MONTE VISTA VESSEL CLASS

A great Vessel class in Monte Vista this past weekend. Eve, Saundra, Debra and Wanda were fun students to work with and I know there will be more felting in their future!

Neighborhood Felters

Lisa Cawood, Glenda Hocker, Sue Lebs, Laura Volger and Caryl Schmid

These gals are my wonderful neighbors and they've wanted to learn to felt their own hat for quite some time. What a great fun we all had when we finally got together recently! They loved felting so much that a date has been set to meet here again soon for the SCARF CLASS!! Caution gals.....felting is habit forming!

Mother/Daughter Hat Class

Great hat class here today with Tina Valles and her daughter, Natascha! Tina is a fiber artist in her own right making fabulous "boiled wool" and silk vests and jackets. Check them out at: http://www.vallesmigration.com/

Bekah 2010

We just made the trip to Minneapolis for a wonderful visit with our kids and four wonderful granddaughters. The drive from Greeley, CO to Minneapolis is 15 hours.....which gave me lots of time to play around with my little emachine computer. This video of our youngest grandchild and the relatives who love her and came to visit is the end result. Enjoy!!

TAOS WOOL FESTIVAL 2010

This year's Taos Wool Festival was great! Lots of sales kept us busy writing receipts. Yea....that's a good thing!!

New this year--and very well received I might add--were my glittery hand felted alpaca beads and necklaces. Also the AFCNA alpaca sox which sold so well my booth assistant (thanks Barbara...I couldn't have done it without you!) said it was "just like printing money"! They are great sox and totally sell themselves.

These super cute girls had fun trying on hats in my booth.

HAD to get pictures!

Below are pictures of my "Alpaca Fashion" I'd made for this year's booth......just before we opened for business.

TAOS WOOL FESTIVAL -- October 3rd & 4th 2009

This was my sixth year at the Taos Wool Festival and my sales were the best ever! I added a couple new items that were fun and interesting to create.......

This vest is made with the same technique as the nuno felted scarves.
Very shear & lightweight, it's loaded with sparkle, texture & originality!


Speaking of TEXTURE.......I had great fun designing vessels with extra resists.


Hats & scarves are always fun to create.


Another VESSEL in grey, black & red.


Fashion Belt! My belts are loaded with color and texture.
(and I had fun finding great belt buckles in second hand stores!)

ALPACA HAT CLASS -- MONTA VISTA, CO Sept 25, 2009

Wanda Smith of D&W Fiber Farm in Monta Vista, CO organized a two day felting workshop. I taught hat felting the first day and nuno scarves the next, in Wanda's awesome sun porch/fiber studio. There was lots of interest and enthusiasm....and we all had a great time! Thanks Wanda!


Alpaca fiber is layed out over a 'resist'.


Eve, Barbara, Jan, Wanda and Michelle applied hot soapy water to the first side.


The second side is wrapped and thoroughly wet down.


A screen protects the fibers while the felting is done with a Tupperware lid.

The hats are fulled around hat forms and ready to wear as soon as they're dry!

NUNO SCARF CLASS -- MONTE VISTA, CO Sept 26, 2009

A thin layer of alpaca fiber is layed on bubble wrap. Then, open weave material and novelty yarns are strategically placed on the fiber.


Netting protects the design while soapy water is applied.


Everyone creates their own original design!


The scarf & bubble wrap are rolled up around a 'swimming noodle'...and then a towel.
Let the Rolling Begin!


A bit of fulling is done on a washboard


and.....a bit of fulling is done by throwing.


"Hey......this beats going to the gym!"


Eve, Wanda, Mary & Billie show off their great scarves!

FELTING FUN with FRIENDS

Diane, Mary and Cathy came by for a fun day of felting, show & tell and sharing ideas. Cathy is our cheerleader and photographer/journalist....and also cook! She spoiled us by bringing a wonderful Mexican food lunch complete with decadent dessert. Yea Cathy!


Great friends wearing their newly created scarves!

NUNO FELTING SCARF CLASS

I held a nuno scarf class with three enthusiastic and talented students! Fiber Artists in their own right, TahNibaa, her mom Sarah and Caroline are awesome weavers and therefore experienced in working with fiber. You can see by the pictures that they found felting to be great fun!


Sarah is ready to roll (felt) her creation of alpaca fibers, material and novelty yarn on a tea dyed silk scarf.


Sarah, Caroline & TahNibaa really get into the fulling process of "throwing" their scarves! This action causes the fibers to further migrate and tangle with each other--laminating fibers, material and yarns together.



Admiration for their own and each others scarves!





My three new friends wearing their scarves!
Note at the top right side of the picture the NEWLY born white cria--just 5 hours old!

LaPlata County Fair - RIBBONS!!!

GRAND CHAMPION

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION

I'm not one to enter contests, but a friend urged me to enter some of my felted items in the "Homespun" division at the LaPlata County Fair in Durango. What fun to be awarded the Grand Champion and Reserve Grand Champion ribbons. Guess we all like recognition!

'PACA CAMP.....second group!

Our grandkids love to visit our Alpaca Ranch!

Morning chores! Thunder and Lightening go out to pasture.

They had fun making their 'Paca Camp t-shirts!

Silly moments!

Grandpa sure has GREAT toys!

Now lets ride in the 6-wheeler!

The kittens are a big hit and get lots of love!

It's fun to model one of the hats Grandma felted!

Intermountain Weavers Conference

Our Alpaca Breeders of the 4 Corners (AB4C) booth
at the Intermountain Weavers Conference (IWC)


July was a busy month!

After fun visits from our kids and grandkids (see 'Paca Camp posts)

I joined other AB4C members (Alpaca Breeders of the Four Corners)

in a booth at the Intermountain Weavers Conference--held

in Durango August 30th - Sept 1st.

My sales ales were good and I met a lot of wonderful people!

'PACA CAMP! First Group

Our granddaughters came for a visit and had a great time!

Helping Grandpa!

The girls helped grandpa get hay for the alpacas.
Of course they loved riding in the pickup!

It's lots of fun working in the field with
the alpacas and Grandpa!