Early November News from the Farm

Hello Colorful Friends:

Hard to believe November has arrived and the end of 2024 is fast approaching, isn’t it? Here at the farm, the leaves have all fallen off the trees. My garden is shriveling away although the swisschard is still surviving. I’ve ordered some tulip, daffodil, and bluebell bulbs to get into the ground so that I have something to look forward to come spring.

The sheep are still out grazing although the grass is slowing down. Mark has been moving them closer to our winter barns in anticipation of shearing that is happening in a couple weeks. It’s a lot of work getting them back to the barns and he gets pretty stressed out awaiting shearing. Once again, we will be supplying our wool to Bloom Woolen Yarns for their yarn called Babe.

It was a stunning warm day on Friday and the clouds were unbelievable.I

I want to welcome all my new readers to my newsletter. A couple weeks ago, I noticed a huge number of sign-ups. I was wondering what was going on. How the heck are people finding out about me? And then I remembered that I taped a video podcast this summer that was being released in October. Welcome to all our new friends who discovered my newsletter via the Homespun Series from Missouri Star Quilting Company.

I’ve been on a lot of podcasts over the years. Mostly they were just audio - I think this is the first one that was taped through the magic of wifi and my computer. I had to clear up a pretty space to set up my new ring light, actually had to put on some make-up and a clean shirt, and then hope for the best. As I was being interviewed by the lovely Misty, I realized that I was really telling the story of my life of making. I just celebrated my 66th birthday and I’m still wondering how the heck I got to be this age. It’s a good conversation if a bit winding. I’m very happy that I’m still a bit relevant and someone wants to interview me. So have a listen/watch if you have the time. You can watch it on your phone on YouTube - here’s the link. Or you can watch it here on the video embedded below.

In other creative news, I’ve been working hard in my pottery studio trying to decorate as many pieces of the greenware pottery I made this summer. I’m hoping to have a pottery sale on-line in December so stay tuned. I’m also still selling my pottery and our farm raised lamb at the Amherst Farmers Market on the Common. Only 3 more markets left. Hours are Saturdays from 8 to 1:30. Would love to see some of you.

Since it is getting close to the holidays, I want to remind you about my sheep notecards that are perfect for sending to fiber friends. I have 5 designs and you can purchase them in packs of 10 or in assorted sets (2 each of the 5 designs) for $25 which includes shipping. If you want to assort them into your own assortment choice, please leave a note on the checkout page where it gives you a link for a note. Here are the choices and THE LINK TO MY SHOP. '

At the end of this email, I’ve included some ideas for holiday knitting projects. You can purchase the PDF patterns on my website or on my Ravelry shop.

Now for today’s links……. (A bit thin today - sorry.)

• Back when I was in my 20’s, Mark and I were planning a trip to the French countryside. My old boss Pat suggested I bring along a guidebook called The Food Lover’s Guide to France by Patricia Wells (the restaurant critic for The International Herald Tribune). What a great suggestion that was! It was loaded with tips for finding out of the way farms that made cheese and armagnac, wineries, restaurants, copper pots, flea markets and more. I became a fan of Patricia’s cookbooks and have many. My favorite is Bistro Cooking.

Patricia is downsizing her collection of French culinary antiques and French decor. You can look through a beautiful on-line catalog of the sale which will go on-line in mid-November. Worth a look (a girl’s gotta dream…….).

• I stumbled upon John Derian’s shop in NYC decades ago and was blown away by all the beautiful decoupage featuring antique prints. How fun to recently see a beautiful video of his creative antique house in Provincetown, MA. Check it out here. Online article from House and Garden UK HERE.

• I cook a lot and find this instant read thermometer essential. It has saved many a dinner. Bon Appetit has a great article about using a thermometer for baked goods.

• Recently I enjoyed a lovely day out with my sister and her family visiting the Eustis Estate in Milton, MA. It is a restored mansion built in 1878 in the Queen Anne style. We took the Design Tour and learned so much. I love a good historic house tour. Thanks Mom for introducing me and my sisters to many an old house. The Eustis Estate is owned by Historic New England and it is just outside Boston.

• An interesting article about “Why Streaming Subscription Prices Will Continue to Rise.” The comments are interesting too.

Thanks so much for reading and for your support. Again, welcome to all my new readers.

Yours in color and creativity,

Here are some of my favorite PDF knitting designs…… available on my website and on my Ravelry page. There’s plenty more HERE.

I love these felted Swirly Twirlies. They are quick to knit and felt and make great gifts. I can honestly say the coasters and potholders are the knitted item that I use the most in our home. Available on my website HERE or on Ravelry HERE.

Moroccan Fedoras is one of my most popular patterns. I’ve knit many versions over the years. On my website here or on Ravelry here.

For your 4-footed friends, my Dog in Sheep’s Clothing is an easy garter stitch design to keep your friends nice and toasty. The pattern comes in eight sizes and has special instructions for customizing the sweater to fit different shaped dogs and other animals. On my website here or on Ravelry here.

Lastly, I’ve got two Christmas Stocking Patterns. Each pattern contains 5 or 6 designs in multiple sizes. Here they are:

On the left, Kristin’s Colorful Christmas Stockings uses only one color per row or round. I consider it the easier version. Get it on my website here or on Ravelry here.

On the right, Kristin’s Creative Christmas Stockings features both two color knitting (following a chart) and striped versions. Get it on my website here or on Ravelry here.