2020

 Well, was quite a different year: 2020. 

It started well, and in February, my daughter and I were contemplating a trip to Mexico. We went back and forth, trying to keep up with the ever-changing news and non-news. We decided to go, and it was a great trip. The resort in Acapulco was very clean, safe and large enough that we hardly had to interact with anyone. We only took one trip away from the resort to a small fishing village. So we read and lounged in the sun and swam and ate good food.  We thought briefly about staying there as the news in US got worse and worse--and there was no covid news then in Mexico--but the day before we were scheduled to leave, we learned that the next day the border would be closed.

It was a weird trip home. Airports were practically empty. In fact, my flight out of Houston was cancelled twice and I had to buy a new ticket on a different airline to make it back home.

That was practically my only movement away from home for a couple months. 

Fall on the Farm

We finally got some rain here in the northwest and the grass is growing. I enjoy the new green, and the alpacas are happy to be out munching! What I find strange is to see them eating the ponderosa needles that have fallen!

BMCA Jenna

Jenna is expecting a cria next July. The father is Brown Sugar, another dark brown suri. Don't have a picture of him yet--he is new to Big Meadow Creek Alpacas.

I've been busy knitting lately. I will have a booth at the Moscow Winter Market at the 1912 Building on November 16 and December 14 with lots of new items, many made with alpaca yarn from my own animals.

In the meantime, I have alpaca socks in stock. Two types, both made in the USA.  OUTDOOR ADVENTURE socks have a nice terry lining and are made from 44% alpaca (the balance from microfiber, nylon and lycra) SUPERWARM socks are thicker, with 45% alpaca (acrylic and nylon for the rest). Both types can be machine washed and dried. Go to the online store at the BMCA website: bigmeadowcreekalpacas.com   or if you are in Troy, stop in at Backyard Treasures.

More later!

Spring in Troy is an April Fool's Trick

Look out the window!  The wind blows--the  tops of the trees bow to the east. Then the rain comes down in sheets, followed by hail. The driveway in front of the house is white for just five minutes. And then the sun shines through the clouds! Yes, it's still April, so, it is to be expected!

But the Palouse is beautiful in the spring--the winter wheat greens the hills and newly plowed fields darken. Even under cloudy skies, the landscape is beautiful.

Fortunately, last Friday morning brought lovely, true spring weather, with blue skies and soft breezes. I was honored to speak at the funeral of Charlie Argersinger, composer, jazz pianist and husband of my good friend Jana. And in honor of his music, the funeral echoed the New Orleans-style funerals, with a jazz band leading the casket through the lane at Moscow Cemetary to its final resting place. Buds on the bare branches of the trees, green grass--a lovely setting for such an affair--sad, but at the same time, uplifting.

I hadn't seen Jana and Charlie's son, Forest, for many years. I worked with Jana when I was a grad student at WSU, fortunate enough to get a year's assignment on the literary journal ESQ. Jana would bring Forest to work with her. I was determined that he would learn to say my name first! "Judy, judy, judy," I would say to him as he laughed at me.

I get nostalgic thinking of those days when I never would have imagined myself living with a herd of alpacas! Hawthorne, Poe, Melville and the Chicago Manual of Style! Searching through the old books for non-copyrighted illustrations; debating usage--such enjoyment. The days before I learned the words finite-difference-time-domain, Schroedinger and Fourier transform!!

I learned one of the best lessons in life while working with Jana on ESQ. I had searched for many hours before I found the perfect illustration for an article on Moby Dick. The old book sat in our office, a Post-it holding the place, until it was time to send the journal for printing. As I removed the Post-it, the page tore! Just about an inch, but there was no way to hide the tear. I was devastated. The picture was perfect for the article, but now, ruined! And it was my fault. It seemed like a DISASTER to me. But Jana asked, "What difference will this make in a year?" And of course, the answer was, "None."

So many "things" in our life that seem to matter so very much at the time make no difference in a year, a month, a week. It's hard to let go, to sit back and relax. But I often think of that day when I do something that I regret. Life goes on. A simple lesson.

Spring "Bus-e-ness"

It's almost summer, and we're not sure here in  Troy, ID, that spring really came. We've had more than enough rain. But the daffodils did bloom!

And we got ready for shearing. Fortunately, it did not rain on shearing day. Lots of folks came to watch, to sit and spin or knit, or to help (those who helped get my grateful THANKS!).


Cathy D. spins alpaca

We got 28 animals sheared, 15 of mine, some alpacas belonging to others and three llamas. A friend of mine took some great pictures that she's put on flickr. If you want to see the process, which shows my wonderful shearer and his exceptional shearing table, take a look at
http://www.flickr.com//photos//cottagedyeworks/sets/72157630083826664
(While you are there, take a look at some of her yarns and batts! She does some beautiful dying!)

