Woolie Ewe, Yarns & Stitches & Shabby Sheep

Woolie Ewe of Plano, Yarn & Stitches in Richardson and Shabby Sheep in Downtown were all a definite worthwhile trip! Each shop has a different character, variety of suppliers and unique niche. The first two are in small shopping centers and the third is in a boutique type shop area.

The largest of the three is Woolie Ewe with several areas for small classes. In the shop, I met the model on the cover of the InKnitters Fall 2005 issue. All types of paraphenalia peculiar to knitters including T-shirts, pins, buttons, exotic wood needles and fabric bags in silk, jacquard, microfiber and canvas. Something for everyone!

Yarn & Stitches was a small friendly shop. The proprietor was helpful and mentioned the existence of the Shabby Sheep closer to my hotel. Here also there were accessories for every knitter including jeweled stitch markers.

The Shabby Sheep fit the hip young set with many fun fur yarns and a multitude of textures. The shop was quite cramped and stepping over stock and around chairs was still worth the effort to find that perfect treasure to add to your stash.

Baseball Winter Meetings

Spent the last week in Dallas with the Baseball Winter Meetings. The weather was more to comment about than anything else at the festivities or the business end of baseball. On Wednesday a Texas ice storm blew through the area dropping temperatures to lows in the South that are rarely encountered. The chill ran straight into the bones. Most of the events were scheduled for indoors so the inconvenience was slight.

As for the meetings themselves, I renewed some friendships and met some new people. Forever this is a celebratory event in all of baseball and the anticipation of the season to come that is always going to be better than the last.

Knitting for the Troops

Started a helmet liner for my favorite guinea pig ... I mean my son. We are extremely proud of him and all the others who have willingly served their country in far flung places around the globe. They deserve a big HUA! THANK YOU!

As for the helmet liner, I'll get his opinion before I knit it for anyone else and find out that my version doesn't fit the average head. Gauge seems right but you never know ....

Wildlife

Outside my window at work is a bird feeder along with corn for the squirrels. The pecking order exists at every level! The squirrels not content with the corn, chase the birds from the feeder. The magpies and jays chase each other and the squirrels and the finches squawk at all other small birds in order to hold onto all of "their" seed.

The deer munch on the few berries and nuts on the ground and stare at me through the window. A noise from the doorway scares them and they trot away to safety. What a wonderful place to work and see the "zoo" at my little portal on the world.

Circle of Life

Today was an extraordinary day. A child entered into the world to one co-worker and another co-worker lived through a family member departing this world. Phenomenal, uncommon and differing are these two experiences and in between the rest of us carry on our daily existence.

The happenings of this date are quite unique to my experience. These occurrences makes one ponder the transistory nature of human life and the importance of taking and making each day special and memorable.

Wool Musings

Yarn, wool, sheep -- part and parcel of the countryside in the Olde Country since the beginning of the merchant class in the early 1200s. The Wool churches in the Cotswold towns, the reminders of where the wealth came from in the name of the main streets in many villages: "Sheep Street", the continued varieties of sheep in different locales across the nation, and the local yarn shoppe all delighted my fascination with knitting.

What a treat to visit several yarn shops and the Stitching and Knitting Show at the Alexandra Palace in London! First was Sheepish in the Shambles in York. What a lovely little shop with Yorkshire yarns. I bought some pink multi merino spun in North Yorkshire. The other shop was Burford Needlecraft which was also a B&B in the little Cotswold town of the same name. In the basement, the various yarn things were cloistered. Spying some lovely bulky Colinette yarns (made in Wales), I selected three skeins of a bright multi along with a pattern for a vest. The proprietor, Jan, was extremely helpful in finding the perfect yarn and pattern complement.

Arriving at Alexandra Palace, a Victorian Hall containing a plant arboretum and glass conservatory, surrounded by rolling hills that reminded me of Valley Forge in the mid-Fall, I thought I had died and gone to heaven! Like a newborn, I entered into the site of my first stitching event. The Eirian Short Needlearts Exhibition was a feast for the eyes, instilling creativity back into my being. What a thrill to meet the artist who in her 80's still enjoyed her craft. Visual stimulation and textural delight just produced such rhapsody in my soul. Almost a song of joy filled me with the enthusiasm to create and be part of life again. Many ideas swirled around my brain faster than I could record them and gave me great inspiration and incentive to learn and expand my horizons in all fields of the needlearts applying them in new and maybe unusual ways.



