Intrepid Fiber Wizard

Springtime on the Farm

Spring has arrived in our small corner of the world. The cherry tree is full of blossoms, and so far, the deer are behaving themselves and not tearing the bark off of it. (I think that the liberal application of "liquid fence" worked!) Spring means many things on the farm: fences need straightening, tree limbs are removed from pastures, purchasing more hay, new babies are being born, and it's shearing time! I've compiled quite a series of photos for you to enjoy.. it's a lengthy post - enjoy!

Last Monday was shearing day - and our  friend, Marcia arrived with all her gear in tow to do the job.  Shearing is one of those  days on the farm where everything has to be juggled around.  animals are moved from one barn to another,  a portable generator is borrowed from a man  down the road (since there is no power is the middle of the pasture by the barn)  - neighbors show up to help corral the little  ones, and we section off a part of the barn using hog panels. Shetlands get pretty docile when they are confined. Normally they are jumping all over the field, only coming close for treats. Yet when they are closed in the barn, they nuzzle close, hoping for a bit of a chin rub. It's lovely.

For those of you who have animals, you understand, everyone else, maybe not so much (*smile*) It all sounds simple. right? raawwwrriiiiggght. (another big smile) There is always something interesting that happens - a surprise or two, you might say (big grin).
Shearing time requires that everyone involved be cheerful, calm and flexible. Despite all the years we have done this, it is still an exciting event. Will the fleeces be good this year? Will the animals behave? will the weather cooperate until we're done?

The morning of "the big trim" arrived, and rain was threatening. Shearing wet animals is absolutely no fun. wet wool= sticky wool. fast moving shears don't like it very much. There is also the element of danger if you were holding sharp electric cutting tools, that are plugged into a generator... hmm... rain is no fun.  So, Klaus hurried out to catch the last few stragglers (there is always one or two who love to run to the other side of the hill when everyone else is patiently waiting.)

Klaus searched around for all the animals - one of the goats was hiding in the trees - he looked a bit closer and saw that she would soon give birth. (soon, as in at any moment) Very gently, he encouraged her into the barn, and settled her with some fresh bedding, hay and water.  Here she is looking at me in that smirking way of hers.. almost as if to say Hah!

In the meantime, all the other curious goats managed to run the other direction (away from the shearing spot) So much for the goats. Their turn will come another day! (I sometimes wonder if they plan this kind of thing, to spare their pals the indignity of getting a trim?) It was effective.

Fortunately, the little Shetland Sheep were much more cooperative, and sweetly toddled off into the barn with minimal fuss. (except one.. of course) We managed to encourage the last one into the shed when our neighbors showed up - and the shearing began.

I never cease to be amazed that someone as tiny as Marcia can toss about a big old ram. Klaus brought him out to her, and Marcia quickly plopped the guy onto his behind, and began. The process starts with a bit of a "pedicure" (sheep style) then the shearing really begins. The older sheep are fairly calm about the whole thing, having gone through this for many years, but the new ones can be quite a bit like greased pigs in a mud pile. We all hang on tight to the little ones. This a photo of our docile girl "Joan" - she kept trying to fall alseep during her trim.

An interesting thing about our shetlands, is that they have incredible fleeces. It is all long and curly on the outside, and has a thick soft coat underneath

- generally it's a different color as well.

A couple of the shetlands were so tiny that Marcia had to kneel down to shear them. Here are a couple of 'first-timers' to the whole process. They sat still for only a moment, then kept trying to jump up and run away. this one is very curious as to what all that buzzing noise is, and why she's getting so chilly  suddenly!

 

When they begin to get a bit nervous,

it's a good thing to have a shearer who stays calm. Marcia is tremendous - and actually will sing to them softly if they get too jittery (tho' she recently told me that she sings as much for herself as for them *smile*)

Here are a couple close ups of the fleece as it looks during shearing. This one shows both the outside coat and the soft inside of the same fleece.

Shetlands are tiny little animals - under those big old coats, they remind me of teddy bears. Even Emo, our ram, looks like just a little guy underneath. We put them all back into the small section of the barn after they have been shorn, so they can greet  each other once again. They almost appear to be whispering to each other "don't go out there, Natasha, or you'll be getting a buzz cut too!" Yet, one by one, we bring them out, until everyone is shorn.