Someone looked at the pictures and asked "why is there a sock on the black alpacas nose?" The answer is also the answer to another question: do alpacas spit? The answer is: "In their 11th month of pregnancy, especially when getting sheared!"  Leyla, as of today, is three days overdue. But we're having another cold, windy, cloudy day, so she won't give birth. You see, alpacas (generally--I'm sure there are exceptions) give birth on sunny days between 10 am and 2 pm!  Very convenient for the owners.

And shearing day was a good tryout for my new dog--Sam I Am. I don't (or didn't) think of myself as a dog person, but I keep chickens on the farm--not only because I enjoy free-range eggs and sell them, but because the chickens keep the bug population down! Early this spring, I had at least 18 chickens and one rooster. As the coyotes came and went, I ended up with one rooster! Rosebud (as his former owner named him for his tight comb), as gentle as he had been with the "girls," must know how to fend for himself. So, it came down to this: chickens and dog, or no chickens.

Sam I Am

Fortunately, an acquaintance of mine who had sheep and chickens was preparing to move permanently to New Zealand and had a dog she needed to rehome. I reluctantly called her, knowing the dog was a Great Pyrenees but not knowing gender or age, but I knew Pyrs were known for roaming. Sam turned out to be a one-year old male that had lived with sheep.

So I brought him home. And I'm now a dog person. He has adjusted so well! The alpacas were frightened at first--most of them had never been around a dog. But Sam pays them barely any attention and he calmly lay in the yard while we were shearing, with traffic and animals coming in and out of the place (he was on a chain).

Now, is he going to help me keep chickens. Well, I know he will chase coyote. One of my crew heard the alpacas give a warning call and saw a coyote--he then watched Sam chase after it!! But, I have a funny chicken story. The mother of Madi (my animal manager) brought four chickens out for me and they were put in the coop while I was otherwise busy. Later that evening, I went up to look at them. One panicked and flew out the coop window and starting running around the area that we have penned in, just to keep new chickens in place until they know their home. Well, she just ran around cackling; Sam kept watching with great interest, tail up high--I kept saying, NO!!! But the hen found a place to get out under the fence and ran cackling down into a highly wooded area. Sam followed in pursuit. No way for me to follow. I heard silence, then cackling, more than once.

Very disappointed, I assumed that Sam would end up eating her, and since I got Sam to help me keep chickens, I went into the house, sat at the computer and tried to find information about what to do. Then I heard, outside my window, cackling!! Went outside! Sam had caught and brought back the hen! She was a bit beat up, feathers missing, but no bleeding. Supposedly, he's purebred Pyr, so I wouldn't expect him to be a herder! But apparently, that's what he thought he was doing--returning the chicken to me.

So I need to find out how to stop chickens from panicking and running away!!

So enough for now. But here's a before and after shearing picture of one of my alpacas, Lexy.

Lexy with and without fiber.

Knitting Granddaughter

I visited my granddaughter (and her father and mother) in Tennessee this Christmas. I enjoyed getting to know this precocious 7-1/2 year old who is a tough little girl! We played catch, and she could throw harder than I could and catch better than I ever could. Ellie plays basketball; was in gymnastics before too many other sports took her away--and I think her arms are stronger than mine! You don't say "pink" around Ellie! She fishes and hikes with her father in the Great Smoky Mountains.

And now she knows how to knit! Here she is with the scarf she knit (well, she knit at least half of it!). I cast on for her and was amazed at how quickly she caught on. It's a ten stitch row--she would knit two or three rows and then ask me to knit six! She really sped up as she progressed, learning how to push the point of the needle so her old stitch would come off and recognizing when she made a mistake that needed fixed. She also added the fringe by herself! Next visit, the purl stitch!

I did have a disappointment--As you can read in an earlier blog, Ellieowns Leroy, one of my alpacas. I spun Leroy's fiber and tried to knit her a sweater from her own alpaca. I still spin too tight, so it wasn't as soft as it could have been (which she noticed right away) and it turned out to be too small for her, especially the width of the arms.  But I knew she appreciated the thought--we spent some time looking at the alpaca farm website, talking about Leroy and other alpaca things.

One of my spinning/knitting ventures this Christmas was a success, though. Madi got a scarf made from Madison! BMCA Mitchell and BMCA Madison were both born in 2009 and named for the sister (Madison) and brother (Mitchell) who work on the farm and noticed first when the dams were getting ready to give birth. Both the alpacas now belong to their mother who said she would now always have a Mitchell and Madison at home! They are greatly loved by Madi's twins sisters who call them paca-doos! This is what BMCA Madison looked like before shearing in June 2011.

