Belated update notice

Oh my, this day went fast.

Well first, let me tell you about the new wool/mohair top I got from Louet. This stuff is fabulous. They don't specify what kind of wool, but it's a soft, fine wool. The mohair is only 12% of the mix, but it makes itself known by its silky texture and shine. It's a gorgeous, gorgeous blend.

I have a limited (like half a pound more) quantity on hand, but will plan on carrying this on an ongoing basis. It's great stuff.



Then there's the sock yarn:



And the lace yarn:



And the handspun:



Some of them have already been snapped up, but there are, as always, these items plus a fine assortment of other yarns and fibers over at the shop.

Independence Day Sale

Friday, July 3rd through Sunday, July 5th: it's the Laughing Rat Studio Independence Day sale! All items in the shop 20% off: spinning/felting fibers, drumcarded batts, and hand-dyed yarns of all sorts.

Have a great weekend!

New to the shop: Wensleydale!

But first, Finn:







Now those last two, those were Wensleydale.

Handspun, too:



More handspun and more combed top in the shop!

Smuggery; update

OK, I am super in love with this new colorway:



Named after a bird, of course.

There's other new sock yarns in the shop, too, including a very soft version of "Iris":



--and some Itty Bitty Rat Batts, too!





More of both, and more of more, over in the shop!

Have I got yarns for you

No, really, I have yarns for you. Some superwash Merino/bamboo fingering weight, a couple skeins of that, and four of laceweight alpaca.



"Lola-Lola" is one of my favorite colors. It shouldn't work, but it does.



"Twilight," an olllld color of mine. There's so many colors I don't do anymore, and so many that sort of blended into other existing colors. "Pleiad" was really similar to what "Twilight" is now, for instance. And the differences between "Violets," "Crocus," and "Hyacinths" can be practically academic at times, although I still like producing each of those.



Bet you haven't seen "Peony" in a while, though. Yup. Although I did this up slightly less ridiculously intense this time.

More to see in the shop, of course!

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As I ply a fairly plain-jane green Merino yarn (for me, not the shop), I'm listening to a lot of music. I'd like to take this opportunity to point out that klezmer is the best music in the known universe, and I'll go best two falls out of three with anyone who disagrees.

Naftule Brandwein, an old-skool player from way back in the day:



The Klezmer Conservatory Band, an amazing group who are still going strong today:

I am so dedicated to y'all

How dedicated am I? Well after my delicious ten full hours of sleep, I awoke and immediately began reskeining two hanks of fingering weight that I knew would just be more gorgeous if folks could see how the colors mixed together. Immediately! Well, I might have stopped to put the oatmeal on the stove first, but I'm just sayin', y'all are the first thing I think of in the morning, and that should give you a warm, fuzzy feeling.

The other things I've been thinking of this week include, "Oh lord, how am I going to get through this day without snapping?" which explains why I am not at work today; if I have the temptation to choke people with my mind, it's time to schedule a day off work already. And that, in turn, explains how I got ten hours of sleep last night.

Something else I've been thinking of is:



Namely, "How can I afford this thing?" and "Where am I gonna put this?" and "Can I maybe give spinning lessons?" Obviously, I did not just get the wheel, but rather an entire, disassembled, gently-used Ashford Traditional. It's a gorgeous beast. I've got her almost completely put together, but need to put the drive band on and learn more about tensioning and adjusting Ashfords. They're not made anything like the Fricke, but putting the wheel together certainly helped me learn how it will work. Needless to say, the other thing on my mind this week was, "Where is my wheel?!" since it was being sent from New Zealand.

Update later. I'm gonna take a walk.

Look, a Treasury!

Please, check it out! Treasuries are good for two days.

How did I, The Laughing Rat, get an actual Treasury, one of the most coveted things in the history of the world ever, right up there with gold, nutmeg, and a cure for impotence?* Through this frabjous countdown timer. Seriously, I cannot say enough good things about this kickass website.

So go and peek! It's all sky-themed!




*List of coveted things may vary depending on sex of reader.