When we're finally done with the whole group, we lower the hog panels, and let them run. All ten of them come bursting out, acting as if they have been closed in forever (truth be told, we only had them closed in for about 2 hours)

The final chapter of this day was the birth of the twins. In the farming world, there is little that is more adorable than a new baby goat. The Mama seems pleased with herself, and so are we. There is one boy and one girl. Within a day or two after the first births, the other little mama goat gave birth to one baby.

We've kept them enclosed in a small shelter so they could bond; and today was 'freedom' to the new goats and their Mamas. It's raining heavily, so they have not ventured too far yet. It won't be long until they are prancing up the hill with their cousins. 

So there you have it - it's been a busy week. Marcia (our shearer) will return in another two weeks or so, and it will be the goats' turn!

Never a dull moment around here! Happy spring!

 

Counting our Blessings

We're in day three with no power here in Washington State; the power company is predicting that it could take up until next week to get it back on line - and yet we are counting all our blessings (in no particular order) *all our animals are fine and so are we *all our 30 foot cedars are still standing * we had an amazingly glorious sunrise this chilly morning *We have a generator (and it works really well)  - we have heat and some power * the gas stove top works  - so we can cook * four electrical outlets work in the kitchen/living room area (which means that I can keep dyeing fiber) * and one outlet in each bedroom works (which means that we have telephone service and internet as well) there are many others that I could go on and on about... but rather than doing that, I ask you to focus a bit of attention towards thanking all the power crews who are working hard to restore power. Their job is enormous. Trees and main power conduits are destroyed all over the northwest. The winds here at our house were above 75mph. Almost all the major towns, and all the small townships (including ours) have been without power since thursday. The temperatures are still below freezing as I write this. there are so many people who do not have generators. Please send your thoughts out to them.

Darkness comes early around this part of the country right now - it is totally dark by 4:30pm. Yesterday the highs were about 40 degrees. I went in to my office, to see a few "hardy" clients (I say hardy because it was only 46 degrees inside the building.) We lit candles and wore our coats and gloves. Somehow the people of the northwest have a wonderful inner strength. The rain, snow and cold do not deter them when they want to be somewhere. It is marvelous, and inspiring.

During the daylight hours I have been able to knit a bit more on my holiday gifts. They are in various stages of completion (yay!) I'm thinking that I might actually be able to finish by Christmas - double yay !

Wanna see up closer?
sorry about the blurry photos - the lighting isn't very good on this overcast, chilly day.

Cable back fingerless gloves - in Lousia Harding Cashmere-merino. I just love the little kisses and hugs pattern on this one. These are for a dear friend who deserves all the smooches she can imagine!

another pair of fingerless gloves - in Debbie Bliss cashmere-merino.  The blue is so deep and vivid - it looks closer to the color shown in the photo above. I used the cable pattern from the Viking Knits book that I have pictured in previous posts. These are for a 20-something man who has quite large hands (he's over 6'4" tall) I opted not to make him socks this year (hmmm, I wonder why?)

and yet another pair of fingerless gloves, just begun.  This is made from alpaca. It's odd, yet after knitting with the cashmere-merino, the alpaca actually feels scratchy. I'm sure that they will be fine when I am done, but it is certainly odd right now.
The gloves take about a day for me to knit up - and make a great gift for people whose shoe size you don't know.

Wondering about this pattern? Well, it is written by Karen Alfke. It is called "Cableback Fingerless Gloves". I took a class from her last January that was marvelous. She is a delightful, humorous, easy-going instructor. If you're interested in finding out where you can buy a copy, give her a shout at her email : [email protected]

And yes, there are indeed socks in progress. These are for my patient daughter, Erin. She's seen them on the needles for a few months now (and so have many of you all... are we bored yet?(giggle)) and hopefully they will be on her feet Christmas Day. I am knitting them with Dicentra Designs superwash merino, colorway Pelennor.  The pattern is the baby cable from Sensational Knitted Socks.  As you can see, I have finally turned the heel on sock numero duo. I just know I'll finish these now!
Speaking of socks; did anyone else notice that there is another socks book coming out in March 2007 by Charlene Schurch More Sensational Knitted Socks. Oh man - I'm placing my pre-order right now! I have used her sock books more than any other that I own.

