Bendigo Super Party !

Bendigo Show 2013 fluff to dive in !

A week has almost passed since the Bendigo Show 2013 and I am still on cloud nine..that is how absolutely amazing and fantastic it was. There were a few hiccups, like I kind of noticed when I arrived with my Tardis full of goodies that there was a HUGE sheep tent placed almost in front of our flower shed in the wool craft section..I have to admit..it worried me…we are already one of the last woolcraft sheds at the show, a bit out of the way, so any obstacle placed to obstruct the fibre fans , is in my opinion not a really good idea. Not to worry, its not like Superman would appear and grab the big structure and pull it gently out of the ground to pop it somewhere else , was he? So off I went, unloaded , set up with the aid of two gorgeous girls from the black and coloured sheep group and the fabulous Kylie Bradshaw, who was so undeterred to give me a hand that even a stupid tram hitting her stationary car !! could not keep her away from the show! Thank you all so much you fabulous fibre fans: I couldn’t have done it without you and would probably still have been setting up on Saturday morning…lol. The determination of fibre fans was amazing over the whole weekend! In all the years our little bunny fibre farm has been going to the Bendigo Show (I think a 10year anniversary is almost coming along!) I have never seen such a wet, windy and COLD Bendigo Show and still the people kept coming! It was amazing, truly amazing, how many old and new friends came by to conquer the cold in order to do some serious fluffy wool diving in the Flower Power Bunny Shed! Again, thank you, thank you , thank you all so much. I would not be able to do what I do and be a mum to so many wonderful angora bunnies without all of you supporting our little fibre farm. Thank you !

Every year we have a raffle at the show for all of you who spend over a certain amount : this year Bear has choses four winners. Because you already had to wait so long to read who was picked because of the flickr website being down (making sad face for the bad timing..) here are the winners of the Bendigo Show 2013 IxCHeL raffle:

Winner of the $150 Stash Pack goes to: Julia Jeffery from Wondai in Queensland !!! Yeah !!!! congratulations! Your fluffy stash will be sent next Monday !

Winner of a 2 months membership of the funky bunny batt club goes to: Nicole Anderson from Montmorency in Victoria ! Happy spinning Nicole! Your first funky bunny batt will be sent to you in August !

Winner of the 2 month membership of the IxCHeL sock it to me yarn club goes to: Vicki Judd from Boronia in Victoria !!!! Your first yarn will hop your way together with a sock pattern in August! Happy knitting Vicki!

Winner of the 2 month membership of the Fibre Club goes to; Leeana Gardiner from Gordon ACT. Your first Fibre club will be posted to you in August ! Happy hoppy spinning !!!!

Well, that was exciting ! All of the people who entered in the raffle and wrote down their email address or RAV name, will receive a special message from me in the next week with a special thank you note and something special to thank them for their support over the years ! Again, supporting little farms and small businesses is very very important. You are not only supporting a business, you are supporting the promotion of rare breeds, creativity, self sustainability, craft and treading lightly on the earth. Thank you all so much !

In the week, well 5 days, I have been home now, it has been full on, trying to answer over 200 emails and messages and orders, not to mention trying to finish custom orders and shipping them out…I didn’t really have a time to relax or sleep in yet, although I desperately wanted to…but you know what happens when you say to yourself “I can sleep in a bit now”..you wake up at 4.30am…right….lol

On offer this week are some extra special Cashmere flings, my brand new apron designs, the happy bunny patchwork kit (an amazingly fun stocking filler for those among you already thinking of Christmas…..aaaargh!) and paj silk felt kits to make an amazing shawl or two scarves ! Anything goes ! Well, allons-y Dr Who would say ! Enjoy the fluffy and crafty offerings of this week and have a wonderful happy hoppy weekend ! Rabbit On !!!

Bendigo show 2013

Just so you know…this was the SECOND DAY stash to be had……!!! There were an unbeliebavle amount of fibre fans snaffling aawaay on the Friday already ! wow!!!

How To Order:You can email me on ixchel at rabbit dot com dot au or message me on facebook or ravelry where I am Ixchelbunny. I will email you right back with all your order details and payment methods. Any questions? Please don’t hesitate to ask! Always happy to enable.

