Spring Fiber Day
What a haul. The directions calculated one and a half hours, it was more like two, with a very brief pit stop at MacDonald's. I have determined they sprinkle crack on their fries. That is the only explanation I can come up with for being able to consume so many of those in one sitting. And I didn't even sprinkle extra salt on them like I used to. Terrible.
We (Tess soldiered out Mom's fiber obsession, yet again) got there around 1:30p and left at 4p. I signed up for the Learn to Spin class at 2p when I got there, and had just enough time to go over to the angora rabbits and discover it was Wiley's Woolies, from Chelsea. They go to my church (the one I belong to, not necessarily the one I go to...not lately). ANYWAY, it was good to see them again and Tess sure enjoyed those angora rabbits. Me, I just coveted their yarn. Mmm.
Now, why didn't I get a picture of the cute bunnies?! The cute, HUGE bunnies? Clueless.
unspun, dropped, and spun (sorta)
There's the roving, which I twisted in my attempt to pre-draft, there's a bit of bunny fluff that fell off of one as he walked/waddled by, and there is my small beginner's attempt at spinning.
Not frustrated, but fascinated. Darn that Debra (of Maple Row Stock & Wool, in Sherwood), she got me hooked in just one hour. Now I just have to wait for my budget to come around to get a spindle and some roving. I won't have money for a wheel for a long, long time.
One tired toddler.
Tess found another bored little girl who was a bit older and, unfortunately, really really wanted to show Tess her new underwear. Tess was immediately hypnotized but, between the girl's mother and I, we managed to distract the both of them and get them out from behind a tree. That's why my wool is so twisted, yeah, that's it. I was distracted. Uh-huh.
One mesmerized sheep.
At first I thought they drugged the sheep for shearing but later we saw them bring out a rather anxious sheep (we walked in on the middle of this demonstration, above), and it was amazing how the shearer was able to sit the sheep on her bottom and position her with enough authority for her to totally relax. Kinda mesmerizing it itself, actually.
The shearer said he'd only been doing it for five years, did it for the first time when he was 11, then got into on his own after his grandfather, another shearer, passed away. He decided he wanted to keep the family tradition and "didn't want to work for anybody else." He looked about 5 foot tall and worked like the Tasmanian Devil. Tough gig but obviously he loves it.
Best of all, I picked up a magazine for the Michigan Fiber Festival and am now planning a (child-free, hopefully) day out in Allegan. Perhaps even for my birthday, which falls right after the festival. That's a sign, I say.
We (Tess soldiered out Mom's fiber obsession, yet again) got there around 1:30p and left at 4p. I signed up for the Learn to Spin class at 2p when I got there, and had just enough time to go over to the angora rabbits and discover it was Wiley's Woolies, from Chelsea. They go to my church (the one I belong to, not necessarily the one I go to...not lately). ANYWAY, it was good to see them again and Tess sure enjoyed those angora rabbits. Me, I just coveted their yarn. Mmm.
Now, why didn't I get a picture of the cute bunnies?! The cute, HUGE bunnies? Clueless.
unspun, dropped, and spun (sorta)
There's the roving, which I twisted in my attempt to pre-draft, there's a bit of bunny fluff that fell off of one as he walked/waddled by, and there is my small beginner's attempt at spinning.
Not frustrated, but fascinated. Darn that Debra (of Maple Row Stock & Wool, in Sherwood), she got me hooked in just one hour. Now I just have to wait for my budget to come around to get a spindle and some roving. I won't have money for a wheel for a long, long time.
One tired toddler.
Tess found another bored little girl who was a bit older and, unfortunately, really really wanted to show Tess her new underwear. Tess was immediately hypnotized but, between the girl's mother and I, we managed to distract the both of them and get them out from behind a tree. That's why my wool is so twisted, yeah, that's it. I was distracted. Uh-huh.
One mesmerized sheep.
At first I thought they drugged the sheep for shearing but later we saw them bring out a rather anxious sheep (we walked in on the middle of this demonstration, above), and it was amazing how the shearer was able to sit the sheep on her bottom and position her with enough authority for her to totally relax. Kinda mesmerizing it itself, actually.
The shearer said he'd only been doing it for five years, did it for the first time when he was 11, then got into on his own after his grandfather, another shearer, passed away. He decided he wanted to keep the family tradition and "didn't want to work for anybody else." He looked about 5 foot tall and worked like the Tasmanian Devil. Tough gig but obviously he loves it.
Best of all, I picked up a magazine for the Michigan Fiber Festival and am now planning a (child-free, hopefully) day out in Allegan. Perhaps even for my birthday, which falls right after the festival. That's a sign, I say.
posted by Denise @ 7:40 PM
2 Comments:
At 11:43 AM,
Kimberly said…
ooo, another spinner is born! You are more than welcome to borrow my wheel if the need overcomes you! :)
At 1:21 PM,
Anonymous said…
Looking at the Fiber Festival site, it occurs to me that if I took up spinning, I could justify having an alpaca (or two or three). Somehow I don't think Mr. K would go for that, though.
Post a Comment
<< Home