Friday, March 27, 2009

Colour Your Spirit

Sunset Sound waves
(Acrylic & Gold leaf on canvas) For sale Enquiries welcome
The weather is changing, well here in the hills it is....lol ! For all of you living in the Northern Hemisphere you are looking forward to Spring and we here on the other side are going into Autumn ! After scorching Summer months with huge dramas of bushfires, things have cooled down considerably here in the hills (maybe started off by those two earthquakes we had in the last couple of weeks...lol...only 4.6 but still an experience...). I have been cleaning, washing and dyeing lots of fleeces and carding a mountain of fibre and having heaps of fun :) Colour does so much to the spirit: even when you might not be feeling well, just looking at a rainbow of colour will brighten your spirits. Whether it is Autumn or Spring, colours will certainly shake out the cobwebs and make you smile :D Hey, maybe Colour has the same effect as chocolate and makes your body produce a lot of Seratonin that makes your brain go all HAPPY :) and hey, we all need a happy brain ! So, here is the next splash to Colour your Spirit !


Hand dyed Blue faced Leicester & Bunny (100g/AU$19)

Sunset (sold)

Spring Flowers (sold)

Sea Monster (sold)

Ocean Grove (sold)

Happy Kangaroo (sold)


Hand dyed Blue Faced Leister/Bunny & Tussah Silk (100g/AU$20)
Sunset Paradise (sold)

Moomba (sold)

Happy Brain (sold)

Crocadile smile (sold)

Kangaroo Hop (sold)

Hand spun & dyed 8 ply Mulberry peace silk (50g/AU$15, 125-150 meters)

Wallaby(180grams available)

Platypus (sold)

Firebird (220 grams available)

Hand spun and dyed Alpaca and Yak

Sky boat sold

Dreaming (sold)


Waca Paca Batts
To see more views of these hand made batts please check my photostream at www.flickr.com/photos/ixchelbunny

Show me the money... (sold)
151 grams/AU$45
alpaca, yak, silk, angelina, glitz, bamboo, soy,
shredded US currency, bunny, baby camel, baby shetland


Lollipop 99grams/AU$35 (sold)
silk, alpaca, yak, camel, soy, bamboo, fancy yarn, glitz

Silk Road 86 grams/AU$29 (sold)
alpaca, yak, silk, angelina, glitz, bamboo, soy


Outback Sunset 134 grams/AU$38 (sold)
alpaca, yak, silk, angelina, glitz, bamboo, soy, fancy yarn, bunny, silk yarn


Borealis (174grams/AU$50) sold
silk, alpaca, yak, camel, soy, bamboo, fancy yarn, glitz, bunny

Friday, March 20, 2009

Old Norwegians and Waca Pacas

Last week there was the story of the Churro, now I am sharing some other ancient sheep breed with you: the Old Norwegian ! This breed represents one of the most primitive kinds of domestic sheep still present in Europe, probably only the feral Soay Sheep at St. Kilda, Scotland are more primitive. The population of Old Norwegian Sheep numbers around 10,000 animals. This number is in great contrast to the situation around 1955, when the breed had almost disappeared, because keeping Old Norwegian Sheep was rather unprofitable until the owners organized themselves in "Norsk Villsaulag". This is an organization working for distribution and trading with wool and meat from the sheep and they are able to pay the members a good price.The production is also ecological since the animals usually graze outside on land with no surplus of fertilizer all year. The careful grazing habit of the Old Norwegian Sheep makes it suitable to keep vegetation away from monuments and ruins and cultural heritage formed by agriculture and other cultivation. Heather, (calluna-heath) is important for winter feeding and the heath needs to be cultivated and the best maintenance of the heath is careful grazing with the Old Norwegian Sheep. The wool from the Old Norwegian has a long staple (up tp 30cm around the neck!) and is around 29micron: excellent for spinning sock wool because of its resilience and crimp. Amazingly easy to spin! and wonderful to knit :)

Also some new hand dyed cashmerino and some very Waca Paca funky batts!!!!

Just stalk me by email or PM on RAV if you want to adopt any of these new born fibre babies :)) Have fun !

Hand dyed Old Norwegian Sheep tops (organic) 100g/3.6oz AU$17

Thor (sold)

Freya(sold)

Eostre(sold)

Wodan (sold)

Skadi (sold)

Bragi(sold)

Fjord (1 left)

WACA PACA BATTS

These funky Art Batts mostly have baby alpaca in them mixed with some yummy silks and lots of other fibres. It is heaven to spin those creative yarns, just by letting the wheel or your spindle do the work :)) I have made three Waca Paca Batts this week and one has come out as a very BIG one, called : Sunset! It is soooo soft you could just cuddle it all night long :)) If you want to have a closer look at the Waca Paca Batts please go to www.flickr.com/photos/ixchelbunny and you can see them in lots more poses :))


Ocean, Waca Paca Batt, 106grams/3.8oz AU$32
Hand dyed baby Alpaca, 18micron merino hand dyed, silk, sari silk, bamboo soy silk fibres, angora bunny, angelina, Glitz, yarn, dove feathers (SOLD)


Mermaid, Waca Paca Batt, 116 grams/4.2oz AU$37 (SOLD)
Hand dyed baby Alpaca, 18microm merino hand dyed, silk, sari silk, bamboo soy silk fibres, baby camel, angora bunny, angelina, Glitz, yarn, dove feathers

