twas the night before christmas....

and knitting am i! it doesn't need to be under the tree for another week, so i'm not panic knitting.

the cookies and carrot are ready for santa, ( he is tucked into bed) we sprinkled the oatmeal with glitter for the reindeer, watched our holiday movie ( polar express ) and all the creatures are at rest. i'm enjoying a glass of wine, the tree and the peace of the evening. i read an interesting post today celebrating those who make the season happen. the energy that chooses the gifts, gets them wrapped, bakes the cookies, plans the gatherings, shops for the food..... the magic of the holidays. it's a learned skill.... watching mom plan and make it happen, seeing my generation take the task and make it our own. the traditions have evolved but the constant is the love and care we bring. making it our own, incorporating our talents, honoring the past and putting our own into it.

this year ran with but a few hiccoughs. the unplanned colds, keeping track of dad's well-being, but an easy navigation. we delivered the last gingerbread house....

tomorrow we spend with family... just enjoying each other for the day.

and i'll get that knitting done!

merry holidays.....

i've been spinning

with all the frantic knitting excitement surrounding ~christmas on the farm~ i found myself in need of some time at my wheels. i started spinning some of amy's lovely wool/silk blend the day of the event, so i just kept going. as i was going along, i noticed that robin nistock had some roving titled: wine country, that would be perfect to ply with what was on my wheel. i wanted a pound, and since there was a titch more in the bag, i took the entire thing.... it just seemed right!

i wanted chunky, homespun yarn..... not sure what it will be ( i may stay on this boot topper craze)

i think the top picture is the better representation of color. it's grey outside, so all my photo's are dismal! while i was empting that wheel, i finally finished my rhinebeck roving.

last year i got the colorway in a merino/silk blend. this year i got it on my wheel and decided to use my new skill (from barbara perry's class) and plyed it with thread. i love it! it let me keep the long bands of color, but made it a two ply that will increase my options for a finished product.

the last set of boot toppers. these are a gift so i was anxious to finish them up. now back to my regularly scheduled projects.

 

that amy

the second annual Christmas on the Farm is fast approaching...... actually, it's this weekend. amythefibergoddess and i have been dyeing yarn and roving, she's been stitching, beading, creating.... all amazing things that will be for sale. this is an excellent time to shop for that knitter or spinner or grab bag gift or yourself :)

the hot new accessory? boot toppers! they are everywhere, on legs of all ages and amy has the yarn. we custom dyed lots of amazingly soft, squishy, yarn for anyone who wants a quick handmade gift.

so here's how the phone conversations went after our dye day on tuesday......

amy: i've got an idea
me:awesome, i'm in!
amy: don't you want to hear it?
me: it doesn't matter.... i'm in!

with all that yummy yarn, she wanted to put together gift packs with a pattern and the yarn all set to give or knit. we needed a pattern and a test knitter. any of you that know us can see what happened next.......

how hard could it be? i've made leg warmers, so this is the almost the same thing.... right? i started swatching, playing with ideas and sizes and voila......

boot toppers! wear them up or.....

cuffed over your boot. it's taking me about a day to knit one, so you could easily finish a set (or two) before the holiday. the pattern is super simple and will be included with the yarn. amy will have these all packaged for gifting........

a skein of stone edge fibers hand dyed yarn with the christmas on the farm boot topper pattern.....

that amy!