sheesh!

First off, I just want to say that getting my paws on some Pigeonroof Studios roving must be even harder than getting Hannah Montana tickets. Not that I have tried getting Hannah Montana tickets, but that is the best analogy I can come up with. At least people aren't buying the roving only to sell it on Craigslist for 10x what they paid!

Anyway, I've been busy with keeping my apartment clean. Seriously, that is a full time job. I have actually done a lot of spinning this week though:

MOULIN- spun with some batts from Hobbledehoy, Loop, and Mandalinn, plus some stuff from my stash, plied with woolly nylon:


MIDGEWATER- my first TRUE scrap yarn, spun from a thousand different batts and rovings, worsted to bulky weight:


COSTA RICA- I spun this sitting outside last weekend. Drop-dead gorgeous BFL from Allspunup, spun into a striking worsted weight single:


POODLE SKIRT- spun from a batt by The Ranch, super thick and plied with clear poly thread:


On the bobbin- SUGARCUBES roving by Hobbledehoy, spun into a worsted weight two-ply, ready to be crocheted into a baby hat/booties set for a coworker- stay tuned for FO pics SOON!


Time to go rinse some roving and set it out to dry. I FINALLY got to dye some wool this weekend, it's been ages!

First wheelspuns and some roving...

So I spent ALL of last weekend spinning. I mean ALL of it. I left the house on Saturday only momentarily: to walk to the post office to pick up a box of wool. Here is the result:



From left to right, top to bottom: Cry Baby (from Copperpot Woolies), Blues (very first spin, my own handpainted Corriedale), Secret Garden (Hobbledehoy LOLbatt), Solemn (handpainted BFL), Woodstock (from Lapoli), Live Wire (another LOLbatt), Allsorts (from Copperpot's gimongo batt, my first plied yarn!), Vamped (handpainted Corriedale), and Water Hyacinth, singles in progress (from Mary Jane's Attic.)

Also, I dyed a ton of roving the weekend before- another collage to feast on!



Treebeard closeup, Material Girl, Maison Moderne, Dried Petals, Color Box, Color Box closeup, Meritage, Concord. Treebeard again. I LOVE Treebeard. I'm going to have to try that colorway again. All of those are Falkland wool roving.

Ok, it's time for me to go work on that Water Hyacinth single... it is taking for-ever!

ZOMFG I GOT ONE!

So I've been checking Ebay and Craigslist on and off, looking for any used spinning wheels in the area that I might be able to buy. I told myself I'd wait until I got my recession check, but a deal I couldn't pass up came along this weekend: Ashford Traveller (older model, single treadle, single drive) was posted on Craigslist for $250. I almost peed my pants and obsessively e-mailed the seller. I got to look on it on Monday night (it was very close by) and after checking it out to the best of my ability (with some help from the awesome people on Craftster!) I took him home.

Look!




It didn't come with bobbins, so I've ordered those, and in the mean time I am cleaning him up, oiling him down, and practicing my treadling while trying to think of a name! I'm so excited!

Spring? Is that you?!

This weekend has been #%&@ gorgeous. Saturday morning I got to volunteer at the Ginkgo Organic Gardens in Uptown. It was the first work-day of the season, and it could not have been nicer (last year it was snowing!) There are so many things I like about that place, namely being outside, gardening for a cause, and hanging out with awesome people. Seriously, what more could you ask for?? When I got home, I cleaned up the kitchen and started dyeing up some more roving (Falkland, this time.) It's still drying in the bathroom right now, so I should have pics of it soon.

Today was just as beautiful, so the BF and I went to Vella Cafe for his birthday breakfast, and then shopping for food and garden supplies. I think I'm going to do a bunch of herbs, tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries, lettuce, and flowers. I also bought a raspberry and a blackberry bush. I'm out of control! We started turning up the beds and lining them with brick so they look extra nice (and so the lawn maintenance people know to not weed-wack anything down!) I hope the landlord doesn't mind... I'll definitely post pics of it when everything is up and running.

