A Spark of Optimism

The past few weeks have been...challenging. A death, a break-in, continued unemployment, and an impending move to another state have made life a little more uncertain than usual. However, today has been a spectacular day, regardless of the -14 degree weather. I set up at the Montpelier Farmers Market, met a bunch of fun Vermonters, bartered soap for cheese, had tea with a friend, then called my Dad, who gave me a long I'll-support-you-in-whatever-you-decide-to-do kind of talk (thanks Dad).

So, I've decided that my first months back in NY will be spent trying to get The Fuzzy Bunny up and running as a full-time gig, and not spent trying to find mediocre jobs that I'm not particularly interested in. With access to high speed internet once again (not so readily available where I've been living in the mountains of VT), 80+ pounds of spinning fiber to work with, a fancy new advertising campaign in the works, and loads of new ideas to try out...well, what the heck, I'm going to go for it.

I'll post pictures (finally!) of the Second Storie Indie Market and the BUST Craftacular as soon as I'm back in the realm of high speed internet. Until then...enjoy the holidays!

Second Storie

It's time once again for my favorite craft show of all time! Every Thanksgiving weekend is made better by the fact that Second Storie Indie Market exists. This show is phenomenal, Second Storie knows how to put on a good show and invites absolutely amazing people with great work. They entertain us with live music, feed us, and even give us time to mingle and shop amongst ourselves (yay for getting holiday shopping done without ever stepping foot in a big-box store!).

This year I will be joined by Chey (sister of the manwife) and my Mom (who will be celebrating her birthday on Sunday while she's at the show!). Stop in and say hi!

Saturday, November 28th, 11 am - 6 pm

Sunday, November 29th, 11 am - 4 pm

The Visual Studies Workshop Auditorium

31 Prince Street, Rochester, NY 14607

And, have a fantastic Thanksgiving!

The Mail Buggy and White River Junction

This morning involved a trip to the post office, where many shiny yellow slips awaited me. The post office man had to wheel my packages out in what looked like a giant baby carriage. My stellar cart pushing skills (remnants of pushing hospital beds around back in college) kept me from crashing into any pedestrians or giant glass doors between the post office counter and my car. There were many small packages, filled with fiber-related items that will be sent out with my yarn clubs, but there were big boxes, too. And inside the big boxes were amazing things: many, many pounds of wool, soysilk, and cashmere. This is the first time I have worked with cashmere, and it is amazingly soft and cloud-like. I can't wait to spin it! A Smittens cd arrived as well, so now I have happy, sugar-coated pop to spin to. Woo!

slowly expanding wool in the box, soysilk in the lower left, cashmere in the lower right

This past weekend was the Holiday Fiber Festival, hosted by White River Yarns. Lois (of White River Yarns) did a fantastic job of planning and promoting the event. I, as a vendor, was spoiled with an abundance of customers who knew their stuff when it came to fiber, friendly fellow vendors (Country Woolens, DyakCraft, Ellen's Half Pint Farm, Grandview Farm, Snowshow Farm Alpacas, and the Wee Piper), and a whole lot of homemade baked goods and tea. I sat next to Merit Scotford, who taught me (and a ton of other people) how to make Dorset buttons. Back in the day people used to use cross sections of Dorset sheep horns and scrap thread/yarn to make buttons, hence the name. It turns out that these are mildly addictive to make-and a great portable project. Perhaps they would also be a good way to use up small scraps of fancy handspun, too.

a few of Merit's buttons
I hope this event happens again next year. It was like a mini fiber festival that focused on local fiber producers and artists. Putting everyone in the same room with a project table in the center allowed us to all feel like we were part of whatever was going on. We knitted/spun/rug hooked together, and took part in the yarn tastings and button-making, and I felt like I was both an attendee and a vendor, which was great. Business was good, too. I made some new contacts, found some new customers, and had a great time with people who love fiber in all its forms.

a hotbed of fiber activity

Sick Bunny

Oxtoby decided to get sick late last week. I'd like to think I'm fairly knowledgeable when it comes to rabbit ailments, considering what I went through with George, but I'd never experienced rabbit intestinal issues firsthand. I called my vet's office, where they offered no help at all (my regular rabbit vet was unavailable), so I got out my syringes (the kind without needles) and started orally hydrating him. That seemed to work out just fine, but I still made an appointment with the vet to double check for other problems, and they sent me home with some antibiotics. The next morning I woke up to find an almost-dead Oxtoby...unresponsive, labored breathing, and I couldn't get him to take water or even lift his head. Extreme badness.

