Knitting with Some of my Handspun Yarn

A long time ago, I spun some beautiful blue merino wool on my spinning wheel.






This week, I actually used some of it to make a nice hair scrunchie! :)

Here's My Little Teapot....Short and Stout. ;)

This morning, I had a nice little pot of hot tea. Good Earth Vanilla Chai. Very yummy. I was able to get more than 4 cups out of my small teapot, and it stayed hot the whole morning. I covered it up with two kitchen towels.

I think I'll make a nice handknit tea cozy. :)

The teapot is EXACTLY like the one my mother had in her kitchen when I was growing up. I found this one at an antique store in Charlotte. The cup and saucer set was a Christmas gift from my step-children.

Sheep Shearing Day at Rising Meadows Farm in North Carolina

This past weekend, on Valentine's Day, I decided to go to a sheep shearing day with a friend. It took place at Rising Meadow Farm in Liberty, North Carolina. It was a wonderful day, and the weather was perfect!

We rode in her little Smart Car, and really enjoyed talking and looking at the scenery.


When we got there, we went straight to the sheep barn to watch the shearing.




Here are some of the sheep, waiting to be shorn:


More sheep:


Here's one of the sheep, about to be shorn by the master shearer. It just quietly let the shearer grab him, lay him down, and cut his hair without complaint.


Here's the shearer, hard at work, giving the sheep a good haircut.


Here's the sheep after his haircut.


And here's the big fleece that came from that sheep.


We also saw a brown lamb being shorn. Once again, it was quiet and patient during the haircut.


There were severals bags of fleece, ready to be purchased. I think it was cool that they included
the name of the sheep each fleece came from.


After watching the sheep shearing, we wandered over to the next field, and saw some alpaca or llama. (It's hard for me to tell the difference between those two animals.)


They were so friendly, and would just walk right up to you. This one went straight to Brenda and stole her heart on Valentine's Day.


I got a visit from that one as well. I think he liked the way my handknit alpaca wristwarmers smelled. :)


After walking around the farm, we went into their little shop. I checked out the roving, to spin on my wheel at home. I decided to buy 4 balls of Corriedale in a light natural shade.


Brenda bought some of the handspun yarn the farm had prepared.


After our long drive and walk, we were tired, so we sat down outside to eat the picnic lunch Brenda had prepared for us. Thanks Brenda!! Next, we drove to her place, to sit and knit for a while. It was a perfect way to end our day together.

Spears Weaving Loom Instructions

Several people have asked me to mail them copies of the Spears Weaving Loom Instruction Book I have with my size 4 loom. I'm tired of copying it and mailing it, so I've downloaded it to my Flickr photo account.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/59646927@N00/sets/72157613723481111/

I think it should be fine, since the instructions were printed so long ago. I don't think a copyright applies. But, if anyone hears differently, please let me know, and I'll remove the link.

Take care, and happy weaving!

Cooking and Eating

Last year, I was on a low carb diet for most of the year, and 3 months of the year before. I plateau-ed, and never lost more than the 40 pounds I lost in the first two months of the diet.

Since I was discouraged, I put the low carb diet aside, and quickly gained back all the weight I had lost. Discouraging, but that's the breaks.

Now, I'm eating cakes and cookies and bread again. Eventually, I'll get back on a diet, but I'm not sure which one I'll choose. Maybe low carb, maybe something else.

In the meantime, I'm eating cake. Ha!

Here's the one I made a couple weekends ago. My hubby and I loved it.


The following week, I made a "Cranberry Kuchen" from my very old Better Homes and Gardens cookbook.

My Meme

I'm considering myself "tagged" by Nancy Knits. She made a list on her blog, answering questions for a "meme". I'd never heard of a meme before, so I read her link to a site that explains it. I still don't completely understand it, but I'm going to answer the same questions she answered. (tee-hee)

10 Years Ago I:
looked like this:
Was a lonely single mom, looking for "Mr Right"
Was the Organist at Mallard Creek Presbyterian Church
Was engaged to "Mr Wrong", who cancelled the engagement a month later
Enjoyed playing games with my kids on Nintendo NES and Super Nintendo
Was lucky to find good deals on necessities at thrift and consignment shops
Was reading most of Jules Verne's works (my favorite was "The Mysterious Island")
Had just finished reading The Bible all the way through for the second time

