Changes are coming

Lots of changes on the horizon here! And the first you may notice is the blog format. I thought it was time for a change from the dark grey background. I like how you can see several posts at a time on this version.
But in order to see the whole post you must click on the header.  Also, you have to move your mouse over  the side bar on the right to get the blog list, followers, etc.  But I like the cleaner, fresher look.

The other big change is going to be to my house  --  I am getting all the windows replaced and new siding!

I am SO blessed to be living here. I have, without a doubt, the very best neighbors in the world. My neighbor's church has volunteered to provide the labor to install the new windows and siding. All I have to do is buy the materials.  :-)))

In the days before Stan died, he told me to talk with my neighbor Tim about getting this done. He said Tim would know the right people to get it done. But Stan and I could never have imagined such a generous offer.  It is so remarkable and inspiring to see how people around here live their beliefs. 

So now I think I should concentrate on organizing, painting, and cleaning up the place this summer.  Then the inside will be as nice as the outside is going to be.

Shepherd's Harvest weekend/lambing, etc.

Spring has definitely sprung, the stone cherry tree is in full bloom and the dandelions are up.

Those Black Locust trees aren't dead, in a month they will be full of fragrant blossoms and lots of bumble bees.

I've got a full weekend planned, starting on Friday with a day of training for work in Bloomington and going to the Friends School Plant Sale with my oldest son Alex. Now that he's a homeowner he's really gotten into landscaping.   And on Saturday, I'll be at Shepherd's Harvest of course. 
Then I'll visit my mom on Sunday.  It will be the first time in years that I've been able to go home on Mother's Day.
I will not have a booth at Shepherd's Harvest this year. I will judge the felting competition Saturday morning and then shop to my heart's content. :-)  My major purchase will be a lambing jug and a ewe headlock from Sydell.  Thankfully I'll get a 10 % discount for being a member of Minnesota Lamb and Wool Producers.
Shearing revealed that 3 of my 4 yearling Bluefaced Leicester ewes are bred (along with two yearling Shetlands). Lambing could start as early as May 19th (after Hansel's break out on Christmas Eve day).  Having the ewe headlock will allow me to handle tasks like milking out a ewe, letting a lamb nursing from a sensitive new mom, hoof trimming, ear tagging all by myself.
I'm also buying an extra panel so I can have a safe heat lamp area for the lambs.  I noticed that the BFL lambs born in March, 2011 grew better than the later born BFL lambs. Once they were dried off and nursing, they were able to take single digit temps without missing a beat or needing a heat lamp.  Plus I got all twins with March lambing of the BFLs. 

I'm seriously considering attending a Spring/Summer Jacket felting workshop in Otsego, Michigan in July.  Anyone want to ride out there with me? Otsego is close to Allegan and Kalamazoo, it's possible to haul a  few sheep one way or the other...just thinking out loud here.  Shoot me an email if you're interested in traveling and/or sheep transport.

Speaking of which, I have two ram lambs for sale, including the polled moorit gulmoget  in the photo below and a horned dark moorit who is not pictured.

Hattie's twin gulmoget lambs, she always produces rich color.

Good news - RAIN has come, yeah! The hayfield we planted in alfalfa and orchard grass last year is looking good but the rain is just what it needed. We've had over 4 inches in the past 5 or 6 days.

If you have time, click on this link to a great article about the Shepherd's Harvest festival director Julie MacKenzie. I loved how the reporter picked up the experience so many of us have with raising our own fiber animals. 

Felted Vessel Class

I had a great time in the vessel class taught by Pamela MacGregor at the Textile Center over the past three days.  All the vessels made in class were fabulous.

Class vessels still in progress, but near the end of class, unfortunately Jeanie's bag isn't pictured here.

It's so much fun to see how people work with color and form.

This photo shows the beautiful large vessels in the back better.

I'm a sucker for purple and blue, so I always gravitate toward that.  But I love the way others use green, reds and golds. And the use of the printed fabrics with nuno prefelt.  Lots of inspiration!

