Nice Hair, Holly

 "Sheep with character; producers of fine wool products."

Leaning a bit heavier on the character these days apparently...

Birds Bees And Blooms

Do you see it?

What about now?

I have loved watching the hummingbirds and big bumble bees working the salvias and borage this summer. I've still not seen any birds or bees in the fountain though.  

I have a different spray pattern nozzle thing that might be more attractive, but the spray is lightweight enough that the wind blows it out of the bowl pretty quickly.  I'll keep playing with it.

BYFC Random Tip #10

If you are looking for something fun to take to a sheep-y party, try a traditional Welsh Shearing Cake.  While apparently not as commonly made over there these days, we embraced this historical cake several years ago and it's now a staple on shearing day here and at nearby Tring Farm.  

This hearty cake is designed so you can grab a piece while you are working and eat it on the go...or with a quick cup of tea during a break.  The recipe is a fairly basic cake with the addition of some candied citrus and caraway seeds.

I've tried two slightly different recipes and this is the recipe we like the best.  It's even better if our friend Ed makes it :-).

I hope you enjoyed the Bluegrass Yarn and Fiber Crawl, whether from near or far.  I had fun picking my favorite tips and really enjoyed blogging every day.  I wish I knew I could keep it up...and I'll try.  Ah, the good old days.

Let's try to keep all these old traditions alive!

BYFC - Random Tip #9

 BOOKS!

There are So Many good books and magazines out there that were written by really experienced and real live fiber artists and teachers.  They have put incredible amounts of time into researching, writing, photographing and marketing their books and you can learn so much from them. 

Take the time to learn directly through them, not by reading an unethical AI synopsis.  You'll get better information and enjoy the journey so much more.  You can find great selections in stores, your library, your guild's library, estate sales, friends houses...

BYFC - Random Tip #8

"This yarn sucks."

"Why do you say that?"

"It's all over the place, thick and thin, lumpy and bumpy, underspun in spots..."

"Just knit a swatch with it."

"Why would I even want to waste my time?!?"

"Hmmm, where are all those bad spots now?"

* * * * *

Don't hate on your early spinning.  Go ahead and knit a swatch with it.  You might be very surprised.  

That being said, if you've spun something that looks pretty, but when you knit a swatch you aren't super happy with your fabric, figure out why and fix it.  One common issue with new spinners is putting too much twist in your singles or plies.  When you knit with yarn like that, you may not be happy with the softness, or lack of softness...but you won't know that until you KNIT A SWATCH ;-).

You'll learn more about spinning by actually using your yarn (even for just a swatch) rather than just spinning and spinning and spinning.