Loose ends

It has come to my attention that, if I am to have a weaving/knitting/spinning/general fibery addiction sort of blog, I am required to post a cat photo. To ignore this rule - and I gather it is an ironclad rule, based on an incomplete survey of many, many other fiberish blogs - would be to court disaster. I haven't checked the exact wording of our local statutes but I'm pretty sure it's at least a misdemeanor to neglect a cat photo. And anyway, I'm a solid citizen, not some rogue crochet fiend - of course I'll follow generally accepted community standards.

Here she is:

She was not terribly enthused about having her picture taken. In fact, she thought the whole idea was stupid. Note the catlike disdain of the process; note the utter lack of cooperation. This picture came after several attempts to get her to sit prettily on the deck rail. We did several rounds of me putting her on the rail, racing frantically to get the camera in position, then capturing an image of her tail waving in the breeze as she jumped down. Why I ever thought I could get a cat to do what I wanted it to do is a complete mystery. You'd think at my age I'd know better.

Her real name is Fancy. She has a chronic respiratory condition that has earned her the name Snotcat. She lives up to the name.

Since we're doing pictures, here's what's in my bathroom: Peeps. Forty six of them. My husband ordered them from a hatchery in Missouri; they arrived by U.S. mail about two weeks ago. Things like this do not happen to Manhattan knitters, I think.

They have to be kept warm until they're about a month old. By my reckoning, they will have to be in the bathroom for another, oh, two weeks, three days, seven hours and four minutes.

Not that I'm anxious to get them out or anything. Never that.

Suppose I should put some fiber content into this post somewhere, eh? The blanket is turning out oh-so-nicely. I am thrilled. The interplay of the many, many colors is so complex I doubt there are two square inches that are exactly alike. It remains to be seen if anyone in the buying public will like this as much as I do. Certainly I'll have to find a buyer who has a taste for serendipity. But surely I'm not the only person in the world who isn't a big fan of Scottish plaid. Right? Right? You know who you are...

In which we begin.

Well. Here I am, blogging despite all efforts to avoid the genre. It's all seemed so very pretentious - I mean, do most bloggers really think anyone wants to know the intimate details of their diets, dogs or ship-in-a-bottle hobbies?

Apparently, I do believe this. Lord, spare me from my own self-absorbtion.

Actually, this blog was created as a supplement for my new web site, whitebirchfiberarts.com. I'm hawking my handwoven, hand-dyed and handspun stuff. It's all pretty cool, at least I think so. And of course if I love it, the world will love it too, right? Anyway, check it out if the mood strikes. Better yet, wait a couple of weeks until I actually have stuff for sale.

Projects in progress:

A rayon chenille shawl, purples and mauves and whites in random stripes as warp; so far just plain 'ol white as weft. It's lovely, but not exactly challenging. Only about six inches into it and I'm already bored. It may be that I become so disgusted by my lack of originality that I'll start throwing in stripes soon. It is a measure of how easily amused I am that a simple change in color could very well revive my interest in the project.

A big honkin' blanket. Queen-sized, I suppose - depends on the takeup and shrinkage. Of course I did not swatch. I like to live dangerously. Warp is various colors of Harrisville Highland, 100% wool; weft is stripes of Noro Blossom and Noro something else, wool, angora, cashmere and silk. Be still my heart.

Projects recently finished: Rayon chenille shawl, seen at left; this is at the moment the ONLY item I have for sale.

I do have other stuff I'm gonna put on the web site - some hand-dyed sock yarn, and some luscious handspun. I've just been too lazy to take pics of it. Oh, well. There's always tomorrow.