I'm so excited!
Mood:  happy
Now Playing: Erasure "A Little Respect"

I'll be vending at NH Sheep and Wool in May! Wahhooooo! I've been told that I can have an outdoor space, which is o.k. with me. I'll also be vending at the Jamaica Fiber Fest on May 21st, and at MA Sheep and Wool the weekend of May 28th. This will make May a jam packed month, as we will have Beth Brown-Reinsel here April 30-May 1st, teaching Traditional Construction Techniques for Ganseys. And after MAS&W, Leslie Samson will be here the following weekend teaching the felted coat/vest class. I'll take a picture of the vest to put up on the blog that Leslie made so that I could show what the possibilities are for the class. It's gorgeous! I had a lot of people coming up to me last weekend Oooohing and Aaahing over that vest. :)

Something is finally being worked on...
Mood:  celebratory
Now Playing: Golden Earring "Twilight Zone"

And it's not fiber related.

O.k, I know that no one else cares about this, but I do. I have been working on having my downstairs bathroom renovated for a couple of years. We've finally got it really going, and today I picked out my flooring! Here it is:



Completely different from what I was originally looking for (something that would go with light green walls), but when I saw it, I knew that was it! And for me to find something immediately is amazing. The last couch I bought took over a year for me to pick out. Now my walls in that bathroom will no longer be green, and I'll have to find another color, but that's o.k. I'm now thinking some type of beach/ocean theme.

And here is my newly completed shower stall. The last time I had a working shower in this bathroom was in 1998, shortly after my oldest son was born.

O.k, enough of the bathroom renovations.

Pictures don't do it justice
Mood:  special
Now Playing: When In Rome "The Promise"
Here is Pink Ivory. Is that not gorgeous??? And it isn't even finished yet.

And here is my new Lopi yarn.

To go with this pattern.

I will start working on the sweater tonight. I figured out yesterday after I got home that I need two more skeins, so I'll have to call the store tomorrow and see if they have any left.

Decisions, descisions.....
Mood:  chillin'
Now Playing: ELO "Don't Bring Me Down"

Wood sl*t that I am, I had to go back to the Berkshires for a log of Pink Ivory. It isn't for the Bobbin Trees, but rather for me personally. My cousin is a professional furniture maker, and I just had to buy this beautiful piece of PI for a future sofa table for my family room. I envision it up against the sofa, as you enter the room, with a pretty little candlestick lamp on it.

And of course, I couldn't pass up three lovely pieces of wood, which are destined for Bobbin Logs; Snakewood and Argentinian Jujube.

And while out there, I had to stop at Wonderful Things. This yarn shop is extremely large, has a great selection of yarns and friendly employees. This past weekend I won one, and purchased another pattern from Lisa Lloyd at the Spa weekend. The first pattern is the Halcyon Aran Sweater. I love the cables in this sweater! The second pattern (which I won) is the Basketweave Cardigan. Are those cables going up the sleeve not gorgeous? The yarn I purchased is a Lopi in grey with black flecks. I think it will look great as the Basketweave Cardigan, yes?

Home at Last!
Mood:  energetic
Now Playing: Dead or Alive "You Spin Me Round"

This past weekend, we were up in Portland, ME for the NETA Spa Knit and Spin weekend. I was vending, and we had busted our tails getting the new Bobbin Trees and Bobbin Logs ready for sale (pictures to follow, unless you make a specific request, then I think I could get one to you sooner!). We arrived on Friday afternoon, and it took me a couple of hours to set up. Vending was from 5 to 9 p.m. on Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Sunday. I was exhausted by the time we were done on Sunday. But, I had a great time! I met lots of people that I only knew by e-mail address so it was fun putting the faces with the names.
We ate out at several places over the weekend, with my favorite being Espos on Congress Street in Portland. Fabulous food, and excellent prices. My second favorite place to eat was Gilbert's Chowder House on Commercial Street on the Waterfront.
Due to an incoming snow storm, we made the decision to stay an extra day, and come home on Tuesday, which meant that we got to go shopping up in Freeport on Sunday afternoon. My score of the day was a black suede jacket from Wilson's Leather Outlet for $24.99! It's gorgeous and fits well.
Monday, during the snowstorm, we went to the Portland Public Market. This was neat, but I had thought it was going to be much bigger than it was. Plus, a few vendors were closed due to the snow (it was snowing about 1 inch an hour, and 12 degrees outside!). I did get some vanilla sugar from Portland Spice Company and was wishing I could bring home some of the fresh shrimp on display at the seafood market. Then we went back down to the waterfront, and visited a kitchen store (my other weakness!). Bought several items here, although nothing I couldn't have purchased around here, but fun anyway. The rest of the day was spent hanging out in the hotel room, watching tv, and then Cal and I went to the pool for a bit.

I will say that the bunnies appeared to have missed me. Cassie thrust her head at me for head patts (she is really turning into a favorite of mine!), and everyone seemed excited that I was back. Even the cats seemed happy to have us home, even though I know that Deanna gives them lots of attention when she comes to do bunny detail.

All in all, I'm really happy that I went to Spa, and hope to be invited back next year as a vendor.

