nobody here but us chickens

Posted on Posted in book reviews/events, designing, lace/shawls, projects

beckie got some chickens a couple of months back and when i was at her house the other day putting up strawberries, i had a chance to check in on them.

they love the strawberry tops—and we had plenty to toss into the ring for them to eat. they got busy making a tasty dessert meal out those, alright. there’s nothing quite like making chickens happy.

and we’ve been busy all week around here too; we seem to be getting used to our new living circumstances. after the initial stunned feeling dissipated, we turned out to be pretty good at adapting (it really helps to keep things very simple).

the work is going along quite well; i think the demo is over and the rebuilding has begun. there is a wall of plastic between me and the work area and i don’t go around all that often to check the progress; i leave that up to david, who manages most of the interactions with the work crew.

i do know that much has changed and i will try to get some photos very soon.

the rest of the house has been completely focused on getting us ready for TNNA. we’re having a booth this time, so if you’re heading to columbus for the show, please stop by to visit; we’ll be in the deep south fibers area.

we’ve all got jobs that will contribute to getting us on the show floor on time tomorrow morning. sarah has worked with erica to pull and organize all the knitted samples we’re bringing.

she’s so organized; she’s got all the samples listed in a color-coded spreadsheet, which she uses whenever we have to pull a trunk show or booth setup. have i mentioned how much we love sarah?? we do.

erica (left)  and emily (right) worked on sort of craft project for a couple of evenings this week—a color card we made up of all the bare naked wools yarns we’ve released so far.

we’re not wholesaling these yarns at this point, so we wont’ be showing them at TNNA, but we want to have something to give to other designers who might want to try something out.

i love how all the yarns look together; you can really see that each has its own character and that it’s not just another gray.

i’ve been busy lining up appts for the show, running around getting this and that ready, and working on designs, frantically trying to get a couple of pattern written up before i left so that they could be proofread and test knit while i’m gone. i am going right from TNNA to a teaching gig at shall we knit? in waterloo, ON, so i”ll be away for at least ten days.

we also had a very long meeting on thursday evening at home depot to go over our cabinet order for the kitchen. this is something we already did months ago at another store, but we’ve never been able to get samples from them of the finishes we wanted, so we are now exploring other avenues.

in the meantime, knitting keeps me sane and i’ve been making quite good progress actually on several projects.

my sea pearl sweater is going gangbusters; i’m so pleased with the progress i’m making on it. sea pearl is so easy to knit with, it just makes me want to pick up the project and work on it obsessively. it helps that the main stitch pattern is so easy to work, too; i can basically take this one anywhere at the point it’s at now.

one of the things i love so much about sea pearl is how lovely the fabric feels next to the skin; it’s silky, but has wonderful body, too. right off the needles the surface is rather bumpy, but after a bath, it smooths out miraculously into a satiny fabric with a beautiful luster.

my little pea vines mini is coming along such a treat! it’s actually done now, but i have some progress shots from the last few days

i will use this tiny sample in both my shawl project class and my blocking class at shall we knit? next weekend.

so i’m leaving it unblocked for now. the mini has all the same sections and stitch patterns as the adult version, just tinier. susan says i should release a pattern for it; what do you think?

my ghillie sock is almost done as well, though i don’t have a current photo. i’ll get one today and post it next time. and now, it’s show time; we are heading over to the show floor to have some breakfast with the shalimar yarns gang and open our booth.

i’ve got great photos from our setup yesterday and i’m sure we’ll have lots more later today, so stay tuned; we will TRY not to be so out of touch.

i also have several patterns ready for release but have just been so tied up with business that i’ve not been able to organize their release. but this coming week, things should be more calm and i’ll have time to take care of that.

16 thoughts on “nobody here but us chickens

  1. Oh my. Are you planning to sell the color cards for Barenaked Wools? This is JUST what I need. Despite your very organized website, I get a little confused flipping back between patterns and possibilities and yardages. I guess I need something to hold in my hand. (A security blanket!)

  2. I think you should release the little pea vines shawl. (In your spare time :)) I don’t know size but 3 year old granddaughter would look cute in one or maybe her dolls? Call “little sprout” or “little sugar snap”???

  3. Pea vines is a lovely pattern and terrific that it’s available in three different sizes.

  4. My granddaughters love mini-shawls for their American Girl dolls so yes , please release the Mini-Pea vines pattern. It’s always nice to have a small project for teaching technique, too.

  5. It sounds like you have such a great team of youngsters helping you out. Sarah is a girl after my own heart – I love colour-coded spreadsheets!! It’s interesting to hear about how the Sea Pearl yarn changes once it’s soaked. I have a skein but can’t envisage it as a sweater. You’re convincing me that it’s going to be worth it! Do I spy a new BN yarn too? The Corriedale looks interesting. I spun some once and liked it.

  6. Love the color cards. SO helpful. I hope you have a good time at TNNA and at the teaching gig.

    I can’t imagine doing all that you do and dealing with renovations. Looking forward to update pictures. : )

  7. Don’t think we didn’t notice the addition to that color card! I’m now eagerly awaiting some ‘confection’ and trying to figure a way to nab some without breaking my fiber fast 😉

  8. How fun to see the chickens! Lots of goodies here, but I’m obsessed with the Sea Pearl sweater.

  9. A mini pea vines pattern would be lovely! What do you anticipate the finished measurements would be for it? I can see my daughters using them as beanie-alternative headscarf thingies when they feel like a change…and also because I think part of my pattern-choosing method involves my reaction to the colour of the sample and my eldest daughter looks amazing in green 🙂 I know sample colour is a silly reason to knit or not knit something, but I think it’s a gut thing, certainly not rational…?!? Anyway, the pattern would be great 🙂

  10. The color card is a great idea! It really shows the difference in the yarns. I say definitely do a pattern for the mini shawl…great for the granddaughters’ American Girl Dolls! I’m thinking Christmas presents already! Safe travels!

  11. First of all, totally digging the manicure. The cards are brilliant. I am already in love with the new sweater. Hope you have a very successful TNNA!

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