Misty Mountain Farm

Several friends and I trekked off to Amissville, Virginia to one of our favorite fiber farms - Misty Mountain Farm. We had quite a nice group of fiber enthusiasts - Gretchen, Charlotte, Lisa, Catherine, Elizabeth and myself.



Gretchen finished another shawl. Wow....that girl's knitting mojo is definitely working overtime! She's already talking about her next one!



Elizabeth brought several bags of fresh walnuts to share with everyone. These are great for dyeing. The walnuts produce a very rich, brown color that is light fast. Of course, I took a couple of bags! I discovered (and purchased) a book on Natural Dyeing that I don't have, "Indigo Madder & Marigold: A Portfolio of Colors from Natural Dyes" by Trudy Van Stralen. Linda pointed out a fabulous teal recipe contained in the book - it's made from Walnuts and Indigo - how cool is that! Elizabeth provided the walnuts, all I have to do now is get the Indigo and I'm all set!

I always find fabulous things whenever I visit Linda's - fibers, yarns, gadgets, and books. This time, one of my favorite finds was some sock yarn in the University of Illinois colors. (Yeah, I know....UVA and U of I have pretty much the same colors...orange and blue. But I personally feel that these colors represent my Alma Mater, not that I'm biased or anything!)

Note that the two "shop kitties", Mocha and the pretty Calico, love to snuggle up with the fiber equipment. The Calico's favorite spot was the table with the hand carders and drum carder. She even snuggled up for a nap in that exact spot! Mocha loved to sit on the chair - viewing all the fibers.










Linda always makes you feel special, and this trip was no exception. We were greeted with fresh brewed coffee and homemade zucchini bread. The bread was baked by her daughter, Leanna, and was made from fresh zucchini from their garden. The cream for our coffee and the butter for the bread were from the resident milk cow, Bessie. I've never had cream or butter that was that fresh before. It was heaven on earth! Oh, my....the commercial stuff is awful in comparison!

No trip to Misty Mountain Farm is complete without the fiber animal photo ops! I thought this was a hoot. One of her dogs lays "claim" to various items that are Linda's. One day, it might be a shirt from her bedroom, another day a sock. Today, the object of "love" was one of Linda's boots. The dog doesn't chew on them....she just "carries them around" - I guess that's her way of keeping Linda close! How funny is that?


Linda now has 6 Alpacas - they provide a nice range of colors too! Browns, whites, grey, and a very dark brown (nearly black). Aren't they cute?

Inside the barn, there's quite a menagerie. There's the goat with the gruff little beard (and a curious Alpaca peering into the barn through the doorway). And then there's the delightful flocks of Blue Faced Leicesters and Finn sheep. The Finns provide the lovely locks that Linda and Leanna dye. The Finn locks have such a nice luster and take color so well! There's also a donkey and even a horse! It's a "Noah's Ark" of animals!




















The lone Llama is still a bit enamored with Lisa....last time we were here, he kept trying to sneak a kiss! He hangs out with the sheep, a donkey, and a horse...as well as some wandering chickens.










And finally, there's Bessie - the provider of the luscious butter and cream. She's the sweetest cow and loves to nuzzle you with her big wet nose. She also loves to have her face and head stroked.