My New Wool Workshop

 Here is my new wool workshop in the snow . Our new home has had snow since the Sunday after Thanksgiving and it is simply beautiful , but very cold. This shed was delivered in late September as a shell and my husband just finished insulating, wiring, sheet-rocking, and painting it. All for me, and well ... kind of for him too. I'd begun to set up my wool working items ~ looms, and lots of other stuff I need to work with the fleeces my sheep produce in his new garage / shop. It does not fit into our new home so where else was I going to put it ? My husband decided to give me a place to set up my wool works in a new little shed just off our driveway before you reach the house. This works for both of us and I am loving all the thoughtful and hard work he put into this. ( Most of this stuff was in a an upstairs hall landing and spare bedroom in our home at Cedar Pond.)

 As you walk in the front door of this little shop you can see an old hutch , shelves of wool fleeces, weaving shuttles, and other bits and bobs I use to weave , plus some items of comfort every workshop needs.

 My floor loom is in the front of my wool shop and why we chose this particular shed model with extra windows. The loom fits here with room for me to walk around it as I am warping ( threading) it and also affords me a lot of natural lighting.

 My husband installed shelving above the windows. I've placed some house plants from our previous home on it , along with baskets for storage. The windows to the right of the loom look out onto pasture where my sheep graze when there is grass instead of over a foot of snow.

 The shed has 2 lofts. This loft holds all my bins of handspun yarn, Wee Little Sheep ,fiber, and other products I've made from the wool of my sheep to sell. There are also bins containing supplies I need for the set-ups where I sell my items at bazaars and farmer's markets. I put a few pumpkins and squashes from last fall's harvest there to store for later use too , along with my dollhouses and misc. spools of yarn for weaving. My husband is going to make me a special ladder to keep here so I can access the lofts easily.

 We put an electric heater that looks like a woodstove in the corner . We did install fireboard around and underneath this electric heater so we can install a real woodstove later on. The teakettle is electric so I can brew tea, coffee , or hot chocolate whenever I desire. There is a table loom to the right of the heater I am in the process of warping.

 Anyone for tea ?

The door to the shop . I hung warps for weaving on pegs on the wall by the table loom.

I am so thankful for my new wool workshop . I never in a million years would have thought to have such a sweet little place to call my very own and plan to spend many hours happily busy weaving and crafting the wool of my spotted sheep , all the while striving to follow this admonishment ( and often failing) "But we urge you , brethren, to  excel still more , and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands, just as we commanded you, so that you may behave properly towards any outsiders and not be in any need." I Thessalonians 4: 10-12

Fun With Fiber ~ ( Remembering Why I Love Wool-Working !)

 I love working with the wool of my sheep, and the wool of other breeds of sheep too. Somehow I get bogged down with so many other things to do ( including the chores of keeping the sheep I love ) I forget how much I love working with wool. This is my wool drum carder. A carder brushes wool that has been sheared, skirted , washed, and picked*. I decided after the holidays I would spend some time renewing my enthusiasm for my wool crafting by taking time away from all but the needed aspects of keeping a home and simply enjoy playing with wool.

 Looks like cotton candy , doesn't it ? This is some exotic wool blends I have had stashed away blended with my Jacob Sheep wool. I had fun picking and choosing from my stash of wool to blend colors and fibers I thought might culminate in some interesting yarns.

 The desired end product of my wool blending is wool batts ( wool carded into batts, like batting you might buy for quilts, only wool )  I can spin into yarn I might then weave into fabric.

 I ran the wool through my carder a few times. Isn't it lovely ?

 I had a few other colors of exotic fiber to combine with my Jacob wool too. This reminds me of tropical fruit and Hawaiian sunsets. 

Anyway, these are a few rolags ( wool batting taken off the carder and rolled up ) I have finished and added to the basket by my spinning wheel to be spun up into yarn soon. I will fill my basket with spun yarn to later be woven into fabric. I will enjoy this process ...handling to wool batts, appreciating how the colors come together as they turn into yarn, and marvel at the fabric woven from my wool. This craft of wool-working is as old as creation and a marvel. Did I say I love wool-working ?

Tea & Crafts With the Cats

I poured myself some tea to sip from my Gracie Chintz china cup while adding some finishing touches to a flock of little sheep . I had some help with my crafting.

Yes, after finishing some of the sheep I took them into my sun-room to photograph in natural light so I could post them for sale in my Etsy shop and look, peek-a-boo ! Miss Marple was supervising the whole procedure making sure none of the little sheep strayed from position. She is very good at whacking them around if they do. Sometimes she even helps them get away , to their detriment. Good thing there is a shepherd there to guard them. ( And I don't mean the little porcelain one. )

On the very same day I finished up a few wool needle-felted balls. I had help there too.

