A View from Sierra County

Contest! Contest! Contest!

I wanted to alert my last, loyal blog readers (I know it has been pretty thin around here lately!) that I am hosting a promotional contest over at Nature's Cauldron.  You can help me spread the word about my natural dye plant CSA and possibly win some terrific prizes by clicking here.   Hope that helps make your weekend a bit happier:)

And the Winner is..... Sharon!

I spent an hour on Wednesday afternoon going through all the posts, re-posts, FB mentions and likes to Nature's Cauldron's Facebook page.  Whew, thank goddess I don't do Twitter!  I then carefully numbered everything and turned to a little random number generator I found years ago on the I-net which picked #88. I pored over my copious notes and the winner turned out to be Sharon.

I will be delivering the prize package in person, since she is spending a long weekend nearby, at our Foothill Fibers Guild Spindle Camp.  I am hoping I can remember to get a photo taken!

I will only have this afternoon and evening to spend on spinning, as the sun is finally shining and have already been gardening this morning, with more to get done before I leave.  Tomorrow is also committed, to attend the graduation party my DIL is throwing for her mother, Linda, who has just completed her BA in Fine Arts... exciting.

It promises to be a typical foothill spring weekend, mixed weather!  Sunny and warm tomorrow with a chance of thundershowers and rain on Sunday.  Hope all of you have a lovely weekend!

 

Still Time to Enter!

I'm posting a photo to entice you to spread the word further about my blog contest, which ends on Tuesday, May 17th at midnight, PDT.  I have gotten 86 'likes' on my Nature's Cauldron Facebook page, lots of hits on the new website, and have signed up a handful of CSA shareholders, but you know you want to get more entries, so go back here and take a look at the rules.

I am offering 8 oz. of blue-faced leicester roving, from A Verb for Keeping Warm, which I picked up while visiting my BIL and SIL in Alameda (it is their closest LYS!) and two-2 oz. sport weight skeins of Juniper Creek Alpacas yarn, one in natural so that you can conduct your own dye experiments, and one in naturally dark (almost black) to go with for a special project.

Juniper Creek Alpacas are amongst the wool producers closest to my home, so I am happy to be able to help promote their farm, which raises Huayaca alpacas, who produce a very fine micron-count wool.  Eva, one of the co-owners, is a fellow Foothill Fibers Guild member, and their yarn is regularly available at my closest LYS, Meadowfarm Yarn Studio.

I already reviewed Harvesting Color in yesterday's post, the book that goes with this prize package.  If you missed the review, just keep on scrolling down... the book was printed in China, but the author and photographer live in my Fibershed... yup, it's all about local around here, at least as much as possible.  That's the motivation and joy of offering to grow dye plants for others!  So, spread the word and get yourself a few extra chances to win before it's too late! 

Have a great spring weekend!

Harvesting Color

I was so excited to get home at lunch yesterday and find that my book order had arrived!  Those who have already visited my Natural Dye CSA (community supported agriculture) website know that full shareholders will each receive a copy of Harvesting Color, by Rebecca Burgess with their first shipment.  Readers following my contest (which ends May 17th, so there's still time to get more entries!) will remember that it is one of the prizes offered to the lucky winner amongst those helping me promote the CSA.

What you probably DON'T know is just how amazing and fabulous this book is... I was so impressed, feeling both hopeful and calmed by the information and beautiful photos.  I always feel grounded and hopeful when I cross paths with someone else working hard to help protect Mother Earth, and Rebecca's advocacy for a return to deep connection with the clothing we wear and how we color it is very inspiring.

Here's the text of the review I wrote today for Amazon; if you don't purchase a share or win a copy from me, I hope you will order the book:

Rebecca Burgess' new book is an outgrowth of over a decade's worth of teaching natural dye plants and advocating for a more environmentally-friendly manner of creating our clothing.  She worked on the book at the same time that she was 'living' the Fibershed Project, with the goal of only wearing clothing made from products within a 150-mile radius of her Marin County, California home. This book contains information about unique California native plants, such as toyon and coffeeberry, and the dye colors that they produce, but it is far more than simply a California guide.

