faith that I wish we all had. This book  restored my hope in goodness.  I think it's one of those books that I'll come back to when I need an extra shot of optimism.

I haven't read this book yet. It's on my list. It was recommended to me by one of my professors but it's not a "professory" book if you know what I mean. It's written by a reading teacher. She speaks on the ways that she gets students to not just read, but to love it--which is what I hope to do someday. I can't wait to read this.

I honestly can't remember how I even found out about this book, but I'm glad I did. It's about a girl from the city who finds an ordinary box of yarn that turns out to be not so ordinary. I love children's books and I love knitting so this is perfect. The little "snippet" I've seen on Amazon looks so lovely. The illustrations are wonderful. Can't wait to own it. :)

Happy Reading Everyone!

my favorite "ING's" of summer so far.....

I have been too busy to enjoying my summer to bother blogging, which is probably a good thing, but here are some of my favorite "ings" so far.

ReadING:

There's really just two books I've been working on. Both probably rank pretty high on the "nerd" list somewhere, but we've already established I fit quite nicely into that category anyway.

I know, sounds enthralling, right? Well, at least I think so. It's about ancient women's history and women's roles in creating fiber and textiles. I love it. Barber is a weaver herself and does such a great job of connecting us to our own history as women, as users or makers of fiber.

Yes. It's true. I'm a closet sci-fi nerd. Those that know me best are well aware of this. Lewis has a space trilogy and this is the first book. I totally plan on reading all three. I completely recommend this (at least what I've read so far) if you like sci-fi, fantasy (Narnia????), or even just C.S. Lewis. It's suspenseful and thoughtful and makes you think about what makes us, well, human??? Anyway, just read it. It's not very long.

KnittING:

Ok, ok, I admit it. I haven't actually done as much of this as I've planned this summer so far, but I've done a little, and bought some yarn (isn't that the fun part anyway???).

I LOVE this yarn that I found at the Great Lakes Fiber Show. I immediately fell in love with the colors. Twice without realizing it, I drifted over to the same booth and the same color scheme. It was fate. It reminds of our honeymoon in the Dominican Republic for some reason. It looks summery,  coral-y, and beachy, and Caribbean-y. I have absolutely no idea what I plan to knit with it, but I couldn't resist.

And...good news...the first leg warmer is finished!!! The second one is started and should be finished soon. (I told you they'd be done by July. :)

EatING:

We've been doing a lot of this. :)

Dave had some clients from work come up from Louisiana, and I mean Louisiana. When we ask them where they live it's "Up the bayou."   Which I had no idea where exactly that was. We had dinner with them one night and then they gave us 30 lbs of crawfish. Lucky for us, Dave's brother knew exactly how to prepare them and we had ourselves a crawfish boil! Complete with jumbalaya and corn on the cob and a little fried chicken. It was ALL delicious.

Confession: I didn't actually eat the crawfish...:( I wanted to but, I'm allergic (I told you, I'm a nerd...complete with allergies.)

WatchING:

I know I'm probably supposed to talk about how I have better things to do then watch TV, but I'm going to be honest here and say that in summer, I allow my inner couch potato come out. It's not like I spend all day doing this, but I have a few shows I love. Here's my current favorite:

Don't judge me.

I realize this show is trashy, soap opera-y, and created for 16 year old teens, but I'm addicted and I DVR it every week and am totally up on  the latest thing that "A" has done to scare the "Liars". If you don't know who Em, Aria, Hanna, or Spencer are...you should. You'll be hooked. (Also, I am very aware I have some Bachelor and Bachelorette fans who are readers out there...you absolutely can't judge me for this then.)  :)

Those are some of my favorite "ings" of the summer. We've also had a trip to the zoo, some Sonic runs (yum!), and some nights out on the lake...which I would have mentioned...but I have no pictures.

 What have YOU been up to this summer???



Photo Credits: All Images except for the two from KnittING are from Google Images...as usual.

votING results!

Ok. So first of all I am so sorry it's taken me so long to create a post about this. Second, I'm sorry that this will definitely be a short post. Life has been busy with  visiting friends from out of town and friends from out of town visiting me, which is a good kind of busy to be. :)

Anyway....I know you can all just look to the right and see the results, but for the sake of fanfare...drum roll please:

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The winner, of the mohair election
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is.
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in a landslide victory
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The cowl!!!!!

I'm honestly not sure how many votes there actually were because blogger lost a lot of them when they were down a while ago, but I can say that almost entirely throughout the voting process, the cowl was always winning.

Now, to be honest, I'm also not sure if I really am going to knit a cowl or not (kind of seems like a  real presidential election now doesn't it???).