Many other activities were taking place at the Show including Booths staffed by Debbie Bliss, the Wensleydale Sheep Farm where I purchased wool gathered and spun on the farm in North Yorkshire (next trip I want to visit there!), and yarn stalls from America, Australia, New Zealand and even Canada; exhibits of modern knitting applications, one example of which was a knitted parlor (all furniture was covered in a Aran knit pattern; and a fashion show of newer designs.

The HIGHLIGHT of this England trip consisted of my mental musings on creation both God's and woman's wherein I found insight into the created. It was not only a jourey of expectancy but of hope and life forming a ray of light into recesses that had been neglected, forlorn for many years.

It seems strange to say that this revitalized my walk with my Savior, Jesus Christ, and reminded me of activities once enjoyed and forgotten, including my study of His creative person and joy in knowing me.

Kings, Knights and Knaves

No tour of England would be complete without visiting castles, stately mansions, vaulted cathedrals and Tudor abodes.

My favorite this trip, if one had to be selected, was Leeds Castle with its moat, maze and menagerie of birds. The day was misty and a light fog hung in the air of the lake surrounding the walls of the majestic fortress built by one of the Norman knights. Black swans, geese and white peacocks freely roamed the property enjoying the fall air. Leaves gently floated to the earth in varying hues of red, yellow and orange. Horse chestnuts dropped to the ground with a light bounce reminding me of my youth and the neighbor's trees in Pennsylvania.
 
 

Lyme Park, our choice of stately mansion, embodies the countryside of olde England and the Lord and Lady of leisure. The surrounding lands may have been the subject of a landscape painters' legendary recording on canvas. The grounds and gardens flowered and bloomed even in October. The variety of flora and fauna at this time of year impressed me with its kaliedoscope of colors and textures. Darcy of Jane Austen fame and Pemberly were the object of this visit. The site was used to film the estate scenes of Pride and Prejudice and the location did not disappoint. On the hills scattered like white cotton on green damask were sheep lazily feeding and enjoying the sunshine and breeze of the "remote" and homey Peak District.

York Minster, Bath Abbey, Westminster Abbey, St. Paul's Cathedral and Canterbury were the religious sites visited on this trip. However, of all these the one that impressed me this time was the site in Canterbury and the small village town that surrounds it. Visible to any observer, Canterbury Cathedral had been on the pilgrim tour for many years as the well-worn stones told where Thomas a Beckett was murdered and showed the path to his tomb. The English population made a shrine out of the site during the ensuing years following his death by four knights at the supposed request of Henry II. The Gothic architecture included multiple panels of stained glass with the stories of the Bible contained therein for the public to be able to "read" the contents of their Faith.

As for the Tudor abodes, they came in several varieties: Shakespeare's home, the Tower of London and the Merchant Adventurer's Hall of York. All saw different stories of life in Tudor England. The rise to prosperity of the shepherd in the Cotswolds (the Hathaways), the brutality of the King toward those who committed offenses against the State and the compassion of the merchant class to a few of the poor in their community. If only halls and walls could really tell the tale ...

Pastoral Peace

The realization hit me when in England last month that the reason I enjoy the Cotswolds and the Peak District is the past. The peace of farming, the unspoiled countryside with sheep and the simplicity that comes with being in the outdoors under the sky, hearing the wind speak through the trees.

So when I start to long for the English countryside, I think I need to go for a walk in the woods here along the mountains and enjoy the creation God has so richly given to each of us.

London & Countryside 2005

Knitting Guild

At the Guild Meeting last night, several beautiful items were displayed including two hand knit shawls. Each had a light weight, web-like character and showed the diligence and patience of the creator.

Voting for the new officers for the upcoming year, succeeded in placing a few new people in the ranks of the leaders for the group. Future meetings will be anticipated with glee as we see the new programs and seminars to be lined up.

Gratitude

How easy to forget to be thankful for the very basics! Those in New Orleans have realized that these are the things that they need the most. Gratitude is an attitude needed by all of us in our relationships with others and with our Creator.

A simple "Thank you." is always welcome to be heard by any listener. I know I enjoy hearing it when any effort has been made to do something for someone else. Maybe I need to say it more often to others for the common things done as well as those times when much effort was brought to bear to help me.

Thank you so simple and yet very important.

September 20, 2005

My typestyle reflects the skies of Colorado this past few days. A Harvest Moon rose over the horizon and irradiated the sky with its brightness. The stars lost some of their luster in competition with the orb of the night.

