Still Alive and Spinning ...

Earlier today I bumped into Penny who was happy to see that I was still alive and interested in fibery pursuits. I appoligize to her much as I am now about to appologize to you, gentle reader.

When I started this blog, it was a nice outlet for my literary creativeness. These days, however, that outlet is being found, nightly, as I attempt to craft lesson plans that will capture the imagination (and attention) of my students. By the time I'm done, my urge to write any more is gone for the night. So, too, is my urge to knit or do much more than play Zuma's Revenge.

I did, however, find the urge, still within me, to drive 2+ hours to Rhinebeck, NY to play in the wooly goodness that is the New York Sheep and Wool Festival.

Want to see my goodies? (Get your mind out of the gutter! This is a family friendly blog!)


The pink log is 70% Suri Alpaca, 30% Silk from Flaggy Meadow Fiber Works. The big bump is 100% Coopsworth from Maple Row Stock Farm (no website). The Alpaca was my first purchase of the day and I was so attracted to it that when I went through the barn again at the end of the day, I almost bought it again! Fortunately I came to my senses just as I started to approach the inside of the booth and realized that I had already impulse purchased it. The blue just kind of jumped out at me and clearly stated that it needed to be a nice warm shawl.

Here are an early and a late purchase. The dark blue attacked Little Squid and insisted that he needed his mother to spin socks for him. The lighter blue was missed in the initial attack and was spied jumping into my hands a few hours later just because I really love Grafton Fibers batts.
The brown top on the left is Chocolate Alpaca and Tussah and the lighter brown/grey top is Finn Wool and Yak, both from Shadeyside Fibers. Both were a "I'll remember where they are and come back for them later" purchase which had me miss-remembering what barn they were in and recombing almost all of the numbered barns in search of them . I really wanted some yak and, some more alpaca -- having conveniently forgotten that I'd already purchased some earlier in the day.

The big red bump is 9 ounces of Coopworth dyed with madder and iron from Handspun By Stefania. It was mainly purchased because my Rhinebeck experience would not be complete without buying something from Stefania. I love her naturally died wools and they spin up so quickly!

The kids got some stuff, too.

Squidette got this kit:She is going to dive into Little Squid's domain and attempt some needle felting. Little Squid got some puff balls to do some felting on his own. No pictures of his haul -- he already put it away.

All in all, a lovely day. The crowds were ... well, not crowds. The weather was damp and mildly rainy but we stayed relatively dry. Lunch consisted of lamb ravioli for the kids and lamb and barley soup for me, followed by apple cider donuts, hot chocolate and finally soft pretzels as a snack for the trip home.

The drive was ... well I really don't like highway driving. I just do not know what to do with my foot when it isn't hitting the brake every two seconds. Give me Manhattan traffic any day!

Now, off to do some spinning on Mike's sweater. Have to finish that spinning before I can start in on the new stuff!