Store update: Luxury Batts....

I am now officially addicted to my new Supercarder. I have been glued to this thing all weekend and here are some of the results:



They are various blends made from merino, baby alpaca, angora, tussah silk, and/or bamboo and available at my little etsy store: poppyflowerfibers.etsy.com

Hope you come by for a look.

10% off all SOCK YARN and FREE SHIPPING 12/26 - 12/31

Happy Everythingmas everybody!

Beginning tomorrow, December 26th through December 31st at midnight, ALL SOCK YARN will be 10% off with FREE SHIPPING for orders $40 or more. I have lots of sock yarn and more will be added as others sell. Prices will be discounted beginning 12/26 at midnight EST. Please wait for revised invoice reflecting free shipping if applicable before paying.

Discount does not apply to cashmere yarn or roving.

Have fun!!!

~Lisa



http://poppyflowerfibers.etsy.com

Hand-painted fiber update today 3pm MST

I have some lovely hand-painted BFL and Merino roving to upload to the store today. I'm not feeling very well today, but will do my best to have it posted by 3pm MST.

Here is a sampling. I still need to upload some more pics of other colorways but am taking a break right now.

Supercarder on the way!

OMG! OMG!! My Supercarder is officially on it's way to me. I had not mentioned it before here because I wasn't sure if it was going to work out. I purchased a Supercarder that is a few years old and "like new" from a very nice lady in Wisconsin for 30% off the current retail price!!! But, there was a delay in getting it shipped and I was beginning to get very nervous. It's not everyday I send that amount of money to someone I have never met before and know nothing about. But today she emailed me with the tracking number and it should arrive by next Thursday. I'm so excited!!! I can't wait to get my hands on it and start cranking out some batts and roving so that this thing can start paying for itself.

Deaaaaad sexy wheel

I'm borrowing a Woolee Winder for my new Suzie Alpaca and is she now a looker! The black of the WW flyer looks GORGEOUS against the black flywheel and the wood on the Majacraft WW is even more beautiful than the original flyer that came with the Alpaca. I am so happy with this wheel. It is such a pleasure to spin on such a beautiful wheel. I think I've finally found *the* wheel for me.

Someone remind me to cover the patio furniture next time

Sock yarn update at 3pm MST

I've been busy painting up some sock yarn over the weekend and will be posting it at 3pm MST today.

Here's a peek of what will be posted.




http://poppyflowerfibers.etsy.com

Batts for the store

Here are some of the batts that will be posted to my Etsy store tomorrow. I will probably begin uploading around 7am MST. They are luxury batts with at least 50% luxury fiber...tussah silk, bamboo, angora, and/or baby alpaca.

Batts and an alpaca

For those who haven't seen what I've been up to on Flickr (and give a crap), this is what I've been doing the past couple of days. Blending up fluffy batts made from merino, baby alpaca locks, and tussah silk, bamboo, targhee locks, and/or angora.



And putting together my new wheel, the Majacraft Suzie Alpaca. It arrived in only 6 days from New Zealand!!!! I am so happy. =o) She spins beautifully, but there is a little bit of a learning curve after spinning on the easy-as-pie Lendrum for the past year.

CYBER MONDAY SALE!!! 10% OFF TODAY ONLY!

I've marked down all non-sale items 10% for today only. Enjoy!!

I'm a sick, twisted Panda voyeur!

Yahoo news had a small story with a picture of a baby Panda, so of course I had to open it. That was just the beginning. I found the live Panda cam to the San Diego zoo and can't seem to tear myself away! The big panda is nursing her baby cub, or maybe she's just holding it...it's hard to tell. But I am intrigued and want more! At the same time I feel like this cam is invading the Panda's privacy. The poor Pandas have no idea that their lovely displays of affection are being broadcast all over the net. I'm torn. They're just so darn cute though.

http://www.sandiegozoo.org/zoo/ex_panda_station.html

Thanksgiving and baby alpaca

Because I'm obsessed, I felt the need to play with some baby alpaca this morning. I'm combing it to get rid of the debris, short fibers, and fluff it out, then I will be carding it with some merino, angora, and tussah silk. Hand-dyed.