Thank you so much for your help and support !

(((HUGS)))

Charly

Cashmere Fling Tops

A wonderful blend of Cashmere, tencel, glitz and bamboo that will make your mouth water ! and is so yummy to spin !
100grams AU$22

Man of Steel -1 left-

Fashion -sold-

Fame -sold-

Boys keep swinging-sold-

Dancing out in space -1 left-

heroes -1 left-

Valentines day -2left-

Tin can-1left-

the laughing gnome-sold-

Teenage wiildlife -sold-

Relaxed gorgeous alien -sold-

Oh you pretty thing-sold-

Paj Silk Felt Kits

Paj silk (5.5Momie) is excellent for nuno felting and as a base for embellishing as well. The silk in the kit measures 114cm x 2.2meters !!! and can make a beautiful wrap or two scarves! Also included in the kit ios matching angorino top , angora bunny top and lots of instructions. A great gift or to make yourself something stunning !
Paj Silk felt kit AU$52

ZEN-sold-

Indigo dyed -sold-(

Australian outback

Alice in Wonderland-sold-

 

IxCHeL embroidered Aprons

A one size fits all 100% cotton apron, embroidered here at the farm! In some funny bunny designs. You can choose white, red or green embroidery on a red or black apron. The apron has two big pockets at the front aas well. A great gift for any lover of bunnies, alice in wonderland, spinning or knitting !
Rabbit on ! aprons AU$29.95, Alice in Wonderland themed aprons with an intricate embroidery design $39.95

Rabbit on! Apron

We are all mad here(

if you don’t know where you are going…

follow the white rabbit…
 

Happy bunny patchwork kits

three gorgeous fabrics, a bunny button and pattern
only AU$9

Happy bunny kit

Dates to Remember:

The black and coloured Sheep breeders Associations of Victoria 2013
Sunday 29th-September 2013 from 9.30am to 3 pm

Watch the IxCheL bunny with heaps of new fluffy stuff and in full bunny regalia !!

Cranbourne Public Hall (near KFC….),

Join me in all the fun ! There will be a huge amount of new blends and fibres to choose from. More info coming soon !!!

RABBIT ON !

((hugs))

Charly

The Bendigo Show Manic Panic

Master “Yoda” Bear in a starring role

It is all happening: spinning for the Bendigo Show, spinning the Tour de Fleece yarns , dyeing, wooshing (yeah yeah more on that later), batt making, label making, braiding…everything is in full swing for the Bendigo Show starting on Friday the 19th of July. That's NEXT WEEK!!!! The drying of the dyed tops and fibres are proving to be difficult because it is not only wet but also freezing cold here so all that is dyed up is hanging in the living room …everywhere: on clothes horses and acting as curtains, hanging colourfully on the curtain rods. Why need curtains when you have wool blend colourful tops ?

Standing still is going backwards , somebody somewhere said, so I am going to introduce a lot of new products at the Bendigo show this year:  lots of new wool blends! Pre felts, paj silk nuno felt kits, even happy bunny patchwork kits!, bunny buttons, bunny beads and last but not least loads of EMBROIDERED aprons and more! all in the bunny or spinning theme! There is even a steampunk spinning wheel ! And ofcourse THE WOOSH and our funky bunny batts and yarns, lots of them!!

I have had a lot of fun creating this wooshy fibre cloud . They are going to be so much fun to spin and felt with ! and even more fun trying to figure out a way to capture the cloud and package it. I think most people do not realise this but when you are a small farm it is not only taking care of the animals and spinning and dyeing, it is making labels, shipping, printing, packaging, finding new ways of labelling and packaging , thinking up names for the products and every baby in the new fibre and yarn flock and I haven’t even started on the book keeping of it all. In this reality the word multitasking doesn’t even start to explain how my days here are filled and filled to the brim very easily I might add.

Ofcourse this time of year is always a more than mad dash to try and get lots of stuff done and I don’t kow about you, but I feel this year has just flown ! At the speed of light ! I cannot believe it is almost mid july already and the Bendigo show is happening NEXT WEEK ! to quote Dr Who: “Don’t Blink!!”

