11.30.07
Posted in Knitting, Redwood Living at 8:59 am by Lynette
About 4 months ago I contracted with a guy I’ve never met or talked to to make me a picker. He is a woodworking student at his community college and I was going totally on a recommendation from someone I’ve also never met or talked to on a fiber group. Why would someone want to pay loads of $$’s for something and take such a chance? Call it a hunch.
This past week this huge box came via UPS. I just got to unpacking it last night and lookie here
As DJ calls it, my Medieval torture device.
For you non fiber folks, this is a picker that will pick apart the fleece before it goes through the carder that then combs all the fibers nice a smooth for spinning.
Who made it? Go here to see
NEXT
Another one bites the dust.
Since we were gone on our mini vacation for 4 days we brought home the pets a gift. Shasta, our akida/lab mix love squeaky toys. In fact they are a drug. She cannot get enough of one. We’ve tried several kinds and decided to go to the source of all squeaky toys, PETCO. They guaranteed she would not be able to get this squeaky out for days.
Hmmmm, one day. Now I’ve got squeaky toy guts in the front yard.
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11.28.07
Posted in Festivals and Vending at Shows, Knitting, Redwood Living at 11:34 am by Lynette
I’ve put my sock inventory in my ETSY store. They are listed according to sizes. You can follow the links below to see what is still available.
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11.26.07
Posted in Redwood Living at 4:24 pm by Lynette
A quick 6 hour drive and we’re back home. It is always nice to be home but not nice to come home to our neighbor burning his trash and dog doo doo. Oh boy!
The time has come for the Christmas push. I have 50 pair of socks to knit for customers all of which need to be in the mail no later than the 18th. I also have 2 pair of slippers, one sweater, 3 hats and 6 pair of socks to knit for my gifts. I think I need a schedule.
Those 4 day old left overs are calling to me so I’m off to eat stale turkey. Yum!
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11.25.07
Posted in Festivals and Vending at Shows at 10:33 am by Lynette
I always forget how living on the Pacific Coast dictates how I feel. We’re in Bend Oregon and I spent yesterday vending at the SunRiver Holiday Traditions Festival. It was a nice event, many talented folks. Two friends I made in Shaniko in September invited me to share their booth space. The bonus was our condo was right out the back door of the vending hall. We set up in the morning and I spent the day demoing on the sock machine and selling socks.
This morning I am parched. The fan in our condo ran all night long and I swear sucked out all the moisture in the air, my lungs and skin. I feel like I am stranded on a desert island. So I ran the tub full of hot water and sat in the bathroom and breathed. Ahhhh… Ok, enough complaining.
Here are some images of this past two days.
A bit of snow on the pass by Crater Lake
The booth. These gals have it down pat. I liked how they used PVC poles in umbrella bases to set up a black curtain divider. It provided a nice backdrop to our booth and separated us from the lady behind.
So it was a good day. I met my goals and I have some new great ideas for next year.
Now we’re off to a real mall to do some shopping. Talk about sensory overload. I hate mall shopping. When the only shopping opportunities you have is Wally World and Home-Boy Depot, a mall is very intimidating.
On Tuesday I’ll be putting all the socks I have remaining in my inventory up on my store. Check back then if you are looking for a great gift or stocking stuffer.
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11.19.07
Posted in Knitting at 7:36 am by Lynette
Give a wonderful gift for the Holidays, a birthday, Mother’s or Father’s day or just treat your feet to 4 pair of comfortable handmade washable wool socks. Socks are knit by shoe size.
Sizes range from Women’s 5 through Men’s 16.
SPECIFY SHOE SIZE WHEN ORDERING.
Men will receive socks either in greens, blues or browns. No pinks or yellows!
Cost for the club is $85.00
Cost includes four pair of custom knit socks and shipping.
Click here to see How it works…
Starting on the 20th of the month you choose and continuing for the 3 following months (4 months total), you will receive one pair of custom handmade superwash wool socks each month for a total of 4 pair. The socks are made to fit the shoe size you specify.
Fernwood Woolworks specilizes in knitting socks from their hand paint superwash wool. Located in the Pacific Northwest, Fernwood Woolworks custom knits socks on their 1903 LeGare Circular Sock Machine. The articulated heel in the socks make for a perfect fit.Inspiration for our dyed yarn comes from our surroundings, the beautiful Redwood National Forest, the Pacific Ocean and the Six Rivers Recreation area. Each pair of socks will be knit using one of our custom dyed yarns.When ordering specify the Men’s or Women’s shoe size.
If this is a gift, please notify us and we’ll send you a gift certificate suitable for enclosing in a card.
What better gift than four pair of custom handmade wool socks. Made in the USA from superwash wool raised and harvested in the USA.
You can place your order by going here.
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11.12.07
Posted in Festivals and Vending at Shows, Knitting at 10:41 am by Lynette
This past Saturday I spent the day with my good friend Linda vending at the Brookings Holiday Bazaar. This is the second year we’ve vended this show. There were 100 different booths set up in the High School and Jr. High.
Here is our very small 8 X 8 booth. See the 72 pair of socks on the left? And my sock machine right in front of that.
Once again it was a learning experience. Things I learned:
1. No matter what you sold last year at a specific event, you will sell something totally different this year. Last year was purses and socks, this year was gloves and hats and socks.
2. The Brookings Bazaar is a nice event with very nice people. Other than the guy who was behind us that made a very snide remark about me being a fattie just like him. Jerk
3. You have to do your own thing as far as pricing goes. I felt a bit sorry for a gal who had a booth just down from us. She hand knits socks for $45 a pair. This my blog buddies is a great price. Considering it takes about 12 hours to knit pair of socks. But I undercut her price by $25. I sell mine for $20 a pair.