I probably have enough mohair to make the two things I am now most torn between, and that is still the cowl and the wrap.


Anyway, thanks for all your participation, votes, and suggestions! They will all be aptly (is that actually a word, and is it the right word for what I'm trying to say???) considered.

knittING decisions...help! (take 2)

Ok, lets try this again....last time blogger somehow deleted the whole.entire.post.....and poll. Sigh....

Anyway. Remember this?

The kid mohair from Maryland??? Well, I'm super excited to knit with it, but I'm quite torn about what exactly to knit. I'm feeling very conflicted over this! Now, I realize that I have 1200 yards of the stuff, but still, this is a big decision! There are basically three things I can't decide among and they are:

A cowl? Picture it all wrapped around the neck, you know....to get the full effect.

 A scarf?

Or...a wrap???

These are the big three. What do YOU think? I've provided a poll and would love your input. I may not use those exact colors and patterns, I'm just looking for a general idea.

If you choose "other" for the poll, please put suggestions as comments on this post. I'm open to just about anything, although there are some things a person just doesn't knit. ;)

I would LOVE your input! :)

Image Credits: All except top picture are from etsy, click on descriptive word for specific shops/sites. Top image from Google Image



geekING out in maryland

I have good news and bad news. Which do you want first??? Well, you don't actually get to answer, so I'll get the bad news over first--I forgot my camera this weekend. :( So no pictures from me, but I'll do my best to search online to find some good ones (probably better than I would have taken anyway).

Ok, ok , that's over with so here's the good news--I don't think it would have been possible to cram more fiber fun into one festival. The Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival was even better than I could have imagined. We left Friday evening arriving in the DC area that night, spent a marathon day at the festival, and then the evening in DC eating really great food (more on that later) and seeing things like the White House (Obama didn't wave, I was disappointed). On Sunday, we had quick (but tasty) brunch, and headed home. The weekend was a whirlwind, but it was a blast! :)

Here are some quick takes of the festival:

There were so. many. people. I was shocked. I mean, anyone I told that I was going to a sheep and wool festival looked at me like I was from another planet. Apparently, there are lots of other people from that planet. They were all great too (except some of those pushy people with strollers, a stroller is not a license to shove!). Anyway, my favorite was this old man I sat down beside in the heat of the afternoon. We started talking and he was a history and civics teacher for years in Michigan. We talked about teaching and how it's changed, we talked about history, we talked about SB 5, women's roles in modern society, and the fact that even I am now getting old because I don't like modern music (That was his theory, once you start thinking the best music was from 10 to 20 years ago....you are getting old. We laughed). The guy knew everything. He had  a BA, two masters degrees, and PhD in history! I learned so much.

Lamb Gyros! Ok, I didn't actually eat one. The lines were too long and I had too much to do, but don't they look tasty?

I think this guy is called a Cotswold sheep (I might be wrong though). He was my favorite when I walked around the barns. He was extra soft, and how do you not love all that wool in his eyes?? All the shepherds were more than willing to talk about their animals. I wish I could say I remembered more of what they told me.

 

Vendors: there were tons! Selling everything from yarn, processed wool, unprocessed wool, spinning wheels, looms, needles, finished knitted products, felting supplies...you get the idea. I managed to actually not go broke while I was there. My favorite purchase is a 1200 yard skein (that's huge in case you were wondering) of kid mohair for just 30 bucks! It is white and soft and wonderful. You just want to bury your face into it and smell it's sheepy smell ( I realize how weird that is, but I love the smell of sheep) . It looks like this:

All in all--it was fabulous and I can't wait to do it again. Besides what is pictured, there were folk bands, Celtic music, TONS of food, sheep shearing competitions, herding dog demonstrations, auctions, and so, so, so much more!

I totally plan on going next year and I hope, that I by then, I will be in the market for knew spinning wheel! :) I fully plan on learning to spin this year.

 If you like knitting, crocheting, or any other fiber-related craft even a little, it's completely worth going to. The countdown to next year begins....now!



Image Credits: Because I forgot my camera, all images are sadly from Google Images. :(

knittING news

So I haven't done a knitting update in quite sometime. Let's do this.

First of all our famous knitter...I love this one!

It's FDR! He was a knitter! I would love to find more man knitters.

Next on the knitting docket, I found this mug:

I want it.


Also....in a few short week I will be attending....The Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival!!!Yes, it's exactly what it sounds like. A festival, in Maryland, dedicated entirely to all things wool and fiber related. You can see sheep, shear sheep, watch them be herded, eat sheep (yup, gyros...sorry sheep), learn to spin wool, knit, felt...and any other fiber related activity you could possibly imagine. There is even a parade of sheep which I completely plan on attending. I am way too excited! This is my first major fiber festival and I feel like a kid waiting for Christmas.

