life with sheep

Sheep Cheese and Rustic Rye Bread

2011-11-30T13:03:00.001-06:00

Pecorino is the name of a family of hard Italian cheese made from ewes milk. The word derives from pecora meaning ‘sheep’, also from the Latin pecora meaning livestock. (Wikipedia)

Today I'd like to feature two wonderful local food producers.

I can't say enough about this incredible sheep cheese Old Pecorino (a full flavoured, aged sheep cheese thats hard/nutty/salty/creamy/bold yet mellow -a nice hard cheese that keeps well and is easy to grate into baking). It's an authentic Italian cheese made on the Canadian prairies by THE CHEESIRY. Rhonda Headon learned the art of cheesemaking in Italy, and I'm so glad she has the opportunity to share this ancient craft with us. Rhonda's cheeses are complimented by her husband Brian's local air cured old-world syle meats.Visit their combined website at O SOL' MEATOS.

I've served it here with a chewy Rustic Rye Bread with Caraway Seed made by

Sarah in Swift Current Saskatchewan. Sarah bakes custom bread orders weekly and also offers delicious cooking classes. Visit ALL OUR FINGERS IN THE PIE for details on upcoming classes and Farmer's Markets.

A New BFL and Sugar Pumpkins

2011-11-07T21:52:00.000-06:00

The Corriedale ewe lambs in the background seem to be talking about the new girl, "Ranfurly Soliel".
And Soliel seems to be basking in the moment!

October is a busy month with the sheep. The lambs have been weaned and are selected for breeding, market or butchering. Both ewes and rams are being prepared for their selected breeding schedule. Soliel is our first Blue-faced Leicester ewe. She came from Ranfurly Farm, Chase BC. Other photos of our BFL and Corrie mules can be viewed on our blog Newland Ranch.

My favourite vegetable - little pie pumpkins! The garden woulding be complete without them.

And of course October is a month for preserving and storing all the lovely food from the garden. One of the garden delights is the tiny pie pumpkin "Sugar" which I picked green (after the vines froze September 15). They have been ripening fast at room temperature, while others have been kept green for a while by storing in the coolness of the barn. They are wonderful as a roasted vegetable, pumpkin pie filling, and in soups and stews. The roasted seeds are yummy too. And I always tuck a few seeds away to plant next year!

And speaking of cooking... I took a trip to experience the aromatic foods of Morocco, in Sarah's kitchen. Visit her blog All Our Fingers In The Pie! If you live in southern Saskatchewan, check out her schedule for cooking classes. It's a wonderful experience!

September Pasture

2011-11-07T13:37:00.001-06:00

A real contrast from the August pasture. There was no rain, so even after it was cut or eaten it didn't grow back. We started feeding in mid Sept.

The pasture in August

2011-09-27T00:20:00.001-06:00

Petunia with her Corriedale ram lamb are alert for anything out of the usual. Coyotes have been in and around the pasture all summer. Thankfully they are hunting gophers and not lambs.

The mid August pasture with second-growth alfalfa. This is the day the sheep were moved on to it.

As I look back on some photos I am shocked at how green the pasture was only a month ago. There is not much left now, after a month of high temperatures. I'll try to post a photo of the pasture in the next day or so as a comparison.

Huck-Lace Scarf

2011-07-31T13:37:00.002-06:00

The finished scarf 11" x 75"

Thanks you readers for your kind comments. For those would like more info -

My Corriedale wool yarn is 2 ply sock weight Mule Spun, processed at Custom Woolen Mill, Carstairs Alberta. The project is from Handwoven magazine (Interweave Press - May/June 2009) and is called "Light and Lacy" Huck-Lace Scarf. It was woven very loosely (8 EPI) with barely any pressure on the beat and as you can see in the photo in yesterdays post, it was holey. Once off the loom, I twisted and knotted the warp fringe. I washed the scarf vigorously to full it and laid it flat to dry. I knew my yarn would bloom and fill in the gaps and not be tight and stiff. The pattern, barely visible before washing, is greatly enhanced when allowed to full (felt). It is light, soft, and airy with a nice drape.

The table loom (circa 60's) made by Wool House - Armstrong, BC. It's a 4 shaft loom with adjustable reed, deep shed and heavy wood construction. The reed width is 23", with soft heddles. (viewed from back).

2011-07-28T20:07:00.001-06:00

The finished project washed and fulled. There was approx. 20% shrinkage as planned.

I attended beginner Weaving at Olds College in Alberta.
How exciting to use yarn made from my own sheeps wool

July has been a month full of Severe Warnings and Watches for thunderstorms, hail and tornados.
Here a strange cloud formation of active weather turns and goes away from us.

Lambing 2011

2011-06-05T10:56:00.002-06:00

Tiny (a seven year old Corriedale cross) with her twins - a black ram lamb (Matthias) and a white ewe lamb (Olivia). The marvelous names for the lambs have been choosen by a family who has spun Tiny's wool for a few years!

The Black Welsh Mountain ewes Camilla and Carol with their big April lambs are enjoying the lush green grass of the west paddock. Regular paddock rotation is the key to health for both the animals and the plants that they graze on.

There are so many photos of this lambing season and so little time to blog. The Black Welsh flock lambed in April and the Corriedales started in mid May. So far, the Corriedales have a lambing rate of 200% which is represented by few singles, several sets of twins, triplets, quadruplets and one set of quintuplets.

I hope to get some more lamb photos published soon. But now its time to go and feed the bottled lambs (from mothers who can't or won't feed them).

Late Spring and Late Easter

2011-04-23T13:24:00.001-06:00

The sun sets after a peaceful Good Friday.
Snowbanks that still remain are melting fast. Dugouts, ditches and dams are full to overflowing.

The Corriedales are enjoying the weather, as they await the arrival of their lambs.

March going out like a lamb

2011-03-30T15:18:00.001-06:00

Daisy with new ram lamb "Pilgrim", born on a sunny morning as March goes out like a lamb!

Six more weeks before the Corriedale Crosses have their lambs. And what do we have here! I now remember in last November neighbors were over to see the sheep and left a gate open. Out ran a swift young ram named Rocky, and this wee lad is the result.
I quoted to a friend only weeks ago this poem about all the planning in the world, and things take their own course.
The best-laid schemes o' mice an' men

Gang aft agley,

An' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain

For promis'ed joy!

(stanza from "To A Mouse" by Robert Burns 1785)

A loose translation would be - The best laid plans of mice and men go awry, leaving us grieving for the way we planned it to be.

Hey, what's in the hay?

2011-03-25T18:46:00.001-06:00

The sheep found a hard, shiny object this morning! And I spotted it as I started to fill their hay feeder. The camera has been in the hay for days and here is the first photo it took. It's a Canon Powershot A530, and has proven once again to be a sturdy little unit!

Pumpkin Muffins in March

2011-03-23T18:15:00.001-06:00

The last of the 2010 pumpkins, before they go into the oven.

I don't often write about food. However, I wanted to post this photo taken of my dear pumpkins that have graced the top of the kitchen hutch since last October. They keep best at room temperature, so they have sat collecting dust, amidst a collection of ceramic canisters, baskets and branches of fall leaves.
After baking, they will be pureed and made into pumpkin muffins. A trip to the library yielded a book called "The Ultimate Muffin Book - More than 600 Recipes for Sweet and Savory Muffins" by Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough. The recipes are in alphebetical order. For example you will find between the Pumpkin muffin between Prune muffins and Quiche Lorraine muffins. There is also tips for successful muffin making in the first chapter, with very interesting ideas that I had never considered.

Note about the photo: I'm not sure about its clarity as I am trying out my cell phone. I lost my camera in the snowstorm last evening. I had taken it with me to get some photos of wool after the evening chores. By the time I reached for the camera, it had vanished. As I re-traced my footsteps I realized the futility in this, as 8" of fresh snow had drifted into my tracks!

Wool's In The Shed and Lambing Weeks Away

2011-03-16T18:39:00.001-06:00

A Black Welsh Mountain yearling enjoys the sun after her shearing.

The white sheep have been sunning all day and some are pink as pigs!

Big wether Sonnys' fleece weighed 15 lbs after the skirting.

Spring must be here, it's shearing time

2011-03-05T16:11:00.001-06:00

This is a tiny cotton plant that sprouted from a seed, not even a week old. The seeds are from Joan Ruane who grows and spins cotton. Visit her at http://www.spinningcotton.com/. I'm in the midst of level 3 Master Spinner which means assignments are based around Cotton (along with blends of cotton, silk and wool)

I've been working on these socks on and off for several months. I'm knitting two at a time on 2 circulars. The pattern is 'Waving Lace Socks' by Evelyn A. Clark and can be found in the book 'Favorite Socks' (Interweave Press 2006)

This shawl was just started last week and will knit up quickly. The yarn is 80% alpaca/20% merino (prepared at Custom Woolen Mill in Alberta). The pattern is "Domovoi Shawl" by Cherl Oberle in her book 'Folk Shawls'(Interweave Press 2000). It will be rectangular with a knitted on lace edging. Hope to have it done for Mothers Day!

Well, the above photos of course are just a smidge of what I've been busy with. I've had little time for blogging this winter (and the dial-up speed of 21 - 38 Kbps isn't conducive to browsing) . I've been in a contemplative frame of mind and feel that I've said it all and now must get on with the work at hand. Think winter and cabin fever are setting in ?

We've gotten word today that the shearer will be in our area next week. So with that in mind, we'll get the barn/shearing shed prepared for the big day and round up some helpers. I do hope the weather improves. It's always such a shock for the sheep to be stripped of there wooly winter coats.

Winter Sheep Feeders

2010-12-28T23:24:00.000-06:00

Wishing you a peaceful holiday season and all the best that the New Year has to offer!

This small wooden feeder was built for the Corriedales but works far better for the small framed Black Welsh ewes. It is placed near the fence so I can toss wafers of hay into it (from rectangular bales - "small squares").

This is a modified round bale feeder for cattle. Cable and puckboard have been rivetted on, to keep sheep from climbing in. There are two round feeders for a flock of 40 Corriedales - lots of room for everyone. Because they are so big and wooly in the winter they stick to each other like velcro if they crowd to close to each other!

Thrummed Slipper Pattern Revised

2010-11-15T23:19:00.004-06:00

Thanks Readers for your comments and questions. What was I thinking! This pattern was given to me, so I most definately will share it with you! (sorry, theres no info as to where this pattern originated).

Photo left - looks like there's no room for a foot! With wear, the knitted-in thrums will felt down and be like an insole.

BUMPERS
(Thrummed Slippers)

Needles - 4.5mm or size that will give you a firm, but not too tight tension.

Yarn - A handspun yarn or any purchased yarn that will knit up well with size 4.5 needles. The yarn I used is handspun wool (when I wash it, I know it will felt so I knit with a looser tension). If you knit up slipper with a non-shrinking fiber, have your tension firm, but not too tight.

Thrums - This pattern says to cut sliver or roving into 5" sections. I used wool straight from the sheep (washed, but not carded). The staples were naturally 4.5 - 5" so I pulled off enough to make it approx. 2 or 3 times the thickness of the knitting yarn used.

PATTERN

Cast on 39 sts. (to obtain smaller or larger sizes, decrease or increase number of stitches by 4's).
Knit one row
Purl one row
Row 1 - *Knit 3, next stitch knit with the wool thrum* continue to end of row.
Row 2 - Purl row
Row 3- Knit row
Row 4 - Purl row

Continue rows 1-4 until slipper is desired length (9"-10" womens medium).