Blizzard personally checks each and every wool ball out by batting and rolling it around. If the ball has jingles in it he double and triple checks it , enjoying my game of seeking it out after he is done. You can see Blizzard is sitting next to a blue bin where the wee little sheep are placed for their protection after they are completed. I have learned the hard way NOT to leave the little sheep unattended if the cats are prowling the house.

Just minding her own business ? Hardly, she is supervising the terrarium projects I have going on...

...with some help from Blizzard. I'm not sure if they think the resin mouse in the terrarium is real, but I do know they'd love to sink their paws into the mosses . If you look closely at the window behind Miss Marple you can see the cats have thoroughly decorated the window with little nose prints, the higher row of prints being those of Blizzard. I suspect the terrarium will be thusly dotted soon.

And then there are my weaving projects. I completed 3 rugs last week all with plenty of help from Blizzard. He holds the loom down for me. At 16 plus pounds, he's very good at this.

"Cats can work out mathematically the exact place to sit that will cause the most inconvenience." Pam Brown  ~ But that being quoted, you can tell I love having my cats in, out, and round-about me. As I write this Blizzard is holding my husband down in the recliner , stretched full out on my husband's lap. They are taking their evening nap together. "Dogs have their days but cats have 365." Lillian Jackson Braun

I enjoy this teacup, one of a set of 4 rose-chintz patterns from Gracie China. It is not only beautiful, with it's rose patterns, but when I hold it up to the light it is slightly transparent. Also, this is a sturdy teacup , a quality I need when working around my cats who love to check out my dishes but pay them no mind if they decide to have a spat about who gets to sit closest to me. I have had to remember to place my teacups firmly toward the middle of the work table to spare them such disasters. We don't have too many broken dishes from the cats, I am the klutz, but several close calls taught me well.

I would like to mention a blog I love, written by a cat lover who also enjoys her tea time. Deb at  'Just Cats'* writes not only about her cats, but also about the cats she encounters in her cat-sitting business. She also has some very good tips and info regarding cat care, and some common problems people face with their cats & kittens. "The smallest feline is a masterpiece." Leonardo da Vinci

I am linking up once again with these ladies for Tea-Time Tuesday :

• Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage *
• Terri at Artful Affirmations *
• Martha at Martha's Favorites *
• Bernideen at Bernideen's Tea time Blog *

Seasons

 Things change, seasons of life can surprise us, even with great joy.My youngest sister has returned home, to our state, after so many years away. My other 2 sisters and I are enjoying having her back home. In the photo above she is walking with 4 of my grandchildren out into the field to pick apples with them. God has worked all things out for us more perfectly than we could have ever planned, He is so good to us !

My sheep are thriving, and I am pleased with the spring lambs I have chosen to keep. Above is Bide-a-wee Buttercup with her lamb ( rt) Cedar Pond's Bluebonnet Vickie, named for Sand Flat Farm's Vickie and the state flower of Texas.Bluebonnet Vickie is almost as large as her mother, and has 4 horns fused, appearing as if they are 2 very large horns. 

 The weather in the Pacific Northwest has surpassed all previous records of days without rain. Fires are still burning in our state. I am having to water trees and plants I have never had to water this time of the year. Usually I can count on this being the time of year to get things done inside, but am still having as much outdoor work as the summer months without benefit of the long hours of sunlight.

I am still getting yarn spun up, wee little sheep made, wool dyed, carded, and put away for the winter days inside by the fire.However, by the time I get inside I am just plain tired out, and I am thinking the season of life for me has come where I must be more selective in my use of time. I think I will be praying about this and pondering the right choices this fall & winter as I spin up more wool yarn and craft more rugs, remembering to enjoy the company and blessing of those God has placed in my life, and I in theirs. ~ "I have seen the task which God has given the sons of men with which to occupy themselves.He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart.." Ecclesiastes 3:10,11

Ralphie Speaks! ( meows)

Life around here is pretty good, but sometimes Kathy forgets it is all about ME! Meow.........

Like, just the other night I was napping in a comfortable bed of canvas and wool on the living room sofa and Kathy picks me up and plunks me down on the floor. Something about this being a rug she is working on, really...I was trying to sleep! DUH!!!! I was not happy. I decided to let her know just how I felt,because after all, it is about ME, ME, MEow!So I decide to take her locker-hook, the thing she needs to make her rugs, and hide it. It is kind of fun to do this you know. She keeps swatting me away and I just keep at it...purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr....

Kathy hides the locker-hook in the wool when she gets up to pour herself a cup of coffee and I take this opportunity to snatch the locker-hook. She can't fool me, meow.

