This And That

Alice already has an attitude. Now that she's on TV, I bet she becomes unbearable.Sharon emailed me this photo yesterday, taken from an ad on our local cable station. As Publicity Chair for the Ventura Guild, I publicize our meetings in print, radio & TV. This is the first time we've had photos on the TV ad - I think it looks great! It will be interesting to see if we get any new members from this.

Any day that starts here

and involves a liftprobably isn't going to be a great day. The baby car has had a rattling muffler since an unfortunate encounter with a 2x4 in the roadway. Dick had put off getting it fixed, thinking that it would be very expensive, especially since welding was involved. (BMW + repair shop = lots of $$.) We were pleasantly surprised that the repair took less than an hour and cost only $60.

Up until now, if I wanted spinning or weaving supplies, my choices were the Internet (waiting and shipping fees - not my favorite things), driving 1.5 hours to Solvang (great store, long drive), driving 60 minutes to Valencia (and hoping they were open that day; posted hours of operation were "flexible"”, shall we say) or doing without. Since Memorial Day, two new fiber shops have opened in the area. Modern Gypsy, at Ashwood and Telegraph in Ventura, is about 20 minutes away. Deb carries rovings, yarn, African Folklore Embroidery kits, quilting fabrics and a few other things; she's planning to add more over the next few months. The shop is small but very nice. Of course, I had to do my part to keep her in business. This polworth roving is super soft; I've already started spinning it on my Jane Seymour spindle.

Stick And Stone Fiberarts in Van Nuys is a little further away (about 40 minutes) but my, oh my! It is definitely worth the drive. Janel and Margarete have a winner on their hands. Not only are they stocking wonderful fiber (yak, camel, baby alpaca, silk, Karakul . . . . the list goes on and on) but they are carrying looms and spinning wheels that customers can test drive - and they will be offering lessons! And classes! They have a selection of Kundert and Cascabeles spindles -– one of which jumped in my shopping basket and begged to come home with me. How could I say no?

(Are you noticing the purple shopping bag? How perfect is that??) My enhanced stash includes Optim, Karakul roving, baby camel and silk, merino and tencil, and BFL in a lime green and blue colorway that I would never have pictured myself buying. But it is soooo soft and the colors are wonderful. Can'’t wait to start working with it. The shop is small and hard to find (no signage yet, but they are working on it) but worth the drive. I will definitely be going back . . . . . soon.

And last, we finished the first section of landscaping today. We are looking for a water fountain but haven'’t found the perfect one yet. We added:

Morticia (don'’t you just love her!??) (Please ignore the bucket; that's where the cosmos will go.)

Cosmos

Iris

And a Chinese Razzleberri bush.

Not bad for a Thursday.

Yarn Tails Tags:spinning, fiber, landscaping, fiber arts, epscraps