What's Fiberton Acres Up to in 2020?

First and foremost, Happy New Year everyone!  I am excited for 2020...which has already been quite exciting!

The new year finds me in Colorado for a couple months or so for shearing bison hides.  Bison fiber has unique qualities and is crazy warm (as it is their winter coat that we shear) and makes for some awesome gloves, hats and socks.  And it is a great way for me to become more adept at shearing!

Which brings me to....

What's Fiberton Acres Up to in 2020?

I don't like making resolutions.  But I do like making goals.  These are my goals for 2020!

1) Shearing, baby!

• The next 5-6 months are going to be filled with shearing!  I am shearing bison hides for the next couple months, and then on to assisting Shorn Shearing Service in alpaca shearing.  I help hold the animal while it is shorn, and this year my goal is to get better at shearing myself.  I am feeling more confident all the time (thanks to great training from Shorn) and hope to be semi-fluent in alpaca shearing by the end of the shearing season!

2) Do a freakin' pull-up and train for a run...

• Shearing has gotten me into the best shape of my life.  With that, my goal is to be able to do a pull-up!  I am hitting the gym fairly frequently and hope to hit the one pull-up mark by mid-year! I've also been thinking that learning to rock climb may help me reach that goal, too...  It has also been too long since I have trained for a decent length run.  So that is gonna happen this year, too!

3) More travel!

• This year I have a goal to visit a new country.  I plan on taking the ol' van to new places, checking out cool new places with shearing, and checking out a new country.  I have been lucky to go to Australia...the next one I really want to visit is a South American country, but I also have never been to Canada, so I have a good back up plan. 

4) But also more gardening...

• I realize though that I also need something that grounds me, and putting my hands in the dirt and getting to grow something is a big deal for me.  So this year I will be begging friends to let me come play in their yards in return for some veggies. :)

5) Revamp the Etsy Shop...

• And the Etsy Shop will be undergoing a bit of a ravamp!  It will focus on products and tools for yarn crafters, including organizing solutions, knitting needles and crochet hooks, drop spindles, yarn bowls, kits, new yarn packs and more!  These changes will happen over the next few months, and I will make sure to let you know as they happen.  I will still do custom handmade knit and crochet items but they will be by custom order only.  Just contact me through the Etsy Shop with your ideas!

What are your goals in 2020?  I love sharing my goals, as it makes me feel more accountable.  I would love to hear what you will be working toward in 2020!

I leave you with this.  I can't find who to give credit to for this awesome quote/image.  But it is pretty much my fav.

- Ash

Next stop...Australia! (Who says you can't shear alpacas for 24 hours?)

It is almost here!  Here are a few quick updates on the upcoming trip and our shop!

In less than a month the following awesome and craziness will happen....

1) The Etsy Shop will go on Vacay...

On November 4th, Fiberton Acres online shop will go on "vacation" while I head to Australia for about a month.  It will open back up on Dec 8th, so if you need a lovely little handmade item prior to that, make sure to get your order in prior to Nov 4th.  Oh! And if you are in need of a special order, you can message me while I am on the road and I will work hard to accommodate the order for the holidays!  Check out the Etsy shop here!

2) I will be one of the roustabouts for an epic and important record breaking fundraising event...

At 4pm, Friday, November 22nd in Australia (so 11pm, Thursday, Nov 21st in the U.S.) I get the honor to help Pete and Nigel, two of the best alpaca shearers in the world break an incredible record for shearing alpacas for 24hrs.  What could make it cooler, you ask?  How about making it for mental health awareness and suicide prevention all over the world?  Pete and Nigel are raising funds for organizations all over the world.  If you are in the US, funds will go to the Montana Chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.  If you are in New Zealand, Australia or the UK, we have charities set up as well!

I will be the roustabout for a large chunk of the 24hrs (the person helping wrangle and hold the alpacas during shearing) and we will have a live feed set up for you to see how it's going!  More info on the event, how to help and how to watch the live stream can be found at at www.shearforlight.com as we get closer!

