The Marathon

The marathon is a long-distance running event with an official distance of 42.195 kilometres (26 miles and 385 yards),^[1] that is usually run as a road race. The event was instituted in commemoration of the fabled run of the Greek soldier Pheidippides, a messenger from the Battle of Marathon (the namesake of the race) to Athens.

From Wikipedia

            I feel like the past six weeks have been a marathon of knitting.  Linda and I have been knitting up a storm in July and August, preparing for the Fall Cpt Kyle Comfort Benefit Fashion Show at the Jacksonville Community Center on Sept 10 at 9:30-12:00.  We are designing new knitwear, which means that I have been doing a lot of knitting and taking out, and starting over the see what looks cool.  (Something I never thought I would have the heart or the will to do).  We have sweaters, shawls, scarves, hats and cowls in the works and they are impressive, if I may say so myself.  You have to come out to the Fashion Show and see them.

            I have found that when I wear something I have knitted, it usually elicits the response- "Wow that's gorgeous- where'd you get it?"  I love to say, I made it.  Or more often I say Linda knit it and it was too big for her so she gave it to me.  Isn't it wonderful!  I have learned that if I practice and relax my knitting muscles will become stronger and stronger.  Soon I will be knitting like Linda!

            So, back the marathon.  They say there is something very rewarding about a marathon.  In order to complete it, one must practice and grow progressively stronger.  When it comes to knitting, you begin with easy patterns and then challenge yourself with new stitches and more complicated techniques.  Linda, Susan and I try to teach classes that advance your skills.   In September Susan is teaching a pattern Linda wrote and knitted which we have put together with a shawl box.   The pattern will include simple lace patterns, combined with other techniques.  Linda is teaching a sleeveless vest/sweater with an inserted medallion.  It is stunning and looks complicated, but when broken down into individual parts it is easy to tackle with Linda's gifted teaching and encouragement.  I will be teaching a class which will use you bits and pieces of stash yarn to knit a beautiful caplet. 

            With Fall just around the corner (a refreshing thought with temperatures kissing 100 degrees) it is time to begin thinking about knitting Christmas gifts.  I have heard there are actually people who have all their gifts wrapped by October.  I can't imagine.... and where is the fun in that?  My mom always felt there was nothing more special than a hand made gift.  A loaf of bread, homemade jelly, a pair of knitted slippers, or a beautiful shawl or afghan.  Come see what Yarns HomePlace Farm is putting together for your holiday knitting.  Scarf boxes, shawl boxes and more are in the works.  We are busy dyeing Auburn and Alabama yarn for fall, and other striking color ways that are only limited by your imagination. 
            To bring this blog to an end, I wanted to share some of the past projects we have knitted up to inspire us all to begin training for our own marathons. 

Inspirations

Benefit Fashion Show coming up Sept. 10

I have been back from California for almost a week.  I did have a chance to visit Rumpelstiltskin's Yarn Shop  (a fellow blogger suggested it) while in Sacramento.  It was fun looking around at the shop samples and getting some new ideas.  They were very sweet and helpful.  I did purchase a great hat pattern to teach to all of you in a class this fall.  We had a chance to see the state capital and see some amazing trees on the  grounds.  The picture I have shared is of my grandson and me in one of the huge trees. 

Linda and I have both been busy knitting for the upcoming fashion show. She is knitting sweaters at the same rate as I am knitting hats. Feel my pain? She loves to encourage me with words like...you are great at knitting hats, not you are too slow to finish a sweater in time for next years fashion show. We each have our special talents :) . Alright, now for fashion show details.

Yarns by HomePlace Farm, the Children's Market Place Consignment Sale, and The Willow Tree are working together to sponsor a Fashion Show & Breakfast catered by Chef Bob of Birmingham. It will be held on September 10, 2011 from 9:30 until 12, at the Jacksonville Community Center. We are hosting this event to raise money to support the CPT Kyle Comfort Memorial Foundation. The cost will be $15 per person.

