Today was another soap making day. I got the lye solution made and measured my hard oils when I realized that the thing I forgot at Costco - you know that feeling when you're leaving the store and you know you were supposed to have gotten something but you don't remember what? - was olive oil. I can't make soap without it. Ian was headed into town and I told him I needed big and cheap olive oil. Since I had my work area set up, I decided to dye some yarn - what's that expression??? Mistakes are really opportunities??? So this is what I did with mine.
Amy came out before Ian got back so we drove over to Jeanette Miller's for the alpaca festival. (Amy brought me several bags of lavender from her yard, so I put them up in my studio, hoping to keep the moth infestation at bay until I can bag everything with dry ice in a couple of weeks.) It snowed again yesterday but by this afternoon, most had melted and the weather was warm enough that we were able to sit out and spin. These are some of Jeanette's babies - her herd is huge.
Amy and Mim are demon-
strating drop spindling and hand spinning with a wheel. Amy and I ended up driving back to my house to get my wheel because the interest was so big. Besides, we were starving. A little ham sandwich was just what the doctor ordered.
I love the sweetness of alpacas and I especially love a cria and mommy, unlike our aloof llamas. Jeanette also has guard llamas; they have their place - just not in your arms.
Notice the bread board for flick carding. It really does save wear and tear on blue jeans. These locks are pretty felted by moi and require some muscle, but the colors are so great that I never can quite seem to chuck the project. There's not much on the bobbin here, but Linda came to my rescue and carded so much that I've got too much spun to quit.
Don't you love the little pom poms that are actually their back knees.
Jeanette is on the right. These animals are her passion. She told me that when they viewed the property to buy, she committed to purchase based on groundwater for the fields. The realtor asked her she would like to see the inside of the house before she signed the contract. She's living her dream.
It took me many years to appreciate the beauty of where I live.
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5 comments:
Well, you certainly made lemonade out of that lemon - what a fun day - T.
I use a leg cut off a pair of my old jeans to lay over my leg to save my "wearing" jeans for flicking locks.
Are alpacas less aloof than llamas? The ones I've met have acted about the same.
Looks like you had a fun day dying AND spinning!
Very clever about the bread board! I'll have to remember that. Love the photos of the alpacas. And your dyed yarns. Yum!
What great photos! Your dyed skeins look terrific... FFG has another dye day coming up at the end of the month. Are you coming?
I went through 2 phone books before I came up with that idea, I think it is my best :)
I was wandering around the kitchen trying to think what I could use under my dog brush when I saw three cutting boards, didnt need that many, so I took one back to my chair and viola! Works like a charm doesnt it?
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