Pam giving me some pointers on how to embellish the lid of my vessel. I used BFL britch wool, merino and the purple was hand-dyed Finn.

A big thanks to Kris Post for getting this class organized and special thanks to Pam for coming all the way to Minnesota.  It was wonderful to meet fellow Minnesota felters and those that came from out of the area. I was lucky to sit across from Judy Colvin's friend, Kim Miller, from Montana.

Despite the long drive back and forth to Textile Center each day, with a visitation on Friday night for my dear friend Nancy Hoerner, and shearing squeezed in on Saturday morning, I am energized and excited to try making a larger vessel.

Camille's Lambs

According to my observations, Camille was due on March 29th while I was in training at Kansas City.  My son Alex took a week off of work to stay here and care for Ozzie and all my animals.

I had a great time in Kansas City. It's funny that the second fellow student I met there was from Minnesota also and she happened to be the daughter of a longtime member of the KCAA (the local art group I've been in since 1981).  What a small world!  We had a good time shopping and eating and swimming in the hotel pool in the evenings after class.

I called Alex on my breaks to see if Camille had lambed.  No, nope, nothing. Well, that was okay, I figured she must not have taken on the initial breeding. When I got home from my classroom training, there was a lot post classroom self-study and then 2 days of on the job training and then work all week.  It was a BUSY two weeks.  Exhausting, but interesting and fun.

On Sunday I got a chance to look back over my records from last fall's breeding season.  Sure enough, two weeks after the initial breeding notation, there was a note saying that Hansel thought Camille was cycling.  So I marked her due date for today, April 12th and started to keep a closer eye on her.

Yesterday morning about 11:30, I got off the phone and didn't see Camille out in the paddock.  When I got to the barn, there she was licking off a little musket ewe lamb.  It looked kind of small and thin and so I was pretty sure she'd have another.

I sat with her for quite a while, clipping and dipping the baby's cord, stripping her teats to make sure the milk was flowing.  It was a long time before the second one came.  I took some video of her in labor...this is the smallest one...

The twin was another ewe lamb, very small and petite.  A moorit, mioget, fawn or maybe even musket  gulmoget.  I will have to wait on identifying her color. Both lambs are brown toned, with light under the wool tips, so they both may be Ag (from their mom) and will be musket. 

 I have been wanting muskets in my flock again.  And the fleeces on these two are so tightly curled, like terrycloth. I think they will be really nice!  The gulmoget is actually much smaller than her musket twin.

With all the demands of my new job, I decided to opt out of teaching the lotion making class at Shepherd's Harvest.  And with my rented space in the Anoka Fiber Arts CoOp, I decided to opt out of having a booth at Shepherd's Harvest this year. I will still be there to judge the felting competition and enjoy all the other vendors.  Maybe I'll even take a class.  I'm really looking forward to just going and enjoying the festival this year!

 I'll be working at the Fiber Co-Op this Saturday, if you get a chance, stop in!  The Co-Op is located on the upper floor of the Shepherd's Choice shop, 210 2nd Ave. N., Anoka, MN 55303.

Next week I'm excited to be taking a three day Felted Vessel class from Pam MacGregor at the Textile Center.  Pam is a master of felted vessels.  Her previous experience as a potter really comes through in her covered felt vessels.  Last year when I failed miserably to make a felted vessel for Stan's ashes, I vowed I would take a class.  What a great opportunity this is to have Pam coming right here to Minnesota to teach us!  Thanks to Kris Post for organizing this class.

I will have to be a little late for one day of the vessel class because the shearer is coming early on April 21. YAY!  He's from Wisconsin and doesn't get over this way everyday, so I decided my desire to get the sheep sheared outweighed my desire to attend every minute of the class.  Hopefully I will only be an hour late.  I know the girls will appreciate getting rid of their wool!  And I can't wait to get my hands on it. :-)

Lambs! -- and a Felted Purse!

