One Month Recap

This month has gone very fast and I have been so crazy busy.

3 additional shows have happened since my first (Limerick Community Days, NJ Sheep and Wool [more about this below], and Phoenixville Farmers Market Fiber Fest) and I have been dyeing every week to keep up.

I started 2 new jobs and a 3rd new one today, well, training starts today and ends hopefully middle of next month. I already do this same job for another University, so hopefully training will be quick and easy. This puts me up to 10 jobs, 7 of which are jobs I get some sort of legitimate paycheck for, but all of them are sporadic and seasonal so its not like I work all of them every week. The other 3 are my personal businesses of Graphic Design, Tattooing, and now the Fiber business. My schedule is nuts though and today is my first day off in about 3 weeks. I'm going to TRY and relax, try being the operative word there, even though my to-do list is glaring at me from the coffee table.

The most exciting show I've gotten to do so far has definitely been NJ Sheep and Wool. It was the 20th year of show and just in the few years I've been going there it has really blossomed into a very nice, medium sized show. It is not nearly as overwhelming as say Maryland or Rhinebeck for first time fiber show goers and can be leisurely perused in just a few hours. When I found out I could still get in, even though the show was only in 2 weeks and I could only get an outside booth space, I jumped on it and made it happen. I'm really glad I did. We had a great show, despite the heat and rain on Saturday, which actually helped us being outside since inside the barns was so very hot.

This is my booth halfway through the day after I'd already sold a lot of product. I'm really thankful for everyone who came and purchased and all my other vendor fiber friends who came around to congratulate me on finally getting started. I can't wait to do this show again next year and by then I should have way more stock.

This past Saturday was a wee little Fiber Festival at the Phoenixville Farmers Market. I frequent this market when I have the time and had no idea until the week before that they did a Fiber Fest. Someone actually asked via my FB page if i would be there and I was able to sign up and forward it on to my Alpaca farmer friend who also came. We both had good days, made a lot of new contacts and I think I might see about getting into their Artisan Saturday, which happens once a month. It will be a good spot to pick up knitting and spinning students.

Which reminds me, Shirsty Cat Designs has a facebook page HERE
And my Website is finally operational HERE, not much on it yet, but I'm getting there. One of the biggest to-do list items is to photograph everything and get it up on etsy and finish the website so I can sell directly from there. Until then if you see anything you like, please feel free to email me or contact me on FB, we can set something up.

But today I'm off. I need to be cause I'm not going to have another day off in a while and no matter how hard I push it won't all get done today anyway. I'm going to work on my Ocracoke Cardigan and spin this pretty BFL Silk that was my only purchase from NJ Sheep and Wool. I already have 1 and a half of these bumps spun.

Frabjous Fibers Braid

Gone in a flash...

That's how the last 2 weeks have felt. Between getting back into the rhythm of new classes and lots of projects going on I have been completely neglectful of the blog, so be prepared for a lot of pics.

Happy camper

The General is assimilating nicely, wool block is all cleared up. He's even so frisky that he has taken to humping the dogs, they are just a bit perplexed by this turn of events. I will try to get a video the next time it happens because a 12lb rabbit humping a 65lb pit bull is one of the funniest things ever!

Mid trim

Jersey haul, Izzy checking for yak content

          Last weekend was Jersey sheep and wool. It's a tiny little venue if you've never been, but it's close and has a nice selection of stuff. I ended up being very good and not buying a whole lot. I got a shawl pin and wore my Peacock around the whole day getting uber compliments and photos taken. The way I was wearing it seemed to be new to a lot of people and I have to get a pic in it to explain it, but I could have sworn people wore circular shawls like that, who knows, maybe I made it up. It just sort of made sense at the time. I picked up 2oz of yak-silk-merino and 2oz of alpaca-silk (the 2 balls on the bottom left) which will be spun lace weight and plied together. An additional purchase was made from Deb and those are already about halfway to being mitts.  Everything else in the photo I got when we stopped at Twist on the way home. The large puff is 1.5 lbs of Australian wool @ $1.50 an oz, it is amazingly soft for that price. Also grabbed some sock blockers and some bamboo size 1. I really prefer making socks on bamboo, less slippage.  Made some good contacts for future project and made plans to go to Rhinebeck this year. So excited for that, I've never been and debating whether I need to frantically knit a sweater before the end of next month. The Peacock shawl may just have to do because I really don't think I have the time.

AFP

Monday was crazy hectic mostly because I had a much anticipated concert to attend, Amanda Palmer and Grand Theft Orchestra. If you haven't heard them go listen here, they are awesome-sauce in shoes! I even got to meet Amanda after the show. There are a bunch of awesome photos and I may even break down and do some fan art.

AFP

Because the show ran so late I was a zombie the next day...who am I kidding, most of the rest of the week, but somehow I managed and even getting ahead on assignments. Since I have tree fluffing coming up next week the head start is a good thing.

Today I popped into 2 local thrift shops and manged to score 2 cashmere sweaters for $5, these will be dismantled and reknit into something far more fabulous. Also found 5 little skeins of needlepoint wool for 50 cents each.

Got final pics of the Live Oak Shawlette, turned out nice, just have to figure out what to do with it.

Live Oak Shawlette

I think that's everything of importance for the moment. I have a couple of big projects in the works, so hopefully some announcements soon.