Leading Bird.

Cora has been begging me for a shawl, and how can I say no to a hand knit item that my children are asking for? I knew I wanted to use my favorite batch of yarn...'Phinela' is our 40% mohair/ 60% Finn sheep blend, in an amazing chocolate color. So very soft, and the luster is out of this world. I've actually considered keeping all the skeins I have left because I love it so. 

I agreed to make a shawl for my sweet girl if she would agree to model it for me...not an easy thing to get from her these days. Lucky for me, she was absolutely thrilled and has been known to "wear" it to bed several times already. And I have been know to, um, steal it a few times in the recent past to do the same...

The pattern is Leading Bird by Leah B. Thibault, and can be found on Ravelry. It's a beautifully simple shawl that perfectly shows off the yarn, which has the look and feel of hand spun.

Ten.

We celebrated a birthday. A big one.

It happened. Somehow this beautiful being just completed his ninth journey around the sun, and now he is ten. Bittersweet but oh, how we love him so.

February.

There has been the tiniest shift in the air lately. Enough to give hope, which is all I need to get me through the end of this month. Indeed, the earth certainly knows its time to wake up - sap buckets are being hung, the sun is stronger, the days are longer - but sometimes it feels as if we still have so very. Long. To. Go. 

However, tomorrow is supposed to be near 70 degrees! I was scheduled to drive to PA to pick up our new Angora Goat buck (more on that later), but how could I spend an entire ten hours stuck in a car on such an exquisite day?!? Well, it's supposed to be overcast and foggy, but even that is exquisite in my book when the temps get so high in February! We did have snow the other day, however, and we do still have March to come...but it seems manageable somehow when you are able to have just one days reprieve from cold temperatures in late winter!

Happenings.

What a whirlwind it has been the last couple of months! Usually, there is a little bit of a lull after the holidays, and very welcomed at that, but this year was different! Between shooting stories for Taproot magazine, traveling to Tucson, teaching a knitting class, and the New England Farm to Fiber show at the Boston Public Market this past weekend, I've hardly had time to catch my breath. 

Look at these little cutie pies on the back and inside of the most recent issue of Taproot. I feel so fortunate that my children are still amenable to my photo shenanigans! 

The Boston Farm & Fiber show was amazing. A complete and utter success. I felt so honored to be a part of its first year at the Boston Public Market, and hope to return next year as well. Not a terrible thing, but those 7 hours just about wiped out my inventory completely! Thank you Boston!!

Drift

This cowl was completed during a "bombogenesis", which, here in Maine is known as a good old fashioned Nor'easter. It pains me that meteorologists now feel the need to name every single storm, big or small...it used to just be "winter". Well, in any case, I couldn't bring myself to give the cowl a name that reflected all the hype, no matter how brilliant the suggested names might have been. 

This cowl is was created with the beginner in mind, but let's face it, a plain old scarf is a tad bit, um...boring. In collaboration with Taproot magazine, I taught a learn-to-knit class in February, and the idea of creating a pattern that taught more than just "knit" was very appealing. So, the pattern is a combination of easy 4x4 ribbing, simple gansey style repeats, and sweet eyelets, finished off with an optional picot bind-off that elevates the finished piece. The cowl is easily modified with more or fewer element repeats, or wider with additional cast on stitches.

The pattern can now be found on Ravelry for a modest fee! I'd love to see your finished pieces (or works in progress!), so don't forget to share, if you feel so inclined!