Nice and fluffy after combing
,

Sock yarn update

Phew, what a long day.  Mostly consisting of fighting with my camera.  I have some fun sock yarn loaded to the store.  Thanks for looking y'all!

sad day, no wheel

Today I was expecting my new wheel...a Majacraft Alpaca. I sold my Lendrum last week, and it's already been 1 week without a wheel. Unfortunately, my Majacraft arrived scratched and damaged due to a faulty packing job from the retailer. So, I have to ship this one back to the seller and then they will order me one to be drop shipped directly from Majacraft. I'm pretty bummed because I am itching to spin and *need* to spin up some yarn in order to knit up some holiday gifts. But now my new wheel won't arrive for at least 3 weeks. =o( Woe is me. Yes, there are much worse things in life, but I am sad that I do not have my wheel.

On a good note, I will be receiving the new black wheel that Majacraft just began manufacturing for the Suzie Pro and Alpaca. At first I did not want the black wheel which is why I ordered from a retailer that had a green one in stock. But why the hell not...a black wheel it will be. And maybe I'll even be the cool kid on the block for a while with the new black Alpaca wheel. Oh, to be the cool kid if even for just one day....

So, this is what the black Alpaca wheel will look like. I think it's growing on me:

Store update

Here's just a sampling. I have close to 20 rovings of merino fiber. Got to run and start updating. Thanks for looking!

Poppy the dog

Snoooooooooooooooow!

Pretty snow falling Boulder.  Expecting 4 to 8 inches!!  Yesterday was 80 degrees and today 32.  Tomorrow will be in the 50's and the next day in the 70's.  Typical Colorado.  Feels like a good day to load the fireplace with wood and chill out.

Photos of snowy Boulder to follow, if I don't become too lazy from sitting in front of a cozy fire.

Snoooooooooooooooow!

Pretty snow falling Boulder.  Expecting 4 to 8 inches!!  Yesterday was 80 degrees and today 32.  Tomorrow will be in the 50's and the next day in the 70's.  Typical Colorado.  Feels like a good day to load the fireplace with wood and chill out.

Photos of snowy Boulder to follow, if I don't become too lazy from sitting in front of a cozy fire.

You can't judge a batt by it's cover.

So, I made 3 batts for a total of 3 ounces of fiber. They consisted of deep plum, hot pink, lavender, and pale peach merino, blended with hand-painted tussah silk and pieces of orange sari silk. The resulting batts were not the most beautiful things to look at, but I had high hopes. So I spun them into a single yarn yesterday, 238 yards, mostly worsted/slightly thick and thin, and I LOVE it! The sari silk added some texture and I spun it woolen so that it is nice and fuzzy. I have plans to knit this into a hat and look forward to seeing how the colors separate and blend as knit up.



And here is a batt for a little project I am working on. It's yak down blended with hand-painted tussah silk. I made a quick batt, spun it, plied it, and am going to do a wet finish on it before knitting up a swatch. I want to knit up a yak hat for a special friend, but since I've never spun yak before I decided it best to do some experimenting first. Here is a photo of the yak/tussah batt. It's pretty simple but it just looks sooooo luxurious to me, and spins up BEAUTIFULLY. I will post photos of the spun yarn once I wet finish it.



Spinning makes me smile.  =o)

You can't judge a batt by it's cover.

So, I made 3 batts for a total of 3 ounces of fiber. They consisted of deep plum, hot pink, lavender, and pale peach merino, blended with hand-painted tussah silk and pieces of orange sari silk. The resulting batts were not the most beautiful things to look at, but I had high hopes. So I spun them into a single yarn yesterday, 238 yards, mostly worsted/slightly thick and thin, and I LOVE it! The sari silk added some texture and I spun it woolen so that it is nice and fuzzy. I have plans to knit this into a hat and look forward to seeing how the colors separate and blend as knit up.