So...we took a lovely rambulance ride to the animal hospital where Oxtoby was admitted. Sub-q fluids, x-rays, and fecal cultures ensued. His intestinal bacteria had spiked. Luckily, my vet is awesome and knows her stuff when it comes to rabbits. When I came back the next day Oxtoby was back to being himself, trying to escape and eat the potted plants. We're sticking with penicillin injections for a week, but by the amount of trouble he's been getting into, I think he'll be just fine.

More things to binky about.

The Fuzzy Bunny will be at the BUST Craftacular in NYC on December 6! I'm so excited...NYC around the holidays, the Metropolitan Pavilion full of awesome handmade things and music. I hope to do a little holiday shopping of my own, as well as introduce Fuzzy Bunny vegan yarn to NYC.

Also, there's a great giveaway on Ravelry for one of the Spindies paintboxes (pictured above). 5 ounces of fiber from an assortment of indie fiber artists! If you aren't the lucky winner, you can purchase a paintbox in the Spindies Store-they are a great deal for the variety and amount of fiber that you receive, and a different color theme is offered each month.

Holiday Fiber Festival

How could I pass up participating in another fiber event? The yarn store in White River Junction, VT (White River Yarns) is hosting the Holiday Fiber Festival this weekend. I will be there Friday, Saturday, and Sunday with handspun yarn, spinning fiber, and all the bath and body goodness you could ever want. There will be other vendors with fibery goodness, yarn tastings, door prizes, drop-in spinning and knitting, and really interesting workshops. Come visit, do a little holiday shopping (time to get knitting those holiday presents!), and learn a new technique. It promises to be a fun weekend!

Friday, November 13: 5:00PM-9:00PM

Saturday, November 14: 9:00AM-9:00PM

Sunday, November 15: 9:00AM-5:00PM

White River Yarns/Junction Marketplace

1011 North Main Street

White River Junction, VT 05001

Binky Balls

My bunnies are silly little fluffmonsters, and they love to binky. Binkying is a true art form that involves jumping, and then twisting and jerking while in the air. It appears to be a fun thing to do, and frequently involves mid-air crashes into walls and furniture. The binky is essentially a physical manifestation of pure bunny joy.

This becomes relevant when I think about my reaction to fiber. I, too, feel like binkying when I am exposed to great fiber, although I rarely do this in front of others as a grown human looks ridiculous spasming mid-air (especially if I crash into things...). Annnnnyway, my newest favorite thing to create are balls of hand-pulled roving. I drum card combinations of my own hand-dyed fibers then pull them, and have aptly titled them "binky balls". They are super easy to spin and make for spectacularly colored yarns. You can find them in my shop.

My First Fiber Festival!

I felt like the new kid as I was setting up at the Southern Adirondack Fiber Festival. I've done other shows (Second Storie} Indie Market, Boston Bazaar Bizarre, etc.), but never a fiber festival. Something about being in a show with all of my fiber peers, many of whom have been in fiber crafts for decades, seemed particularly daunting. I imagined people harshly judging my spinning technique, color choices, and lack of my own fiber animals. Admittedly, my fears were completely unfounded as I have never come across an unhelpful or unsupportive fiber person. Ever. That trend continued at this festival. It was spectacular to talk to so many people who were so enthusiastic about fiber.

The animals are always my favorite part of fiber festivals. I was surprised to find cashmere goats. They were so soft. And gigantic. It turns out that there is a convent in Greenwich, NY where they keep a herd and knit fantastic cashmere items. Disappointingly, they do not sell the fiber to spinners (but at only 4 ounces of fiber from each animal per year, completely understandable).

AREA Cria-tions brought a few of their alpacas, who would make fantastic friends for the bunnies (maybe they could share 80's hair tips). Lenni could keep everyone in line. And of course there were bunnies. Fluffy baby angora bunnies who I had to avoid all weekend for fear of wanting to bring them all home with me.

I was happy with my pom pom tree. I went out into the woods to find the perfect fallen branch for this. It seemed to catch the attention of many, and a few people stopped to take photos of it. I also ordered a brand new set of shelves for showcasing spinning fiber...wool, milk, and bamboo roving as well as carded batts. The festival turned out to be spectacular: well organized and well attended. They even had hot chocolate (and hot showers) for those of us who were insane enough to camp in the freezing cold. I was so impressed that I've already signed up to be a vendor next year, and I can't wait.

The Fuzzy Bunny will be at the Southern Adirondack Fiber Festival next weekend, and I can't wait! There will be over 100 vendors, which means I'll be forced to take frequent breaks and walk around to buy delicious fiber. Tragic.