Klaus is already out driving around this morning - in search of an open post office. We are hoping that he can find one, so that we may mail out the orders from people on our website.  We are told that there has been no mail coming in or going out of the Pacific Northwest  since Wednesday, because none of the way-stations have had power. We appreciate all the patience from our customers as we attempt to solve this interesting challenge.

So keep your fingers crossed that the crews out working can finish up soon. Meanwhile, I am down to rather "unique" methods of drying the fiber that I am able to dye.... picture the damp towels dangling from all vertical surfaces in the house, stacks of dye pots lined up on the stove-top....... and me hoping that I can try out "Otto" soon :-)

Ssshhh, genius at work

It has been hectic here at Fiberwizard central. Rather like a duck... it all looks calm and serene on the surface, but we're paddling like hell underneath ! Knitting for the holidays continues, fiber dyeing goes on every single day almost, I continue to see clients at my office, K keeps the fiber orders shipping out each day,  and delightful guests have come and gone (more about that sometime soon)... all in all, it has been a fabulous month.

Once again tonight , as we did on thanksgiving weekend, we are running on generator power.  (as in, the wind has knocked down power lines all over our area, and we'll be lucky if we have power within a few days)...
The winds are whipping around at about 70 mph, it sounds like a freight train roaring by - and the great cedars (30 feet plus) are holding on for dear life. so far, so good. The weather forecasters are saying that the worst of the storm will hit in about 6 hours...... worse than this? yikes. I figured that I had best do a post now, and be safe.
Perhaps now is a good time to slip back in time a couple of weeks, and show you some of what went on in the thanksgiving weekend here at wizard central.......
I was fortunate to have my genius brother Peter visit with us over the long thanksgiving weekend. And he had been working for three months on a design for a fiber-drying system for our wet wool. It all began with him puzzling over how amazingly long it took to dry the superwash that I hand dye. (we're talking 3-5 days depending on the humidity out here)

Tah dah!!! may I present, "otto" (so dubbed by K, after much contemplation...it needed a name after all !) Oh... you wanted to see the whole thing?.. nah, you have to scroll to the end to see that, this is just my "power button" (cool eh - I feel totally in control here :-)

So here is the pictoral view.. I just cannot resist showing you, as it is brilliant. My brother Peter designed the entire thing. It is a fiber drying system for my hand dyed fiber. It has eight racks, and can hold about 16 pounds of wet fiber.
I simply cannot wait to try it out - but alas, out garage is not yet quite finished, and the weather (well, some of you have read about what we 've been having here) the weather currently stinks. I must wait until it gets above about 50 degrees to give "Otto" a whirl - and hopefully that will be soon!

Here's the beginning - notice the gorgeous  weather
the design was perfect - the weather was holding... yet suddenly it began to get dark and look like this:
it quickly became darker and darker outside....
do you think that deterred the genius (my brother Pete ?nayh.. 'course not. he kept on working through the dark and the rain..

and eventually he worked thru the snow as well.....

BUT... "otto" was finished...... tah dah!!
So the fans blown the air up through the holes, thru the shelves, and out the top ducts, thus drying the fiber in record time- prettty clever, eh?!

I cannot wait to try him out. K kept on walking around that monday calling my brother "otto-man" .. heh heh, I know, it's silly, yet true. We have a rather goofy sense of humor here, but it works for us.

Three cheers to my brother Peter - designer extrodinaire - persevering through rain and sleet and snow. (I guess it's a good thing that I fed him well that weekend eh? ! :-)

All that hard work has me totally tuckered out - phew..... time to rest now. - Emily

Eye Candy

It's eye candy friday... and this is a photo I took on Sept 19th, 2006 around 5:45 am. What a glorious shadow the mountain makes sometimes. This one was so amazing that I woke my husband to see it. The mountain is actually closer than it looks in this photo (I had to zoom out to get the full effect of this amazing sunrise.) more knitting content coming up soon.

High Fiber Diet

There are many doctors who recommend a "high fiber diet" for us all~ especially as we age; but somehow I don't quite think that this is what they had in mind:

Recently it feels as though I have been eating, sleeping and dreaming about fiber- in all its forms! We even spent time cleaning out the garage a couple weeks ago and came across a bunch of shetland fleeces that need processing. Yee gaads!