And if you want to donate directly in the US to this awesome event, click here!

3) Follow Fiberton Acres on Instagram or FB for any updates while I am in Oz...

I will not be able to blog much (or at all) while I am in Australia, but if you are on social media, I will work to put up a few updates there!  Find me on Instagram or Facebook!


-Ash

5 Things I Needed for Van Life in My 1st Month

Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means that if you go through them to make a purchase I can earn a commission.  But I only link to products that I recommend based on my experience with them, not because of the commission. :)

Here's a secret...you can't really know what you really need in your van home (or any tiny home) until you start living in it.  Maybe that is not a secret.  But hey, just know this shit is all a learning experience. However, maybe I can give a few ideas of things I found were super helpful for me.

NOTE... I am living in my van full time on the SUPER cheap.  So these are inexpensive ways to make life in your van a little easier. And these became serious essentials for me pretty freakin' quick.

1) Rubbermaid Brilliance 18-piece Food Storage Set

These are awesome.  Being that I was on a super tight budget, I needed to use my regular cooler for cold food storage, which meant that ice would melt down and I worried about cross contamination of food containers leaking or getting ice water in them.

This set pretty much solved this for me.  They have an airtight seal and seem to have kept water out and food in.  (I generally try not to let too much water sit in the cooler, but sometimes it's a hot day and melting just happens!)

2) LOCK & LOCK Eggs Dispenser, Holder for 12 Eggs

Speaking of the cooler, I wanted to protect my eggs (which I love so I always have on hand) from getting crushed, and I soon also found that the cardboard containers absorbed moisture no matter if they touched the ice or not.  This egg holder has been invaluable!

3) Coleman 2 Burner Grill Stove Combo

Keeping in line with food...you have to have a way to prepare it!  I think one of the ways most people on the road, especially van lifers spend their money, is on food.  Eating out is easy, but it is expensive and also can really throw off your health.  Plus...I LOVE coffee.  So having an easy way to heat water for the ol' french press was a must!

For me, this stove is the perfect solution.  It has a regular burner on one side, and a grill on the other.  The grill is perfect for toast, meats, etc and while that cooks you can make your eggs on the burner! ;)  Plus it is compact and easy to set up and take down.

My stove set up (Knees for added perspective.) 

4) GIOVANNI- Powder Power Dry Shampoo And Instant Volumizer- All Hair Types

Ok...so van life also means you may not get to shower as often as you're maybe once accustomed to.  I quickly realized that a little dry shampoo goes a long way to making me at least look fresh!

I found this awesome dry shampoo.  It is in powder form, smells great, is easy to use, and it is also free of parabens, dyes, etc.  It is organic and cruelty free, too! It is a great way to hold you over when you need!

5) Hopkins SP570804 Go Gear 12 Volt Oscillating Fan

I quickly found that if I wasn't running the van, it was getting pretty warm in there in the summer!  I needed something to cool the van down some.

There are probably a lot of options out there on fans, but this one was economic and easy to use!  I can clip it anywhere I need in the van, and it easily plugs in to the cigarette lighters in the van, so I didn't have to worry about batteries or electricity. It oscillates and has an easy on/off switch.  Basic but totally does the job on a warm summer day! And as it has cooled off, I run my van's heater and use the fan to push the hot air to the back of my van.

As I mentioned, there have been lots of little things in which I thought I would totally use and then found they were more of a nuisance than help. But these things above have been my go to for the last couple months! 

What do you use on a daily basis?  

-Ash

Converting the Van on the Cheap - Part Two

Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means that if you go through them to make a purchase I can earn a commission.  But I only link to products that I recommend based on my experience with them, not because of the commission. :)


Now that I finished the main parts...insulation, walls, ceiling and floor (see last post), it was time for the fun stuff...

I decided to build a 'chest' type structure around the right side wheel well.  This was to hold some of the van essentials, like antifreeze, oil, tools, gas can, etc, as well as my shoes.  I used the 2x2's to make the frame and the 1x4 against the wall to secure the lid to, and I used the remainder of the plywood from the floor to make the outside of the structure.

