Hat and Piggy Bank

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The "Wind and Sea" hat is finished! Wahoo! I'm going to re-do the edges as I'm not real happy with how it turned out. Plus, I need to stabilize the ends of the millinery wire - right now, I have the "incredible shrinking hat!"



I also finished my piggy bank. I knitted a "cozy" for one of my tea tins, cut a hole in the top of the tin, added a bit of red roving (for blood) and some felt fangs. I think it's the perfect prop for the addage, "A Penny Saved is a Penny Earned" - one of my entries for the Nerd Wars on Ravelry (very appropriate as I'm on "Team Bite Me"!)


My final project that I've been working on is a fulled bag. It's the "Dumpling Bag" and it's construction is quite unique. There's a short I-cord and a long I-cord and two plastic rings that you use to put the handles together. I'm quite pleased with how it turned out. However, next time, I'll either cover the rings or look for rings that are brown or wooden so they don't show so much.

Before fulling...

After fulling...

Wicked!!!!

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Today was another fabulous June day - mild temperatures (80's) and low humidity! A rarity this time of year!!! My friend Paula and I headed downtown to the Kennedy Center to see "Wicked"!






We stopped at the cafe, "Cuppa Cuppa" across from the Kennedy Center for lunch and coffee. I managed to get quite a bit of drop spindling in while waiting for show time!






I continued drop spindle spinning until it was time to go inside. I've almost completed half of the second ounce! I'm almost ready to start plying with the drop spindle....just another half ounce or so to go.






Here's a closeup of the action...and the drafting process










The show was absolutely fabulous! It's the second time I've seen it. My daughter took me the first time, a couple of years ago. The second showing was just as fantastic as the first. It's definitely a must see...it will be here through August, so you've got plenty of time!


After the show, we checked out the Sound Installation by a group from Australia. We could talk to each other through the megaphone-like objects...and could hear others talking as well. It was fascinating trying to figure out whose voice(s) we were hearing. Paula, her sister in law and I even tried our hand at singing...and ended up singing a bit off key with lots of giggles. All in all, a fabulous time! The folks in the straw hats were part of the installation and wandered around observing how we all reacted to and interacted with the installation. (At times, I felt like I was a lab rat...my actions noted and analyzed....LOL!!!!)














I always love going the the Kennedy Center. JFK was my favorite president. I was was young when he was assassinated, but it left a life long impact on me. I love reading his quotes on the side of the building. (Double click on the photos for a readable view of the quotes.)

Furnace Mountain Alpaca Farm

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What a fabulous day! Believe it or not, after all the heat and humidity that June has delivered, we got a bit of relief from it...just in time to visit Furnace Mountain Alpaca Farm! The "Purls of Distinction Knitting Guild" toured Sharon's alpaca farm on Saturday.

Wow...what a spectacular location! The view is absolutely gorgeous - everywhere I look, there are rolling hills, mountains, or fiber animals. It doesn't get any better than this!









































We started out tour in our Sharon's dining room. She had stuffed it full of her various yarns, patterns, and samples. None of her alpaca is dyed - it's all the natural colors....and they were stunning!!!




The alpaca that's not really up to the quality/length for creating clothing can be used to make spectacular rugs. Check out these two beauties that adorn Sharon's kitchen area! Gorgeous!

















She had a very interesting picture - one of the painting done by an elephant! How cool is that?







Off to the barn to check out the animals. They were sooo cute!












































We even got to try our hand leading one of them around the barnyard. What fun!





Our next stop was the Market Table Bistro Restaurant in Lovettsville. The restaurant was very cute and the food was absolutely fabulous! I was in heaven! I had a delicious gazpacho soup as an appetizer. This was followed by a green salad topped with slice smoked duck. (They import the duck from Maplewood in upstate NY and then smoke it themselves. The duck was organic and absolutely delicious!!!!) I finished my meal with the most delicious and decadent dessert I've ever had....Dark Chocolate Creme Brulee. Oh, my! It was absolutely divine!!!!

We were entertained while dining by the baker prepping the various breads, rolls, and focaccia - all hand crafted and baked in house.











I even managed to get a video of the bread preparation in action.




I would rate the food and service with an A+!!!!! I definitely plan to be a return customer!

Once I got back home, my ventures in nature and art continued! I started a ground hog when I came out the basement door. Luckily, I managed to snap a photo...just before he disappeared beneath my bushes. (Double click on the photo for a closer view...sorry about the blur.) Wow! Did he move fast!!!


When I got to the other side of the neighborhood, I spotted a lovely doe munching away on the trees next to the playground. She was totally unperturbed by my presence...and simply viewed my dog as "a funny looking deer".




As I couldn't help but take a photo of my friend's rather unusual flowers. I call these the "Candy Corn Flowers" because they remind me of candy corn. I can't remember their official name. It's something like "Rods of Fire" or something like that. I guess the official name didn't stick because I already had my own name for them, eh?


As I passed Elvira's house, I spotted her painting on her deck. It was such a lovely day that she'd brought her easel out so she could enjoy her passion while basking in the fabulously temperate June afternoon!

Dish Cloths

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I made a couple of dish cloths and some stich markers as part of a swap. The recipient was in the UK. I thought I'd go with some summery colors and tried out a couple of patterns that I'd been wanting to try for a while now.


Both dish cloths were made with Sugar 'n Cream cotton yarn. The orange cloth was done using a pattern called the "Cluster Stitch Dish Cloth". I was quite easy...and I really like the overall effect. I'm definitely making this one again.



The second dish cloth made use of a pattern called the "Starfish Cloth" from SewFunky. The second cloth made use of short rows to form the legs of a starfish. I think the bright yellow was the perfect color for this one!




I decided to make the stitch markers from a blue and clear Swarovski crystals as it reminds me of the deep blue water and the sparkling beaches of the ocean. I'm getting much more consistent on my wraps. (Thankfully, I AM seeing some improvement from the first stitch markers I made!!!!)




Oh...and here's the funny for the day...it made me chuckle. (No offense intended toward my Vegetarian friends....just enjoy the humor of the statement.)