Anyway, I spun up fiber from Madison and knit a lace scarf for Madi for Christmas. She said it was "BEAUTIFUL," and when she showed it to her mom, her mom said she would have to learn how to spin and knit. Here's a picture of the scarf, on blocking wires the night before Christmas eve!

I'm going to unknit Ellie's sweater and use Leroy to make a vest for me!

I might wait til Ellie's older, or I'm a better spinner, to try to knit her another original!

In the News!

"An English major from Pittsburgh never would have guessed she'd become an alpaca farmer in northern Idaho, but at age 70, Judy LaLonde is "totally happy" with her lifestyle." That is how a Daily News article about me and the farm begins.

It's always fun talking about the farm, the fiber and the alpacas! Don't know that they needed to include my age!

It wasn't easy to get a good picture! I had Leyla on a lead, but all she wanted to do was to get back in with the other alpacas, so the picture has her pulling on the lead, with her ears back! And she just wouldn't stand still.  That is, until the photographer left. Oh well!

Alpacas Swimming and Fleece Cleaning

Yes, summer finally came to the Palouse--slow as spring! It's been an unusually cool and wet summer with few days in the 90s. That's good for the alpacas though, since they seem to have a harder time with heat here on the Palouse than they do with the winters. I'm assuming that this is because their homes in South American are at higher, and therefore cooler, elevations.

So we make sure the alpacas have a swimming pool in each pen!  Some of the alpacas just stand in the pools or use their front feet to splash water up at their bellies, but there are "swimmers" who take a full dip and sit down. To each his own!  This is BMCA Jenna taking her first dip of the year.

While the alpacas enjoy the summer grass and their swimming pools, I'm busy skirting fiber. What do I do with it then? I have several options--all of which I use.

Some of it gets sent off to small mills. I used a new mill this year in Lebanon, Oregon--Creekside Fiber Mills. Sent some fiber off this spring and got back about nine pounds of luscious alpaca/mohair/silk from four of my medium brown alpacas (Leroy, Miguel, Dominga and Jane Wagner).  It looks grey on my screen, but it's a great shade of medium brown. I'm selling it on my Etsy site (Alpacaknitter) and at the Yarn Underground in Moscow. 

I like what they did so much, I sent more fiber their way. I'm also trying out a mill in Pennsylvania--Lazy Meadows.

I take some of my alpaca after skirting and wash it myself. I'm lucky enough to have traded my crew's skills at trimming alpaca toes for a used top loading washing machine I keep in the garage. I fill it with hot water using a hose from my laundry room near the garage door. The fleece goes in with some dishwashing liquid and soaks and then gets spun out. I may soak an extra dirty fleece a second time, and rinse it. The usual method of drying is to set the fleece in the sun on screens or the skirting table--that can take a day or two, turning the fleece, rescuing it from bursts of wind, etc.

But this year, I had a great idea! The story goes back about 9 or ten years ago when I accompanied my brother Brad up to an appliance store in Spokane where he was talking/pricing range tops. I got bored with the discussion and wandered around the store. "Brad, come look at this!" It was a "drying system," a "two-story" appliance with a "regular" dryer on the bottom and a second story of shelves and racks for drying/airing stuff. I had never seen anything like it before!

I should have known better than to wax eloquent over anything, because when Brad went up to Spokane a few weeks later to pick up his new range tops, he drove back with the "system" for me! Funny thing was, it wouldn't fit into the house where I was living at the time. So, it's been sitting in Brad's (now my) garage for years, unused!

Lightbulb appearing over my head!! Could I set fleece on the shelves instead of sweaters??? YES!!!! A trial run and it worked! Takes less than an hour to dry fleece. Wonderful!

So now, I can sell washed fleece---so much better than the fleece straight off the alpaca. No matter how hard we try to clean them beforehand, using a shop vac even, there's always dust left! I don't wash the fleece that gets sent to mills, but this skirted, washed fleece is wonderful for spinners!

So I tried something else this year. An inveterate Ravelry-er, I asked if there were spinners who were comfortable with suri and made an offer--I'll send you clean fleece; you spin; you send me half and keep the other half!  I've had quite a few takers.

My first "return" came this week from Raveler Tara from Tennessee--she combined my suri with cormo (wool) and you'll have to take a look at the result on her flikr page:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23492466@N00/5954262657
I'm so happy with it!  Looking forward to seeing what I get from "my" other spinners!