Building the frame for the van essentials/shoe compartment...

Maybe not perfect, but it is done and it totally does the job!

Next was the shelving for the other side.  I wanted it to include a countertop space to prep food, as well as a spot to inset some kind of water catch receptacle and attach my 5gallon water dispenser. Below I wanted to have some shelving for regularly used items, cleaning products, etc.

Building out the frame for the counter and shelving. 

I was super lucky in that a friend gifted me a nice chunk of butcher block that fit perfect as the food prep surface. (You can kinda see it in the upper right corner.)

I didn't get any pics of the shelving installation, but basically I made a cross support on the initial frame and then laid my 1x2's along these to create shelving just over the wheel well and under the food prep area.  The butcher block took one end of the counter and then plywood for the rest of the counter.  I made it not super tall, as I can't stand in the van anyway, so I can sit at the counter fairly comfortably.

Then I took my 5 gallon container and found this little trash can that fit perfect as a water catch.  I like that it is deeper than most of the other receptacles I was looking at.

Coming together!

As you can also see, I got a 3 tier utility cart like this that worked perfect as my pantry.  I just left the wheels off and put my heaviest jars, etc on the bottom shelves and have found it to be quite stable.  I have gone over some bumpy spots and it has shifted a little but never turned over.  And of course a little Ikea rug!  

I found a little tiny wood crate sort of thing at the thrift store and it fits 3 8oz ball jars that contain my toiletries now and I mounted that up on the wall, as well as a little wooden paper organizer.  

Then it was time for decorating! <3

I will say that Command hooks and strips are the best!  I used these strips to hang my pictures. I used hooks for all kinds of things, like jackets and towel and garbage bag.  And I found the Command Mirror which was perfect.

I added some Ikea hanging containers to hold a few plants and my kitchen utensils.

Did I mention that wet and dry erase markers work on the wall?! :D

I took a couple weeks at this point to live in the van and see what else I might want and need.  My friend had pulled out some drawers and I realized they would be a perfect fit under the bed!  So that was the next part of my build....

Drawers in!

The lower drawer now holds my dishes secure, and the upper some clothing like socks.  Then the rest of the clothing is in the plastic tubs and my camp grill fits securely next to the drawers.

As you can see, there is still some finishing stuff I can do, and a few things I still want to build out.  But those will be an update later!

I think that I spent about $600 on all the building materials and other goodies for the van.  So with the van itself, mechanic repairs and supplies and conversion, I spent less than $2500.

I have now lived in the van for a couple months and I am loving it.  It forces you to downsize and really see what you use on a weekly basis.  It also forces you to be organized, which is great, too!

I also joined the local gym to have access to showers, and so it forces me to use the gym, which is a seriously awesome motivator!

Thinking of converting your vehicle, even if just for road trips here and there?  Do it!  And if you have questions, I am always happy to help!

Happy travels, friends!

- Ash

Hitting the Road... Part 3 in the New Adventures for Fiberton Saga!

After I returned from Australia, I took two weeks to hang out with my parents and friends in my little town of San Miguel, CA. At that point, I had already packed everything up for the most part, so I worked on deciding next steps in my crazy little adventure.

December gardening with friends in Cali!

Winter on the Road...


I decided I'd first make my way down to visit family for the holidays in Prescott and Prescott Valley, AZ where I was born and raised. This was a perfect maiden voyage, as I followed my parents from San Miguel to there.  We were able to address bugs with the van as a small group, as life on my own for the first time was quite intimidating.  I didn't really want to let on...but being a single lady on the road by myself was a big change from my 17 years of marriage in a house or RV.  I knew I could do it, and was excited for it, but I welcomed not doing the first leg of my new life on the road alone.

Jazz Hands! (Thanks, Dad!)

