Handy Hubby & FO! (Sort of)

Another Fair Trip

Dick hadn't been to the fair yet this year, so went we today.He probably would have passed until next year but it was $1 day and he wanted to see my ribbons, the Professional Arts exhibits, and his favorite part, the landscape pavilion.

My favorite part? See this? And this? Woohoo! It's NOT ME! For more years than I care to remember, I worked one of these traffic control positions at the fair. And listened to whiney people and who justhadtogetintothefair and couldn'tbothertogoaroundtothemaingate, thank you very much. And at least once a year, it seemed like, someone would try to run me down. It was good money - time and a half - but I DO.NOT.MISS.IT.

Woodworking

Dick's a pretty handy guy to have around. He made a new part for Eleanor, the temperamental Dundas spinning wheel. The open end on the original piece allowed the bobbin to bounce around while I was spinning. The part Dick made has a closed top - no more bounce! (The cherry wood he used is actually a close match to the rest of the wheel; the old part was made of purpleheart which matched trim pieces on the bobbins.) Now I need to install the new driveband and give Eleanor another whirl. Can't wait to see if this makes her less temperamental.

Finished Object! Sort of.

I bought the 'Moss' yarn on the left from an eBay vendor and blogger. I won a skein of cashmere yarn from her during Claudia's MS fundraiser and I've made several purchases since then. (Ellen - the yarn on the right is Peppermint Pink. Isn't it lovely? She has more in her eBay store . . . . . )This skein is a 50/50 blend of alpaca and wool and is absolutely gorgeous. After petting it for several weeks, I finally settled on a pattern for a crocheted shawl. I carefully figured yarn totals; the pattern called for 495 yards and I had 500 yards. Piece of cake, right? Wrong. Not even close.

It's a little hard to tell in this picture, but the third point of the triangle? The thing that actually makes it a shawl? Missing. Not enough yarn. And, of course, this was the last skein that Deb had.

After a quick (frantic) consultation with Lois, I decided to leave it as is rather than ripping it out and starting over. It's actually a nice size. The width reaches from fingertip to fingertip; the length is just past my shoulder blades. I'm calling it a stole - and a design element. (not a mistake. never a mistake.) I love it.

Colorado Update

Broncos Training Camp. But not Autograph Day. Oh well, Gary will just have to go back next year to get his football signed.