And here is a batt for a little project I am working on. It's yak down blended with hand-painted tussah silk. I made a quick batt, spun it, plied it, and am going to do a wet finish on it before knitting up a swatch. I want to knit up a yak hat for a special friend, but since I've never spun yak before I decided it best to do some experimenting first. Here is a photo of the yak/tussah batt. It's pretty simple but it just looks sooooo luxurious to me, and spins up BEAUTIFULLY. I will post photos of the spun yarn once I wet finish it.



Spinning makes me smile.  =o)

Store update

Some new colorways added. Here's a pic of some of this week's additions. Thanks for looking!

Pigs in blankets. Yuuuuuuummmmeeeeee!

While I was grabbing a few things at the grocery this morning, these beautimous things caught my eye.



I'm not even a wiener eater, but they were so hard to resist.  I seriously almost bought them.  It was pathetic.  I stood there, in the frozen food aisle, gazing with a loving-yet-perplexed expression upon my face.  Oh, the crazy 70's memories they brought back.  I used to love these as a little kid, and looked forward to them at all the *fancy* gatherings.  I just could not believe I had been reunited with them right here in 2007!!  But, I resisted.  I left them there alone, in the Safeway, where they will probably be for quite some time.  But it has not curbed my newly ignited obsession.  I have found a non-meaty wieney recipe for pigs in blankets and they WILL be mine, dammit!

Pigs in blankets. Yuuuuuuummmmeeeeee!

While I was grabbing a few things at the grocery this morning, these beautimous things caught my eye.



I'm not even a wiener eater, but they were so hard to resist.  I seriously almost bought them.  It was pathetic.  I stood there, in the frozen food aisle, gazing with a loving-yet-perplexed expression upon my face.  Oh, the crazy 70's memories they brought back.  I used to love these as a little kid, and looked forward to them at all the *fancy* gatherings.  I just could not believe I had been reunited with them right here in 2007!!  But, I resisted.  I left them there alone, in the Safeway, where they will probably be for quite some time.  But it has not curbed my newly ignited obsession.  I have found a non-meaty wieney recipe for pigs in blankets and they WILL be mine, dammit!

Yesterday's dye lots drying

I created three new colorways yesterday that are presently drying inside due to some overcast skies. I'm pretty happy with them. The colors make me smile. =o) I plan to post them to my etsy store tomorrow.



Later today I will begin dyeing some of my massive stash of baby alpaca for some batts. ooooooowheeee!

Yesterday's dye lots drying

I created three new colorways yesterday that are presently drying inside due to some overcast skies. I'm pretty happy with them. The colors make me smile. =o) I plan to post them to my etsy store tomorrow.



Later today I will begin dyeing some of my massive stash of baby alpaca for some batts. ooooooowheeee!

Today's fibery goodness

Today's fibery goodness

October is a good month

I am loving October. We've been having day temps in the high 70's and nights in the 40's. It's exhilarating to wake up early in the morning with the crisp 40 degree temps and watch the sun rise, casting a pink glow on the foothills. It's times like these that I am very thankful for being able to live in this picturesque area of the country.

So a happy me means a happy dyer. I've been dyeing small batches, and really enjoying it. Here is a small batch from yesterday and I will be dyeing another 4 or so rovings today.

October is a good month

I am loving October. We've been having day temps in the high 70's and nights in the 40's. It's exhilarating to wake up early in the morning with the crisp 40 degree temps and watch the sun rise, casting a pink glow on the foothills. It's times like these that I am very thankful for being able to live in this picturesque area of the country.

So a happy me means a happy dyer. I've been dyeing small batches, and really enjoying it. Here is a small batch from yesterday and I will be dyeing another 4 or so rovings today.

Fiber updated

It's small, but I'm getting back into the swing of things. This update includes some hand-dyed BFL roving, Merino roving, Brown Sheep roving, Targhee locks, and luxury batts.

Fiber updated

It's small, but I'm getting back into the swing of things. This update includes some hand-dyed BFL roving, Merino roving, Brown Sheep roving, Targhee locks, and luxury batts.

