Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Rain...!!!

I love the rain...it is truly a blessing from God. Like most of the rest of the southeast, and much of the whole US, we've had some severely dry years lately so it is a wonderful thing to see mud everywhere....lol !!! The extra humidity makes for some bad hair days among the bunnies, but the duck loves it...:).
Here on the homestead we're taking it easy (in a way) this week. I've knitted a pretty purse...was supposed to be a market bag, but the pattern was so nice I shortened the overall length and beaded the drawstring closure to dress it up a bit...I'm pleased with the result and hope someone else likes it too! With the rain, some outdoor projects are still pending but we're gonna clean the rabbitry up a bit and bag some of those lovely bunny berries (for fertilizer later on ya know!?!). Of course there are always grooming and fiber harvesting chores to do especially on days when it stays above 45 degrees out there!!! I suppose we could clean the house while its yucky outside....or maybe we won't....lol. Rain and clouds have delayed the picture taking...again. We have a cheapo digital camera and it just doesn't take really good pics except outdoors in good light so I will get pics of the bunnie, my fiber art, the fiber itself, kids, other critters and etc. as soon as I can.
That's it for now, I gotta hang out a load of laundry and get ready for a doctors appointment...ugh! LOL...Have a great day.
Andrea

Monday, January 5, 2009

Monday, Monday...

Hey look... I posted again with less than a week having passed !!! LOL
We had a great weekend with some lovely weather on Sunday particularly...it was in the 60's and sunny. Back to the cooler, cloudier stuff today though! I'm looking forward to some snow myself but I do love those warm, spring like days in winter. They put me in the mood to browse seed catalogs and make notes on the coming years garden...:).
The Farm Market was a bit slow this weekend...probably due in part to icy conditions Saturday morning plus the post holiday lull. My Aunt Brendas hens have picked up on their egg production which is making for a happy Brenda...:)...lol. If you're in the area, join us for Saturday market...the smell of fresh baked bread is intoxicating and this week we'll have a chef there preparing scrumptious food for us to enjoy.
I am working on some knitted market bags (in the style of traditional Romny or French market totes) which can be used to haul all those farm market goodies, as everyday purses or grocery store bags. All are made with 'reclaimed and/or repurposed' yarns. Many of these yarns are wool or cotton though a few are acrylic. Some were given to me by a lady from our church and others I got off freecycle...saved from the dump...lol.
More later...gotta go call the DH...I just love dial up...LOL.
Andrea

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

I know, it's been a while since I've posted. I keep saying this will be the last time I let so much time pass between entries...and then I don't post for another week or two. Sorry.
With Christmas over and a nice break from the market this past weekend, I am getting back in to the regular routine and now (hopefully) can blog on a more regular basis.
I still have no pictures to post here. Between giving fiber works as gifts to family and friends and selling so well at the winter market I am really working hard to get things completed to take pics of...lol. With help from the dh and kids I hope to get bunnies all dolled up for a photo session too...they deserve to be spotlighted!
We had a lovely Christmas and really hope that you all did too. With 2009 on the doorstep, I'm looking to spring for ideas and inspiration while still having an odd fascination with acorns...not quite sure yet how thats gonna work for me but will have fun while it develops...lol.
Till next time,
Andrea

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Hey...well...I did it again. Went over a week between posts. What can I say ? We're all busy this time of year and my family is no exception. We've had some unexpected houseguests this past week so things have been a little hectic. I've tried to keep up with my regular chores while still getting some fiber work done...and cooking , cleaning and laundering for two extra bodies...:D.
Its all good!!!
We're excited to be included in my Aunt and Uncles farm store on Saturdays this winter. We're selling fiber works there and enjoying the community atmosphere a great deal. E-mail me for details of the market if you're in the area. It's a real treat. There are eggs and baked goods from my Aunt, a lady brings wonderful biscotti and other goodies....yummmm....and there's a gentleman who brings his home roasted coffee...it is organic, free trade and shade grown...and is available whole bean or ground. I can give you contact info for him if you e-mail me....it is fabulous coffee. There will be more vendors there as we get going too...this is the 4th weekend I believe.
I've gotten behind a bit on the fiber work...finishing a custom project and trying to get some things done for the Saturday market. It's a good thing I love doing this...lol.
Till next time...and I'm working on pics....!!!
Andrea

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Ooops...I forgot to blog!!!

