Batt-y Spinning

Last week we had some chilly, rainy days that were perfect for setting up my Louet carder on the kitchen counter.  I shipped it up here along with a wild assortment of fibers for carding crazy artsy batts.  Well six batts later, it was time to start spinning.
Each summer I get reacquainted with my trusty Ashford Tradional wheel with it's single treadle.  I thought I would miss double treadling since my Dallas wheels are all outfitted as double, but years of spinning my grand Rio Grande wheel stands me in good stead with the Traddy.  I put on the jumbo flyer and began spinning two purple-ish artsy batts.  What fun!

 Now I am waiting for some shimmery Sulky rayon thread I ordered from a little shop on Etsy to ply this whimsically  crazy yarn.

I'm hoping that thread shows up at my door this morning.  I will have two big skeins of purple/pink/ you-name-it art yarn!
P.S. Oh, and can you see my shiny new cup holder on my wheel?  I love FBN Plastics on Etsy.

Alpaca Gold

I love this color of gold/yellow. It adds such punch to the batts I love to card. I got it the other day in the dyepot/crockpot by just pouring "apricot" and "maize" Pro-Chem dyes into the pot indiscriminately. Of course, this means there is no assurance I will ever get it again, but this bit of alpaca roving will be hoarded for the carder.

On another note, this bad boy, the big black electric roaster, got added to the dye stable of work horses. I can do an 8-ounce batt in it ever so gracefully. I will have pictures this week.

It's late for me after a super busy, but good weekend. Nitey night, John Boy. Mimi is hitting the hay.

Packing for Boerne

Tomorrow a.m. Maryann and I will head southwest to Boerne, Texas for The Kid N Ewe and Llamas Too Festival. For two years I have been unable to go at the last minute, but it looks like launch is eminent this time, even though a strep diagnosis for me popped up this week. What! almost-senior gets strep??? Anyway, Z-Pac is working it's magic.
I am going to start packing the car today. I haven't decided which workshop I want to join: sock-machine, dyeing cotton fiber, felting feathery merino scarves, spinning with locks. The temptations are many. I'm packing spinning wheel, duh, jumbo flyer for it, fiber to spin, yarn to ply, several knitting projects, cameras and sketching stuff. Oh, and my credit cards and cash, of course. Gotta be ready for all the tempting fibers. I'm especially drawn to gorgeous batts and rovings.
The other plus of this trip is pin-balling through the small towns on the way. I hear we must stop in Hico, Texas for the pie lady. Yum. The rest will be serendipitous.
The Texas Hill Country has a charm I have yet to experience in depth.