Each featured plant is discussed and accompanied by a photo of the entire plant, often within its native habitat.  Information about time to gather, how to cultivate, and parts of the plant to use for dyeing fibers are included, along with generous photos of yarns dyed in the colors obtained from each plant, and a map of the United States highlighting where the particular plant can be found growing in the wild.

Burgess brings her high standard of environmental consciousness into the book, stressing the importance of the choices we make in what we use as both consumers and artists.  She discusses mordants (substances used to 'fix', or keep the dye in the fiber or fabric for the long term), and only advocates using materials that are non-toxic, both while in use in the dye process and when the wastes are disposed.

All technical material is easy to access by the DIYer, the home craftsperson or the professional artist.  The book is organized around what is available each of the four seasons, and includes an appropriate project to use your hand-dyed yarns as well.

Paige Green's photography lifts this book into the realm of fine art, with massive amounts of beautiful pictures that highlight the plants, capture the colors dyed with them, and also portray the sense of harmony that Burgess advocates will come from being more connected to local production of our clothing.  This book will appeal to many who are already working with fiber arts, and will also attract those who garden, and seek to live in a greener manner.

A New Adventure Begins

I have mentioned and hinted a few times at the grand new adventure I have been embarking upon this spring, and today is the day to announce widely, and with the help of a contest, just what I have been up to!

My love of all things fibery has been one of my partners through several decades, beginning when I was five and learned to knit.  In my early 20s, while taking spinning lessons and learning to weave Navajo-style, my teacher also introduced our class to natural plant dyes.  I already knew I had a passion for plants, and had been studying herbology for a few years, so it was a natural step, and I have made many 'experiments' over the years.  I did not instantly become a dyer or start a dye business... in fact, you will see it has taken a few decades of 'cooking' to come to the point of sharing this knowledge and love with others. 

This winter, while pondering what to do in the current (read: dismal) economy,  I realized I had a large parcel on our property that I could use to cultivate dye plants.  From that tiny seed thought, I have spent the winter planning to launch the first Natural Dye Plant CSA (Community-Supported Agriculture) venture that I have been able to find advertised anywhere.  One impetus to act now was the localizing that has been taking place in my life for the past five years or so... I realized that while it has become much easier to obtain locally-grown food to eat in my region, clothes are another matter entirely.  I could take one of my loves, gardening, and pair it with a need, for artists to have local color available to help re-clothe our region in locally produced garments!

Today is the Launch Day, meaning that if you go over and visit my new website, Nature's Cauldron, you can become one of my CSA subscriber/supporters by signing up for a share.  My "community" of fiber fanatics is much bigger than just the boundaries of my county or state, so I am going to be drying and mailing out dye plants, as well as a few other goodies, over the course of the harvest season.  You might decide that you and your knitting group want to purchase a share together, so that you can begin to explore natural color options for your future projects.  As my gardens become more productive over the next few years, I will also begin dyeing and offering yarns in the prettiest of natural shades, as well as offering occasional natural dye workshops.  Those of you who have followed my blogging for the past six and a half years will be watching my small farm grow from infancy.  Though most of the farm posts will now move over to the new website, Sustainable Sunday will continue on this blog, sharing my general knowledge about living sustainably with all of you.

I will be growing a wide variety of plants, including Japanese indigo, madder, comfrey (olive green), yarrow (clear yellow), rhubarb (a mordant and pale orange dye), dahlias and hollyhocks, and gathering others from the hills and woods around me, including oak galls, lichens, and toyon.  I live in a rich environment and plan to grow, pick and dry plants all summer in order to prepare four shipments to send to subscribers in the coming fall and winter.  I also plan to include ideas and inspiration on what to make with these plant-dyed yarns.

Not all of my dear fiber friends will want to participate, or to take up natural plant dyeing.  However, all of you have fiber friends as well, and just by tapping into that network of fiber artists, I know that I will be able to gather enough support for this first season of growing and harvesting.  In order to spread the word quickly, I am also launching a contest today to build subscribers to my Natures Cauldron Facebook page, and to get the word out about my adventure.  Each new "like" will be entered into the contest, as well as each individual who comments either here or at the new website.  Of course, if you can get more entries in the contest, you have a better chance at winning the great prize package described below!  So, if you refer someone else, have them tell me you sent them to visit me, and you will get additional entries.

