des femmes: Eye candy for the fiber artists

des femmes: Eye candy for the fiber artists

holidays and plans for the new year.

Attended the Parade locally, it was chilly and only emphasized to me my need to improve my knitting skills so I can make more warm things for my family. I came home and began spinning up some of my bets corriedale and right this minute as cold as my toes are Im thinking... socks.

on a more reliable note, especially considering that Im like a remedial knitter, I will be working on the 3rd part for my planned class for SAFF . It will be the third forest animal in that It will be a wild rabbit also on a stump. After completing that , I will begin sculpting the animal I hope to carry to MDS&W to compete there in needlefelting. IF I still qualify. I will need to read all of the rules and guidelines for it before I decide something like that.

Im trying to get several things completed around the farm before we begin lambing and kidding. things that will help me seperate the billy and rams farther from the ewes.
we will be looking into a new ram this spring to add to our flock of super fine corriedale sheep. We also hope to locate a cashmere billy that wont be too far out of our way or too expensive .

I will be ordering matilda coats for more of the flock this year, it should help increase the quality as well as quantity of wool my sheep produce and make sure it is nice and white.
I will post more photos from around the farm after the Christmas holidays end.
but until then happy holidays to everyone

another puppet photo.

I am not certian but after this posting I may have the majority of my puppets on the blog ya!

the elephant was a huge hit at saff, and the cheetah is one of my favorites. both of these guys are " earlier works." and the later stuff is below. I am currently sculpting a puppet modeled after one of my own horses. Will post him as soon as he is completed! Melissa

new to blogging

I am still learning , and hope to soon figure out how to add my fav blogs in links to here, I want to learn how to be a part of a fiber artist blog ring, and more , but one baby step at a time. in any case if anyone already knows how I can do either of these things and could help me along thats great! but if not its ok !!! Melissa

another puppet

I realize photos of 2 or 3 puppets on this blog site cannot really give the desired effect but I am trying to show some of my sculpture without being boring.
I am also working on 2 new projects that I will finish as I have time and most likely after the holidays .
but then again that will also depend on how heavy lambing is then too... all my adult ewes should be delivering lambs jan-Feb time frame.
My puppets are derived from photos of actual animals. Because I breed all white corriedales,my inspiration for other breeds of sheep, Llamas, alpacas etc, comes from pictures I liked. not always from "requested " work. so, just because I used a specific ram as my "model" does not mean that puppet was sold to the ppl who owned that ram.
so if you see a puppet that really "looks" like an animal you have, it may still be available for sale.
soon I will be ordering brass lamb ear tags, they will be engraved with my first initial and last name. and then numbered on the back. I felt this way, if I tag and "number" my work , people will know they recieved an authentic peice of my work, and that even 2 or 3 years down the road, if they give me the number, I will have a reference point , in referring to a peice of work I may have sold.
Yes I use all corriedale in all of my puppets. The outer fluffy wool may be any numbers of fibers but the base sculpture, (that even without the wool just looks like that species of animal only with a very close shave,) that is all corriedale.
yes, from here. I use that because it felts consistently and I have little guessing to do when working with it.
soon I will publish a "puppet in the works" here. so everyone can "watch it come along"
but until then I must go make more Santas :) happy holidays ! Melissa

class for SAFF2007

here is one of the 3 items I will be teaching in my class at SAFF on Friday next year. it will be an 8 hour class , with limited spaces . I ask anyone attending this class to please have needlefelted Something, anything before the class . it will help me to instruct the finer detail within the class if everyone already understands how the felting process with a needle works .

santa photos

here are the "santa heads " that I have been making A LOT.
each is a little different but they seem to be very well liked this christmas. thought I should show a photo of them

currently in the "works"

Well at SAFF I had 2 dozen "santa " faces ornaments. they were gone within an hour of opening the booth. so that night I made 4 in the hotel that lasted 4 minutes at SAFF on Saturday... so I made 3 more sat night that were gone immediatly in the morning on Sunday, since my return home I have had every one I have made, gone before I can catch my breath... in groups!! like ppl do not just buy one.. they are buying like 4 and 6 at one time ! so I recently made "frosty" faces, complete with corn cob pipes, black top hats and I really like them... the first 4 ever out in public will hit lindas shop on Tuesday night. she does sell thru the internet, yes even the santas and frostys..
they are 10$ each not including tax and S&H, but they are not heavy.
here is the link to her page
http://www.tail-spinner.com/
my puppets can be found there as well. plus if you plan to come to the coast, I do give classes at her shop.
I will try to get some pictures of the santas and frostys ...
but while setting everything up this evening to do just that, my camera lets me know in no uncertian terms that I need new batteries to feed to it. oh also please do feel free to pass around this blog spot to anyone who may be at all interested in my sculptures, I just want to get them seen and lil ole NC town is not a big metropolis :) melissa

three postings??