The CPT Kyle Comfort Memorial Foundation was created by his widow in honor of CPT Comfort who was killed in action while serving in the Army in Afghanistan on May 8, 2010. CPTComfort is an Alumnus of Riverside Military Academy (2001) and Jacksonville State University (2006). The Foundation has been established to assist soldiers and their families when they have been sent to attachment hospitals in Germany for further care after being wounded in the line of duty. Many times when sent to Germany the soldiers are sent with nothing but a hospital gown and their dog tags. The medical facilities give them basic necessities but when you are hurt and away from home it is nice to have some things of comfort.

Mark your calendar and please join us for a morning filled with fall fashion ideas. Linda and I are excited to be a part of helping to raise money for this worthy cause.

Small Town America

Small town America, that is where I live and I love it.  We still have a town square, with a statue of John Pelham (Historic Confederate Soldier) in the center.  There's a bike shop where the owner leaves a note saying he is next door, just come and get him if you need help.  We have an Ace Hardware where they still help you find what you need for your honey do list.  A hamburger joint where they still scoop your ice cream for you chocolate shake.  Jacksonville has a coffee shop, Java Jolt where they actually serve scratch muffins and cookies (not the wrapped and sealed kind you get from the big guys) to eat with your latte.   Our yarn shop is there too, dropped into the nostalga of a small town.  A place where you can stop by to knit and catch up on what's happening in the neighborhood.  There is a university here, which brings with it youth and culture, and 10,000 college kids in the fall of each year.  Yes, our population really doubles each fall.  There is a Christmas Parade with homemade floats, antique cars, high school bands, and Santa.  And yes we do have fireworks to celebrate the 4th of July.  Everyone gathers at the high school football field and we ooh and ahh together at the sparkling explosions of color.  When driving down Pelham Road yesterday, I read "Freedom is not Free" on Warren Ace Hardware's sign, This statement has never been more real to our friends at Ace than it is today.  Their son Ben, a US Marine, was shot in Afghanistan a few weeks ago and is still recovering.  As our whole community prays for his complete recovery we are reminded of our own sons and daughters, husbands, wives, brother, sisters, fathers, mothers, grandfathers and grandmothers who have defended our freedom since the Revolutionary War. 

Let me suggest to you today to Google Freedom and Liberty and read quotes from our fore-fathers.  Here are a few I found and would like to share.

Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.

~Benjamin Franklin

The patriot's blood is the seed of Freedom's tree.

~Thomas Campbell

In the truest sense, freedom cannot be bestowed; it must be achieved.  ~Franklin D. Roosevelt

Give me liberty - or give me death!

~Patrick Henry

On Monday when you are sharing the holiday with your family, take a minute to consider what freedom means and who has sacrificed so that we may live in the greatest nation in the world.  Call your sailor, soldier, airman or marine and tell them thanks.

“The Community”

Last year about this time, a friend confided to me her first thought on hearing that Linda and I were opening a yarn shop.  Note that she waited until we were busy with customers and new ideas before admitting thinking “who opens a yarn shop in Alabama, in the middle of a recession, in the summer, are they crazy?”  Note that my friend is from Wisconsin and her mother is a wonderful knitter.  And also note she is one of our biggest fans.  Realize there have been days when Linda and I have asked ourselves the same question.  We are delighted at how much we have enjoyed our first year here are “Yarns”.  It seems yarn shops are more than just retail outlets.  “They are more than the yarns that line the shelves, they are the people that bring life to the place.”  For the Love of Knitting.  They are a community.  I read once that the yarn shop is a place of respite, where knitters can turn with confidence when they run into snags along the way.  Sometimes yarn snags, and other times life snags.  We are amazed at how many of life little problems are solved at the Thursday Night Knit Along.  We once laughed that our classes should be free, and that therapy and entertainment should cost extra. 

The yarn shop is the knitter’s candy store.  We always visit LYS when traveling the country.  Linda was recently in the French Quarters and didn’t miss the chance to visit the Quarter Stitch yarn shop.  It is a wonderful way to meet new people in the “community,” and get fresh ideas for new projects.  I found a yarn shop in Sacramento named Rumpelstiltskin’s.   I’ll stop by when I head out to California in July to see my grandson Derek and his parents.  We can all visit yarn shops all over the world using the net.  How about stopping by a LYS on your next summer vacation, then come by and tell us all about what you discovered and who you met in the “community.” 

