Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival

Over the weekend I was in the Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival and what an experience that was!!!
I loaded up the camper (and it was FULLY loaded) with all of the commercial labeled yarns as well as the Sleeping Dragon, Swell Yarns, and Swell Rovings.
I had no idea what to expect and I was totally impressed with the entire show!!! So many vendors it was incredible. A huge turn out of shoppers who were some of the nicest people you could hope to meet. The most perfect weather a person could ask for. The variety of workshops, that I would actually want to take, was impressive. The fleece sales were fun and a great oppurtunity to learn a little more about the different type of sheep. Our camp site was neat too. We were surrounded my some of the nicest vendors who were also camping and these super cute goats.
The super duper highlight of the trip was this early birthday present from my husband.

That's right!!! It's a drum carder-baby!!!! WoooooooHOooooooo!!!

Now I get to card all this raw fiber I couldn't stop myself from buying while I was at the festival :)

Bunny's first hair cut

Remember those cute fluffy little bunnies?! Well, those fluffy little bunnies got their first haircut on Wednesday and they were none too happy about that!!!
Penelope (the little black one) was first and I did a TERRIBLE job!! It took me over an hour! She was not a happy camper-can you tell!!!
By the time I did Pearin (brown), then Piper (grey), I pretty much had it down.
The shearing was not nearly as scary as I had anticipated. I can tell that once I really get the hang of it, it will go very quickly. Just need to come up with a shearing system that works for me and the bunnies.

Check out the funky coloring on Pearin! Grey on top with brown underneath!
I gotta say, I am really having a ball with these little gals! They are so cute and sweet...but when they are running around out of their pen they are T-R-O-U-B-L-E !!! They get into everything! And they love love love the kitty's litterbox! So much so, they lay down in it once they have kicked out much of the litter.
Their own litter box training is going ok. For three months old, they are doing very well...in no time at all they will be able to have full run of the house!

The Pattern!

Okey dokey, here is the pattern for these super cool socks!!! I hope you love them as much as I do!!!

COORDINATING HEEL & TOE,
TOE-UP, AFTER-THOUGHT HEEL,
BASIC SOCK PATTERN by A Swell Yarn Shop

[small-medium] medium-large
Duet Sock Yarn
Coordinating color
Cast on a total of [24]28 stitches with coordinating yarn,
[12]14sts on needle1 & [12]14sts on needle2,
knit 2 rounds before beginning pattern

The Toe
round 1: k
round 2: needle 1: (k1, m1l, knit to last st, m1r, k1) needle2: repeat
Repeat round 1 & 2 until you have [52]56 sts

Main Color
Switch to main color, stockinette in the round
until sock measures 2 ¼” less than the length of your foot.
AT 2 ¼”
round 1: needle1 (k1, m1L, knit to 1 sts remaining, m1R, k1), needle2 (k)
round 2: k
Repeat round 1 & 2 one time [56]60 sts

Marking the after-thought heel
needle1 (k)
needle2 (k) a row using a scrap yarn of the same weight,
*This marks where your after-thought heel will be*
Return sts knit in scrap yarn to left needle,
re-knit the row using the main color.
Continue as usual in stockinette in the round for 2"

Cuff
Still using main color use k2p1 rib pattern
Continue until you are out of main color yarn.

After-thought heel (Coordinating Color)
Remove scrap yarn row and put sts onto needle1 & needle2
Pick up on 1 sts at each end of needle1 & needle2 [56]60 sts
Using coordinating color
round 1: k
round 2: needle1 (ssk, knit to last st, k2tog) needle2 (repeat)
Repeat round 1 & 2 until you have 14sts on each needle [24]28 sts
Kitchner Stitch to close

SURVIVOR IS BACK!!!

Yes, I admit it! I am a total Survivor junky!!! And guess what?! It starts tomorrow!!!! WooHoo!!!
That means every Thursday I can be found parked in front of the TV from 8-9pm, knitting in hand! On occasion, Ken is sweet enough to set up the TV on the back deck, get the fire pit roaring and the bbq grill cooking and we watch it there...makes you almost feel like your are there, ok not really, but at least we can bbq even on Survivor night!!!
Now I just need to find a Survivor Pool and place my bets!!!!

Now the new products

Before I get to the new products I want to first show off the new Bunny Condo (now called the bundo) . I had to stand in the neighbors yard to get a pciture of the whole thing so sorry about the fence in the way. What you see is a Bundo with lots of hiding places, ramps and an upper level...there is a hole from their pen in the kitchen to this Bundo so they can go in and out whenever they'd like!! They are LOVING it!! You should see them zip up to the upper level, down the ramp, up on the box and through the hole into the kitchen around their box, back out the hole, and back up the ramp to the upper level! Yep, they are happy bunnies!!
Ok, as promised, I will show off all the new products that I have been creating. First and most exciting is the new line of sock yarns with the coordinating heel and toe!!
Each Duet Socks skein set will come with a basic, toe-up, afterthought heel sock pattern

I am already on my second pair and it's only been 2 weeks since these new sock yarns were ready!!

I have also created Duets Rovings which are a great twist on 2-ply yarn. Spin up the hand painted roving and spin up the coordination solid and ply them together for a gorgeous yarn.

All these great new items can be found at A Swell Yarn Shop, so come on by and check them out.

What's more important than great new products?!

OK, ok, so I haven't been very good about posting this month...but I have a very good reason.
You see, I have been busily creating a new line of roving called duets (great combos for plying), I have also created a new line of sock yarn duets (great for heel & toe coordinates), I have also been knitting with these great sock yarns so I can show off these super cool yarns! But pictures of all these things will have to wait just a moment because, even as excited as I am about these new products, I have something even better to share with you....
Our animal kingdom just got a little big (ok, alot bigger) because I just adopted 3 baby girl angora bunnies and they arrived home on labor day monday.
Introducing

Penelopie

Piper and Pearin

They have just about settled in. They are still getting used to the sounds of the dogs and just about brave enough to not hide when the dogs come tearing through the kitchen.

If I sit down on the floor with then while they are out for play time, they will all hop back and forth over my lap in a sort of 'Queen of the Hill' fashion. They are all beautiful little bunnies and will become even prettier as they get older. I am a little nervous because their first haircuts are next week and I have to be calm cool and collected when it's time to shear them. We have been practicing combing and laying them on their back so they will trust me when the shearing time comes.

Stay tuned for many many many more pictures to come...oh yeah, and I will post of pictures of knitting related stuff soon too :P