Updates on Classes! More yarn at City Knitting!

Hi there Readers!
I am teaching two dyeing classes at City Knitting in June 2008 - you will not want to miss them!
The first class - Advanced Dyeing - is on Friday, June 13th from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. The goals of the class are to do more color analysis and see what primaries you would use to develop your own colors! This is a hands-on class with the goal or dyeing two skeins (or more, if you have time) of yarn in the colors you develop by mixing primaries. Bring lots of color ideas and a spirit of adventure! More information on both classes can be found here.

The second class is the Beginning Dye workshop on Saturday, June 14th from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., which focuses more on safety, measuring, dyeing techniques, pH, different classes of dye and fiber choice. There is loads of fun and learning in this class and you will be working hard!

Both classes are excellent opportunities to explore your creativity, work with color and fiber, and do some dyeing without making a mess at your home. I hope to see you there! If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me about the content of the class, or contact City Knitting with questions about purchasing fiber! Thanks!

I am also teaching a class at Michigan Fiber Festival in August at the Allegan County Fairgrounds. The class is called "Silks and Dyeing" and it is being held on Thursday, August 14th from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. It will focus on dyeing (safety, color mixing, etc.) and then the hands-on portion will be to use various methods to dye silk scarves - low-water immersion, tie-dye, embedding objects, resists, etc. More information about the class can be found here. The workshop registration form can be found here. I hope to see you there!


Here are some pictures of yarns recently delivered to City Knitting last week...

Artichoke in "Texas" yarn - this has 245 yards in a 4-ounce skein









This is Ganesha in Texas:

Black Sheep For Evah!

Wow, the weekend of April 26th is one that will be remembered for a long time. I was the lucky guest of the Black Sheep Knitters Guild, based in Berkley, MI, for their annual retreat. They had contacted me at the beginning of 2008 to ask me to teach a dyeing class for their retreat being held at the Hankerd Inn in Pleasant Lake, MI, and I accepted.

What an awesome group! There were 13 class participants, all so willing to try new techniques, new colors, to help set-up and clean up, and to provide enthusiasm! I thought it was one of those cliches that teachers use about "learning as much from the students as they learn from me..." Well, it's true. I can't thank everyone enough for sharing their thoughts, feedback, and ideas for this class, as well as information that will help me develop other classes as well. And a true, heart-felt thank you to the Black Sheep Knitter's Guild for their friendship, most especially.

Highlight include, but are not limited to:
The colors... Harriet made the reddest red ever - and I am sure this will look gorgeous on her.

















Kim came up with a marvelous color, which was named "Black Sheep For Evah!" Its a combination of eggplant, teal, and lime, and it really suits the concept of a Black Sheep - definitely a color developed "outside of the box!"

LindaLuFiber - well, she dyed and dyed and dyed. Check out her blog, she's written about the retreat three times.

Kate made some great skeins of yarn inspired by her cottage and its moss and lichens. Her inspirations were amazing and her results were spot-on. Well done Kate!

Cheryl was inspired to make watermelon striping socks, combining some great bright greens and a light magenta that she dotted with black. Her color choices were quite amazing.



















Here are more pictures, in no particular order

Stacy, Rhys, and Linda D getting started.













Gorgeous drying in the sun.

Thank you so much to Tanya, Kate, Kim, Cheryl, Stacy, Barb, Judith, Linda D., Linda L., Rhys, Harriet, Suzanne, and Joan for being such excellent students and for providing feedback! I really appreciate your willingness to learn and your inspiration for future classes!

On Yarn and Dyeing

Saturday was an amazing day. I taught my first hand dyeing class at City Knitting in Grand Rapids, and it was awesome. Why, you ask? Well, first the people who were in the class were pretty amazing in many respects. All were fearless in their exploration of color, intense in their desire to play, and uninhibited in their enthusiasm for fiber arts. So, what better group to have as students in teaching my first class. I am misty...

