Hey there....I took a little time off from blogging to recover from the holidays and crank out the big yarn club mailing, but now that all of that is behind me, it's a new year and a new year of blogging.
I have been having a lot of fun getting re-acquainted with soaping. It's a little easier on my body, than lifting heavy wet wool. I tend to go through cycles of being enthusiastic about the different crafts that I enjoy, as I am sure so many of you do as well.
Ken and I were talking last week and I told him that I was going to label my soap and hand-cream a bit differently. Instead of using my business name, "The Woolen Rabbit", I thought about using "TWR". When Ken asked why the change, I shared with him the question I am almost always asked at each show. "Is there rabbit in this?" Ewwwww! If one person asks me that then I am sure that 10 more people think the same thing and really, I would hate for anyone to think that a rabbit may have been harmed to create these products.
I really take extra pains to make my bath and body products very soothing to the skin and pleasant to the senses and truly the thought of anything bunny-like in these items, well...ick, so "TWR" it is, unless any of you have a better idea. ....and I would love to hear your suggestions.....
It's hard to believe that 6 months have already passed since the mailing of this year's Roaring 20's yarn club. Time really does have a way of flying by. Anne released the pattern today and I am taking pre-orders for the Kashmir Colorway ~ Water Study, which will start shipping right after Spa.
Anne Hanson, the designer of this lovely scarf,Isadora, writes this: The wide lace scarves of the 20's were worn long and silky to accent the new slender figure and clothing of the decade, but probably came in handy, too, for those baring shoulders for the first time. This fine, silky rectangle features a shimmery damask that relies on changes in stitch direction for the play of shadows across it's surface.
This club has been completely designer driven. When the designer gives me the color and I see the pattern, I then set about doing some research on how that design and color speaks to me. In researching Isadora Duncan to find a name for this yarn color, I spent some time watching her dance videos. Anne had requested a pastel blue/green, the shades of beach glass, which was a popular color during that time as seen here.
As I watched some of her dances, one of them struck a chord. The Water Study Solo. So full of movement like the ebbs and tides of the ocean...a place dear to my heart. There is a lot of subtle movement in the yarn as well. Isadora led the movement of modern dance that we still see today.
I had so much fun with this package and am now happy to be able to offer the pattern/yarn for everyone to enjoy. :-)
This is the moment of embarking. All auspicious signs are in place. Deng Ming~Dao In the beginning, all things are
hopeful. We prepare ourselves to start anew. Though we may be intent
on the magnificent journey ahead, all things are contained in this first
moment; our optimism, our faith, our resolution, our innocence. (More Deng Ming~Tao)
Almost every year I use this Tao quote to start off my year, because it is so full of hope.
This year I have only a few aspirations to get me through the upcoming year. Aspirations that will help me maintain my optimisms, faith and resolutions. ~ * Work less ~ I am way too tired all.the.time. * Get re-aquainted with my hobbies and try not to make them become work.( I am famous for that if you haven't noticed.) *Complain less *Join 365 days of pictures so I can use my camera better. *Address my back issues so I can get back to enjoying my daily walks. * Find and enjoy the smaller things that one can see when they slow down long enough. (refer back to #1) * Be better at responding to email.....I'm so bad, but sometimes it's just so overwhelming.
All in all, for me, this year it's about taking time for myself. Slowing life down to a more managable pace and taking care of my mind, my body and my spirit.
How about you......what are your aspirations for the new year?
It's been a very busy week with Christmas shopping, Christmas,cooking, company and a yarn club mailing, so I thought I
would share a song with you instead of the Christmas post that I had in
my mind, but never managed to get it on paper. Needless to say we had an amazing time and of course someone who recently turned 21 had her nose in the nogg just a little too long.....nuff said. ;-) It always warms my heart to have my family home for the Holidays and this year did not disappoint.
As you know, I love when Ashley sends me a note with a song attached. For her this song was a big leap in her guitar skills that she has been working hard on. I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did. There are so many music changes within the song. Great job Ashley!
.....and you may have noticed that there has been some snow all across the country and right now it is hovering directly over us. Today we had approximately 15 inches dumped on us with more to come over the next few days. Poor little Goose could barely move. Thank goodness for the girls...Ken usually stomps down a few mazes for them.
Courtney has been working hard at her photography skills and took this picture this morning during the storm. She is getting really good at getting just the right angle. Thanks Courtney!
But the fire is so delightful
And since we've no place to go
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
....snowing it is! This is going to be a busy weekend, getting ready for the Holiday cheer. There will be shopping, wrapping and baking. It will be fun!
I hope that you have an enjoyable and peaceful weekend before the holidays.
Just when you thought this was no longer a knitting blog......here's some knitting. :-)
I did take a little vacation from knitting, not because I wasn't enjoying it, but after working with wool all day, I found my mind drifting in other directions at night. With Christmas nearly upon us, the knitting mojo kicked in. I am making a pair of bright green Eliza mitts for my granddaughter. (they lean more towards jungle green then in this picture). I made the largest size for myself as I have man sized hands, so I opted to make the middle size for McKayla, but my inner voice is saying they will be too small. I will give it a few more rows before I decide weather or not to start over again. I am hoping that I won't have to start over, but that little voice is usually right.
