Colours For Spring

Finally we are having some decent weather here and the sunshine has inspired me to get out the old dye pots. I purchased some jaquard dyes last summer at the Michigan Fibre Fest and I finally got to try them out. I never really know what I will get, but I did some painted rovings and then some immersion dying with the leftover dye stock. I like to place the roving in a mesh bag and then dye it, which gives a mottled effect to the rovings since it is mashed up in the bag. So until we have flowers, I can enjoy my own colours of spring. I hope to bring them to Port Hope, April 18th for the Gathering and to Knitter's Frolic the following weekend in Toronto.

Spring Has Sprung a Leak

This, to me , is the absolute worst time of the year. I am tired of winter, but at least with snow on the ground, there aren't any puddles. The dogs are constantly wet and muddy and our yard is the consistency of a wet sponge. Warmer temperatures will soon get the grass growing and the flowers blooming, and my mud pit will be a distant memory. I love spring!.Here are some photos of Avery in her new sweater, knit by grandma, and Kayla taking refuge from the wet ground.

I Guess Willie Was Right

I cannot believe how cold it is today especially after we were teased into believing an early spring might be in the books after the warm weather we had a couple of weeks ago. I felt pretty confident that the sheep would be able to be out after shearing last Saturday, but I was wrong. Instead, they are happily munching their hay in a nice warm barn. I was really pleased with the quality of the fleeces this year and will be shipping them off to the mill this week to be made into rovings. A few of the fleeces were badly matted as the girls really started to shed early this season, so I didn't get much brown or black. The fleece from my shetland mule I purchased last summer from Bill Stearman, had a fleece equal in handle to my purebred BFL ram. Of course lambs will not be far off and I have lots to look forward to. My little granddaughter is growing like a weed and gives me much pleasure. Enjoy the pics.