As the Spindle Turns . . .

Great Lakes Fiber is coming up Saturday and Sunday only at the Wayne County Fairgrounds in Wooster, OH. There's a lot to see and do. Looks like the weather may actually cooperate this year. It's going to be a great show! Visit their webpage for more information. http://www.greatlakesfibershow.com



I feel like I'm back in school, cramming for a test. So many new displays do I have in store for you! I finished my dyeing today. I've been busy winding and labeling the hemp. The green is the last I'll have time for. I am missing gold in the color palette but I will remedy that after Great Lakes. Tomorrow I get to work on the sock yarn display. I am so pleased with today's kettle sock yarn dye baths. They turned out so well. No pictures yet. I finished at dusk. They are drying now. Tomorrow I wind and label. You are going to love these! Here's the mini skeins that are already packaged:



Chronographia is winding extra balls of zephyr, which is still my best seller, ten years running! Zephyr is a 50/50 Wool/Silk blend. It comes in lace weight. I also carry the DK weight version, which I still need to find hooks for and pack into travel totes. Then I have to price and label a big box of Alpaca in natural colors that is occupying my living room couch. Next comes loading the van and bringing down carton after carton of certified organic wool in a rainbow of organic color. And of course my weed-of-the-week collection, featuring dyer's coreopsis, and rhubarb natural dyes.

I will also have books and a few hats to try on. It's a teaser for next weekend's Columbus Arts Festival. Chronographia will have a booth on the bridge. Stop on by!

On the Loom


Finally I have bunches of projects going simultaneously! I started knitting a gold hat, I have weaving on the loom, and another wet felted hat in progress. I have products ( buttons and clasps) to label and put onto cardstock. I made quiche today, did dishes, added items to etsy, and had a good night's sleep. Yay!

First Wet Felted Hat Done


And the finale was to wash the silk handwoven scarf and start eco-printing it. I pulled all the oak leaves out of the bag in the fridge. The wind has gifted me with a nice collection. I took the steel wool soaking in tea and added the fake egg whites to dip each leaf. The mix was black. The scarf got a pre-soak in salt water. I dipped and placed my leaves and covered them with muslin. Then I took my shoe and hammered all down the line. I took apart my drop spindle and used the dowel to roll it up. I stuck it in a plastic bag. Since there won't be sun here for days, I stuck it in the microwave for a minute to heat it at a low temp. I do this periodically. Going to leave it there for a couple of days.

Scarf to be Printed

Stupid hot yesterday and today. I moved into the basement last night. Been awhile since I sleep in a chair. So tired it didn't matter. The concrete floor also looked good. Got home during the most spectacular light show nature can provide. Who needs fire works? The storms were east of us. No thunder, just wonderful lightening.

I am leaving tomorrow for Seattle with a stop in Coralville for groceries and Cedar Rapids to pick up stock. Unloading the van in hot, hot weather with humidity. And repacking today. Winding lots of balls of yarn to replenish crates.

Finished a lovely dyebath of oregano before the show setup on Friday. I have some lovely fuzzy mohair in a honey yellow. Today I started by deadheading the coreopsis. I have that cooking along with some bugs (cochineal) on the outdoor stove. Coreopsis makes me smile.



Tomorrow I must get 4 new tires, renew the tags on the vehicle, and buy sales books. Then pack, wait for UPS, wind off orders, take them to the post office. And finally hit the road. Oh yeah, I should probably pay bills.

Tomatoes need to be planted and the carrots ere we travel. Crazy days.

Okay. I didn't grow up during the time this series was popular. It was my daughter's generation. However, I sat through countless episodes on My Little Pony and She-ra and Rainbow Bright. It defined a generation. So I'm trying to process a backlog/stash of fleece. And of course, some of the burgundies were already spun off. And more little leftovers of other projects joined it. Last year it looked like this:



Well, now it looks a little more like this:



I'd picked up some wonderful mulberry silk top on etsy from the Yarn Place. Somewhere down the lone a bit of it got dyed pink. It really makes a statement.

After A Fair in the Park at Mellon Park, I decided I didn't have anything this year for my "purple" ladies. You know who you are. Purple is a color you can't live without. So far, I've spun over 100 grams. I am starting today on another ball. If you're not a purple or pink person, it's okay. I just spent a week with a lady who hates the color pink. It personally offends her at a basic level. I have other friends who hate blue. I am an artist and am not limiting myself to just some of the colors of the rainbow. I'll get around to your favorite color eventually.