(REVISED with this 3 row DECREASE)
Row 1 - Knit 2 together across, knit last stitch
Row 2 - Purl
Row 3 - Knit 2 together across

Break yarn leaving enough to gather toestitches and sew up. Draw up remaining stitches with darning needle and sew shy of half way towards the heel. Then sew up back seam. An edging of crocheting can be added to the top if desired. (see the red pair below. I also added 3 thrums into the center seam to fill in the space on top of the foot).

Notes on knitting in the woolies or rovings: With wool section in right hand, fold it in half and use it to knit the stitch, in place of the main yarn. Leaving "woolie" ends at back of the work and pick up yarn and carry main color across back of work to begin knitting next three stitches .

BFL, Thrums and Dollybird Workshop

2010-11-14T19:07:00.001-06:00

A pair of slippers for Farmer Bob - each white stitch is a lock of washed wool approx. 5" in length (folded in half). I've turned over the edge so you can see how the wool is piling up inside. As they are worn, the thrums will pack and felt.

This is Basil Ranfurly, our new Bluefaced Leicester Ram. Are your fingers twitching to touch the wool? I'm sure his lambs will be gorgeous. We'll have to wait until May to see!

This was a fun hat to make. It can be made to fit as a loose slouchy hat, a tam or a skullcap.

I made this one with handspun yarn from my black Corriedale "Sweet Heart" and alternated every couple rows with Noro Silk Garden sock yarn.

It fits a one year old head. To bad I didn't get a photo of the cute baby who modelled it (had to use my old doll instead).

This original pattern is a design by Kourtney at Dollybird Workshop

When Kourtney heard that I was going to make stipes, she suggested making the brim in corrugated ribbing. Great idea! The edge is i-cord bind-off. Oh, I forgot to mention ... this is a free pattern too. Thanks Kourtney!

Happy Thanksgiving

2010-10-09T16:28:00.001-06:00

I planned a turkey dinner but just couldn't choose which one. So we'll have chicken instead.
Our lovely Indian Summer days will be over soon. This Van Morrison song comes to mind during these days -

The lambs are large now and enjoy the last days on green pasture.
Things here will change soon too (some to market,
some butchered and a lucky few will be replacement ewes)

These are the days of the endless summer
These are days, the time is now
There is no past, there's only future
There's only here, there's only now.

These are days by the sparkling river
His timely grace and our treasured find
This is the love of the One magician
Turned the water into wine
These are the days now that we must savour
And we must enjoy as we can
These are the days that will last forever
You've got to hold them in your heart.

Black Welsh with Goats

2010-09-28T19:46:00.000-06:00

After the goats quarantine was over, they were put in with the Black Welsh ram lambs.
They get along well and their fencing, feed and mineral needs are similar.

The last bouquet of sunflowers picked on the night
of the killing frost Sept. 18

The Muscovy ducklings are very close to their mothers size.
She's in the background, ever watchful for predaters.

Dye with Dahlias

2010-09-04T11:09:00.004-06:00

I picked the scarlet colored Dahlia blossoms, just past their prime and gently boiled for 1 hour.

After straining blossoms from dye bath, the skeins were simmered for 1 hour.
The colors exceded my expectations! Starting at top:

Gold skeins - No Mordant, Ammonia Afterdip. After coming out of the dye a pale gold, they turned darker and brighter immediately after being in dip for seconds, and didn't fade when wash/rinsed.
Orange - Alum/Cream of Tartar Mordant, Ammonia afterdip. Ammonia brightened and lighted the orange.
Natural - the yarn before dyeing
Dark Orange - Alum/Cream of Tartar Mordant, no afterdip. Marvellous!
Pale Gold - No Mordant, No afterdip. A lovely subtle color.
Variegated orange/gold - Alum/Cream of Tartar Mordant, Vinegar afterdip. This was the most shocking as it was vivid orange, but the color disappeared immediately when put into the vinegar.

CONTEST WINNERS

2010-09-02T13:25:00.001-06:00

Shy ATTACUS is finally warming up to the camera.

KEGO tries out a delicacy - CanadaThistle!

Like most goats MORI loves to climb and the old post pile is ideal.

The winner of the name descriptions is Gypsy Spinner - Congratulations Jody! I'll be sending you an issue of Wild Fibers which has a great article on Cashmere goats and some other goodies. And because everyone did their homework and the answers were so good, I drew for two runners up, who are Eternal Arts & Crafts and Chronicles of a Lazy Knitter Congratulations to you both!

Thanks to everyone who commented and participated! And know here is the "text book answers" that Master Spinners Level 3 has in its material:

MORI: Cultivated silk is from the Bombyx Mori moth, and represents 90% of the silk on the market. Sometimes called Mulberry silk because the larvae feed exclusively on the leaves of Mulberry trees.

KEGO: The Bombyx Mori hatchlings are called kego in Japanese, which translates into "hairy babies". Over the next 30 days they will eat 24 hours a day. When fully grown they spin their cocoons.

ATTACUS: Attacus is a genus classification of several types of wild silk moths. Example: Attacus Ricini is from India and Nepal and eats the Castor Oil plant. Attacus Cynthia from China eats Chinese Sumach. Attucuss Walkeri is raised in North America and is not a finicky eater. It consumes Chinese Sumach, Wild Cherry, Sycamore, Lilac and other tree leaves.

The Old Massey Tractor and goat names

2010-08-30T20:51:00.000-06:00

Farmer Bob raking hay on the 1967 Massey tractor.
With the the large round bales done, it's little Massey's turn to show what it can do.

Contest answers are coming in. Many are on the right track. However I haven't received an answer yet that describes the meaning of each name - KEGO, MORI and ATTACUS. Perhaps it would be an incentive to know what the prize is. Sorry it can't be cashmere, the little kids haven't got much yet. But it will be a fibre related item. That's all I can say!

Take note - I won't be publishing comments with contest answers, but to make sure I've received your answer, I'll email you back, if you like.

Finally, some BABY PHOTOS

2010-08-25T11:07:00.003-06:00

Cindy with little Chuck and Michelle - early July

Mother Muskovy "Peep" with her ducklings

These lovely little Cashmere goats are originally from Helene at Spruce Haven Farms. KEGO the curious, MORI white as snow and ATTACUS the shy one in background.

Send me the definition of their names (email, blog comment or Ravelry message), and I have a little gift for the lucky one whose name is drawn. (Clue - level 3 MS students have it at their fingertips).

Draw of correct entries will be made Sept 1st.

New Lambs and Cashmere Goats

2010-08-20T23:40:00.002-06:00

Dear Readers,
It's been weeks since I've been able to upload photos. So before I get farther behind, here's a few highlights of July 2010.

I completed my level 2 spinning assignments, just before I packed to go to Fibre Week..
I went to Olds College in Alberta and took level 3 of the Master Spinner program. It was a wonderful experience. I do hope that if you love fiber you will have a chance to go someday.
The day after getting home, my favorite Corriedale ewe had twins I named "Chuck and Michele". Their mother "Cindy Crawford" didn't have enough milk for both, so bottle feeding started. It soon became evident that Michele prefered mom and Chuck prefered the bottle.
That same day the Pekin duck hatched out 6 lovely yellow ducklings.
Two days later, my friend arrived from BC. That's when the fun started. I did touristy things for a whole month with her. She had never experienced farm life before. We had a marvelous visit.
During that time, the Muscovy duck hatched out 5 little ducklings.
At the end of July, I drove several hours north to pick up 3 lovely little cashmere kids. They are 5 month old wethers. Their names are Kego, Attacus and Mori.

I sure hope I can get the problem with uploading photos solved. Then I will show you some of the sweet babies that I have been caring for.
I hope you all have had fine weather and some special moments of joy this summer!

South West Saskatchewan Art Show

2010-06-18T10:13:00.008-06:00

Photo courtesy of A. Lang

The Artisans Guild of Eastend and Surrounding Areas (A.G.E.S.)

The Jasper Cultural and Historical Centre

PRAIRIE SKY GALLERY

Maple Creek, Saskatchewan 306-662-2434

Now showing until June 28th

A diverse showing of many talents: Watercolors, Pottery, Musical Instruments, Ink/Acrylics, Photos and Fibre Art. Artists from the A.G.E.S. Group who are showing their work:

~ Trea Jensen ~ Alice Hanlin

~ Val Fiddler ~ Gabriele Kuck

~ Kevin Werre ~ Glen Duke

~ Stephen Girard ~ Shon Profit

~ Grieta Krisjansons

A Poem by William Butler Yeats

2010-06-13T21:54:00.012-06:00

I passed along the water's edge below the humid trees,
My spirit rocked in evening light, the rushes round my knees,
My spirit rocked in sleep and sighs; and saw the moorfowl place
All dripping on a grassy slope, and saw them cease to chase
Each other round in circles, and heard the eldest speak:
Who holds the world between His bill and made us strong or weak
Is an undying moorfowl, and He lives beyond the sky.
The rains are from His dripping wing, the moonbeams from His eye.

I passed a little further on and heard a lotus talk:
For I am in His image made, and all this tinkling tide
Is but a sliding drop of rain between His petals wide.

A little way within the gloom a roebuck raised his eyes
Brimful of starlight, and he said: The Stamper of the Skies,
He is a gentle roebuck; for how else, I pray, could He

Conceive a thing so sad and soft, a gentle thing like me?

I passed a little further on and heard a peacock say:

Who made the grass and made the worms and made my feathers gay?

He is a monstrous peacock, and He waveth all the night
His languid tail above us, lit with myriad spots of light.

by William Butler Yeats (from collection "Crossways" 1889)

Columbia and Corriedale cross lambs

2010-06-11T00:05:00.003-06:00

"Mary Rose" on the left, has a Columbia mother. The lambs to her right have Corriedale mothers.

All have the same Corriedale sire "Crowhill 42U" (Mr. Pajama Bottoms).

Another photo of "Mary Rose" for her Buba (grandma in Ukrainian).

I can't believe that 3 weeks have past and lambing is winding down. There are 3 Corriedale ewes and 2 Black Welsh ewes left to lamb. Today, the bottle fed lambs went with Mary to their new home in Eastend. I know they will have a nice life there, but I was a little sad to see them go. I washed up the bottles and nipples for the last time and realized that as busy as it was feeding them every 3 or 4 hours, it had also been gratifying to see them grow and flourish under my care. Good bye to David, Emkin, Bridget, Black Heart and #35A.

Lamb Resuscitator - don't leave home without it

2010-05-24T17:28:00.006-06:00

Six days old.

First time mom "Daisy" and her single.

Another first time mom "Sarah" and her ewe lamb "Mary Rose".

Respirator / Aspirator

We're one week into lambing. To all of the contest winners, I must apologize for not getting to the post office. I don't know when, maybe there may be a stolen moment this week. In 7 days there have been 24 lambs born to 14 ewes - a few singles, 3 sets of triplets and several twins. I required vet assistance on a breech birth with triplets but otherwise things have went smoothly.

I find that the lamb resuscitator / aspirator is the most important tool in my bag of equipment. The extraction of mucus seconds after even a difficult delivery makes breathing so much easier. Here's a few lamb photos, as I wait for a bottle of formula to warm up. We've had a few reject lambs, especially with multiple births. But have homes for the little "bummers" to go to. I just don't have time for bottle feeding this season. Must go feed the little one now and do pasture checks.

