What a day!  I spent 6 hours chasing one of our falcons all over a desert butte.  Basically a mini mountain in the middle of the desert with awesome rocks.  We had to call off the search when it got dark.  My hubbie is getting up at 430am to climb the butte and track him before daybreak.  I am hoping he will be able to walk at all tomorrow.  He climbed that mountain 5 times almost to the top looking for his bird.  That is dedication.

Before we went out training I had Tom take a few photos of me and my knitted goods. 

While watching Gladiator the other night I started the Star Crossed Slouchy Beret. 

I LOVE this hat!  I knit it slightly smaller then the pattern called for.  I was supposed to use a 10 circular for the brim and an 11 for the rest, but I didn't have those.  Instead I used a 9 and a 10.5.  That's close enough.  It came out great anyway.  Too bad this one is a gift.  I have another ball of this color left, so I think I am going to make one for myself.  Part of my dream to have a 100% handmade beautiful wardrobe. 

Here is another step closer to my handmade wardrobe.  I designed a Foliage Cowl to match my Foliage hat.

I have never worn a cowl before, but they are cute and my neck gets cold a lot.  My hair is usually up in a clip or a ponytail and the wind bites at the back of my neck. 

Not sure what I am making next but I have to get a move on.  Time is getting short and my crafty gift list is still pretty long. 

If you want to keep track of my knitting you can check out my ravelry page.  I really like ravelry!  You should check it out if you haven't yet. 

Back in a couple days with more craftiness.

I am sick, but on the way to recovery.  Just wanted to stop in and let you know I will be out for another day.

I havent wanted to do much other then read a great book The Witch of Cologne and work on editing my photos.  I just finished the book and it was so good.  Its about the Inquisition, Jewish and Catholic rivalries in Cologne, forbidden love, the Black Death, politics between Church and State.  Ahh, dramatic historical romances have always been my favorite.  Have any to recommend?  I haven't had the time to read fiction in a long time and I need to catch up over the holidays!

Also, I am having a sale in my etsy shop until the end of November.  If you buy 3 prints you get 1 free.   For my beloved blog readers I will give you a 5 pack of postcards free with any purchase.  Just mention this post in the buyer comments section of your sale or send me a convo.

I got around to editing some recent photo shoots while I was sick.
Here are a couple of my favorites.

The top one is in my etsy shop already.  The second one will be up by tonight.

Hope you weekend was something special.

The last couple of days I have been wanting a break from knitting and embroidery so I brought out my spindle and finished up my very first skein of spun yarn. 

I made a common mistake and over twisted my yarn.  No worries however, I discovered through some research that you can correct some of the over twisting by hanging a weight on the yarn as it dries.  It worked pretty well.  There are still some over twisted parts that I can probably straighten when I roll the yarn into a ball for knitting.

Spinning is therapeutic.  If you haven't tried it you should.  For me its the repetitive motion of the spindle and the movements of your hands as they smooth the twist down the roving. Have you ever seen Mists of Avalon?  I love the movie and recommend it whole heatedly.  There is a part in the movie where Igraine, King Arthur's mother, is spinning on a spinning wheel and it's repetitive motion puts her into a trance.  Then she sees a vision of her future.  I can see where they got that idea from.  I get totally meditative when I spin.

This beautiful purple is the roving I bought in Solvang, Ca in September.  I am in love with the colors.  I cant wait to see what they fabric will look like knitted. 

What do you think I should make with my new yarns?  I haven't quite gotten my tension even yet so we will call this thick and thin yarn that I would average out to bulky weight.  I havent measured it yet, but I am guessing I will have at least 100 yards.  Maybe a hat?  You all know how I love to knit hats!

Fun places to see

-Needle Book - An inspiring craft blog with beautifully spun yarns

-Maine Woods Yarn and Fiber - Where I bought my first spindle and roving

-Megan and Abby - Youtube Spinning tutorial Goddesses