JumpSheep goes on sale in Europe

JumpSheep hand-painted yarns are now available in Europe at Alysse Créations. These are half pounder superwash merino in fingering weight dyed with Gaywool.

Obit: Springwater Fiber Workshop, Alexandria, Va.

Springwater Fiber Workshop was not only my LYS (local yarn store), it was a fiber workshop where I learned to spin and dye when these crafts were not yet as trendy as they are today. It was supported by commissions for the arts, other agencies and foundations. Most importantly, it was supported by the teachers and the members of the community who have made Springwater a part of their lives.

Once I was on my own at the spinning wheel and producing knittable yarns, the shop welcomed my products and sold them at the store. Springwater didn't just ask for my support; it also provided me with encouragement and support to pursue my interest in fiber arts. Therefore, it was with great disappointment that I learned yesterday of the closure of the school and of the shop "effective immediately". Needless to say, there were a flurry of emails on the yahoo group of Springwater habitués. Finally, my spinning and natural dyeing mentor, Sylvie Demar, wrote this:

OK all;

Before rumors start flying . . . .

The decision to close was not made lightly and for me personally it feels like another death in my family.

Decisions were made that at the time seemed the best way to solve some of the problems and, unfortunately did not work.

During this process, additional problems began to surface, and reached the point of being unsurmountable.

Personally, I'm tired of fighting.

Springwater has always had financial obstacles - one was trying to maintain an open studio in an extremely and increasingly high rent area so as to be close to other arts (i.e. Art League).

Closing is the result of many, many factors in combination with a downswing in the economy. And yes, rising gasoline prices are included in this.

The fact that one can now find almost as many knit shops and knit classes as Starbucks in any given area is also a contributing factor. Why drive in congested rush hour traffic to a place that is notorious for bad parking when you can just go down the street from where you are to do the same thing.

Also purchasing on the internet, while extremely convenient leaves many small organizations/retailers wondering how to pay the rent when people come into a store, look around and try things out - then buy online because its less expensive.

The only way to keep small businesses open is to patronize there as much as you can - even if it costs a bit more or is less convenient than buying online. Not a criticism - just a statement of fact that times have changed.

These are not the only reasons for the decision to close Springwater - but these consumer trends are forecast to continue, making it extremely difficult to deal with.

So, having said all that, we need to celebrate the spirit of an organization that while physically will pass into history - but will live on in spirit for a long time.

One last point:

The lease on the site is up the end of this year and all of you renters know what that means:

new lease = higher rent or moving - and believe me its worse for commercial property than for residential.

All of these contributing factors and more unfortunately made the decision to close the most prudent.

Sylvia D.

If you have your beloved LYS, you have to think twice before buying the cheaper products that you find on the internet. You may be saving a few dollars, but losing your community of crafts people.

Just about as pink as you can get!

One of the wonderful spinners I met at Yarn School in September was Kari Cohn a.k.a. UpTheMudCreek in Ravelry. Shortly after, she started her Think Pink project on Etsy. At about the same time, I got a bundle of pink dye from Africa and it was just appropriate to put these two things together and the results are these batts put on sale by Kari on Etsy here and here.

Pink Peppercorns (sold)
Pink Spice (still available)

I also had a recent swap with YarnWench: a box of trims from Filature Houard for a box of the YarnWench's fabulous, fabulous handdyed tops. In addition, Lynn also got a batt of Pink Spice. Here is the resulting yarn.

The dye powder used is very unusual. First of all, it's olive green when dry. I found it in Marrakesh last year and I shared it with Laurence. It's so powerful that a smidgen is more than enough to dye two pounds of wool. However, Laurence said the one her father got for her in Madagascar was better so I sought colleagues who might possibly go to Madagascar. Finally I found one who would have no problem going to the market.

I've always suspected that this mysterious dye was manufactured in India, but the kind from Madagascar turned out to have been ground super-duper fine. Thus, it's not noticeable when the dust gets to your clothes and your skin.

So, my colleague who had been carrying the plastic bag of dye had no idea what was in store for him when he washed his face at the end of the day. There, staring at him in front of the mirror in his hotel bathroom, was himself in shocking pink!

Rhinebeck in the New York Times

Read article here.
Photos I took to follow...

Back from Stitches East

Stitches East doesn't sound exciting when one is only a week away from Rhinebeck (5.5 hours by car). However, since Baltimore is only 45 minutes away, why not?