Lambing has commenced and we have a winner!

2010-05-18T12:19:00.005-06:00

Born May 17th to ewe "Windflower" and ram "Avens", a little 5 lbs. 6 oz. ram named Xavier.

The lucky guess of May 17th was made by several people.

I drew from those names and the winner is Kristen R. Because she is a felter and not a knitter Kristen will be receiving Wool Roving that I have Hand Painted.

The draw from all who entered the contest also has 2 winners - Susie at Area Knitter and the Gerongirls

They will be receiving sets of cards (with photos taken around Newland Ranch).

I've set my hat beside Xavier (pronounced ZAYvier) to show how tiny he is.

This is Windflower's first lamb and she really likes him. The two are getting along fine.

Thank you to everyone for entering contest, for reading my blog and for your kind wishes.

It's time to go out and see who is born next. There has been another black ram lamb born this morning and a set of white Corriedale twins.

No lambs born yet!

2010-05-15T17:00:00.014-06:00

An assortment of Corriedale ewes waddling out to the pasture. Ewe in center is showing a lot of bag (udder). Depending on the individual, this bagging-up can be as early as 2 weeks before lambing commences. Ewe on right is carrying her lambs high, and hasn't bagged-up. She'll be several weeks yet.

Corriedale "Sweet Heart" is a very large black ewe turned silver.
She usually has very large twins.

The Black Welsh ewes vary in size. The yearlings having their first lamb will probably have singles so they are smaller. Most of the older ewes will have twins. The BW ewes weigh 75-100 pounds. Their lambs will weigh 5-8 pounds each. Lamb weight to mothers weight is about 7%. A mother carrying twins could have 12% (plus fluids) of her body weight added!

An adult Corriedale ewes' weight is 200-225 pounds. The average size lamb will be 10-12 pounds. This lamb weight to mothers weigh is 5%. A mother with quads could have 13% or more weigh added to her own (plus fluids)!

Just as a human mother, the unborn lambs ride high and the fullness of the ewe fills up the area next to the backbone giving her a barrel-like shape. Nearer to birthing, the lamb/s drop, and this gives a gaunt, caved in look on either side of the backbone.

So when will the first lamb be born? There have been many guesses. If you haven't entered your guess, there is still time. Check out the details in the previous blog entry. Good luck everyone! And best wishes to all you ewes out there.

Anniversary CONTEST "When will the first lamb be born?"

2010-05-06T12:14:00.013-06:00

Corriedale ram "Mr. Pajama Bottoms" waits patiently for lambs.

"Hey Mom Lana - Do you recognize me? I'm one year old now" ~ Sarah

Firstly, here are a few photo and the last from my wonderful little camera. It's been laying in a snow storm for the last two days and so far, it's in critical condition with no signs of life! I went out to take photos of the pregnant ewes and set it down to help a ewe who was hobbling around with a sore hoof. I completely forgot about the camera when I ran to get medical supplies.

Recently a read a blog Chronicles of The Lazy Knitter and entered her contest to celebrate her 500th blog post. To make a long story short, I won a lovely knitting book! I enjoyed reading her blog and she has some lovely things in her Etsy store. She certainly is not a lazy knitter.

It got me thinking of things I could be celebrating with a free draw to continue her generosity. I had totally forgotten that May 1st was the second Anniversary of my Etsy store Wooly Wool Of the West. The two years have flown by so quickly. I've met and corresponded with so many great people from all over North America. A big thank you to all of you for purchasing wool, and/or reading my blog. I look forward to another year of taking care of sheep and sharing their lovely wool and stories with you.

ANNIVERSARY DRAW for PRIZES

GUESS when the first lamb will be born?

In honour of two years of being a supplier of fresh farm wool, I invite you to enter the draw. There will be 3 prizes :

The first prize for the guess closest to the birth of the first lamb - 2 hand spun skeins of Merino (white) and Black Welsh fleece from my sheep (see in store). This yarn is a textured tweed just begging to be knit into a pair of mittens or slippers, is also dyeable.
The second prize and third prizes will be drawn out of a hat for all who enter the contest - set of 6 cards and envelopes featuring photos of our farms animals and lovely old buildings and gardens.

TO ENTER, please leave me a comment on this posting.
Guess which day of May the first lamb will be born.
Include your name and email so I can reach you. Comments or emails will be NOT be posted, but will be put into the hat for the draw.
Draws will be made when the first lamb is born. Ties for the lucky guess will be asked a tie-breaker question!
Here is a clue: I put all the rams in with their ewes on the day of the winter Solstice!

Thanks for reading my blog and BONNE CHANCE / GOOD LUCK!

Circular Sock Knitting Machine

2010-04-15T21:40:00.004-06:00

The antique Auto Knitter is around 80 years old. At first I could only knit long tubes. Then I would hand knit heels and toes .

A while ago, I sat down with the manual and went step by step through the process of making socks. All went well! Here is a pair that is made with some of my hand spun corriedale wool (2 ply - one ply white, and the other ply made from long color changes spot dyed on roving).

Baa Black Welsh Sheep. Have you any wool?

2010-03-28T17:25:00.006-06:00

"Do we have any wool? No sir, no sir, but you've got 3 or more bags full, after you let the shearer strip us of our fine garments!", says old Daisy, in the foreground.

I washed a small fleece from one of the yearling lambs which weighed 2.5 lbs. Here I am taking the batt of Black Welsh Mountain sheep wool off the drum carder. I haven't yet decided to spin a woolen yarn or a worsted yarn. If it's to be woolen, I'll spin from the batts that I roll off the carder. If it's to be worsted yarn, I will have to comb it and pull top through a diz! I'll decide and show you what I do with it next.

Fair Isle tam and mittens

2010-03-13T09:51:00.005-06:00

Where did February and half of March go? Well, some of it went into knitting. Here is some Fair Isle knitting made with handspun wool from my Corriedales. The set was donated to a fundraiser for Stegner House in Eastend, Saskatchewan. The design/pattern for mitts is a compilation of many sources and the general directions for the tam are from Elizabeth Zimmermann's "Knitting Without Tears".

The rest of the time was taken up with general care and feeding of the animals and cleaning the barn out for the shearing, which took place a few days ago. It went very well. Friends from Wind n' Woolly Acres (their blog)came, so there was lots of helping hands. My brother also helped and my mother was in the kitchen to insure that a wonderful meal was on the table when we finished. Thank you for all the help everyone!

A neighbor dropped by to take photos of his yearling lamb that we wintered. He didn't know she would be sheared that day so it was a great photo opportunity. He will be sending me photos of "Sarah" being sheared and her fleece skirted. Unfortunately, I never thought to bring my camera to the barn, so I will have no photos but his.

The sheep have had some lovely spring days to ease them into their newly shorn coats. Days have been sunny and calm. Everyone goes into their sheds for the nights that are just below freezing.

Digging Out from the Snow Storm

2010-01-25T19:16:00.018-06:00

Two days of snow and driving winds have filled pens, yards and driveways with huge snow banks. During the storm, the sheep all used their shelters. They hate wind! They managed to make their way to the feeders in the morning, but had to blaze trails in chest deep snow.

I finished two pairs of work mittens in January. They're almost the same, but the pair on the right has two rows of color and on the cuff I purled one row to make a ridge on the edge. I like the thicker edge it made and it turned inside better too.

The new Corriedale ram

2010-01-14T13:08:00.004-06:00

Introducing the new ram in the Corriedale flock "Crow Hill" or as I fondly call him "Mr. Pajama Bottoms" named for his sturdy, woolly legs. He has gotten his little front feet into the round feeder yet again, and has possibly been standing there a long time.

I grab my camera and come over to help lift his legs up and out. You can see the young ewes in the background and I definitely heard one say, "Could you help him out mam?" Whereas the old ewe in the foreground is of another opinion and thinks I should leave the silly fellow in there!

He doesn't look at all worried, does he. And as I step closer, he backs up, lifts his own front feet and deftly hops out. He was not trapped at all, but quite content to stand for hours in the feeder. Looking back at this photo I think I see a little smile on his face and a twinkle in his eyes! Naughty Mr. P.J. - now get back to work !

The Worlds Tiniest Black Welsh ewe

2010-01-04T16:36:00.005-06:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR Everyone!

It's breeding season and the new rams "Udo" is shown here with a group of older ewes. And here is an optical illusion - The ewe in the background looks like a teeny, tiny fairy-lamb standing on the back of the other ewe.

It is nice to have some time to sit and knit. This is a pair of work mittens in progress. The pattern is from the "Folk Mittens" by Marcia Lewandowski. The yarn is from my corriedale sheep - both the natural white and natural black are 3 ply worsted weight, so the mittens are thick.

Keeping Warm

2009-12-13T18:57:00.008-06:00

Since my last post, frigid arctic winds have swept over the land and we are all in the deep freeze. Thankfully we have lots of bedding for the livestock and we've tried to keep them as comfortable as possible. Photo above shows our little kitten "Horus Toonsis". His barn cat mother abandoned him when the weather turned cold. His hair is very short so I made a little sweater from an old sock. His head is in the blown out toe and his front legs are where the worn out heel used to be. He had no problems adjusting, and was soon curled up and sound asleep!

I was able to round up the Narragansett turkeys and get them into the chicken house. This photo was taken shortly after they were brought indoors. They were looking somewhat perplexed but have adjusted well. They share the building with ducks, chickens, guinea fowl and Banties. Its a must for each group to have their own pen. It keeps life peaceful in close quarters!

Chinook Wind and Narragansetts

2009-12-01T14:36:00.009-06:00

Here are a couple photos of the warm weather in the later part of November. The sunset shows part of the cloud formation called the Chinook Arch. A stong, warm wind sent the temperature up to +18c . The Black Welsh ewes stayed out grazing until dark, just enjoying the warm air.

The second photo shows our *Heritage Narragansett turkeys roosting up in the willow tree by the duck pond. The tom and hen had a nest of about 20 eggs that was destroyed by a skunk. They started a new nest and had 14 chicks hatch out. The mother and 8 remaing youngsters have survived (the tom and some of the young ones were killed by preditors in the late summer).

*“Heritage turkeys" is a phrase now popularly used to describe naturally-mating, long-lived, slow-growing varieties of turkeys, most of which have standards defined by the American Poultry Association.

Weather is colder now but they still prefer to roost in the trees, rather than in the turkey shed. Everything is white with snow. and the daylight hours are short. I moved the ducks up from the duck pond to the chicken house for the winter. The supplimental light is on for the chickens in the morning and evening. It is necessary for egg layers to have 13-14 hours of light a day.

And it's time for the sheep breeding. We like to have the lambs in warm spring weather so breeding is in December and January.

Black Welsh Mountain Sheep update

2009-10-04T21:01:00.005-06:00

Five month old ewe lamb Winnie (left) is almost as big as her mother Nolina.

The expression on the mothers face looks like the Mona Lisa!

The once shy ewe Chamisa (foreground left), is now trusting and curious.

More Black Welsh photos can be seen at our new website Newland Ranch

Progress continues on the weaving. I've put my hand in the photo to show the size of the yarn and design. The black yarn is singles spun from the Black Welsh Mountain Sheep.

