tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40708077673305189502024-03-05T14:17:43.499-05:00Marr Haven Wool Farm BlogMarr Haven Wool Farm is located in Allegan, Michigan USA. We are Barb and Gene Marr and this is our haven. Our Merino Rambouillet sheep provide the wool for yarn and fiber at our farm shop and on the website, <a href="http://marrhaven.com/">Marr Haven Wool Farm</a><blockquote></blockquote>Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.comBlogger199125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-5057788156742891192013-03-20T16:39:00.001-04:002013-03-20T16:41:37.844-04:00Calendar says Spring????
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The Sand Hill Cranes, Robins and Red Winged Blackbirds have returned;
the daffodils are about 4 inches out of the ground but it is snowing.
One of the perennial bulbs in our flower bed is called an Imperial Crown. It also is out of the ground about 5 inches. It is such a regal looking flower, I love it because it comes up so early and can take the cold (20 degrees F) Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-53841168951123361512013-03-01T11:06:00.000-05:002013-03-01T11:06:06.029-05:00March on in, SpringIt still is too early for spring here but the month of March is the "get on your mark" signal for me to look forward to that season. The end of winter is a bittersweet event because early winter has the wonderful holidays of Thanksgiving and especially Christmas. Then January- February our creative juices build up like sap in the maples. Our customers often reward themselves Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-66952294791194047172013-02-02T11:55:00.000-05:002013-02-02T11:55:25.018-05:00Old Time Michigan Winter
This is a view from the slider onto the deck at the back of the house. I hope the bird bath doesn't get buried. The recent years have been mild winters (for Michigan) when the snow doesn't pile high and last for months. The past 3 days though do remind me of the snows of the 1990's.
This snow started on Thursday and hasn't really quit for any length of time. Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-6087638386605012812013-01-16T16:15:00.000-05:002013-01-16T16:15:08.900-05:002013 hit the ground runningJust over two weeks into this new year and already the technology world is trying to rule my life. I have another new computer and love that it operates faster but I am having problems learning new layouts so everything is taking me longer- not an even swap at all at the moment.
One of the pleasant happenings this new year is customer Betty Barry from Ft. Wayne, Indiana. She Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-76506721812551142812012-12-08T14:35:00.000-05:002012-12-08T14:35:36.631-05:00The Frantic Fun of Fall and early WinterNovember and December are always busy months for most people and our household is one of those. We are truly blessed though with such great friends; our 2nd family who help make these seasons memorable.
We always spend holiday dinners with them. I particularly enjoy this; mostly for the company but also because I don't enjoy cooking and there is always good food in their homes. Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-90732553960550215932012-11-10T11:50:00.001-05:002012-11-10T11:50:48.265-05:00Nuno Felt Shawl made for Art Hop sale.
This is one of the Nuno Felt Shawls I made for the Art Hop. Gift items like this will be available the evening of Dec. 14 from 5 pm to 8pm at Sharon's Quilts in downtown Allegan.
I'm felting a variety of styles, some more glitzy than others. This one is perfect for casual attire as well as "dressed up".
In between dyeing yarn and felting, I have had fun Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-25210442822039220172012-11-03T12:28:00.001-04:002012-11-03T12:29:37.748-04:00The Arts and Eats Tour was a great success for the Allegan County artists I spoke with. Our shop had many visitors who had never been here before. I heard lots of "I have heard about you." or "I always wanted to stop by." I hope they all enjoyed their stop as much as I did and will return.
The leaves were in peak color that weekend but began dropping in earnest the Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-84743817058762319822012-10-12T14:40:00.000-04:002012-10-12T14:40:14.778-04:00I am embarrassed at how long it has been since I posted here. My weak excuse is the unusual summer weather. I know it was not limited to our part of the world, that is why it is such a weak excuse. You would think since I was nearly housebound for 3 months that the number of new felted items or hand dyed yarns would be substantial...not.