The prize package includes a copy of Harvesting Color, the new book on natural dyeing by Rebecca Burgess of the Fibershed Project (this book will be included in the first of the four CSA shipments!), two ounces of undyed Blue-faced Leicester roving from A Verb for Keeping Warm (local Northern California sheep!), and some naturally-dyed yarns (watch for photos to come).

The contest will run for two weeks, until May 17th, at midnight PDT, so help me spread the word!

Happy Blogiversary to a Friend!

It's amazing how the blog world has given me a host of virtual friends!  Please go on over and wish a Happy 6th Blogiversary to Jessa Lu, who is hosting a wonderful contest to celebrate.  She makes really cute knitting bags and the top prize is a sock kit in one of them!

Somehow, back in December, I let my own sixth Blogiversary slip by... my original platform was Blogger, so I don't have that built-in reminder.  The real excuse was probably holiday busy-ness... I am inspired by Jessa Lu to plan for a belated celebration... watch for news to come.

Also, if you are here in Northern California and can't stand the thought of braving the crowds at Stitches West, stop by Fibers, where I worked until recently.  The store is going to an online format only, and all the contents are deeply discounted... 35% off through Saturday and then 45% off the last of the month.  Lots of great yarns at cheap prices... they will be open Saturday, then Tues-Sat. next week, and that's it.  Sad to see, but the owner, Allison Rapp, is also a Feldenkrias teacher and has started devoting a lot of time to training other practitioners in marketing their businesses in these challenging economic times.  California is still really hard-hit for jobs, so if things are booming where you are, please leave a good story, as I could certainly use the optimism!

As for me, I am going back to the job of keeping warm in our mid-February storm, with some work, knitting and jewelry-making thrown in.  Have a great holiday weekend!

And the Winner Is....

Actually, there are two winners, one for yarn and one for roving!  

In the yarn category, the winner is a new-to-me blogger, Juliann, of Cozy Knitting!

Juliann will be receiving this lovely skein of Araucania Panguipulli, which I incorrectly linked before... it is hand-dyed in Chile and designed to reflect the Chilean culture, but marketed through Knitting Fever.

Turns out that Julieann probably needs this yarn after knitting her way through snowstorms earlier in the month....

And in the roving category, the winner is Zeneedle Margene, who will receive this beautifully hand-dyed roving from dear friend and neighbor, Wooly Daisy Stephanie (who is off at Stitches West this weekend). 

Thanks to all of you who participated in my 400-post contest, and who have continued to visit and read my writings over the years, and to those new friends as well, and I know Margene thanks all of you who posted you were referred here by her post last week, improving her odds!

I hope all of you are looking forward to a nice late-winter weekend; here at Slate Range Camp, I will be enjoying what today's mail delivered...

the latest issue of Piecework, to be perused and savored over the weekend....

and my order from Knitpicks, which contained the yarns I need to start on a new hat for baby grrl, Odessa.... Flore pattern from Knitwhits.

Won't she just look so precious?!  

Contest Closed - Winner Announced Friday!

Thanks to all who entered my 400-post Contest... I am sorting through the 'extra' entries you are entitled to for spreading the word, and will be able to pick a winner by tomorrow and let y'all in on it by Friday.  Haven't been home much the past few days, but appreciated reading all the nice comments:)

Yesterday started out very early, with a fast trip down to Sacramento to take a half-day class on grant proposal budgeting.  Since it was also youngest son's birthday, several of the family gathered for a feast at Jesse's favorite local Chinese restaurant.

The birthday family.... son Jesse with fiancee Dawn and baby girl Odessa.... she can still fit in the birth hat her Grammie B made her, but it is definitely time for another!

Jesse turned 24, and Odessa is now 5 months old!

Today was another hurry-scurry day, with several meetings and a circle around through Marysville, up to Grass Valley, and finally back home... time to go make an easy dinner and relax... the last armhole on Mendocino and then sewing on buttons will put me over the top in my finishing endeavor... happy dance!  Go on by and congratulate Vicki on her gold medal in the Knitting Olympics.

In The Running

At least I would still be if I had officially participated in the Knitting Olympics; the exciting news to me is that there will soon be a FO, and an item that has been languishing as a UFO for too long will finally get its due.

