My classes this year were all spinning ones - 1) Setting Yourself Free w

You can see that I loved this so much that I spun the yarn, washed and dried it in my hotel room and then created this little neckscarf that coordinated with a hand-made button that a newly-met friend, Susan, offered me. Isn't it beautiful? She has a real button making talent. I wish she sold them online, but she only does them for fun. I hadn't spun chunky singles in a while and this was really a blast.
2) Spinning Cotton - quite a challenge, but boy I learned a lot. This class helped perfect my ability to spin on a h

3) Spinning Flax - the teacher was a fiber genius an


4) Woolen vs. Worsted - how to tell the difference and change your spinning technique to match the type of fiber you are spinning. Very enlightening and in this one, I finally learned how to use hand cards, or believe so anyway. The teacher, Darlene, was very patient and helpful, but a 12 year old fellow spinner named Shannon really helped cement the concept of hand carding and made it "click" in my brain. We practiced worsted vs. woolen prep and we learned that cottons are best done with long draw, while long fibers which I normally prefer are best done with the inchworm beginner method which is still my fallback technique. We got to work with fresh lamb's fleece, washed but not carded, and I finally know a butt from a tip - and how to flick it then card it and spin it without messing up the alignment of the fibers.
Whew! Very fun but exhausting weekend. Not so much as a retreat as a brain squeeze - but it gave me enough ideas and material to practice on for a good long time. I highly recommend this affordable festival to anyone in the Midwest who can attend.
3 comments:
what a wonderful exciting weekend!!!! sounds like you learned so much and had such a great time. i'mso happy you were able to do this. thanks for sharing your experience. your scarf is gorgeous and that button matches your shirt and ties in the scarf jsut perfectly. green looks really great on you.
Sounds like so much fun! And a nice selection of learning. Sometimes the "small" festivals are the best, you get to participate/interact much more.
Oh RATS----- I wish I would have known!!!! Remind me next year wouldja?
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