April 23, 2008

Ryan Seacrest is entirely too tan

FIRST! THE FIBER FEST!

So, as you may know, I purchased a Fall fiber share from the Martha's Vineyard Fiber Farm, and this past weekend was their Spring sheep shearing festival. Here's what I have to say about that.

Susan Gibbs is my hero. She decided she wanted to be a shepherd, so she just... became a shepherd (it was THAT EASY, too!) She's the kind of down to earth that you don't realize is missing from so many people until you see it again, and she's funny and was so welcoming and sweet to us, and thankful that we bought shares into her business without really even knowing what we'd be getting. For some reason, I simply didn't have any doubt at all that it would be quality. But really, it wasn't just a fiber fest, it was a full on love fest as well. Starting, of course, with the star of the day, Basil, 2 months old (and HUGE):

Basil and I have a little snuggle:



Jess is in her element:



The handsome Roquefort:



Roquefort and I totally making out:



Ken and our charge for the week, Sandy (with whom I have fallen in love and almost cried when we had to give her back to Ken's mom Sunday). Yes, that's a mohawk. Because I can, and because she let me.



Look how fluffy she is! I LOVE this dawg.



Nothing like a man and his (mom's) dog



So, you may be wondering what the yarn looks like- the stuff that comes from those wacky animals on Martha's Vineyard. Well, I happened to get a skein! This is a GORGEOUSLY soft worsted weight in an incredible variegated green called Parsley. I insist you all go immediately to Susan's Etsy store and buy some for yourself.

The current combination of this yarn and size 7 circulars is producing the Sofia Cowl from One Skein Wonders with it, designed by Jessie Dotson.



Also on the needles is a plain vanilla pair of socks, knit in one of my favorites, Austermann Step, with a Trekking XXL heel and toe just for the hell of it.



And finally, the finished Eyelet Swirl socks (that rock.)

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Jenny, oh my gosh. That first picture is so sweet and adorable that I think rainbows are going to shoot right out of my eyes. I love it! (Also, I typed "rainblows" first.)

Ariel said...

DUDE - when I first saw that picture of Sandy and read "our charge for the week," I somehow thought that part of your fiber CSA share was getting to take one of the animals home for the week. Then I wondered what kind of bus Ken was on that let goats ride in people's laps. And if it crapped in his lap the whole way. Mom's dog makes a lot more sense.

And I love the Trekking heel on the Austermann socks. Can you please, please, please teach me the mysterious ways of the short row heel some day soon? It looks so cool in stripy yarn!

Quirkles said...

The fiber fest was a highlight of my life. What an amazing day. And it was lovely to be able to share it with you, too. And you're already knitting with the yarn!

Sarah said...

I also thought you had adopted a farm animal for the week. It looks like you had such an amazing time and I got to touch Jess' yarn and it think I may have to invest next season!

Anonymous said...

Wasn't it fabulous?? I had such a great time, and Susan couldn't have been nicer.

Now, about Roquefort. We were there until the very end and he was the last goat to be sheared, but unlike all the others, he's dark. By then, I was standing on the far side of the "finished" pen with Chappy, and when they put Roquefort into the pen with the others . . . Chappy barked at him! Apparently it worried him that there was a dissimilar animal in with the herd--maybe he thought it was another dog--something, anyway, that he felt deserved a warning. He barked a couple of times and then seemed to get a good whiff and realized it WAS a goat, and that it was fine that he was in there. But it worried him. Considering he's genetically bred for hunting and not for herding, I thought that was pretty impressive. (And, Roquefort looked adorable without his fleece, though I think I was tired of taking pictures by then.)

I don't think we actually TALKED to each other (grin), but we stood next to each other and oohed and aahed, so I feel like we met anyway! See you next year??