The Fall 2007 Spin In

Two Spin Ins in one week! Aaaahhhh!!! I thought I'd be stressed. I thought I'd be psychotic. I thought I'd be overwhelmed... But no. It was a BLAST! And it wasn't stressful at all. I was in charge of the decorations and making sure there were name cards on each table and for each kind of soup and for the coffee. Though I got very little sleep, I had a great time coming up with fun ideas and using my computer and rubber stamps.


So, we had six vendors, all bringing something entirely different from the others. I really enjoyed the eclectic style of Janelle's booth and went back several times to find more things. And she bought my lovely Ashford Traveller for $350, which paid for the Schacht I bought last weekend. And she sold her Ashford Traditional for $3oo so she could pay for my wheel! How 'bout that for confusing. Mary T. also sold a wheel this weekend. A Louet for $150. Yeah!

We also had a couple of ladies from Rowan Tree Woolery who brought a ton of roving of various kinds as well as necessities like lavender scented spinning wheel oil and a stack of various sized knitting needles. Karen Dodson brought her stash of Ashford items, from looms to wheels to combs to dye kits. She also brought one of those newfangled picture frames that scrolls through your digital pics. On display was her trip to Norway. Yes. I drooled. I envied. Another lady brought some loom parts and pieces that you don't normally find just lying around. I loved her bundles of heddles and took several pictures of them just because. Ace Fields in Thorp brought her Mill Race Farms soap that she makes out at her house. She also brought more squash than I've ever seen in one spot as well as some great old issues of Interweave Press' Spin Off and Handwoven magazines. Another lady brought her weavings. After viewing them, I decided it's time to dust off my table loom and get back in the game! I have only woven a few things because the entire process scares me. But I plan to spend some time this winter, as it gets cold and icy out, warping it up and getting those weaving jitters out.

Mary T. bought some beautiful forest green wool and some handpainted roving of fun bright colors to go with it. She will be spinning on that shortly and plans to make a fair isle shrug, using the green for the background color and the handpaint for the design work. It will be beautiful! I bought way too much stuff. I got 1.5 pounds of some teal/blue/aquamarine roving that is from an animal called a Potluck. I can't remember if it is a sheep or a goat, but the wool is a gorgeous color and I plan to knit a sweater from one of the Noro books. I also bought another Lorna's Laces Wool Top for Spinning. This time I got Tuscany. It's the same colors as the Goldhill, but instead of pink, there's blue. LOL! I didn't realize that until I put them side by side. Hehehe... I also bought some camel down/tussah silk blended fiber that looks amazing. We'll see if I can actually spin it or not. And I got some of that sparkly StarFire stuff just to see what it looks like spun up.

You thought that was all huh? Well guess what? I got more! I bought some space dyed alpaca and some other space dyed wool roving from Janelle. She does such an amazing job dyeing her wool! I also got some angora top, some handmade paper, and a beautiful knitted wire bracelet with beads.

We also had FOOD! A Soup Potluck that had some of the best soup and other fun goodies I've ever had. Whoever brought the little scones...those were delicious! And the pea and ham salad was excellent. Mary made her famous Cheesy Corn Chowder. Yummy!
We also had Door Prizes and a Raffle Basket. Everyone won a door prize, and the leftover items were open to whoever wanted to haul them away when the spin in was over. Lynette Miller won the Raffle Basket and Janelle's mother won a bag of Columbia fleece to be processed and enjoyed.









Thank all of you who came and supported this Spin In! You were all lovely and I had a super great time just hanging out with you all!

Eastward Ho!!! The St. John Spin-In

7:30 am: Mary T. and I started out for the far reaches of Eastern Washington. The area was foggy... So much so, we couldn't see anything around us. The only variation was the shift in colors of the fog, from gray to pink to green to peach. Then we came up over the hills and was greeted by a beautiful blue sky and the sun.

Once we passed Moses Lake and hit the long stretches of wheat and hay fields, we started to see the enormous old barns of a time that is quickly receding into the past. This red barn was still in good repair, though unfortunately most had been left to the decaying forces of wind, weather, and time. When we reached the Palouse, an area of Washington and Idaho that truly surpasses even the beauty of the mountains for me. The rolling hills of bright green, rusty orange, dusty tan, and dark brown don't roll out as far as the eye can see, but hem you in closely, their velvety textures inviting glorious peace. As we passed Ritzville and turned at Sprague to head south to St. John, we passed this round barn. We swerved off the road to get a few pictures of this rarity. The barn was run-down, yet still functional. Two others stopped to "help" us out, assuming we were broke down. One lady was actually going to the same place we were going! By this time, the early morning rise, the lack of coffee and the the bright sun in my eyes most of the morning had converged into a headache and I was quite frightened that I would be entirely unable to enjoy myself.