The van did well overall, and I even spent a few nights sleeping in the cold AZ nights in the van to see how it might be. At that point it was not insulated, and, while I found out that I could do it if I had to, the cold outside and the heat from my body created condensation on the metal that was pretty significant.  That would have to be addressed for future comfort for sure.

Following mom and dad to SLC

After a great week or so in AZ, my parents followed me as far as Salt Lake City.  There we parted ways after (another) tearful goodbye and I decided to head to Colorado for a bit.  I had heard that there may be some shearing work over that way, and I wanted to check it out.

Wyoming in late Dec.

It worked out that I could help out with some bison shearing while I was there, which was a total trip.  During my time in Colorado, I generally stayed in AirBnB's rather than the van.  I did stay in the van one night and woke to this...

Meh...what's a little snow and negative degree weather...?

Needless to say, without the van being converted yet, it was not super nice to stay in it in the winter months.

Try and make the best of it! 

Springtime Travels...

After Colorado, I got the super cool chance to go on the road with Shorn Shearing again, this time getting to go first to the Southern Loop (FL, GA and AL).  I've always wanted to go to Savannah, not only did I get that opportunity, I got to do it during a tornado warning.  I felt like this was so much more authentic!  As Audrey Hepburn says in Sabrina (my fav!), "You get yourself, not a drizzle, but some honest-to-goodness rain..."  That's what Savannah gave me!  It did not disappoint me one bit.

\

I <3 Savannah!

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is one of my very fav books and set in Savannah!

During shearing I got to see a lot of the country that I had not seen... mountains and valleys, rock formations and rivers, animals and much, much more.  It just reinforced my love for the road and getting to travel and experience as much as I can.  Van life was looking more and more up my alley.

I got to practice some llama shearing at Ranch of the Oaks in AZ

Prescott, AZ

Navajo Monument in AZ

Moab, UT area

Pretty river in Utah.

So now what....?

Upon my return to Montana in early June (where I had left my van to go on my shearing adventures) I jumped straight into truly converting the van. And that, folks, is where I pick up next post!

Ash

PS - In future posts I will cover some of the places I camped that were super cool, like the Navajo National Monument! Stay tuned!

Australia bound...New Adventures for Fiberton Acres...part dos...

So where did I leave off....

Hitting the road in my sort-of-converted van!

Well...let me back up a little.

After my split, I had decided to begin a whole new career. As you are well aware of if you follow my blog or social media (or Etsy shop), I am an avid yarn crafter and love working with animals.  About 5 years ago or so, I met an alpaca shearer who I was quite impressed with at a shearing day and I caught the bug.  I asked to help out whenever he came through the area.  It was fascinating work, and it dovetailed so well into my passions for travel, animal husbandry and fiber arts. And it was a physical challenge that I loved.

And in 2018, I was invited to be the worker for Shorn Shearing on all of the California and Arizona loops of the shearing season. It was an eye opening experience, and I was excited to begin learning to actually shear.  I sheared my sheep at the time, and then those of a friend with a small herd.  I was slow and it kicked my butt, but I loved it.

Shearing Champ, my wether ram...very slowly...

Then I got the invite of a lifetime for a girl who wanted nothing more than to see the world and do this work.  Working with the shearer at the largest recorded alpaca farm in the world...in Australia.

Me?!  Could I do it?  Could I keep up and work with 150 lb alpacas all day long for close to 4 weeks straight?  I knew I could, or at least I knew I was stubborn enough to do everything I could to make it happen.  There was no f'ing way I would let this opportunity pass me up.

So that is when I quit my day job, made the difficult decision to find loving homes for my animals, and made some tearful goodbyes to family and friends.

I took a train from Paso Robles down to LAX and then boarded my 15 hr Virgin Australia flight to Sydney one late October evening.  Is there a word that means scared/excited/self-doubting/eager/proud all wrapped into one?  Because that was me. (Scexselfdoeagpro...? No...that sounds like something weird you'd find in an unsavory location online...hmmm....don't google that. lol)

Soon enough I found myself on a new continent for the first time in my life.  I got into a car on the wrong side, and drove down the wrong side of the streets, which was both exciting and terrifying after sleep deprivation.