After I did the morning chores Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-61886235911993024052012-06-09T14:01:00.001-04:002012-06-09T14:01:44.545-04:00Basswood Tree Blossom
This year's blossoms have been quite numerous on most of the plants and trees. We all know now that was not a good thing for the fruit trees in our area, Thankfully the big basswood held out for its "usual" time to bloom. It probably helped that it is tucked in between our house and the pine windbreak. The main tree is so tall we only get to see the blossoms as they landBarbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-17884283856794651682012-05-19T15:40:00.000-04:002012-05-19T15:47:01.669-04:00Hand Dyed Yarn, five new one of a kind colorways.
May is generally a slow month, allowing us to slowly get ready for the summer season. This year the trees and flower leaves were so early and inspired me to dye the New Greens pictured earlier. At the same time the flowers were racing to see which could bloom first. This colorway is based on the Crocus Flowers which of course, is its name.
This is one of the 5 new hand dyedBarbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-24520934038496993992012-05-04T12:13:00.000-04:002012-05-17T18:18:28.551-04:00Needle Felt SculptureA few weeks ago I shared a photo of a needle felted purse by Teri Jackson of Georgia, since then Teri has taken needle felting to a whole new level. She says what started as a hobby has developed into a business.
This is Zander, he is a warrior from the planet Zocor. Teri admits she gets quite attached to her sculptured dolls, even writes stories about them when she sell them.
Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-19959449051335604792012-04-27T16:32:00.000-04:002012-04-27T16:34:05.581-04:00Hand Dyed Yarn to dateI work in "spurts" at my fiber loves; perhaps felting a number of different pieces one after another. Then no felting for awhile but knitting or dyeing wool/yarn takes front stage. The weather also adjusts my production, or at least what was planned in my head.
The past few weeks have been productive both inside and out. The sheep
are sheared, their wool has been Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-42734375558487217142012-04-09T18:27:00.001-04:002012-04-09T18:27:32.951-04:00Needle Felt PurseI always enjoy seeing the finished projects of our customers; especially ones that are first creations in a new wool art form for them. Teri Jackson of Georgia certainly did not disappoint.
It is obvious from the photo that she has very firmly needle felted the merino wool; the design features are well embedded. She said to make sure the handles were joined completely she needled Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-83834970767986001852012-03-30T16:50:00.000-04:002012-03-30T16:50:54.342-04:00Before and After Sheep Shearing
The unusually warm weather we experienced so far this year probably made the ewes look forward to removing their wool coats. Fortunately the few days before the shearing date, the weather cooled and the photo taken the day before, they look very comfortable.
The month old lambs tend to "hang" together.
Lunch time.
The day after shearing, sun feels sooo good!
Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-91448330848638276532012-03-12T13:34:00.000-04:002012-03-12T13:34:21.325-04:00Merino rambouillet Yarn Special for St Patrick's DayTo honor my long ago Irish ancestry I enjoy celebrating St. Patrick's Day. This year our green heather merino rambouillet yarns can be a celebration for you, too.
For St. Patrick’s Day, the Green Heather sport cones and Green Heather
worsted skeins are 17% off. A one pound sport cone is $28.22 and 4 ounce
skein is $7.05 for this week. Go to http://www.marrhaven.com/yarn.html#special Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-26171625081721121812012-03-05T17:59:00.001-05:002012-03-05T17:59:36.802-05:00Fiber Art & Painted Art
Sally Goins owner of Starry Night Studio & Gallery thought it would be fun for both of us to do the same subject in our own medium.
She had just finished the daisy with bee drawing in colored pen and ink pointillism; a technique of painting in which small, distinct dots of pure color are applied in patterns to form an image.
I printed her picture and began layoutBarbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-61932275034706437362012-02-23T16:04:00.000-05:002012-06-04T18:32:13.860-04:00Bird Pods for Spring 2012
My good friend, Suzanne Higgs, shared her idea for bird pods well over a year ago. After quite a delay the first one was made and hung but way too late in the breeding season to gain any winged tenants. This year, the mostly warm winter has inspired me to prepare for spring much earlier.
