Sunday Shenanigans

We hosted a very important birthday party this weekend. It involved a horde of teenagers, a day long outing to the beach, a sleepover and breakfast on the lawn. It was delightful, no one died and the house is still standing in one piece.

I am, however, still exhausted and appear to be making triple my usual number of spelling errors. I also tried to work on the crochet blanket some more yesterday, when I was presumably even more exhausted than I am today, and the magic no-mistake streak I’d been on was gone. I had to stuff it into a bag and ignore it pointedly for the rest of the evening.

So, I’m going to leave you all with the write up I did previously of last month’s Sunday Shenanigans with Nicola and Alysha. I’m going to go have some more coffee and see if the blanket is ready to be a team player again. It’s 37C outside today, I’m not going to try doing anything other than sit in front of a fan with a cold drink.

See you later in the week, when the weather cools down and I can no longer see and smell time.

Here’s a couple photos of The Girls, because why the heck not.

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Last weekend I went on an adventure.

Now, our family usually does some sort of out-of-town trip, big or small, during school holidays. Unfortunately, this year wasn’t possible between the move and the schedule changes and everything that happened at the end of last year, finances didn’t support an overnight road adventure this summer. So, when Nicola and another mutual friend said they were going to the Mile High Merino launch party up in Lawson, NSW, of course I ditched my usual Sunday Stitch n’ Bitch and skipped town for the day with them.

I was so excited about getting the hell out of Sydney for the day that I was up at 6am…and couldn’t go back to sleep for all the excitement. I think I did pretty well making 6am less painful by going to one of my favourite local cafes for breakfast and some knitting over an iced latte. Don’t you think?

Finally it was time to burn rubber and we piled into Nicola’s car. Our first stop was The Sewing Basket. Hold on to your needles, stitchers, it’s an opshop (thrift store to my fellow Americans) that only sells crafting supplies. Want to feel even better about giving them your patronage? It’s run by a non-profit that provides programming and support services for individuals with disabilities. Crafting for change, I love it.

        

We happily frolicked for over an hour pawing through the aisles of yarn, fabric, notions, and equipment. I got some excellent cotton yarn for projects I’ve planned for this year’s Plastic Free July (I’ve got so many great things planned for the blog! Heads up, there will be a MAL!) and Nicola found this beauty.

It’s a gigantic bag of 22 micron merino roving. For basically peanuts. I told you this place was amazing! 

Since Nicola has finally joined the spinning family we are going to have a big dye party before the weather goes wet again. One more excellent use for my newly acquired plot of grass, hills-hoist, and wrap-around porch!

After The Sewing Basket we were off to Lawson for the launch. Guess where it was held? In the events room of Lyttleton Stores, the local bulk shop! 

The shopfront is just gorgeous. It reminds me of the sweet local wares and co-op shops that are peppered throughout the San Juan Islands back home. I fully accept that white walls and reed baskets and bundles of dried herbs is as much a marketing aesthetic as it is a granola-eating-hippy (aka me) trope, but it makes me think of sea salt breezes and lavender farms and bread made in cast iron skillets from the baker downstairs. 

The building is divided into three sections - the very front a gallery and indie makers stall, the middle the bulk food shop, and the back section is a workshop and events space, complete with industrial kitchen and plenty of space for classes and social gatherings.

The launch was held in the back room, and boy do these makers know what we like and how to set out a launch. We entered the room from several stairs up, so there was an excellent overview of the goodies out for consideration. 

At the back was a spinning wheel with a bucket of fibre for testing how their braids spin up and cast-on samples for testing the finished yarn’s workability. Next to the test-drive-the-fibre station was a table with sample swatches (see left) and a long table covered (I really do mean that, you couldn’t see anything underneath) with yarn for purchase and a huge basket of minis. And, between the entrance and all the yarn and fibre, was a mountain of freshly made (so fresh they were still warm) scones with locally made jam and cream from the shop.

     

The yarn was an experience - it's bounce and squish was top notch and the fibre had such a specific feel in the hand - like a rich velvet, both spun up and in the lock. Just take a moment and look at the stitch definition on those swatches. It's the same weight of yarn all the way across, just stitched up with different sized needles, and you barely lose any texture or definition as you go.

 You can't tell here but the swatches also had a wonderful drape, even down to the denser fabric. I'm imagining a very elegant cardigan with cables, lace, and a decent amount of shaping to take advantage of the drape and structure. The Ruby has been in my queue for ages, maybe it's time to cast it on... *dreamy sigh*

I should also mention that Mile High Merino sources its wool from a single flock from High Steaks Farming, an ethical and environmentally minded ranch in New South Wales. The wool is processed in Victoria at a local small mill and then dyed by Imogen Worden, a New South Wales based indie dyer. So if you weren't sold on the yarn being awesome just for it's properties, you can also feel awesome about supporting local small businesses who are also concerned with the treatment of their animals and their impact on the environment.

Luckily, you don't have to go to Lawson NSW every time you want some of this gorgeous stuff. Mile High Merino also has an online shop. Score!