Yup, spring. And a wetter spring than we’ve had in a few of years. We have a bumper crop of henbit, with its pretty purple carpet, in our meadow as well as throughout the countryside and town lawns (the ones that go natural, at least).
Henbit in the morning light in the meadow
It was easy to pick a handful (for at least the past two years it wasn’t), and offer a snack bouquet to the chickens.
Chickens considering a henbit bouquet
This is the time that I get a little wistful that my hens can’t free range the meadow, but I haven’t done a metal sweep of the whole meadow, oh, and there is the plethora of predators. There’s that. Everything likes to eat chickens.
Here is another picture of not-my-cat, but isn’t he in a pretty pose? This definitely gets marked as a favorite and saved for a reference for future art. The arc of the tail! The perfect feet! That light necklace of fur that gives him an even more regal air! Those eyes! I missed the picture of him meowing at me. He will approach, but not allow the familiarity of pets let alone brushing. He is Mr Tom’s Shadow, and they hang out in the meadow.
Thanks to Missy (IAB (Identified At Birth) dog) , I am learning new skills. I can now kick a ball while combing out alpaca fiber. I started singing and she thinks that is my signal I want to throw the ball (laughter also prompts her to bring someone a ball, hmm). My hand were full of combs, but my feet were available to send the ball in various directions. She was quite disappointed when I started to spin and both hands and feet were busy.
Spindles with hooks have a weak point where the hook screw connects with the wood, especially if the shaft is slender. I like slender shaft drop spindles because I feel I can control the spin better and the light weight is more comfortable. I don’t like when I drop it and the shaft cracks. To give the metal to wood join some reinforcements, I decided the wrap the weak area with waxed silk.
Clockwise: scissors, beeswax, silk cord size D, drop spindle
The method I used to wrap is called common whipping. Plugging those two words into your search engine will generate all sorts of illustrations and tutorials, as long as you get the words right. It took me an hour of searching to find the right words, I had a synonym of whipping in my head that I couldn’t dislodge. So, two words: “common whipping” are my gift to my readers today.
Common whipping on a drop spindle with waxed silk cord
I ran an arms span of the silk cord through my wax block three or four times to build up a layer of wax. The wax helps protect the cord and makes it stay in place better. I start my whipping with a loop laid along the shaft. I wrap toward the loop, run the end of the cord through the loop, then pull the loop end to draw the ends into the middle of the wrap. (This is where the internet search comes in handy if you are a visual learner.)
I used silk because I tried hemp and it wasn’t strong enough and the diameter made a wrap thicker than I wanted. Waxed linen is also commonly used, and is strong, but I didn’t have any on hand.
Then hens are laying eggs again! (And I can’t help the sound track in my head of “We’re in the money”, even though the price of keeping the chickens is far above even the current cost of a dozen eggs.)
First spring egg
It has been four months since my hens have laid an egg. I saw one do the ready squat the day before I found this nugget in the nesting box. Admittedly, I do not make them into production machines by giving them more light in the morning, so their winter laying break is a long one. The hens are also going into their third summer, which is past a production bird’s peak performance, and eight hens lay enough for my family and the occasional gift of a dozen. I don’t get enough to sell regularly.
White speckled egg
Still, it is nice to have fresh eggs again, knowing where they get their nutrition.
Critters and Craft 