So, you wanna know about the Woosh eh? the Woosh’s almost all prepared ready to be presented at the Bendigo Show in their Star Wars Light Saber like packaging (hence the photo at the top of this blog..I was giggling so much when I was making that packaging I just couldn’t resist putting our Bear Bunny in the starring role of Yoda ;) yes, I’m just having too much fun…lol Anyway, If you already like batts, The Woosh’s are awesome ! Hand dyed and wooshed and so fun to spin ! It is so much fun !!!!!!

Escaping Wooshy cloud

Another one inspired by Clouds” there is a Dutch artist Berndnaut Smilde who creates clouds INDOORS! So kind of like a Woosh! Lol Seems like The Woosh is Everywhere !

The artist carefully regulates the temperature and humidity of the space, ensuring that conditions are perfect. Then, he sprays a short burst from a fog machine to create a cottony cloud suspended in the middle of the room for just an instant before it collapses.

More on his creations here as well were posted in the online Washington Post and a neat video made by the Noordhollands Dagblad with the name “Wolk in de Kerk”(=Cloud in the Church).

He is calling these cloud creations “Nimbus”…Wooshy eh? ;)

Check out the video here:

Or here:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/arts-post/post/artist-berndnaut-smilde-creates-indoor-clouds/2012/03/13/gIQA7yAT9R_blog.html

And more on his work here: http://www.berndnaut.nl

I might try this at home, since the humidity is  super high and freezing cold...hmmm SNOW INSIDE ! Now that's a thought! ..:)

For this weeks blog there are some wooshes on offer. They are extremely hard to photograph in their light saber packaging… ! Well, Have fun looking at what I have been wooshing up this week for you !

How To Order:You can email me on ixchel at rabbit dot com dot au or message me on facebook or ravelry where I am Ixchelbunny. I will email you right back with all your order details and payment methods. Any questions? Please don’t hesitate to ask! Always happy to enable.

Thank you so much for your help and support !

(((HUGS)))

Charly

Wooshy Clouds

There are 4 colour ways on offer this week.Enjoy! So what is a Woosh? …..Unwrap the Wooshy Cloud; Stand before it & there is no beginning…Follow it & there is no end; Pluck all the wondrous fibres from the Woosh & create your artwork.
May the Woosh be with you...always!
Ingredients: Angora, 18m merino, Blue Faced Leicester, Cashmere, Tencel, Silk,Glitz, Angelina, Wool nepps, Navajo Churro, Alpaca, Yak, kid mohair, Mink
  
100-130 grams AU$28

Flower Garden Woosh

Strawberry Woosh (
sorry about the crappy photo but this woosh really misbehaved and didnt want to be photographed it seemed..lol)

Sea Scape Woosh

Outback Woosh

This is how the Strawberry Wooshy Cloud spins up.
This photo was taken by my phone so it seems less vibrant red as in real life ! Making mental note to improve photography skills after Bendigo Show (AND START THE WEBSITE!!!!...)

Dates to Remember:

The Bendigo Sheep and Wool Show 2012
Friday 19th-Sunday 21nd of July

I will be in the Flower (bunny) shed again this year with heaps of new fluffy stuff and in full bunny regalia !!

This year it is even going to BIGGER and more HUGE than ever !!! Come join the Happy Fibre Family at the Flower Power Bunny Shed at the Bendigo Show grounds. You can find me and heaps of other super creative and interesting spinning and knitting and craft people there. The Flower Power Bunny shed is the shed right at the end of the woolcraft sheds. Just go left immediately after the entrance gates and keep walking straight to the end (follow the carrots and the bunnies ! )

Join me in all the fun ! There will be a huge amount of new blends and fibres to choose from and last but not least: There are prizes to be won!!!!! Spend over $75 and have a chance to win a $150 fibre or yarn pack!!!  and a  chance to win IxCHeL club memberships  !!

DRESS LIKE A BUNNY AND WIN A PRIZE!

The woolcraft schedule is published and the IxCHeL Fibre farm is sponsoring a catergory this year in the handspun yarn classes in Natural Animal Fibres class 23 and 24 !!! We feel it is very important to get the word out . Angora fibre and cashmere and mohair and alpaca and baby camel is amazing to spin, felt, weave, embellish and crochet with! Start planning and working on your entry for the show and get your art work out there for everybody tot admire and win prizes !! yeah ! What could be better eh?