I'm looking forward to it; playing with fiber all weekend, being joined by my most excellent manwife, doing tourist-y things in Saratoga Springs, camping in sub-zero temperatures...it promises to be a good adventure. My apartment is overflowing with fiber, just waiting to be packed and taken to the show. Hand carded batts will be making their debut, along with handpainted bamboo roving and lots of handpainted milk fiber. So, come see us!

Boundaries, or the lack thereof

Today I found a yellow slip in my post office box, which always means I have presents waiting for me behind the secret doors! Usually the lovely post office men put a key in my box and I go to a cubby, unlock it, and find whatever package has been mailed to me, but today I had to go to the counter. I handed over my slip, gave them my box number, and then heard all sorts of commotion. Things like, "so YOU'RE the fuzzy bunny!" and "we've been waiting all week for you!" and "we have a HUGE box for you!". So the man disappeared behind the counter and returned with a giant box...of wool! Yes, 11 pounds of wool. I brought home my giant box and it exploded open. The wool expanded to cover a good 1/3 of my deck. I fought the urge to jump in it and roll around, however when the other 15 pounds arrive, I may combine them and do just that.

So, this brings me to the question of: how much fiber is enough? Even without enough storage space for what I have, I still wouldn't turn down fiber. It's fiber! Any artist will understand the constant lusting after supplies. And so, I shall continue to drool over fiber and wish for it, even though it may seem excessive to those who don't understand fiber obsessions (afterall, I'll put it all to good use...eventually). Perhaps when I have pathways through my house instead of open walkways I'll consider working my fiber stash down.

The latest thing I've been lusting after are these Artists' Paint Boxes on Spindies. The boxes contain 5 ounces of fiber, a combination of different green fibers (each month the color changes) from an assortment of fiber artists. $25, including shipping. They'd make a great gift to someone (like me!), or for yourself. I personally love experimenting with different fibers and having smaller amounts of random bits that I might not think to dye myself-it often results in unexpected, but beautiful, yarn. Here is a photo of September's green fibers:

I'm hoping I'll find this under my Christmas tree.

Best Tote Ever

I have this addiction to canvas totes. I love them. I can't get enough of them. I justify this addiction by sprinkling them about my house and car so that whenever I go to the co-op or any other store, they're at hand and I don't have to use any paper or plastic bags. Yes, perfectly justifiable; an addiction that helps the environment! This has always proven to be my tote of choice, by Black Sheep Heap:
I love the graphic and the message, it speaks to my love of root vegetables, and it's big. It's about the same size as a paper grocery bag, with handles long enough that I can put it over my shoulder. Perfect! And sturdy. And made in the US. AND made from recycled fibers. Really, I love all of Black Sheep Heap designs (and their focus on sustainability), but this is the one I root around for every time I go shopping.

Stash Busting

I decided to take part in the Tour de Fleece this year, on Ravelry. It's a great event that runs along with the Tour de France; for every day the cyclists ride, we spin. Just what I needed...more motivation to play with fluff! So, I joined Team Stash Busters (and the Rookies-it's my first time, afterall) in the hopes that I would work down my fiber stash a bit. After moving recently (with another move planned in just a few days), it became obvious how unwieldy my stash was. Bins and bags of fiber: some raw fleece/locks, some roving, some dyed, some natural, and in a huge assortment of animal and plant fibers, with a little synthetic throw in. The stash is currently taking up it's own room...eek!

Anyhow, I found a bit of fiber (less than two ounces) comprised of organic cotton and merino. And then I received some thread and glass beads in a random swap. And so, the fiber was spun, the random bits plied, and the whole thing went into my dyepot. I came out on the other end with this:90 yards of pure softness! I love it. I love how the colors turned out, with the slight heathered effect that a cotton/wool blend produces when dyed in acid dyes, the green beads offsetting the blue, the bumpiness from plying with thread...an experiment that turned out beautifully.

In other news, The Fuzzy Bunny World Headquarters will soon be located in the wilds of Vermont. No more of this urban Vermont ridiculousness where there are neighbors within twenty feet of my door, I'm moving to where I can't see any neighbors at all! No high speed internet, no cell reception...it's even on a dirt road. True Vermont.

Success!

The Stowe Street Arts Festival in Waterbury turned out spectacularly! On a day where constant rain and thunder storms were predicted, we didn't see any rain any all. We (the manwife and I) met tons of great people-fantastic customers and fellow vendors (MF Wolik Photography, Sheep Shear Cuttings, and the Singing Spindle Spinnery were some of our favorites) who were displaying all sorts of great things.
This was the very first time The Fuzzy Bunny participated in an outdoor arts festival, which meant a shiny new canopy was necessary. We were prepared with our sidewalls up, to protect the merch from wayward raindrops. You can also see that someone (me) failed to do the proper ironing of tablecloths...
Sugar scrubs made their debut at this show. Two varieties, one with soap in it, and one a straight up oil and sugar scrub, were available in a bunch of awesome scents (citrus, lettuce, white tea and ginger, rosemary mint, yuzu).