Learning to Weave

2009-09-16T15:03:00.003-06:00

Here is the first weaving project. The instuctions for building loom and this first sample project are from the book "Navajo Weaving Way" co-authored by Tiana Bighorse and Noel Bennett (Interweave Press, 1997).

At the top is a willow branch that creates the "stick shed" and another willow branch below creates the "pull shed". Then below that is the curved "batten", that slides into the shed and when turned on edge opens the shed, making room to pass the yarn either left or right. Below the weaving, is a large wooden fork used for packing each row of weft into place. I purchased the fork and batten from Weaving Southwest (Taos, New Mexico). I ordered by phone and their excellent staff had the tools in the mail the next day!

This week with the sheep - The weaned lambs have been enjoying their daily rations of "kibbles" and alfalfa hay. The sheep auction is only 2 days away, and I am trying hard to be critical and practical in choosing who stays and who goes to market. It is always one of the saddest days of the year.

The Finished Loom

2009-09-03T13:03:00.004-06:00

The loom finished and waiting for warp.

Yarn (singles) spun from Corriedale/Romney wool, awaiting weaving.

The warp yarn was spun from Romney, then plied with the Chain or Navaho technique into a 3 ply high twist yarn. Perhaps too much twist! I had to add the weight of a can of beans as it dried, in order to straighten it.

I whittled off the bark from slim willow branches, to make shed rods.

So now it is time to make a warping frame, then warp the loom.

Building a Navajo Loom

2009-09-01T10:40:00.009-06:00

Grandsons pose for a parting photo. Y' all come back now, ya hear?

Summer has flown by and I can't believe I haven't done a blog entry since mid July! The days were quickly filled with gardening, animal chores and lots of grandchildren visiting.

It's been a dry, hot summer and the grass in the paddocks barely grew. This has meant feeding the Black Welsh sheep, ever since spring. We have been fortunate that we had feed left from last year for them. The Corriedale cross flock have many acres to graze on, but the weather has taken its' toll there also.

Much of my summer has been spent presoaking, washing and drying wool fleeces. I've decided that it's time to learn more ways to use wool, which means weaving. I'd like to make rugs and saddle blankets, so I've started building a Navajo loom (photo shows beginning of assembly). I've read several books on the topic. I also have been spinning the warp and weft yarns. Everything will be trial and error, but I find that's a good way to learn. I contemplated making the tools - battens and forks, but I have no wood whittling skills. After doing a web search and ordering, the tools should be arriving in a few days.

This year is the 100th anniversary of our farm which was established by Farmer Bob's great uncle. The next generation to live here was his aunt and uncle Newland and family. We now have a website for Newland Ranch. It's homepage features info on the Black Welsh Mountain Sheep. Perhaps we will expand and add pages later. I will be updating photos there from season to season, so if you're interested, please check it out!

FIBRE ART SHOWCASE

2009-07-15T21:43:00.013-06:00

Prairie Fibre Mill near Biggar, Saskatchewan held its second annual Fibre Art Showcase on July 11, 2009.
Several fibre artists were displaying their work and were set up in the old school house.
There was sheep shearing out in the barn and the mill was a popular place with people lined up for tours.
Here are just a few photos of all the fibre fun.

Dale Kelman makes Locker Hooked rugs, horse blankets and therapeutic chair pads. He works with natural colored wool roving which is pulled through a mesh backing, leaving soft, wooly loops on both sides.

Ron Ogg was weaving a wool scarf with yarns spun at Prairie Fibre Mill. He is working on a four harness loom.

David Spearling-Law working on a needle-felted project.

Wanda Toullelon hand quilting on a frame. This quilt in progress was a paper-pieced technique of flower patterns of her own design.

Holly Hildebrand is a Mixed Media artist who displayed some of her fibre related projects. Many used photo images worked into collages, which were embellished with quilting, ink, fabrics and paint.

And me, Val Fiddler. I had such a fun day. I love showing people how the spinning wheel works, how yarn is made and how to card wool. I met some Ravelry friends in person as well as old & new friends, but unfortunately didn't have time to visit much. My afternoon was complete when I gave a lesson in drop-spindle spinning to a young girl very keen on learning! I also had a piece of Rhubarb Saskatoon Berry pie homemade,by Sheila at the Mill.

LEISURE by W.H. Davies

2009-06-23T18:51:00.005-06:00

What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare?

No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.

No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.

No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.

No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.

No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.

A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

Summer Solstice (a late night for sheep)

2009-06-21T11:45:00.004-06:00

Taken about 10:30 at night. This much light meant that the lambs were up, and running around much to the dismay of the ewes. Moms and babies called out, looking for each other in the twilight. What a noise! By 11:00 it was darker and the lambs were settled in for the night!

A rainy day today, and the poppies are on their last legs. Cat Mint (Nepeta Dropmore) is in its prime and the Siberian Iris is just beginning to open its star-like blooms.

I did some dyeing - Corriedale roving in a summer fiesta of colors.

Shearing Day

2009-06-13T16:45:00.007-06:00

before...

during..

and after! Then there was fresh air, sunshine and a refreshing light rain!

Thank You everyone for your time and work at Shearing 2009!
Our helpers this year were daughter Kelly and husband Clay, neighbor Lorna and my Mother.
And of course, a big thank-you to Farmer Bob for building handling pens and shoots and many hours of preparation. Last but not least the greatly talented and gentle shearer Cliff M.

First Corriedale/Shetland Lambs

2009-06-03T12:28:00.005-06:00

Two of the four quads born to "Faith" - #1 a big ewe lamb and #2 small ram lamb.

Quad #4 "Nefret" and #3 her black brother "Night" will be bottle fed babes.
Mom ewe had very little milk and very little patience for four lambs.

I dyed some roving and started my mitten knitting.

I knit on large needles and will see how it fulls (felted knitting).

Spinning the Black Welsh

2009-05-23T12:03:00.006-06:00

Here is a tweedy looking yarn spun with short white merino/rambouillet lamb. I added little bits of Black Welsh for texture. I like it so I'll make more. This skein has 134 yards. I was thinking of dyeing it magenta pink. What do you think?

And finally, I got some knitting done - a pair of socks for Farmer Bob. These were made as a tube on my antique sock knitting machine. I then added the toes and an "after-thought" heel using Elizabeth Zimmerman's heel instructions. He's very happy with the fit. As for the color, he's never had colorful socks before! A real fashion statement.

Gosh, so busy with lambs that I haven't mentioned the sock knitting machine! Yes, I have considered getting one for several years and finally made a purchase. This one is from Quebec, an "Auto Knitter" circa 1920's. I have been doing stockinette tubes and adding top ribbing/heels/toes by hand. I just haven't had time to learn the finer points of making the whole sock on the machine and using the ribber attachement. More info on this machine later.

More Lamb Photos

2009-05-17T10:32:00.002-06:00

They are so soft and huggable.

First ram lambs born to Southfork Madrone have been named Newland Wenlock and Newland Wicklow.

If you look closely you may be able to see their little horn buds.

This little week old ewe lamb looks large but is just close to the camera.

Ram "Mesquite" in background looks a little overwhelmed by all the new additions.

First Black Welsh Lambs

2009-05-12T15:55:00.010-06:00

The Black Welsh have started lambing. The first twins, little ewes were born to Southfork Sage, a few days ago. There is a photo of their first day, and then the next photo is when they followed their mother out to join the others in the paddock on their second day.

More twin ewes born today and a little single ewe from a first time mother. At this rate they could all lamb out within a week or two.

As for the other flock, the shearer will be here to shear in early June. That will be cutting it close (pardon the pun), because their lambs are due in June. The Black Welsh were sheared in March and I'm sure they will be well over lambing by the time the other flock start. All in all, the next few months will be very busy!

Wool in the Barn Loft

2009-04-27T20:44:00.006-06:00

Look what I found at the bottom of the pile. A really beautiful Corriedale/Rambouillet/Merino fleece, about 5.5 inches and soft as a cloud! This is the cut undersides, so clean and white. The top ends are very dusty dirty because of our dry, windy climate. It all comes out in the wash nicely.

Here I am at the skirting table up in the barn loft. These are the last two fleeces of 2008 that are left to skirt. I got behind on skirting this winter when I couldn't climb the stairs. So now I'm done, and just in time. The 2009 shearing will be any week now.

Cedar says, "White wool - Blahhhh! I'm outa here!"

(Note the long tail. Registered Black Welsh must have their long tail, no docking allowed.

The underside has no hair, so the tails stay quite clean.)

Black Welsh Mountain Sheep

2009-04-22T09:23:00.006-06:00

Southfork Mesquite and Southfork Avens come over for a visit.

Resting in the shade of the spruce trees.

Southfork Cedar takes a closer look.

April has been a busy month. One of the things that happened was the arrival of a small flock of Black Welsh Mountain sheep (4 rams and 11 ewes and yearlings). Here are a couple photos of this small black sheep. I should have had someone stand beside them so you could see in comparison how small they are. I would think the rams weigh around 100 pounds at the most. Some of the tiny ewes are very large with lambs and will be lambing any day. I'll post some lambs photos when that happens. Meanwhile, I try to spend some time each day with them and get to know them.

Calving Time - grafting a calf onto a new mom

2009-03-27T13:27:00.004-06:00

If there is a cow who has lost her calf, Farmer Bob grafts a twin or orphaned calf onto this cow. Such was the case for this little twin. His mother had enough milk for her two little bull calves now, but as they grow there may have been a shortage of milk.

For the first feeding, we put the cow into a head-gate and make sure the calf is able to find the udder and get a drink from his new mother. At times the cow can be unhappy about this, because she knows this is not her calf, and without the restraint, she may not allow the calf to drink.

This union was a happy one and after one feeding the cow gently talked to the calf and became very protective. As we say she "mothered up" and the little calf will have a very healthy life with his new mother. (photo - Black Angus cow and adopted bull calf)

Spinning Demo at Trade Show

2009-03-17T19:45:00.012-06:00

What a busy month. I've been dyeing yarn and getting ready for two Show and Sells. On the broken leg issue, I've graduated to a walking cast, not putting too much weight on my leg so still using crutches. Here's a couple photos at a local Trade Show. Fellow sheeper Mary and I shared a table and these are her photos. Thanks Mary!

There are 3 children in the photo above, but the youngest boy is on the floor checking out the "treadle and footmen" in action. As a rule women and girls are facinated by the wool/spinning process. On the other hand, boys and men are enchanted by the spinning parts (the technical/mechnical aspects of the spinning wheel).

I spun lightly washed wool from a favourite old ewe "Sylvia" (named after our vet). I practised my long unsupported draw and after a few hours had a big bobbin of soft shiney Romney cross singles. Later at home, I spun a bobbin of Corriedale/Rambouillet to ply with the Romney. I dyed the skeins today and call this colorway "Cranberry Bog" (the moss green looks washed out in this photo).

A note about shearing: We got ready last week for shearers. In the night the older ewes got outside and there was a big snow storm. Of course, they were covered in snow and wet so shearing had to be cancelled. We hope the shearer will be able to come back this way in the next few months. How fortunate the sheep were to be still wearing their winter coats, when the weather changed for the worst and the temperatures dropped to -20c and -30c.

A Visit to the Barn

2009-02-23T18:07:00.008-06:00

Here's some of the yearling lambs wondering what is happening in the barn.