Flower Power

Here's a photo from a bouquet of sunflowers I was sent for my b-day. Who doesn't love a sunflower?




This weekend is being spent working on a chevron scarf, a ribbed hat for charity, and spinning some Yak down. 

Flower Power

Here's a photo from a bouquet of sunflowers I was sent for my b-day. Who doesn't love a sunflower?




This weekend is being spent working on a chevron scarf, a ribbed hat for charity, and spinning some Yak down. 

This weekend's handspun

Here are some pics on what I've been working on over the last week. I took 3 different rovings that I had handpainted (1 BFL and 2 Merino or visa versa, can't remember), split them into very thin strips, then pre-drafted them together to help the colors blend. It was a BIG pain in the butt and I'll probably never do it again, but I am happy with the results. I wanted a handspun that had a little bit of color but was very muted for a hat that I will be knitting up. Colors are pink, purple, teal, brown, and blue. I hope to begin the hat knitting this evening.

This weekend's handspun

Here are some pics on what I've been working on over the last week. I took 3 different rovings that I had handpainted (1 BFL and 2 Merino or visa versa, can't remember), split them into very thin strips, then pre-drafted them together to help the colors blend. It was a BIG pain in the butt and I'll probably never do it again, but I am happy with the results. I wanted a handspun that had a little bit of color but was very muted for a hat that I will be knitting up. Colors are pink, purple, teal, brown, and blue. I hope to begin the hat knitting this evening.

Happy Fall! (and Happy Birthday to me!)

I was never one to celebrate my birthday, but these days I love it!  First day of Fall/Autumnal equinox, First day of Libra, AND my birthday.  Reasons for me to celebrate!

Yesterday the celebrations began with some purchases at my LYS's annual birthday sale.  This morning I went to brunch with a very good friend of mine, followed by some time with the canines and some spinning.  Tonight involves dinner plans.  Yay!  Having lived in Georgia for 8 years, I am secretly hoping for a red velvet cake.  Crossing fingers.  =)

Tomorrow I need to finish up a spinning project during the monthly spinning meeting of my guild, and then hopefully I can get some dyeing done this week.  I LOVE the fall weather and it is motivating me more to spin, dye, and knit.  It's WOOL season y'all!  Bring it on! 

Happy Fall! (and Happy Birthday to me!)

I was never one to celebrate my birthday, but these days I love it!  First day of Fall/Autumnal equinox, First day of Libra, AND my birthday.  Reasons for me to celebrate!

Yesterday the celebrations began with some purchases at my LYS's annual birthday sale.  This morning I went to brunch with a very good friend of mine, followed by some time with the canines and some spinning.  Tonight involves dinner plans.  Yay!  Having lived in Georgia for 8 years, I am secretly hoping for a red velvet cake.  Crossing fingers.  =)

Tomorrow I need to finish up a spinning project during the monthly spinning meeting of my guild, and then hopefully I can get some dyeing done this week.  I LOVE the fall weather and it is motivating me more to spin, dye, and knit.  It's WOOL season y'all!  Bring it on! 

Happy September!

I had been taking a break from blogging, etc for the last couple of months, and wanted to add an entry so that no one thinks I was abducted by aliens.

What I've been doing in the meantime...hoarding fiber, of course.  I can't seem to stop buying alpaca and just ordered a pound of Yakkity Yak down.  I'm on a mission to create really fun gifts for my peeps in time for the December holidays and would really like to spin up and knit a few Yak hats for special someones.

I *still* have to sit down and upload stuff to my Ravelry account, but I don't have the patience for it right now.  I LOVE Ravelry, I just am not in the frame of mind to conquer it at the moment.

I did manage to purchase some KnitPicks Options needles and I am absolutely in LOVE with them!!!!

In the past week I have spun combed cotton (an absolute NIGHTMARE!), flax, Suri alpca, silk caps (I usually spin Tussah top),  and raw cotton off of actual cotton seeds.  It was for part of an advanced spinning class I was taking and am thrilled that I got a chance to spin fibers that I usually do not spin.

Dyeing on the calender for next week, so maybe I can actually update my shop.  lol!