5 Things on Today's "To-Do" List:
Have breakfast with my husband :)
Run errands: Cancel wireless internet & gym membership, pay car insurance
Teach 5 piano lessons
Work on knitting Christmas gifts
Computer time: Knitting Help Forum, Ravelry, Facebook, Yahoo, eBay, Flickr, Blogger

5 Snacks I Enjoy:
Almonds, Pecans, Cashews
Hot Tea or Coffee
Combos (Cheddar Cheese Pretzel)
Skor Toffee Bars
Breyers Butter Pecan Ice Cream

5 Things I Would Do If I Were a Millionaire:
Give some money to charity
Pay off all our bills
Buy a solar-powered house, and a cottage in the mountains
Visit Ireland, Scotland, Hawaii and Alaska
Finally have a new car, preferably an electric one (charged with the solar power at my house)

5 Places I Have Lived:
Indian Trail, NC
Wingate, NC
Charlotte, NC
Belmont, NC
ending up back in Indian Trail

5 Jobs I Have Had:
Piano Teacher
Independent Insurance Agent
Executive Assistant at Aetna/US Healthcare
Church Secretary at Mulberry Baptist Church
Telemarketer & Receptionist for Dr. Paul Homoly

Teaching an Embroidery Class

Recently, I taught a crewel embroidery class to a group of home-schoolers. It was a lot of fun!

I started off by gathering together lots of sportweight wool yarn for the students to use:


Next, I stitched a simple design, using the stitches I would be teaching to them:


Next, I traced a simple design onto linen fabric and placed them in hoops for each student.




I taught 8 young girls how to do the following stitches:

Straight Stitch
Stem Stitch
French Knot
Couching Stitch
Padded Satin Stitch

I think the class went well, and several of the girls were asking lots of questions. A success!

Embroidery Work - Nice on Hot Days

Recently, our air conditioning was not working, so our house was SUPER HOT!!! (It was over 90 degrees overnight, even with 10 fans running in the house.)

Since it was so hot, I could not bring myself to knit or spin. So, I got out my new needlework stand, and pulled out some embroidery kits that have been waiting for me. I decided to work on a candlewicking kit called "He Loves Me Knot". Very nice. I just love my new needlework stand!





Here's what I've gotten done so far:


I really enjoy doing embroidery for a change. :)

Relaxing Day at Home

Today has been a wonderful day.

My hubby and I started the morning with a nice hug and kiss. I'm so glad I found my soulmate. We are good for each other. :)

He is a restaurant manager, so we usually don't have the chance to have breakfast together. But, today he scheduled himself to go into work in the afternoon. So we had breakfast!! He's on a low cholesterol diet, and I am on a low carbohydrate diet. So, needless to say....cooking breakfast took up a LOT of counter space!


Real eggs for me..."Egg Mates" for him.
Real cheese for me..."Smart Beat" cheese for him.
Real butter for me..."Smart Balance" spread for him.
Sausage for me.....turkey for him.

We were able to share the mushrooms, spinach, herbs, spices, red bell pepper and onions, though. It was yummy!!!

After breakfast, my hubby spent some time on the internet, and I went to knit in my craft room. I've really been enjoying Librivox lately. It's a really cool website, with free audiobooks online. All of the books are in the public domain, and recorded by volunteers. I'm listening to all of Frank Baum's books about the Land of Oz. I had no idea there were so many books about that place!! It's really cool to listen to it for free.

While I was knitting and listening to Librivox, my hubby was taking a shower and getting ready for work. Before he left, he went to check the mailbox, and returned with a small package for me. It was an embroidery kit I had gotten on eBay. It's really cool! It's a crewel embroidery design of a knitting bag, with an initial on it. I'll probably use an "S" for "Shandeh" or "Sandy". :D


After my hubby left for work, I listened to the first three chapters of "The Wizard of Oz", and got a good bit of knitting done in the process. Then, I started getting drowsy. So, I took a 3 hour nap. How wonderful!!!

When I woke, I made myself two cups of hot tea.