The little ewe in the foreground is my summer bottle-fed girl called "Maeve".

What a special day, to be able to go out to the barn and skirt some fleeces. I had lots of curious cats and lambs come to visit me.

I'm still on crutches, so Farmer Bob helped get the fleece onto the skirting table.

Maeve came to the door and wondered if she could come in. No, you lambs can't come in here!

After the skirting was done and the table was bare, a couple of the cats jumped up to see if there was some wool left to curl up and take a nap on. Actually, I make little wool nests around the barn for them to use. I've never seen a mouse on the farm thanks to the cats.

First Flowers

2009-02-06T12:17:00.005-06:00

Here's my old Rosemary. She's 11 or 12 years old and is brought in every winter. Our climate is too severe to be outside. The secret of a rosemary that blooms is to create a cool but sunny winter, and mist for raised humidity (create a temperate winter climate). Some places I've lived, it hasn't been possible to supply the cool temperature, so she didn't bloom on those years.

Oh yes, amid the little mauve blossoms is my newest spin/dye project. The yarn has a ply of grey Romney and a ply of white BFL (blue faced Leicester). Both wool have length, large waved crimps and create a yarn (depending on your prep and spin) that is smooth, soft and drapey. I used some jars of leftover dyes that have waited all winter to get used. I put wet yarn in a lasagna pan, poured on colors, covered and baked for 45 minutes.

I was going to tell you the pattern that I've picked to knit this yarn into, but I'll wait until I have a photo of the newly started project.

Spring is in the air. We may be a couple months from it, but more hours of sun give us hope that spring will be here soon!

Another day of knitting

2009-01-24T16:51:00.003-06:00

Hello everyone. Here is how things are on a typical day. I have enjoyed my knitting time very much and haven't missed the cold, cold weather at all! I've had the cast on for 10 weeks and perhaps there will be 4 more weeks before it's off.

I also haven't missed travelling or shopping. Another day at home in the chair means more knitting, more spinning, reading, movies, surfing the net, etc. There's no time for boredom!

Of course I am able to enjoy this time mainly because my dear animals are being taken care of so well. And I have had wonderful care too. Farmer Bob is a very good cook and I have enjoyed all the lovely meals he has prepared.

Thank you readers for all you kind wishes!

Winter Chores

2009-01-18T11:08:00.005-06:00

This winter, I've been unable to do my chores (care for sheep, dogs, cats, turkeys, ducks, chickens and egg collection). All this was added to Farmer Bob's beef cattle operation .

When the snow became too deep for the little 4-wheeler to pull the hay wagon, he acquired a 1972 John Deere Power Toboggan. After some mechanical magic it now runs like a charm - a real work horse! He pulls the sheep hay bales on the sleigh behind the machine.

When the temperature drops and the wind blows, the Rabbit Hat is the headgear that will get you through the inclement weather! And this has been a very cold winter!

Early in January, we sorted sheep - 3 rams with their ewes, in 3 different pens. There will be lambs in June! Last years spring lambs are in the barn yard and I can see them from the kitchen window. It's so much fun to watch them, they are still playful!

Thank you Farmer Bob for taking care of all my animals !

Hats find a Home

2009-01-12T20:03:00.006-06:00

Family members model their new hats. My daughter and son-in-law wearing Thorpe and Easy Cable

The boys model their choices. Left a Thorpe with simple stranded pattern and right is the Jared Flood design Turn A Square

Thank you my family for modeling the hats. Knitting always looks better in action! It was a nice visit!

Thanks also to readers for your hat pattern suggestions.

What's your favorite hat pattern

2009-01-03T21:01:00.010-06:00

I know that you readers must all have your own favourite hat pattern - please let me know what it is!

Hats are a new item in my knitting adventures. The pattern that I have tried is Thorpe found at this link free or in Ravelry.

There is an option to crochet around the edge and add braids. I think Farmer Bob likes his "Sans Braids".

Top photo - 2 medium and 1 small.

Farmer Bob is wearing a medium size.

Mitten knittin' has been put away but I have a week left to finish the 2 needle gloves. There isn't a way to take an exciting photo of a glove at this point.

I'm holding the side seam closed with my other hand (I've left it open to do some embroidery on top before I sew it shut).

I don't mind knitting with 4 needles, but somehow this was easier in the fact that you knit one finger flat on two needles, draw it in on top and stitch down the side of it before you go on to the next finger. When you are done the last finger, your seam runs all the way down to the wrist (where I'm at now).

Around the World in Black and White

2008-12-29T13:16:00.004-06:00

Dear Reader,

Best wishes to you for the coming New Year!

I have no sheep stories today, but here are my to sheep guard dogs, Paloma (left) and Bella (right). They have come to the door to see if I will give them treats. It is hard to tell them apart from farther away, but up close I can tell which is which.

Here is an amusing thing -a pair of black dogs on the other side of the world! Visit Zette to see two black dogs

Knitting: I have two pairs of mittens and the black wool gloves to finish for family coming to visit this weekend. I hope to post a photo of the black 2 needle gloves this week.

Missing My Sheep

2008-11-29T12:31:00.006-06:00

"To baa or not to baa - that is the question!?! Here's a photo my friend sent of her little lamb during dress rehearsal for a play that they are going to be in. She said that the lamb didn't mind having the reindeer headgear placed on its head and seemed to love having its' picture taken! Thanks for the cute photo Mary!

As for my own sheep, I haven't seen them up close and personal for 3 weeks. I do miss them (during the day I watch them out in the pasture with binoculars) and call to them from the open door of the house when they come in from the pasture in the evening. They bed down in front of the barn, which is a stones throw from the house (safe from coyotes). Sometimes I can hear "Sweet Heart" (my bottle fed from 3 years ago) call me. I can hear her even when the door is closed. She's saying,"Haaaay, I know you're in there, come out and feed us!" But of course, they just have to be patient and wait their turn, until Farmer Bob gets his cattle fed.

The days are so short now. I think there is about 8-9 hours of daylight. We have a light bulb with an automatic timer in the chicken house, to supplement the lack of light. Chickens need 13-14 hours of light to continue laying eggs during the winter months.

My days of captivity are adding up and there are 3 weeks of healing completed. Most of my time is spent knitting and reading. I finished "The Friday Night Knitting Club". It was a good read, and I see there is a new book out, to continue the story. I've been reading old knitting magazines that I've collected over the years. Some go back into the early '50s and even a few from the '40s. My favourites are from the '60s. Some great old patterns!

Sheep Run Away With Blogging Awards

2008-11-18T19:00:00.012-06:00

It's time to receive and send out Blogging Awards. Thanks to the "Crazy Lady With Purple Fingers" http://fibreartist.blogspot.com/ for so generously giving me a Blogging Award. She should be receiving an award for the amazing volume of work she does, from carding and dying fibres, knitting, gardening, to animal care (including taking in stray pigeons), she does it all!

I in return, would like to pass along awards to some of my favourites also. There is some great blogging and just not enough hours in the day to read it and thank everyone for the amazing writting. And there was many of you that I would like to mention also, but the rules of this Blogging Award, limits me.

I must apologize for not having prizes. The sheep (in photo above) sneeked out of a gate and made off with the lovely awards (wreaths fashioned from alfafa hay, sprigs of wheat and crab apples)! All I found was their footprints in the snow and a fleeting view of their departing behinds! ; )

And the winners are:

http://yarndevil.blogspot.com/ "With Burning Hot Needles and Hooks" is about life for a Yarn Devil in Saskatchewan and all the crafting and things that go along with it. Without her creative example I don't know if I would have started blogging!

http://gypsyspinner.blogspot.com/ "Gypsy Spinner" written by Jody in Ontario, is always informative. Lots of photos and how toos on many fibre topics from fleece washing to finished projects. I'm amazed at the amount of fleeces she washes!

http://abehap.blogspot.com/ "Limestone Coasties - Yarn Adventures and 2 Cheeky Pugs" takes place in southern Australia. Valli always has wonderful photography and lots of spinning projects. Its great to see wool from 'down under". Her knitting projects sometimes take the back seat when she takes us on a road trip to different places (usually wool related) with lots of accompanying photos. And then there's Abraham and Happy - thats something you'll have to check out too!

http://shadysidefarm.blogspot.com/ "Farming in the Shade" I always find Lona's blogging to be insiteful and enjoyable reads. Its nice to see photos of the Michigan farm area. She and her family do alot of crafting,knitting and even hand cranked socks from an antique sock machine. Find out about her etsy store at Farming in the Shade.

http://felix-strikketing.blogspot.com/ this blog is called "STRIKKETING det handler om fibre, strik og atter strik" I'm sorry I can't give a translation for this (new info:Zette has told me that strikketing is roughly translated to "knitted thing")but I can gather that it is about knitting and the person that handles the fibre and the needles. Zette has a very eclectic blog about knitting and life. Very interesting photos and there is often english translation with her native language. I'm going to say Swedish or Norwegian, but please correct me on this Zette! (New info: I'm incorrect about either country. The language is DANISH. Thanks for the info Zette).

Thank you bloggers for sharing your life and your passions. I look forward to visiting your blogs soon. Now pass the award on!

(1) Only five people are allowed

(2) Four have to be followers of your blog

(3) One has to be someone new to your blog or live in another part of the world

(4) You must link back to whoever gave you the award.

Mitten Knittin'

2008-11-14T14:05:00.011-06:00

So far these days of captivity pass quickly. A friend stopped by with homemade "Carrot & Ginger Soup", knitting books and lots of good visiting from a fellow shepherdess. Thanks for the lovely visit Mary! It cheered me up so much.

Knitting, of course fills the rest of my days. Mitts are a great project to do and finish in a jiffy. Here's the details on them:

Pattern for fingerless gloves - http://knitty.com/ISSUEsummer06/PATTfetching.html

Yarn - 60%merino, 30% alpaca, 10% mohair from Prairie Fibre Mill (Biggar, Saskatchewan)

Comments - A small project to practice cable knitting. The only thing I changed was to bind- off plain, rather than the picot bind-off in the insructions.

Green mitts pattern - CANADIAN WINTER Mitts in "Book 2 - The Purl Stitch" by Sally Melvin

Yarn - my handspun (75% merino/rambouillet lamb, 15% llama, 10% tussah silk) and a commercial yarn knit together with it ( 41% mohair, 37% viscose, 12% cotton, 10% acrylic)

Comment - These are very thick, warm mitts with a textured rib pattern on the topside. The cuff is long, 3 inches from the rolled edge to wrist-bone. The pattern calls for a bulky yarn or to hold a medium and thin yarn together. I would like to make this for grandkids so will have to adjust the pattern, needles, yarn for a smaller fit. This size fit me perfect.

Socks from Shady Side Farm

2008-11-10T22:26:00.003-06:00

A parcel arrived today with socks that I ordered from Lona at Shady Side Farm. The socks are hand cranked from an antique sock knitting machine. Lovely job Lona! The wool feels soft, durable and the toe has very good construction. There will be a lucky guy receiving these soon. Other socks, woven rugs, etc. can be found at http://shadysidefarm.etsy.com/

I'm getting used of using crutches but sometimes I get up and go to take a step forward, as if I could just walk out of the room. Thank goodness for knitting. I'm working on 2 pairs of mitts - a big thick pair from hand spun and a soft thin pair. Photos tomorrow. I've figured out how to use my camera with this laptop.

