Retreating With Fiber

The weeks have been flying by as I've been working to get the shop ready to open the first weekend in April, and also time has flown in fibery goodness in preparation for the first "show" of the year. This is a wonderful winter retreat sponsored by the Fibernet guild in Lewiston, West Virginia. Over thirty talented hand spinners gather at Hawk's Nest State Park Lodge twice a year and revel in fiber and friendship.

Three days of spinning bliss

I would go to this retreat even without a chance to sell my fiber, but being able to set up a table is an added bonus to a wonderful weekend. I'm in good company; some wonderful fiber was offered from several local farms and dyers.

Fiber and supplies from Greenberry House

Thanks to Linda, who came and spent an entire weekend helping me with carding some wonderful Shetland wool from Thistle Cove Farm that I had dyed, I had some beautiful fiber to offer to interested spinners. Lots of Bryspun needles went home with knitters as well and there is some dyeing in the future of some of these fiber mavens who picked up the Greener Shades dyes.

The view from our balcony

The weather was nearly perfect; some thunderstorms and a tornado warning not far away added some tension to one evening. Sadly there were some serious weather related incidents during the weekend elsewhere. But compared to the weekend two years ago, which was the year of the snow, this year was almost like spring! Snow started falling just as we were leaving on Sunday but we made it to Virginia with no problems after a terrific visit to Tamarack.

Linda went with me to help out and I think she enjoyed the event as much as I did. It was restful and we met some wonderful new fiber friends and reconnected with some old ones. I'm looking forward to the next gathering!

What I'm spinning: Hand dyed Icelandic roving
What I'm knitting:
What I'm crocheting: Everything hibernating
What I'm reading: Dracula by Bram Stoker (Craft-Lit selection), Arabian Nights (1001 Books), I Am Half-Sick of Shadows by Alan Bradley
Current sounds & sights for spinning along: The roar of a March wind in the trees

Fresh!

Heritage tomatoes from my garden


Beautiful new spinning fibers from Miss Babs here at Greenberry House!


Moss Creek Farm lotions, also at Greenberry House.


Favorite girl, Lily, enjoying cool summer breezes in the garden.

Gardening and gathering

Lettuce in my garden

I could bore you for hours with "garden porn" 'cause I love the way the plants look in the evening light. Green comes in so many colors.....and leaves have so many wonderful shapes. But I'll restrain myself here but if you really want to see garden pictures....


Rewards: Amish Paste tomato and wineberries

I've been busy gathering lately, from the garden and beyond. But Sue brought over these delightful red berries that she's been picking out in the wild. She calls them wineberries and they are almost too pretty to eat. I wanted to string them together like beads. I didn't, though. They taste a little like blueberries only better. You can get them from her at her shop, along with fresh sweet corn and beans. Just down Squirrel Spur Road from Greenberry House! Hurry, though, because I don't think they stay in season long and I know people that know about them will snap them up!

I picked enough peas, at last, from the vines yesterday evening to make a nice little meal for me tonight. And I've been picking blackberries, always a favorite of mine, from the brambles right around the house. I'm still getting lettuce, too, from the garden, to eat with local tomatoes, onions and cukes from below the mountain. I've only gotten one little tomato from our plants so far!


Hand Painted Texel Roving

We had a damp morning on Wednesday, a day I had planned to shear a couple of rabbits, so I pulled out the dye pots instead. Hadn't planned on a dye day and didn't have much ready, but I popped in some Texel Roving and did some painting with blue and red. This time I was more careful with the heat and the roving turned out softer...I'm very happy with these results. I'll be banding up the roving this weekend and putting it out for sale here at the shop.


Sandra's Unique Project

I forgot to take my camera to our Stitch 'n Chat gathering last week, but Mary remembered hers and took this shot of Sandra. She's knitting (honest) on Size 50 needles with a thick single made of alpaca, wool and nylon (I think). It's going to be a stole and it really is gorgeous. Sandra says she'll have some similar yarn from this year's alpaca fleeces! We had a nice meeting at the Atlantic Breeze Alpaca boutique and it was lovely admiring all the beautiful alpaca creations.


Barnabas: "This blog needs a cat photo!"

