Archives for sheep

Sheep Shares Colors – Sneak Peek!

January 22, 2010 | 9 Comments

A quick post for inquiring minds. While the sheep are lounging around, eating bon bons, I'm slaving over the dye pots, wending my way through the color samples for the Spring Shares: Cormo Silk Alpaca. Here's a look at what's a'cookin'! Three (duh, make that four) of my favorite colors pictured above. Starting at the left: duck egg, katydid, hen of the woods and hyssop. This shot shows a few more colors. Clockwise from upper left: duck egg, lavender buds, bluebird, hyssop, hen of the woods, katydid, ladyslipper. It's so tricky photographing colors and showing them accurately. But these
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Fruit Loop

January 20, 2010 | 6 Comments

Have you ever wondered if goats prefer strawberries or clementines? The answer is: both! Gypsy is our little fruit loop, brightening our spirits on an otherwise gray morning. Thanks everybody, for your very kind words about my blog, in response to Monday's post. The contest runs through next Tuesday (which means I'll announce a winner by 7 pm EST Tues. evening). The rest of the Sheep Shares Farm Yarn memberships are going fast. By the end of the week, the contest may end being the only way to get one. Please spread the word!
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About Sheep Shares (and a special Kick-Off Contest)

January 18, 2010 | 118 Comments

This evening I'm going to talk about Sheep Shares and let you know there's still time to sign up for this year. Sheep Shares is the farm yarn and fiber club I started just a year ago. Prior to last year, most of my marketing had been either through my website or face-to-face with customers at shows and events throughout the Northeast. My business has grown this way, and so has my farm for more than a decade. I'm truly grateful to those who have so loyally supported my work over the years, casting on countless stitches with my yarns.
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Saturday, Sunny-side UP!

January 16, 2010 | 12 Comments

I'll be brief since I'm sure we're all outdoors today, enjoying sunshine and warmth. I'm soaking it up since tomorrow I'm teaching all day, and then we're due for more snow. I didn't mind taking my time with barn chores today. Not one bit. Caitlyn mugged for the camera at breakfast. The maiden ewes kicked up their heels, frisking along behind me as I carted their breakfast bale outside this morning. What a delicious Saturday. Wishing you a happy weekend.
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Visitors & Weekend Scenes

January 11, 2010 | 4 Comments

Lazy greetings. Cilantro, Teaberry & friends at afternoon nap. Winter feedings: gold finch and sparrow. Buster, nattily dressed in my purple sweater – minus sleeves (sacrificed for lambie sweaters last spring!). I'll leave off with some scenes from and a few words about my St. Distaff's Day gathering on Saturday. I so looked forward to this coming together of a handful of die-hard, local fiberists who I knew would be here regardless of weather. On my iphone calendar I had written the word "FUN" starting at 4:30 after evening chores. And it was. Cozy. Great friends. Scads of fiber. And
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Sheep Moves

January 9, 2010 | 6 Comments

One of yesterday's tasks was moving the little ladies from the open barn on the west side of Reynolds Road to the birthing barn on the east side of the road. The wind and driving snow added to the chaotic frenzy and, after weeks of same-ness, the girls were thrilled to have a little adventure. Holly at the lead. It was snowing pretty hard! The dash through the gate. Cognac takes a little detour to flirt with the boys. Signs of sheep traffic. The scramble to the big barn. The little ewes will stay in the big barn until shearing
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FlockWork

January 8, 2010 | 5 Comments

I am beyond exhausted. Today was a big flock-work day. Sheep, goats, llamas. Coat changes, pedis, deworming, crutching messy butts. If they needed it, it got done. Snowy, cold and blustery here but it somehow didn't feel terrible. Either I'm getting use to it – or maybe it just wasn't really that cold? We really hustled from barn to barn, group to group – constantly on the move. Didn't finish evening chores until way after dark. I'm sharing a few of my favorite moments of Holly and the boys in the carriage barn. The fellows all seemed to enjoy the
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Winter Thicket

January 6, 2010 | 7 Comments

It's cold, but pretty here today, I went hunting in the thicket behind the barn(need some wild grape vine for a craft project). Had a little company. I can tell from the lack of hoof prints, the sheep haven't explored much beyond their feeders in recent days. My walk with the camera and pruning shears sparked some interest and they investigated the thicket with me. Here's some shots for your sheep (and goat and llama) viewing pleasure. copyright 2010, Barbara Parry. All rights reserved. Feel free to share a link to this site. Please do
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Fleece du Jour

January 5, 2010 | 8 Comments

Just a quick post today to share something special. Thought you might enjoy a look at these fleeces before I ship them out for processing. None of them came from my sheep. These were my purchases from the fleece show at the Eastern States Expo in back in September (why I buy fleece, with 85 + sheep shorn here each year is a subject for another day). I scored a lovely colored Border Leicester from Kristen Whittle of Little Brook Farm and two dark brown Romney fleeces from Mary Pratt of Elihu farm in NY (no website that I could
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