Classes Galore!

My Mint account has registered something astounding: I'm taking a plethora of classes after a bit of a draught!

After a busybusy fall and a Summer of Fun (during which I only took the one dyeing class, I think, with Nancy Finn), I've registered for 4 (!) classes at my LYS after getting a little quiet notice in my inbox that the winter offerings were available for perusing online. Shuttles is so sneaky this way. Their notices are gentle and vaguely prodding (i.e. "Please register at least a week ahead of time."), which absolutely doesn't prepare you for the craziness. When I called, Judy Steinkoenig (co-owner & weaving instructor) answered and, completely flustered, told me she'd have to call me back because she had lines (plural) of people at the desk trying to register for classes.

I'm so glad she called me back. It's amazing, but I managed to slide my way into two brand new classes with Maggie Casey (yes, that Maggie Casey), a class with Debi Dodge (who does a LOT of skein judging), and a class with Judy herself (my Beginning Weaving instructor). Here's the happy listie:

* More on 4 in 2 (aka, More on 4-shaft Looms in 2 Days, or Beginning Weaving II) (Feb. 6 & 7) - Judy
* Spinning Outside the Box (Feb. 20) - Debi
* Playing with Multicolored Roving (Feb. 25 & March 4) - Maggie
* Sensuous Silk Spinning (March 25) - Maggie

There are actually a TON more that I'd love to take (Boucle, Spinning Paco-Vicuna, Wrap and Roll), but had to draw the line somewhere. I feel so lucky to live in an area that is so rich with teachers! The fiber world is deceptively deep...the more I learn, the more I realize I have more to learn. :)

Fibery Summer & Fall - in Pictures!

What's all this? Is it winter already? Time to break out the Snuggie 2.0 and reminisce about warmer days...let's see...

I went to Estes Park Wool Market in June and saw a bit of llama jumping...

...hung out with my wonderful (and supportive!) sis Kara in Pennsylvania, who wore my yarn like a necklace and took me to the Garden State Sheep & Fiber Festival (thanks, K!)...

....did a little spinning in front of Pennsbury Manor while in Pennsylvania...


...caught Amelia Garripoli in action at her book signing of "Productive Spindling" at Gypsy Wools in Boulder...

....did some weaving by the creek...
...and, of course, carded and spun my wee heart out!

Whoo hoo!!!

One of my yarns made it onto Etsy's front page this afternoon!! I can barely handle the excitement! :D Good old Statsy sent me an email giving me the heads-up.

Still trying to find the screenshot from the Flickr group, but in the meantime, here is the Craftcult capture of the treasury that included my Simple As yarn...


...okay, can't figure out how to post that, either. Thanks for ease of use, Blogger! Here is a link, though...

Spinning as Therapy

I haven't felt like doing much of anything since I received some pretty heavy news last week. Last Wednesday my mom called to tell me that my stepdad has been diagnosed with multiple myeloma, which is a cancer of the plasma cell. He'd been having rib pain lately, which we all initially thought was due to broken ribs from when he took a fall while installing storm shutters. He has been tired and even drifted into confusion one day. Rib & lower back pain is a classic symptom of this type of cancer, and the confusion was caused by an elevated amount of calcium in his blood. I could go on and on about the technical details, but I'm not sure how much I want to delve into it here...all I can say is that I've been sad and frustrated that I live so far away from my parents. I can't help. They're in Florida; I'm in Colorado.

A heavy weight has settled down on me. It pushes down and makes me feel pretty consistantly sleepy...just wrung out. And there's guilt involved, too. My family needs me to be strong. The last thing they need is a daughter/sister that feels ready to collapse with exhaustion.

And so I've turned to my wheel. It rests patiently in the living room until I'm ready for it. I picked out some superwash merino from the depths of my stash, and slid the drive band to the smallest whorl. Spinning sock yarn is something I've never done before...creating a three-ply fine yarn takes time and dedication. But that's exactly what I have right now. I'm a fast treadler in even the most relaxed of settings, but now the wheel positively purrs and the flyer flashes with the blur of the hooks. My heaviness turns out to be pent-up energy and crushing sadness, and now it's pouring into the wheel, flowing down my arms, through my fingers, and spinning away. It's magic. The depression begins to lift, and my thoughts become more organized and less panicky. I can be useful to my family again.

Love you, Dad.