My absolute favorite tea is on the left. It's "Good Earth Organic Original Sweet & Spicy Tea". If you let it brew long enough, there is no need for sweetener at all. It's naturally sweet, and is a natural source of antioxidants. :)
The tea on the right is one that I occasionally have. I must really be in the mood for it though. If I drink it too often, it reminds me of furniture polish. :P It's "Twinings Herbal Revive", with lemon and Chinese ginger.

I think I'll go back to the Land of Oz and knitting for a while. :)

Sewing for a Friend

A friend of mine from the Knitting Help Forum asked if I could sew a dress for her granddaughter. She chose a pattern from my collection, and specified the type of fabric she wanted. I took my time choosing the fabric, because I wanted it to be just right.

Then, I started sewing. It took a while, because I am a slow worker. I just want things to be right, you know?

I'm always careful to press open each seam as I sew it. I handsew certain parts, just to make it correct. And I read the directions WAY too many times....always afraid that I'll miss something.

I was a bit frustrated with this particular pattern, because they made a mistake in the bodice instructions. At the end, I had to rip out a couple seams and re-do them properly. If I didn't have sewing experience, I would have been thoroughly confused. I'm glad I've been sewing for 30 years!

Last night, I finally finished everything. The zipper is added, the snaps are attached, and the hem is sewn. It's lovely!

Here's the front:


And here's the back:

Hey! I MADE some Spinners on The Sims!

I've been a Sims fan ever since the first "The Sims" game came out. I have every single expansion pack for the original series of games.

When I received "Makin' Magic", I think I only played it for one week before "The Sims 2" was released. At that time, I just removed all the old Sims games, and installed The Sims 2 instead.

I've spent the last 2 years struggling through LONG waiting periods.....waiting for the game to load.....waiting for the Sims neighborhood to open......waiting for my Sim to walk across the room.....waiting for my Sim to ride the taxi to another neighborhood.....waiting, waiting, waiting.

And not really enjoying it, I might add. :(

So, last night, I decided to REMOVE the Sims 2, and put my OLD Sims back on. Boy, am I glad I did!!!

I installed ALL of the old games. The Sims, Livin' Large, House Party, Hot Date, Vacation, Unleashed, Superstar, and Makin' Magic.

When I started playing, I waited for the game to load. And that's the only waiting I had to do. :D

After spending a few minutes with the game, I realized that I never really played "Makin' Magic" at all. I opened up the "Buy" screen to put some items in my little Sims house, and I found a SPINNING WHEEL!!!!! Oh My Gosh!!!! I was so excited, I was about to BUST!!

So, of course, I decided right then and there to make a castle full of ladies in long dresses, so I could have them all spin at the same time.

:)

Yay! I Found Some Spinners!

Today, when I was at Cottage Yarn, in Mint Hill, North Carolina, I was talking to one of the friendly shop clerks. She told me that there are a few spinners that would like to get together this weekend in Mint Hill.

I'm so excited!!!! FINALLY, I have found some spinners that I can sit and spin with. I'm really looking forward to it.

:D

SAFF Purchases

I didn't have a lot of money for my trip to SAFF this year, but I did buy a couple spinning things.

A pretty, buttery yellow sweatshirt, that says, "I Spin to Knit".


Here I am wearing it (I couldn't smile, because I was exhausted after SAFF):


And another 8 ounces of beautiful "English Garden" roving from "Shepherd's Corner". I already have 8 ounces in the same color, which I bought last year. Now, I have a pound! :D


I also bought some yarn for knitting, a pattern book, and a bar of handmade soap for sensitive skin. Here's my total haul this year:

SAFF 2007

I had a WONDERFUL time yesterday at SAFF (Southeastern Animal Fiber Fair) in the beautiful mountains of North Carolina.

The weather was perfect, the yarn was gorgeous, the animals were sweet, and the spinning wheels were beautiful.

More Roses

I still haven't spun a thing. I'm a BAD spinner. I've mostly been knitting and sewing lately, but that will soon change. I'm going to SAFF in a couple weeks!!! (Southeastern Animal Fiber Fair in the mountains of North Carolina.) I'm sure that seeing all that fiber and handspun yarn will light a fire under me. I'm so EXCITED!!!!

Last night, my hubby walked in the door with a dozen roses for me. He's in the dog house right now. I'm still pondering whether to let him out or not. ;)