Many of you may know that Circle M isn’t just about vegetables and meat. Fiber is actually a quite large part of our sustainable farming endeavor, and as the growing season comes to a close, wool season starts to get rolling. This weekend actually kicks off the first fiber event we’ll be participating in this fall, with the Driftless Area Fiber Arts Faire in Mineral Point. continued »
“A bruised reed He will not break And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish…” I love these words from the Old Testament book of Isaiah. While I’m mindful that, in context, these words have to do with world-changing themes of justice, redemption and the nature of Jesus Christ, I can’t help but feel them directed toward myself today. Yesterday afternoon I found two just-born lambs in the corner of the little stone barn – healthy, beautiful and happily tagging along behind their attentive mama. What a relief after the sheep defeats we’ve had these past few weeks! Baby that I am, I don’t think I could have mentally taken another bad experience. continued »
I very much enjoyed participating in the Craftacular yesterday. We had a slippery snow in the morning and it was slow going getting into Madison, so I worried while I crawled along our country roads that the turnout would be low. But the folks in this city are very very supportive of local artists and vendors (the Saturday morning farmers’ market is the largest in America) and customers packed out the Craftacular, as well as four other large craft shows that happened on the same day around town. Thanks, Madison! The show was a success for me – I sold a lot and was able to hand out dozens of my class and wool supply flyers to people who seemed very enthusiastic. What I’m most excited about today, though, is that it’s OVER. continued »
That would be a good album name, huh? Speaking of albums, I made a great discovery while holed up in my dining room with rainbow wool and barbed needles this week – last.fm. This is an internet build-your-own radio station and I’ve been much encouraged by the great playlists this site has created for me in the past two days. Today I’m listening to Sufjan Stevens (who made a lovely winsome indie Christmas album in 2006) and similar sweet-and-lo-fi artists. Check it out, and check out what I’m finishing up today: continued »
My piles of wool are slowly but surely shrinking while piles of pretty flowers are taking their place. I made another 15 pins today (and sold 7!) and a few Flower Fairy Garlands. Tonight I’ll finish up the needle-felting and clean my workspace up to re-make it for wet felting tomorrow. continued »
Not really. I’m actually feeling that crazy calm that happens when you resign yourself to the fact that you’re just not going to accomplish everything on your list. Shannon and I spent most of this snowy, slippery day trying to get seven very uncooperative pigs into a trailer and off to the butcher. In the end, only 5 made it in. What can you do? By the time I got back inside the house much of my crafting day was over. Luckily, some of my products were completed way back in the summer when I had vegetables growing in the gardens. These are my plant-dyed yarns and scarves: continued »
I’ve got three days left until the big Craftacular in Madison and I’m making progress. Here’s what got finished today: continued »
This Saturday I’ll be participating (under the alias Maidmarion Cottage Industries) in my first Madison art and craft show – the Holiday Craftacular at the Madison Masonic Center, 301 Wisconsin Avenue, from 10am to 6pm. I’m nervous about setting up my crazy antique washtub and quiltrack displays in an unknown setting and excited about finally getting my woolcrafts out in front of a wider audience. Will they like me? Will they like my stuff? I hope so! I sure do have fun making it! Here are some things I made today: continued »
Fall is my favorite season, for the weather and the colors, and even though we put up a Christmas tree in the house on Thanksgiving Day, I can’t bring myself to start decorating it yet. I’m reluctant to give up the pumpkin and bittersweet theme we’ve got going. I’m not sure what it will take to push me over the green and red edge. Maybe when all of the pretty amber and gold fields are completely covered up with snow, I’ll feel a need to pull out the sparkly garlands and glass globes. I just hate the rush to get Christmas up in the stores and streets – everyone looking in the windows and missing the most beautiful outdoors. Nevertheless, Christmas preparations are in full swing here at the farm as we make yarns, jewelry, decorations and woolcraft kits that we’ll both give as gifts and sell as Maidmarion Cottage Industries this holiday season. continued »
What have we been up to here at Circle M? Well, September and October flew by in a rush of harvest tasks and celebrations. In our extended rural neighborhood, farms throw parties for hope in spring and gratefulness in fall. These open house festivals are lovely quotation marks on either side of “The Growing Season” and we threw our own this fall as well as attended those of friends. Many of you joined us here around the fires, both inside and out, and we very much enjoyed the shared meals, music and merriment of craft and conversation that closed out our garden year. We hope you’ll come back again in spring when the whole circle starts again. In the meantime, we’ve shifted gears as the outdoor work of sowing and tending is supplanted by indoor tasks of woolcraft and bookkeeping. continued »
