Thor the cat is really fascinated with spinning yarn. He is a good boy in that I tell him it isn’t his and he backs off, but he does try to get as close as he can. He is particularly tempted when I am spinning a drop spindle while seated.
We are full on Spring here in Texas. It was quite a mild winter, and I was afraid the grape hyacinths were not going to bloom since they started growing their greenery at the end of last year, but they not only are in bloom, they are putting on a spectacular showing.
We have oxalis in the front bed, also volunteering, that started off as a dense carpet and with recent rains has become quite lush. I like oxalis because of the leaf shape and delicate yellow flowers that come later in the year. I think it makes quite a nice ground cover or border and does a fair job choking out other weeds.
We also have Gregg’s mist flower emerging from the area where we planted it last year. No photos yet, but very excited that it does well there.
Blocking a knit item really can work wonders. My Helix scarf increased in length about a third, making it a nice size. I’m glad I didn’t add on.
This could be my favorite piece of spinning and knitting that I’ve done. I started spinning the yarn about a year ago, and knitting it took me about a month. That being said, this was not my only project during that time. I call myself a serial crafter, but really I should consider the title parallel crafter. A parallel serial crafter. A craft dispatcher. Hm. This train derailed, but I’m glad the scarf made it to the station.
I finished knitting my Helix scarf! It has lovely ripples when laid out, but is a bit short. I used all my hand spun blended wool and silk yarn, so if I need to add on, it would have to be a different color. Hm. I think I will block it (get it wet and lay it out) before making rash decisions.
I really love this pattern, and the way they do the short rows. It really is a wonderful way to show off hand spun yarn, and I like the subtle variation in color that the blended fiber produced.
A few days ago I noticed one of the hens exhibiting squat behavior, which usually means they are getting ready to lay eggs. Sure enough, I found our first egg of Spring! It is a month later than last year, which was a month later than the year before. The hens are nearly 5 years old, so not terribly surprising. Spring tends to have a higher mortality rate as their reproductive track kicks back into gear, so I’ll need to keep a closer eye on them. We are down to five hens at the moment. They all weathered the Winter just fine, although I’d hesitate to call the last three months “winter” here in TX. It was more of a long wet fall.
Critters and Craft 