California Red sheep are a cross between American Tunis and Barbados Blackbelly sheep. I obtained a pound of California Red  from Apple Rose farms in New Jersey.  The wool is a warm oatmeal colour with raspberry hairs scattered throughout. I spun the fleece just as it was when it arrived, with a fair bit of [...]

25 pairs of liquid brown eyes, staring out at me from their cozy barn space, is a sight I will not soon forget.  A couple of weeks ago, on a cold April day, my daughter and I visited Peeter’s Pride Alpacas, just north of Edmonton, in Canada. Laurie Peeters, and her husband Pete, own 30 [...]

I’ve been playing around with a few hat ideas lately and created this pattern which I’ve named Vinea.  Follow the link for a free  download of the pattern. Vinea is the Latin word for Vineyard in reference to the pattern which forms the band of the hat. This version is a bit less slouchy and [...]

Here are my top 5, all time favourite, knitting books, in no particular order. Mon Tricot Knitting Dictionary My copy was published in France, in 1978, and purchased by me in 1979, while attending University.  With over 1100 stitches and patterns, including fair isle, aran, jaquard and crochet designs, it is an invaluable resource and [...]

Who needs a photo album to remember a vacation or travel visit, when you could have a basket full of spinning souvenirs instead? I keep all of my spinning fiber in a large wicker laundry basket.  Sorting through it is like turning the pages of a travel scrapbook.  There’s my most recent purchase of merino/bamboo [...]