Thankfully I had my mask on or I would be sneezing blue. YUK! I turned an afternoon of peaceful dyeing into a horrendous clean-up detail.  That was not fun. Still trying to find the lesson in that one – maybe be more careful, double check, etc, etc.  The next day proved to be much more satisfying in the dye room.

We really do have spring fever, as in I’d rather be planting than doing much else. Dan and I are enablers when it comes to buying plants. Even at MD Sheep & Wool, the plant stands beckoned to us and we came back with a “haul” from there. These lovelies blooming now were brought from the farm, at least the seeds and everyone of them sprouted I believe. They are very invasive, but oh so pretty in big drifts in front of the house. Here’s hoping we remember to pull most of them up after they stop blooming.

Morning Primrose

If you have ever been to the MD S&W show you understand exactly what I mean. And being a vendor adds a whole other level of stress to the picture. But, we got to see people we hadn’t seen in a year, catch up with a few snatches of conversation and generally had a good time. I even broke away and went to the sheep barn, and found some Romneys to hug on, shed a few nostalgic tears, and got my sheep fix for another year.  And my dyeing class was wonderful adding a new dimension to what I have previously been doing. Vickie Jensen of ProChem is a great instructor with a wealth of knowledge to draw on.

Look at what’s been going on on the Island while we were gone! Foals are dropping.

And what’s happening in the shop? We’re finishing up classes – the market bag, top-down sumer cardigan and coming up is the next installment of the washcloths. A new one every month to increase your knitting skills with new stitches. In October we’ll make soaps to package with them as possible Christmas gifts.

Who thought they couldn’t do it? Most everyone came with a bit of trepidation – is this going to make sense to me?  But, thanks to our excellent instructor, Melissa Morgan-Oakes, we were led through the intricacies of knitting two socks at one time from the toe up. That’s not to say it didn’t take concentration and determination but we did it!

More photos will be posted on the SoXperience page once MD Sheep & Wool Show is over. Sorry, we have been preparing the MD show, teaching classes, dyeing yarns, and have not even gotten our newsletter out for April. We have many new yarns that I can’t wait to show you. Some, like the Tiffany, are selling out in the shop before I can even get them on our website. But be not dismayed. We are restocking of course. So, check back, watch for our newsletter coming out the beginning of May with all the goodies.

We have been busy traveling around the Island and coming up with new yarn colors. Can’t wait to show everyone our Dusk on Chincoteague, Oyster Bay, Woodland Trail and more. Look at this pile we have to finish up for you.

Besides the yarn being a little splitty, Tiffany by Filatura di crosa was a perfect yarn for this shawl. It is a cotton/viscose blend with a little sparkle added. I thought this would be lovely for any evening on the town.

Knitted from the bottom up, there were a lot of stitches to deal with , 200+, in the lace portion, but using markers kept life simple because you certainly didn’t want to be at the end of your row with the wrong number of stitches. Things would get ugly at that point. The lace is followed by a short row section and then garter stitch border before cast off. I did add a row of eyelets in amongst the garter stitches. The weight of the Tiffany shawl is very nice to rest on your shoulders.

Had a great weekend taking the grandchildren (and their parents) to the circus in Philadelphia. Even the babies loved it, clapping along with everyone else. Dan was kind enough to drive up so that I could work on one of the shawls. Working on the ninth section with one more to go. Hopefully will have it to display at the Mid-Atlantic quilt Festival this week.

We are getting ready for the quilt festival and knitting like crazy to get the models done. I’m hoping to finish these to have on display:

Finished the fifth section, half way! Mini Mochi yarn.

Another Bermuda Shawl (they are addictive), this out of Taiyo Sock.

This is using Ranco Multi with some solids. I think it will be striking to wear if I can just get it finished.

I have my work cut out for me. Hope to see you at the festival.

Our Knit Knight group has been coming together for a KAL this past month and the fun can be seen in this photo of finished and works in progress. Many thanks to Jackie for sharing her spreadsheet row by row knitting instructions.

They are all using Silk Garden sock yarn with the exception of Josh who is using Stiletto. Several members are not pictured because they left for Florida if you can imagine. We have gotten bitten by the “Bermuda bug.” I have my second one going in Taiyo sock and will post later. It is addictive.