Another Productive Day at the Carder!

Yesterday I carded up several more Custom Fiber Blend batts to list in our Etsy store. I recently sorted through a ton of boxes and bags of fiber that I had stashed in our soaking tub in the master bath (I know it sounds crazy but the tub is freaking ginormous and the water heater runs out of hot water when the tub is only half full so what's the point?) Anyway, I sorted out fibers that will work well blended together and filled a huge plastic bin with bags of blending fibers. Yesterday I had a blast going through that bin and picking out all kinds of fibers that went well together. Following are three of the batts: The top one is Lilacs, the middle one is Hydrangeas and the bottom one is Bahama Bay

I also made this - Glacier Bay - a blend of custom dyed merino/silk, tussah silk, mohair and bamboo. This reminds me of the colors of a glacier with that eerie seafoam green glow under the white snow and ice.

And while we're on the subject of snow and ice - guess what we got (yet again) last night?!

Yep, more snow! They predicted that snow would start Tuesday night and go into Wednesday but all we got Tuesday night was a fireworks show complete with tons of lightning and thunder but not a drop of moisture. Then yesterday evening I looked out the office window and it was snowing like crazy so I grabbed my handy camera and snapped several shots. Can you see the thermometer on the deck railing? I think it says about 30 degrees F. And it is mid-May. Ahhh, Springtime in the Rockies - you gotta love it! Not really...

I have a ton of flowers I need to get planted but I obviously don't dare put them out just yet. I have Hollyhocks, Columbine, Lupine, Hosta, Iris and Pansies. I uncovered the rose bushes and I think they made it through the winter but there is no new growth on them yet. It appears that the raspberry bush didn't make it through the winter but the lilac bush I planted last Fall is showing new sprouts so I mulched that day before yesterday with an old llama fleece to keep the buds from getting frostbit. The catnip plant is coming up - I already cut that back to the ground last week and I'm hoping it doesn't get frostbit either, except I think it has a much better chance of coming back than most of the other plants since its pretty hardy. I am going to go buy several straw bales and put them together out in the front flower garden where I can't seem to get things to grow very well and I'll fill in the "straw container" with composted llama manure and try making a raised bed this year. I used to garden a lot at our old house in Colorado Springs. We turned most of the front yard into a terraced flower garden and we had people stopping all the time to take pictures of it. It was a real show stopper! The decomposed granite soils, the short growing season (i.e., two whole days of real summer) and the hungry deer make gardening extremely challenging here but I'm struggling each year to get at least one more decent tree, bush, plant or garden area growing.

WW - Dreaming of Summer again

Silent Saturday - Dreaming of Summer

Photos of Penstemon Flowers, Pikes Peak & Dome Rock

I wish the colors of the Penstemon had come out better on these photos. Photos just cannot do justice to how the field of flowers looks when you can view the entire thing in one frame! The lighting isn't the best as the photos were taken late afternoon. And the flowers took a beating from all the rain we've been getting lately. We had about 1/2 inch today, about an inch on Saturday, and 2.75 inches last Thursday! The flowers like the rain but the hail was a bit rough on them.

I don't know what the yellow flowers are - I just know the plants really stink and the llamas won't touch them. The llamas and horses won't eat the Penstemon either - which is great! Flowers that the animals don't eat - what a concept! Wish the deer could grasp that concept and leave my flower garden around the house alone! They always wait until the flowers are just ready to open up and then they eat them. I snagged the lone rose growing in the garden and brought it in the house in a little bud vase before the deer had a chance to gobble it down. I was so thrilled to see that a rose bush made it through the winter this year. I have tried for 10 years now to get a rose bush to grow here without success. I finally planted the rose in a sheltered location under a pine tree on the north side of the house, tucked into a little area just off the deck and stairs. And then after the first hard freeze I mulched it really good with a big pile of llama fleece that was too dirty and matted to use for anything else. Finally, a good use for those nasty llama fleeces that have been on the animal just a little too long! Unfortunately, clover has taken over the flower bed this year. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to get rid of clover? I need to find out if it is poisonous or noxious or if I can safely feed it to my bunnies. The bees love the clover and it does smell nice but I would prefer the yarrow, clematis, rose bush and sweet william I planted in the bed!

The first photo is of Pikes Peak in the background. The second and third photos have Dome Rock in the background.

At any rate, enjoy the view!