Also debuting at this show: the amazing yarn stand! The manwife and his dad designed and built this, and I think it is a great way to display the yarn. Multiple levels, easy to dig through bins to find what you want, and it folds down to fit in my car. They're so smart and handy. I like how the rainbow of yarn looks here-and look, I've added hand-dyed spinning fiber to the mix! Milk fiber proved to be the most popular fiber of the day.

Spindies!

Spindies is a new online store that caters to spinners and yarnaholics. It's filled with a huge assortment of spinning fibers, from milk to merino to silk, in both natural and dyed, and lots of handspun yarn. Fun art yarn spinning kits and roving of the month clubs are also available. All brought to you by the best indie dyers and spinners around. Come see all the colorful fluffiness!

Pedro Promised All My Wildest Dreams Would Come True

I've been searching and saving and hoping for a drum carder since...I started spinning (2005). And now I almost have one! A lovely, pre-loved Louet is on its way to me from Michigan-a lucky find on ravelry/craigslist. I'm so excited! I'll finally be able to process the hoardes of fleece I've accumulated from local farmers (corriedale and alpaca), plus, I'll be able to do allll kinds of custom blends...different fibers, different colors. I can't wait!

This also means that I can join in more fun Spindies adventures. Spindies is a collective of fabulous fiber artists specializing in spinning fibers and handspun yarn. We have big plans for fiber clubs, and while I was planning on adding my fiber to the roving of the month club, now I'll be able to contribute batts to the batt of the month club when it debuts!

In other news, my move is almost complete. And I'm a lawyer now. The Vermont Supreme Court said so. Woo!

Vermont Dairy Festival

It's time for the 53rd Dairy Festival! Come to Enosburg Falls, VT on Friday, June 5, or Saturday, June 6, and I'll be there, selling milk items (handspun yarn and spinning fiber), wool yarn, and bath and body items in the Masons Hall. The carnival, parade, musical performances, and the celebration of Vermont dairy (ice cream! CHEESE!!) should be spectacular! I might even have a few free samples at my table for you to indulge in.

Samples for All!

I just saw a sampler of deliciousness advertised on the Etsy Edible Arts Team website, which pulls together samples from many talented bakers, candymakers, and chefs for your tasting pleasure. I can't decide why sample boxes are so exciting...but for me, it's a combination of the anticipation that builds as delivery time grows closer, finding all the surprises inside the box, getting to try lots of different things, and the awesomeness of tiny things (which may just be a long-held obsession with miniatures that began in my childhood).

I have only ever received one sample box: the phat fiber sampler. The box was full of the most amazing spinning fibers, handspun yarns, hand-dyed yarns, stitch markers, perfumes, and other fiber accessories I'd ever seen. And now, I'm tempted by the food box. Anyhow, here's a list of other sampler boxes, if you want to order your very own box of awesomness:

http://www.edibleartteam.com/

http://www.geteurofied.com/ (European sampler)

http://www.homeofthesampler.com/

http://www.lemmingcentral.com/

http://mommysamplebox.com/

http://myprettypinkbox.com/

http://www.outoftheboxsampler.com/

http://www.phatfiber.com/

http://sample-market.com/

http://samplegal.com/

http://www.simplypinkbox.com/

http://snowberrycreek.com/

http://thelittleblackboxes.com/

http://www.thesamplebag.com

http://www.thespottedbox.com/

And...a picture. These here lagomorphs (Oxtoby and Lenni) were my co-pilots on a recent drive to NY. They leave much to be desired as navigators, as they tend to eat maps, rather than direct.

Happy Earth Day!

To celebrate, I'm sharing my favorite, yet random, cleaning tip for cutting boards:
sprinkle salt onto the wood, then scrub with half a lemon, orange, or the remnants of citrus that you previously squeezed the juice from
[the salt provides excellent scrubbiness, and the citrus oils do wonders for deodorizing (not to mention that they smell fantastic!)]
rinse!

Easy, eh? I tried this out just last week, with the addition of some baking soda, and you'd never know I spilled fragrance oil onto a cutting board. It's magic! And no harsh chemicals are involved, making it a perfect recipe for Earth Day.

I finished spinning some organic cotton yarn just in time for Earth Day, with more mill-ends and plant fibers on the way. Check out my shop for lots of earth-friendly yarn options.

