Mice

My latest creation is a mouse from my own pattern... I think they are pretty cute. What do you think???

Wild yarn

The red and blue turned out crazy. A teen's or kid's hat??? The
original was a dull light blue with 5-6 knots. So I didn't ruin a
great skein of yarn. I'll make something for the boys?

Scarf done

It is 7-8 feet long. I double it before I wear it. I suppose I could have made it twice as wide and half as long, but I like the flexibility of a long narrow scarf.

Looks nice with black, white, or the right shade of green. I'm happy with the light weight of the silk cotton blend. I wore it to work yesterday.

My second attempt at kool aid dying failed. The color never set. I suspect I didn't wait long enough before taking it out of the crock pot. My third and fourth attempts are hanging to dry. I'll post a photo soon. They didn't bleed and I'm fairly happy with the results.

Kool aid dye

I have this fabulous fiber--70% silk 30% cotton. Perfect for a scarf.
I thought the color rather dull so I experimented with kool aid dye.
What do you think? I'll post the scarf when I'm done. A scarf is a
good way for me to fancy up a plain work outfit. I like a scarf better
than a necklace. Hopefully this silk cotton blend willl work during
warm weather. FYI the kool aid cost more than the yarn.

Rug update and new basket

I've always liked these big tobacco drying baskets. I finally found one. I nearly had a wreck driving past an antique store Sat. The basket was part of a display outside the store--and I made a quick turn into the parking lot to get a closer look.

Mine has a couple of my owls nestled in the bottom. The ones in the Pottery Barn catalogs never have cute owls in them...

Also, here is a photo of the rug. I've not worked on it for about a month. It is still about a third the size I hope to make it. Perhaps I'll have time to work on it this summer.

First Street Fair

I summoned all my available energy, pumped myself full of adrenaline, and Jen and I went to the "Fourth Friday" street fair in Westerville, OH last night as planned.

We had a blast, but I'm feeling pretty shaky this morning.

I didn't sell as much as I hoped, but the woman next to us selling jewelry said that business picks up as the summer goes on. She thinks the people just look the first month. We saw a lot of people. People seemed to like my display, and my monsters. Especially the children. I loved watching the young faces as they walked by, spotted a monster, and stopped. Or at least the head turned as they followed the adult walking in front. I think my table looks a bit too busy, and we have enough room that we will bring a third card table next time and spread out a bit more. And I will edit what I bring next time.

We both paid for our space and made a bit of profit. We had free hot dogs from the fire department stand just down the block, saw some folks we know, and enjoyed a pretty spring evening.

My favorite moments:

A little boy, maybe one, in a stroller reaching for my scariest monster on the top of the display. And hugging it like it was his favorite toy when I let him. His brother and sister put ornaments and gift tags in the mouths of all the other monsters. The mom was kind of embarrassed that they made a mess of the display. I was glad to see kids enjoy the toys. (Mom didn't buy, but she might come back...)

A girl, ten or so, whose face lit up when her dad said she could buy an owl. The feel of wool is addicting!

A college age couple--out on a date. He bought her an owl. She agonized over which one to pick. I like to think that it will be a treasured object in her world--and will last at least as long as the boyfriend does. Maybe she will keep it for years to remind her of a special date. Maybe it will be thrown away in a few months along with other trinkets that remind her of a soured romance. In any case--that little owl has flown the nest and has new adventures ahead.

Jen and her table look great!

I have a lot of new ideas for next time!

Niddy Noddy

I went to the hardware store yesterday, spent a whopping $5.75, and
made a niddy noddy. You can find directions online at many different
sites. There are beautiful wood niddy noddies available online as
well, but this is functional. It works like a dream, once I figured
out the rhythm of it. It is used to wind yarn into skeins for washing
or dying. I added end caps and rubber washers to hold the yarn in the right spots.

I love it!!! (The !!! are for you, Sarah.)