OFFF 2011

Last weekend was OFFF.  This year, I had demonstrations to do and a workshop to attend, so I handed the cameras over to ToolMan.  This is how he sees OFFF.

Judy Becker taught her Magic Cast On.

Old friends were greeted.

People watching was done.

Hello Kitty pants for cute toddlers were knitted.

Lots of pictures were taken.

Trtlgrl had a trtlbirthday, complete with trtlcake.

The warm weather and shade were enjoyed.

Little girls were reluctant to leave the festivities.

Drum carding demonstrations were done.

Lessons on cabling without a needle were taught.

New babies were carried and adored by many aunties.

Serious knitting was done.

Laughs were shared.

Some people got a little over excited by all the pretty fiber.

Another OFFF is done and gone.

I can hardly wait until next year!

OFFF 2010

Last weekend was OFFF and as usual, the PDX Knit Bloggers and Spinnerati were on the lawn to give lessons and encouragement.  Barbara arrived from HELL (Phoenix) on Friday and stayed with us for the event.  Here are some pictures of the tents:

Saturday was beautiful; warm, sunny, a slight breeze, and that electric blue sky that we get in the fall.  I sat in the tent and spun all day, and taught a couple of spindlers how to park and draft, and ply and finish their yarn.  There was music:

although it was mostly Celtic and a bit morose.  I kept hoping for some lively Highland flings or at least a drinking song, but if they played one, I must have missed it.

Kathleen came by and picked up the shawl pin she had purchased from our Art Fire site.  She and Sivia Harding nearly arm wrestled over this mahogany ginko leaf, but Kathleen was just a bit quicker on the mouse.  ToolMan made a similar one in cherry for Sivia, but somehow we never got a picture of her.

The Delites showed up, en masse:

And what outing would be complete without cake?  For OFFF, a sheep cake, of course!

Rachel's birthday was earlier in the week, but she wanted to celebrate at OFFF so she and Owen whipped this up for Saturday afternoon.

Sunday wasn't nearly as nice; it started raining early and didn't let up until noon.  ToolMan had his hands full showing his shawl pins; Kathleen, Sivia, Judy, and Katherine had done a excellent job of pimping him out showing off their shawl pins, that people were hunting him down to look at what he had made.  I'll do my best to get more things up on the website tonight.
 
In other news:  Mom's socks are done, they've had a soak, and are on the blockers to dry.  I'll put them in the mail this week.  Thank goodness for flat rate mailing!
 



 

The cleaning team has scrubbed every thing in the house; we're still trying to find what was put in the wrong places.  The curtains and drapes are still at the cleaners, but the painters were here this week putting the new color on the kitchen, halls and stairways.  And the carpet cleaner will be here next week.

 

I did get the coral yarn finished in Saturday at OFFF; it's on the bobbins, waiting to be reeled off and finished.  I'll see how much I have and decide from there what to make.

 

Last but not least, here are pictures of the OFFF loot I brought home. 

 

  

Much less than previous years; I've had to buy more of the 60 quart plastic bins to store stash and now don't have shelves to stack them on.  No room in there for more shelves, so buying needs to slow down until some of what's in there gets used.  Uh huh, like THAT'S going to happen!

Saturday in the Park

Nate the Wonder Geek determined our old computer could not be resuscitated.  Instead, he brought us a whole new brain.  Now, I can try to wade through all the posts I had ready and waiting, complete with pictures. 

First up:  Babies and Birthdays, Cake and Presents: 

Last Saturday; no wait, it was Saturday before last; ToolMan and I were at a very special Saturday In The Park.  I was somebody's first birthday!  Can you guess who?  Here, I'll give you a hint:

It was Trtlbby!  Her momma, Rachel, is a PDX Knit Blogger and a Portland Spinnerati, and when Trtlbby was born, ToolMan and I instantly became Hazel Nuts.  Ha, I crack me up sometimes. 

Here's the birthday girl herself, getting ready to play in the sprinkler fountains.

Already learning to pose and smile for the camera!  She had a great time in the fountains with the other kids.

"Hmm, where's this water coming from?"

"Are you still back there, Dad?"

"Maybe I can ditch Dad and go play with the big kids."

And she had some little friends come share the special day.  William is stylin' with his new hat.

Connor really dug the chips and bean dip.  Aren't you glad you don't have to change those diapers?

Her little guests are both boys; Dad may need better locks on the doors in a few years.  ;)

Pretty soon, it was time for cake!

"I think this is my new favorite food!"

"I wish they'd let me have a fork!"

"I can't believe I ate the whole thing!"

And then, the madness that is opening the presents.  Fortunately, or maybe not, the big kids were glad to help rip open wrapping paper.

"I hope I can get this tiara from Auntie Tiggywinkle and Uncle ToolMan resized to fit."

"Oh, thank goodness I got lots of clothes; I really can't wear the same outfit to multiple events, you know."