The result of all this fiber, is that I have decided to hold another contest!! I think it might be fun to have you all take a guess at how much fiber (pencil roving and superwash) that I have dyed in the first 8 months of this year...

The winner will be the one closest to the correct number (and in case of a tie I'll pull the name from a hat).
Here's a few facts to consider when you guess:
1) I work a full time day job that has nothing to do with fiber - the dyeing is done in my "spare" time.
2) each skein (of either type of fiber) is individually dyed in it's own pot (and nope.. I'm not tellin' how many pots I have:-)
3) the pencil roving has to "cook" for about 2 hours, then sits for around 10 hours in the dyepot
4) the superwash roving cooks for about 1 hour, then sits for about 4 hours in the pot.
5) we receive the fiber in humongo batches, then we take it to a friend's mill to be processed down the way we want, then Klaus rolls it all off into the 8 ounces batches for me.. all this is prior to my dyeing... and takes quite alot of time.
6) I also skein off and label each hank myself.
7) a batch of fiber takes anywhere from 2-4 days to completely dry.
8) this summer has been filled with a lot of garden watering since we had absolutely no rain for almost three months - this took about 2 hours from every day.
8) I also do other things like spin and knit.....

So there you have it. I've been told that I have "hard" contests... ho ho ho... wouldn't be too much fun if it was a cakewalk, now would it? So take a guess.. take a wild guess... and the final hint is that I was really surprised when I finally counted how much I had done.
So make a comment and guess...... How many skeins of fiber (including pencil roving and superwash roving) have I dyed in the first 8 months of this year???

The winner will receive a skein of Chasing Rainbows Superwash Sock yarn - your choice of colorway. contest runs from Sept 17th to Sept 24th. so get your entries in :-)

Speaking of spinning ~ I have some fun news to share: Amanda (yes that one!) has joined our team of spinners for the Sock HopYarn. Woot ~Woot! I am so totally pleased.  Her spinning skills are fabulous, and she's been a huge help in our business. Hop over and give her a big rah rah! We are working at adding a couple more spinners in order to increase our production - yet it takes a bit of time. Amanda's an incredible person, and was exactly what I was hoping for! (now maybe I can clone her.. tee hee)

I've been spinning up a storm recently... Here's My Boyfriend's Back.

and here's the sock I knit for K this past week. (I keep telling him that maybe he'll get the second sock for Christmas - but then again his birthday is coming up next week... we shall see!)
I am completely pleased with the way this new colorway came out - it's very "tweeedy" looking.
A couple of you have asked me how this is different from Heat Wave...... well, My Boyfriend's Back is a deep rust and burgandy (sometimes looking almost black) and the Heat Wave is a combo of Scarlet red  and Black with hints of yellow and plum. I think this is a very masculine looking colorway - and so socks for K were born :-)
By the way - just in case you were wondering, he has a 10 3/4 inch long foot... and I had this much left over from one skein of yarn. Yay!
My daughter's boyfriend (who is 6' 4" and has a size 13 men's shoe) has asked for socks. whoa.

We are busy this week, preparing for the last fair of this season. (Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival) If you are anywhere in the vicinity of Portland, Oregon on Sept 23-24. please stop by and see us. It's actually being held in Canby Oregon, but that's only  a hop, skip, and a jump from Portland. It is, by far, my favorite of our fairs. It's held on a country fairgrounds that is full of huge trees and grassy lawns. (no blacktop) There are buildings upon buildings filled with vendors,activities for the wee ones, and fun classes. Come on down!

I'll most likely not have time to post again until we get back. The contest winner will be announced at that time.

I leave you with a couple photos of our evening last thursday. I got home from work around 7 pm, and we had been having some blessed rain here (finally) The rainbow spanned across the hills - a complete arch. It was so enormous that I could only capture a portion.
The clouds turned an incredible color as the sun began to set. My garden (and I) are very grateful for this repreieve from the heat.
Have a lovely week all!

On the Street where you live...

With kind regards to Lerner and Loewe for the title of this post, I have a small interesting thing to share. Many of you have seen the photos from last March of the view from our back yard. We live on a rocky hill, surrounded by about 200 acres of pasture where a neighbor grazes his cows. We're approximately 30 minutes (as the crow flies) from Mount Rainier. It is truly beautiful - and very country! Despite the urban sprawl that is creeping our way from nearby Tacoma, we have continued to enjoy our view of the gorgeous "Bald Hills" that are owned by Weyerhauser.

