Too long gone . . .

Oh, my, where has the time gone?  I was thinking it had been a few months since I last blogged and then when I actually looked, I realized it had been seven months.  In my blogging absence, I have been doing much spinning and knitting (and a bit of weaving) -- just exploring and experimenting with some other fiber things I have been wanting to try but couldn't find the time.  Then there were daily walks. Hanging out with fiber friends. Having a son and his wife move to Seattle was cause for a couple of trips, especially around the Madrona Fiber Festival.  And a new kitten companion -- well, that has taken up some time. 

A couple of weeks ago, I spent some very relaxing time with my friend, Terry, who lives in the Santa Cruz mountains -- a bit remote, but so tranquil a setting in the woods. [www.ifeltlikeitbyterry.etsy.com]

I stayed in a cute little cottage right behind her home.  Terry is a felt artist so we did some felting in her lovely studio down from her house under the redwoods.  She had a fire going in the little stove.  We were all cozy and warm messing around with our fibers.  We also spent time just chatting, knitting and spinning on our wheels.  I can't think of a better get away.

And yesterday, a surprise box arrived from Terry with a nice stash of acorns and madrone bark peels for natural dyeing, all from around her house.   What a treat to open the box and the fragrance of her studio came wafting out -- brought me back to my wonderful stay in the Santa Cruz mountains.

Since my Santa Cruz trip, I have been inspired to get my felting mojo back.  Last week has been spent sampling some felting ideas.  I have been wanting to take some of my piles of granny squares and use them in a felted piece.

On my trip to Santa Cruz, we made a little day trip to San Francisco to a wondrous fabric store, Britex -- four floors of fabric, buttons, trims, ribbons. I was looking for silk fabric to use for nuno felting and I bought some embroidered white silk. Again, another sampling experiment.  I made the button with Terry in her studio. 

This sample is nuno felt using a seer sucker silk gauze I bought in Santa Fe last Fall.  It worked beautifully for nuno. 

Been wanting to do some felting with a couple of fleeces I bought at the Taos Wool festival -- CVM from Windy Hill Farm, Casper, WY.  I also included some polwarth, kid mohair and thick and thin merino yarn.  

And one of the most fun things to enter my life is a Duncan motorized drum carder. What can I say, after I used my friend Maggie's in February at a fiber retreat with my spinning friends in San Diego, I had to have one and immediately put in my order.  I absolutely love it and have been having a blast making batts (and spinning them).  

Had to spin up some of the batts I made just to make sure I was doing a good job of it.

I hope that getting over the hump of not blogging for so long will get me back in to posting things here.  Let's see what happens.