A Satisfied Customer ..... Really!

Sweet babe wearing my hat.

This little Miss Sober-sides is wearing a hat made in one of my most favorite colorways. I wish I could remember where I bought the yarn. I think it must Joann Fabrics.

Angela said the babe's mama remarked about how solemn she had been all morning. That she was thinking "deep thoughts". :)

Oops! I have told people all week that this Saturday, October 19th, is our last Market. The last Market is actually October 26th. So yay for us because the 19th is looking as though we may be rained out.

Angela and I are working hard to build up our inventory for the last days of Market and the Holiday show November 9th at the Orleans Elementary School. We keep telling our hands "Don't fail us now!" So of course I have had that old Hoyt Axton song "Boney Fingers" in my head for a couple of weeks. "Work your fingers to the bone ...... what do you get? Boney Fingers"

You can also items made by The Sisters at a new boutique in Bedford, IN called Franki & Pips . It is an eclectic shop of new and vintage items. Nothing else like it in Bedford! They also have a Facebook page where you can get updates of what coming soon or is in stock. They rarely have many of the same thing so your  purchases will be very unique.

Best call it a night and go put the farm to bed!

Our First Market of 2012

Trying on a new hat!

Jack Brock's wooden bowls.

A few of the Market Jammers.

Although it was warm and muggy we had a great first Saturday at the Market. We reconnected with some folks we hadn't seen since this past fall and met new folks which is always great. Angela made some $$ which is excellent! Our life is a fund raiser. lol

Having a three day weekend means I should be able to put the sealer on the outside of the new hen house and stain the floor too. Next will be getting the doors made, the window in place and extending the fence. Daddy is in hay-mode right now so I may have to wait a bit longer before the girls can move into their new home. Making hay while the sun shines isn't a cliche but a truism if you are a farmer!

My New Favorite Footware ... Not!

Finally got to see my podiatrist on Tuesday. After viewing my earlier X-rays then taking more X-rays he determined one of the extra bones in my left foot is cracked. Yes, I have extra bones in both feet and yes, I am a freak. There is also some tendon and ligament damage to my foot. I will be wearing the stylish boot for a month. =(

This Saturday Angela and our sister DebJo will be at a show in Princeton, IN and Angela's husband Mark and I will be at the Farmers Market.

I may be down .. but I'm not down for the count! [smile]

Moving Right Along

Yesterday was the first day of Market and we had a great day. There were approx. 60 vendors set up and more will come as the produce comes in. We have had so much rain that the majority of the growers are behind on their planting.

Angela and I both made more money this opening day compared to last year's first Market day. I nearly broke even on what I spent compared to what I made .. this isn't always the case!

My purchases included two Jersey highbush blueberry bushes from the Brambleberry Farm, a cinnamon roll and pumpkin roll from Mary, one of the Amish vendors. I sold a skein of sock yarn to one of my Library customers. Mrs. W. has plans to knit every member of her family a pair of socks for Christmas this year ... I asked if I could be adopted until the end of 2011. =)

Mary asked if I could dye black worsted yarn for the ladies in the Amish community to make baby booties. Apparently black wool yarn is difficult for them to come by. Another lady requested pink in a soft wool yarn that she could use in baby sweaters. I love the idea of my yarns being used to keep babies warm!

My CSA idea has been getting positive feedback. The best I can determine no one in my county is offering a CSA so it seems that I would be filling a need in my community. I can still share produce and eggs with my family and donate to L.I.F.E., our local foodbank, too.

Continuing with the CSA plans, besides the Blueberry bushes, I added the following herbs : Rosemary, Sage and Peppermint. Blueberries will go in a raised bed across the south end of the hen's run. Herbs will go into the front garden. The Rosemary will be in a pot so it can winter over in the house.

Next week I expect to get my Vern's Brown Turkey Fig trees. At Brambleberry Farm these trees only get to be about ten feet tall, then almost die down over the winter. This will be perfect for my small city lot. I will plant them on the east side of my house. This is the most protected spot on my property and has worked very well for my Nectarine tree.

My ankle may be boogered but I'm still following though with my farm plans!

Looking Forward to Market

Orleans Market's Opening Day
Saturday, May 21st
8am-12pm
West side of Congress Square Park, Orleans, Indiana

Angela and I are looking forward to Market!

We will have many crocheted hats, felted bags, hand dyed yarns, mixed flower bouquets, soaps, clay buttons and whatever else we can come up with over the summer.

Planning for Market

Tomorrow I will be mailing off our application to the Orleans Farmers Market. We hope to get a permanent spot this year. Last summer we had to wait in a first-come-first-placed line each Saturday and hope for the best. It was okay but knowing ahead of time where we will be would be better.

Last Spring my lil greenhouse shelves didn't work out very well so I am looking into alternatives this week. I've found a very small walk-in greenhouse on Amazon with free shipping and am seriously considering buying it. I have some gift cards (birthday and Swagbucks) that will help with the cost. It looks like something I can put up/take down by myself and that is a big plus.

This evening I also updated my Local Harvest listing. The updates show if I use Explore but do not show when I search with Firefox .. go figure.