4. Rain does not prevent folks from coming out. In fact I think it helped. We had alot of traffic and I did better than last year.
5. You have to start preparing for Christmas in August. My goals were not met as far as inventory. Next year I’ll do better.
I know there were many booths that didn’t sell a thing. It wasn’t that their items were not quality or unique, the public is fickle.
The worst item I saw for sale. What you may ask is it?
A peeled carrot with a 1/2 inch wide piece of pvc pipe with a rock glued on top.
A 1 carrot ring. Ugh!
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11.09.07
Posted in Redwood Living at 9:40 am by Lynette
You gotta just love when your plans work out. This year I planted black oil sunflowers not only because they look like this when they’re blooming with all those hungry bumble bees pollinating everything…
But because they look like this. I picked all the big fat ones and dried them in the sunroom…
Food for the Oregon Juncos. I am so impressed with myself sometimes!
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11.06.07
Posted in Knitting, Redwood Living at 9:23 am by Lynette
That roving I received yesterday is pulling me into it’s twisted vortex. Every time I walk out into the Fortress of Solitude I calls to me. Spin us, SPIN US, SPIN US. Must resist spinning, must knit socks.
Yesterday was a very productive day. Not only did I get the DH to work on time, the kids to school but I knit 5 pair of socks in the morning
, dyed 4 skeins in the afternoon and then….(cue evil music) the roving arrived.
Maybe I’ll just whip out the ole drop spindle and twist a bit up. Just for kicks and giggles. You know, so I can write a review for the blogosphere.
On the home front. This past weekend we spend cutting back the front yard, getting ready for those never-ending rains that feed these 100+ foot tall trees that surround my house. The Oregon Junco’s have arrived in force. 
They are like a little army. Taking turns at the died out sunflowers and the bird feeders. The cat is beside herself. 
Which window to look out. The arrival of the Juncos tells me that winter is not far off. But the weather has been beautifully, clear and warm (warm for us is 70 degrees). This is the time of year tourists should come. No fog, wind or rain.
Time to get the kids off the school…oh no…I have to walk past that evil roving again. Wish me luck and strength.
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11.05.07
Posted in Knitting at 1:25 pm by Lynette
A Big box of roving. I purchased fleece at the Shaniko Wool Gathering. It was a weak moment probably the result of being in that 100 year old barn with all that wool. Everyone was buying fleece so I figured, what the heck. The best part was I didn’t have to bring it home. I just walked across the isle and handed it to Charolette at Superior Fibers. She took it away and it came back like this. I would love to give you a review of how this spins but as I said, I have to put it up for now. It looks really good though.
For those of you who are not spinners, this is a s*it load of roving (pardon my french). This represents 3 Romney cross fleeces and one Jacob fleece. They very nicely separated the colors in the Jacob fleece so I can knit a fair isle something.
I am so excited but I have had to put this up on the fiber shelf until December. Today I also got 30 skeins of yarn in the mail to make socks for a customer to give as Christmas gifts. Add to that a show this Saturday and one two weeks after that and having to mail out the Rainy Day Yarn Club packages. So far I’m feeling really good about my ability to meet all my obligations.
So, a word to the wise, if you want me to make socks for you for holiday gifts, you need to contact me soon to be put in the production line. (Doesn’t that sound official? Production Line.) Oh yes, I also now have a business phone, and I’m advertising in Capital Press and Green Living Journal starting in December. Uptown baby, that’s me!
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11.03.07
Posted in Redwood Living at 10:32 am by Lynette
Football last night and our Del Norte Warriors have finished the regular season 9 - 0. I was surprised to see the stands partially empty. This is small town America where football and basketball are supreme. Most people either go the games or tune in to our local country station to listen to the live broadcasts. I guess they decided why go, the last time they played McKinleville they won 50 - 0.
We have a very good team this year, no where near the team combination of Chuck and Buck a few years ago. Buck Pierce, our home town famous football guy, is the quarterback for the BC Lions in the Canadian Football League. They won the equivalent of the Super Bowl in Canada last year.
Even though this year’s team is talented, they will go on to play either Marin Catholic or Napa. They will get stomped as they usually do. Coming from a small town where the County population is 13,000 to play a team like Marin Catholic who recruits from many hundreds of thousands players seems unfair to me. But it’s just football baby!
There was an unfair event that happened at the game last night. As usually happens in a game where semi-men clash into each other wearing metal head gear and pads, there were injured players. The stands go silent, the PA guy says “we have an injury on the field”. The players on each side ‘take a knee’, no one talks, the cheer leaders ‘take a knee’. It is dead quite. Then the player gets up and walks off the field. “He is up and walking on his own” the announcer guy says. Everyone claps and the game goes on.
During the 3rd quarter the cheer team was doing one of those tower-lifty-thingies that most mom’s cringe at. While bringing the ‘flyer’ down they dropped her. The game went on. There was a bit of mumering, the cheer coordinators ran out. She lay flat on the ground, legs flat, not moving. The game went on. We held off the advance of the other team to stop a touchdown by them. The cheer adults called for the ambulance. They brought the board, had her sit up for a while. The game went on. We got the ball and marched down the field. They got the cheerleader up and walked her to the ambulance. She collapsed again. Yippee, we made first down. Where is the justice in that. It just shows what is really important. Football players, not cheerleaders.
Shame on you fans. Shame on you football players. Shame on you announcer guy. Shame on your coaches.
I have half a mind to write a letter to the editor.
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