Too busy to dye
Mood:  rushed
Now Playing: Soft Cell "Tainted Love"

The last few days have been filled with work, so I haven't been able to do much dyeing. Today, though, I plan to put a lot of Icelandic into the roaster and get some interesting colors.

But for now, I must get the kids off to school, and get myself ready for work today.

Yes, I can see how it would look like that....
Mood:  caffeinated
Now Playing: Kool and the Gang "Misled"
Topic: Fiber
I'm afraid that I just about gave Judith heart failure. She was new to my blog, and upon opening the link, thought that the dyed Icelandic and Angora pictured yesterday was actually sheep entrails.

Nope, just freshly dyed wool, still in the roaster. :)

This is it now:

And it continues....
Mood:  bright
Now Playing: Foreigner "Waiting For A Girl Like You"
Topic: A bit of everything
More dyeing continued this weekend and today. Here is just a glimpse of what I've been working on.

This first photo is Icelandic and Angora in the same pot. The angora is on the right of the picture.

And this is Icelandic roving.

My other pursuits this past weekend included cleaning the house (I'm very slow at this, as it is my least favorite activity!), and doing some reading. Right now, I'm reading Harvard Yard by William Martin. I bought this book for DH as a Christmas present, and he hasn't read it yet, so I picked it up. I'm really enjoying this book, as it spans a family from the late 1500's to the present time. I've already decided to pick up Back Bay, which is Martin's book about Peter Fallon written before Harvard Yard.

Now I'm off to watch a little tv, and spend time with my husband. More tomorrow....

Dyeing Icelandic
Mood:  chillin'
Now Playing: M/A/R/R/S "Pump Up the Volume"
Topic: Fiber
Today I'm working on dyeing some Icelandic wool. I washed the fleece and before it dried, I put it into the roaster to dye.

Washing Icelandic is different from other fleeces. Icelandic will felt *easily* if washed in water that is too hot. Warm water works just fine since it is a low grease fleece.

I had a nice Icelandic fleece from True North Farm in my barn, which even after sitting for a year, was still lovely and in perfect condition. So I decided to wash that one. It was snow white. "Was?" you ask? Now it's this color:

And how about a picture of these two cuties? They are both bucks, born here back in April. Aren't they sweet?

If you are interested in purchasing the one for sale, e-mail me. I can tell you all about him. His background pedigree is spectacular!

More dyeing today
Mood:  bright
Now Playing: Sting "Fortress Around Your Heart"
Topic: Fiber
I've done some more dyeing today. More Border Leicester, which is one of my favorite wools (besides Icelandic and Corriedale). All of the dyed wools are outside drying in the sun. Now it is time to dye some angora, which I'll do in the microwave.

Denise asked about dyeing in a roaster. It's fairly simple, and I do mine outside on the deck.

I presoak my fibers in some liquid dish detergent and water for a short time. Then I fill the turkey roaster up about half way with water and add a couple of good glugs of white vinegar. I set the temp at 300 degrees to start, and then add the fiber. Once I have all the fiber in that I want, I add enough water to cover it. Then I sprinkle dye over the fiber. I drop the temp to 250 degrees, and let it cook for about 2 hours. I unplug the roaster and let it cool on it's own. Once the roasting pan is cool enough to handle, I dump the fiber out on one of the custom made fiber drying racks that my friend Deanna makes. I allow it to completely cool, then I rinse it with water from the garden hose.

Here is what we have today:

The Dyepots resume
Mood:  lyrical
Now Playing: Badfinger "Baby Blue"
Topic: Fiber

I'm back working at the dyepots. I have 35 days until Rhinebeck, and the weather is perfect for dyeing! I'm using the roaster method for this batch. Usually I like to use a microwave, but that isn't practical for dyeing more than 1 pound of wool (and even that is a lot for my microwave to handle!). This is Border Leicester, which will be blended with other fibers for batts and roving.

And just incase you interested, I've put this Bobbin Tree up on eBay.

Spin-In in Amherst, MA
Mood:  bright
Now Playing: The Spinners "Could It Be I'm Falling In Love"
Topic: Class Information & Shows
I want to let people know that there will be a Spin-In on the Amherst Town Common on October 1st, 2005 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Fiber Arts Center (http://www.fiberartcenter.com/) is hosting this event to kick off National Spinning and Weaving Week.

I'm looking for spinners that might like to spend an hour or two teaching people how to spin; either on a wheel or on a spindle. If you would like to teach, please e-mail me privately at Baycolonyfarm@aol.com so that I can put you on the schedule. Linda Diak and I will be there all day, teaching spinning to those that want to learn, but we'd love more people to help!

If you would like to join us, either just to spin, or to teach, please come! The Apple Harvest Festival will be going on at the same time, so this promises to be a fun event, with LOTS of people!

Busy, busy, busy!
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: Jennifer Paige "Crush"
Topic: A bit of everything

What a weekend so far! We've been busy looking at new vehicles. The $100 fill up on DH's truck is getting a bit high, so we are looking for something that is more fuel efficient. If we buy something, I'll get to use the truck for farming stuff whenever I need it (rather than wait for DH to get home from work). :)

I'm hoping I can wash some fleece and dye some today too. The weather is perfect, and I have 41 days till Rhinebeck to get everything done that I want for my booth space. I will it filled to overflowing!

Here are some more pictures from vacation. Since I have no fiber stuff to show you, I'll show you some pretty pictures instead.


Vaca photos

More Coming!
Mood:  bright
Now Playing: The Fixx "Saved By Zero"
Topic: A bit of everything
I have some pictures to post! I'll post more tomorrow when I upgrade my Tripod service.

My favorite sheep at the Historic Cold Spring Village

See all those buildings in the distance, that appear like they are out at sea? That is Atlantic City, located 20 miles north and east of Sea Isle. We can easily see them on clear days.

And here is a picture I took yesterday at the flag rededication at the Amherst Big Y grocery store. This flag is 19' x 24'. It's one big, beautiful sight to see!

Keeping Your Kids Safe
Mood:  sad

We never went down to KIX on Friday evening. Unfortunately, a small boy fell off of the dock down in Avalon and drowned. We saw the air search taking place from the beach, but didn't know what was going on until around 8 that night, when my SIL found out from her friend who was renting down closer to the inlet.

We all felt so bad about it happening, that it didn't feel right to go out and have fun. Instead we all just wanted to be with our kids that night, and thank God that they were safe.

I sent healing thoughts and prayers to his family, and still do. I hope that they can eventually find peace and continue through life, with happy memories of their little boy filling their hearts.