Valentine's Day and continuing wood working
Mood:  bright
Now Playing: Poison "Something to Believe In"

Yesterday was spent buying a folding bookcase to use as a display for this weekend, then buying various little Valentine's presents for DH, my Dad, for my Mom from my Dad, and cookies for my kids. I gave DH one of those "cookie cakes" from Mrs. Fields (I'm too busy to bake up a huge chocolate chip heart right now). I was told when he got home that his friend and coworker Cliff told him that he had to bring in milk today so that they could have milk and cookie. :)

I was on the receiving end of 6 long stem red roses. It's been ages since I got anything like that (usually, I tell DH to forgo flowers on Valentine's Day because they are so expensive, but I've decided that I'm worth it). Unless you get the wrong idea, I didn't ask for anything, nor did I hint for them, but they were very welcome. DH also suggested that we join another set of friends for dinner out at a local Japanese restaurant, but the reservation time was 8 p.m., which is way too late for us to have the kids out (Mom was willing to babysit). It would have been nice, but we'll go another time.

As part of my Valentine's present, DH brought home 6 samples of perfectly smooth sanded wood from our projects. We have 9 different types of wood being used for the spinners tool, and he worked for several hours sanding these down to show me last night. Tonight my plan is to go over to the shop, and help sand everything down. We have one more night after tonight to get everything assembled, and ready for the Spa weekend. It will be cutting it close, but we'll be ready.

Is there such a thing has having too much wood?
Mood:  on fire
Now Playing: Air Supply "Lost in Love"

I have to say it. I love wood. I've even referred to myself as a wood sl*t, because I collect spindles just because I love the look and feel of beautiful wood.

So today, in an effort to get some exotic wood for the spinning tools that DH and I are building, I took a trip up to a lumber yard that carries exotic wood. This is a bad thing. At least to my credit card it is. But I had a great time! Fondling boards of zebrawood, lacewood, Nigerian Rosewood, mahogany, purpleheart, canarywood; the list goes on and on. The possibility were endless, but knowing that my credit card balance is not, well, I decided to pick the boards I liked best, and bring them home. It isn't easy to get 5' boards into a Saturn Sedan, but I did it. Trying to fit a 3 year old child into the same car with the boards proved impossible, and some of the boards had to go into the trunk, with me driving home from the preschool with the trunk open, and praying that the wood wouldn't get damaged from the wet, salty roads. But, we all made it home fine, and the boards are going over to DH's work later today, where we'll work on the tools. By Wednesday, I should have a preview of the spinners tools that we'll have in stock, ready for the Spa Weekend. :)

Shot to Hell
Mood:  rushed
Now Playing: Asia "Only Time Will Tell"

Today was supposed to be a "shear more rabbits; wash more fleece" kind of day. And it was, until 8:15 this morning, when I got a call from a friend of mine, who wanted to introduce me to some people I needed to meet for my main business. Well, the main business takes precedence over the fiber business, and by the time I was done today, it was 3 p.m., and I had done nothing fiber related. The plus side is that tomorrow is supposed to be a snow day, and I don't go anywhere when it's snowing hard enough to cause potential accidents (yes, I'm a big chicken, but having kids will do that to you; Before I was married, I'd go out in my truck, driving in snow storms with no worries at all.). I'm really hoping that tomorrow I can get a lot done. I have 1 week to get batts made up, and finish making the spinners tool. Tonight, if we don't go up to DH's boss's house, to plane down wood, I'll work on washing fleeces, and possibly do some knitting. My back is too achy from driving around today to shear rabbits. Maybe tomorrow.

Confessions about football
Mood:  spacey
Now Playing: The Tubes "She's a Beauty"

Let me start off by saying that I am happy that the Patriots won their third Super Bowl in the past 4 years. I route for these guys every year, and although I'm not an avid watcher, they get my vote.

However, I also love the Philadelphia Eagles. I spent so much time in South Jersey as a kid and teen that I couldn't NOT like the Eagles, Phillies, 76'ers and the Flyers.

My Mom and I considered yesterday's game a win-win situation for us. If the Patriots won, we would be ecstatically happy, but if the Eagles won, we'd also be ecstatically happy. I think this was the first time I've ever watched a sporting event, routing for both team (no hate mail now, please). I was genuinely happy to see good sportsmanship on the field between both teams, and I'm a real stickler for that. If I happen to see someone acting in an unprofessional manner during sporting events, I'm never happy about that. And to see both the Patriots players and the Eagles players helping each other up after plays were made, well, that just was fantastic.

So my hats off to both teams. I never would have thought that I'd see both teams play against each other in my lifetime, and it was a treat. Now I just have to wait and see if I can ever see a Red Sox/Phillies World Series. ;-)

Shearing fun!
Mood:  bright
Now Playing: The Heights "How Do You Talk to An Angel"

Two more rabbits down, 14 to go. :) Yesterday, Winter and Cassie were the ones to get their own little sweatshirt coats. Granted, they don't look too much like coats, as my Mom walked into the house just after I had finished shearing and coating Cassie, and proceeded to ask if I had a sock on her. But, Cassie and Winter are none the worse for wear, and happy to be without all that wool. Plus, I now have a box full of pure white angora.

And this is Cassie while being shorn. Her coat was longer than I would have liked, but cold temps have prevented me from shearing earlier.

O.k, time for confessions: I broke my stash reduction pledge on Thursday! I bought two different skeins of wool over at Webs for fingerless mitts (yes, I'm actually going to attempt them!), and a pair of 12" #8 Addi Turbo circulars (I love those needles!). I also purchased some silk, but this is being used for the batts that I'm making up for the SPA weekend in Portland in 2 weeks, so I'm o.k. there. Forgive me stash police, for I have sinned. :)