Check out the website here for more details : www.sheepshow.com and for questions relating to the woolcraft schedule and more contact Dot Vallence at Dotv5 at optusnet dot com dot au

Any questions or special requests?

Contact me on Ravelry where I am Ixchelbunny,

message me on facebook

or email me on Ixchelbunny@yahoo.com.au or ixchel@rabbit.com.au

RABBIT ON !

((hugs))

Charly

All Yarn is Good !

Bunny falling through the rabbit hole…

The Tour de France is in full motion: already the 7tth stage tonight and I have managed to spin each and every night. That means at least one skein per night depending on the type of yarn I have prepped to spin.

It’s kind of like cooking: I get all the ingredients ready..picking colours, extra fancy additions like hand sewn bunnies with tiny moveable legs and arms and embroidered happy faces, hand dyed batik fabric or spinning 4ply pure angora during the time trial to get the speed to match the men in lycra competing for the yellow jersey…

Every night is another challenge ! and lots of fun. Craft is just like sport or life for that matter: set yourself goals, stick with them, get things done and most of all have fun!
Every thing you do is good: there are no rules..except the ones you make. Do not let anybody tell you that you spin wrong or that there is only one type of yarn: a lace weight, very thinly spun, absolutely even without mistakes. No, that would just mean "yarn discrimination".  Every yarn is yarn. From the superfine laceweight to the chunky art yarns with bits and bobs spun in them. …
And sometimes it is just good to change the parameters of your spinning! If you tend to spin fine all the time, change the pace to spin some slubby or art yarns and you will be amazed what your hands and feet can do by just changing the cadence and the speed and the motion. It will teach you that anything goes, that all yarns are “Yarns”and good fun and most of all : it will refresh the way you spin and create. You may even get new ideas for garments and accessories! And from those new ideas, you get new energy and your craft will be invigorated together with your body and mind.

I know it can be a difficult call when you have been trying so hard to get your first spun yarn that looked all chunky and bumpy and uneven to mature into that yarn that is even almost machine made and “perfect”, but….once you have the elements of spinning under your belt and you can become “one with your wheel” you can see that you can manipulate your fibre in such a way that an art yarn can be balanced and beautiful and expressive and useable! It can create the most magical scarves and shawls and in weaving it is absolute magic! Just look at all the fabulous things that you can see being accomplished with Saori weaving at the moment. Yes, there is another addiction: weaving ..lol

So, in short, my motto is, all yarn is yarn, all yarn is good and Anything goes ! Have fun with your craft and colour your Spirit ! Here are some art yarns I did during the first 6 stages of the Tour de France. Enjoy!

first stage of the Tour:
Vampire heart yarn: IxCHeL vampire bunny tops
plied with shredded video tape and added silk padded love hearts…

Second stage in Corsica needed some bunnies!
Teeny tiny itsy bitsy yellow polka dot bunnies in fact with moveable arms and legs!
Spun on an IxCHeL Lush Bunny top …

the third stage saw Simon Gerrans win the stage! Yeah !!!
and I spun some pure angora bunny yarn.

On the fourth stage a time trial , my goal was to spin and ply 200grams of angora bunny..
I only made it to 150grams but…finished the last 50grams
while watching the interviews and the ceremony….so that is okay…..lol …

fifth stage to Marseille we go!
Here is another art yarn made with naked IxCHeL vampire tops
and classy black and white hand sewn teeny tiny bunnies !…

Yesterdays windy stage to Montpellier called for the colours of the Provence: so I picked an autumnal range and added some bison and silk to the mix together with some hand dyed batik fabric.…

I don’t know yet what tonights stage of the Tour from Montpellier to Albi will bring..but Im sure it’s going to be exciting…;-)…

Busy during the day with dyeing and organising new fabulous fibery stuff and at night spinning along with the Tour, doesn’t leave me much time to rest (or sleep). The stock room is slowly but surely filling up with colourful tops and fibre and yarns and all kinds of wild and wonderful stuff. The problem that I am facing now is not that I do not have anything to offer you, but what! Today I am offering some very nice slubby handspun in an appr 12ply in angorino (17micron merino with angora and cashmere!) for a very special price ! Enjoy: there is only a very limited stock so email me when you want to own those skeins of fluff you like and I will get right back to you ! Next week is the last weekend before Bendigo show and I think it will be time for some serious fun ! I will be offering you some awesome Funky bunny batts and …Wooshes!!!! Yes !