Happy September!

I had been taking a break from blogging, etc for the last couple of months, and wanted to add an entry so that no one thinks I was abducted by aliens.

What I've been doing in the meantime...hoarding fiber, of course.  I can't seem to stop buying alpaca and just ordered a pound of Yakkity Yak down.  I'm on a mission to create really fun gifts for my peeps in time for the December holidays and would really like to spin up and knit a few Yak hats for special someones.

I *still* have to sit down and upload stuff to my Ravelry account, but I don't have the patience for it right now.  I LOVE Ravelry, I just am not in the frame of mind to conquer it at the moment.

I did manage to purchase some KnitPicks Options needles and I am absolutely in LOVE with them!!!!

In the past week I have spun combed cotton (an absolute NIGHTMARE!), flax, Suri alpca, silk caps (I usually spin Tussah top),  and raw cotton off of actual cotton seeds.  It was for part of an advanced spinning class I was taking and am thrilled that I got a chance to spin fibers that I usually do not spin.

Dyeing on the calender for next week, so maybe I can actually update my shop.  lol!

AaaaaaaaaaaahAaaaaaaaaaaaaaah *angelic voices singing*

Yes, I think I hear angels singing, because thanks to the magic of craigslist I turned this:



Into this:



Can you hear the angels singing now? I am one happy camper. She's still glistening and shiny new, but I'll have wool on her in no time.

And I also received a 27 pound bumpity bump of Merino today.



So if the weather cooperates, which means cools the F down, I will be off on another dyeing marathon, this time consisting of Superwash merino sock yarn and merino roving. And some domestic. I hope to have an update by the beginning of next week. Hope so. I am not allowing myself to play with this drum carder until I get through some of this sock yarn. (We'll see how long that lasts.)

A quick note on ordering from Pat Green. They are simply THE BEST!!!!! I have never dealt with a better seller. Shipping was super fast. The item was immaculately packaged. The box arrived undamaged because they used quality packing materials including the box itself and using staples to secure it closed rather than tape. The directions were detailed and easy to follow. ALL parts were securely wrapped and included (sounds easy enough, but I can't tell you how many times I have received items with parts missing). A lovely personalized, hand-written note was sent along. If you have any desire to purchase from Pat Green, rest assured that they are fabulous sellers and it just might be the most pleasurable buying experience you'll ever have.

AaaaaaaaaaaahAaaaaaaaaaaaaaah *angelic voices singing*

Yes, I think I hear angels singing, because thanks to the magic of craigslist I turned this:



Into this:



Can you hear the angels singing now? I am one happy camper. She's still glistening and shiny new, but I'll have wool on her in no time.

And I also received a 27 pound bumpity bump of Merino today.



So if the weather cooperates, which means cools the F down, I will be off on another dyeing marathon, this time consisting of Superwash merino sock yarn and merino roving. And some domestic. I hope to have an update by the beginning of next week. Hope so. I am not allowing myself to play with this drum carder until I get through some of this sock yarn. (We'll see how long that lasts.)

A quick note on ordering from Pat Green. They are simply THE BEST!!!!! I have never dealt with a better seller. Shipping was super fast. The item was immaculately packaged. The box arrived undamaged because they used quality packing materials including the box itself and using staples to secure it closed rather than tape. The directions were detailed and easy to follow. ALL parts were securely wrapped and included (sounds easy enough, but I can't tell you how many times I have received items with parts missing). A lovely personalized, hand-written note was sent along. If you have any desire to purchase from Pat Green, rest assured that they are fabulous sellers and it just might be the most pleasurable buying experience you'll ever have.

Oh, yes, wait a minute Mr. Postman...

I want to have your baby.

The postman was soooooo good to me today. I love you Mr. Postman.

Luscious premium quality sari silk for blending into batts:



And the generous UPS man brought me my new Babe's electric skein winder yesterday. It's not as purdy as all that fiber, but I love it EVEN more for helping me to wind all that sock yarn.



Score!!!!!