"Yeah, you think it's really cool, but frankly my dear, I no longer give a hoot."

After a couple hours, everybody was ready to head for home.  I don't know who was more tired:  the little ones were tired from playing and missing their afternoon naps, or the adults from watching the little ones play and miss their afternoon naps.  It's been a great many years since ToolMan and I had been to a first birthday party, and we were pretty worn out, too!  

Happy Birthday, Trtlbby!  ToolMan and I hope you have LOTS and LOTS of them, and that we get to share them with you! 

Out With The Old? In With The New?

First, Out With The Old. Here's a recap of last year:

What I Knitted:

ToolMan’s Driving Cap
Barbie Clothes
Queen Anne’s Lace Shawl
Dryer Balls
White Mohair Cowl
LaLa’s Simple Shawl in Sea Wool
Storm Cloud shawlette
Hot water bottle cozy from handspun
LaLa’s Simple Shawl in StitchJones (gifted)
Readers Wrap in Twinkletoes (may be frogged)
Baby Surprise Jacket for trtlbby
Clapotis in BMFA handspun
Socks for me
Bamboo & Ewe socks for ToolMan
Wool socks for ToolMan
Transitions short sleeve cardigan for me
Sample sock for StitchJones
LaLa’s Simple Shawl in Glam Sock Yarn
Swallowtail for me
Yak Hat for ToolMan
Fingerless Mitt (6 pair) for coworkers
Hat for Nic
Scarves (4) for coworkers
Coffee Cup Cozies (12 or 13, I lost count) for coworkers
Felted Bowl for Jane
Elf Hat
Fulled Bags (gifted)


What I Spun:

Lots and lots of yarn in lots and lots of different fibers


New Things I Learned:

Went to a sheep shearing and processed the fleece
Drumcarded batts for the first time
Went to alpaca shearing
Processed and spun the exploded clown fiber


Other Stuff I Did:

Unraveling Sweaters Tutorial
Dryer Balls Tutorial
World Wide Knit In Public Day
World Wide Spin In Public Day
Demonstrated at Multnomah Days
Assisted at Sock Summit


Of course, there's the other stuff that happened last year: Although there were some really great things that happened last year, like Sock Summit, the basket of hearts from Knit Sibs, there were also the really not-so-great things that happened last year. Like ToolMan's heart attack and colon cancer, got a new job in The Big Company and changed offices, Andy Rooney became diabetic, my brothers faced health issues, and I continued battling sarcoidosis. I wasn't sad to see the end of 2009. As far as I'm concerned, it went on way too long.


Now, In With the New. Here's what I've got planned, so far:

Pattern Writing:

There are a couple patterns rolling around in my head that I'd like to get published this year. I signed a contract for one to be in a book, so one of them will be released into the world this year. As for the others, we shall see what develops.


Knitting:

I've cast on a new project: a pair of socks for myself in Bamboo and Ewe. I loved the way it felt when I knitted that pair for ToolMan and decided to make myself a fancy pair in red to wear with my black mary janes. I must have been suffering from temporary insanity because I picked a pattern with . . . are you ready? A 72 row repeat. That's right, A SEVENTY-TWO ROW REPEAT. I started it three times before I quit arsing it up. I thought for a moment, and only a short moment, about knitting them the way I usually do: two at once on separate sets of dpns. Except that in this pattern, the socks are MIRROR IMAGES of each other. So you knit one sock reading the chart from left to right and the other from right to left. Even thinking about doing them at the same time seemed like a big ole' piece of crazy pie that would surely come back to bite me in the ass. So, one at a time it is. Gotta say though, I'm almost to the heel on the first one and it is seriously beautiful.


Spinning:

I'd like to get through a lot of the stash. There are some really luxurious fibers in there that I've been holding onto until I felt I was good enough to spin them. I think I'm ready now.


Blogging:

I've thought about giving up the blog. Not shutting it down or anything, just not being as regular about posting as I have been in the past. Oftentimes it seems that this blog is a lot of self-centered navel-gazing for me. I mean, really, I don't get all that many comments, although when I do, they're great. Usually, when I get to thinking like that, I get some great comment like the last one from Anonymous. Or my Google Analytics Report comes in and shows a bunch of hits from all over the world. Estonia? Really? Do you know how flattered I am that an Estonian knitter (you are a knitter, right?) come to read this? And Iceland? And China? And Japan? And New Zealand? And Brazil? So then I decide that I'll keep it up for awhile more. But really, see that button on the side bar that says "Would it kill you to comment?" I meant that.

My Gall Bladder:

OK, so this is new to the blog but it really should be up there in the Out With The Old. For at least 3 or 4 years, I've had near constant heartburn and reflux. About 3 months ago, nearly everything I ate made me nauseated. We finally figured out it's the dang gall bladder. So, next Thursday morning, out it comes. We'll have to see how that 72-row repeat sock gets along on pain killers.

