My Drop-Spindle Workshop: Only a few spaces left!

This Saturday (9/18/10 -- yes, that's tomorrow!), I will be teaching a Beginning Drop-Spindle (spinning) Workshop at Eleganza Yarns in Frederick, Md.

The workshop will run from Noon - 3 p.m., with a break to rest our arms and perhaps grab some refreshments from Frederick Coffee Company, located just down the block.

Participants will learn:

• Drop-spindle mechanics
• Fiber drafting and pre-drafting techniques (including identifying the beginning of a roving/top)
• How to set the twist in your new yarn
• Basics of drop-spindle plying

The workshop price ($35) is amazing -- especially as it includes fiber and color handouts! Drop spindles will be available at a discounted price to participants (or bring your own). We'll have lots of fiber available for you to purchase after the workshop also.

One-on-one teaching is necessary, so the workshop is limited to eight students. Only a few spaces remain, so hurry on over to the Eleganza Yarns website and register now... Hope to see you there!

My Drop-Spindle Workshop: Only a few spaces left!

Villette: A lacy new sock pattern for spring (and a great novel, too)!

Permit me to introduce Villette, my latest sock pattern, now available as a Shalimar Yarns exclusive. Created especially for the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival, Villette features a ribbed cuff that flows into a gorgeous rippling lace, reminiscent of the flowing lines so popular during the Belle Epoque.

In my opinion, a special sock deserves a special heel. In this case, the lace melts into a delicately braided pattern framed with garter stitch, which mimics the ridges in the leg pattern...
A simple Dutch heel is easy to turn and creates a slim line along the ankle and foot. From there, the knitter returns to the lace pattern--centered along the instep and set off with purl and twisted stitches--down to a traditional wedge toe with two finishing options.

Shamelessly, I must admit that I LOVE this sock! It speaks to me in the language of a bygone era, one which I often wish I could have experienced--as a Vanderbilt or Astor, of course ;-)

The name I borrowed from the title of the lovely, melancholy Charlotte Brontë novel, in which an independent young woman beset by grief and financial woes begins anew in the French town of Villette.

An aside: If you are unfamiliar with Bronte's work (beyond Jane Eyre, of course), please do yourself a favor and pick up Villette. If you love English Lit, you'll may find, as I did, that it's a page-turner. Honestly--it kept me up late at night, wanting to know what would happen next!

The specs

• Height: 9 inches from floor to cuff
• Circumference: Approx. 8.5 – 9.0 inches around foot (lace pattern is quite stretchy) Gauge: 8 sts x 10 rnds = 1” in stockinette stitch
• Needles: US #1 / 2.5 mm 32” circular needles (or DPNs or any other method you prefer)
• Yarn: Shalimar Yarns Zoe Sock (100% Superwash Merino Wool; 100g / 450 yds); one skein in “Passion Fruit”
  

This is a Shalimar Yarns pattern. Which means all you need to do to order it is to contact Kristi (yarn-dyer extraordinaire) at Kristi@EleganzaYarns.com or on Ravelry, where her user name is KnitorDie.

In other news
Another Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival has come and gone. Saturday dawned rainy and gray, but by 11 a.m. or so the skies had cleared. Sunday, on the other hand, was truly dark and wet.

But reports were positive, and a good time was had by all--especially my husband, who ate lamb while I wandered through the barns, finding some great bargains among the smaller yarn dyers (like Shalimar and Three Irish Girls, to name two favorites), fiber farmers, and wool vendors.

Despite the fact that their spinning fiber and yarn is often breathtakingly beautiful, many of these so-called "mom-and-pop businesses" and small start-ups don't have Web presences and don't offer their wares in "real stores." Discovering these treasures are, to me, what this is what fiber festivals are all about.

After all, I can always order Cascade, Blue Moon Fiber Arts, and Interweave Press books online right?


PS. We've been experiencing some problems with our Internet connectivity, so my posts may be a bit sporadic for a few more weeks. Thanks for bearing with me!

Villette: A lacy new sock pattern for spring (and a great novel, too)!

Fleece & Fiber Porn!

Tulips roving from My Favorite Thing!

Romney fleece from Sapphire Child

Wine & Orchids roving custom dyed by Three Irish Girls

Ciara roving dyed by Three Irish Girls

Simply mouthwatering.
Today, I consider myself a very, very fortunate spinner...

Fleece & Fiber Porn!

Eye Candy Friday: Fresh off the farm!

Eggs from our local farmer's market.

I don't know if anyone still does Eye-Candy Friday. But when I saw these in a bowl, waiting for Chris to scramble them, I had to snap a picture. Aren't they gorgeous?

Two of them were literally pale green (does that show up on your browser? I hope so!).

I'd love to dye up some fiber in these colors, so I could spin a luminous two-ply, worsted-weight yarn. Then I'd use it to knit myself a cozy, woolly sweater.

Happy weekend!

Eye Candy Friday: Fresh off the farm!

Counting My Blessings (Instead of Sheep & Wool...)

(Photo: SXC)

I'm so excited...My mother is coming from California for a 10-day visit!

My mom is a sculptor (one of her pieces will soon appear in Sacramento's Crocker Art Museum), a published poet, and a musician, to name just a few of her artistic accomplishments. She's not your typical mom, and I like her like that!

We always have fun together and have a lot to talk about. Living so far apart, though, we don't get to see each other as often as we'd like. So this will be a wonderful, rare treat. And we get to spend Mother's Day together :-)

Something else to look forward to: My sister is coming out to D.C. on a business trip (she lives in Washington state) and is planning to spend two or three nights with us. I am looking forward to that so much! We haven't had much sisterly time together since I moved to the East Coast in 1984. Which means having actual days together is a true luxury. Yay!

(I love lilacs.)

I had to make the sad decision to skip the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival this year. With so much going on right now, we need to be careful with our money, and I can't afford to spend much on yarn and spinning fiber. So...I'm sure you understand why I'm opting out of the Festival altogether. I mean, honestly, can I expect to go there and not buy anything? That would be sheer (shear?) torture!

Sure, I'm feeling bummed about it -- that's only natural. I might even have to avoid Ravelry and many of my favorite blogs because of the glut of MDSW excitement/news/announcements/events/fun & games featured everywhere right now. But I feel confident that this is the responsible thing to do.

However...
The silver lining: Chris has that day off, so instead of spending the day digging through the barns while he eats his way through 1,000 different lamb and mutton dishes, we'll get to spend that time together. And I can't think of anything I enjoy more than that!

So I consider myself among the luckiest of women: I actually rate my husband above acres of fibery, yarny goodness ;-)

Counting My Blessings (Instead of Sheep & Wool...)