I bought a rubber stamp with a spinning wheel and a sheep by Magenta and a book: the 1994 hardcover edition of Fancy Feet by Anna Zilboorg. The book was priced $18.95, but the shop owner offered a 10% discount since the book had shelf wear. The exact same book is for sale on amazon marketplace from $45 to $100. Now the paperback edition published in 2001 is also available at the marketplace with price ranging from 249.77 to 386.46. Hard to believe, but it's true!

Unusual Spinning Wheel found in Japan

Here is a photo taken by Majacraft's Glynnis Poad of a curious-looking spinning equipment at the Tokyo Spinning Party. It has no wheel and you use a stick which you push on the spindle shaft to make it run. There is no bobbin or flyer either; instead, it has a quill. Glynnis reported at the francophone Forum du Filage that it's simple and quite fun to use. However, the fiber has to be pre-drafted because one can only hold the fiber with one hand as the other is pushing the stick.

Speaking of quills, Glynnis added that Majacraft will be coming out before Christmas with its own quill which will work on all its spinning wheels.

This is an old Japanese postcard I came across...

...and I was delighted to see it in contemporary setting. Photo provided by Glynnis.

It looks like an Indian charkha that my friend, Sandrine, sells at her online shop, Alysse Créations.

Yarn School 2007: We Came, We Spun, We Dyed!

Photos taken by students at Harveyville Project in Harveyville, Kansas, may be viewed here.

More Tokyo Spinning Party photos

I found more photos taken at the Tokyo Spinning Party held last week on the website of Kakara Woolworks, a Japanese fiber shop. Below are photos of Glynnis teaching, and doing a spinning demo on the Majacraft Rose. Bottom photo shows Glynnis's husband, Owen, creator of The Little Gem, with his back turned watching Glynnis spin on a Suzie Pro. By the way, Adrian of HelloYarn did an exhaustive review of the Rose recently. Read it here

Tokyo Spinning Party, Sept. 17-18

No, I wasn't there, but my friend Glynnis of Majacraft was. See photos here found on the website of Spinhouse Ponta which was a sponsor. Spinhouse Ponta publishes the Japanese spinning magazine called Spinnuts.

Back to school this coming weekend.

The Harveyville Project's Yarn School with Adrian Bizilla of Hello Yarn. Which means I will miss The Washington Paper's Crafty Bastards' Arts and Crafts Fair on Sept. 30 for the second year in a row, just as I missed MWSF for the last two years.

obit: Filature Houard

I just received an email from a self-described fiberholic who is going to the Languedoc area in France very soon. She wanted information on Filature Houard. Unfortunately, just a few hours before, I had received an email from Laurence a.k.a. LaineZinzin -- who vacations in nearby Bedarieux in the summer -- and she reports that Filature Houard finally closed down for business August 15.

Monsieur Houard had been trying to fight the imminent closure due to bankruptcy since last summer. He went to court last October and the factory stayed open for 10 more months. I'm glad I was able to go to the shop at least once. It will be missed by spinners and knitters.

The machines of the factory churns out fabulous threads and yarns. Let's hope someone or some entity will take a financial interest in it.

Otto's cashmere

What spinner doesn't know Otto, his fabulous Petite and Finest drum carders and his even more fabulous customer service. No introduction needed here.

We -- Larry and I -- paid a visit to his farm in New Castle, Virginia, five hours from Washington, DC, and this gentle creature was who greeted us before Otto and Joanne could come out of the workshop-cum-office.


More cashmere goats slowly descended from the hill behind. Otto explained it was their habit to come down in the afternoon for treats: quartered crab apples that they nibbled on off one's palm.

We spent a delightful afternoon in the Strauch's porch drinking beer and nibbling on Joanne's tomato and mozzarella platter, talking about the next spinning retreat in France at Mic's place planned for Fall '08 and exploring the craft market in New Zealand. Add to that science fiction films and Hercule Poirot, my favorite film to watch while spinning. Otto mimics the Belgian detective to a T.

We got back home at the stroke of midnight, still thoroughly delighted and hopeful to spend more time with Otto and Joanne on the road on craft fairs and such.


The cashmere goats had already been brushed (no, they're not shorn) so all that's left are the guard hairs. Here's a closer look at the horns.