At the Estes Park Wool Market

Estes Park Wool Market

I'm not sure pictures, or words either for that matter, can give an idea of what a beautiful place this festival graces. The town of Estes Park is tucked up in the towering Rocky Mountains, and the fairground is within sight of the historic Stanley Hotel. Everywhere you look there is a wonderful view, and the highest mountains are snow-capped, even in June!

Young Yaks

Many things were different at this festival. I had never seen yaks before....

Suri Alpaca

and I had never seen a Suri Alpaca, although I have some lovely suri here from Mary Martin's farm in Bluefield, Virginia. This little guy made me realize why Mary's fiber is so lovely and soft! He was quite friendly, too.

Maybe a Wesleydale?

There were several breeds of sheep I wasn't very familiar with, but like an idiot I didn't get any pictures of them. I think this glorious creature is a Wesleydale, with a wool I have spun before. There were lots of lovely alpaca and pygora goats, lots of beautiful alpacas and llamas, and even a few angora rabbits!

Wool Market Vendors

This part of the show will look a bit familar to veteran festival goers, with lots of lovely yarn, tools and fiber. There were some different breeds of wool here, though, that I wasn't familiar with. I fell in love with a California Variegated Mutant (yeah, I know) fleece from Durakai Sheep and Fiber Arts. Left it sitting for a bit while I walked around but had to go back and buy it. Several people mentioned to me that they had considered that very fleece themselves. I also love the wool from Gleason's Fine Woolies Bond and Corriedale sheep. Just couldn't buy everything I wanted, though, so I had to pass this one up. But if you get a chance at least have a good look at their stuff...it's lovely!

Yarn and wool and color, oh my!

I recognized the names of a few vendors just from cruising around on the Internet, but most of them were quite new to me. That made things very exciting. We ran into Cathy and Mike, with their friend Barbara who has been getting all the wonderful curtains that Cathy has been making lately. Because Ron was along and I didn't want to bore him, we didn't hang around for all the activities. Cathy wrote about some great things that happened at the show during the weekend.

And of course I bought stuff:

Fleece and roving, oh my!

Sorry for the poor shot...it was raining when we got home and wicked dark in the house. When I start working with it all I should get better pictures. The fleece is the aforementioned CVM. When I got home I discovered that Spin-Off had done an article about this wool in the latest issue. So when I tackle the fleece, which will be soon, I should have some idea of what to do with it.

Another purchase was some California Red roving that I bought to spin on the delightful little spindle that Mike made for me. The vendor was Skein Train, and I had an interesting talk with her about another festival, in November, that she is involved with and promoting. So far I've spun an ounce or so of the roving and really like it.

I bought four ounces of a lovely variegated Teeswater/Cotswold cross roving from Black Hills Woolies, and just realized that I somehow didn't manage to get a picture of it! Hope I managed to get home with the ball! I was fascinated by the "cheeky" batt created by Fire Ant Ranch out of Black Welsh and Gulf Coast wool. Looking forward to seeing how that spins as well.

One thing that is the same, seems like, no matter where you go, and that is that fiber folk are special. Friendly, sharing and interesting...even though all the vendors were busy they took the time to talk about their enthusiasm for the festival and for their wools, animals and yarns. The Estes Park Wool Market was a great experience for me, and well worth the long trip!

I'm So Lucky!

People just keep bringing me wonderful new yarns for the shop!


Wild Iris Wool

Bulky yarns from Ann Catlett

And then, just when I think it couldn't get any better:

Atlantic Breeze Alpaca Yarns and Roving

Come out to Meadows of Dan and see how gorgeous this stull really is.  Pictures just don't do it justice.

Getting Ready for the Weekend

A wreath of fiber

New yarns!  New Fiber!  And great new little bags to put your special project in!  it was great going to the festival, but even better to come back with new consignments for the shop.  Under the Dark Star is a new vendor for me, from Central Virginia (Sally, I need your address!) and she has glorious angora and angora blends, along with some other beautiful yarns and spinning fiber.  I'll be putting them up for sale on the web site before long.  But I have a feeling that when people get the chance to touch these wonderful fibers and yarns in the shop, they won't be staying here long!

