Weaving project

I acquired this table top loom late last summer and have finally begun to use it.  A friend of my through my day job asked me if I would be interest in a loom that was at her daughter's high school, she had told me that the current art teacher had never used it and she had been their for 17 years.  I told my friend that I would take it if they wanted to get rid of it, knowing from past experience that most times parts are missing. 
Well to my surprise it is complete.  Just needing one wing nut and some tlc.
It has a label on it that says "Dryad Leicester" and the wood has been stamped "made in England".
....anyway I have spun up some beautiful shetland wool, added a little glitz to some of it and decided to weave it and make a scarf to offer for sale at one of the festivals I demo at.

Did I mention that I don't have a lot of weaving experience?  I have made one scarf several years ago in a class that my guild "Algonquin Spinners and Weavers" held. 
I had purchased a book, "Weaving made easy" by, Liz Gipson.  Some basic instruction, projects and pictures. 
So off I go ....

My plan is to do a loose weave and then to felt the scarf.  After felting, cut about 2" into each end to make the fringe.  As I was passing the shuttle to weaving I had to use my extra shuttle to separate the shed and lift up so I could pass the shuttle through.
Well it only took me until I was almost finished with the scarf to realize that I should have dressed the loom over the wooden beam in the front and back of the loom....duh.  next time...

I was surprised how fast the weaving went.  When I finished the scarf I wanted to weave in the loose ends before I took it off the loom, while it was still under the tension.  I almost forgot to make the hemstitch, but I referred back to my new book and completed that also before I took the scarf off the loom.

Walla.....my completed scarf and attached to the left side is a swatch I will keep.  I still need to felt the scarf and cut off the fringe, although I probably wont' cut the fringe until I know that I have gotten it felted well.
I will definitely do some weaving again.  I think I may try some basic kitchen towels with cotton.  I would really like some good cotton towels.......next project?

Welcome 2012......just a little late...

...yes everyone I am still alive....I haven't posted since October, 2011.  I've thought about it, I just haven't done it.  Why?  I don't know, procrastinator maybe...I think about it then get drug off into a different direction.  My intensions for 2012 was to post at least twice a month.  Well I blew that already, missed January.  I will really try to do better.......promise.
We have had the mildest winter I can ever remember and I am just loving it.  We didn't get the water line run to the barn this past year, I've been using the garden hose to water.  So far this year I have only had to carry water three times.  It has actually been warm enough that I have been able to use the garden hose all winter.....just lov'in it.

This is the most snow we have had all winter, about 2" and it is already melting, the temps. have been in the mid 30's and into the 40's.  This picture shows all the adult ewes that I have at the farm numbering 19.  All but four have been cross bred this year.  My four yearlings were bred with some nice Reg. Shetland fine fleeced rams that we have acquired this past year.  Cannot wait to see what we get.

These are my ewe lambs from 2011, nine.  I haven't sent in Reg. papers yet on these girls, I am not certain of the colors on a couple of them.  The ewe looking at the camera is one of the latest additions to the shetland flock.  She has come all the way from Jim Chastain in Oregon, along with a ram.  Can't wait to get the micron results on the sheep this year, I think we have some long needed diversity coming into the Shetland Sheep that you find in our area of Ohio, through these new rams we are using.

That's all for now, I will post tomorrow to show my latest project that I've been working on today.

Algonquin Mill Fall Festival

We couldn't have asked for better weather for our festival this year.  This was a shot of our spinning cabin that we sell are ware's in and about, some morning conversation before the day began.  The fire felt good in the early morning, but it wasn't there for us, notice the pots around the fire.  We have dye pots going during the festival, making for some wonderfully dyed skeins, wool or what ever your heart desires.

another shot of the spinners cabin with various items to sell.
Notice the beautiful fall leaves in the background.

Hand made shawls and scarfs for sale.

Many, many wonderful skeins of handspun yarn for sale.

This is the Two Story Log Home that our Guild staffs, along with the spinners cabin.  This is a beautiful cabin that was moved to the Algonquin Mill Complex.  My pic. is not the best due to the morning sun .

This is one of the downstairs rooms in the two story log home.  This would have been the kitchen area, we usually have two demonstrators in each room of the home.  Notice on the right, the barn beam loom.  What a massive loom!

This years festival have been wonderful, I've met many new friends this year that I've invited to come and visit us at our monthly meeting in the School House.  We meet the 3rd Saturday of every month, from approx. 10am to 3pm., anyone / everyone is welcome to visit.  We have one more day to enjoy our festival and hope to meet more new friends then.
...til I can post again, may your fiber stash always be full and your spinning wheel always whirring.........

Great Trail Festival

Great Trail Festival has come and gone.  I spent two days demonstrating at the festival this year and met many wonderful people.  I hope that those that I spoke with find time to come to one of the Algonquin Spinning and Weaving Guilds meetings and get to see, meet other fiber friends.
I didn't remember to take my camera to get pictures, darn it.

