Friday, October 21, 2011

The IxCHeL Sponsor a Bunny Programme is a go!

We had a very special week: Last Saturday we had the Bunny Spin in and our good friend Christina brought us some rescue bunnies: Boy Blue and Fifi. Both of these bunnies were very underweight and had gone through a lot! Being the survivors of a myxo and calici outbreak when they were living with another breeder. Apparently after they survived it all went pearshaped for their owners and that is how Christina rescued them and brought them to us. They are now living in the studio so I can see how they are doing at all times. Fifi especially seems to be very skiddish and has probably been through some majot trauma but I am sure she will be settling in just fine. In a weeks time she has already calmed down and is showing a very sweet personality. She might also be pregnant? So I am keeping a close look on her and giving her lots of attention and fresh greens and snacks.





Fifi





Boy Blue




On the Sunday I visited a wonderful Stitch n Bitch /spinning and Knitting group in Gippsland and was made very welcome when I took over Dawns house filling it with heaps of yarns and fibres for the ladies to dive into.. We had a great time and there was lots of enabling done! I was amazed how gorgeous all the projects were that everybody was working on and I was introduced to a whole new world of sock blankies ( it’s like quilting with gorgeous handknitted hexagons! Made from sock yarn scraps –at least that’s what it started out as ..lol…and now everybody is swapping MINI SKEINS ! _ its so cool! Also amazing shapes that reminded me of Eschers work only knitted into an African inspired blanket made all of what seemed to me like little bow ties ! and then there were socks ofcourse: magical gorgeous socks. I had a fabulous time!

The rest of the week was super busy grooming and clipping and taking care of all our bunnies. There was also heaps of spinning and I am very happy with the super fine natural coloured English angora yarn I spun on the Schacht Sidekick wheel. The more I spin on that wheel the more I think: yeah, I really think I need that wheel….it is an amazingly nice wheel and allows me to spin super fine. The Majacraft is great don’t get me wroing and I won’t be able to survive without my Majacraft spinning art yarns, for spinning fine yarns however, the Sidekick is amazing and so light!

I have also done a lot of batt making ! Going batty just before Halloween was definitely on the cards and I am very happy with how these batts came out ! lots of gorgeous fibres put together with some bling will make for the most amazing yarns or felt !

Bunny Naming Competition
As you know , one of the bunnies in Tawnees last litter had not been named yet. Bear and Buttercup had a name but the big golden fawn bunny just did not seem to want to own a name yet.




Saturday , Christina and I tried to see if it was really a boy or a girl just to be on the safe side, but it seemed to be more of a mystery than anything else. Sexing a bunny can be quite hard. When they are very young they will not have all the "appendages" so to speak and it can be very deceptive. So the jury is still out. As promised a name has been chosen although it was a hard call.




We had names like Aurora, Beauty(from sleeping beauty) , Narcolepsia (lol..because the bunny was showing great joy in just rolling over and falling asleep a lot), Blossom, Jemima, BamBam, and many many more.




It was a hard decision but here is the winner of the naming contest: drumrolllll……the winner is







Sally Gridley from Victoria, with the name BUBBLES.







It just has a nice ring to it and lets face it: applicable to a boy or a girl and it just describes the bunnies’personality: from rolling over in a sleeping position to a bubbly binky-ing bunny in a flash ! Sally your special bunny prize pack will be in the mail to you next week !





Thank you all so, so much for your enthusiasm and support ! and don’t worry if you have not won the bunny naming this time, there will be plenty more opportunities in the future!




Bubbles




the IxCHeL Bunny Foster Sponsoring Programme or BunFoSP for short

We have had a lot of requests of people who wanted to support our little fibre farm and our special English angora bunnies. Here is what we have come up with for all of you who would love to sponsor/virtually adopt/foster an IxCHeL bunny.

When you decide to foster/sponsor an IxCHeL bunny you help in covering part of the costs to provide a safe, comfortable home for your bunny for a year. This includes grass hay, straw, grains, seeds, vegetables, fruit, food supplements, snacks, clipping and grooming, housing and any medical supplies/assistance needed.





You can feel good knowing that you are supporting a small farm in which your bunny can live out the rest of his/her life in a friendly and loving environment. On the IxCHeL bunny farm, our bunnies are treated with respect, love and great care.




Once you pay your adoption fee I will immediately send you your bunny adoption pack: a Bunny Foster Parent Certificate, the name of your bunny and a photo plus a special lock of its hair, a personalised bunny badge and a birth certificate.