Yes, It is Spring

 

Well, at least the bluebirds know what time of year it is!  They have been romancing my truck and its mirror and flying around having a good time.

Spring is such a mixed up time. Madi, the young woman who works for me, was so happy on Wednesday because she got to cut the grass on the farm! Having sun was so unusual, she forgot to put on sunscreen and so was suffering the following day (when it rained again!) We got up to nearly 80 degrees on Saturday, but we were spared the tornadoes and hail that were predicted! Early this morning it snowed--but of course, it didn't stay long!

Sunday, after a beautiful morning, it rained, but the Girl Scouts that came for a farm visit didn't seem to mind. They enjoyed visiting the alpacas, feeding grain and petting BMCA Madison and BMCA Leyla, who always love the attention. The group of older girls and geldings and Katherine, the llama, kept approaching the girls with their usual curiosity. The girls learned what it meant when I explained that alpacas were herd animals, as they pursued the animals to try to get them interested in the grain.

The girls collected eggs and laughed at the skinny, bare necks of the turkins! They each picked their "favorite" egg to take home. They also took small ziplock bags of alpaca poop home!

In the garage, after spending time with the animals, the girls used alpaca fiber dyed with Kool-Aid which they felted and strung along with beads to make zipper pulls. They feasted on cake and lemonade and worked on an alpaca crossword puzzle and word search.  I gave them a demonstration of spinning and they read the display boards that showed pictures of shearing, a cria birth, and other pertinent alpaca "facts."

"I really had fun!" one of the girls said to me. And her grandmother who came along as one of the chaperones decided that she really wants two alpacas!

Did I say Spring???

Well, it's surely not summer--it's closer to winter. This picture of "Mother Earth and Earth Dog" was taken by a friend who lives only 10 miles east and went outside to play in the 4 inches of snow that came down at her house yesterday!  Here on the farm, the yearling girls were out early and cushing together on their hill, but when the snow started, back to the shelters they went! It snowed on the farm, but didn't lay, but it was cold and windy.

But tulips and daffodils have made their way out of the mud and  I'm sure will be blooming in a couple of weeks. It's sunny today, but supposed to be rainy for the next few days. Don't know when I'll be able to shear. Last year it wasn't until the third week in June and it may be that late again if spring keeps coming in so reluctantly!

I'm getting ready to head north to a fiber festival in Fairfield (South Spokane) Washington on May 7. Will be taking roving, alpaca socks, alpaca yarns and other miscellaneous things of interest to fiber folks.

Today as I worked down at the Artisan Barn studio, I plied two bobbins of alpaca--one a darker gray huacaya and the other a white suri. I have to take it off the plying bobbin and wash it tonight. Can't decide if I'll try to sell it or use it myself for a cowl--what I had in mind originally.

In the meantime, I'm working on a beaded lace shawl with 100 percent baby alpaca--it's Alpaca Cloud in Raspberry from KnitPicks and the beads match perfectly. The pattern is a lace sampler and its fun to see the different lace patterns take shape and decide where I'll add the beads.

A Happy Easter to all!

Spring comes to the Pacific Northwest!

Yes--although we woke to snow two of the last seven days, spring is definitely here! Snow, sun, crocuses, lambs! Weather changes every two hours!! Yes, that's what spring is here. Yesterday, our Friday spinning/knitting/knoshing group met at a Troy farm to visit the spring lambs! Although this picture only shows white, we enjoyed black, brown, black with white starred foreheads and one little tan baby ram, all running around enjoying sunny weather. Baby animals are all so adorable.



In celebration of spring, I finished my latest pair of entrelac socks in a pastel blend that makes me think of Easter baskets. It's made from Plymouth Zino, a blend of wool and nylon, a single-ply that does have a tendency to split if one isn't careful. You can see them on my Ravelry page.



Spring Visitors

Another sign of spring are the visitors that came off and on this week to enjoy my pond--a pair of Canada goose. This was the first week that the pond was water, not ice, and the pair seemed to enjoy stopping by.

Watching grosbeaks at my feeders, too! One friend saw bluebirds back. Last year was the first year I ever saw bluebirds. I had nesting pairs in my two bluebird houses and I have another house to put up. I'm considering raising mealworms to keep them well fed and loving my place! 

And the alpacas are enjoying the spring sun--instead of moving back and forth from feeders to their shelters, they are spending time sitting in the sun and nibbling at the fresh grass coming up.

Promises of warm days and starting the day outside with a cup of coffee!

Spinning (and shopping) with Friends

Saturday, many of my friends headed north through snow and slush (!! a surprise!!) to the Log Cabin Spin-In sponsored by the Northwest Regional Spinners in Post Falls, ID. Lynne and I arrived at 10:09 (or so our German-speaking GPS guide told us!). That's me withthe big butt and thighs at the front left.