I really do intend to write more often...I just sort of forget to do it when I have my hands in all this wonderful fiber! We are a busy family all the time and getting ready for Christmas just adds to it! It's good though...we're busy in a wholesome way...lol. We have farm and animal chores, homeschool, housework, clogging lessons and making art to occupy our time. No idle hands here.
We've been invited to set up and sell some fiber art at my Aunts farm store on Saturdays through the winter when the tasilgate market is closed. This is a great opportunity for us to be seen and get our stuff out there!
DD and I have started loom knitting...neither of us can knit for real so we decided to try the Knifty Knitter looms and are having loads of fun...I made her a neat little beanie type hat. We call those tobogans here in the south! Currently I am working on a scarf to match it and dd is in the early stages of an afgan! She dives right in there...am very proud of her.
Since my last post, dd and I took a trip with the dh in the truck. You'll recall he's a truck driver.... We went to Illinois and got to see the St. Louis Arch and cross over the river to Missouri...I was so thrilled to see and drive over the Mississippi...lol.
In the next few days, weather permitting, I am going to go outside and take some pics of all our recent fiber work, the rabbits and etc. and post to our Flickr account...be on the lookout.
In the meantime, it is grocery day here and I gotta go get morning chores done and hit the road....
Blessings to you all,
Andrea

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

"What is a Scuttergilly" you ask ?

There is a simple answer to that question...:). There is no such thing as a Scuttergilly...it is simply a combination of pet names given to our children ! Our son was called Scutter from his first prenatal ultrasound to the present, and our daughter was called Gilly because her brother tried to call her a girly girl when she was an infant dressed all in pink. It came out gilly instead of girly. Hence our farm name... Scuttergilly Meadows!
Now I will introduce myself and tell you a bit about my family and our farm. I am Andrea, I'm thirty-something, a stay at home wife and mother. I've been married to my very best friend for almost 17 years (anniversary is this Sunday!!!). His name is Mike and together we have two children...a fourteen year old son and an eleven year old daughter. I won't share their real names here but will refer to them as the kids or by the above mentioned nicknames. We homeschool our children, I'm the teacher most of the time and Mike is our principal and sometimes helps teach too.
Our farm is very small. We live on about an acre of a larger farm that is owned and operated by various members of our extended family. We grow produce for our own use and for market and have a lovely herd of French Angora rabbits. We currently sell produce locally at our communities tailgate market though we plan to open a farm stand or roadside stand next year as well as expanding our offerings to include cut flowers, annual and perenial plants and seeds, native wildflowers and herbs . Our rabbits are used primarily for the luxurious fiber they produce. We also breed and sell babies to other breeders, handspinners, show and pet families. I will frequently refer to the rabbits as everything from bunnies, buns, bunz to popples and fuzzballs...lol. We hand harvest our rabbits which means I sit with the rabbit in my arms and pet it for half an hour or so. While petting it I gently pluck the loose fiber from its coat and drop it into a box. The fiber is then 'graded' depending on its length and quality. Angora rabbits (most breeds) naturally shed or molt their entire coat every three months or so...we do nothing to encourage this, it's the way they are made...:). Since the hair is loose anyway, the bunnies don't feel anything but relief when it's removed! The German Angoras do not molt so must be shorn of their coats, much like a sheep.
In addition to our farm and rabbitry, I am a fiber artist and crafter. I am an extremely tactile person and have had a long fascination with animal and other natural fibers, sticks, tree bark and rocks...lol. I love to rub stuff to just see how it feels...is it rough, smooth, warm, cold....what happens when it gets wet, when the sun shines on it...etc., etc...:). I cannot knit, tried to take spinning lessons but carpal tunnel syndrome stopped that, can crochet a chain around the world but cannot make a simple Granny Square...but I can make felt ! I use both wet felting and needle felting techniques to create wearables, ornaments, rugs and home decor items as well as animals and dolls.I am still finding my center in this endeavor and am experimenting and learning a lot.
In this blog I hope to document my journey and all that it brings me. I will bore you with mundane things but really hope to fill you with joy...:) . In the coming days and weeks I hope to get some photos of my work posted here, open my etsy store (etsy is an on-line marketplace for handmade arts and crafts and supplies...fabulous gifts can be found there!), and share our families and my lives with you just a bit...:).
Talk to you soon....!