In the course of your year of sponsorship you will receive monthly email updates of your bunny with stories and photos. Twice a year you will receive 50+ grams of your bunnies fibre, a batt or roving/top or handspun yarn ( you will have to tell me what you would like: yarn, batt, fibre depending if you are a spinner, knitter or crocheter or felter) together with some special bunny gifts.





When you want to adopt a bunny that is younger than 1 year , the yield of fibre we get off the bunny in that first year is minimal: we only start clipping them after 6 to 8 months and the quantity of the fibre is very low (about 60 grams at most). You will receive grooming fibre and still receive your 100 grams of fibre per year, but it will be from a surrogate bunny. For bunnies older than a year you will receive your bunnies’ fibre. You can enjoy your bunny fibre throughout the year and know you are supporting your bunny at the same time.




All shipping charges are included in your adoption fee! And you can opt for yearly or half yearly bunny sponsorship payment.








The cost of an IxCHeL Bunny Adoption is AU$250/year or AU$125 per 6 months. You can pay via direct bank deposit, credit card or Paypal.





To secure a spot to sponsor your special bunny you need to commit for at least 6 months. You can opt out of your adoption at any time and then the bunny will be made available for sponsorship again.






The bunnies that are available for sponsorship are:





Mickey: our oldest bunny (born in 2005), a gorgeous buck with a floppy ear and so affectionate and cute. He has a silver white coat and is just adorable





Gandalf: Dad to Elvis and an amazing silver buck. Born in 2006 and totally gorgeous and always wants a hug.





Tribble: son of Topping and Chewie. Born in 2009. A fabulous looking bunny boy with gold hair and very cute. He was one of the brokeback mountain boys with Ooki , who unfortunately passed away when a mutant calici strain hit our farm june 2011. Tribble survived and now lives happily next to his brother Spot.





Spot: son of Topping and Chewie and born in 2009. A cute little bunny boy with a funny white spot on his nose (hence his name). Spot is a very shy boy but loves a pat and his special treats. He has a gorgeous light brown coat that is just divine to spin.

-Spot has been adopted by his foster dad Daniel from Whorled Domination :) Thanks Dan!-




Topping: Mum of Spot, Tribble and foster mum of Elvis, when Elvis’mum Mojo died just after giving birth to her babies. She is an amazing mum ! and has the most fabulous chocolate coat. She loves a hug and being groomed.





Elvis: Born late 2009 , daughter (yes daughter! Only named Elvis because she made this funny noise “a-ha a-ha” when she was little ) of Mojo and Gandalf. A super shiny silky smoke grey coat that is just to die for. Extremely smart ! a wonderful escape artist and has a super personality.




Pippi: Born 2006, daughter of Minne and Gypsy. A super silky soft smoke grey coat and can sit still for hours on end being groomed and clipped. A very friendly natured bunny and lives with her sister Max. Pippi is a famous bunny and was featured on the back cover of Grass roots magazine in 2006 !




Max: Born in 2005, Daughter of Minne and Gypsy and a cover star of the magazine Grass Roots in February 2006! The most affectionate and quiet and friendly natured bunny ever! She has a super silke smoke grey coat and loves cuddles.




Tawnee: Born in 2009 and mum to TicTac, Tilda, , Trixie, Bear, Buttercup and Bubbles. She has a super sweet nature and is a fabulous mum. She is a chocolate otter (meaning chocolate with light coloured bands in her fibre). Super soft and a pleasure to spin!





Millie: born in 2010 and a super character!! Escape artist extraordinaire and with a personality that could match Sarah Connor from Terminator: “don’t mess with Millie”. She loves a pat though, always coming up and pushing her head into your hand but she has to have her way or the highway..lol..She recently lost a litter unfortunately but will be mated again soon with our new boy Blye She has a glorious thick blue grey coat!





Blue: a gorgeous blue angora boy we recently rescued. He is settling in nicely and has a very laid back nature. His coat is super soft and blue grey.





Fifi: Fifi is the daughter of Blue, rescued together with Blue and a red eyed white angora. She was immensely skiddish when we got her and she lives in the studio with me to try and calm her down and get her used to her new safe environment. She is very underweight and needs a lot of special care , together with Blue, to get her health and her coat in tip top condition. She has the most gorgeous blue/red eyes and a very pretty face and Im sure that Fifi will settle in just fine. Fifi might also be pregnant so we could expect a litter from her in about 3-4 weeks ! Fifi is also very special in the way that it is the only bunny I have known to respond to her name immediately ! Call out “fifi !”and she listens! Amazing!

