So Thats where they were!

Since we got back from Colorado our chickens have not been laying very well, or so we thought.  Low and behold Harry found 19 eggs in the barn this morning, none of them broken or eaten, go figure!

Mittens, Mittens, Mittens

I have been working on mittens most of the summer--I know, not really the prime time for thinking about mittens but they are a small project and easy to pick up at any time.  I love to make "mirror" image mittens.  The colors are reversed on each pair so that the background on one mitten is transposed to be the design on the other.  This makes them far less boring to make and also uses the same amount of each color for the pair of mittens.  I am taking them to sell at the Sheep and Wool Festival next week.  I make up the designs from old knitting patterns.  The cuffs on most of them are very long-I think this is really great because they can be put over your jacket or under and you will keep much warmer.  No snow up your jacket!!! I love winter and figure you should dress up your hands to play in the snow.

Marigolds and Indigo

I thought I would experiment with some natural dying, Harry has a great crop of marigolds so I thought I would give them a shot-

I had a lot of different fiber, some cotton, some of Denise's Shetland, and some cotton ribbon.  I dyed them all in the marigolds

Then I overdyed some of them in my indigo pot

Next I decided to dye a shawl/throw that I just finished out of Denise's Shetland

I first dyed it in the marigolds

Then I overdyed it in the indigo

I am pretty happy with how it turned out
The rest of the fibers I am going to use in some "skinny" scarfs--think I am done dying for a while--but there is a lot of goldenrod around, who knows?

Summer Towels

I thought I would try and make some towels.  I had some really nice organic cotton, cotillion and tencel on hand as well as some really old bias tape from the Silver Palate in New York  that I couldn't bear to throw out so I recycled it for the hangers.  I threaded the red tencel in rosepath and did a different variation in each of the towels. 

Summer Fun

One of my favorite times in summer is going to Door County.  I have a friend who has graciously let us use her cottage in Baileys Harbor for the past ten years.  Its a great time--my daughter and her family go as well has Harry and I.  The boys stay a couple of days and then it just the kids, Liz and I.  We have great fun going to the beach and just hanging out.  It is nice to see teenagers who still love to dig in the sand! Of course sweet Violet Rose is too little to dig, but she did love to sleep on the beach.

Three Bags Full

I have been thinking about market bags, maybe because my garden overflowith!!  Usaully I don't put on enough warp for more than one thing but I thought I would try it this time.  I first thought I wouuld get enough for two bags but the cotton I used (10/2 pearl) shrunk very little.  It was fun figuring out what to do to make them different from one another.  The large bag in the middle actually folds up so that you can put it in a purse and take it along with you. Black and white always reminds me of summer.

Indigo

So I thought I would dye some indigo today.  I had restarted the pot and it smelled pretty bad so I figured it was time to give it a shot. 

I like indigo because it is simple to do, a pot, some gloves and some time.  I noticed when I hung it on the line outside that a butterfly was interested.  It also seemed to attract a lot of flies!!! I like the result.

Two New Pillows

These two pillows are made of some leftover handpainted silk and handpainted Merino.  I made them in squares and sewed them together so that I could get different textures on each pillow. They are all woven from the same tie-up.  The pattern is out of my favorite "green " book

Meet sweet Violet Rose. She was born on Thursday and weighed 8#4oz.
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Hiking to Finger Lake

Went for a hike to Finger Lake and some

of the early wildflowers were out and
about. It is still chilly here and we had
some snow yesterday.

Teddy Roosevelt National Park

Ran across this guy in the park. There were heards of bison all over the place. Also saw some wild horses. Went on a hike and picked up some fiber--it was really soft and maybe I will spin it into something. This park is really beautiful and it was the perfect time of year to be there.

I Amost Whacked It

I started making a linen and sari silk scarf that was really cool, that is until I started weaving it. The sari silk tore, freyed, got stuck and drove me nuts!! If it wasn't so expensive I would have whacked it. Instead I cut it out of the warp and kept on. When I finished it wasn't long enough for a scarf so I made a Mobius strip cowl instead. What do you think?

Earth Day Bag

In honor of earth day I decided to weave a tote bag--No more plastic. It is all cotton and was great fun to weave

For Rent--Foreclosed?

For the past two years robins have nested in this swing on the front porch of my studio. So far no takers this year. Do you think robins had subprime loans?

Spring In Wisconsin

It is an early spring in Wisconsin, temperatures in the 80's. We usually don't see these until May or June. In honor of the early spring I wove this scarf. It is mostly linen with a few cotton accents. I like it because it is very long and fun to wear. I hung it in my old apple tree. The scarf is my donation to the Driftless Art Festival silent action which will be held on May 15th.