Also please be aware , and this also goes for all you IxCHeL club members out there as well: it is the last chance to sign up for all my clubs this week until the 8th of July! The next three months of clubs are going to be awesome (yes, eeeeevil plans are brewing..lol)

 

Please feel free to contact me at any time if you have any questions or requests : always happy to enable.Please know that I still do custom spinning and dyeing but all the custom orders can only be started after the Bendigo show.

How To Order from this Shop blog and support the IxCHel Fibre Farm:

You can email me on ixchel at rabbit dot com dot au or Ixchelbunny@yahoo.com.au or message me on facebook or ravelry where I am Ixchelbunny. I will email you  or message you right back with all your order details and payment methods. Any questions? Please don’t hesitate to ask! Always happy to enable !

Payment : direct bank deposit, card or paypal ! easy !

(((HUGS)))

Charly

Slubby Angorino Yarn

This unique IxCHeL blend of superfine merino, angora and cashmere handspun and hand dyed into a slubby 12ply with appr. 75meters per 50 grams !
 

50grams    for  an amazing special price of........AU$12   !!

Alice meets the Caterpillar

Heather

Moss Queen

 

Queen of Hearts

 

Rainbow

 

Zombies and Mermaids

Zen

Romantic

 

Bunny Buttons !!

12 cute wooden bunny buttons . Size: 19mmx17mm
 

for an amazing ......AU$5

IxCHeL Club sign ups are Open until the 8th of July!

The IxCHeL clubs sign ups are open!! for the fibre, yarn, mini skein and batt clubs for July, August and September 2013! Here is all the nitty gritty:

 

IxCHeL Fibre Club July, August and September 2013

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$22 , and as all of you past members know you get tops that are usually around $24 ! so it is a great deal!

All the tops will be hand dyed and will be especially made for the members of Ixchel Fibre Club ! Price to join the Ixchel Fibre Club #17 and receive your special hand dyed top :)) for three months (July-August-September) is AU$66 + postage (parcel post or airmail). AND there are good value double serves available !!!

 

For Australia : single serve $66+$24 postage (parcel post), double serve $120+$24

For USA + Canada: single serve AU$66+AU$45 (Airmail) double serve AU$120+AU$45

For UK,Europe, rest of the world: Single serve AU$66+AU$58 (airmail) Double serve AU$120+AU$58

For Asia: Single serve AU$66+AU$36 (airmail) Double serve AU$120+AU$36

If you want to receive a fibre surprise every month then join the IXCHEL FIBRE CLUB #17 now. Numbers are strictly limited ! Deadline for signing up for fibre club #17 is July 8th! And the first instalment is going to be shipped out end of July. Payment via direct deposit or credit card or paypal. Just PM or email me your details

 

The IxCHeL Sock Yarn Club July, August and September 2013

Every month for three months (July, August and September 2013) you will receive: enough hand dyed luscious yummy yarn to make a pair of socks or a lush shawl or scarf ofcourse! (the hand dyed yarn will be exclusive for the Ixchelbunny SOCK-IT-TO-ME Yarn CLUB and will range from a sockweight yarn or a 3ply or a 4 ply); Every month a new sock pattern, tips and instructions ! Now is that GOOD or is that GOOD ??!

I will even offer a double serve for those of you who like their socks extra long

 

For Australia : single serve $78+$24 postage (parcel post) double serve $130 (= one skein FREE!!!) +$24

For USA + Canada: single serve AU$78+AU$45 (Airmail) double serve $130 (= one skein FREE!!!) +AU$45

For UK,Europe, rest of the world: Single serve AU$78+AU$54 (airmail) Double serve $130 (= one skein FREE!!!) +AU$54

For Asia: Single serve AU$78+AU$36 (airmail) Double serve $130 (= one skein FREE!!!) +AU$36

 

Numbers are strictly limited ! Deadline for signing up for the Ixchelbunny SOCK-IT-TO-ME Yarn CLUB! is July 8th.