The Waldo Canyon Fire started sometime Monday and the firefighters made tremendous efforts to fight the flames on mountain goat terrain. Helicopters with large red buckets dropped retardant material to help extinguish the flames. A line was drawn as the sun was going down to encircle the conflagration and hopefully contain the forward march of the fire during the night.

Our son, Jonathan, had two of his wisdom teeth removed this morning at the Army dentist, and is currently off-duty until Thursday.

The "Wild Babes" met this morning at the YMCA for the Tuesday, Thursday water aerobic exercise class. One new person joined us, Jamie. What great fun to get to know these genial ladies! This class is a hoot!

Monday, September 19, 2005

Finished the Debbie Macomber title, 311 Pelican Court. Enjoyed the book and the semi-rural setting of a small town. Reminds me of when I was young and growing up in a village in Pennsylvania.

On Sunday, ate Chinese food at Garden Cafe located at Powers and Palmer Park in Colorado Springs. $1.35 for a one and one-half cup to two cups scoop of food, whatever was in the steam table. Very good selection and taste. Can't beat the price.

Denver Broncos won in a game they certainly should have lost against the Chargers. They tried numerous ways to lose that even high school teams don't do!

Mid-September Day

Fall is in the air; especially in the mornings with the long shadows and crispness of the breeze. White whispy clouds and bright blue skies belie the fact that the leaves will soon be painted yellow and slowly descending to the earth. Warm temperatures during the day entice people out of their offices to wander aimlessly enjoying the sunshine.

Spinning Fiber

Fibers slowly slip through the fingers as the wheel turns twisting the coat of a sheep into a single thread, thick or thin depends on the hand that holds the wool. Developing patience in the deliberateness of the drafting of the yarn, new skills are gradually being learned and applied in the second of Green Valley Weavers' classes on spinning.

The wheel is an Ashford, double treadle, scotch tension which runs smoothly and easily pulling the yarn gently onto the bobbin. Having filled two bobbins at home for part of last week's assignment, I was ready to learn how to ply the threads together.

Plying the threads together to make a yarn goes much quicker than the actual spinning. Remembering to get just enough twist without the turning back on itself, the process moved along at a nice clip. Finally, I had a completely full bobbin ready to be turned into a "hank" by winding it on a niddy noddy. After which it was tied, looped and twisted for the end result of a skein of yarn. Now it is ready to wash and hang to dry.

New Mexico Shops

Needle’s Eye, 839 Paseo de Peralta, Ste O, Santa Fe
The staff person was friendly and I purchased two decorative sets of needles: one for Diane’s birthday and one for Brenda’s birthday. The shop was bright and open with white display cases. Many varied types of yarn of prominent manufacturers.

Oodles Yarn & Bead Gallery, 411 W. Water, Santa Fe
The staff person was just watching the shop for a friend. The inventory was sparse and not really worth a visit. However, I did buy two decorative ring markers with beads.

La Lana Wools, 136 Paseo Del Pueblo Norte, Taos
The staff person let me browse without saying anything to me. There were many types of fleece and raw wool available. Also many long hanks of yarn, hand dyed, machined, etc. The shop had the feel of an old frontier shop from the 1800's. I bought a little lamb ornament.

Yarn Shop, 120 Bent, Taos
The staff person was friendly but the shop was extremely small maybe 15 x 15. Yarn display cases were placed approximately 3.5 feet from the wall in order to create a small private space for the staff to put personal belongings, coats, etc. As a result of the small space the variety of yarn was limited. No purchases.

Miriam’s Well, Santa Fe
The proprietor and owner was extremely cautious about a customer she had not met before. Large supply of weaving materials, raw fiber, spun yarn, hand-dyed, New Mexico yarns, etc. I bought 1 skein of hand-dyed New Mexico fiber and 1 project booklet. The shop was located in an adobe house with a small garden out back. The parking was in the back and you enter through the garden. Very attractive little shop but the welcome was less than desirable.

Village Wools, 3801 C San Mateo Blvd NE, Albuquerque
Excellent store. Staff friendly and helpful, large selection of yarns, bought spindle and raw fiber. Best shop of the bunch! Circular displays, yarn cases in aisles, wall displays, and bins with discounted yarn. Very good variety of visual displays.

Here's a sheared sheep looking sheepish!

Rock Ledge Ranch, Colorado Springs, CO

1st weekend in June, sheepshearing

2005 January PPKG Charity Knitting Donations