I'm still crazy busy, but the Shepherd's Harvest booklet is finally at the printer and lambing has started!
You can download the booklet on here --
http://www.shepherdsharvestfestival.org/New_Site/?page_id=559


I only wanted to breed three Shetland ewes, but Hansel had other ideas... So what we have now are the intended pregnancies.  Hattie started it off with a set of twin gulmogets on Sunday night around 10 p.m.  She always seems to lamb at night and outdoors. Last year we lost one of her crossbred twins due to the cold temps and extreme winds on March 13th.  What a change of weather this year!

Who would have ever thought I would be out under a beautiful starry sky, with a warm breeze blowing on my arms (no coat required!) witnessing the birth of lambs in Minnesota in March!  It was so beautiful, there's something very special about being there with your ewes at the birth of their lambs. 

Hattie's ewe lamb, very solid black gulmoget. Very spunky, good size lamb.

Hattie's ram lamb, might be mioget, smooth polled and the best looking fleece of all the lambs so far.

My 4 yr old wether Socks is now in with the ewes (since Hansel went into the freezer in February).  And this was his first time being around lambing ewes.  He's a big Shetland/Bluefaced Leicester cross, in full fleece.  He quietly stood behind my shoulder looking into the calf hut as the newborns were being licked off and finding their legs. It was the first time since Stan's death that I've felt everything was totally right with the world.  What a good feeling!

I went out early the next morning and was surprised to see Heddy come running in the barn with the flock looking for their morning hay accompanied by a set of twins.  What a surprise, Heddy wasn't due until Wednesday.  It's the second time I've missed Heddy's lambing. Darn!  But she did an excellent job with her first set of twins - she's only 2 years old.  Her dark moorit ram lamb (with horn buds) is the first solid colored lamb I've gotten sired by Hansel.  I may need to wether him for a fiber pet, his fleece is SO dark brown. 

Heddy's ram lamb on left and gulmoget ewe lamb on right. She looks like she got her mom's Ag.

Heddy's ram lamb is very dark moorit and the first solid colored lamb we've gotten from Hansel. He has big horn buds.

 

 

I'm pleased with the four lambs so far.  Their ear sets are all very good. Last year I had some airplane ears and longish tails sired by Hansel. River Oaks Camille (Ag grey gulmoget)  is due next week when  I'll be out of state for training for my new job.  My oldest son will be staying here to tend the sheep and chickens and keep poor Ozzie from getting too nervous without me around.

I also had an absolutely wonderful visit with Heather on March 9th.  It was so much fun to be with her visiting the Textile Center, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and StevenBe's yarn shop! We are both Pisces, her birthday is two days earlier than mine, and both were just last week.  Heather made me the coolest felted bag, I just love it!  All my friends have swooned over it.

Back view, the colors are so rich. The other photos don't show them off as much as this one does.

Front of the purse, closed.

Opened to reveal the button closure and a bright red fish.

fully lined with two pockets and the coolest wooden label.

Check out Heather's blog for the process she used in creating it here: http://woollove-functional-fiberart.blogspot.com/2012/03/marine-life-purse-for-pisces-part-3-of.html

I hope to get Heather to come back to Minnesota again to teach some felting classes. She's a great lady.

New Job, New Shop!

I'm taking a moment from working feverishly on the Shepherd's Harvest booklet and getting all my new hire information submitted (I got new job last week!), to share a photo of the half-space I rented in the newly formed "Anoka Fiber Arts Co-Op", located at 210 2nd Ave. N., Anoka, MN, 55303.  We're in the upper level of the Shepherd's Choice shop.  There are 9 vendors offering lots of luscious fibers, yarn, spinning and weaving equipment, shabby chic, rug hooking, and of course felting. Stop in and see us!

You can see I'm selling my full body mannequin (on a wheeled base), a  60" x 90" 2 pound Ile de France quilt batt, the raw felted Lincoln fleece (3' x 5'), along with roving, top, felting sheets, matted photos, felted scarves, and more.

So I am SUPER busy right now, with the booklet, the shop, and the new job. I'll be glad when things get back to normal. I worked with the Census Bureau in temporary positions in 2009 and 2010 and I'm thrilled to be going back on a permanent part-time basis. :-)

Getting ready for the Vasaloppet Art Show this weekend

A lot has been happening here in my little corner of the world, but I don't seem to have time to blog about much these days.