Here's the flyer:

Finally, I really really really (at least I think so) want to get a knitting related tattoo. Maybe a ball of yarn or something. I have to think this through though, because....I.am.a.wimp....not mention a chicken. As I've thought about it I think of how cool it would be then it somehow morphs into thoughts like:
What if it hurts? What if I hate it after it's done? What if I can't get a job because of it? What if I get aids from the needle? What if I'm allergic to the dye and go into anaphalaxis (spelling?) and die!?

As you can see, I have let the questioning get out of hand.

But look at these cool yarn tattoo ideas:

See?  Aren't they cool? Mine probably won't be that big and it will need to be somewhere I can hide it like on my back or foot or something. Some schools don't like teachers having tattoos I guess.

 I have some other yarn tattoo ideas bouncing around in my head. :)


So, that's my update...the funniest and saddest part is that due to blogging and school, I've had very little time for actual knitting. However I have worked on the leg warmers a little. Soon, I will post some pics of my progress so far.

Have a great day...Keep Calm...and Carry Yarn!


Image credit: All images from Google Images and http://www.sheepandwool.org/ .

watchING a miracle

Ok. So I know I've posted a lot lately, but I just HAVE to tell you about this link. It's from one of my favorite blogs. It's a farm blog from Juniper Moon Farms. They are a fiber farm. Raising their own sheep and selling its fiber. It's so so fabulous.

It's lambing season at Juniper Moon and it's so so exciting! You can click on the above link to be connected to one of the LambCams (there are actually 3) and you can actually watch the mother's with their baby lambs....live! If you're lucky you can actually watch a live birth. Which, I realize to some people might be gross, but I think it's so cool and hope I manage to catch a birth this season. Even if there isn't a lamb currently being born, this lambcam almost always has lambs that you can watch as they feed and learn to walk etc. It's way too cute. Anyway, just thought I'd share. :)

Image Credit: Google Image

readING

For a phonics strategies class I'm in, one of the projects we do is to read a young adult or older children's book and do a "book talk" on it. The "book talk" part is simply giving a brief "preview" of the book...without giving too much away. The goal is to learn to make books sound exciting (which they are) and to read books that the kid's we will be teaching could read.

I chose Hoot, and I have to say I liked. It's sort of a series of hilarious mysteries that are all connected and stacked on top of one another.By the time you feel that one mystery is "solved" your knee deep into the next. It begins with Roy, the main character being beat up by the school bully on the bus. His face is smushed against the glass of the window. It's at this point that Roy notices a boy running. Not just any boy though. He had no shoes, no books, and was running in the opposite direction of the school bus stop. Roy immediately sets out to find out who the running boy is and from there, the mysteries only begin. By the end you'll find out what an owl, nine snakes, an alligator, a bulldozer, a police car, and pancakes all have in common and you'll laugh a lot along the way.

I liked it. It made me laugh. In a few places it was actually a little too....political(?) for me, which surprised me for a book written for 12 years olds, but as whole it was great.

Whatever I think of the book though, I love this idea of book talks, and plan on using it in my classroom someday. We not only have to talk about the book, but we have to create a website, or use props, or do something visual.



The second book I've been reading isn't school related at all (clearly)-- The Knitter's Book of Yarn by Clara Parkes. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this book. It's everything you could want to know about yarn, choosing it, using for the right projects, where it comes from, how it's made, and more. It comes with some 40 patterns that are all beautiful. Some are above my skill level, but I'll get there...someday.

Perhaps its interesting to me because I love wool, yarn, and all fiber related topics, but I would venture to say that even to someone who may not have a natural affinity for yarn could find her style and content interesting.

My favorite part is when she talks about fiber festivals (yes, that's a real thing...all the knitting nerds really do all together at one time, I'll post on that sometime soon). She refers to them as "Woodstock, for knitters". I love this!

"Read it. I know you'll love it!" (Name that movie) But really, do read it.

knittING news

First of all, I will start this post by saying...I should absolutely be reading Heart of Darkness for my lit class right now. However, as Fridays tend to go, I got online and started looking at knitting, fiber, and wool related things and now I feel compelled to blog about them. What can I say? I'm obsessed.



First and foremost I am extra pleased to announce that.......the Tumnus scarf is finished!!!! Well, sort of. I'm finished knitting it. I haven't decided if I'm going to block it. Blocking, for any non-knitting reader I may have, is the process of wetting and drying the knitted piece to help achieve the desired shape. There are a lot of ways to do this, and I've never done it before, but I may try it for this project. The edges of this scarf curl, so it's almost like a long, red, snake-like rope. Surprisingly though, it wears great like this. We'll see what I decide. Pictures to come. (I would post pictures of it today, but sadly I've been so focused on reading about wool and such, that I haven't even showered or anything....pathetic...I know).