It was momentarily difficult to decide whether or not to browse the vendor booths before sitting to spin. But only momentarily! We browsed before we even set up our wheels! So many great vendors with practically anything a spinner/knitter's heart could desire. Many of my alpaca friends from Pacific Northwest Alpaca Association were there, either vending or just browsing and networking.

Lynne, who has yaks along with llamas, alpacas, and dogs, enjoyed meeting a fellow yak farmer from Sandpoint, ID. While looking at her lovely exotic fibers, a large skein of yak and silk lace yarn called out loudly to me! It has joined my stash! Right before we left, it called out to Lynne, also. She also had to buy a t-shirt "Got Yak!"

I also purchased, from another vendor, some extra f ine lace merino that I thought would go with some red beads I bought a month or so ago. I had nothing in mind at the time, except that I had no red beads--it turned out I had no yarn to go witih the red beads. One thing always leads to another!

I spent time with Jayne Deardorf from Me2 Farm (Colville, ID). Jayne has taken my alpaca fiber and made me some beautiful roving over the past five years! She always likes to get the name and picture of the alpaca from which the fleece comes from. She told us that she pins the picture on the wall as she's working and talks to it (nice alpaca!!) She just recently sent me roving from BMCA Elayna (which is now at Yarn Underground) and from one of the early imports from the farm, Esplindida. I'm saving that for me, maybe!

Jane also had some dyes and I bought a "Mother Mackenzie's Miracle Dye Mix kit with 9 basic colors and directions for secondary colors. The only dying I've done so far has been supervised by friend and partner Margo, who took a class on natural dyes and has been experimenting. I really just loved the indigo, but you can't have everything in blue! I also succumbed to temptation and bought a beaded wheel orifice hook.

My friend Jennie brought a young girl with her who is from Germany and currently studying at WSU. Michelle has fallen in love with spinning and knitting and was learning to use a spindle. Shelley was there from Yarn Underground networking like mad when she wasn't buying yarn or roving!

I did spin, though. I brought with me some gray alpaca huacaya roving--my first huacaya. Yes, it is much easier to spin than suri! And it's going to have a very nice gradation of colors. I may use it for a cowl I'm going to knit for a SKAL (spin-knit-along).

I'm planning to head to a Fiber Festival in May in South Spokane. Walking around at this spin-in gave me some ideas of what I could take to sell--maybe I'll have to take Esplendida's roving there!

BMCA Bonnie Selected for AOBA National Auction in May

This is Big Meadow Creek Alpaca's Bonnie!! And she has been selected by Celebrity Sales to be sold at the Auction in Denver, CO, at the AOBA National Show May 19-22 in Denver, CO.

We're not surprised, bonnie lass that she is! But she doesn't have red hair--instead she has wonderfully luxurious, white suri fiber!

She carries genetics from award-winning alpacas from both the east and west coast. Chasqui, well recognized in the show circuit, is Bonnie's maternal grandfather--he is one of the premier herdsires at Ameripaca in Maryland; her fraternal grandfather comes from Alpacas of Tualatin Valley in Oregon.

Neither Bonnie, nor her father ATV Hercules nor mother Ameripaca's Blair, have been to alpaca shows, since my farm focus is on fiber, rather than breeding. I'm currently carding Bonnie's fiber from last year so that I can spin it. It's so nice and soft, I'm planning to knit a cowl with it.

Back to the Basics--Well, Almost

Several more inches of snow last night on top of this weeks inches of blowing snow! And then at least four hours without electricity! What a great time to go back to the "almost" basics--sitting in front of the fire and spinning!

Of course, it was a wood stove, and I had some beautiful dark brown alpaca (from Leroy!) to spin--the pioneers would not have had alpaca -- although the alpaca supposedly originated in North America before they migrated to South America. And South America is where all the current North American alpacas have come from. Ending a sentence a preposition with! But I had no real coffee! I usually start the day with a fresh pot or heat up a cup or two from the previous day in the microwave. But the pot was empty. Instant--boo!

But the warmth of the wood fire made me think food, so I started a pot of lentil curry soup. Warmth and a good smell! [I could light my gas stove with a match!] Usually when I'm spinning, I'm listening to a book on tape, but that wasn't possible today. And I had no one to read to me from Pilgrim's Progress or other such enlightening literature! But the crackling fire was great background. And then, so was the plow outside, as a friend came to clear my long, winding, snowbound driveway!

