Category: Angora Fiber - Trickle Creek Mercantile

Soft, Candied Ribbon

11/12/2016

I loved the colors of the Candy Stripes Luxury Loft but I thought it would also look nice in a muted version. Utilizing the same fine fibers of Candy Stripes I toned it down and named it Candied Ribbon:

Candied Ribbon

This beautiful hand dyed fiber blend is perfect for any season and includes:
Falkland, Merino, Angora Mohair, Tussah Silk, Alpaca, Blue Faced Leicester, Sari Silk, Firestar and Starbright.

To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: Ecclesiastes 3:1

Rustic Roses

10/22/2016

I've been working on another hand dyed, bulky yarn creation and I love the muted colors of the subtle pinks, purples, whites and creams along with the rich and softened browns.

Rustic Roses

This luscious yarn is so soft! With Coopworth, Alpaca and Angora along with silk and some Firestar for flare...it has next to skin softness with just a hint of sparkle against a natural backdrop.
Like fragrant roses climbing an aging wooden fence...

Rustic Roses

Whatever they hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; ...
Ecclesiastes 9:10

Introducing... Luxury Loft Yarns!

8/20/2016

Gratefully, we have moved things out of storage and began finding a place for them in our new home and our spinning supplies have been getting organized! It has been quite some time since I've had a chance to enjoy my wheel. Lil' Miss has kept her wheel handy through the summer and is finding she is an excellent, consistent spinner. Her yarns just keep getting better and she has found a niche spinning for a dear friend of ours...

Snowberry

11/23/2014

This beautiful boy has greatly enriched our homestead. He comes from an extremely loving, natural- rearing focused home (Thank you, Miss Alison) and he has amazingly soft, silky (not cottony) and dense fiber! That excellent start on life makes him especially easy to care for...He can consume vast amounts of greens happily, with only positive effects and is always full of energy! He is the first we've found from another home with this vigor and fiber and he confirms why we strive to raise ours the same. It also shows why smaller numbers can mean more attentiveness to care and higher quality fiber. This continues to be a month of affirmations and support to further hone the focus of our homestead and we're pleased to share such a beautiful example!

Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness. Psalm 29:2

Perfect Fiber Producers

10/27/2014

Lil Miss has a couple of beautiful angora crosses she's willing to offer, for an excellent price, to the right homes.
Both females, these ladies are well mannered and offer the softest fiber blend of breeds.
If you'd like to learn more, leave a comment below (double check your email address) and we'll get back with you!

Fawn and chestnut agouti does (ladies)...

Fun and Education at Schafer Meadows...

10/16/2014

Creative Spinning Batts by Glorious Beginnings.

If you're looking for a way to learn several heritage skills that engage your mind and offer beautiful results, the Schafer Meadows Fiber Arts Festival is just the event to attend. So many willing hearts and hands eager to guide and teach a number of skills to adults and children alike.

'Lil Miss' created a beautiful pot holder while learning basic quilting; was thrilled to make her own mini shawl on a triangle loom; created a background for a future Glorious Beginnings sign with the wet felting class; took home her own mini back strap loom, and practiced her needle felting too!

She didn't participate in all the offerings either, there were paper crafting classes, blending boards for practicing, spinners available for help and support, other needle felting projects, several types of weaving set-ups...it's just a treat! All supplies were provided free of charge and the classes were staged multiple times through the duration of the event. This is the way gatherings should be!

Trash to Treasure

9/11/2014

A mountain of Alpaca Fiber

One of the things important to complete before winter is cleaning and storing your wool. The first steps for wool processing are shearing it from the animal and once it's off, skirting or removing the filthiest parts of the wool from what you'll retain. This year we have over 20 lbs of alpaca fiber most from a friend that has asked us to clean, spin and knit/crochet into gifts for her family. Fiber prep from animals that enjoy rolling in the dirt and rustling through bushes can be a lengthy task and our first step is to remove as much of that dust, dirt, vegetation and second cuts (those shorter pieces that are accidentally cut twice and too short to use) from the fiber before we wash it.

Prairie Girl Pals

8/27/2014

If you'd like a taste of what can be done with Trickle Creek Fiber Batts, check out our latest blessing of creative contribution from Heather Diane's Studio. A dear friend for many years, Heather shows us what's cookin' on her homestead. She's launching herself into natural dyeing and you get to see what's happening behind the scenes as she has been encouraged (maybe even harassed? LOL) to get that spinning wheel humming once again!

Click on that monster mound of wool to learn more...

Fiber lovers come in all shapes and sizes

8/17/2014

Another Trickle Creek Peek!

Once again, we find our farm friends enjoying the joys of quality fiber in a peaceful setting...
She is a bit camouflaged, can you tell what she is?...

Wild Waves of the West

7/27/2014

140 yds, 154 yds, 140 yds, and 102 yds.... Lots of yarn and lots of fun!

We're prepping to demonstrate our spinning and share Angora rabbits again, at the August 1st Orting Farmer's Market, this Friday! We want to be sure to have our examples of what a few colorful batts can create, in various weights. The market begins at 3:00 pm, but we are asked to come at 4:00 pm, to find the perfect spot after vendors have settled in. We stay until closing at 7:00 and enjoy every minute we share! Please join us to see how we harvest fiber from our animals, dye with kitchen items, card fiber, spin and create with it~ it's Wooler to Wearable!

From Fiber to Yarn

7/21/2014

What it takes and what it makes...

We have been asked what quantity of yarn our fiber batts will make. My common response is that it depends on the thickness of your yarn and weight of your batt, and whether you are making a single or plied yarn. To further clarify, we thought it best to share a specific example.

Touring Our Homestead

7/14/2014

We have been busy with several activities in our area meeting, greeting sharing and teaching eager ~new and old~ fiber (and rabbit) lovers. At our booths, quite a few ask us questions on the ins and outs of rearing fiber animals, their feeds, as well as the many and varied ways of working with their glorious fluff! Several are so eager to glean they ask to tour our homestead and get ideas for their own fiber pursuits. We love encouraging and supporting families in these endeavors and this is precisely why we take time to keep our humble website and work to be involved in several public venues...

Grooming Day

6/27/2014

We've had questions regarding accessories for angora care. Today, while grooming 'Coal' we thought it would be great to show what we use!
First we'll introduce 'Coal', he is a beautiful English Angora with a lot to offer. His coat is dense, fine fibered and he joined our rabbitry from a very colorful litter in northern Washington where his Dad took top local awards. He's fathered his first litter and we hope to have a colorful result.

Fine Fiber...Frog?

6/23/2014

We have been having more fun in the studio and combined our favorite variations of greens for another one-of-a-kind fiberlicious, cottony candy creation! 'Mossy Croak' Truly, we love the greens of the forest, ferns, nettles and such that surround us and this creative batt name seemed to jump on into the pictures.

Farmer's MArket

6/20/2014

We were pleased to share our spinning, weaving, crochet, knitting and angoras with our local community on Opening Day of the Orting Farmer's Market. It was fun to reconnect with people we haven't seen in years and meet others, including a few who were visiting from out of state!