Change of Seasons -Change of plans

2008-11-09T12:54:00.004-06:00

October was a busy month. The first week I attended Level 2 of Master Spinning Program - this level focuses on blending of wool with silk, llama, alpaca and mohair. Also color blending same or different fibres. All skeins must be 2 ply and balanced. There is a year to complete the assignments.

I spent the rest of October outdoors, getting ready for winter. I put up hundreds of feet of snow fence to shelter the yard from wind and to help the snow collect on the pastures.

There was lots of vegetables to bring in: potatoes, carrots, beets and tomatoes. I made Tomato Sauce, Green Tomato Relish, Swiss Chard Relish and am hoping to get Green Tomato Mincemeat prepared before the tomatoes ripen!

One job I had put off doing was covering the sheep's hay and straw bales. There was a long range forecast for snow and rain, so I went out and got the tarp coverings on. I was almost finished the job when I fell off the ladder. My tib and fib are both broken on my left leg! As I laid there, waiting to be found, I was so thankful that my arms and hands were spared. I will be able to knit and crochet for the three months I'll be off my feet. I may be able to spin later, when the leg isn't elevated.

I am so grateful that my husband has offered to take care of all my animals. I've decided that the work must be kept as simple as possible so I've eliminated the winter breeding program. The plan was somewhat complicated : 3 rams, a group of ewes to be penned with each ram, and a separate pen for the spring ewe lambs.

So, plans have changed. There will be no breeding season and no lambs in the spring. The good news is that there will be lots of very lovely wool by March or April and the ewes will appreciate that they are not heavy with lamb when they are shorn!

P.S. I now have a laptop, I'm unable to go upstairs to my computer. Hopefully someone will find my camera in the wool room and I 'll be able to take photos of my knitting projects.

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-10-14T17:58:00.003-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving to Canadian readers and hope all our American friends had a nice Columbus Day weekend! Thank you friends and family for your kind comments in the last month. Your time and words mean alot to me.

Winter is just around the corner. This thanksgiving weekend we were blessed with a cool,calm autumn day and a house full of family.

After supper we had fun taking photos of new knitting projects. Daughter "K" in white, wears a hat featured in "Canadian Living Jan. 08" with cabling and the multi colored mitts are my final spinning project for level 1. Daughter "A" warms up in fingerless gloves (knitty.com), which also feature cables and are knit from my yearling wether "Starbuck" with 20% mohair. Nice modelling job girls!

The Shepherd and His Flock

2008-09-19T17:34:00.006-06:00

Maeve and Mary

Spinning assignments were finished last weekend and sent off to class instructor to mark. This week brought a family loss. I'll take a blog break for awhile. But I'll end on this photo and quotes:

"I am the gate for the sheep. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:8-10 NIV

"I bear witness, O my God, that Thou hast created me to know Thee and to worship thee. I testify, at this moment, to my powerlessness and to Thy might, to my poverty and to Thy Wealth. There is non other God but thee, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting." Baha'u'llah

Honeycomb Mittens

2008-08-19T09:28:00.007-06:00

Pictured above is the first mitten of the final project in Level 1. This mitten pattern called "Honeycomb Mittens" by Jean Newsted, in the book "Homespun Handknit -caps, socks, mittens, and gloves" by Interweave Press, edited by Linda Ligon (Published 1987). It is a great compilation of over 50 patterns by many people, who have selected their favourite patterns. The mittens were interesting and worked up quickly. Now I just have to get the matching one finished and add thumbs. The plants used for dyeing these mittens were: Smartweed, Yellow Loosestrife, Dandelion, and Avacado. (more to follow about this in another post).

There have been a couple questions asked about Nature Dyeing (I'll do a post on that later) and the Master Spinner program. I will give info on the spinning program in this post. For those of you who live in North America, it is very possible that you can have an extension course set up in your area. For those of you in other parts of the world, I encourage you to see what your agricultural colleges offer. It is so wonderful to have access to great teachers and mentors

I live in a very isolated part of the country, so this course has helped a lot - there are no guilds or spinning groups in my immediate area. The closest guild is about 4 hours away, a long distance when one must stay home and take care of the flock).

As to how many levels I will do, or where they will get me, I'll work at it until I feel I've learned what I want or need to know, and the certificate does make it possible to be an instructor (although I have never really wanted to be a teacher).

Master Spinner Program - Olds College - Olds, Alberta Canada

The Master Spinner Program consists of six progressive levels of classroom and independent study involving skill development, research studies and project assignments in the area of hand spinning of all major types of fibers, yarns and the end use of the spun yarns.
At all levels, students are evaluated on the basis of written assignments, practical projects, oral presentations and skill development.
The opportunity to take the first two levels can be arranged as extension off-campus.
For each level, there is a course fee, a studio (materials fee) and a workbook evaluation fee (payable when homework is submitted for marking).
Those individuals who successfully complete the assignments in all six levels will receive a Master Spinner Certificate from Olds College.
For more info contact: http://www.oldscollege.ca/programs/ContinuingEducation/Applied_Arts/fibreweek/master-spinner-program.htm

Homework Assignments Continue

2008-08-16T11:32:00.005-06:00

Today is the first day in many that tour Internet service has been up to 40 Kbps. It's been so slow all summer (usually 21 - 28 Kbps). If any of you are on dial up you know the frustration of it.

I've have received several nice messages from readers, and I apologize for no replies. I'm bogged down in the Master Spinner homework and with Internet speed going at snail-pace I've been off-line most of the month.

I've had a year to do the homework and thought I was nearly completed, but the research for the essays, and the actual work of assembling the pages of spun skeins and other samples is far more time consuming than I had anticipated.

This photo is one of the samples in the nature-dye section - the plant was to give a yellow dye, but it is very boring beige. Some other nature-dyed samples are above, laying in skeins of lovely Corriedale hand spun, awaiting dyeing and knitting into a final project (Mittens with natural and 4 or 5 nature dyed colors). Photos will follow when I've begun that project. The knitted final project is 50% of the final mark!

A New Lamb

2008-07-27T07:13:00.007-06:00

Finally, the late lambs! There will be a few this month. This is Cindy's 2008 edition, a little ram "Zackarian". The last babes of summer always get names with "Z". I never weighed him but he's small average - about 8-9 lbs.

I spun up the Sun Tea Blues earlier in the week. The colors muted down nicely when spun and plyed (approx. 190 yards).

And finally, a photo of a couple of the May lambs. We've had such good weather for them - it certainly is reflected in their health and vigor. The little ewe in the forground is "Baby 13's" lamb "Ava" and the young lad behind her is "Patrick" one of the quads (he has horns like his Shetland father "Finnegan" ).

Sun Tea Blues

2008-07-21T18:21:00.003-06:00

Here's the next spinning project just dyed. It was an amazingly hot and sunny day. I rolled up a batt of wool to fit into a lasagna pan and poured on the dyes. I use Pro Chem, Majic Carpet or sometimes Cushings (all wool dyes from my rug hooking days), all acid dyes that require a small amount of vinegar in the dyebath. I used Blue Violet, Brilliant Blue and Orange.

I wrapped the pan in a black garbage bag and set out for 3 hot sunny hours. A lot of the blue ran off, so the dye bath was not exhausted. It takes a lot of heat to set blue, so I guess it didn't get hot enough. I rinsed till clear so it's quite a bit lighter colors than planned. But I do like it! In my haste to pour the dye on, I poured in the vertical direction rather than the horizontal. I had planned to pull off lengthways for the rovings. So I will have to make another plan for the rovings. Or dye another pan of wool!

Stage 9 - 15 Tour de Fleece

2008-07-21T12:40:00.009-06:00

Things took me away from the computer this week, however my spinning wheel has continued its long journey. I have finally had a chance to begin spinning a lovely batt of brown Corriedale blended with a bit of Pygora from Serenity Farms in Michigan

I did a bit of test spinning and decided on the thickness and twist of the singles. I was aiming for a sock yarn that would be fine but not lace weight. I spun up a 1/4 lb. of the batt. I used the long draw, which worked very well because the fibre was so well prepared (all I had to do to the batt was divide it and pull it into rovings). So soft! If you look closely at the photo, you can see the silver grey is the pygora fibre blended in.

There are 2 skeins of 2 oz. each with a total of 300 yards. I was quite surprised how the yarn bloomed when I washed it to set the twist. It fluffed up and is more of a worsted weight. I think it will make cozy mittens. I've got another 1/4 lb. batt and haven't decided if I will continue or do a different weight. The preparation of this wool and pygora is very nice. For more info on this and other lovely wool, contact Cary at Serenity Farms http://www.serenity-farms.com/ . She also sells fleeces and her sheep are covered so the dark colors don't get faded. Lovely wool Cary, thank you!

My other spinning projects have been assignments from the Master Spinners level one course (Olds College, Alberta). All assignment skeins are 10 yards and spun according to instructions. This weeks was spinning raw fleece in the grease, dip washed, washed and scoured. Samples of staples, in different stages and skeins to match are then mounted and notes document your procedures. Rather tedious but very interesting. I learned lots and learned that I will do some more spinning in the grease and dip-washing. There is way less water used, and in the end when the skeins are washed, the results are good!

Stage 8 Tour de France

2008-07-12T09:52:00.006-06:00

Finally took some time to watch la Tour de France. Theres lots of days remaining so if you haven't seen any yet, check it out on a sports channel. There's live coverage of it. This is the first time I've watched any cycling event. Very interesting and more to it than I imagined. I'm glad I'm spinning, it's not near as dangerous or painful. I have developed some aches and pains in my hands but haven't had anything serious like a tip over accident and other spinning wheels falling over me! ; )

Here's the latest skein (this is the "Popsicle" dyed batt in the last post). I learned alot about color from this. The blue and greens blended and became more or less one color and the orange when mixed with bluegreen became very gold looking. Interesting, but not what I was going for. Rather than high contrast, its more mellow than I thought it would be. I also used a smaller ratio and found I was tending to overspin. Learning lots on these little projects!

I took my camera out to the pasture and took lots of sheep and lamb photos. When I got back I found out I didn't have a card in my camera. So hopefully I'll do re-takes today. The lambs are big and the mothers have been gradually weaning them. They are eating grass just like their mothers now. My two bottle-feds get only two bottles a day now (12 hours apart).

Summer Storm & Spinning

2008-07-11T08:26:00.011-06:00

There's been some wild storms blowing around in the last few days. We just got rain from this one, but there were reports of funnel clouds and plow winds in other areas around us. It came up so fast. I had been busy and hadn't listen to weather reports that said it was moving in.

Spinning continues. "Dad's Mix" started on 5th got plyed on the 9th (120 yards - 96 grams/3.4 oz.). Again, I used grey Romney for the other singles to ply with it. It is spun using a long draw, which I am finally getting better at. It's made a big change to my spinning and gives such a different yarn than the short forward spinning that I did for the first year.

I've begun spinnning a brightly dyed batt (I'll call "Popsicle"), shown on the bobbin. This will probably make a pair of mittens for one of the grandchildren (who were visiting all week but have now went home). It's so quiet!

July 5-8 Tour de Fleece

2008-07-09T11:37:00.006-06:00

This week has proved to be very busy, with grandchildren and my nephew being here. I haven't been following the Tour de France but have done some spinning. I spun up some singles from the "Dad's" pink and black and hope to get grey singles spun so I can get it plyed. Might have a photo tomorrow.