I think now it's time for a glass of wine and a handful of fiber to spin up.

April Fools? Or just a really great idea!

Eversheds to Run Sheep Pilot Scheme at New City Base

In a bizarre turn in its campaign to create London’s greenest law office, Eversheds is to let sheep loose on the roof of its new building at One Wood Street.

The trial scheme will see four sheep used for a three-month period to maintain the grass on the building’s flat eco-roof, which is designed to prevent heat escaping through the office ceiling.

The firm has recruited an animal welfare officer, Sean Coates, who will spend the equivalent of one day each week taking care of the animals.

Coates, a former RSPCA officer who is now a freelance consultant in urban livestock management, said: “It’s important we keep the sheep in tip top condition to get the best out of them.

“They work as a team so if one of them isn’t pulling their weight, we need to make sure we’re covered.”

Coates said that the animals did not represent a danger to pedestrians in high wind, but added that the firm was insured in case of such an incident.

The decision to conduct the trial came after Eversheds undertook a lengthy consultation into ways to introduce sustainable energy methods into the new office, which will be completed in May.

The majority of partners in a partnership vote supported a trial of the grazing scheme, leading to Eversheds consulting energy experts, farmers and animal trainers about its viability.

“As well as keeping the roof trim, it’s possible we will also use their waste to fertilise plants in the firm’s new herb garden,” Coates said.

If the scheme is continued beyond the three month trial, Eversheds associates will be given the chance to name the animals in an online poll on the firm’s intranet site.

The firm yesterday also revealed that it is set to use the underwire of bras in its London office’s 160,000 sq ft of flooring (The Lawyer, 31 March).

****
I'm going to go work there and become a corporate rooftop sheep herder. I'm not sure what I want to do with tonight. I'm in kind of a cranktastic mood, so I'm not sure if that means I need to force myself to be productive, or just veg out. Not really sure what would make me feel better at this point, or what I have the energy for. First things first: dinner. Ugh.

*grin*

I just ordered 3 pounds of roving from the Brown Sheep Studio! Because I didn't get to dye or spin ANYthing this weekend, I will more than make up for it NEXT weekend. I've already got a pound and a half of falkland waiting for me...

Not that it was a bad weekend- I went up to Milwaukee (for FUN!) with some friends to tour the Sprecher Brewery. $3 for a tour, four 8 ounce "samples" in a glass cup and all the rootbeer and other soda you could drink... hel-lo! I'm not a beer drinker at all, but it was a good time nonetheless. After that, we got dinner at a restaurant at the bottom of the old Schlitz brewery, and then hit up some bars in downtown. I can't believe I have to go back up there tomorrow AGAIN, which means I should go to bed ASAP. Oh well, at least I get a free lunch.... :\

fib3r pr0n

Work has kind of sucked this week- I've worked late at least two nights, and Wednesday I was up in Milwaukee, which meant I had a 12 hour day. ICK. So the fuzzy arts have been on hold for a bit. To make up for it, here are gratuitous pics from other rovings/yarn that I haven't posted yet (quasi-new):

Bela Lugosi roving (corriedale):


Nocturnum roving (corriedale) Not as happy with this one. I was going for some deep tonal blacks but it didn't really happen, what with the big red splash and the white spot. Whatever, it'll spin up just fine methinks:


Pigeons roving (BFL). Now I know pigeons aren't purple and blue and all that, but it reminds me of the way the light hits their feathers and shimmers in all those nice pretty colors:


And here are my second three rovings, ever- left to right: Amazon, Sakura, and Dollhouse:


Amazon handspun:


Sakura handspun:


Snuggling yarns!


I tried spinning Dollhouse with the intent of plying it with thread, and I think I'm going to hold off on any more plying adventures until I get a wheel. It just ends up being a huge mess and a pain in the ass. Never mind that the cats have darn near destroyed everything while I am spinning it anyway!!!