I apologise for the 3 repeat SAFF posts below. if you read the first , then you read the 2 below them as well.. I have tried to edit this and remove it but am so new to blogging in general that this just is not going well at this time . thank you though for your patience I am sure I will get it all worked out soon ! M

SAFF

I attended SAFF 06 and had a wonderful time ! here is the link to the SAFF site for those who may not have seen it before http://www.saffsite.org/page.php?page=home.htm
I will be an instructor for fine detail needlefelting next year, and will be holding an 8 hour class .. crazy right? possibly ! I was a little overwhelmed by the huge amount of ppl at SAFF, but the puppet I made after my angora doe Luci won the needlefelting competetion so that made me very happy. I bought some fleeces from Dan-Vir sheep, they have georgus covered cormos and colored corriedales that are "to die for " and I always try to buy a fleece from them. My friend Laurie Andreacci from Lauries lambs also needs to put a fleece or 3 on the SAFF show table for me to show off for her, her shetland fiber is beautiful , and sooo soft. maybe I can coax her into it for next year... hoping I will be able to get a good photo of the things Im creating with my needlefelting and put it up soon. Elizabeth Ashford put my Giraffe in the newest edition of "the wheel " magazine and WOW was I thrilled! anyway SAFF was a huge success and the puppets recieved a wonderful reception for their big debut!
thanks to any and all who attended ! Melissa

SAFF

I attended SAFF 06 and had a wonderful time ! here is the link to the SAFF site for those who may not have seen it before http://www.saffsite.org/page.php?page=home.htm
I will be an instructor for fine detail needlefelting next year, and will be holding an 8 hour class .. crazy right? possibly ! I was a little overwhelmed by the huge amount of ppl at SAFF, but the puppet I made after my angora doe Luci won the needlefelting competetion so that made me very happy. I bought some fleeces from Dan-Vir sheep, they have georgus covered cormos and colored corriedales that are "to die for " and I always try to buy a fleece from them. My friend Laurie Andreacci from Lauries lambs also needs to put a fleece or 3 on the SAFF show table for me to show off for her, her shetland fiber is beautiful , and sooo soft. maybe I can coax her into it for next year... hoping I will be able to get a good photo of the things Im creating with my needlefelting and put it up soon. Elizabeth Ashford put my Giraffe in the newest edition of "the wheel " magazine and WOW was I thrilled! anyway SAFF was a huge success and the puppets recieved a wonderful reception for their big debut!
thanks to any and all who attended ! Melissa

SAFF

I attended SAFF 06 and had a wonderful time ! here is the link to the SAFF site for those who may not have seen it before http://www.saffsite.org/page.php?page=home.htm
I will be an instructor for fine detail needlefelting next year, and will be holding an 8 hour class .. crazy right? possibly ! I was a little overwhelmed by the huge amount of ppl at SAFF, but the puppet I made after my angora doe Luci won the needlefelting competetion so that made me very happy. I bought some fleeces from Dan-Vir sheep, they have georgus covered cormos and colored corriedales that are "to die for " and I always try to buy a fleece from them. My friend Laurie Andreacci from Lauries lambs also needs to put a fleece or 3 on the SAFF show table for me to show off for her, her shetland fiber is beautiful , and sooo soft. maybe I can coax her into it for next year... hoping I will be able to get a good photo of the things Im creating with my needlefelting and put it up soon. Elizabeth Ashford put my Giraffe in the newest edition of "the wheel " magazine and WOW was I thrilled! anyway SAFF was a huge success and the puppets recieved a wonderful reception for their big debut!
thanks to any and all who attended ! Melissa

Fall fiber festivals

this october I will be attending SAFF, or southeastern animal fiber festival and hope to showcase my puppets ther, I think they will be well accepted but I guess I will see. Im a little nervous about the commentary they might recieve, a whole years worth of work into them and rovings im busting my tail to prepare before I go...

Alpaca puppet

This is fiore, an alpaca photo I saw inspired me to sculpt her in wool. again using needlefelting. the only main difference was I used angora rabbit hair on the head and face because of its softness.

ram puppet

This is a ram head , again needlefelted all in wool. he depicts a common color scheme in the breed of sheep known as shetland.

Large puppets in the works

here is one example of my sculpture. this is my giraffe, completely sculpted with wool. I use a technique called "needlefelting" and make new puppets all the time. Soon my work may be published in a few fiber artist magazines.

artistic works.

I have found myself in the unknown realm of an "artist" and now I am not sure what to do with it. I sculpt large puppets from an unusual medium, wool. I needlefelt the headso of animals onto a mitt like structure, and from what I have found out recently, not many people do this. I also of course process some of my own wool, and make yarn as well as handmade hand spun items, the current going fad is socks... everyone here seems to be knitting socks so so am I , but in the interm I have also been sculpting these awesome looking heads. anyone wishing to see them can go to the tail-spinner.com
or here http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/srpntwyn/album?.dir=67cf&.src=ph&store=&prodid=&.done=http%3a//photos.yahoo.com/ph//my_photos

or, to ask questions aboutr fleeces, fiber, yarns, or puppets visit my site, at abcwoolcrafts.mralter.com/

thanks !

putting up the garden

Canning and preparing the veggies fresh from the garden , nothing quite like it, and the weeds are a mess! but the tomatoes are lovely and the corn is cheap in the road side trucks. I have broccoli frozen that will last the whole winter, squash for an army and even made up some pickles. Cant wait till I have tomatoes filled in jars and that is all finished. but it is great to have a pantry full of fresh food. ahhh summertime