I'm out of white roving, so I've been using grey Romney for singles combined with dyed Corriedale (in the photos). The Romney is so silky!

Dyeing to spin and Latvian Mitt

2008-07-01T21:40:00.009-06:00

Here's an update on the Latvian Mitt. One is done (no thumb yet). So maybe I'll have time this month to press on. I plan to do the other one, then do both thumbs last.

I'll be doing some spinning this month for the Tour de Fleece http://keeponknittinginthefreeworld.blogspot.com/2008/06/tour-de-fleece-2008.html. This is the third year for this online event. I will begin on July 5th like a "shot out of the starters gate" when I demonstrate spinning at Praire FIBRE ART Showcase. It is being held in Saskatchewan at Praire Fibre Mill and features many fibre artists. If you'd like more details on this one day event, please email Sheila, the host at themill@sasktel.net

I have a small batch of black corriedale from my ewe Sweetheart. The photo shows the little pile of rolags after blending by hand carder, combining with white corriedale dyed pink. This blend I'm calling Dad's Mix. He wore the stylish pink and black combos in the '50s.

I'm right out of prepared roving, so I've torn apart a prepared batt (also Corriedale, but this one from an old gal "Freckles"). It's somewhat course but spins real nice using long draw. I did a very pastel dye bath with orange and purple. I'll probably spin it for mittens.

The sheep have been moved out to their summer pasture. I can see them from the kitchen window. Unfortunately,I also saw a coyote on the second day they were out there. Both guard dogs and sheep have decided it's too hot and look for shade to sleep in. Their forays out to eat are short and they return to the shady as soon as possible.

Rainy days - Time for knitting

2008-06-13T11:24:00.005-06:00

There's been lots of time for inside things during the rain over the last week. Finally, I've started some folk mittens. This particular pattern is in the Spring/Summer 2008 Vogue Knitting magazine - Latvian Mittens from Vidzeme. Pattern by Lizbeth Upitis. It is my first attempt at this and the instructions must be well written, I have been able to follow them with no trouble. The black wool is from my black ewe "Sweet Heart" and of course the white and colored yarns are also from my ewes. All these yarns , I had spun at our local eco-friendly mill.

This morning is sunny! The rain clouds have blown away and left a clean, green world behind them. Here's a photo of three little kittens (who lost their mittens), sitting outside on the window sill to catch the morning sun! There's one of the sheep guard dogs in the background having a little nap too!

RAIN and the return of green pastures

2008-06-08T12:12:00.007-06:00

June is a month for bottle feeding lambs, gardening, and skirting fleeces. In the beginning, feedings were every 3 hours, then 4 hours. It seems like the kitchen sink is always full of bottles and measuring cups and the counter top is forever sticky with puddles of formula. A few weeks have passed and beginning today feedings will now be 5 hours apart.

The top photo: Famer B and the dogs out in the meadow with ewes and lambs (note the water puddles on the road - very special for this part of the country). The bottom photo: I'm holding "Maeve", one of the bottle fed quads (named of course for the writer Maeve Binchy, whose stories I enjoy). Maeve's mother, brother and sister are just behind us and to the right.

We've had lots of rain! I managed to get the garden planted in between showers. But it has been too muddy to weed all week (but the weeds keep growing, and the veggie seeds are up).The rain also promises a good hay crop and the paddocks will be lush (at least for a while).

There hasn't been much time for spinning or knitting. And I'm behind on the sorting and skirting of fleece too. The lambs and garden take priority for at least another month.

First Lamb on May Day

2008-05-03T20:11:00.007-06:00

Little "Fiona" and mother "Toopy" - first lamb of 2008

Lambing season has started! Born to Miss Toopy is "Fiona", a very large ewe lamb, weighing in at around 9 lbs. The top photo is 24 hours after she was born. You can see that the pasture is just greening up. We had a tiny bit of rain this week, but the grass is very slow (need lots more ran). The next photo is Fiona nursing.

Today a ram lamb has been born to Brownwyn. Little "Charlie" is only a few hours old and hasn't been weighed yet. He looks pretty scruffy! Mom has been trying to clean him up. He actually has alot of brown coloring to his face and legs (not dirt!) If all is well in the morning, they will be put out in the pasture with the others.

The last photo is Brownie. She usually has triplet or quads. I think it's quads, she's huge!

A package from "Down Under"

2008-04-09T21:28:00.007-06:00

A parcel arrived today from Val in Mount Gambier, Australia . We did a handspun yarn swap. But rather than write about this, I'm going to share her lovely note with all of you:

"Dear Val & Family,
I put in a ball of pink handspun romney, blue Border
Merino and your multi-colour Romney. I hope you like the chocolates :) The parrot
on the front of this card is a "Lorikeet". We have them in the garden at the
moment! We are definitely into Autumn now and the rain is starting to come - a
welcome relief for our farmers. It's been great to visit your site and see a
glimpse of life in Canada. Maybe one day I will get to visit that side of the
world. :)
Keep on blogging, and have a great Easter.
Take care, talk to you
soon.
Val, Jack, Abe & Happy xxx"

The yarn is beautiful, and I'm looking forward to chosing projects to knit. I loved the chocolates. They never made it very far down the road before they were gobbled up (that is why they are not in the photo). Also included was a baseball cap with official Australian flag, map, and a kangaroo on other side! I love wearing caps, but I'll save this one for my "going to town"cap. No sheepdogs will have a chance to get this one when the wind blows it off my head! Thanks again Val. It was great fun and perhaps we'll do it again. Readers, if you would like to see some of Val's great photography of Australia, go to Abraham & Happy (the limecoast pugs) http://abehap.squarespace.com/ Val's blog.

Note: Australia is heading into their winter season. I hadn't thought of it before, but they also have less hours of sunlight just like Canada. In fact, they are a similar distance from their polar icecap as we are. Fortunately for them, they have milder weather due to the warm ocean currents. We are not that fortunate in Saskatchewan. We are land-locked and at the mercy of the frigid north wind.

Tale of a travelling sock kit

2008-03-22T00:20:00.002-06:00

I'd like to share a link that has a post about one of my sock kits that was purchased by another shepherd that lives in Michigan. The post and photo of the completed socks is written in March 2008 and is entitled "Jelly Beans":
http://serenity-farms.blogspot.com
If you're reading this Cary, thanks again for the generous compliments!

A Sunny Spring Morning

2008-03-09T15:12:00.009-06:00

Spring is here and the air is filled with the sound of chirping little migratory birds! Canada geese flew over today and landed in the pea field to look for food. Lots of squashed gophers on the roads (we are on the upswing of a cyclical infestation of these little varmints) .

All the animals, farm and wild are enjoying the sunny days. Here's a photo of Finnegan enjoying breakfast in the sun. I have been spinning his fleece (from his first clipping last spring).

Here's some photos of the yarn in the pan before the dye and after the dye is applied (the next step not shown is processing in the oven for about 3/4 hour). This is for a yarn exchange with Val from the south coast of Australia. Hope she likes it! Maybe it's going to be knit into a beanie. The colors were inspired by a photo she took of a sunset. To view her great photos visit her blog at http://abehap.squarespace.com/

Extreme Winter Weather

2008-02-04T18:25:00.001-06:00

We've had some unbelievabley cold weather for a couple weeks. The day this photo was taken, it was daytime high of -26c and -36c that night. The sheep were happy to be eating indoors, because the wind was so severe. Wind is the thing sheep hate the most! With their huge winter coats, they really don't mind the cold. I had to convince the young ewe lambs to come into the shed during a raging blizzard. They had never experienced an extreme winter storm so didn't know what to do. As soon as the wind subsided, they were back outdoors again, even in the -30's.

The shawl "Selina" is finished. The silk yarn was very nice to work with. Lovely spinning Diane L. from Michigan - thank you. It was the largest lace project I have attempted, and I was glad it was with large yarn and needles. It went along quickly!

February has been good days for washing and carding wool. Using wool that was skirted off fleeces, it was an experiment to see if these worst looking, dirty staples could be used for something - perhaps rug yarn. After washing, dyeing and carding the wool is splendid. The photo shows "flick carded" staples laying on top of "drum carded" batts. The next step is spinning, perhaps next week.

Hoar Frost Heaven

2008-01-25T11:54:00.000-06:00

hoar (hōr), a. & n. 1. Grey-haired with age; greyish white; ~-frost, frozen water vapour deposited in clear still weather on lawns etc.; (of things) grey with age; ~stone, ancient boundary stone. 2. n. Hoariness, ~-frost.

The above is a discription from the Oxford Dictionary. But of course, a picture is worth a thousand words. This morning as the sun rose, the world was white and dazzling!

The temperature was -12 c and the humidity high, around 77%. And of course the most critical element for hoar frost to form is lack of air movement. It had been a very calm night, not a breath of wind. As the morning wore on, there were small gusts of wind. Each one sent a cloudy shower of ice crystals drifting through the trees to the ground.

Snow on ewe and me

2008-01-22T13:06:00.000-06:00

It's a snowy, blowy day in Saskatchewan! Everything is covered in fresh snow and snow continues to fall. The temperature is a balmy -4 celcius, so if it gets warmer we'll be able to make snow men or snow sheep!

Here's Cindy standing her ground! She stamped her foot and glared at us but we persisted and managed to move her over to the main herd of sheep for breeding season. She has been with her her late born ewe lamb "Ariel" and the other ewe lambs. Ariel is 5 months old now and no longer needs mama's care.

As you can see, Cindy is a large ewe, over 200 lbs. and has almost a full year of wool on her. When I slide my fingers deep into the fleece, it's about 5 inches long (and very warm down in there). No wonder she looks huge, she is! In fact, she's due for a haircut around the eyes so she can see better. Shearing will come later, probably March, before lambing season.

I'm knitting a shawl. The yarn and needles are large so it's a good way to learn to knit lace. This pattern is the "Salina Shawl" free from http://www.unicornbooks.com/

The yarn is hand spun, from a yarn swap last spring . It's working out perfectly for the shawl! This site hosts yarn swaps and it's a fun way to exchange yarn. You never know what you will get! http://www.desertgardenfarms.com/

Trails End

2008-01-04T12:28:00.001-06:00

Miss Millie MacNeil
October 1995 - October 2007

We ran on beaches

Tide littered - from coast to coast

Learned to breach the waves

Swimming out to bobbing ducks

Discovered the trail

In a snowstorm thick as fog.

Explored the prairies

Immersed in a sea of grass

And when our trail branched

You alone found the way home.

(I wrote this poem for a tribute to my recently departed dog Miss MacNeil)

Happy Holidays!

2007-12-26T23:19:00.001-06:00

Children and Grandchildren go for a ride

on the haywagon during the late afternoon chores.

A chilly day, but it was fun. Season's Greetings to you all!

All creatures great and small

2007-12-25T15:35:00.000-06:00

Christmas Morning 2007

Early,before sunrise, I opened the bedroom window to get some fresh air. I had just snuggled back under the thick down comforter when I heard a rooster crow. I sprang out of bed, surprised to hear crowing when they are all inside the chicken house. This rooster’s crow meant that one of them didn’t get back into the chicken house at nightfall and was outside all night. I ran and looked at the thermometer. The outside temperature was at minus 2 degree celcius. “Thank God, I’m sure the bird will be fine!” I muttered as I pulled my snowsuit over flannel pajamas and headed outside.