Sock Summit 2009 Early Registration

So, ToolMan and I trekked downtown to the Convention Center so I could register early and get my final volunteer instructions. We worked our way over to the Dragon Boat, under which was the registration desk. Holy cow; the lines were already waaaaay long! I whipped out the camera to take a picture, pushed the power button, and . . . . nada. Dead battery. So you'll just have to take my word that the PDX Knit Bloggers were there in force. Some were working the desk, and others squatted at a table and were knitting. MonicaPDX was there; so was Judy Becker, whom Rachel and Angela embarrassed by going all fangirl on her (like they couldn't get her autograph any Wednesday night!). And the Knitmore Girls, who came over to schmooze and snuggle trtlbby. Of course, Tina was there, and Stephanie, and RachelHoftheComm. I also spotted lots of others, too many to mention really. And we met some new friends who came for the Summit. I got my credentials and my marching orders: I am to be the teachers aide/bodyguard/nanny for Nancy Bush for the duration. But I will be sneaking out from time to time to take pictures for the nightly blog posts. Provided my camera works. And yes, the battery is charging right this very minute.

I'm Rather Sheepish . . .

about telling you where we went yesterday, that is. (You know you can click on the pics to enlarge.)



Some of the PDX Knit Bloggers and Portland Spinnerati went on a little field trip yesterday.

We went to meet Rhonda and Jon at their Greener Pastures Farm in Camas, Washington.

I went to have fun; ToolMan agreed to play "paparazzi" for me, since I would be too busy to deal with the camera.



Did I mention they have sheep there?

Cascade Farmstead sheep to be exact.

And just why did we choose yesterday for our field trip?

Because yesterday was the day Eddie was coming to shear sheep, that's why!



There was a section of fencing put over a couple of sawhorses which we all stood around while Eddie got set up.

We watched while he sheared the first sheep.

It was amazing how the sheep let Eddie move them around, turn them, over, and straddle them while he sheared.

As soon as the fleece was off, somebody grabbed it and flung it up on top of the section of fencing.

Then it was our turn to get to work, skirting the fleece, which is the process of picking off matted sections, pulling off the dung tags, getting out as much vegetable matter as possible, and shaking out the second cuts.

While we were picking, somebody would call out, "This one's mine!" and the fleece would be rolled up, and put into a bag. Ronda (that's her in the red coat) had made a card for each sheep with the ear tag number, name, birth date, fleece color, and any other important information. The name of whoever was buying that fleece was written on the card and put in the bag for later identification.

Then we watched and waited while Eddie finish up the next sheep.

When he was done, we went to work on the next fleece.

Rinse, repeat.

Duffy was just a little too happy with the fleece she picked out. (She has some great pictures of the day over on her blog, by the way.)

Then, it was back to work on the next fleece.

Kathleen told us about watching a sheep shearing and going to the Ashford store during her trip to New Zealand last year.

And pretty soon another fleece was ready to be skirted.

Eddie started on one side of the sheep, working from the neck down, throwing the fleece upside down over the sheep.

Then he flips the sheep over, head down, to release the fleece.

Yes, that pink part of the sheep you see there is just what you're afraid it is . . .

Back to work!

I think Kathleen and Tami were having a minor disagreement over who was getting the next fleece . . .

The last one was the one everybody was waiting for; it was a blue ribbon winner at OFFF last fall.

A fleece so black, you couldn't photograph it.

Even flash didn't help.

I think Tami would have wrestled to the ground anyone who tried to take this out of her hands.

Finally, the last sheep was sheared and the last fleece skirted while Eddie packed up to go to the next farm.

I want to wash and process the fleece myself, so I didn't want a whole one. Thankfully, Pam agreed to split this lovely black and gray one with me.

After the last fleece was bagged, it was time to clean up. Some people took the yucky bits which had been thrown and fallen under the fencing to use for mulch.

Then it was time to hand out the fleeces and pay Rhonda so she could pay Eddie. Microeconomics, live and in person. Or maybe it's "trickle down" economics.

The sheep, though no worse for their experience, were not all that happy to be loosing their
fleeces.

In fact, they looked downright skinny without all that fiber on them.

The spinners, however, were more than happy to be taking those fleeces home.

While we were packing up to leave Greener Pastures, a lady from a neighboring farm, where Eddie had been earlier, came bringing some shetland fleeces and alpaca fleeces from her farm. No pictures of her, but I did buy some of her white alpaca to blend with some brown that I have in my stash.

Needless to say, both bags had to be inspected immediately upon entry into the house.

The alpaca passed inspection pretty quickly.

The sheep fleece apparently needed a more through going over; Andy Rooney tried to take it out of the bag and roll in it, but when I wouldn't let him, he settled for rubbing his head through it and trying to paw it.

Now, I just need to get these washed and processed. Hmmm, I think I'd better Google "washing fleece" for starters . . . .