The next festival the Guild participates in will be Yankee Peddler Festival in Canal Fulton, Ohio
http://www.yankeepeddlerfestival.com/ this event is 6 days spread out over three weekends. Sept. 10th, 11th, 17th, 18th, 24th & 25th.
I will be demonstrating the 11th and 25th. 
This event is a demonstration of the time period 1776 through 1825, we will be wearing and working with items that would have been available in that time period.
This festival is also a great time to see other demonstrators with time period wares.

Where has the summer gone???

As sit here writing this post I wonder just where has the summer gone?  As fall is in the air and I am just not ready for what is to come.....snow and such.
Did I make too many project lists for this year?  Well, yes I probably did, but I didn't get them all done either!
From shearing to lambing then getting in the garden to maintaining the yard, making hay, attending group meetings, trying to work on projects, add in family functions, working a "day" job, monday through friday.

Now at this time of the year we (Guild) have Festivals that we participate in for the next two months, beginning with Great Trail this weekend in Carrollton, Ohio. 

So, what is the answer?  I don't really know.....but I will try to slow down, do the things I enjoy, don't set myself up for failure with too many projects on my list....just don't make the list......but enjoy the ones you do finish. 

Sweater

This is my first clothing project, although it is not finished I thought I needed to post something.  I just purchased the buttons.  I only have to add the front bands and tuck in my loose ends and I will be finished.
This was a great pattern for a first time project by: "knitting pure & simple", v neck neckdown cardigan for women #994.
The Spinning/Weaving Guild that I am a member of, http://algonquinmillspinnersandweavers.blogspot.com/
decided to try this pattern as a group project, for any of the membership that wanted to try  the pattern.  This way we would be able to help each other through the pattern if there were question or you just got stuck.

The fleece I used came from one of my Shetlands, a fawn ewe named Gwendolyn, although she is no longer with us I will always have this sweater to remind me of her.  I had her fleece blended with a similar color of alpaca fiber for this project.

I spun a medium worsted yarn for this sweater, a future note to myself when spinning for a clothing item; I must spin a much finer yarn.  I love this sweater that I've made, but I don't think that I would be able to wear it all day long, the sweater is a little bulky.  It would work as a light coat if you were outside all day.

I have a future pull over mock turtle neck sweater planned, but I will take into consideration what I've learned from this project to make the next one even better.

 

Ohio Grasslands & Forage Council Grazing Tour

Today I have taken my first "grazing farm tour"  The "OFGC" was in our area, eastern Ohio for the first time.  This event co-ensides with the Ohio Sheep Day which will be Saturday.
It was just nice to see other operations and get some ideas for pasture management.  I did get to meet some folks from across the state, although I am terrible at remembering names, we did all "talk sheep".

This pic. shows the grasses of a rotational grazing operation, brome grass, white clover and orchard grass.

 I couldn't get this pic. to enlarge.  This farmer, was showing his portable watering system.  He runs a 160p.s.i. line with a quick couple, hydrolic fitting as the connector for watering with an on/off valve.  He grazes 43 cows and calves and one bull on 1 acre per day, a 24hrs. period then moves them.

This farmer feels that the red angus are more heat tolerant than the black angus.  He shoots for 1250# cows.  He sells his calves in December when they are 500-600 #.  His goal is to run more cows on less ground & using less hay.  He tries to graze into November, then keep 50 cows and feed 100 round bales per year.

They follow the grazed paddocks with 75 broiler chickens.  These are two weeks old, they will be finished at eight weeks.  They send them to a local processor and take orders for birds. The chickens follow the cattle and manage fly control.

This is the traveling enclosure that the fryers are in.  They keep an electric netting fence around it to keep racoons and such out.

This was an inventive idea.  A cheap wore our travel trailer, converted into a traveling chicken house.

I'm not certain of the spelling of these breed names, I just scribbled them down, Americanas and Barder Rocker.  I'm not a chicken person, hope I've got the names somewhat right.....

They have 50 birds, they get about 48 eggs a day and sell them to local businesses and individuals.

They also use the chickens to follow the cattle in paddocks for fly control.  They market them as free range.

An inside view of the chicken trailer

Nesting boxes inside the converted travel trailer.

This was our Farm Tour "Bus".

Another operation we visited was a commercial hay/grain operation.  We didn't get to check out his equipment, which was all put away in buildings, we did gather in his large shop and he spoke of lime & fertilizer and the like.  A representative from Agland  was also there.  They did discuss a problem that I had not heard of, recent findings of fields that have been planted with timothy and orchard grass and these grasses are dying out after a year, they do not know if it is a disease or insect problem.  But this is not good since these are two grasses that are in much demand.  They mentioned that Penn. State has more information about what they think it might be.  I haven't researched that yet.

The last farm we visited for the day was a 250 commercial ewe operation.  This farm practices rotational grazing also.  The sheep are of a mixed breed, they try to have some lamb in the fall and winter to have lambs to sell in December and for Easter.  The husband and wife team both work off their farm, so their farm practice has to work around their schedules with lambing and such.

The rams used in their operation.

Some pretty flowers sprucing up the out house.

...more pretty flowers.

this concludes my day on the farm grazing tours.   Tomorrow will be the Ohio Sheep Day, hopefully more pics. to post.....