I never did knit anything for my granddaughter Ellie from Leroy's fiber for Christmas (my intentions whe I wrote about Leroy last October). My first skein of Leroy, only my second skein of yarn, was too "beginner-ish." I may make myself a hat for next winter. But I've become a much better spinner and I think this yarn will be "IT." Second spool finished in front of the fire today--I think the plying will make all the difference. A friend lent me a video, "The Gentle Art of Plying," which I'm going to study before I ply these spools. I have a little more Leroy roving to make more yarn if I need it.

This afternoon, the electricity came on and the sun came out! It was beautiful with some blue showing in the sky. I went out for a walk and to say hello to the alpacas. Fed them a little grain as a treat--this is BMCA Desire, who snuffled down into the snow for the last bits of grain that fell.

The alpacas have tracks from their shelter to the hay, to the water, and back again! They don't really mind the snow except when its windy--the wind blows their fiber up (they are suris without the "sheep-like" fluffy coats). The chickens were out and running about and it was very pleasant, with great views on all sides! What a lovely place to live.

Playing with Entrelac

Yes, it's wool! But it's going to be felted, so I can't use my suri alpaca! This is the Hobo Bag from Gwen Bortner's Entree to Entrelac book. I'm going to be teaching a class on entrelac at the Yarn Underground, so I thought I'd get a couple of projects done. I still have to complete the strap and felt the thing. I can't believe I ended up with another orange and brown project! Those were my high school colors soooo many years ago. But I wish I had picked up a blue to use, now that it's almost finished. When done, it will join my other items on sale at the Milk House Fiber Studio at the Artisan Barn in Uniontown.

I'm going to do a scarf with my black and white alpaca, using some lace stitches on the white "blocks" and then add some black beads I picked up in Posts Falls a couple of weeks ago.

Sunday, I'll be giving some tips on knitting lace at the Woolgatherer's meeting. One of my tips might be to be careful of your lace knitting when you're drinking tea! I had my shawlette with me when I was knitting a couple of Sundays ago at the Yarn Underground and alas! part of it ended up in my cup of tea. I didn't notice right away, and even though I tried to get the tea out with some cold water, it did't work. So now I have the entire shawlette sitting in some weak tea, hoping that I can get the effect that you get when you put fabric in tea--just a light "antique" look that won't detract too much from the nice blues in the Starry yarn.

I'm looking out the window at two inches of fresh snow--everything looks so clean--and there's even some blue in the sky today and very little wind. Hard to believe that just a week ago, it was approaching the high 40s and everyone was thinking "spring"!!

So, back to my hobo bag!!! Cheers!

Yarn Ahoy!!

When the Yarn Underground opened in Moscow, I took some of my alpaca yarn to add to their inventory. Not that I needed any yarn, but I and spied this yarn--Starry sock weight with silver from Dream in Color--98% superfine merino! It called out to me, and I wondered how it would work for a shawlette pattern I had downloaded recently from Ravely. It really knit up fast and I was pleased with the results!

One skein had 450 yards, so I probably have enough left over to use in a pair of fingerless mitts!

And speaking of finished project, I also finished the alpaca jacket/sweater I started knitting for myself more than four years ago! Disappointment! It's too big; it's too heavy. Although I blocked the individual parts (fronts, back, sleeves) before joining, I may block again just to see how it changes. I don't even remember what size I chose to knit from the pattern--but I know I never measured a sweater that fits me to compare (this is something that I've learned in the intervening years I should have done). Since it's the first sweater I ever knit (except for baby sweaters), I'm going to use it as an object lesson! I'll probably frog the whole thing and use the yarn for something else . . . . eventually.

I've been considering joining the ongoing KAL on the Knitting Daily--even purchased some yarn for it--but for some reason, I keep backing off from starting. The Seaweed Cardigan is not a "full" cardigan--the two fronts are considerably smaller than the back--the modeled picture uses a belt to "close" it--I'm not sure it's meant for my body size (In the manner of Alexander McCall Smith, I'm a "traditionally built" woman!) I might just knit it for my studio at the Artisan Barn--it's a lovely lace pattern, and I do love to knit lace.

I'll be giving some lace instruction at the next Woolgatherers meeting here on the Palouse--talking about reading lace patterns, what all the stitches are, using a lifeline, etc. It should be fun. And I'm scheduled to do an entrelac class in two sessions at the LYS (Yarn Underground in Moscow, ID) in March.

AND, my alpaca yarn has been leaving the shelves at the Yarn Underground in leaps and bounds! I've been selling it at a pretty low cost, since it's part of the stash I inherited when I inherited the alpaca farm. But I'm getting ready to send off some more fiber to get more yarn made, which I will have to price at a more "fair"--to me price.