9:30 We finally reached St. John. As we cruised through town, I spied a food mart, guaranteed to carry at least bottled coffee if not the desirable freshly made kind. As I found the goodness, the cashier, seeing my rather pitiful state, informed me that I could find some "real coffee" at the floral shop two doors down. "Are they open?" I asked, astonished really to find anything open at all in this little town. "Oh, yes," the cashier replied. "Jessica's already been over this morning." I bought the bottled Starbucks anyway, then rushed out the door and quickly told Mary T. that I was going to the floral shop. She followed me over and what I found was a glorious little shop with even more glorious coffee. Once I got my fix, we headed back to the car and I snapped this pic of the General Mills building. I would have liked to have spent the day just taking photographs, LOL! But there was spinning to do!


10:15 Mary T. and I finally reached our destination and hauled our piles into the old schoolhouse. There were already plenty of people there and plenty of food to save us from our two hour drive. The first thing I saw when I walked in was a Schacht Matchless Wheel for sale. For $250.00. I immediately wanted to buy it, but assumed something was vastly wrong with it, so I ignored it the rest of the morning. I perused the other vendors and found a great many things I loved, but nothing I really needed, so I set up my Ashford and started to spin some Lorna's Laces in Goldhill that I had gotten at the local yarn shop, The Dancing Ewe. In between spinning strips, I visited the food table and worked my way through the vendors a few more times. Another lady began to try to spin on the Schacht and looked to be having some serious problems. Finally I went over and asked if I could help. I was able to figure out the problem, a bobbin that was sticking and not allowing the yarn to pull in. Mary T. then came by, fixed it and I turned to the woman selling it and said, "Will you take $200?" The lady nodded her head and I walked away with a Schacht Matchless Wheel, three bobbins, and a lazy kate for $200.00. Other than that, I bought some bits of fleece fore four bucks, some weaving yarn on cones for $2.00 and 10 beautiful handmade cards for $1.00. Not a bad haul, though quite a bit more than I had anticipated spending.



Besides spinning and chatting and shopping, there were some very cute and cuddly baby angora bunnies there for purchase. Though I probably spent as much time playing with them as I did spinning and taking pictures, I did not buy any. Whew! It was tough to leave them there, but given Gus' "one pet only" disposition, I feel that I had made the right choice.

A Prayer...

This last week has been quite interesting in many ways. Opportunities seem to be jumping up in front of me so quickly, I kind of feel like it's my first time at Disneyland. Too much too see and do and don't really know where to start. As I sort things out and make decisions about the future, I'm learning just how much closer I am to being the woman God has made me to be. Many times at work this week, the old nature has grabbed hold of me and then I go home and feel like I've been slimed. By me! Did I really say that? Did I really do that? Wow! Part of the battle of overcoming sin is knowing what it is in the first place and being willing to see it as that. It's hard in that I tend to get extremely depressed and self-loathing when I'm forced to see my trash for what it is. But as this process has been playing out over the last week or so, I've noticed that I'm not even upset. I'm just saying, "Hey, God. I screwed that one up. Forgive me and help me do better tomorrow." I know that He's going to help me do better and others have definitely seen it come forth more than I have. Anyway, I came across a prayer a friend of mine sent me about three years ago. I kept it and have prayed it for nights on end when God's impressed it upon me to do so. I feel now that it needs to be shared with my friends here. So here it is:

Father, I ask you to bless my friends reading this right now. Lord, show them a new revelation of Your love and power. Holy Spirit, I ask You to minister to their spirit at this very moment. Where there is pain, give them Your peace and mercy. Where there is self doubting, release a renewed confidence in Your ability to work through them. Where there is tiredness or exhaustion, I ask You to give them understanding, patience, and strength as they learn submission to your leading. Where there is spiritual stagnation, I ask you to renew them by revealing Your nearness, and by drawing them into greater intimacy with You. Where there is fear, reveal Your love and release t them Your courage. Where there is a sin blocking them, reveal it and break its hold over my friend's life. Bless their finances, give them greater vision, and raise up leaders and friends to support and encourage them. Give each of them discernment to recognize the demonic forces around them and reveal to them the power they have in You to defeat it. I ask You to do these things in Jesus' name. Amen.

On a knitting note, I have finished the Tyrolean Socks pattern and here are the results...