Both pods are made with a green/white blended batt of merino and mohair. The design Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-43622659266993436452012-02-10T12:03:00.002-05:002012-02-10T12:03:47.094-05:00Knit a Great Spring Coat
Long Hooded CardiganProbably most of you have enjoyed this wonderful, although strange for the midwest, winter. We have had so little snow and so much sunshine, all I wanted to do was sit on the porch and soak it up. Reality did set in a couple of weeks ago when our first lamb for the season was born. We now have 6 new babies in the barn and probably one more ewe to deliver.
Now today Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-63459872898689720782012-01-25T17:01:00.000-05:002012-01-25T17:07:43.644-05:00Happy 175th Birthday MichiganOn January 26, 1837, President Jackson signed a bill, officially making
Michigan the nation's 26th state. That makes January 26th, 2012, our
175th anniversary.
We are very happy to join the celebration organized by Buy Michigan Now You can go to this website and find events happening around the state in support of the anniversary. There is also a link to officially join the Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-19806047712356816612012-01-11T15:28:00.000-05:002012-01-11T15:28:13.418-05:00Yield to Mother Nature - Good News/Bad NewsThe good news is...this is January 11 and we have only had one snowfall this year. New Year's Day we received about 6 inches at the farm. The rest of the days have been very mild temps, mostly daytime 40's, with sunshine. This is Michigan, this weather has been most unusual and appreciated.
The bad news, a winter storm is forecast to begin at noon tomorrow. Since our Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-10111278316239290322012-01-05T16:27:00.000-05:002012-01-05T16:27:38.287-05:00Dyeing Scarves for Nuno Felt ClassThis weekend I will be dyeing the silk gauze for next week's Nuno Felt Scarf Class. I'm thinking mostly pastels for the coming spring wardrobe. If you have a particular color you might like for your scarf background color, let me know and I will try to come up with it.
This is also a reminder to me that I should have noted "Pre-registration needed" at least, helpful. I want to make sure I Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-29547138596803885322012-01-02T15:18:00.000-05:002012-01-02T15:18:09.336-05:00January Class ScheduleWinter has arrived in southwest Michigan, the wind is blowing with probably 4 inches of snow on the ground. This is the time I like to have something to anticipate.
With that in mind, two nuno felting scarf classes will be held at the PICKLE STREET SCHOOL STUDIO Thursday afternoon Jan.12 and Wed. Jan. 25.
This is an example of a Nuno Felt Scarf.
The Pickle Street School Studio is Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-42884871791679983582011-12-31T10:57:00.000-05:002011-12-31T10:57:07.938-05:00Merino Wool Batt NEW YEAR SPECIAL
Many of us who love working with fiber will spend the New Year's weekend planning for more projects in 2012. We certainly want to encourage more felting and spinning activity. We created 2 SPECIAL Merino Wool Batt with a very special price, only $16.50 for 8 ounces of fluffy soft fiber. The batts are a blend of natural white merino and dyed merino, the first with dyed green has a minute Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-15542344671396551652011-12-16T16:22:00.000-05:002011-12-16T16:22:48.810-05:00Ready for Christmas & Thinking AheadWith a little more than a week until the birthday of our Lord, plans are in place to celebrate with friends and family - near and far away. I have also been planning for the annual winter hibernation with felting and knitting.
For knitting enthusiasts, hand dyed yarns like this skein just added to our website called Winter Woods, will help create those one of a kind warm woolen heirlooms.
Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4070807767330518950.post-81223250851381035732011-12-06T15:22:00.001-05:002011-12-06T15:52:57.313-05:00Entrelac Design - 4 new knitting patternsIf you are a fan of entrelac designs or are looking for a knitting challenge for one of your winter projects, you will love the patterns designed by Suzanne Pufpaff.
Suzanne has an excellent talent for combining pattern stitches and designs into truly wearable knitted art that will become an heirloom piece for you. She likes to use photos, schematics and charts as well as row by row direction Barbara Marrhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11673316934303293349noreply@blogger.com2