my stuff

It's been a long week. Princess #2 had the flu and I missed two days of work. This in turn gave me a little time to inventory. It's Imbolc, time of new beginnings; the earth is composting winter's dredge into a fertile bed just in time for Spring. It's a time to take stock, and to let go of things we no longer need.
Here is the extent of my stash. All the stuff I didn't like - there wasn't much - I threw directly into the garbage: a little dark autumn colored fun fur, a wierd lacy ball of orange and brown I got from my ex's girlfriend (blech!), and bits and scraps too covered with dog hair to salvage. The result (all tidied up for the picture):
You can see it's not much, but there are some nice colors there. In general I'm more drawn to clear, rich colors that sing; I'm not into subtle or dusty tones, though sweet, clear pastels are sweet in their candy colored goodness. My tastes really swing with the seasons.
The bundle of white in the basket on the right came from a thrift store, except the largish ball which is my own handspun.
Once the wool was organized, I moved on to my tools.
I bought this raku cup in Japantown, San Francisco. The rim is deep bronze and it is very rustic to hold...this is my collection of dpn's, the one the dog chewed on was inverted for artistic purposes. I much prefer bamboo to metal, though I have a little of both, and gradually am acquiring a nice selection of sized. As for the straights, I sewed this up about a year ago:
And here's what it looks like inside. You can see the diversity of my collection here..my favorite needles are picked up at thrift stores and garage sales. Those giant wooden ones were purchased at an estate sale; the adult children were selling Grandma's whole collection for 50 cents apiece. Poor Grandma....it really inspired me to pass the legacy of craft onto my children. But who knows? Perhaps she tried.
I like this roll very much. I sewed it up from fabric I bought at my favorite thrift store, The Happy Dragon, using the pattern from Stitch and Bitch (I am so over that book! I really dug it at first, and even bought the second one, but I rarely look at it now.)
Now that I have "cleaned house", I am free to spin. Only one more week and I must return the wheel to my friend at the Weaver's Guild. I am struggling with the alpaca Christine sent me, it has a completely different drawing out method than the merino I've been working with; but I'm not giving up until I've masted it! OK Christine if you're reading this...any tips?
Have a peace filled weekend.