Payment via direct deposit or credit card or paypal . Just PM or email me your details 

  By the way: you don’t HAVE to knit socks if you don’t want to.. the hand dyed yarn is amazingly nice for scarves, cowls, beanies and even tops ! Anything goes .

 

IxCHeL Mini skein Club July, August and September 2013

Every month I will be offering a monthly exclusive IxCHeL mini skein selection for Club members. In that monthly selection there are 12 hand dyed miniskeins that are hand dyed and or even hand spun and awesome to add to your mini skein projects.

Here are all the details for the sign ups for the IxCHeL Mini Skein Club:

For Australia : single serve $69+$24 postage (parcel post) double serve $130 (=even a better deal!) +$24

For USA + Canada: single serve AU$69+AU$45 (Airmail) double serve $130 (even a better deal!) +AU$45

For UK,Europe, rest of the world: Single serve AU$69+AU$54 (airmail) Double serve $130 (even a better deal!)+AU$54

For Asia: Single serve AU$69+AU$36 (airmail) Double serve $130 (even a better deal!)+AU$36

 

Numbers are strictly limited ! Deadline for signing up for the IxCHeL Mini Skein Club is July 8th. The first Club mini skeins will be sent out end of July. Payment via direct deposit or credit card or paypal. Just PM or email me your details

 

IxCHeL Funky Bunny Batt Club July, August and Septmebre 2013

Here are all the details and just pm me when you have any questions or want to be part of the funky bunny batt club Movement ;-) Welcome to the blingy dark side ;-D

The subscription is for a period of three months and you will receive one special hand dyed funky bunny batt per month to the value of AU$32 or more .

The batts will range in weight from 100grams to 150grams with luxury fibres like camel , angora, cashmere, silk, yak, llama even wolf and bison this time ! All the batts will be hand dyed and will be especially made for the members of Ixchel funky bunny Club ! Every month you will receive a HUGE luxury funky bunny batt !

Sign up now and you will receive an Ixchel Hand dyed , super luxurious funky bunny batt for July, Augsut and September 2013 !

Price to join the Ixchel Funky bunny for three months is :

For Australia : $96+$24 postage (parcel post)

For USA + Canada: AU$96+AU$45 (Airmail)

For UK,Europe, rest of the world: AU$96+AU$54 (airmail)

For Asia: AU$96+AU$36 (airmail)

If you want to receive a fibre surprise every month then join the IXCHEL FUNKY BUNNY Batt CLUB now. Numbers are strictly limited ! Deadline for signing up for the funky bunny batt club July 8th and the first installment is going to be shipped out end of July 2013 :) Payment via direct deposit or credit card or paypal. Just PM or email me

Dates to Remember

BENDIGO SHEEP AND WOOL SHOW!

Friday 19th of July, Saturday 20th of July and Sunday 21st of July

This is the Ultimate Fibre and fun mix of them all! There will be lots of new things on offer at my IxCHeL stall ofcourse, with prizes to be won and lots of fun to be had!

This is the place to support farmers, fibre producers and independant "Indie" dyers and crafters and have some great fun discovering new things and even win prizes !

In the flower Power Bunny Shed there will be some extra surprises and new things happening as well !!! new fibres, blends, colours, soft fluffy things to spin, weave, felt, sew!, embellish! And there will be our delish Buddhas tears tea again as well ! And badges! and buttons ! and…Pre Felts ready to embellish or make into your special garments ! Its all happening !!!!
Also some VERY NEW EXCITING IxCHeL products !!!!!! Don't miss out and visit the Flower Power Bunny Shed at the bendigo Showgrounds! !

There is a woolcraft schedule available at the farm or you can email Dot : Dotv5@optusnet.com.au. 

Entries for your fiber art closed on June 14th and there are lots of prizes to be won!
Our little IxCHeL fibre farm is sponsoring sections 24 and 25 so I hope you got your entry in to win some very yummy stuff !

Any questions or requests?
Contact me on Ravelry where I am Ixchelbunny, message me on facebook

or email me on Ixchelbunny@yahoo.com.au or ixchel@rabbit.com.au

RABBIT ON !
 ((hugs))

Charly