I put new yarn on my needles two nights ago--scarf with beads now in progress!

Celebrate a New Local Yarn Shop!

My good friend Shelley Stone and her partner Marissa Gibler opened a new yarn shop in Moscow, ID--Yarn Underground! Shelley, a great spinner, has been one of my spinning inspiration-ers! A couple of years ago, at a Woolgatherer's meeting, she let me try her wheel. Then she even plied the several yards I made and presented it to me. Most recently--just yesterday--I took my wheel into her shop along with some dyed superwash wool I bought from her a couple of months ago.

Decided I needed to try something other than my own alpaca for spinning. As an alpaca farmer, I wanted to start with and learn to spin alpaca. Now that I'm a little bit confident with the alpaca, I wanted to stretch out to something new. It seemed that with the superwash I was getting either too much spin or not enough.

Shelley worked with me a little at the shop, helped adjust the tension and assured me that I was not getting too much spin, and I think I've got it! The yarn will be a somewhat laceweight mixture of blues, greens, yellow! I'm planning on making myself a pair of socks.

Anyway, back to the yarn shop: Marissa is a great knitter, especially of children's clothing. Shelley has knit some yummy sweaters and she recently got into dying. Yesterday in her shop, she showed me a shelf full of new yarn she spun (from her own dyed fiber).

And, some of my alpaca yarn is on consignment at the shop. On display there will also be two of my knitted projects--I took in a new entrelac scarf I made with my own Big Meadow Creek Alpaca yarn and some Cascade Eco alpaca (that I really don't like that much--one-ply, feels more like a lopi--but it is soft). The scarf is "fancied up" with some crocheted corkscrew fringe--I should have taken a picture! I also took in a lace hat made with some of my four-ply alpaca.

Now that the Christmas season is coming to a close, I might get back to knitting something for myself. I started an alpaca sweater two years ago that is 80 percent complete! It doesn't look like much in this picture I took--I guess in the summer of 2008! Definitely time to get that project finished!

Why Do I Love Entrelac?

Why do I love entrelac? I don't know the answer. I just know I do. It seems to go faster. Of course, my other fave is lace, so of course, entrelac goes faster--don't have to think, just knit, backwards knit, pick up, purl 2 together; sl-k-psso--it all just happens. And although Noro is not my favorite yarn--compared to my favorite alpaca--it's scratchy and not soft at all--it works for entrelac. When I'm done with a project, I soak the finished product in water with some hair conditioner added, and that softens the entire thing.

My lastest project, a shawl and slouch hat, used Noro Silk Garden Lite in colors that reminds me of a pumpkin patch.

What I really need to do is combine entrelac with lace and maybe beads, too! I'll need to find just the right yarn to use, though. Maybe I'll just stick with a nice white or off-white alpaca!

I just ordered the new book by Gwen Bortner, Entree to Entrelac--I'm sure that will give me some new ideas.

In the meanwhile, last night I picked up a skein of 80% alpaca/20% silk "Paca de Seda" (imported from Peru) in some great autumn colors and started a quick and dirty Quant, which will be soft and silky, yet warm--a great combination (alpaca and silk)!

Some fluffy white snowflakes are beginning to fall outside. I guess winter is really here. Temperatures are going to drop to zero and below this week--a great time to sit in front of the fire with needles and yarn!

Knitters can Support Doctors without Borders

Knitters/spinners/crocheters who spend any time on the internet will be (or at least, should be!) familiar with Ravelry. As they say on the website, "Ravelry is a place for knitters, crocheters, designers, spinners, weavers and dyers to keep track of their yarn, tools, project and pattern information, and look to others for ideas and inspiration."

Free and easy to use, the folks on Ravelry definitely inspire me. I find out what others have done with the yarn I have and what yarn others have used to complete projects. I can ask questions, get answers, give and get opinionsabout practically anything under the sun, but especially knitting and yarn.

But last night, as I was seeking inspiration, I discovered that some generous creators of knitted patterns have donated their patterns to be used to raise funds for Doctors without Borders (Medecins Sans Frontiers), an "international medical humanitarian organization working in more than 60 countries to assiste people whose survival is threatened by violence, neglect, or catastrophe." For instance, by October 31 (according to their website), they have treated close to 3,600 Haitians with cholera symptoms.

Back to those pattern creators: they have donated patterns to a fantastic knitting fundraiser called "pennies per hour of pleasure" or for short, p/hop. On that site, you can download knitting patterns for free. All that is asked is that you freely donate pennies for the time you get pleasure from using those patterns. I was able to wish p/hop a happy second birthday today and write on their blog--you can read it here.