Second, I am happy to tell you all that I finally found a pattern that I really love for the legwarmer project. It took me forever because I wanted to find one that was free, that I still liked, and that seemed easy enough for a new knitter like myself. Here it is. I found it on a site called the purl bee. It's great you should check it out if you like knit, crochet, or sew anything at all.



Here is what the finished product will hopefully, but not likely, look like.




I will probably wear them a little "slouchier" then what is pictured, but I just can't wait to knit and to wear these. Once I can spare the money for the yarn they recommend, I'm getting it, and I am going to start knitting. I figure I'll probably have these done in time to be extra useful. Like, maybe....in July....you know, when legwarmers are just the thing you are looking for. Either way, I'm wearing them, even if it is 90 degrees out. I'll just turn up the air a little more.

Finally, here is our "celebrity knitter" for the month:



Yup! Audrey! If that doesn't put the class into knitting, I don't know what does.
I know this picture looks like its from a movie set, which it is, but she really was a real-life knitter and she is real-life knitting here.

This discovery made me so happy and made me feel less like I'm 90 years old for being a knitter.

So get those needles clacking! Everybody's doing it! Even Audrey!



Image credit: Google Images

thanks for votING!

Results are in! I have to admit that I was surprised to find out that the cozy, comfy, calm colors won! :) For awhile I honestly wasn't sure if I was going to abide by the poll results or not, but I've decided to give power to the people and go with it. So calm, comfy, and cozy it will be. I haven't picked a yarn yet, but when I do, you will all be the first to know.

On the note of knitting...Although I will probably start the leg warmers very shortly, I have some other projects that have taken precedence...baby knits!!!!

No, no, no, its not what you're thinking. It's really for a friend of mine who I've known they are pregnant for awhile, but they just found out they are having a baby girl. So I've been brainstorming on what the best thing to knit for a new mom and baby. Ideas anyone?

knittING news

I'm up. I've been awake since around 6:30. I wasn't really planning on getting up this early on a Saturday, especially my last Saturday of break, but I'm a crazy person so here I sit waiting on my coffee to brew.

I have labeled myself a crazy person because I've realized that anytime Dave leaves while it's still dark (this is usually for hunting) I usually lay awake listening for the sounds of someone breaking into our house. Seriously, it's crazy. I convince myself that someone watched our house, waited for Dave to leave, and is going to break in, attack me, kill our cat, and steal all of our earthly goods (in that order). I need to stop watching Law and Order or something.

Since I'm up though, I thought I'd do a quick knitting post--more of an update on my slow and sad progression as a knitter, but a happy knitter nonetheless.

First of all, the Tumnus Scarf still remains unfinished. It's almost there, but not quite yet.

However (doesn't putting it bold make me sound like a mean old teacher..."However you all need to work on your grammar"...something like that). However (after all that...geesh) I do feel like I have an excuse. For some of my Christmas gifts I knitted coffee cup cozies (is it pronounced cozy, like a cozy cottage, or coozie, like the word cootie but with a "z" instead of a "t"? I'm dying to know).

Here is what they are supposed to look like:




Here is what mine look like (I'll let you in on a sad little secret...this is my best looking one):



It slightly resembles the picture. This is a victory for me.

Here is the pattern if you are a knitter and would like to make one yourself.

I've been thinking for awhile about what I can knit next. I've decided on (drum roll please):
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That's right! 1980's, aerobic instructor-like, almost dorky, leg warmers! The ones pictured are from someone's Etsy Shop.

I am so excited to pick out a yarn and a pattern and get knitting on these. I don't know if its the cheesy factor or the cozy factor, but I just love the idea of these. I also can't decide between doing a fun bright 80's color yarn or a calm cozy color like the one here (goal for today's post....use the a form of the word cozy as many times as I can squeeze in). Opinions regarding color are welcome.

Here's my last tidbit on knitting. I promise. I've decided to occasionally find a celebrity who knits and post at the very least a picture every now and then. I think this helps feel less like a 90 year old when I post about knitting.

I got this idea from Martha Stewart (should this really make me feel less like a 90 year old???). She did a short segment on Karen Allen.



You know, from Indiana Jones? Per her interview with Martha, Karen learned to knit from her grandma and has loved it ever since, even through her acting career. She now has her own shop. Not everything she knits is entirely my style, but it's definitely art.

Well, that's a wrap (or a scarf, or a shawl, or mittens, or a cozy...) Sorry I had to.