Time To Air Up Your Tires

While it seems like summer lasts forever (at least to me), it's almost time for the 2022 Tour de Fleece! We are a week away.  It's time to pick out your challenge, tune up your wheel, pack some snack bags, download a good audiobook (or three) and get ready for three weeks of fiber fun :-).

Pinto is going to be our team captain this year.  He was the obvious choice not only because he's the newest sheep on the block, but also because there has been so much interest in what breed(s) of sheep he is and what his wool is like.

I know what his wool is like, having processed a sample amount, spun some yarn and knit a swatch...but apparently I never posted that over here...fer cryin' out loud :-/.  I'll go find some pictures.  In the meantime, I'm going to process another small amount and offer it as one of the team prizes.

I'm pretty sure Pinto would be that interested in a spinning wheel if he had access to one.  He's a pretty smart sheep ;-).  For a fun Tour kick off I'm going to set up a zoom with him out in the barn.  I'll most likely start it off with an Instagram Live and then switch over to zoom so more people can access it.  Details to come.

The Tour de Fleece (and Tour de France) starts July 1st.  Here is a link to the main group.  Here is a link to the Punkin's Patch group.  You do not have to participate online, but the Punkin's Patch group is a fun small group of  kind and encouraging spinners and we have a good time :-).

Since Pinto is having to learn a lot about his new life as a wool sheep on a fiber farm, I would like to encourage everyone to add something to their challenge this year that will help us all learn something new.  While I haven't picked out my spinning challenge for sure yet, my "learning something new" challenge is going to be washing an entire fleece in locks.  

Who's in?

Porch Days

We've had some crazy hot weather lately, but I have to give the Wool House porch credit for being pretty tolerable.  Possum agrees.  

I've been trying to get a big batch of fleeces washed for a roving run.  I'm experimenting with a new/new to me technique that so far seems to be working out.  I have half of Rocky in the wash right now and if there are no issues in the final rinse, I'll share what I've learned.  

It's hard to hurt a Texel or Jacob fleece, but those more sensitive Cotswold crosses can be a bit trickier, especially the finer fleeces like Rocky.  If this works, I think we're good to go!

While we wait, here's a new puzzle :-).

  

Still Watching Out

I mentioned a "fun, surprise gift" in the post describing the yarn and ornament gift boxes. 

Wait.  This is a spoiler alert for the people who haven't received their boxes yet (and there are also two boxes left if anyone is interested - yarn or ornament) so I've blocked out the surprise part and will trust anyone to look away if they will be disappointed to not be surprised.  

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It's just something silly and small, but I love fun surprises and would totally wait to read this if I thought I had one coming.  However, the story is so good and I've been dying to share it so I'm going to go ahead. 

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Tucked in each gift box, yarn or ornament, is a mini pack of the sheep's (and dogs and chickens) favorite cookies, Vanilla Wafers.  In the conclusion of the booklet it mentions that the sheep are mostly okay with sharing their cookies, but would really prefer that you just bring them back to the farm for them (aka an invitation to come visit the farm :-).

I initially only bought three cartons of mini wafers because I thought that would be a good start.  When I ran out of cookies I headed back to the store to buy more and the shelves were bare.  Tim checked in Lexington and Georgetown and Auntie Reg checked Winchester.  We looked online.  No. Cookies.

I sent one yarn box out with a sad apology and no cookies and  and continued to look.  Tim continued to look.  Reg continued to watch for them.  I needed one more carton to complete all the orders.

Then came the call I was hoping for.  "I found a box of mini wafers!"  Reg had found one box of cookies on the bottom shelf of the snack pack aisle.  

"It was tucked in behind a box of dog biscuits!  I have no idea what dog biscuits were doing in the snack aisle."  

Dog biscuits are sold on the complete opposite side of the huge store.

I knew immediately. 

Hank had guarded those cookies for us.  

{{{heart}}}

Rocking On

Frankie and I went to a super fun mini CDE (Combined Driving Event) yesterday.  The entries were light (how can this even be possible with something so fun?), but I will agree that Frankie earned his ribbon.  

Our dressage test was decent, and we made our times in cones (first time :-), but did knock down two balls (my errors).  The marathon (three kilometers and three hazards) was a blast and we went clean and fast.

In two weeks it will be the anniversary of our first real driving show last year.  I'm so proud of how far we've come.  We didn't have to work as hard as some horse and driver combinations because Frankie set the bar so high from the start, but he is a grown up driving horse this year :-). 

Here are some videos.  Sorry they got auto-cropped so weird in spots.  Sigh...

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He was definitely a rock star!

Spinning With Friends

I recently finished painting a spinning contrast apron for a good friend who's been a good friend to my flock for many years now.  These are all sheep she's spun except for some Lila she gifted back to me when I was collecting fleeces for the bottle lamb yarn.  

Well, all except one.  How we missed Blossom/Baba when we were counting up sheep...  I'm looking forward to her bringing it back so I can add her in.  

Jared and Rocky

Maisie and Hank

Levi, Andy and Woody

Rebecca Boone, Beanie Baby, Elizabeth, Lila.  Wait...  Holy smokes, I think we forgot Buddy, too! :-o

May

 

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What a busy, but fun month :-).