North Country Fiber Fair

I've spent a good part of the past week getting ready for the North Country Fiber Fair. I'm not able to vend this year due to the number of classes I'm taking, as well as teaching. Even so, I've been getting two of my spinning wheels oiled and lithium greased as well as polished up for the weekend. My Ashford Traditional Wheel that I've had for almost 30 years now is not making the trip this year. A number of years ago, I demonstrated spinning at an art fair and got caught in the rain. Now the poor wheel sounds like a bullfrog when it's treadled - ree-deep, ree-deep, ree-deep. I do have the replacement leather parts which should help, but I just haven't had time to do anything with it. Also, it is so much bigger than the Ashford Joy and Hitchhiker wheels that it takes up quite a bit of space in my little Civic.

I also sewed a fabric liner for one of baskets I keep "stuff" for spinning. I had some old green rickrack that I think I got in an antique container I purchased on eBay. I hadn't seen that color since I was in junior high, but it was a perfect match for the green in the fabric. This was a fun project. I forgot how much I enjoy sewing. There's just not enough hours in the day for me!

Off the Spindle: I received a couple ounces of this roving in an order from The Sheep Shed Studio in Encampment, WY. As you can see it's no longer roving, but yarn. I plan to make a cap with it. The color is so rich. When I checked the site, it looked like there was some of this roving left.

I'm holding off spinning anything more until this weekend so I have enough empty spools!

On the Needles: I'm knitting a pair of Monkey Socks in Happy Feet. I'll write more about this yarn next time, after I've completed the socks. Granted Monkeys take a bit more yarn than Plain Vanilla Socks, but with my Child's Size 3 feet, I'm not sure I'm going to have enough - film at eleven!

Off the Needles: Cabled Socks - this is Pair No. 19 in the 52 Pair Plunge. I used Regia Sock Yarn with a colorway designed by Kaffe Fassett. Regia and Trekking XXL still remain my two favorite commercial sock yarns.

52 Books in 52 Weeks: Book 39 - China Trade, by S. J. Rozan. This is the first in the Bill Smith/Lydia Chin series set in Chinatown in New York City and it revolves around a porcelain theft. When I started this book, I thought the first 50 pages or so were pretty unremarkable, but before long I discovered I was sucked in and could not put it down.

Book 40 - Naked in Death, by J.D. Robb. I've read some of these later in the series, but I wish I would have read this one first because it revolves around Eve Dallas meeting Rourke and provides some excellent background information for the books later in the series. In this book, licensed companions are murdered by what appears to be one john. I'm not much for science fiction or futuristic books, but I do like these. I think that may be at least in part because the characters are so believable and so human. Most futuristic books I've read and not liked, it's been because the people are like robots.

In closing, I was trying to get an Etsy shop update completed, but of course, one of the cats feels the need to "help". Hans was acting like he really wanted his photo taken - so I took it.