Better get a wiggle on and head home .. there are bunnies waiting to be fed and lil Sebastian is just as demanding as Sunny when it comes to meals. =)

A Christmas Egg

Christmas morning one of the buff Orpingtons gifted me with an egg. It was the first one I had received from them in many weeks. I chose the Orpingtons because they were reported to be good winter layers. All I can say about that is .. hah! There was another one in the nest box this morning so maybe after a little egg free vacay they are getting back into the program ... one can always hope.

The Red Stars have been faithful layers of huge brown eggs with very few days of not laying. I plan to get two more Red Star chicks to add to my flock this coming spring. Their eggs are nearly twice the size of the Orpingtons. My Sweet Cicely has the best personality. She trails after me like a cat and loves to be talked to and petted.

I'll also be adding four Ameraucanas. Either pullets from my nurse practitioner or chicks from a local farm store. I think I would prefer to raise the chicks but it would also be nice to have pullets ready to lay eggs in time for the Farmers Market. If I can figure out the lodging logistics I might do both. =)

Fall – A Season of Reflection

Kathy over at Two Frog Home was recently talking about journaling and Fall. This struck a cord with me so I bought an inexpensive sketchbook at the Dollar General Store. I want to keep track of my thoughts but to also have room to add other things that may appeal to me, clippings, sketches etc.. The photo above isn't mine but is similar to what I'm going to do. The cover of my newly purchased journal doesn't suit me so I will embellish it a bit and make it my own. Gotta love pretty paper and glue sticks.

With the beginning of Fall and the Farmers Market nearing it's close for the season I have been thinking of what I want to do different next year. I doubt if I offer my earrings next year. Although I kept the cost under $10.00, used sterling silver findings and semi-precious stones I still didn't sell very many pairs. C'est la vie

I did sell my hand-dyed yarns and will be expanding my offerings of them with more colorways and sock yarns too. This winter I want to make buttons using polymer clays. I have most of the supplies so just need to take the time to do it!

I have several knitted facecloths made up and want to make mini spa sets with a facecloth, soap and lotion bar bagged together and price them just under $10.00. The cloths are in pretty colors and the honey soap is nice enough to use on your face or a baby's skin.

I'm also wondering about weaving some wool hot pads then fulling them to thicken them up ... not certain about this one but may make a few test ones to see how they go over with my family.

Next Saturday a market visitor may come by our booth and help me with my spinning. I cannot for the life of me get the yarn to take up. After tightening and loosening and trying everything I know I called my wheel an old Jezebel and walked away. Jezebel is an Ashford traditional single treadle wheel that was gifted to me by a friend in Victoria BC ... thank you Michelle. I really want to spin and have many pounds of roving tucked away in my wool closet. Hopefully Connie will be able to get us working as a team and next summer I can offer handspun yarn at market.

It has been raining lightly most of the day so I'm heading home to work on my journal and give Jezebel a spin or two. Wishing you a blessed week.

Let the Dyeing Begin!

Yay my order arrived yesterday.

I bought a Indigo kit, several dyes (for cotton), a few inexpensive silk scarves (for practice), a good hand cleaner (because I rarely remember my gloves), soda ash and Synthrapol.

It should be a good start to fabric dyeing and Shibori. I plan to practice the fabric dyeing on muslin then move on to the better quality "Bella" by Moda. We will use more muslin and the silk scarves to practice the Shibori.

I bought a book on Shibori and it seems pretty straight forward. Basically anything goes when it comes to finding objects to use in the resistance dyeing. Marbles, popcorn, rubber bands, coins, PVC pipe, wooden blanks .... it's all good.

Angela is making diaper covers (longies and shorties) out of wool yarn and we are planning a "Dye Day" . She enjoys playing with the colors too so we should have a lot of fun. =)

This a little unique.

Saturday is Market at Orleans, Indiana followed by a wedding on the Orleans Square. The couple met at Market three years ago and decided that was where they wanted to be married. Everyone is to bring a clean mason jar and a hoe or rake. The farmers market will provide flowers to place in the mason jars for us to hold during the ceremony and then we'll all form an Arch of Hoes and Rakes for the happy, married couple to stroll under after being pronounced husband and wife. Angela and I decided to forgo the hoe/rake arch ... with our junky hands we would probably lose our grip and clobber the bride and groom!

A new beginning.

I never thought I would be blogging but have decided to give it a try and see what happens. My thought is to use the blog to keep myself on track and be accountable on my projects. There are several projects on my plate for the next few months. An etsy store, a web site and a booth at our local farmer's market will all need inventory.

I need to start the seeds for the dye garden I'm planning, plus the plants I want to offer at market. There is yarn to be dyed, jewelry and soap to be made and the list goes on.

My etsy store, www.theblacksheepcottage.etsy.com , will soon be up and running. I need to get my offerings inventoried and photographed so they can be listed for sale. Hand dyed yarns, stitch markers and earrings will be the first items listed to be followed by soaps and wool felt bags.

Not having a camera will make for a boring blog but I'll forge ahead and expect to have a digital camera in a few months. My sister Angela, www.thecountrycellar.com , is helping me with the etsy store and I truly appreciate her help.

My family is usually very supportive of any ideas we pursue. My sisters and I joke that it takes a village for us to pull off any event ... shows, yard sales, family dinners it's all good. lol

I think that is enough for now so I'll say goodbye.
Penny