Last weekend, I was sitting outside on our front porch, enjoying the cool evening breeze, and I heard a low growl from under the deck. Thinking it was the raccoon who normally drops by in the evening to swipe some of out outdoor cat's food, I didn't think much of it, and sat awhile longer. Next time, perhaps I'll reconsider; for yesterday our farming neighbor told us that he had seen a brown bear on his property over the weekend. whoa.
Definately country living!
A couple of years ago, another neighbor shot a cougar that was hanging out in a tree by their front door - and now here come the bears (for where there is one, there are more.)
Needless-to-say, I'll be cautious when sitting outside in the evenings now. (silly K said that he wants to see it too! I said, no thanks.)
and to think that my oldest daughter said that there's nothing to do here but watch the grass grow! hah!
And now, in keeping with the bear-theme, may I present:Baby Bobbi Bear (yes, I'm actually squeezing in a bit of knitting amidst the spinning)

A blogging 'friend' is having her first baby ~ and this calls for celebration ! May I present to you... Baby Bobbi Bear.
Made from Blue Sky organic cotton
Pattern and yarn were purchased here.

thank you so much Emily for sharing the source of this wonderful pattern.
It was a delight to create.
and it's the most wonderful cotton I have ever knit with.

P>S> nope, I'm not tellin' who this is going to... it's a suprise! (but a few of you already know for certain that it's not for you.. tee-hee)

Still here

I've been  settling back in after our hectic week towards the end of June, and honestly, avoiding the computer altogether. - not such a good blogging story, but it's honest. The fiber dyeing continues, the spinning wheel is turning along, the socks samples are being knit, and the clients are getting seen at the office. That pretty much fills most my hours these days.

I'm counting the days until our once-a-year vacation... only 4 more to go.

Here's something beautio-mous to enjoy with your eyes. - a recent sunset view from our deck. sorry about the scratch on the film, the processor kinda blew it - but you still get the idea.
there will be knitting content soon.

Auction Day

Life on the Farm, at times, involves difficult choices.

Last December (due to the antics of one male goat we named Houdini), we had an amazing number of baby goats born. Now, the lore amongst the farmers is that animals do not mate in the summer, as they are wise enough to know that birth in mid-winter is rugged. Or, so  the stories go ....

We have a relatively small farm, about 5 acres. Suitable for a handful of goats and some sheep. Until Houdini made his mark, we had the perfect number.

Many hours of long talks, pensive times. We sold several animals to neighboring farms. Yet now, as the summer comes close, we had to decide. Out of kindness to these beings, we knew they must leave us. Some will go to new homes, some will be butchered.

Today was the day. Auction Day.

32 goats and 2 sheep have left our home.

I told myself that I wasn't going to cry - I took some final photos of these wonderful friends - I moved fences, while K encouraged them into the trailer. Dear neighbor friends came to help. and the tears streamed down my cheeks, unashamed.

My thoughts dift back to the 2 degree temperatures of last December, when a first time Mama goat had twins, and one was left in the middle of the field. We gathered up that small being, I held her under my coat and we rubbed her back to life with towels and blankets. This job was repeated a few times that month, as we had so many first time mama goats. We hung tarps on the barn, gave extra grain and tried to keep them warm. It was a successful month, and almost all lived through that startling birth time.

January came in with torrential rains here. One frantic morning, the river was flooding. The guards at the dam up river were opening the gates, and the river rose 12 feet within the twinkling of an eye. We quickly rellocated our animals from the pasture by the river where they had many acres, back to our farm on the hill.

Last February, one of our original flock, Una, had twins. She was a dear mama goat. Early in the morning, when she gave birth, we knew there was trouble. One of the twins didn't make it, and the other was struggling. We coaxed Una into the small shelter, trimmed back the long fiber around her teet and encouraged the baby to nurse. The little one survived and flourished.

This morning came, and it was time. We have kept only 3 of our goats. The originals of the flock who left today have been with us for six years. They have names - they have character, and we will miss them.

We promise ourselves that we can begin again, should we ever be able to aquire more acerage.

In three week's time, we will send off 10 of the shetland sheep, keeping only our original flock of 1 ram and 4 ewes. Today they all stood and watched as their friends left.

Fare-thee-well dear ones.

