Snow Day!!!

Fifteen inches of snow yesterday. I couldn't sleep because the snow kept avalanching off our yurt roof creating a racket and branches were snapping everywhere in the forest. We took the day off and played in the snow.

Mr. Jeebs checking out the snow goddess. He later ate her carrot nose and hazelnut nipples!

Hood thinks he's a snow leopard.

On the Farm in 2012

We were gifted some rabbits by a friend last week. This is our new buck and doe bunnies in their rabbit tractor. The tractor keeps them contained but allows them to pasture on the grass. We are raising them for meat and will be employing them as lawnmowers and fertilizers around our home.

Not all rabbits get along but these two are lovers. We will have to remove the doe in a month though when she gives birth so that she has a private, safe space to raise her young. Rabbits are prolific breeders and because of this, an efficient sustainable source of meat and furs.

The sheep and goats are eager to get out of this paddock and graze in their new electric portable fence enclosure that we bought them for winter solstice. This will allow us to move them about the farm to browse and forage on fresh grass and blackberry leaves without having to worry about them devouring our fruit trees or wandering down to the neighbors house. Just waiting on the fence to arrive in the mail. The two goats and one sheep are all pregnant and due in March.

Here are a few of our chickens in their chicken tractor tilling and fertilizing the soil. These three are at the bottom of the pecking order and so the other chickens won't allow them to sleep in the coop. Instead they were roosting in the trees and getting picked off by the great horned owls around our farm. The chicken tractor gives them a safe space to live.

Last but not least, our micro-herds. Red wiggler worms in our worm bin turning our compost into rich soil. Not pictured but also in this bin are black soldier fly larva. I'm researching a system to raise these in a separate bucket as a form of protein for our chickens. I'll post a blog when I get that project finished. Happy 2012!

New Plans for a New Year

BikeCraft 2011 was a hit. I sold a lot of caps for low prices to make room for some new caps for 2012. I've been making cycling caps for 7 years now and I have thought about quitting a number of times. I have also thought about going "big time" by having my caps mass produced in a factory. Neither option sounded like the right path to take. I must admit that I get really bored sewing the same thing over and over. This is partly why I considered quitting. Yet, I want to create hats that are well made with attention to detail. Basically I want to produce something that I feel proud to put my name on. What keeps things interesting for me is always innovating and creating new, one-of-a-kind caps. For 2012 I'm planning to make a few revisions to my caps. Below are photos of these new features that I feel make for a more quality cycling cap.

All of my wheely, 3 panel, and 8 panel caps will feature a wider cotton headband 3/4" in size. This covers the seam better for a more finished look and makes a more sweat absorbing headband. In this photo you can see another new feature which is, that all the headbands are then top stitched with a heavier weight thread for durability and style. This will be done on all the above mentioned caps with earflaps and without.

This photo shows the interior of two earflap caps. A wheely cap and a 3 panel cap with earflaps added. Notice the thicker headband and double top stitching to hold the headband in place.

All of my Alpine caps will feature a liner inside made from either thin merino wool knit or thin polyester knit. This makes the caps have a more refined look and more warmth due to the second layer of fabric. I am discontinuing the "Reversible" Alpine cap style that I used to produce because although they are reversible, they don't fit as nicely when reversed and they are a pain to sew because the reverse side of the cap never seems to line up centered with the bill. The Alpine cap is my most expensive cap due to the cost of the new fabric used to line each cap and the added time it takes to sew each cap. I have seen other hat makers produce a similar style of cap but all to often they tend to have poorly shaped bills, earflaps that don't actually cover your ears, or an overall poor fit. I feel that my Alpine cap is a superior style of winter riding cap. I will be posting more new caps in my shop in the coming weeks. So please check back to see what is new. Also you can expect a website overhaul for 2012. Happy Holidays!

Visit Bike Craft 2011

I will be selling my caps at BikeCraft again this year. The event will take place next weekend Dec. 3rd - 4th at Sandbox Studios 420 NE 9th Ave. Portland, OR. Check out the BikeCraft website for more info. I am in the process of revamping my hats and website for 2012. The plan is to introduce a more refined line of caps with more attention to detail and quality. The hat styles will mostly remain the same. Because of this I will be having a sale on all of my older caps at BikeCraft and selling some of the newer caps as well. Hope to see you there! Happy Holidays.

Frosty Morning

We had a clear, cold night on Saturday. This is photo of the heavy frost the next morning. The sheep don't mind it with their heavy coats of wool.

Here is the interior of my not so spacious trailer studio. I still have yet to buy white fabric to line the interior with so the ugly bubble wrap insulation isn't showing. I've fully moved in and begun sewing work again.

Moving into My New Studio!

With the majority of my vardo finished, I decided it was time to reveal it to the world from it's hiding place behind the barn. We hooked it up to the tractor and towed it out next to our yurt.

My new office. Just a few steps from the front door of our home. My front window looks NE toward Washington. I started moving my supplies in but I need to do some downsizing, as this thing is a little less spacious than the old Shasta trailer. Gotta go. Lots of hats to make for the holidays!

window and door installed