When sheep revolt

I found this on a spinning forum and thought it was too freakin' funny.



And, yes. It is a real movie. In New Zealand.

When sheep revolt

I found this on a spinning forum and thought it was too freakin' funny.



And, yes. It is a real movie. In New Zealand.

Mini update

Poppy Flower Fibers etsy store

Mini update

Poppy Flower Fibers etsy store

What a GORGEOUS day!!!

After being close to a sweltering 100 degrees yesterday, this morning brought gentle winds, clear blue skies, and a welcome 60 degrees. It is amazingly gorgeous out, I just want to swallow it whole. Not one single cloud in the sky. The hounds took advantage of this gorgeousness and went for a swim on some open space this morning. ("Open Space" is what Boulder dubs secured and undeveloped land. Anyone can use it to hike, bike, swim, run, rock climb, kayak, etc, and it remains for the most part in it's pristine, unspoiled, natural beauty. It's basically a glorified park which we pay for with our tax dollars and I wouldn't have it any other way. And there is lots of "Open Space" here.)

It's a good day to dye, so I'm off to the pots.

What a GORGEOUS day!!!

After being close to a sweltering 100 degrees yesterday, this morning brought gentle winds, clear blue skies, and a welcome 60 degrees. It is amazingly gorgeous out, I just want to swallow it whole. Not one single cloud in the sky. The hounds took advantage of this gorgeousness and went for a swim on some open space this morning. ("Open Space" is what Boulder dubs secured and undeveloped land. Anyone can use it to hike, bike, swim, run, rock climb, kayak, etc, and it remains for the most part in it's pristine, unspoiled, natural beauty. It's basically a glorified park which we pay for with our tax dollars and I wouldn't have it any other way. And there is lots of "Open Space" here.)

It's a good day to dye, so I'm off to the pots.

On a happier shopping note, this is what I got at Jo Ann's sale today!

Jo Ann's Fabric store was having a HUGE sale today, continuing on until next Saturday. HALF off all sewing thread!!! This was my opportunity to stock up on thread for plying. I also bought a cute little stand for my threads (30% off), some beads to string on while plying (also 30% off!!) and some beading needles and threaders. Yaaaaaaaaay! And they all look so pretty together! I might have to go back for more before the sale ends.

On a happier shopping note, this is what I got at Jo Ann's sale today!

Jo Ann's Fabric store was having a HUGE sale today, continuing on until next Saturday. HALF off all sewing thread!!! This was my opportunity to stock up on thread for plying. I also bought a cute little stand for my threads (30% off), some beads to string on while plying (also 30% off!!) and some beading needles and threaders. Yaaaaaaaaay! And they all look so pretty together! I might have to go back for more before the sale ends.

Mammoth tusk spindle, here I come. Well, in 2009 anyway.

After being sucked into that damn L&V Bosworth spindle thread I decided I *HAD* to have one. Of course, I can't afford one right now. So, the solution? The mammoth tusk spindle which is so rare and nearly impossible to get that it's FREE. At least for 2 years. I spoke with Sheila Bosworth and she told me I have about as much a chance of getting a mammoth spindle as I do of finding a mammoth tusk. Well, I can still hope anyway. The soonest I might even be considered for one, and that's if they figure out the current stability issues with the tusk, is June 2009. Wooohooo! I should have the loot for a gen-u-wine mammoth tusk spindle by then. Oh yeah!!

Mammoth tusk spindle, here I come. Well, in 2009 anyway.

After being sucked into that damn L&V Bosworth spindle thread I decided I *HAD* to have one. Of course, I can't afford one right now. So, the solution? The mammoth tusk spindle which is so rare and nearly impossible to get that it's FREE. At least for 2 years. I spoke with Sheila Bosworth and she told me I have about as much a chance of getting a mammoth spindle as I do of finding a mammoth tusk. Well, I can still hope anyway. The soonest I might even be considered for one, and that's if they figure out the current stability issues with the tusk, is June 2009. Wooohooo! I should have the loot for a gen-u-wine mammoth tusk spindle by then. Oh yeah!!