NAME: Tyrolean Socks
YARN: New England Highland in Oatmeal
SOURCE: Interweave Knits Fall 2007
DESIGNER: Ann Budd

I used size 3 double points and a small cable needle for these. They were a blast to knit and did not take nearly as long as I anticipated they would. The yarn is super soft 100% wool spun by Harrisville Designs in New Hampshire. It took two skeins, 200 yards each, to make these socks. And that's for my tiny size 6 feet. If you're looking to make these and you wear a size 7 or larger, you will need three skeins. I have a third skein on hold and plan to design a hat that matches these. Hehehe....

Speaking of hats, I just finished yet another one! It's insane! How many hats can one person wear?

NAME: Urchin
YARN: Alpaca/Merino/Silk blend
SOURCE: Knitty.com
DESIGNER: Ysolda Teague

I knit this with size 11 needles with some worsted weight yarn I had spun and 2 plyed at the May Spin-In held annually in the Tri-Cities. The fiber came from Reflection Farms here in Washington and was purchased in April at the Western Washington State Fair in Puyallup. The yarn is yummy soft and the color is incredible. I totally love this hat! And it was all short rows, a thing of fear for me for many years. It was easy and only took me a few hours to knit up. If you haven't been to Ysolda's website, GO!!! Incredibly beautiful patterns with a classic feel.

And if that wasn't enough, on October 20, Mary T. and I are hosting a lovely Spin-In at the Kittitas County Fairgrounds. If you're in the area and love a soup potluck and enjoy fiber-related activities, come join us! It starts at 10:00 and goes until 4:00 and is under the Grandstands. If you would like more info, just leave a message and I will get back to you pronto!!!

A Tour of Thorp Mill

This week has been a week of changes. At work, personnel are moving out and moving in, and the Central Transit is now back in full swing with a new route. And I cut all my hair off because it was buggin' me too much! Here's my new do:
My camera's batteries kept dying, that's why the pic's so blurry. I love the new cut! It's super easy to style and looks really cute with a knitted beret! The weather here is also changing. Fall is definitely in the air! I even got my furnace a new filter and turned the heater on yesterday to burn off all the dust from the summer. And yes, all my smoke alarms roared into life for about 20 minutes. I was so nervous the fire department would show up! LOL!


Today it was rainy and a tad bit foggy in the evening. A perfect day to bundle up in a comfy wool sweater and an orange and brown plaid skirt and head off for an afternoon getting myself rooted again. Mary T. called and invited me to go to the Thorp Mill, built in 1883, and take a tour of the old mill. Being there brought back memories of Mary Jane's Farm in Moscow, Idaho, and the amazing time Mary T. and I spent there. It also rekindled my love of all things old, yet useful. The mill is in excellent condition and could still be run if it needed to be. Our tour guide, a chap named Tanner who wore a '30s fedora, suspenders, and a hand-embroidered silk tie, kept us on our toes as we tried to keep up with his stories of the mill and his many cups of coffee. I took my camera, but because the batteries were nearly dead, I was only able to get some pictures and then only one or two at a time before the screen went black. Anyway, I thought I'd let the pictures give you all a better description of our tour... OH! And there was a contest where we were asked to guess what certain items from the 1800's were. One of the items was an extremely heavy piece of iron with two levers that rose up from the side to meet in the middle. When pressed down, it would staple into whatever you placed between the plates. Anyway, most guessed it was a stapler of some sort, but I put down that it was a belt lacer, though I had to confess when I won the prize that the actual object has "BELT LACER" stamped right on it and all I did was copy that onto the form. LOL! They still let me have a prize, and I chose a book about the mill called, Listen to the Millrace by Barton Porter.

The lacing on one of the huge belts that run the wheels.

The turbine that runs the whole thing.

The turbine as it was actually running. I'm looking down through the flooring of the turbine house.

An old speedometer for the turbine. It used to sound an alarm when the turbine ran too quickly. The thing was gutted shortly after being installed...

On a knitting note, Mary T. has started a ruffled scarf from some handspun that is to DIE FOR! It's going to be a beautiful piece of wearable art when it is finished. Also, a long time ago, I sent in some yarn to Spin-Off magazine for their sock yarn edition. While I didn't get published in the magazine, I did make it onto their website! Go to this link and see my sock yarn! :)

My Life in Hats

I realized today as I was frantically looking for my black beret that I usually wear when I wake up too late in the morning to do anything with that mop of brown and red that sits on my head, that I have knit far too many hats this year. And coupled with the hats I've bought, I could do an entire calendar (or two) in just knitted hats! LOL! I just finished another one this week.

