Category Archives: Farm visit

Visitors at the Farm

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It was a busy over the last week. (Well, it’s always busy, but last week I was scheduling other people into the routine.) On Friday I hosted a field trip of 26 third graders as well as a few other visitors. On Saturday Kira K led a Knitters Retreat, and on Tuesday about 15 homeschoolers visited. These aren’t great photos but I said I’d take photos where the kids are mostly not recognizable.

Jade is in the middle of all those kids and loving it!

These two were glad to have me take photos. The fifth grade boy taught himself to needle felt watching YouTube videos! He came here to buy fleece for his next project and is ambitious enough that he plans to wash the fleece and then felt with it.

Two people from Kira K’s Knitters’ Retreat. A big part of the retreat is going to the barn and cuddling lambs. That’s Sparky on the left and another lamb I’ve been partially bottle-feeding.

Sparky getting her 1 p.m. bottle.

Kira describing the knitting and crochet patterns the attendees were given.

The weather was great and everyone sat outside at the picnic tables the whole day.

Here are some examples of beginning the knitted cowl. These are both naturally dyed Timm Ranch yarn. The yarns are dyed with cosmos, madder, and hollyhock.

Tuesday’s field trip. That’s Jade again.

And here is Sparky.

Unusual Request

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I occasionally get unusual requests. Years ago someone asked about filming a Nativity scene. I just looked that up and found my blog post from 2009. Earlier this year someone wanted to do a photoshoot with sheep for his pregnant wife. That is in the second half of this blog post from April. A few weeks ago I was asked by someone who had been here if she could bring a visiting professor to scope out our place for a video. They didn’t need sheep for this one, just a natural background. They lucked out with the weather on Sunday–no rain, no wind, and blue sky.

I have photos to share but I will tell you right at the top that I don’t understand any of this. Katya Grokhovsky is the visiting professor with the UCD Art and Art History Department. Her crew included two undergrads (in green pants, capes, and black head cover) and two graduate students (a videographer and still photographer).

Katya put on a huge papier-mâché “head” and got under this parachute-like drape.

The students created movement in the parachute as the central figure moved about.

At one point this reminded me of the Wizard of Oz when the witch melts. Katya is under the fabric but rises again.

A student picked up the pole in the foreground…

and gave it to Katya under the fabric.

She then moved the “arms” around for more movement.

A view of one of the helpers. Katya will spend time editing this footage and eventually have a film.

Ginny was out there with me until I decided that I really needed to go work on my weaving while the group continued filming.

Meet the Sheep

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Meet the Sheep is our annual spring open house event. That was last weekend. Rusty already shared his story but here is mine.

I rely heavily on Farm Club to make this event a success.

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First was getting pet-able sheep into pens. This is Jazz who is a big pet and has twins, one of whom I’m going to keep and is now named Jasmine.

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Amy, Mary, and Sumi ready for visitors.

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We had vendors. Colleen, with Fiber Confections.

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I offered space to Farm Club members this year. Gynna brought knit caps and other goods. Here is her website.

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Brenda has sheep-shaped soap and other items. Here is her Etsy store.

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Jackie with Sheep to Shop brought a new item–plant boxes made of felt!

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This is another felted piece using Jacob wool.

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Carol of 2NFrom  brought hats and these fabulous new pouches. After Farm Club members saw this there were only two of the sheep pouches left.

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Many visitors come just to look at sheep. But there are other things happening as well.

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Rigid heddle demo by Lisa.

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Blending Board demo by Roy (of Clemes & Clemes who makes the blending boards as well as carders, etc)

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Great Wheel demo by Deborah. By the way, this Great Wheel lives at my house and I have no room for it. It is for sale but I don’t have it listed on the website yet. Contact me if you’re interested.

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Laura demonstrated inkle weaving.

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Alison sketched sheep off and on — in between spinning — and left her finished product with me at the end of the day.

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Julie is the person who many people look forward to seeing year after year. She brought her dyeing demonstration, but also…

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…bunnies. Oh boy, were those bunnies a hit!

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Julie also brought a couple of Karakul lambs and an Angora kid. They all had plenty of attention.

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I can’t believe I got through the day with hardly any sheep photos (although I did spend most of the time in the shop and when I got out I tried to get photos of all the other things going on). That’s Jade who is our best pet sheep ever.

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And this is my bottle baby who found a new mom to take him home.

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This is most of the Farm Club crew who made this possible. Thanks, everyone!

Meet the Sheep — Part 2

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Dona took all the photos in the previous posts (this one too) because I was in the shop most of the day. Here are a few that I took when I made quick trips to the barn.flowers on table, rosesColleen brought roses for all the tables…Colleen with felt pins…and set up a booth with her felted creations and dyed yarns.yarn ball pirateObserved in the parking area.DanSpeaking of parking, here is the Parking Attendant, who doesn’t get much  attention in my blog, but is a Very Important Person behind-the-scenes.DSC_3677 Bunnies in the barn were a big draw.DSC_3708Lisa weaving on Cricket loom   Lisa worked on her Cricket loom all day and sent interested customers to the shop.

DSC_3697 Alison led a Sheep Portrait class.

 IMG_3398Feeding the bottle baby drew a crowd.IMG_3422At 4:00 everyone pitched in and sheep were put away, pens moved, and signs stored for next year in no time. Wow! What a crew! (What I haven’t talked about in a blog post was the huge help that Farm Club members were during the last week when I had severe tendonitis and couldn’t use my right arm at all. They did all the pen cleaning.)IMG_3418 I think we got the whole Farm Club crew who was here (except for Gynna) in this photo.

Don’t miss Rusty’s story about Meet the Sheep.

Meet the Sheep–Getting Ready

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Meet the Sheep is our annual open house when we invite the public to meet our sheep, learn about fiber and hopefully become fiber enthusiasts. I couldn’t do this without the Farm Club. FC members spent the day here on Friday helping clean up and set up. After everyone left on Friday Dan did the final clean-up of moving the piles of things that accumulate on a farm (pallets, disc, un-burned burn pile) and the place looked great.

These photos were all taken by Dona on Saturday morning.DSC_5792 We parked in the back but there was a line before I got the sheep locked out of that area.DSC_5794 “Put it there.”DSC_5821“It’s this one.” We selected sheep for petting and display. FC has already made a “naughty list” of ewes who were NOT to be used for petting.DSC_5839Signs went up.DSC_5812  Amaryllis went into her own pen…

DSC_5840 …with her own sign.

DSC_5841 Faulkner is in a pen next to Amaryllis so he got his own sign.

DSC_5843 We gathered up some ewes and lambs to put outside where people could get close to them.DSC_5870Others were in a pen in the barn and FC members lifted up lambs for people to pet.

DSC_5846Jackie set up her Sheep to Shop booth…

DSC_5847 …and Colleen was here with Fiber Confections.

 Julie Kuroki brought her French Angora bunnies and Angora kids along with a lot of display material. (Photos in the next post.)DSC_5961We’re ready for the day!