Dyeing Days

There are few things I enjoy more than dyeing yarn. There is a real satisfaction that comes with creating something so beautiful. Linda and I dyed today. I mix the dyes (Linda tells me I am the chemist, but I believe this is just to make me feel needed and important) and "The Artist Linda" pours on the dyes. I believe she could never dye yarn without me.....well I like to believe that anyway. When the dyes soak into the yarn, the colors blend into new colors, like a rainbow, and we are delighted. But as we go through the process of setting the dye and rinsing the yarn, we have become quite a team. Like Lucy and Ethel, we rinse, wring, laugh, sing, stomp, layout the damp yarn and wait for it to dry. As the yarn dries the colors become brighter and richer. The next morning our first stop is to the dyeing room to see how our new yarns have dried. As we twist the color ways together names begin to form, Sunset, Dandelion, Hazel, Mango Smoothie, Stained Glass, Mermaid Tail, Sunflower Field. At that moment we believe we are truly artist, creative and free. So stop by during the next few weeks and drink in some color. You can even take home a little art for your collection.

Spinning, Dyeing and Knitting

The benefit of knitting with handspun yarn has been variously described as the difference between eating tomatoes out of the garden and those available at the supermarket; the difference between reading every word of a classic and skimming Cliff Notes; the difference between a live orchestra and a recording . . . you know what I mean.  Much to my delight, we don't have to just "read the Cliff Notes, we have our very own source of handspun yarn.  Linda has been spinning and creating the most amazing yarns.  You can see the all online at www.homeplacefarm.net and in the store. 

To spin or not to spin?  I have been asking myself that questions almost daily.  I see the beautiful chunky, funky yarns that Linda is spinning and I say to myself, I want to do this.  How hard can it be?  Well let me tell you, it may look like riding a bike, but this stuff takes co-ordination.  My dad once made the observation that I couldn't walk and chew gum at the same time (he was just teasing of course) and after trying it for a few minutes I was inclined to believe that my dad was correct. 

We dyed sock yarn today and it is bright, colorful and fun.  I finished my socks and they are being blocked now.  I am tempted to start on a new pair using some of the skeins we just dyed.  Wonder if they are dry yet?  Who wants socks for Christmas?  not that I am volunteering to knit them, but I am sure we can teach you to knit some of your own.  Some of the yarn in today's batch is great for guys with names like Camo and Gun Barrel.  So if you can't spin at least you can knit with some fantastic hand dyed sock yarn.  

We had a entertaining night at the Knit Along.  Thanks to everyone to dropped in.  We would love to have more next week. 

Knit in Public Day is Saturday.  Diane and Susan will be knitting "In Public" at the Jacksonville Public Library from 9-1.  Stop by and knit "In Public" with us. 

Spinning "Wonderland"

Today, I Googled spinning yarn.  It said and I quote:

"Learning to spin on a spinning wheel is tricky! How can your body do so many different things at the same time?"  I asked Linda to teach me the other day, thinking, this doesn't look to tough.  I should be able to master it in a couple of hours.  I even promised to give up my new Chico necklace and earrings if she would just show me how.  Well...it is much harder than it looks.  But I am not giving up, just practicing. 
One hand pinches, one hand pulls, and your feet pump the treadle. What a lot to think about at once. However, if you learn each step in the spinning process before you put them together, spinning will be easier. And with a little practice, it becomes second nature, that is what they say anyway. 

Now, Linda on the other hand has been spinning like crazy.  Don't miss the "Wonderland Collection" on our website, homeplacefarm.net.  The yarns are full of texture and color.  It has inspired me to knit and spin.  I know you'll love them too. 

BTW, my socks are coming along great.  I hope to finish them this weekend.  Next, I will tell you they were easy.  Well, I gotta say, they were a whole lot simpler than I had imagined.  Join us in July and learn to knit socks too!  Later Gator, Knit on!