Small update

I am going to try something new on the blog front - small updates versus lengthy paragraphs.  Perhaps this will allow me to write more often.  The past month has had numerous health issues which have also impacted how much I am able to do.  I am participating in the Alpaca on the Rocks this weekend.  The evenings this week have been in preparation for the event.  I used my mill spun yarn to create a hat for the show my only concern is that it appears to be huge as the yarn is not as thick as the original yarn used for the project.  I am making a second one with less stitches to make it smaller.

On the spinning front I have 3 oz of alpaca/tussah silk spun and will be plying it tonight or this weekend.  The special order yarn is drying and I have started spinning the alpaca/milk roving.  The milk fiber is not as sticky as the silk so the VM does come out better.  Both rovings have rich medium brown color from the alpaca and will make nice yarn and projects.  As I have set aside rovings in 1 oz, 2 oz and 4 oz packages my overall stash of alpaca blended bamboo and silk has decreased.  Still need to follow up with my LYS on purchasing rovings.

Off to the docs soon then the day job.  I am not as prepared for this weekends event as the Farmers Market but a lot of my items are from last weekend and ready to go.  I do have 2 days for potential sales and a nice selection of items to present.  We shall see how it goes!

Traveling in Southwestern Colorado

This weekend is my road trip to Southwestern Colorado.  Even though we got a huge rainstorm in Bayfield, CO I was still able to visit the Wensleydale sheep ranch in the afternoon.  I want to thank Jim and Linda for taking time out of the very busy schedule to show me their sheep and angora goats including the babies.  They own and operate DeGoatnsheep Ranch in Bayfield, CO and are one of the rare Wensleydale sheep ranches in the West.  The animals are beautiful and coated to protect their fleece.  I have been told that they are sheared twice a year and are solely fiber animals due to their high purchase price ($1,000/animal).  The sheep originate from the UK and there are a few ranches in the U.S. that carry this breed.  Apparently one can import the sperm of the animal into the U.S. and breed it with a similar type of sheep until you can get your herd to be 90% or more pure.  Importation of animals is not allowed - go figure!  This herd is predominately white but they do have 2 dark sheep (rams I do believe).  And yes I did pick up some roving and have an idea of the fleece I want next spring.

Towards the end of my visit their billy goat made his presence known and he has the most beautiful horns.  He was quite friendly but I was a little shocked when he stood up on the fence to be seen by us as I had been at the ranch for over an hour at that point without knowing he was even there.  He is in the top picture above - those horns are very long.

Today it is off to Norwood, CO (past Telluride) to visit the Shetland sheep ranch in the area.  My son has graciously decided to travel with me today as it will be a 3+ hour road trip each way.