We were eight on the day, nine with me, and with many more shop customers coming in to peek. I can't thank Kat, Lisa, Geri, Jo, Joan, Sam, Jenna, and Lauren enough for their time and energy in being such amazing students for a first class. Their color ideas were very adventurous and sophisticated, and they had definite ideas about how they wanted to proceed. They also had great taste in fiber, choosing some terrific yarns and loose fibers to work with.

A big thanks as well to Lorilee and her great staff at City Knitting. I can't wait to do it again. Thanks for promoting the class, and many, many thanks for your support over the past three years, and for your enthusiasm about Yarn Hollow.

Enough talk, onto the gorgeousness:




The class from back left: Sam, Jo, Lauren, Geri, me, Kat, Jenna, Lisa, and Joan in front.

























Kat's alpaca twist, overdyed with turkey red, golden yellow, and other fiery colors.
















Kat, Sam, Jo, and Lauren dyeing!
















Lisa and Jenna working hard.
















Geri and Kat.

Last Weekend's Castle Farms Fiber Festival and Upcoming Shows!

Hi there fiber lovers! Here's a quote from Ghandi about spinning that you might find interesting...

"I believe that the yarn we spin is capable of mending the broken warp and woof of our life. "

This is from "Mind of Mahatma Gandhi" (Ed. Prabhu & Rao), 3rd Edn., 1968. I found the quote on this website: http://www.mkgandhi.org/index.htm. With this in mind, I am going to sit an my wheel for a little bit tonight and spin some samples of Blue Faced Leicester. Not that either my warp or woof are broken, but it couldn't hurt, might help. And I'll get some samples to boot!

City Knitting is having Sockfest again! Go check it out! They have several great patterns available, including some from the famous Cookie A. If you bring a sample sock in for display, you get a coupon for 30% off a subsequent sock yarn purchase. The display of knitted socks is awesome! There are some great knitters out there. They also have two varieties of Yarn Hollow sock yarn available, a Wool/Bamboo/Nylon blend and a Cotton/Bamboo/Nylon blend. The cotton/bamboo blend had some really wild, bright colors, and the yarn has a lot of bounce from the elastic nylon. Go check it out!

This weekend past was the Fiber Festival at Castle Farms, in beautiful Chalevoix, MI. It was an awesome event. Many kudos to Joan Hoover from Heritage Spinning and Weaving in Lake Orion, MI and her friends and volunteers who put on an excellent show in a stellar venue.

Thank you to everyone who came to my booth to talk fiber, purchase fiber or fiber-related goods, and thank you to all the wonderful and friendly vendors, too. It was a great weekend!

For you fiber lovers who hadn't been able to make it to the Fiber Festival at Castle Farms, here are some other fiber events in the midwest so you can get your fix.

A mere three weeks (really, only 18 days and trust me, I am counting!) from now, Michigan Fiber Festival will be running at the Allegan County Fairgrounds. Don't miss it! This is one of the biggest and best festivals - over 150 vendors in four buildings and in tents outside, numerous interesting classes from local and national instructors, great demonstrations, raffles, etc. The dates of the festival are Saturday, August 18, and Sunday, August 19. My booth will be in the red barn, space D13. Please come and see me and see what new things are available. I will have loads of sock yarn, kits, worsted weight yarn, lots of rovings, tops, silks for felting, and other goodies.

Norther Michigan Lamb and Wool Festival is on Saturday, September 29th and Sunday, September 39th at the Ogemaw County Fairgrounds outside West Branch, MI. This is a nice festival with great, friendly organizers and vendors, and beautiful scenery. I'll be there! Stop by!
Other Festivals

Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival - it is supposed to be very good! The dates are September 7, 8, and 9th. There are going to be some great vendors there!

S.O.A.R. is at the Shanty Creek resort at Bellaire, MI this year. This is an event not-to-be-missed! Check out the workshops and times for the Spinner's Market. The dates are October 7th through October 14th.

There's a new festival happening at the end of October in Ann Arbor, MI. Once I get more details, I will share.

I will try to get some pictures posted - I mean, seriously, do you really read this blog for my inspirational words? No! You are here for the colors! So I'll get at it this week...promise.