I first saw the Mendocino Vest pattern back almost two years ago, when Shear Spirit was published, featuring the photos of fellow blogger Gale (She Shoots Sheep Shots).  I was so excited by the way the book presents independent fiber farms around the country, almost as if I drove up unexpectedly, but they rolled out the welcome mat and gave me the deluxe tour anyway.  This was the pattern I wanted to make first, and I had even overdyed some lovely Cormo yarn from a visit to the Estes Park Wool Mart visit a few years back that I had in my stash with henna in anticipation of using it for the project, when Ruinwin sent me a gift of some Ella Rae Palermo yarn that cried out to be used for Mendocino instead... the other yarn has a new vest with it's name on it, but may have to wait until next winter.  Oh the comfort of having projects lined up in the stash:)  

Though I made it most of the way through the back last spring, once the hot weather hit, Mendocino languished, becoming the perfect candidate for my own personal Finishing Event.  I managed to fly through both of the fronts in the past week, and last night got the neck edging completed... the sides are pinned together with locking stitch markers (a good reason to have plenty of these around!), and I will seam them tonight, move on to the armhole edgings.

I really like the pretty little touches on this pattern... besides being a 'mock cable' (meaning that you don't actually manipulate the cable effect, it is done by purling three together, with M1 increases on either side of the 'cable' panel), there is a ripply edging formed by an eyelet row at the bottom that starts off the patterning, and then the eyelet row is repeated for the trims around neck and armholes. 

Here's a closer-up to show how the neck edging turned out... this yarn is a long-striping one, but very tonal and subtle... a pleasing feast for the knitter, yet still wearable for someone like me who doesn't want to stand out like a neon sign by wearing dramatically striping colors.

I managed to get some decluttering time in yesterday morning, eliminating some extra furniture and adding to the order I have been gradually achieving, but my real reason was to unearth these buttons... I knew I had purchased them a few years back up in Arcata, and they weren't with all the recently-organized materials in my studio, even though many, many other buttons were....I could recall having displayed them pinned to the wall next to my computer desk for quite a long time, and was hoping they hadn't fallen behind the filing cabinet. Luckily, my decluttering got rid of a box on unneeded books, and a stack of paper trash, before I 'found' the missing buttons on one of my office shelves. 

Won't they be just a perfect match?  I like the garter stitch button bands a lot too.... did I say that I really, really like this vest?  I think I might even like myself in it.  I have been making sure to get 30 minutes (at least) of exercise a day, including weights twice a week and intervals once or twice a week (those who find me on FB know how I feel about intervals; I won't subject the rest of you), and have even lost a few pounds, but still have a ways to go before feeling svelte.  I was pleased when I tried the pinned-together version and realized I would be happy with the fit.  Now... on to the finish line!

Don't forget to enter my contest before midnight PST on Tuesday... here's a photo of the Aracuania yarn, one of two prizes I will be awarding... scroll down to get the directions.

 

Announcing The Winners

Last month, I asked a very personal, and possibly difficult, question as a requirement to enter my Birthday Contest.  The entries came in slowly, but steadily, thanks to several bloggers who shared what I was doing with their audiences.  They gradually sorted themselves out into a few major categories... births, deaths, illness, marriage, transforming moments.  Some were far more moving than others, but all reflected the human experience, something we each share though it happens to us on our own terms and timetables.  We may not have the same illness, lose a parent at the same point in life, or even discover the love of our life at the same decade in life, but we do share many of these experiences over the course of each lifetime.

I am honored to be entrusted with so many great stories, and plan to share them in a few clusters over the next month.  Of course, it was very difficult selecting a first and second place winner for this contest, even when eliminating several 'also-rans'.... and somehow, using a random number generator didn't feel right either.  That is why it is so late in the day, on the day that I promised to announce the winners.  I have read and re-read each story, thinking about the writing and how each moved me in different ways, and finally went with the humanness of the recounting, the lessons the author wanted to share with all of us reader, and the feelings that these two stories gave me:

The first place winner, who will receive a special package of hand-dyed yarn, cute little tote and tape measure, put together on Friday while I was working at Fibers (it's already too dark to take a photo, but I will...soon), is blogless Shelly F:

 "I read your life changing time and the others listed. Mine started out that way. I was in labor for 4 days with my first son, what a little man he was! Then I gave birth to my second son, Jesse. These two boys saved my life, really! Like you, I didnt want to be reckless. If a car was getting to close to me on the highway, I prayed that I would be ok because I was James and Jesse's mama!! 