NAIS makes Equine slaughter easier

been hearing for the past 2 years about old horse slaughter facilities opening back up, Also had heard how new slaughter laws were enabled, like the ones that make it legal now to buy hundereds of discarded mustangs. Well the NAIS will make it financially harder to rescue , because rather than chip and report a hundred or hundreds of horses available for adoption, now, with NAIS one "lot " number will be much easier. now pony skin, for purses and boots, horse meat for europe and japan , thats where the money will be. Lots of horse registries are aware of how NAIS will make "grade" horses not as "worth it " so, they support NAIS, but then again they also support slaughter. Ask them . ASK the AQHA if they support the NAIS. ask them if they are for slaughter . they wont answer you unless you really press them. all the NAIS action will make trail rides vet visits breeding and showing a nightmare. and how will you feel when the local vets decide your animals need what shots they decide, or what de-wormers to use, or your horses will be labeled a risk to public health. loose horse? you have to report it ! someone elses loose horse runs to your farm? every animal it contacts , thats YOUR expense and reports for all of your animals. heard how you wont have to report if you dont leave your own property?
dont bring home a new hen or ram, thats livestock, in contact with livestock . All animals that contact the new critter , each will be a report.
so while Japan eats your fancy saddle horse, dont pretend that microchip kept your horse from being stolen, they just toss those chips into a bucket , and sell them to try to subvert the system . after all, before the new un counterfeitable 20$ bills were dry, fakes were already circulating .
who knows, maybe that distance reading rfid chip reader will be able to help that horse thief know right where to go to find all the local horses. the GPS map will help for sure!

if BIRD flu hits , then store WHAT?

Ive heard several numbers. Store enough food for 8 weeks. ok , dry food? frozen food do they count? canned? ok if freezers wont work then how much kerosine for lanterns does that add up to ?
I have horses and sheep, Im assuming I will also have to store feed for them. BUT thats a double edged sword. Im NOT letting my neighbors kill off my sheep to eat. Im NOT letting anyone steal my horses to use as transportation. I feel like if you didnt set aside enough food for you and yours then TOUGH. I plant my garden I medicate my animals. I am there from birth to death. Refugees without foresight do not deserve to be able to accost my livestock.
Because of how things went for New Orleans, I am storing bullets alongside my powdered milk.
I actually think it is my job and obligation to rescue my family and supply us with the things we need durring a crisis. what happened to people feeling this way ?
Since when did America become a large group of people with their hands held out ??? the more I learn the more disgusted I become.

governmental gardening.

the USDA has written something called the NAIS, National animal Identification System. This sounds like something to prevent mad cow, only, mad cow is not passed from nose to nose contact. it is passed from eating bodies. in 1997 a law was passed that made it illegal for ranchers to feed animal body parts to cows. sounds like a no brainer, dont feed meat of any kind to mother natures vegetarians. Ok. easy enough. only, now a few 10 yr and older cows are showing signs that they were exposed to contaminated feed, and test positive for Mad cow. That cow was destroyed, but the USDA is trying to scare everyone to death , making it seem like other animals could have "caught" mad cow from that sick cow. nope. not unless that farmer ground her up and fed her to the rest of the herd... but now that the USDA has everyone afraid of mad cow, they say "we have a soloution, it is called NAIS, if we had mandatory tagging and traceback on these cows, it would help us !" only they are NOT telling you,
that it wont only demand the tagging of cattle for food, but also ALL other livestock animals. llamas, horses, sheep, goats, chickens, alpacas, and yes cows, but that means , the old lady with one chicken , she has to tag hers too. I have a few sheep for spinning from , and wuill have to tag them too. everyone with even ONE horse will have to tag it.
thinking ok thats not all that bad .. it does get worse... the USDA says thats not enough, we (anyone with animals , or even the POTENTIAL of owning farm animals) must report their property and recieve a "premise ID" for GPS sattelite tracking numbers. GETTING your premise ID is FREE right NOW, but will not be in about 2 years. then there will be an annual charge!
it gets even worse!
then there is reporting, if your chicken crosses the road and MIGHT come in contact with any other livestock, this movement must be reported 24 hours in advance to the USDA, the return home is yet another report . and this will need to be done at the OWNERS expence.
ALL of this enforcement , will fall to HOMELAND security, and individual farmers.
when you hear no no animals that never leave home dont need a chip./ yes they do, if that owner EVER buys a new animal that MIGHT come into contact with it.
there is so much to this proposed new legislation, or "regulations" it will help make horse slaughter easier,
it will make Cargill and monsanto richer
it will make digital angel very happy , and that company is tightly aligned with Tom ridge , the director of homeland security.
it will make small farms obselete
it will ruin the organic market.
it will raise the prices of meats . because without small farmers , big ones have no checks or balances to prices.
they claim the food will be safer, but it will in fact be a larger group in a single location instead of thousands of locations.
go to nonais.org
go to the USDA site and read for yourself!