So Many Things to Celebrate!

I sat down at my computer this morning to check email. The first one I opened started with the line, "By now I hope you have received the good news that you passed the bar exam. Congratulations!" I hadn't received anything at all in the mail yet, so I ran to my mailbox (conveniently located approximately 12 feet from my computer), and there was my letter! I passed! I have to finish up my clerkship requirements and then be sworn in by the Vermont Supreme Court, and then I'll be a shiny new lawyer.

And THEN! The Vermont Legislature voted to overturn the governor's veto of the same-sex marriage bill, and by a single vote margin, same-sex marriage became legal in Vermont. This makes Vermont the first state to give same-sex couples the right to marry through legislative action, as opposed to judicial action. Spectacular! I'm very happy to live in a state that supports equality issues.

And so concludes my celebrations for the day. Yay!

And another venue...

We'll be at a new event this year! We're checking out the Stowe Street Arts Festival on Saturday, July 18, from 10 am to 4 pm, and will have lots of bath and body goodness and fluffy fibers with us. It's being held on Historic Stowe Street in the heart of downtown Waterbury. The festival offers artist exhibitions, live music, dance performances, art and culinary demonstrations and a community arts parade. We can't wait!

Queen City Craft Bazaar

On Saturday, May 9, from 10A-5P, I'll be at the Queen City Craft Bazaar at Union Station in Burlington, VT. I can't wait! I went to the 2007 winter version and it was packed with awesomeness, not to mention some tasty crepes from the Skinny Pancake (apples and cheddar! nutella!).

This will be a great chance to pick up gifts for the moms in your life (Mothers' Day is the next day: Sunday, May 10). I'm not sure who my fellow vendors are, but I'm sure they'll have great things to offer.

At my table (conveniently located on the bottom level), I'll be offering lots of fancy wrapped soaps, solid lotions, lip balm, bath and body sets, and handspun yarn. Pom poms and duct tape wallets might make it along, too. AND, my mom will be hanging out with me. She's the one who encouraged my creative endeavors and provided guidance along the way (she's a retired art teacher-turned-painter).

Easter in a Box

I spent a lot of time at school when I was in high school...between sports and band and the other things I did, I never had time to go home for dinner. So I used to pack a dinner, and on the days when it was mashed potatoes, stuffing, and some form of protein stuffed in a tupperware container, it was known as "Easter-in-a-box" . Ah, remnants of high school.

Anyhow, I now have better, more exciting things to put in boxes for Easter-in-a-box. Things that would make great presents...and all you have to do is order them! Gift messages, cards, and gift wrapping are all included.

For the knitter/crocheter/crafty vegan in your life grab a sampler of vegan yarns, all wound into egg shapes and packaged in an egg carton. The set includes tencel (from corn), bamboo, hemp, and cotton:

For anyone else, try a great set full of soap and lip balm (your choice of scents and flavors)...packaged in a cute jellybean tin, entirely vegan and full of healthy oils that will keep skin healthy and moisturized:

Other gift ideas can be found at The Fuzzy Bunny and Fuzzy Bunny Fibers.

The Great Hat Adventure

I promised my friends I would make them hats from my handspun yarn...and one of them picked a thin single-ply sock yarn in reds and oranges and yellows and browns. I love it! Anyhow, I began knitting with it...on size 3 needles...and found that it just wouldn't make a good hat. No one wants a flimsy, thin hat...especially when our Vermont temperatures have been dipping so low (-18F the other day!). So...I plied it, navajo style. And now I love it even more!

There it is, freshly spun, still on my bobbin. I'll give the knitting another try, perhaps on some size 6 needles and hope it works up into a nice, thick hat. It's so soft and snuggly. Perhaps I'll feel compelled to make myself a hat some day soon.

Vermont

Two of my favorite things about Vermont: the food and the sense of community. I joined a CSA (Pete's Greens) not too long ago in my ongoing efforts to be a localvore. After signing up, I thought it may have been a mistake to start in the winter instead of during the warmer months...but then my first share came and it was amazing. Pete's Greens does an amazing job of providing a giant selection of fantastic produce and other local deliciousness throughout the snowy months (and newsletters with recipes and storage tips and other fun stuff). And now I can't ever move away, because I'm afraid I'll never find a CSA as great as Pete's Greens.

Exhibit A: a weekly share in November

Exhibit B: fancy striped beets in January (I plan to use some of these in a dyeing experiment, woo!)

And then! A new group on Etsy! A group of Vermont makers! I love communities of creative people. So..check out all the great stuff being made in Vermont by the good people of the Vermont Etsy Street Team: