fantastic, hard work and very, very warm.
Photos and details tomorrow as I have to work out how to download the photos I took from my mobile phone
Sunday, 28 June 2009
Sunday, 21 June 2009
Only 4 more sleeps to Woolfest...
and I'm past panicking, not!!!! This weekend I got the Alpaca felt labeled and packed away as well as the jumpers, hats, gloves and scarves.
But on Friday my doctor rang up to say he had 3 Teeswater fleeces for me, which he duly delivered at lunch time leaving Tim having to carry 3 very heavy fleeces up into the fleece store. Today as the weather was fine and sunny, ideal to look and sort out the fleeces, which on the whole were not too bad, but did need some serious dagging out. I also looked as the 2 Jacob fleeces I'd been given, they needed no work at all and I'm looking forward to spinning these 2. The second half of the Texal fleece I washed last week, got washed and dried today. I've already started to put this fleece through my carder in readiness for the Tour de Fleece start on the 5th July.
In the allotment garden Tim and the Resident Vandal got the fence posts in, ready to put the fence up. A short stretch of wire has been put up along with the gate, so it won't be long before the rest of the allotment is finally fenced. Today I planted out the leek plants all 120 of them, the french beans I re-sowed are starting to come through, the sweetcorn is growing strongly and I've realised that the first lot of sprout plants that I planted out could possible be planted too close together. I may have to thin them out, seems a shame, but if I don't, we may not many sprouts.
Tomorrow is a Wool Fair at Goathland, and the Teeswater's Society 60th Anniversary. Should be a good day and it will be good to relax and meet up the friends.
This coming week up to Thursday, will see me dashing around, madly packing all the sundry bits and pieces I think I will need besides the fleece, like pens, stock list, hole punch, blu tac, sellotape, string, money, signs, camera, cloths to cover the sales tables, chair, spinning wheel, the list is endless...........
But on Friday my doctor rang up to say he had 3 Teeswater fleeces for me, which he duly delivered at lunch time leaving Tim having to carry 3 very heavy fleeces up into the fleece store. Today as the weather was fine and sunny, ideal to look and sort out the fleeces, which on the whole were not too bad, but did need some serious dagging out. I also looked as the 2 Jacob fleeces I'd been given, they needed no work at all and I'm looking forward to spinning these 2. The second half of the Texal fleece I washed last week, got washed and dried today. I've already started to put this fleece through my carder in readiness for the Tour de Fleece start on the 5th July.
In the allotment garden Tim and the Resident Vandal got the fence posts in, ready to put the fence up. A short stretch of wire has been put up along with the gate, so it won't be long before the rest of the allotment is finally fenced. Today I planted out the leek plants all 120 of them, the french beans I re-sowed are starting to come through, the sweetcorn is growing strongly and I've realised that the first lot of sprout plants that I planted out could possible be planted too close together. I may have to thin them out, seems a shame, but if I don't, we may not many sprouts.
Tomorrow is a Wool Fair at Goathland, and the Teeswater's Society 60th Anniversary. Should be a good day and it will be good to relax and meet up the friends.
This coming week up to Thursday, will see me dashing around, madly packing all the sundry bits and pieces I think I will need besides the fleece, like pens, stock list, hole punch, blu tac, sellotape, string, money, signs, camera, cloths to cover the sales tables, chair, spinning wheel, the list is endless...........
Sunday, 14 June 2009
The final lot of dyeing for Woolfest
This is the final lot of Alpaca tops, that has been Rainbow dyed. All weighed and labeled up ready to pack away for Woolfest.This coming week will see me making the final labels for the stall, painting some display boxes and packing away the natural alpaca rovings, into the big bags, ready to pack into the back of the truck and decide what I'm going to do with the Alpaca felt. Any ideas greatly received...........
Tour De Fleece
I belong to a online group called Ravelry, it's a version of Facebook for anyone interested in spinning, knitting, weaving and dyeing. One of the groups on Ravelry is called "Tour De Fleece" and it runs during the Tour De France cycle race. The idea is that during the Tour de France you spin for at least 30 minutes a day, and I've joined the "Rookies Team" as this is my first Tour de Fleece
This is the fleece I will be spinning, it a Texal fleece, something I've never spun before
Here is a quarter of it, washed and drying this afternoon. It's not the softest of fleeces I've spun, but it certainly has some lovely staples. Not quite sure what I will do with the resulting fibre, I'm a but tempted to dye it a lovely purple colour. We shall see.
This is the fleece I will be spinning, it a Texal fleece, something I've never spun beforeHere is a quarter of it, washed and drying this afternoon. It's not the softest of fleeces I've spun, but it certainly has some lovely staples. Not quite sure what I will do with the resulting fibre, I'm a but tempted to dye it a lovely purple colour. We shall see.Tour de Fleece starts on the 5th July.
A lovely weekend
What a lovely weekend we've had. The forecast had been for rain on Saturday, but none arrived until now, Sunday evening and then only a light shower.
Tim managed to get a short run of wire fitted this week. I now means that the sheep can graze in an area near the large barn, once some hurdles are put across the gap between the lambing barn and this barn, we don't want them in this area all the time, but they might as well eat the grass down. Now the sheep can't get into the back of the main barn we can move the hurdles near and near to the house to graze the grass along the paddock and barn sides. Normally we try and run the topper over this area, but thought we would let the sheep graze it for a change.
On Saturday I had an urgent mole gassing job to do. I'd been out gassing on this farm in April, but because the grass was so long it was difficult to see the runs etc, so now that the farmer has taken his first cut of silage, any new mole activity can be quickly seen. It was a lovely 3 hour walk around the fields looking out to the sea.
To day I've been busy in the veg garden, it was in serious need of a good weed. It also gave me the opportunity to thin out the very young parsnip and beetroot plants. The winter onions have grown into quite big bulbs and it won't be long before I will be picking them. Holly and Deefa "helped" me with the weeding by sleeping in the grass and watching my every move. Holly has managed to find something very aromatic to roll in!!!!!! Showers required for both dogs!!!!
Tim managed to get a short run of wire fitted this week. I now means that the sheep can graze in an area near the large barn, once some hurdles are put across the gap between the lambing barn and this barn, we don't want them in this area all the time, but they might as well eat the grass down. Now the sheep can't get into the back of the main barn we can move the hurdles near and near to the house to graze the grass along the paddock and barn sides. Normally we try and run the topper over this area, but thought we would let the sheep graze it for a change.
On Saturday I had an urgent mole gassing job to do. I'd been out gassing on this farm in April, but because the grass was so long it was difficult to see the runs etc, so now that the farmer has taken his first cut of silage, any new mole activity can be quickly seen. It was a lovely 3 hour walk around the fields looking out to the sea.
To day I've been busy in the veg garden, it was in serious need of a good weed. It also gave me the opportunity to thin out the very young parsnip and beetroot plants. The winter onions have grown into quite big bulbs and it won't be long before I will be picking them. Holly and Deefa "helped" me with the weeding by sleeping in the grass and watching my every move. Holly has managed to find something very aromatic to roll in!!!!!! Showers required for both dogs!!!!
Sunday, 7 June 2009
A busy weekend
Despite the forecast for this weekend not being very good, we seemed to get an awful lot done. The tiler finished the kitchen and utility room on Friday, so on Saturday the tiles were given a final polish, the work surfaces given a good clean, and the aga serviced and re lit. The under stairs cupboard given it's finally coats to paint, just the floor to paint then everything can be put back.
As it had rained so hard most of Saturday, we were unsure if we would be able to vaccinate the lambs, but as the day wore on, the rain eased and the sun came out, the lambs finally dried out.