Fifi is now proudly sponsored by a wonderful secret benefactor :)


Bear: Born in 2011 and son of Tawnee. He is amazing. What can I say? Major escape artist, bunny meerkat impersonator extraordinaire and a gorgeous looking chocolate boy. Named after Bear Grylls because of his antics. A super affectionate bunny and a very smart one. He almost did not make it and had to be resuscitated after he feel out of the nest box when he was just born. So a very special bunny indeed.





Buttercup: daughter of Tawnee and sister of Bear. Buttercup is the smallest of the litter with golden cream coat and a fabulous personality!





Bubbles: Son?(yes the jury is still out!) of Tawnee and Dudley and brother? to Bear and Buttercup. A big golden fawn bunny who likes to eat and sleep. Give the remote and Im sure the bunny will change the channel for you..lol..Bubbles is the biggest of the litter. Super soft golden fawn coat that will be divine to spin.




TicTac: Daugher of Tawnee and Dudley, born in 2011. Golden fawn girl and the tiniest angora bunny when I got her. She has grown heaps though and has a super friendly personality and just wants to do binkies and run through her playtunnel with her sisters.





Tilda: daughter of Tawnee and Dudley born in 2011. Lives with TicTac and Trixie and is a golden fawn girl with gorgeous hair. She is quite laid back and loves her greens and running through her playtunnel with TicTac.





Trixie: Born in 2011, a chocolate girl, daughter of Tawnee and Dudley and a very independent character and obviously head matron of the bunny house with Tilda and TicTac. She hates being groomed but has the most gorgeous chocolate hair !




Please message me or email me the name of the bunny you would like to adopt, your postal address, email, if you would like to pay by the year or 6 months and whether you would like yarn, fibre or a batt and I will send you all the adoption information.

For photos of all our bunnies and our little fibre farm please visit my flickr photostream: www.flickr.com/photos/ixchelbunny and go to the set Ixchel farm or angora bunnies.

This weeks fibre and yarn update is here: Funky Bunny Batts and handspun natural angora yarn ! Get ready to Stalk and Snaffle !

How To Order:
You can email me on ixchel at rabbit dot com dot au or message me on facebook or ravelry where I am Ixchelbunny. I will email you right back with all your order details and payment methods. Any questions? Please don’t hesitate to ask! Always happy to enable.

Thank you so much for your help and support !
(((HUGS)))
Charly


Funky Bunny Batts
merino, blue faced Leicester, angora, yak, mohair, silk, soy, cashmere, glitz, Angelina, seaweed, tencel and mink


Arctic Bliss 111 grams AU$33 -sold-

Cherry Picking 121 grams AU$34

Pink Power 132 grams AU$34

Arctic Storm 142 grams AU$36

Roccocco 118 grams AU$34

Steampunk Magic 88 grams AU$25


Lime Fizz 125 grams AU$34





Arctic Sky 129 grams AU$34






Halloween 148 grams AU$39 -sold-




Berry Chocolate 121 grams AU$34


Halloween Party 107 grams AU$32







Handspun Pure fine English angora yarn ply spun natural colours
Amazing to knit with with an amazing yardage of +/- 150-170
Meters per 50grams !



Wild one, an English angora from Christina, a dark gorgeous grey 51 grams AU$28





Millie a beautiful blue grey yarn 47 grams AU$25


Tribble, a lush gold hand spun angora yarn from our angora Tribble 58 grams AU$30-sold-





Elvis, a silky soft smoke grey handspun yarn from our bunny Elvis 55 grams AU$28




Dates to Remember:
Bunny Spin in at the Ixchel Fibre Farm (11am-5pm)


There will be BUNNY SPIN INS again in October !! Yeah!

Thursday October 27th
Bring a plate to share your wheel or spindle, knitting or crochet, yourself and a smile and have a fun day out amongst bunnies and friends ! Please contact me to secure a spot ! Bunny food like cabbage, bok choi or broccoli is always welcome: the bunnies will cuddle you more for it ;D


Contact me on Ravelry where I am Ixchelbunny, message me on facebook there or email me on Ixchelbunny@yahoo.com.au


RABBIT ON !
((hugs))
Charly

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