I have also started a new sweater, Folly Cove, written by Julia Farwell-Clay. This is the perfect project for when you just don't want to have to think, only knit, and it's soooo pretty too! There is something so soothing about plain stockinette knitting. Back and forth, back and forth....I love the quiet rhythm.
....and that's it. I am really trying to not overwhelm my brain with too many projects. Leaving is still waiting for her last sleeve, but for some reason I have hit a wall with that sweater and it is taking a little time out for now. I will pick it up again after the holidays.
I won't lie, I was NOT happy when Courtney came home carrying a cage containing little dwarf hamsters. Even though I have had rabbits, I have not been a fan of smaller rodent pets. When I caught a glimpse of the two cute little faces peeking out of their sleep house though, oh my! These little babies belong to one of Courtney's college roomates who was going home to Texas for the holiday, thus the extended vacation here in Conway.
After researching a little on what type of hamster they are, I believe that they are Roborovski dwarf hamsters. They are so teeny tiny with such sweet little faces and no nasty rodent tail. I actually like them. :-)
The plan was for Courtney to keep them in her room, but given that they appear to be nocturnal and are very busy little girls at night running on their wheel, I offered to let them live in my office. Most of their day is spent in their little sleep house, but they do get busy at night or when I fill up their little food dish. I like to give them little pats during the day, but I don't dare to pick them up for fear that they would jump out of my hands and a dog would mistake them for a snack.....a little hamster cookie. ;-)
I had a post that I wrote last night all set to go for tonight's post. It was a feel good post with a clip of Louis Armstrong's song, "It's a wonderful world", but in light of today's sadness, I deleted it, because it doesn't feel like a wonderful world at all today, so I am going in a different direction tonight. ~
Over the years you have met some of my little dog friends here on my blog...Cleo, Skky and Goose, (who we affectionately call Puppy). Their breeder has become a good friend of mine and over the years, she has always blessed me with "The Twelve Days of Christmas" gift, which is huge fun. This year the gifts were bundled in a hanging shoe rack (see the picture). I really enjoy this present and always look forward to Barb's creativity and thoughtfulness. Each morning with my coffee, I grab the day's present and it always makes me smile. Barb puts so much thought and time into the packages and I always enjoy it. Today's gift made Hannah smile a great big smile. A fun movie and some tasty pop-corn drizzle. Guess what we will be doing tomorrow night?
Thanks Barb!! ~
On another note, I want to send my heartfelt prayers to the families who are grieving tonight. We have family members who have and still work at this school Thankfully neither were there today. It is a sad day when the youngest amongst us can not be safe in our world. My heartfelt prayer today is that someday we can live in that world that Louis Armstrong sang to us all those years ago.
A little whiile back a dear dog friend of mine were talking about different things and she asked me if I had ever thought of knitting doll sweaters. Huh? Doll sweaters? She told me that there was this world of dolls that were collectible and handmade sweaters sold for a fair amount. She sent me a link to the sweaters and I told her that I didn't think I would have the patience to knit such small items.
What caught my eye however were the amazing customized Blythe dolls. When I was a child I loved dolls. I mean I really loved them, so when I had 4 daughters I was thrilled to have a reason to buy beautiful dolls, but do you think any one of them liked dolls? Nope, not a one...well, that's not quite true, Stacey did enjoy them for a spell, but the others....yuck is what their opinion of dolls were. I finally came to the conclusion that it was me who loved the dolls and if I liked one, I should just get it for me...LOL
I vaguely remember the Blythe dolls when I was in Junior high school...more the commercial than the doll itself. Kenner produced them for a year and they never did that well and you can see why in this commercial.
They were pretty creepy looking weren't they? When I first saw some of these customized ones, I thought the same thing....creepy and scary, but as I looked a little closer at more images such as this amazing custom girl, I was a bit smitten. There really are some creepy custom ones and then there are some that are so beautiful, such as this soulful girl.
I know that my days as a wool dyer are limited due to the condition of my back. Ken and I have talked about different directions for me such as teaching classes and maybe scaling back a bit to just a yarn club and store updates if things don't improve over the next few years, so I am keeping an open mind to other things as well.
When I was a child, in addition to dolls, I loved art. I used to draw those art school adverts that would be in the back of some magazines, you know what I mean...the turtle head or pirate head, etc (I am giving away my age). I always dreamed that someday my mother would let me send one in and actually some of the ones I did were pretty good, but those were childhood dreams.
Seeing these dolls brought me full circle right back to those days, which were just about when these dolls first came out in 1972 (I was too old for dolls then). Sooo....I have purchased some tools and maybe one or two pretty customized dolls and maybe one un-customized one to play with. Custom hand dyed hair made from alpaca and mohair? (lots of that floating around here) Hand painted and sculpted faces? Custom sewn clothes? Certainly not something you could make a living from, but still........intriquing. A reason to still play with dolls even when you are grown up. Sometimes you really can go back to your youth just in a different way.
This lovely Autumn girl lives with me now. She comes to me from Spain and her creator is lachicadellunar
. (these are her pictures used with her permission). She has done an amazing job creating such a sweet, fall fairy. Autumn has lovely painted leaves on her sleepy eyes and along the back of her neck. It was hard for me to resist her with Autumn being my favorite time of year and coming from a family of freckled faces, I just loved her.
I see all kinds of new things floating around in my mind like fairy dust....
