iowa sheep and wool festival

a few weeks ago B and i took another mother-daughter road trip. it was a wonderful weekend adventure at the iowa sheep and wool festival. (i would like to take a moment here and say what a blessing it is to have a daughter! we have the best time together, sharing so many interests, having heart to heart talks, and laughing a lot, too. i am so thankful for our special relationship!) okay, back to the regularly scheduled blog post... B took a beginning spinning class and was able to learn how to use the wheel she got for christmas. her wheel is a beautiful louet s15 that has been stained green and decorated with a fern motif.

hurray! success on the spinning wheel!

B spinning on a drop spindle


carding fuchsia wool

B and i in the bleachers watching the sheep dogs herd their little flocks through the course...

i also took a class and learned a few techniques to spin specialty yarns using mohair. it was rather difficult and i'm not sure if was very successful, but it helped me to break out of my "spinning comfort zone".

left to right: spinning directly from mohair locks, a loopy yarn, spinning onto a core thread

i wanted to try some new fibers so i bought this beautiful silk/merino blend.

this is a wool/angora blend.

i am spinning it now and looking for some kind of cowl/hood/mobius pattern to use with the yarn. do you have a favorite?

everyday gift: a weekend with my girl