ok, ok, not really and ect.

So the last post was titled " for Cindy", and really, it was written as if just to her and in honor of her. But honestly, that didn't mean you couldn't all read it if you wanted! It wasn't intended as a snub to anyone, honestly! lol

Here's some eye candy to make up for it. ;) Here are some more pics of the dyeing experiments.

This one is Silver Grey and Fire Red. Love them both and keep picturing them blended with Black Alpaca. NUM! They both picked out beautifully!

Please excuse the un-picked-ness of these two...lol I still haven't built my picker yet. Yes...still doing it by hand!

This one is Ochre. Not bad...not bad. I'm starting to see it blended (in my mind) with a couple of other color possibilities. That's a good sign. lol It seems I have to visualize it first before I can act sometime. Troublesome for following formulas, let me tell ya! Laid next to the Spruce, this one started to sparkle, we'll see where it ends up.

Then there is Vermilion. I have to admit to being a bit disappointed. It reminded me of overcooked cherries. But then I realized that was because I'm not a Pink fan....and this one leans toward pink in real life. So once I realized that and got. over. it. I starting thinking of color pairings for it and Wow! I've got more fiber to dye now! lol I love it just for that fact alone. lol

This is all taking me way longer than I wanted but a change in weather caused it to be way to humid to have nearly boiling water in this little house. Now it's cool and damp outside and I'm swamped with work. Figures, huh! lol All that coupled with the fact that I have to hand pick the stuff means it's taking ages. I'm a bit "picky" while I'm picking and I'm trying to make sure that the extra junk gets out before I card. I'm anxious to card this stuff, but know that's gonna be an all day thing, so I'll just plod along on the picking for now. (MAN! I can't wait until I get the picker built.....this will go so much faster!! lol)

Guild was last night and it was our laid-back-pot-luck-before-fair meeting. Lots of food was brought and the business meeting was scheduled around eating. Gotta love priorities! One of the gals sitting in front of me had some Optim she was spinning super fine and I was delighted to handle it and see what I thought of it. While I enjoy preparing my own fiber, I do find commercial prepared fiber delightful. I guess it's the "plug n play"-ness of it. Open pretty package, lightly fluff fiber, spin away. Completed yarn! Wow, no fuss, no muss. If I had more of the ready I probably would spend some of it on professionally prepped fibers. ;) Handling that small "braid" of fiber sure made me want to order today. lol

One of the best parts of last nights meeting was that a fairly new spinner in our group got a special one on one lesson. She's a newer spinner (less than 3 months) and had purchased a Fricke wheel. When she found out that Curt was at the meeting (yes, he's a member) she sought him out to let him know how pleased she was with her purchase. Later in the evening he was watching her spin on the wheel and before she knew it he was sitting next to her, explaining how the wheel was designed to work, how each of the adjustments worked and how they would affect her spinning and how to care for the wheel. In a short time she was spinning what she wanted.....and was fairly twitching from excitement! Not everyone gets a lesson from the designer of his/her wheel! It was such a joy to watch the interaction and the enthusiasm from both of them. It was definitely a WOW moment. lol

Ok, no cute poochie picts today. He's enjoying the rain a little too much and not very photogenic today. Soon, I hope! I am enjoying the rainy days this week and am starting to get my knitting head back. lol Probably means more heat coming on soon. ;)

TTFN!

PS. Someone asked me to expand on the carding machine at Julies. All I know is that it's a Patrick Greene model and that we'll be having another carding day soon. ;) I'll try to get more pics then and more info! Promise!