Memorial Day Weekend Update

On Friday I received an e-mail and flyer from a LYS, Yarns International, that they are closing their store front but will continue to have commerce on the internet and offer knitting classes. Yesterday was the start of the sale (25%) to sell off their inventory. Everything was marked down with the exception of their Shetland 2000. Each week the percentage goes up. The doors will close on June 17th. Here is my haul.I managed to get 20 skeins of Koigu to be made into socks, 7 skeins of Jaeger Aqua Cotton to be made into face cloths, and an assortment of circular and double pointed needles. The circulars are Addi Natura of various sizes in 32" and 40" lengths.

Next up is the "Rats Nest". Before leaving for Spain I started the decreases for the v-neck and armholes on my Northwest Sunset Vest for Sweaters from Camp KAL. When we got back I could not find my scrap of paper with the notes for the decreases. I thought I had figured out where I was but after completing 30-rows things just did not look right. So I frogged it and this is the mess I created.I decided I would have no more of this and created a chart to keep track of the decreases. I'm a very visual person anyway and I should have created this chart to begin with. I am now back to where I was before I jumped into the frog pond. Glad I took the time to create the chart because it is so easy to follow and good way to verify the decreases.

Back From Spain

I'm behind in my posting since returning from Spain. We had a wonderful time but it is good to be home. I'm still waking up at 4 am and hoping I will get back into my usual sleep routine soon. While in Spain I managed to knit a pair of socks for my DDIL. They are knit with Fortissima Colori by Schoeller&Stahl in color #9074. I began each sock in the exact same place so the stripes would line up on each sock. I started another pair using #9098 for DS. I love collecting sea glass. Most mornings while in Spain I would walk the beach looking for sea glass. One of my favorite books is "Pure Sea Glass" by Richard LaMotte. This book is a great reference for anyone interesting in collecting. The photography, by Celia Pearson, is spectacular. They say sea glass is getting very scarce and hard to find. I was able to find a treasure trove on the beaches of Marbella Spain.Needless to say my luggage was definitely heavier then when I arrived.

Marbella, Spain

We're leaving tomorrow for Marbella, Spain. Marbella is on the Mediterranean side down at the southern region not far from Gibralta. We'll be back on the 17th. See you then!

Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival

It was a beautiful day for a sheep & wool festival. It was sunny, temps in the upper 70's, and lots of sunshine. As you can see there was a sea of cars and a sea of people.

Lots of food and lots of lines. In the Showcase Tent: Navajo Men Who Weave sponsored by the Navajo Nation Museum in Window Rock, AZ. Their work is so amazing. Master Weavers Gilbert Begay, Ron Garnanez, and Roy Kady.

The session "Men Who Weave" led by Clarenda Begay, the Navajo Nation Museum Curator, was very interesting. She discussed the Navajo clans and showed a video about the Navajo men who weave and the story about the Navajo-Churro sheep. The breed was near extinction and is still a rare breed today. In 1977, Dr. Lyle McNeal started the Navajo Sheep Project to genetically preserve the breed and return it to the Navajo . The Navajo Sheep Project also established the Navajo Lifeway to encourage the art of weaving using the Churro wool. Dr. McNeal was one of the lecturers at the festival.

I did not see any FLAK'ers. I waited at our appointed spot but did not see anyone. I did purchase some gorgeous handcrafted glass buttons for my FLAK sweater from Moving Mud. The buttons cost almost as much as the wool to knit the sweater but they were just too perfect to pass up.

Ann & Eugene Bourgeois of Philosopher's Wool. I purchased a Tradition kit in Blues and Purple . (It's the sweater next to Eugene's head on the left.)

Here are some additional pictures from the festival.

Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival

The Thirty-Third Annual Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival - May 6 & 7, 2006 Howard County Fairgrounds Sponsored by The Maryland Sheep Breeders Association. I love the artwork selected this year. It was done by Martha Polkey. Martha is a shepherd of a small colored Merino flock and lives on a small Leesburg, Loudoun County, Virginia, farm with her husband and two children.

Check back. I will be posting MS&W pictures soon.