Relaxation
Is total peace...
Den Ming~Dao

Wow…has it ever been warm here in NH this week!  Most all of the snow has melted, the buds are popping up in the garden and there are signs of Spring all around….and…..the Robins are home…yay!

Just in time to celebrate Spring are a few new kits in the shop.

First is Susan's fantabulous new Shawl… Fog Lifter.  Isn't it beautiful?

A few months ago Susan contacted me about some yarn for a birthday shawl for our friend Margene.  I was so excited to be a part of this surprise. 🙂

I sent her a box of different yarns and colors and at the very last minute I dyed up some Oasis Blue Moon as it always reminded me of Margene and her beautiful blue Utah skies.  Go take a peek at how beautiful Margene looks in her new shawl.  Susan is a very talented designer and was kind enough to offer me this version of the pattern to make up kits for my shop.  Susan will also be offering the pattern via her ravelry store in a sock weight version soon.

1. Explain what ended your last relationship?

Death….still very hard for me even after all these years. 😦

2. When was the last time you shaved?

Umm….it's winter, so I am a little more relaxed.  Ewww…I know…LOL

3. What were you doing this morning at 8 a.m.

Finishing my first French Quarter sock and sipping coffee.

4. What were you doing 15 minutes ago?

Feeding the dogs and doing some office work. (boring…but that's a page in my day. )

5. Some things you are excited about?

My studio/shop is finally finished and functioning!!  w00t!  It's so nice to have all of the fiber in it's own home…not my kitchen

6. What is your favorite flavor of JELL-O?

Strawberry/banana…yum

7. Your prom night, what do you remember about it?

How tiny I was to fit into that dress and my date's yellow tux..haha!

8. Do you have any famous ancestors?

I haven't a clue….

9. Last thing received in the mail?

Some primitive rabbits. (fabric rabbits).  A Woolen Rabbit can never have too many. 😉

10. How many different beverages have you had today?

3. Coffee and water..

11. Do you ever leave messages on people’s answering machine?

Yes….but I hate talking to machines!

12. Do you draw your name in the sand when you go to the beach?

Nope….I plunk my chair right in the water so my feet keep the rest of me cool while I read. 🙂

13. Any plans for Friday night?

Friday night is date night here too and it usually involves Pizza and wine.

14. Do you like what the ocean does to your hair?

I'm with Carole on this one….hell no….but I do love the salt water sooooo much more than lake water (ew)

15. Have you ever received one of those big tins of 3 different popcorns?

Once….they are pretty nasty.

16. Do you re-use towels after you shower?

With 5 kids we got into the habit of everyonereusing their own for a few days.  Now that most of the kids are on their own, we still re-use them.  Old habits are hard to break.

17. Describe your keychain(s)?

It's a Lupine key ring….made out of dog leash fabric.

18. Where do you keep your change?

In the honeypot on my hutch…shhhhh…don't tell the girls.

19. When was the last time you spoke in front of a large group of people?

2 years ago when I had to give a work report in front of the membership.  I really hate public speaking, so I avoid it when I can.

20. What kind of winter coat do you own?

Being of that "hot flash" age I typically do not wear one unless it's really really really cold.  I opt for warm sweaters instead. 🙂

If you were brave (or bored) enough to stay with me this far, I am rewarding you with Ellie's newest picture.  9 weeks old already!

Fingers??  Why fingers are meant to be chewed aren't they…..and chewed they are!

 

….taking a breather….all that running and jumping makes a little puppy tired.  Pretty soon it will be time for her to curl up with her best stuffed companion again…

Some of  you know that the shop has been closed so that I could get ready for SPA and give the website a much needed face lift.  A lot of the web-work being done is to save me a ton of work on the back end of things.  Getting it ready has been time consuming though….but it will be so worth it!  There is still much work left to do, but I think I have made good headway. 😉

Go take a peek at the new Woolen Rabbit

One of the things you will see is Anne's newest kit pattern for me.  Made with Kashmir, it's the French Quarter Socks.  Once I learned cabling without a cable needles these sock became a very enjoyable knit.  I hope you think so too!

I love this age…..

Ellis is almost 7 weeks old and a real pistol for sure.  In the afternoons I let her play with the older dogs. She is already ruling the roost…it's too funny to watch, but come late afternoon she likes to snuggle in with her Mum for a nap…..so sweet.

When I come home from SPA I will try to get some pictures of her awake.  She's like a little wind up toy now..LOL

Whew….it's been a busy week here at The Woolen Rabbit.  Each year come February I close my website down so that I can get ready for the NETA Spa weekend that will happen this year on the weekend of Feb. 26-28th in Freeport, Maine.

Grrls….if you live in the New England area and have not experienced Spa then you will definitely want to put it on your calendar.  When people ask me what it is all about, I tell them that it is like a giant pajama party for fiber friends.

You get to hang out with some of your favorite peeps in your pajama's knitting and spinning all over the hotel….it is F.U.N.!

One of the things that I love best about this shut down time is that I get to really play in the dyepots making new colors as I am not concerned with filling orders.  The yarns in the first photo are all new colors for this Spring. 🙂

Anne usually tries to put together a pattern for me for Spa as well and this year it will be the French Quarter Sock made in Kashmir.  Anne was gracious enough to send me the pattern for my sample a few days ago, but as you can see I have not gotten very far.  It's been a busy week for sure, but tonight I will start on my sock during the Olympics opening ceremonies.

Yikes….how can she be 5 weeks already?

I promised you all a weekly picture, so here is little Miss Elliebee at almost 5 weeks.  Yep…..Elliebee has kind of stuck (are you surprised?).  It's hard to believe this little muffin is already 5 weeks old and will now move into the kitchen in a bigger pen with a litter box to learn her manners.  She had her first introduction to the bigger dogs today and I was thrilled to see that she was basically unfazed by all of the scrutinizing she endured.  A little trooper for sure!

"Hey Mom….enough with the pictures…..I've fallen and I can't get up!!"

Over the last few months I have been reading more and more quilting blogs.  One of my favorites is Make Life Sweet.  A short while back the girls were offering a kit on their etsy site for these really cute silverware holders. 

I loved the Authentic fabric when it first came out…so much so that I used it on the first wee bunny bag that I made this year.  Needless to say when I saw this kit I was smitten. 

Pair them with one of my favorite pottery collections and you have a perfect Valentine table setting.

This was a fun and fast little project.  While I probably will never use them for silverware I love them for a simple Valentine's Day decoration.

My Funny Little Valentine…..

Look…..she's up on her feet!  About 2 days ago she finally came to life, which is always such great fun when that happens.  Puppies are SO funny at this age.  They will respond to the sound of your voice but they don't realize that they need to raise their head to see you.  They will look at the wall in their whelping box and keep cocking their head with each word that you say without having a blessed clue where the sound is coming from.  Too funny!  Each day is a new adventure…

A few posts ago I showed you one of my holey socks….a sad sight indeed.  Having had a few of my hand made socks wear out I mentioned that 2010 was going to be the year of the sock for me.  Margene has joined along…yay!

To kick off the year I have started with Cookie's Angee.

With the many varied patterns now available on Ravelry I have not really felt the need to purchase a knitting book in some time…however….there was a period of time that every sock pattern I liked was a part of Cookie's book, Sock Innovation.  Needless to say, it is now a part of my library.  Cookie is an incredible designer.

The first sock is finished and the second one is on the needles so all is good.  My sock goal is to finish a pair every other month, which puts me right on target. 🙂

Puppy pics……..

….this is not supposed to be a puppy blog, but I just can't help myself.  It's been almost 5 years since we have had a litter here and needless to say little Miss Ellie has captured our hearts.