A cool alley in Cooks Hill, New South Wales

Merino sheep sculpture/building!

I spent my time there getting to do some sight seeing, as well as working the hardest I had ever done.  I liken it to running a marathon (which I have only done a full marathon once)...you question what you're doing (and why) over the course of it many times, but you feel an overwhelming sense of pride and accomplishment at the end.  My hands were swollen to the point where I had to cut several rings off and I was exhausted but I grew quite a bit stronger, both mentally and physically.

My first day...and first view of a truly full shearing shed. Soon to be much cooler alpacas!

After cutting my first ring off...

And after the first week and an empty shearing shed!

Our biggest day!  113 alpacas sheared! 

I also proved to myself and those in the shearing shed that I could do it. (I was the first female worker they have had in there in that capacity...) And I made some awesome new friends.

It was bittersweet heading "home"... I knew I was going back to the uncertainty of my new life...to a packed up van ready for new travels but to places I was still unsure of.  I was also excited to see my friends and family back in the states and recount some of the tales...like of the crazy (to me) animals I saw, and the lovely beaches I relaxed on and the great food and show off my new muscles.

Beach in Terrigal, NSW

Just a normal sized lizard to Australians...

And a 'small' spider...

At the zoo...these are like seagulls over there!

Sydney Opera House

Blowhole rock feature in Kiama, NSW

A koala at the Taronga Zoo in Sydney

So really...it was then I hit the road...

More soon!

Ash

New adventures for Fiberton Acres...Part Uno

Ummm....first...sorry.  I know it has been way way too long since I last wrote.  Life has a way of
taking some turns you don't expect, and let's be honest, I have yet to meet someone who really has their shit together enough to know how to deal with those changes.

But life is an adventure (and believe me, I keep repeating that mantra in my head) and I am definitely on a new journey.  This time by myself, and it is okay.

And in true starting over fashion, I have relocated to a new state and am in the process of taking on some of the biggest projects I have ever put my mind to.  New career, new town, and soon to be, converting the van into my new tiny home!

I have always loved the idea of the tiny home, and circumstances may have pushed that idea to the forefront.  Purchased for a song it back in Pennsylvania, the white Chevy Express van got us back to California. Shortly after, it sputtered out and it seemed that it was headed for the salvage yard.

Fast forward almost a year later (which is now almost a year ago).  Ric and I made the very tough decision to split up.  We spent about 20 years together, with good times and tough times, and while one of the toughest decisions of my life, we knew it was the right decision.

Not knowing how I was going to get myself around, I looked out at the field where the white van sat and came to the conclusion that I was going to get her up and running again. I walked out with keys in hand, unsure of what state I'd find her in.  A few dead rodents later, I inserted the key into the ignition of the vehicle that sat for months on end and turned it over. It started no problem.

With the help of my dad, we figured out that it was the catalytic converter that went out.  I ordered a new one and we got to work. My dad was my hero, loosening rusted bolts and cutting out the old catalytic converter. With a new one installed and a few other minor repairs, she was up and running once more!

Catalytic Converter work...appropriate shoes...?

A few final fixes...

Dad added this on the to-do list...and subsequently marked it F'ing Done!

My mom came over and we packed up the house.  I made the next tough but important decision, I was going to start a new career and in that, start traveling more.  The 'friend-lords' were the sweetest, and supported my decision, and kept the chickens.  The sheep and rabbits found a new forever home, with many tears shed.  And the white Chevy Express van got a futon bed installed and then got packed up with all the essential items I needed.  Oh, and a name.  C.W. for Covered Wagon.

Prepping the van for the futon...

Enough to sleep on when need be!

And all packed and ready for the new journeys!

Then I hit the road.....

~ Ash

PS - A BIG thanks to all my friends and family who have been there for support through the last year's ups and downs.  I am super excited for the next part of this journey so stay tuned!