the Silly Season

Silly season bunny

It must be THAT time of the year. I always have too many things to do to fit in a day but December just brings out the champion of chaos in me.. Apart from the usual spinning and carding and dyeing of fibres and taking care of the fluffy inhabitants living here , all of a sudden I give myself more chores to do. Ofcourse some were absolutely necessary: like get a new fishtank to house our beloved oxalotl in who was enjoying his fresh fish a little bit too much! For those of you who do not know these animals: they are part of the salamander family and are also called the Mexican walking fish. They are odd looking , I think very pretty and well, strange almost prehistoric. The time was there to separate him from his pantry of fish though because every day in the last week the fishtank was looking more and more empty with strange disappearing acts of my catfish, the zebras and even a rainbow barb! Narky as the barb was, he was amazing with his colourings. Bad Oxalotl ! I mean it is not like I don’t feed him. I guess that it's nature . So now Oxy as I call him is in his tank all rigged out with nice little hiding places , rocks and plants. He will just have to adapt to the new diet (worms and pellets and the occasional frozen fish).

Oxalotls are on the endangered species list and only found living in a single lake in mexico.

They are not rare as pets I don't think though, which is strange for an endangered species. They are very important to scientific study I found out, capable of total limb regrowth and full regenerative ability. they also stay in premature form the entire life span, even though they become sexualy mature while in a larval like state. Bearing in mind that sometimes they are known for complete metamorphesis (E or A? I think a but whatever) completely changing form spontaniously into a salamander looking species with spots.

Im just feeding it whatever I find and think it would eat in the wild, worms small'ish fish, prawns etc (live). they are like half lizard, half fish, half frog with plants on there heads, but they are amphibians.


Strange creatures.

Oxalotl

handfelted oxalotl

Apart from the fishy business I did venture out to hunt for a christmas tree. And what a hunt it was: all sold out or just too blooming expensive. I did want something though. So in the end I got a small wollemi silver streak pine. It is amazingly velvety to the touch (unlike the European xmas trees!) and it looks so cute. Ofcourse it is not a 5 foot tree but hey, it is the thought that counts..lol I still have to decorate but that is on the agenda this afternoon and since it is only tiny , less to decorate..lol
By the way, the Wollemi pine is one of the rarest and oldest trees and the species was only discovered ten years ago by a bushwalker near Sydney !

Woolemy pine australian native silver streak

I have been busy with handspinning and dyeing again this week : on offer are some amazingly soft baby camel and angora rabbit yarns and at a 110meters per 50grams they go a long way! As for tops I have the amazing superwash blue faced Leicester with cashmere tops ! They are so airy and soft they look like organised fairyfloss !

So without keeping you on the edge of your seats: get ready to drool and snaffle! There is only a small supply of …so please contact me by email (ixchel@rabbit.com.au) or on www.ravelry.com where I am Ixchelbunny or even message me on www.flickr.com where I am also known as Ixchelbunny. Drum roll !!!!!!!!!! here is this weeks fibre update !!!!!

Have a great week !
((hugs)) Charly

hand spun and hand dyed IxCHeL Baby camel and angora rabbit (90/10)
110 meters per 50grams
4-8ply
AU$25/50grams+

three sisters

Cradle mountain

Mandaley light

Treetop walk

Mandaley dark

Bibbulmun

Galah

hilltop lookout

deep river

Kata Tjuta

Hand dyed Blue faced Leicester Superwash /Cashmere (90/10) tops
AU$24/100g

Rosella rainbow

kangaroo paw

Honey eater

Ocean Road

Fiesta

Penguin parade

Thanks heaps for your support and have fun!

RABBIT ON!!


Dates to Remember:

Bunny Spin in at the Ixchel Fibre Farm:

Saturday 18th of December (that is TOMORROW!) and Thursday the 23rd of December
Bring your wheel, spindle, knitting, crocheting and a plate to share with everybody. There is cake and coffee and tea and a lovely bunny to cuddle and lots of fibres and yarn!) very important ! Please let me know beforehand by email or message that you would like to come and visit so I can prepare the infrastructure and cake ofcourse !