NAME: Tashkent Hat
YARN: Mohair, Wool, Alpaca blend, spun on my Ashford Drop Spindle
NEEDLES: Sizes 4 and 5 16" circulars
PATTERN FOUND: The Knitting Emporium by Jo Sharp

The color of this yarn is so rich, that I've used it in a lot of photographs. For the fair, this hat was my Half Project Basket. I actually had forgotten about this particular category until the day before my entry paperwork was due, so I speed knitted the first half of this that night just so I could make sure I'd have it to enter. This is what my basket looked like... well... it's really sort of a pitcher, but you get the idea... :D


While Mary T. and her family were at our church's Family Camp last weekend, I hibernated inside my house fighting a rather obnoxious cold. Mary informed me that camp was great fun and their mondo-tent that they bought was perfect for the four of them. Lots of people were there enjoying the hikes and games. The camp was up at Mission Ridge at a little lodge called Squilchuck. I was set to go as well, and even bought a new sleeping bag just for the occasion! But the cold had be whipped, so I stayed home... except for Saturday morning when I went yard saling... and Sunday when I went to Goodwill and St. Vinnies... Even though I wasn't too beat to bargain hunt, I was too tired to knit and hardly did anything at all all weekend. Monday I slept all day and Tuesday I finally went to the doctor and got some rather nasty tasting medicine that is supposed to help me get better. So now it is nearly Friday, I'm still feeling rather ill, but I'm back at work and that, some will say, is a good thing! LOL!

So what did I do all weekend if I didn't explore the great outdoors or knit? I spent a lot of time watching movies. Stranger Than Fiction, which I had already seen, but love it so much I'll watch it many many times. Premonition. Good, but incredibly sad. And Chronicles of Riddick. Extreme cheese, but some fun action scenes and who can knock Vin Diesel's sexy lisp? Hehehee... Also I spent a lot of time checking out opacity.us, which I haven't visited for awhile. If you haven't checked out this site, go to the right and find the link and click it. Then surf Mr. Motts incredibly beautiful and poignant photographs of societies forgotten. These photographs are not just capturing the decay of decades old buildings, but also give haunting insight to the people who worked and lived in those spaces. Anyway, check it out.

And here's a parting picture:

I just couldn't resist this one! :D

A Visit and a Fair

The past week and a half has been a bit of a whirlwind for me. I got all my stuff done and entered into the fair and Mary T. entered some beautiful items as well, even won Judge's Choice for her beautiful shrug. Terry Niles, a fellow knitter, spinner, and all around fiber artiste, won Best of Class and Superintendent Choice for her amazing shawl. I got two Best of Class ribbons, one for my Kool-Aid dyed Shetland and one for my red 2-ply Romeldale. I also got Superintendent Choice for my black alpaca shrug and Best of Show for my brown and pink baby alpaca lace scarf. I also received quite a few second place ribbons along with some great comments regarding what I could do better in the future.





Not that the fair was fun enough, I had the immense pleasure of visiting with my beau, Matthew Eunice from Florida. Until September 1, he and I had only emailed each other and talked on the phone. Needless to say, I was very nervous and excited when I arrived at the airport to pick him up at 12:45 am. What does one do in an airport at that time of night? Observe!


Yes, the Starbucks at the security gates is open 24 hours! PRAISE GOD! My dad and stepmom joined me in greeting Matthew because, "The parking garage of an airport is not a safe place for a young lady at that time of night." LOL! It was perfect though. Matthew was one of the last to come through the gates and I cannot even express how relieving it was to hug him for the first time and just be in his presence! The week and a half he was here was incredibly fun! We went to the fair, went to church, had a BBQ, went hiking at People's Pond and in the Umtaneum (where we encountered a nest of rattlesnakes!), drove around Manastash and visited Craig's Hill and the Japanese Garden and Arboretum on the CWU campus, tromp around Pike Place Market in Seattle (after I took the wrong exit off I-5 and got us lost! LOL!) Here's some pictures from our week together! The best part of the week was the hugs! I couldn't get enough of them! :)

Me and Matthew at People's Pond


The Yakima River from the Canyon Road.

The train at Umtaneum.

Matthew in Seattle across from Pier 59. The Seattle Aquarium is the building behind him.

Somewhere in all that I managed to finish my Harf from SpinCycle Yarns and spin a skein of black and white alpaca. I miss my man and look forward to seeing his beautiful brown eyes again soon!