The time that stands out most in my life is April 7, 2008. I got a call at 1am. Jesse was on the phone all in a panic! He had been drinking too much, which he has a problem with at only 23 years old. He told me franickly to call 911. He had tried to commit suicide!! He had stabbed himself in the stomach 7 times. He was airlifted to Washoe and I made it there in 1 1/2 hours from Downieville. I was beside myself, I prayed the entire way! He was in surgery when I arrived and I waited in his room to be. Trust me, this wait was more painful than labor. They wheeled him in, told me his body will be fine, he missed everything! So, I sat and watched Jesse sleep. At that time, I loved him more than any other time of his life. I was so thankful that he was alive, so worried as to what brought him to this desperate point, how did I miss the signs?? I prayed and crocheted and prayed and crocheted. I sat with Jesse for 4 days, never left the hospital. I had the same clothes on the entire time. I was NOT going to leave my baby. I talked and talked with him. We got help for him and he is on the road to recovery. He isnt all the way there yet, but he is working hard on it. 

I guess my point of telling this story isnt to make anyone sad, it is to tell people to not take one day for granted. Not one. Love those around you and turn away from the dirty dishes and laundry, sit on the floor and PLAY with the ones you love. Enjoy them to the fullest. Listen to them about the silliest things even when you are running out the door late. This with Jesse was a complete surprise!! Jesse turned 25 on Oct 1st. I sent him 4 - $25 gift cards to ToysRus. He loved them, said he went and bought himself a remote control car. (kid at heart) I sure do love that boy, more every day."

Shelly expressed one of the guiding principles in my life... to live in and for the moment, knowing that is all we really have.  That doesn't mean I don't plan ahead, save for the future and treasure the past, but it does mean that I try to let the past failings and injuries fall away quickly, and move forward with joy every day, looking for the happiest and richest way to apply my energy.  It's always a process, and some days are less successful than others, but I do agree with Shelly, treasure the moment and play with those you love!  Thanks, Shelly.

The second place prize, a $25 gift certificate to Lafayette Book Store, goes to Meg, who did such an excellent job describing how a simple gift, given in the moment by her mother, affected her lifelong philosophy:

"When I thought of a life changing event I first thought of the fall of 2001 when life was so so hard. But then I remembered the event that taught me the resilience to get through those tough times.  I was 9 years old. My family was very,very poor and were getting evicted from our home. My parents have four daughters and there was never enough money. My mom and I walked to the hardware store to buy a lightbulb. In the store was a man with large pack, a walking stick and looking scruffy with beard. He was asking the clerks how to get to New Haven (about 8 miles away from my town). He said his daughter was in the hospital and he been walking for days and days trying to get to her. The clerks wouldn't help him and threw him out. As my mom and I left the store she pressed a few dollars in my hand and told me to run after him. She told me to tell him it was all that we had but he could wait right where he was for a bus. I ran across the parking lot and gave him the money and the message. He started crying and so did I. He took my hands and thanked me and said he would pray for us over his fire that night. 

The next day my parents found a wonderful, huge house by the ocean that we could afford. And I learned that no matter what, there is always a capacity to give despite what I think my circumstances are. I also learned not be afraid of those who need help or to feel pity, we are always one step away from walking in someone else's shoes. It's a set of lessons I have kept with me in the 21 years since and a lesson I teach to my husband, kids, family and friends by example whenever I can."

I was deeply moved by her statement that we always have the capacity to give... if we all started each day with that thought in mind, and took a step to give help to someone else, each and every day, just think of the changes we could create.  Thanks for the inspiration, Meg.

There are more powerful stories to share, and I hope you will come back soon to read them.  Thanks to all who entered, and please, I hope nobody will feel hurt or left out that I didn't select you as a winner... each one of you is a winner for being willing to share your knowledge with the rest of us.