Sunset, Super Waca Paca Batt, 184grams/6.6oz AU$52 (sold)
Hand dyed baby Alpaca, silk, sari silk, bamboo soy silk fibres, angelina, Glitz, feathers

New Hand dyed Cashmerino lace weight 1 ply yarn (50g/1.8oz AU$18)

wombat and kangaroo paw

soft bush breeze

coal (SOLD)

Firedance

Rhapsody in jeans

Plum orchard

Flax

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Hand dyed ChurroBunny, Spindles and Tales of Survival

Medicine Man Rug woven in Churro wool, hand spun and hand dyed with natural dyes

This week we have two very special events: Hand dyed Navajo Churro-Bunny tops and the long awaited arrival of Spindlemaker Spindles ! I had many more but some people decided to stalk my Flickr photostream and snaffled a heap before I could even put them up on the blog ! (hint for next time! www.flickr.com/photos/ixchelbunny
Churro sheep
Navajo Churro-Bunny Hand dyed Tops (150-160g/5.6oz AU$23)
The tops that I am offering you this week are very special just like the history they have : The Navajo call them "the Old Ones" and see the Churro sheep as a gift from the Gods. The wool from these sheep are the basis of the Navajo Weaving and also is a wonderful fibre to make socks and ponchos. The sheep were nearly wiped out during the tribe's forced relocation in the 1860s and again in the stock reductions of the 1930s: federal agents just went from hogan to hogan and shot a large percentage of the livestock and horses, more than 250.000 animals were killed and the Churro sheep were almost extinct with fewer than 700 head by 1990! But they are making a comeback, due to the efforts of the Navajo Sheep Project so they can return to their historic place and purpose among the Navajo and that it can benefit the Navajo People. The hand dyed tops that I am offering you here are blends of soft white Churro fleece with Angora Bunny: it makes for a wonderful mix and will make the most wonderful yarn, suited for socks and outerwear as well as sweaters. The Bunny added to the Churro makes it softer to handle and easy to spin. Help in the fight against Extinction of this rare breed.
Ceremonial footprints kekehashchiin (sold)
desert blazing star iitihii (sold)
existence hahaleeh (sold)
falling star naaltsid (sold)
fire dance nashjingo hataal (sold)
mud dancers chaashzini (sold)
nightfall chahalhee (sold)
rain beetle nitsgao (sold)
sky border yakdashbaah (sold)
The singing way Hataal (sold)
Spindlemaker spindles
All spindles are hand turned by the Master John Reeves himself ! and He has done some amazing ones again! Every spindle comes with a special Ixchel Fibre as well :)) Just stalk me when you want to adopt one ...or more :))
blackbean whorl blackwood shaft 60g sold
blackwood whorl myrtle shaft 26g (sold)
budgeroo whorl mulga shaft 37g (sold)
huon pine 30g (sold)
huon pine whorl NG ebony shaft 38g (sold)
Jarrah whorl sheok shaft 67g (SOLD)
myrtle 31g sold
myrtle 43g (sold)
myrtle whorl tiger myrtle shaft 23g (sold)
New Hand dyed Angorino Tops (95% 18 micron merino, 5% angora Bunny) AU$19
Woodelves revisited (sold)
Blue Rainbow (sold)
Happy Bun (sold)
Wolf Spirit
Funky Bunny Batt Club#1
The subscription is for a period of three months and you will receive one funky bunny batt per month. All batts will be especially made for the members of Funky Bunny Batt Club ! Each Funky Bunny Batt will have luscious amounts of our organic English Angora Bunny in it combined with 15micron merino and loads of other fun and fine stuff like : our Australian Cashmere fibre and Australian Heritage mohair even YAK and Baby Camel and always a very special new fibre! and ofcourse there will be some bling added to it as well. Every Batt will weigh approximately 100grams(=3.6oz) and will have extra surprise additions that you can use to spin with or……hmmm…just enjoy while spinning :)) ! Sign up now and you will receive a Funky Bunny Batt in April, May and June ! Price to join the Funky Bunny Club #1 and receive your special Bunny Batt + surprise :)) for three months is AU$105 + postage (parcel post or airmail) so in short: For Australia : $105+$12.60 postage (parcel post) For USA + Canada: AU$105+AU$28 (Airmail) For the UK: AU$105+AU$33 (airmail) For Asia: AU$105+AU$24 (airmail) If you want to be surprised every month with a super luscious luxuriously SOFT Funky Bunny Batt, then join the FUNKY BUNNY BATT CLUB now. Numbers are strictly limited due to the labour intensity of making the batts and the rarity of the fibres used! Payment via direct deposit or card. Just PM or email me your details and be part of the Funky Bunny Experience :))
Ixchel Fibre Club #1
The subscription is for a period of three months and you will receive one special hand dyed top/roving per month to the value of AU$20 !All the tops will be hand dyed and will be especially made for the members of Ixchel Fibre Club ! Every month you will receive a surprise blend of hand dyed tops and an extra surprise ! Sign up now and you will receive an Ixchel Hand dyed special top in April, May and June ! Price to join the Ixchel Fibre Club #1 and receive your special hand dyed top + surprise :)) for three months is AU$60 + postage (parcel post or airmail) so in short: For Australia : $60+$12.60 postage (parcel post) For USA + Canada: AU$60+AU$28 (Airmail) For the UK: AU$60+AU$33 (airmail) For Asia: AU$60+AU$24 (airmail) If you want to receive a fibre surprise every month then join the IXCHEL FIBRE CLUB now. Numbers are strictly limited !