Fiber Time

When it was overcast and rainy outside, I had some good fiber time.  Sock #1 is almost to the toe.  And the toe always seems to go quickly. Then, I can cast on sock #2; getting to the halfway mark on a pair is a good feeling! I am enjoying this Dragonfly pattern even more that on the first pair I made. I'm not sure why... perhaps because it's a lacy look that doesn't take every ounce of concentration!

A little plumper robin was needle-felted to sit on the eggs in the nest.  I put wire legs and feet on the smaller robin, and this one stands nicely.  However, the legs on both birds are more cosmetic than structural, so one has to be gentle when handling them.  These have been made and sent off to Casper, where I will do a needle-felting class at the end of May.

Wet and dreary

Sunday was nothing but gray skies and rain.  And in the early morning hours, snow covered the grasses.  However, that soon melted.  I've got puddles in the driveway - yea!

I happened to have three logs of dry wood left in the wood box, and it felt mighty good to put them in the wood stove for a warm fire; the house heated up nicely.  Ahh...it felt cozy.

Cozy enough to want to cuddle up with some knitting.

The dragonfly sock #1 is coming along...I'm finally past the gusset and am moving toward the toe.  I'm continuing the lacy pattern down the top of the foot, which I think looks so pretty.  The color changes in the yarn don't really show off the dragonfly pattern as nicely as a solid color, but it looks nice just the same.

 Rain in the high plains...and yarn running through fingers - both are welcomed!

Moving on

So, I've been watching the bunnies.  I believe Kathy B must have the inside story...for momma bunny is no longer hanging out under the boardwalk.  Here she is on the west side of the house, enjoying the freedom from the little ones, who must be able to fend for themselves.  In fact, I don't see her paying attention to the bunnies or any other rabbits at all.  She seems to be moving on... and the little ones must start they own bunny lives.

I have seen that 3 of the 4 tiny bunnies quickly moved out of the den and are now romping around the woodpile.  They have found several places under the pile to hide.  When I can catch a glimpse from the window, they are so entertaining to watch, scampering from one protective place to another.

The littlest of the bunnies is still in my yard.  This little one doesn't look quite big enough to be out with the others, but she (let's just say it's a girl) is getting bigger and  braver by the day and is exploring more of the yard.  I have finally seen the little one get several yards from the protection of the den under the boardwalk. Here she is, photographed right about sunset, and I have been having so much fun watching the progress.  I'm so curious to find out if this little one will stay in the yard.  I keep thinking she must be lonely without the brothers and sisters around her.  But what do I know?  I will continue to talk to her from a distance...I hope she feels safe.

Somebunny surprised me

You might recall some posts about the bunny living under the boardwalk in my yard; the bunny has been insistent on staying inside the fence and hasn't been particularly afraid of me.  I called him Peter Cottontail around Easter time.  Since the weather has turned cold, snowy/rainy, and windy, I haven't seen much of this bunny and the others that live at the wood pile for several days.  I was away over the weekend, and I was looking forward to catching fresh glimpses of the bunnies as they nibbled the new grasses that are coming up.  

Monday morning I took a look out the window above the computer, just to see if Peter Cottontail was up to coming out into the sun for a mid-morning snack on fresh grasses.  Yep, I could see his ears.  Wait a minute!!  More ears?  Little, short ears??  Baby bunnies???  I could see two sets of little ears.  No, three.  I grabbed the binoculars.  Four??? Four sets of little bunny ears?  These little ones were huddled in the shade, very close to the entrance of their home.  They were a bit difficult to see, but I definitely saw four little bunnies.  Peter...umm, I mean Penny Cottontail has surprised me!  And today she was letting the little ones out into the sunshine and the world beyond the den.  

I watched them for probably 15 minutes...and I couldn't help but be tickled by their antics.  They are so cute. 

A fiber banquet

At the Interweave Yarn Fest, Julie and I attended the Saturday night banquet.  The featured keynote speaker was to be Linda Cortright.  I knew nothing about her, but the topic of "WILD FIBERS" sounded interesting.

When we went into the banquet room to find a couple empty spots at a table, I suggested we get close to the front so we could see the speaker, etc.  One gal saw us looking and invited us to join her table.  It was the center table in the front row; the view wouldn't get much better!  As we were just getting seated,  Julie recognized another gal who came to be seated at this table as well: it was the guest speaker!!  So, we were included in some interesting conversation during dinner!  The guest speaker was quite gregarious and animated.  She started out raising goats for cashmere fiber and she had worked on some documentaries for other folks... that eventually led to her current job as editor and publisher of the magazine called Wild Fibers.  In her presentation, she showed a PowerPoint presentation of her travels and experiences getting stories for the magazine.  It was very interesting, entertaining, and educational.  She has traveled the world to seek out interesting stories about sheep, rabbits, goats, musk-ox, etc. 

It turned out to be a very enjoyable evening.

Browsing the fibers

A knitting-buddy and I attended the Interweave Yarn Fest in Loveland, CO over the weekend.  It was a very well-run event.  Everything you needed was right there...great rooms, well-attended classes with world-class teachers, fiber shopping in the Market Place, and plenty of good food.

I took one class: Fixing Mistakes.  I was not sure I how much I would enjoy this class, but it turned out to be just right...some great hints, but not overwhelming.  The teacher, Kate Atherley, did a very nice job; I would definitely take another class from her.  She's from Ontario. 

As soon as we got there and were checked in, we decided to go through the Market Place, isle by isle, vendor by vendor.  Three hours later, we had pretty much checked it all out,...and made some purchases.

I have "ideas" about what I'm going to make, but am still thinking and looking.  I'm a little anxious to get started on one of those skeins!!  The teal colored yarn is (lace weight) 50% bison down/50% silk; oh my goodness, it is so soft and is advertised as something like 8 times warmer than wool.  The coral colored one is also lace weight:70% baby alpaca, 20% silk, 10% cashmere.  It's sooooo soft too.  The purple/white is a fingering yarn, Mode Knit Yarn: 100% Superwash Merino.

Gettin' green

In the area around my pine tree where it got some deep fertilizing, the grass is green and lush (well, as lush as it gets around here!).  Looks like it may be about time to fire up the ol' lawn mower.  Although Peter Cottontail has been out helping by nibbling down some of the growth. 

And then I saw that the Columbine is getting ready to shoot up a spring bloom.  I love the delicate look of the Columbine; it's definitely one of my favorite flowers.  I'm looking forward to seeing this year's blossoms.  Hmmm, appears I need to do a little raking as well.