Japanese boots (jika-tabi) in print

Here's an interesting acquisition from Japan, specifically from a little Nara shop called Tabi-ji. It's a pair called jika-tabi.


Hubby was looking for these boots, usually black or blue, and normally worn by construction workers and Buddhist monks. When he finally found Tabi-ji, the boots came, surprisingly, in prints. And even more surprisingly, the shop owner, named Ryo, spoke impeccable English because he lived for sometime in Eastern Washington State.

As Ryo packed our purchases, he carefully included a couple of his brochures in the bag and said, "If you want anymore, just send me an email. I will mail to the US."

Here's how you contact Ryo:
Tel: 011-81-742-263588
Email：yonezi.come@s6.dion.ne.jp

Ryo in his shop.

Spin your newspaper and, yes, you can crochet or knit it too!

This you will see in the trilingual blog of Pirkko. Her instructions (in French) are here.

Jetlagged, and oh my deer!

It's just a manhole, but since this is Japan, design is a must. The deer is a symbol of Nara, where the rest of the photos were taken last week.

Feeding time!

Do you see the pleased look on this cookie-eating deer?

Larry is beseeched to share his ice cream.

"That looks yummy!" These fellows are not incapable of poking your butt to get you to feed them.

Looking stately and nonchalant among tourists.

This deer, er, dear getting water just outside the temple to cool off.

Ravelry

To toast the Ravelry invite received, I present the French music video of Camille, Ta Douleur, where she gets caught up slowly, but surely in a self-knitting blue yarn.

Abigoy: Indie artist in Manila

So I've been in Manila for almost two weeks now and a trip to Manila is not complete without a weekend in the country with family friends from waaaaay back. One of them is an indie artist named Abi Goy whose hip t-shirts are sold at Analog Soul.

So Abi and I had our "stitch and bitch" time during which she worked on her contribution to an upcoming group exhibition. For the show, each artist was given a blank doll which was to be finished according to the individual's desire. Abi's is a doll with two identities: Fire and Rain. Note the flame on the red doll's right hand and a rain drop on the blue one's. Abi drew the design on the doll with a pencil as she stitched along. That's a true artist, not a mere craftster!

Out for the Summer

Halo-halo is a favorite treat in Manila, especially during the summer months. A tall glass is filled halfway with sweetened beans, coconut meat, jackfruit, yam, plantain, flan caramel, and rice crispies. Then the whole mix is covered with crushed ice, milk is poured on and topped with ice cream.

What goes in halo-halo.


How to prepare halo-halo.


Ice shaver fashioned after the traditional kind made of cast-iron.

JumpSheep gets woven in France

Back in February, Le Forum de Filage held a yarn exchange called,
Le feu couve sous la glace. My godmother was Carine; and my godson, Paul -- not a spinner, but a weaver.

Last month, Paul sent me photos of what he had done with the yarns that I sent him. I was so delighted to see our work together -- a table runner -- and am equally delighted to share them with you. Paul wrote that it was his first time to weave with handspun yarn. Well, it was also my first time to have a weaver work with my yarn. : )





By the way, at last month's spinning retreat in France, Paul won my yarn -- which I had DHL'd when I learned I was quarantined -- at the raffle. It's a plied lace yarn in gold and burgundy.

Le Forum de Filage has opened an English section!

I'm delighted to let anglophone spinners know that the French spinning group Le Forum de Filage has opened a new English section. This is after the spinners' retreat in the Cevennes in France was graced with the presence of anglophones Owen and Glynnis Poad of Majacraft in New Zealand. Also, the European spinners of the forum are planning to come to the U.S. for the Maryland Sheep and Wool and, eventually, visit the Majacraft factory in Tauranga. Therefore, they are brushing up on their English.

So far, we've heard from Andy Poad, son of Owen and Glynnis; Otto Strauch, creator of the fabulous drum carders; Elizabeth of Spinning from the Edge; and Natasha of Luxe.

Andy, along with brother, Rob, are fashioning a new Majacraft flyer as requested by Midian.


As Sandrine, the forum's host, describes it, "It's a small flyer, for baby bobbins and fat-core bobbins. Not a flyer for standard bobbins. Instead of an orifice for fine fibers it's a delta orifice like the standard flyer, but with e-hook. And of course fiber-glass arms."

So, there you are. If you want constant discussions daily, go join the filage forum!