The locker-hook is easily snatched and I drag it away to hide it. But hey, I decide I kind of like this locker-hook and maybe it is way more interesting than Kathy and I like the sound it makes when I bat it around and the hook at the end makes it easy to catch and kick across the room. Maybe I will hang onto this intriguing (yes, cats have amazing vocabularies) toy.

Ahhhhhhhhhh, I am tuckered out. This toy was so much fun to bat around the entire house and Kathy did not stop me. Nap time.......

..and then I see, she has taken pictures of me for her blog, the other thing that takes up too much time, time she could be spending on ME, ME,MEow!

Ralphie has been unofficially adopted by my sister Joni and Ralphie is very happy to know someone of consequence appreciates him. Maybe SHE will give him his own locker-hook and basket of wool. A cat can hope and dream. MEOW~

My Woolly Valentine

You might recall I received a kit in the mail from Shannon of Kenleigh Acres Fiber Studio *. She issued a fiber art challenge and was generous in providing the whole kit to anyone interested in accepting her challenge. I let my phone calls go to voice-mail today and after the usual needed work around here I just got to work doing something I enjoy. I need a day like this every once in awhile. Above is my little woolly lamb, made using the instructions and materials in the kit. Here again is a picture of what I received in the mail, thank-you Shannon! The instructions were very, very well photographed and explained. Shannon , you are very gifted at writing, photographing, and publishing very easy directions. You are obviously a gifted teacher.

Here is one view of my lamb.

And the other, in which I veered from the pattern and gave him a heart.

Here is my lamb placed next to a sheep we received as a present from my husband's sister and her family. They purchased this from Pottery Barn because they knew we would love it!

I was inspired not only by Shannon's challenge, but also by the special February celebration of Valentine's Day, so I combined the two and unless I change my mind ( which can happen) this is my entry for the felting challenge Shannon issued. The lamb received a heart-shaped bead around his neck, and he is standing on wool I dyed and felted myself, using my Jacob Sheep fleece. The hearts are also of my felted wool. I fiddled with this arrangement , and it took many different forms until I decided it was enough for today.So Shannon this is for you, and thank-you!

Jeepers, the Spot on Peepers ( or Ram Rug)

Yay! I finally finished my Spotted Ram Rug !! This rug took me a long time. Not because the work was hard. The rug was pretty much finished in a week, but something was just not quite right. I hung it on my loom in the upstairs hall so I could look at it for awhile, and it was just not right. Oh, I see, the eyes . The eyes were not right. They looked like eyes, actually, they looked as if they were really seeing me...kind of creepy. Definitely NOT the look I wanted for my rug, and not the look I see in my sheep's eyes. Yes, technically they were fine, but they weren't! I pulled out most of the wool and re-did the face and eyes. Again, not quite right. Finally I put the rug out of the way, on one of my work tables and tried to ignore it. The cat thought I had made her a comfy wool bed atop the table. And that is where the rug has been for 2 months. Yes, it was covered in cat hair.

Wool creations are fun to craft because no matter what you determine to do, often the wool takes on a character of it's own. Most of the time this is great. I also have the opportunity to use the fleeces of 12 very different sheep , each with his or her own special crimp, texture, feel and color. (Did you know the white wool of 2 sheep the same breed and age will usually not match when placed side by side?) In spite of my careful planning and work, my wool creations almost always turn out different than originally planned because the wool wants to go a different way and most of the time the creation turns out the better for it. But this rug was frustrating me to no end. I hate unfinished projects but this one was going to remain unfinished or live out it's life as a cat bed at this rate.

I really put off on this rug. Every time I tried to get around to it I would procrastinate. I finally made 2 more rugs and spun up a fleece or two into yarn...and then I just HAD to finish it. I studied my sheep's eyes. I looked at artist renderings of sheep, then I just did it. I ripped out the face wool again and re did it. There, it is done , I am finished. It's fine. O.K. It will do.

Have you noticed how very important the eyes are in a portrait, painting, or even a live being ? I can draw O.K. A long time ago I used to do a lot of sketches and watercolors. I can get human proportions down O.K. I can draw hands and feet, fingers and toes, shade the person ..but the eyes ! Yes, I can draw eyes, even put the speck or gleam in, but they are not alive! I believe that is the mark of a real artist, a gifted photographer or sculptor. I have observed a lot of very popular contemporary 'art', some of which is in gift shops all over the country and in the homes of a lot of people, so the artists work is well liked. I just can't appreciate his work even though there is so much to commend it. Why ? The eyes of his people. They're not right.

We have all met people who give us the creeps because of their eyes. Or people who look like they SHOULD give us the creeps, but looking into their eyes makes everything O.K. Even my dogs and sheep pay close attention to eyes. Sheep dogs herd using their eyes more than anything else, you better believe those sheep pay attention.

"The lamp of the body is the eye; if therefore your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!" Matthew 6:22,23