My church has an annual "Quilt Sunday" on which the PPQ (the Purple Paisley Quilters) display quilts, serve brownies, and have a service based somehow on quilting. Yes, quilting--but since so many of us PPQ folks are ceaseless knitters as well, the talk I gave a couple of years ago focused on the way both quilters and knitters are workers for social justice. It doesn't take much investigation to find out that knitters use their artistic talents to provide comfort and warmth to premies, cancer survivors, soldiers, the elderly, etc.

If you are a knitter, join me--download a pattern (and there are many great ones--I especially love Susan Pandorf's shawls (thank you Susan)--and donate! p/hop is at 73 percent of their goal of $5000--let's make it 173 percent!

I Can Spin My Alpaca!!

After my brother introduced me to alpaca and alpaca fiber, I would say, "When I retire, I'll buy a spinning wheel and learn to spin alpaca." Well, inheriting the alpaca farm sort of forced me to retire (I was of the age, anyway, but loved my job . . . ). And I did buy a spinning wheel--almost a year ago! Although I had friends who said "start with wool--it's easier," I was determined to start with my own suri alpaca fiber. I mentioned this in an earlier post.

My beginnings weren't pretty--in fact, I tended not to bring my wheel when my spinning/knitting/weaving friends got together weekly because I felt so pathetic. But I brought it enough and had friends enough who gave me advice and encouragement--I thank them! Fern showed me the magic triangle! Cathy D said, "Someday you will be able to spin, look around, and talk--all at the same time!" And she was right!!

I spun my first skein of white suri alpaca from roving that I had (I still have to work from the raw-carded-on-my-own-fleece). Then, because another friend Margo was teaching us some dying, I put the yarn into a vat of indigo dye--once, and then only half of it a second time.

Then I got out my knitting needles and ta-da! my own suri alpaca hand knit lace scarf! The fiber came from BMCA Jean Brooke--one of the earliest alpacas born on the farm and named for one of my Girl Scout leaders (BMCA Jean Brooke and BMCA Elinor deserve another entry some day!).

I've spun three skeins now--Jean's, Fiorano, and Leroy (see an earlier post). I'm finishing another skein of Leroy into which I'm introducing some greenish/gold dyed mohair (see my earlier post on Leroy). I'm hoping to knit a sweater for my granddaughter from the skeins of Leroy, since she "owns" him--with the best of intentions, it will be a Christmas gift this year! I should be spinning and knitting now!!

Girl Scouts Visit!

On two different Saturdays this month, I hosted Girl Scouts--a local troop from Moscow, ID, and one from Spokane, WA. I was ready to greet the girls and leaders with two of my yearling girls haltered--Leyla, my black yearling who loves to get petted and will give kisses, and Madison, a white girl who is almost as friendly. "How cute they are!" was the first thing the girls said on climbing out of the cars.

The girls took turns leading Madison and Leyla as we walked to visit the yearling boys' pen. Naturally, the favorite was Miguel (below). They looked at alpaca's feet (which have soft pads and nails, like dogs') and in their mouths (which have teeth in front only on the bottom with a plate on top). Then we walked up to the adult females and provided them with alfalfa treats. The girls thought their hands were being tickled as the alpacas gently took the treats from outstretched hands with their top lips.

The girls were able to learn that alpacas, while not llamas, are in the same family of camelids. Kathryn, the llama, was happy to get some treats, as were the bigger herdsires. They were able to pick out the one huacaya alpaca in the herd (in the picture to the right--the caramel colored girl with white chin and a "do"!) They thought that Leroy, the gelding, had true attitude as he kept his ears back until they held out treats for him!

After the girls searched for eggs and admired the young pullets, they gathered around two tables in the garage and made zipper pulls with felted alpaca fiber balls. I had dyed the alpaca fiber earlier with Kool-Aid (see the picture below). One of the girls said the purple fiber still smelled like grape! They used needles, beads, embroidery thread, glue, and sequins to decorate their projects.

They learned about how fiber is made into yarn and got to see what suri fiber looks like when it has been sheared off the alpaca and is ready to skirt (clean out the veggie matter and short pieces) and to turn the carder.

The girls had cake and lemonade and they made me a gift of Girl Scout cookies. How I remember the days when I sold them! They got an alpaca maze, some alpaca puzzles and an information sheet to take home.

We made a tour of my garden where they picked and ate fresh green beans, gathered crookneck squash and tomatoes to take home. One of them remembered how I had offered them each a ziplock back of alpaca poop!to take home, since it is such great fertilizer. We tramped up to the manure pile and the youngest girls had a great time dancing on top of the manure pile--you never know what might really capture the attention of your visitors!! We all enjoyed ourselves!