I'm putting the finishing touches on my pieces for the Vasaloppet Art Show this weekend.  Due to the fabulously warm and snow-deficient winter we've enjoyed, there will be NO VASALOPPET SKI RACE this year.  But the art show goes on regardless.   We have invited Jan Wise to come and speak about the work on display at the show.  All of my entries are pretty autobiographical, but abstract. I hope people will enjoy them.

Here is one I call "Handle with Care".   It's made of hand-felted, hand-dyed wool from my Shetland Mule sheep and a goose egg from the Shetland geese. (I applied a stiffener to make a funnel of felt that stands up on its own.)  The other three pieces I'm showing are a series of framed hanging pieces which incorporate hand felted natural colored wool and paper transfer resist dyed felt with twigs, eggshells, stones and feathers attached.  I will try to photograph them before sealing them up in their frames.  I also hope to donate a felted birdhouse to the Silent Auction which benefits the art organization's scholarship fund.

I know I'm late to the game, but I made yogurt for the first time yesterday! Who knew it was so easy.  It tastes great too.  No more buying little plastic containers of yogurt for me.   I'm straining some of it now to see if I can make it into greek yogurt.  Sorry to see how rusty my strainer is in this photo.

Anyway, it all started the other day when I bought some greek yogurt and wondered why it was so expensive.  My neighbor was over and before you knew it, we were looking up how to make yogurt in Carla Emery's book, "The Encyclopedia of Country Living", it seems like no matter what you want to do, she's got the directions in that book.  I bought some whole milk and a small container of plain yogurt to sue as my starter.  I thought incubating in my over-the-range microwave with the light on would keep it close to 110 degrees while the bacteria got started. It was taking a long time, I let it go for 7 hours before I realized the temp was under 100 degrees.  Darn, by then it was almost bedtime.  I got out our old electric heating pad (as mentioned in the book), wrapped it around my quart and pint of yogurt-to-be, and turned it up to high.  Within an hour it was thickened, yeah! I had no idea how thick to let it get, so I put the heating pad on medium and went to bed.  I wanted to be sure to get up in the night and check on it because I didn't want it to get too thick and tart tasting. I managed to drag myself out of bed at 1 A.M. and decided it was thick enough.  So I put it in the fridge and tried to get some decent sleep.

Next time I'll make sure the temp is maintained at 110 degrees, so it should thicken up much faster.  I see by Googling that some people make it in the crock pot too. That sounds easy. Anyway, I put some jam in with it this morning and yummm!

I taught felting to a group of five ladies in late January.  We met at Woodland Cottage in Elk River, MN.  It was a fun but exhausting day.  The all wanted to make something different! I had practiced up by making these felted mittens with Shetland Mule fiber, Finn fiber, and the undercoat from my old livestock guard dog, Schachah (who is now on duty at Sabrina's north of Bemidji, MN).  You can see that Great Pyrenees fiber sheds quite a bit when felted.  But dog fur is supposed to be so much warmer than wool, so I wanted to give it a try.

That same day I whipped up these slippers from black karakul lamb's wool and my white Shetland Mule wool. It was good to get in the studio and work.

Next time I will use black Shetland instead of the black Karakul.  It's a little too hairy for slippers IMO, but it works wonderfully in other projects that need to retain their shape, like birdhouses.

Okay, back to the five ladies, they were all very talented and stuck to their projects. Here is what they made (click to enlarge): a birdhouse, slippers, a wallhanging, and two pieces of decorated flat felt.

And of course there was food and drink after the work was done. :-)

I hope to organize more felting classes here at my studio and at Winnie's Woodland Cottage and perhaps at a log cabin retreat center in Pine City, MN.  I have also lined several up at the Pine Center for the Arts this spring. And I will be teaching lotion making at Shepherd's Harvest Sheep and Wool Festival in May too.  It's going to busy that weekend because I'll be judging the felting competition and having a booth too.  I'm not sure how I will get it all done.