Early this morning Tim and Deefa moved the ewes and lambs into the barn so that the lambs could be vaccinated and given a "nice drink" of wormer. After last year's problems we're playing safe this year and worming the lambs earlier, rather than later. It seems to have worked with Frea and Finn who are steadily gaining weight.
This afternoon I planted out the sweetcorn, cabbage and broccoli plants and re sown some more Dwarf French bean plants, as the ones that I've planted out are not doing too well. We've had a few very cold nights and I suspect one or two ground frosts.
In 3 weeks Woolfest will be over, I'm not quite sure whether to quietly panic or have a case of mass hysteria. I've still got 5 kilos of alpaca fibre to dye and with the arrival of a parcel of 15 alpaca felt sheets, which I'm not sure if I'm going to dye them all just a few. All I do know is that they will need cutting up into smaller squares and then labelling.
Tomorrow the final 9 of last year's lambs are going to the abattoir as we've managed to sell the meat for several people's freezers. We were going to keep them until after they had been sheared, but as their fleeces are not up to the standard I need for selling, they are on there way.
Talking of fleeces, on Thursday I helped out at a neighbouring farm with the shearing, I ended up wrapping 130+ fleeces. I did manage to "snaffle" 4 fleeces into the back of my car, a Texel, a couple of Blue Faced Leicesters and a Masham. Should keep me quiet for a while!!!!
As it had rained so hard most of Saturday, we were unsure if we would be able to vaccinate the lambs, but as the day wore on, the rain eased and the sun came out, the lambs finally dried out.
Early this morning Tim and Deefa moved the ewes and lambs into the barn so that the lambs could be vaccinated and given a "nice drink" of wormer. After last year's problems we're playing safe this year and worming the lambs earlier, rather than later. It seems to have worked with Frea and Finn who are steadily gaining weight.
This afternoon I planted out the sweetcorn, cabbage and broccoli plants and re sown some more Dwarf French bean plants, as the ones that I've planted out are not doing too well. We've had a few very cold nights and I suspect one or two ground frosts.
In 3 weeks Woolfest will be over, I'm not quite sure whether to quietly panic or have a case of mass hysteria. I've still got 5 kilos of alpaca fibre to dye and with the arrival of a parcel of 15 alpaca felt sheets, which I'm not sure if I'm going to dye them all just a few. All I do know is that they will need cutting up into smaller squares and then labelling.
Tomorrow the final 9 of last year's lambs are going to the abattoir as we've managed to sell the meat for several people's freezers. We were going to keep them until after they had been sheared, but as their fleeces are not up to the standard I need for selling, they are on there way.
Talking of fleeces, on Thursday I helped out at a neighbouring farm with the shearing, I ended up wrapping 130+ fleeces. I did manage to "snaffle" 4 fleeces into the back of my car, a Texel, a couple of Blue Faced Leicesters and a Masham. Should keep me quiet for a while!!!!
Thursday, 4 June 2009
The veg plot has new beds
I got home last night to find that Scooby had been and rotovated the new veg plot, we call the allotment, and Tim had started to add the new deep beds.
The above photo is taken looking up the allotment
This one shows Deefa inspecting the work so far
Tonight this is how the allotment looks now, with 4 new beds in place. Tim has 4 more beds to make and then we can put them in place, making 10 beds in all. There is a fence to round the area, so we can graze some of the sheep in here, and as you can see from the photos, the grass is quite long in this area now. I'm hoping to get my sweetcorn, cabbages and broccolli planted out over the next few days. Weather permitting.
The above photo is taken looking up the allotment
This one shows Deefa inspecting the work so far
Tonight this is how the allotment looks now, with 4 new beds in place. Tim has 4 more beds to make and then we can put them in place, making 10 beds in all. There is a fence to round the area, so we can graze some of the sheep in here, and as you can see from the photos, the grass is quite long in this area now. I'm hoping to get my sweetcorn, cabbages and broccolli planted out over the next few days. Weather permitting.
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