'Twas Shearing Day

It was a busy day at CMF. Our shearer, Marcia arrived at 9:00 am.. and we got right to work.

but before she arrived, I snapped a quick picture of my Iris that just popped open today :-)
(that's for Amanda) Check out her fascinating blog about the fleur-de-lis.

The animals were already confined by K - and they stood in the corner, as if to say... no, no, not me today!

Our Shetland rams were the first. They look so huge with their fleeces on. Apollo (the black/grey one) is a handfull ! Normally, we chase him around for 20 mintues or so before he is caught. Today, with the help of a neighbor, Caesar, he was captured right away.

Marcia, our shearer - is a gem! She'll croon a soft tune to the animals while she's shearing, to calm them and reassure them. so sweet. Normally, after the first year they have been shorn, the process does not scare them. They 'suffer the indignity' with calm surrender.
Apollo and Merlin were quickly done. The male goats were shorn standing since they were so large.

Merlin peeked his head thru K's legs, as if to say.. "oh, the embarassment of it all". Still he looks regal - even with no fleece!
The Shetland rams don't look nearly as intimidating without all that fiber on! Emo even stuck his tongue out at me while I took his picture (oh mom.. don't take a picture of me looking like this!)

Once all the boys were completed, we moved on to the girls.They were bleating and hollaring (their babies had "escaped" thru the large hog panel-fence and were prancing merrily around the pasture while the mama's awaited shearing. "Bleh to this shearing business" pouted Iris - one of the Shetland Mamas :-)

The fleeces turned out to be difficult to shear - perhaps the rainy extremes of last January - perhaps the urgent moving of them from the flooding pastures - whatever it was, Marcia really had to work this time. The sheep had begun to "rue" (which means to try and shed their fleece on their own) and it was a tough go to even get her shears through the fleeces.
The shetlands are such tiny sheep - so sweet and so dear. They love to have their chins rubbed - and will almost get hypnotized by this.
All the tiny baby shetlands were jumping around. One got very very curious about Marcia's tool box.
They lined up and seemed to almost pose for me - perking their ears.. what's goin' on Mom?

Here's a picture of a shetland Mama after shearing. they're so tiny!.. Little teddy bears on four legs!

And then we have a couple of no-brand (we call them 'heinz 57 mix) sheep.. humongo girls..
This one is called "Easter" (since she was born on Easter three years ago). Here she is pre-shearing..
and getting her hooves trimmed.. and then
after. She has amazing fleece.
I will now pick through it and see if her fleece was also damaged by the heavy winter rains.

The rest of the damaged fleeces will be dumped on the rocks and dirt on our hillside.. and next year we'll have incredible grass :-) It is truly fun that there is absolutely no waste at all in this fiber industry! Our hillside will look  a little "wooly" to our neighbors for a time - but it's great fertilizer!

Last but not least - this is a sky photo for Sandy... can you see the whale in the clouds?

Sock Yarn Contest

Hey all you bloggie friends - The "Somethin's A-foot at Crown Mountain Farms" sock yarn contest will be ending earlier than I thought ! I will offically close the contest guessing on friday 4/28.
So get your guesses in now.

The arrival of this  wonderful yarn  will not take as long as we thought (and this is a good thing!)
Check my previous blog entry to read about the contest. We've received some great guesses - but don't let that deter you.. be brave.. take a guess! All the people who enter and get "close" will have their names placed in a hat to draw the winner...
The winner receives enough of this yarn to knit themselves a pair of socks.

And now for your browsing enjoyment - here's this week's photos of the critters at Crown Mountain Farms.

first up are the four month old goat babies and their mama's

Our newest goat addition, now one month old, playing with his sheepie friends

One of our original flockof Shetland's, Iris, and her two little babies

Here's five of the ten new shetland sheep - 9 of which are solid black

And last but not least, our one lone chocolate brown sheep (in this year's new additions), getting itself a tiny drink (ssshhh, don't tell him that he's not already a grown-up)

The weather has turned balmy - it was 70 degrees yesterday. I was tempted to plant some lobelia in my garden at work, yet thankfully I had no time, for the night time temperature dropped to 28 degrees. Good thing that our animals still have their fleeces. Shearing day will be the first week of May. Just wait til you see how tiny the Shetland sheep are without their fleeces -