Can a Spinning Wheel fit in a Forester?

Yup. It can!

On our way down to RI to visit my family for Easter, we stopped in Bellingham, MA (at the Whole Foods Market...why don't we have one in NH?) to meet lovely Ilene...and to pick up my new wheel.

Eeeeeek! It's great. Yes, at spinning on Friday, a lot of women were bashing Ashford wheels, but I still LOVE, LOVE my Joy and I'm so happy to get this new Traditional. It's how I've always thought a spinning wheel should look like. This one is for home and my Joy will still be for traveling. So far, I've had 1 minute (literally) to spin on it, but I'm looking forward to many, many more hours on it this coming weekend.

I've been up to my eyeballs (with my patience level at NIL) in packing and getting my older son (who is usually known around here as Cyberworm) ready for his trip to D.C. with his 8th grade class. There is a list 5 pages long of all the things he's got to bring, can't do, should do and what he should think 24 hours a day (well, maybe not THAT far...). But, it helps for me to know what he'll be up to all day long...not that it will make me miss him any less. He's been driving me BONKERS for the last week, but I know I'll be crying in the car all the way home from dropping him off. (Beware of me on the road if you live in Londonderry and plan to be driving around about 5:30 am)

Anyway, Easter was fun...I got to see my sister's new apartment (awesome! I wish it were mine...I tried to stow myself away, but Ian noticed I was missing...damn it!) and was able to give my Grandma her sweater....which she LOVED! My sister took a pic of her in it, so I can hopefully post that soon. She put it on right away and seemed very appreciative. It fit her perfectly...though it might have been a bit long (she's like 4'8" to my 5'2") and a bit roomy around the bust.

My mom and dad made a great lunch (Ben and I had turkey burgers!)...and everyone else had ham, potatoes and such. Ian and I took the kids to the playground (where I used to go as a kid!) and my sister came, too, which was fun. I REALLY wished that I'd brought my camera. After the kids got tired of playing (it was freezing out), my sister and I took the kids home and Ian did more geocashing. He is SO addicted!

My mom got the kids tons of cool toys and candy...she got me a Hello Kitty dvd and lollipop, some makeup and candy, too. Am I spoiled or what??? It was a fun time and I was glad I got a chance to spend with them. On the way home, Ben kept saying, "I miss her......!" (meaning my mom) So sad...

Good news, though. I got my fiber swap package from the beautiful and talented and super awesome Kimberly of The Giving Flower and, when I tell you it was FANTASTIC, I so mean it!

I got these:



[golden and blue fiber are 100% merino and the red (oh, Ericka, you're going to drool when you see this!) is merino and luscious tussash silk! Plus, a handmade herbal bag with lavender! Smells so good!]

and these:



[tons of yummy chocolate from Germany...do you know that those eggs have TOYS in them??? Not just junk, but very cool toys?? The kids went crazy over them!]

and this:



[PINK!!! Regia self striping sock yarn....oh, Kimberly, I love you!]

and, finally, these:



[Hello Kitty magazine (in German...so cool!), pencil and adorable notepad set in a cute tin...she even gave me the HK shopping bag in came in...oh, I'm a pile of mushy love!]

Thank you so much, Kimberly! BEST SWAP EVER!!!!

And, last Wednesday, I bought these yarns from the talented Heather:



Punky in Pink and Martian...aren't they awesome??

Finally, a pic of my progress on my Lizard Ridge....



Hope you all had a great holiday and my next post will be goodies to win if you send in a "Ask Sleepy Eyes" question. 'Night!

P.S. Here are some belated pics of the snow we got last week...it was disappointing because I thought spring had come! But, it was pretty....



and one pic looking up at the ceiling of the sunroom....

Absolutely NO willpower....

No, I'm not talking about dieting (which, of course, I have no willpower for either...or I wouldn't be dieting constantly)...I'm talking about the Lizard Ridge afghan.

After seeing (and feeling) a swatch of the afghan at Yarn and Fiber on Sunday, I just couldn't wait any longer.

I've been trying my VERY BEST to put off starting this....I was trying to finish at least two or three of the current projects I'm working on, but....alas, it wasn't meant to be.

So far, I've completed one of the 24 "squares". I'm using colors 40 and 183 right now...of the Noro Kureyon. The designer has written the pattern so that you make 24 of these "squares" and then sew them all together. You'd have to sew 6 of them end to end to make one long panel and then sew the 4 long panels together to make the afghan. I'm going to save myself a WHOLE lot of sewing and just continue on through the squares (without binding off and casting on again) so that I make one long, continuous panel. Then, make 3 more. I'll only have to sew up the 2 long center side panels that way. (and I'll save some yarn, too)

I'm LOVING the pattern, too. The first time you go through the 12 row pattern, it's confusing (or at least it was for me). I also didn't realize that the pattern was written so that the bubbly parts are SMOOTH at the edges and not ridged, like the one I saw at the yarn store. I had the hardest time figuring out how to make the sections BUMPY...until I had a sudden "DUH" moment...instead of doing the 5 transititon rows in stockinette, you just do it in GARTER! DUH!

So, I've decided to work a little on it here and there so I can start using it once the cooler weather comes in October/November. I figure, if I can make one part of the 24 in less than one day, then it will only take me a month or less (have to figure in sewing the panels and doing the crocheted border) to make the whole thing. So, I have PLENTY of time, right?? Right?

I also have a picture of ONE of the finished handspun skeins of yarn I made from the Coopworth fleece that I washed, combed, etc. I only used 1/4 of the finished fiber and I got 75 yards of 3 ply worsted weight yarn....about 12 wpi. It is MUCH softer than I thought it would be (but not like angora or cashmere...or even merino) and so "homey". Now, if I can finish spinning the rest, I have plans to make Ben a hat and mittens for next winter.



And, dum dum dum dum (drum roll please), I have the long overdue picture of the first Radiance Lace Headband pattern completed! Well, one besides the two I made!



It's Cayli of Spin A Yarn for Ewe!!!

Cayli not only knit my headband pattern (the Amanda), but also spun the yarn herself!!! And, not only that, but she used our very own Heather's handpainting roving!!! It's the Beaches colorway and in the superwash merino/tencel fiber...you can find her fiber HERE. Isn't that amazing? Like a partnership of handpainting/spinning/knitting/designing all at once. Doesn't she look fantastic in this?



And, lastly, here is the yarn I spun for lovely Donna. It's only 1/2 of the 2 oz of merino/bombyx silk fiber from Chasing Rainbows...the Moonstone colorway I spun up here is the third from the left. I got 75 yards of 3 ply sportweight from 1 oz of the fiber. It's super shiny and I hope she likes it. I'm working on her Ashland Bay purple-ish merino top right now.

Any more headbands in the works????