Bunny Love

We are so proud to introduce our new babies. We are parents to two English Angoras. We went on quite the adventure traipsing from the north west border of the Missouri to the central east border of the state and back for the two of them but they were quite worth the trip! We acquired them from a wonderful breeder (Margaret Bartold) who has been showing and loving angoras for 25 years. She was amazing and took lots of time to explain everything to us and get us set up with what we needed to have and know to take them home. I can't say how appreciative I am of her time and patience with us. I know she will be a continued valuable resource to us in our bunny adventure.

We started out on the trip thinking that we were only bringing one bunny home, a doe. However halfway across the state over a discussion of not being able to find a 25 lb bag of feed and how it would be such a waste to get a 50 lb bag and not be able to use it up quick enough, my dear husband proclaims "We will just have to get two!" I was pretty shocked at this response, I felt lucky to be getting one to bring home but he knew that eventually I would like to breed them. So here we are halfway there with one carrier and only one hutch at home! Luckily we were able to make another stop to acquire everything else we would need and super luckily were able to get the same type of hutch as we already had and they are stackable : )

Both of our new babies are ARBA registered. Our doe is TM's Sapphire which we have nicknamed Lulu. She is lilac. Our buck is TM's Midnight who we have nicknamed Obsidian or Sid for short. He is black. His Dam was Lilac so if we ever do decide to breed we will probably get lilac which I really like : )



Lulu is still taking some time to warm up to us but I have been able to get her in and out of the hutch (she grunted at me once...) and she has hopped around and smelled everything. We also had a brief brushing session last night. I think she is opening up some. She spent the first day in the back of the hutch looking grumpy but in all fairness I would be a little grumpy coming to a new home and such a long trip!



Sid was instantly at home! He wants to be out hopping around all the time. If I come in the room where they are kept (my craft room) he is right at the door like "hey mom, let me OUT!!!". If you start to open the door he is trying to pull it up and wants to hop right out. He is also quite lovey, he follows me around and runs circles around me and then lays beside me for lots of pets and scratches. I have been able to brush him out quite a bit since he is a lot more at ease with me already.



I know this is going to be a fun new adventure, I can't wait until I have some fluff to spin but it is a bonus to have new babies to love on as well! Our other "baby" loves them too!! This is Hannah and Lulu

Fun with Fiber!

"I've been gone for too long, think it's time I bring it back..." or at least that's what Ciara said!- blame my 13 year old daughter for the rap song refrences lol : )

Seems that you can't post fun pics on the Rav forum without hosting them from your blog anymore so this gives me a place to post pics of new adventures. Here is a little evidence of the latest one!

FSM Fleece washing adventure!

Starting with Romney/Rambouillet Fleece



In the pot for 12 days!! Stinky but not too horrendous!



First batch after 1 wash in hot, hot water and a little swig of arm and hammer laundry detergent and 1 plain hot, hot water rinse and a final hot, hot rinse with a swig of apple cider vinegar. Now it smells really clean! I need to wait til it dries on the screen to see if I was sucessful at getting the lanolin out. This was a very greasy fleece!



Here is a before and after shot (the dirty batch just hopped in the tub for it's turn! Stay tuned for results : )


Here's a little teaser for the beginning of my next fiber adventure! Going to pick up my new baby on Tuesday and that's all I'm saying ; )

Punk Princess Fingerless Mitts

A new pattern out today : ) These mitts were designed for my daughter, Hannah. She loves punk, anything purple, blue and lime green but still has a soft spot for butterflies. These mitts are quick and fun. They are a great way to accessorize. They can be made with or without the beads. If you make them shoot me a link to project, I'd love to see them!

If you are interested in the pattern it is available for $1.99 here : buy now

The pattern features written and charted instructions. You will need 250 yards of fingering weight yarn and size 2 (2.75mm) needles (set of 4 dpns). If you have any questions please feel to contact me at mommabear6976@yahoo.com. You can see more details on my Ravelry page: http://www.ravelry.com/projects/mommabear6976/punk-princess-fingerless-mitts

Josie Fingerless Gloves

Another free pattern. These fun and easy fingerless gloves are a great last minute glove that both teens and adults will appreciate. They are great for keeping your fingers free while typing, texting, writing, knitting, digging in your purse or any other activity where you need your fingers free : ) I have another pattern of fingerless gloves in the works. It contains beading for something different and fun. I will let you know when it is ready to go!

http://www.scribd.com/doc/25340221/Josie

My first pattern

Today I am putting up my first pattern for public use. I have played around with designing in the past but this is first one that I think is worthy of release : )

This is a cable and lace scarf with beads added for a little more "wow". It is a lot simpler than a first glance would indicate. Take a look and if you knit it let me know I'd love to see pics!

http://www.scribd.com/doc/22578186/Sojurn-Falls-Scarf

Beading Tutorial

I have been asked by many people how I go about adding beads to my hand knits. There are several methods and lots of tutorials on how to do this. I have tried a few methods. I took what I liked and improvised this way of doing it. To me it is the least fiddly and quickest as well.

Happy Beading!

http://www.scribd.com/doc/22341876/Beading-Tutorial

Getting Started

A new adventure for me! I have read and followed a few blogs from time to time but now I am venturing out with my own. I hope to have some designs up soon to offer to Ravelry and other knitters : )