I found him huddled close to the little door, out of the reach of a sharp wind that whistled around the building. I covered the comb on his little head with my bare hands and it didn’t feel cold, so perhaps it hadn’t froze. I plucked him up out of the fresh skiff of snow and brought him inside. Although the sun wasn’t up yet, inside was bright and cozy. The lights are on an automatic timer to ensure that the laying hens receive 14 hours of light. We were greeted by other roosters crowing and jumping off their nighttime perches, eager to find out what the commotion was about. In the hen’s pen, the morning egg laying had already begun, so I collected eggs, checked and topped up food and water and returned to the house for a couple more hours shut eye! (The photo of Mr. Rooster was taken a few hours later when he had warmed up and was visiting some young hens).

Chore time was a bit later than usual, so the sheep had come up to the barn for water, mineral and salt.

When I drove the ATV laiden with alfalfa bales over to the feeding area, they all came running in single file.

They gathered around the wagon, nibbling leaves off the bales before I put the hay into the feeders.

The sheep guard dogs Bella and Paloma are on hand to help eat a little bit of fiber themselves! They are 15 months old now and they work and play 24-7. They have a great time, everything is still game, even checking the perimeter for preditors.

There's a photo of the little horned Shetland ram "Finnegan". You may remember a photo of him last year in this blog, when he was just a yearling. Some of the lambs down at the lamb pen are his offspring.

After the ewes and rams are fed I walk back to the lamb pen where the little lamb ewes are spending the winter.

Cindy Crawford, mother of little Ariel (who was born in August), is spending a few weeks with the young lambs, while they settle in to their new surroundings. She'll be moved back with the ewes and rams in a few days so she will be bred for a spring lamb.

This morning I put an old wool scarf on "Little Sister". "Issie" and "George" seem to have a look that says, "Why didn't we get a scarf too?"

Hello Snow and Farewell Turkeys

2007-12-20T22:35:00.000-06:00

Heavens, I missed doing a post for the month of November. It really was a busy month as we worked to get as much yardwork,fence & corral repairing, done before the cold weather set in. We had our first snow in early November. It didn't stay too long and we continued to have lovely weather for a few more weeks. In the garden, the Swiss Chard continued to grow. How lovely to eat fresh garden greens until mid November! They were determined plants, and never stopped until the temperature dropped to -18c and remained that way for almost two weeks (into early December). As for the sheep, I began feeding to supplement the dryed up pasture in late October. In November, I moved their portable feeders out to the pasture north of the barn yard. You can see that pasture (in the upper portion of the photo), glowing gold in the late afternoon sunlight . There is a short row of Carragana shrubs (near the center of the field) that make a fine windbreak. However, as the temperatures dropped and the snow began to accumulate, I moved the flock in closer to the yard.

And November wouldn't be complete without a parting shot of the glorious turkeys (taken just days before butchering). It was a sad day to see them go! I did enjoy their unusual dispositions. They learned that I was in the house and if I was late for feeding time, they would fly over the fence and come looking for me! They (the Bronze) were very friendly and gentle, not at all like the commercial white ones. I'll miss seeing them roosting in the willows for the night!
But the turkeys are a reminder of why we have animals. In the end, they are raised as food and we are greatful to have the opportunity to raise them in a healthy and stress-free environment. And in keeping with this time of year, we reflect on our blessings and give thanks for the opportunity of sharing life with the animals and nature around us at NewLand Ranch.

The last days of autumn

2007-10-18T17:26:00.000-06:00

As you can see the leaves have blown away. Once the brilliant fall leaves are gone the landscape seems to mellow and the sky takes center stage. This photo was taken at our man-made dam.

Here's a photo when I was in the canoe. The dried plants on the shore were beautiful in the evening light. My mind is on wool dyeing these days, so I hope to try out some of these wild plants in a dye pot some day.

The seasons go round and round

2007-09-18T19:34:00.000-06:00

time (an emid August) weWe've had arly fall. In We've had an early fall. In harvest time (mid August) we had some rain with hail, that was a refreshing relief from the dry spell. There was some damage to crops. Late August and early September brought light frosts, that touched the pumpkins, beans and basil. And finally, the killing frost came on September 14. It mowed down everything, including pumpkins that were on the verge of maturity and sadly, all the sunflowers that put on a fantastic show this summer! After the frost, the weather has been beautiful.
It's enjoyable putting together a written account of life at NewLand Ranch, revolving around the seasons. I don't really have a very well rounded story of farm life in this blog, but try to focus on the wool projects. It's been a joy to learn new skill in using my sheeps wool and seeing what direction that will take.
Summer and fall were the beginning of my sock wool sales on eBay. If I have items posted, they can be seen at: http://myworld.ebay.ca/missmacneil/ I am working on putting a storefront "Wooly Wool of the West"on eBay. It will be up and running in October.

Here's some dye projects from late September - skeins on the barnyard gate (just for the photo - I love to get the barn into pictures, its such a dear old building).

Cowgirl Slipper Socks

2007-08-07T11:36:00.001-06:00

What an incredibly hot summer it has been. After morning chores were finished, I would stay inside and try to keep cool. One spinning project was sock wool (medium weight/sport weight).

The rovings were weighted and then dyed.The dyes bled more than I had planned so there are a real"Dog's Breakfast" of colors - a little bit of this, a little bit of that!

I predrafted the rovings and spun in one day, and plyed the next day.

The pattern is called "Cowgirl Slipper Socks " and can be found in Interweave "Knit" Winter 2006. If you use this pattern, check out the Interweave website, and get the correction for a typing error (it is a small one but will make a difference on the heel).

I made these socks for my oldest daughter A. She is a "cowgirl" who works with horses.
(Photo credit of lamb "Issie" was taken by her when she and the grandchildren visited us.)
Photos from top to bottom:
- "Issie" one of the quads.
- The dyed rovings, before predrafting.
- Two ply yarn .
- "Cowgirl Slipper Socks".

Next on the spinning wheel - a fine weight sock yarn for a lace pattern.

Conclusion of "Spinning and knitting project"

2007-07-11T00:36:00.000-06:00

This project was started in June and finished in July.

Unfortunately I didn't take a photo of the spinning process of the wool. The rovings where spun to a chunky weight and 2 singles were plyed. The skullcap knit up fast. I added some purple and dark green homespun to give it a bit of contrast.

The final stage was to check the fit when it was finished. Ironically, M. came for a visit on July 2nd, the hottest day of the year. The toque fit perfect but it didn't stay on his head long ( Note the Canada Day Maple leaf tatoo decals on cheeks, he had just returned from a July 1st celebration).

Summer Haiku

2007-07-03T17:51:00.000-06:00

Summer settles in
Ewes lead lambs to green meadows
Life is abundant
Rain promises to linger

A Spinning and Knitting Project

2007-06-18T15:33:00.001-06:00

Here is my ten year old nephew M.with 6 oz. of wool rovings that have been tied in several places to keep them organized while being processed.

He puts it into a warm water bath (with a touch of jet dry) for about 30 minutes, making sure it is completely emersed. This will prepare it for accepting dye.

After it is taken out of the water, he spins it with a salad spinner. The centrafugul force removes most of the water.

Colors are selected and mixed with hot water and white vinegar. Vinegar is added to each of the colors, because these are acid dyes and this will help set the color into the wool.
His favourite colors are greens. He has bronze green, brilliant green and bottle (blue) green. I suggest that he chooses another color to coordinate with the green, so he chooses yellow. He applies the dye with an eyedropper, spoon and pouring direct from the jars.

After the wool has been heat processed for about half an hour in a steamer on top of the stove, it is cooled. Then it is rinsed in cool water and hung up to dry. There is some areas of the wool that are still white. I later submerse this bundle of rovings into a blue green dye bath and cook it in the oven for half and hour.

...this story will be continued as we progress in the project.

June is gardening, lambs and other farm babies

2007-06-15T19:25:00.000-06:00

Above photo- A cat's eye view of the Catmint (Nepeta) near the doorway. It blooms all spring, summer and fall.

The lambs are all growing quickly. In this photo, starting in forground and going backward are: Issie, Meredith, Pixie Girl (not a quad, but one of the Pixie Twins), George and mom Brownwyn, laying down. One of the ram quads is missing from photo, probably off with other lambs playing "King of the Hill".

Little "Bronze" turkeys are a few days old in these photos. "Bronze" are a heritage breed, which was sent by post from another province (one day mail service). Chicks will arrive in July.

The ducklings hatched in the incubator have moved to the outdoor portable pen. Even at a few days old, they could search down and eat bugs that were in the grass. There is always an audience of cats and kittens watching and walking around the pen, trying to figure out how toget inside.

It's Quadruplets!

2007-05-31T19:01:00.002-06:00

Life with sheep is busy when one of them has quadruplets. This is "Brownwyns" second year as a mother. Her little ones were born three days ago. They are in order of birth - George 10 lbs. ram, Denny 10.5 lbs. ram, Issie 9 lbs. ewe, and little Meredith 7.5 lbs. ewe.

Their mother has been excellent with them and she hasn't minded being confined to the barn. I think she has rather enjoyed the extra fine alfalfa, oats and water that appears whenever she looks into the buckets. She has also been very accepting of me giving the little ewes supplemental bottles. Although she would do alright for a while feeding all four, it would be more and more difficult to keep up with them as they grow. At first I just bottle fed Meredith to get some weight on her. Then I began feeding Issie as well.

Of course there continue to be a few lambs born about every other day. They are all sweet and perhaps I will get some close up photos up on the blog later.

Photos - Top: Last day in the barn. Meredith is behind, the one with a black marking like a little saddle on her back Middle: checking out the weather, and making a game plan. Bottom: Out into the big world for four little babes.

Spin

2007-05-23T09:16:00.000-06:00

Life is hectic in the merry month of May, but I've managed to steal away some time for spinning.

Here are photos of a yarn exchange that I participated in. It was a spring garden theme with a photo contest. The lilacs have been blooming gorgeously so I just had to get them into one of the pictures. The photos show the skein of yarn that I spun from roving. First brilliant green & red violet were painted on, then the whole works put in a kettle of blue dye. After pre-drafting and spinning singles, I made it into two ply, approx. 14-16 wpi (wraps per inch). The skein was sent to a woman in Michigan.

A photo of my "Traveller" model Ashford spinning wheel. The

spool of green singles was spun by K. during christmas break. He took to spinning like a duck to water. I hope he gets a chance to do some more this summer!

Below are photos of my oldest grandson K. He is modelling his felted "Fuzzy Feet" (a knitty.com pattern). He dyed the wool with Koolaid during Christmas holidays and I had them ready for his next visit.

Spring is full of new arrivals!

2007-05-17T08:46:00.000-06:00

Finally, photos have got developed. Here are some of new spring '07 arrivals to NewLand Ranch.
Grandson Cody visited at Easter and was delighted to find Blackies kittens in the porch closet!

Mr. B, helps a new calf to get some colostrum, that important first drink. Usually cows and calves have no problems with this, but from time to time, there will be a calf who needs help. This calf is one of about 60 born this spring.
New additions to the poultry yard - a pair of Rouen ducks and some Indian Runner ducks(they are the tall thin, upright walking ducks). They are in the rooster pen until we can get a preditor fence built around the duck pond for them ( foxes and coyotes would love to drop in for lunch)!