It’s A Long Story!

This weekend has been pretty full and I'm going to tell you all about it!

But, first, let me get my sock out of the way. I'm on the second sock now.

It is going at almost a snail's pace.

Sock out of the way, lol.

Still spinning on Secret Garden too.

In fact, I spun on this at Greenbank Mill's Spin-In on Saturday along with the first installment of my second cabled yarn.

Most of the gang was present and accounted for…I got there a little later than usual (hey, when the kids are away, I get to sleep in!), so I missed Laurel. But, Heather, Linda, Bob, Natalie and Carol were there.

As if I needed any encouragement, Carol showed me what one of my future spindles will look like!

This is a Navajo spindle. It is a supported type of spindle. I had only seen these in books and on the web before. Up close and personal, it looked pretty fun!

In the photo above, Carol rolls it on her leg as she drafts out.

But, it's pretty convenient that it rests on her leg because she can also use both hands when she wants. Nice, right? Supported spindling allows for really fine yarns. Takes a minute to get used to though, I think.

Natalie showed me her newest spindle too.

It's a Bosworth spindle she had the fortune to buy by being in the Journey Wheel Yahoo! Group.

The Bosworth's make beautiful, balanced spindles. There is usually a wait for what you'd like to get, but it's worth it.

At the spin-ins there is normally one or two folks who come to learn how to spin. Most start on spindles. Like Laura.

Heather, who had been spinning on her wheel next to her got Laura started and the next thing anyone knew, she was a pro! See all the singles piled up on that spindle? She's a quick study, isn't she?

She didn't stop there either. Heather also showed her what it was like to spin on a wheel. Below, Linda is helping her unwind her singles from the wheel to show her her own skein of handspun singles!

;

This is her spindle spun singles.

This is her spinning wheel spun singles. Yes, she was subjected to my obsession to document even her stuff, lol.

Awesome results, right?! She did a great job. :)

The next day, Linda and Carol had a dyeing session at Linda's house. I went to see the yarn. When I arrived, I was greeted by this lovely ensemble.

Yum!

Linda and Carol are very experienced dyers. The chemistry of it seems to really get their motors started. I have to admit, it's really easy to see why.

This mandala was dyed using nothing but mushrooms!

Guess who else I saw there? I'll give you a hint. She had two new skeins of natural handspun singles. You got it. :) Laura was there to learn how to dye her new handspun.

I have to chuckle here, lol! These ladies are so knowledgeable and helpful! But, more than that, they just have a love of this stuff that is a joy to see. It's infectious! I had a ball learning with them today!

Dyeing with mushrooms.

Picking Queen Anne's Lace for dyeing.

Strolling back to the dye pots.

Wishing we had a vine or something to get some grapes down from the trees. :)

Stopping to see the sassafras leaves.

Weighing 131 grams of Queen Anne's Lace!

Playing with the little critters that stopped by to say hello.

Seeing the ladies meticulously label the skeins as they dried.

Watching their wonderment at the results of their ongoing dyeing experiments.

Can you see the two tones in this skein? It was pre-mordanted with alum. But, half of it was post-mordanted with iron.

But there was more…

The yarn here that Linda is checking on has only been in the pot for a half an hour. It's the Queen Anne's Lace!

Such a gorgeous yellow. Very soft hue. And for it to have only been a half an hour, it's pretty potent dye stuff!

Carol and Linda must've shared a million tips. For instance, do you see the knots on the ends of the samples here? They used the knots to keep track of the mordant they used. Pretty cool system! I think if I ever experiment with multiple mordants, I will try that.