Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Crafting for Others

I'll admit, I'm usually pretty selfish with my crafts. I don't have as much time as I wish I had to work on my projects, so when I do have the time, it's usually something for me. But this summer, I've learned how much joy the things that I make can bring to others.

If you've been following my blog, you know that I offered several items that I have made as prizes in my fundraiser for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Most of the prizes were already completed, but there are a few that were custom made for the winners.

The first was a handwoven scarf, won by Amanda. She picked out a fantastic skein of Wollmeise sock yarn in one of the sock club colorways, Hollerstaud'n. I think this scarf is so beautiful! There are definitely more Wollmeise scarves in my future.

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I also am working on the hat that Tammy won. She picked out a pattern that I couldn't resist making out of handspun. I love the fiber she selected. I've only spun half of it because I wanted to make sure I got it bulky enough. I am completely enamored by this yarn, but's a little thinner than I had hoped, so I'll be back at the wheel to see if I can get the squishy bulky yarn I wanted. I'm sure I'll come up with something else to make out of this.

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This last skein of yarn was not from the fundraiser. At The Loopy Ewe Spring Fling, I made a deal with my friend Jessica. I would spin a skein of 3-ply sock yarn, and she would knit me a pair of colorwork socks - something I would never make for myself!

The socks she knit for me are the Norwegian Rose socks by Wendy Johnson. I think I got the better end of the deal.

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The yarn I spun for her is Rambouillet - a very soft and springy wool - hand dyed by JulieSpins. While there were times when I wanted to throw this wool out the window...we just didn't get along very well...I am very happy I stuck with it. I know Jessica is going to make something beautiful with it!

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Thursday, October 7, 2010

Fall

Fall is my favorite time of year. The leaves are changing, the air is crisp (although Mother Nature seems to be trying to hold on to some of the summer heat) and it just makes me want to spend time outside. I've been lucky this fall to go to some of my favorite places.

Over Labor Day, I went back to Kansas City to visit my friends and we spent a day in Lawrence. I hadn't been back there since I moved away five years ago. I enjoyed a black bean quesadilla from Free State Brewery, did some shopping on Mass St and then we went up to campus to wander around and take a trip down memory lane. It was a gorgeous day and it was the first football game of the season so there was a lot of energy on campus.

I love to see the game day flag flying on top of Fraser Hall.

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Later in September, Gina and I decided to celebrate her birthday by taking a drive up to Breckenridge. We took 285 and the aspens were glorious.

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This past weekend, Mary, Phil (click to see their photos from Taos) and I took our annual trip to Taos for the Taos Wool Festival and we once again stayed with James and Becca. I had been looking forward to this trip all year.

We stayed in their incredible house out on a mesa...

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Such an amazing view from the front yard...

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We took a hike through the sage...

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And toured an Earthship that is under construction...

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There are thousands of bottles and cans used to create this home...

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and the fence...

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Of course we went to the Taos Wool Festival...

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And I can't post about Taos without including a photo of Jasper modeling a hat I made...

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It's a bit snug, but he was a good sport.