Hand dyed yarns from Under the Dark Star

It has been a beautiful day, and I've been watching people getting set up for the 4th annual Hit and Miss Engine Show that is taking place this weekend here in Meadows of Dan.  I can see that a lot of hard work has gone into promoting this festival and there should be a lot of fun, music, antique engines, heritage demonstrations and more to enjoy out in the field on Concord Road.  I'll be at the shop all weekend, so come up and enjoy our beautiful breezes and all the things to do here!

Handmade Buttons from Lawre's Laine

Lawre has honored me by being a vendor here at Greenberry House since last year's Sedalia festival.  Her workmanship is wonderful and we also have some beautiful little project bags she calls "Bagettes" that are just the right size for that sock project or other small, take-along knitting.  Clip one on and go!  I've got my eye on a black one with an Oriental print...always go for the drama!

Festivals, Friends and Fiber Frolics!

Greenberry House at Sedalia Spring Fiber Festival

I have to say this has been a wonderful week!  Busy, of course, but truly special in a lot of ways.  As I mentioned last week, Chris of Woolybuns came down for a visit and to go to the Sedalia Spring Fiber Festival with me.  I don't know what i would have done without her, as we loaded her car and mine as full as we could manage.  Tough on Chris to have to do so much driving after her long trip down from Connecticut but she tackled it like the trooper she is!  Her lovely yarns were the hit of the booth!

Setup was a breeze, partly thanks to the SO coming along to help with stuff and partly because of the great location we had under the pavillion.  Ron had the bright idea of bringing two vintage oriental rugs along as a floor to Greenberry House booth, and I think that they really set off our fiber and yarns.  Not to mention giving us a place to put all the fiber that over-flowed the shelf space and also making it easier on the feet for standing all day.  I told him he isn't getting them back!

Under the pavillion, Sedalia 

Dana, Dianne and the rest of the staff did a wonderful job putting the festival together.  Dianne acted as emcee all day and was a riot as she handled the raffle and the announcements.  I almost typed "rabble" instead of raffle...think that means something?  It was obvious how much hard work had gone into making everything run smoothly.  I overheard a couple of conversations that indicated people would love to see another Sedalia Fiber Festival during the year!

At long last I got to meet "The Thinking Knitter", Rae, in person!  She's just as delightful as she seems on Ravelry and on other projects I've become acquainted with over the years.  Plucky and hard-working....I saw her throughout the day and she seemed to be in helping mode every time.  And of course I got to see some old friends...Sandy from Mosaic, Lawre from Lawre's Laine, Natalie from Knit-fit, Mary Ellen from ISeeSpots.  And I know there were lots more folks!  New friends and old, fiber folk are fantastic!

Cooling Off

We were so lucky with the weather!  The storms held off and although it got hot there was a breeze most of the day.  This lucky llama settled down in front of a big fan late in the day and the wind shows off the length of his coat!  

I picked up a new vendor that I'll be talking about in the next couple of days and also have some new items from Lawre's Laine that are absolutely awesome.  I didn't buy much for myself, just some beautifully dyed silk from Bransonas.  I saw Chris over with our booth neighbor that makes awesome looking handbags.  I didn't get her information because I have a hundred knitting bags and didn't want to be tempted.  Our other neighbor was Long Locks Ranch in Riner and I'm talking to them about selling their lovely mohair yarn at Greenberry House.

It was wonderful visiting with everyone, new friends and old, at Sedalia on Saturday.  Hope to see everyone at Sedalia again next year, along with lots of new people!

Conferences and meetings...

Lily's New Look

But first darling dog got her new haircut last week. She loves it! And beside her is the bright purple yarn for the socks I'm knitting. They're going along quite quickly. The yarn is Crystal Palace's Panda Cotton in 59% Bamboo, 25% cotton and 16% elastic nylon. I heard somewhere that the yarn splits a lot, but I don't find that happening. Most cottons seem to split a bit but so far this hasn't been as bad as some commercial wools I've worked with.

Lily and TJ stayed at Buddy's Boarding in Floyd while I was gone to the conference (see below). I think they had a great time, although TJ was a bit frightened when I left. Diane said Lily acted like a queen while I was gone, parading around and being the boss. And that TJ is a sweet dog (spoken in a dubious "well, he's a Lab after all" tone.)


At the "Building a Creative Economy in Southwest Virginia" Conference

So anyway, there we are at the conference, all dignified and dressed up, with mostly government types surrounding us. "Us" at the moment is dear Charlotte and me. Charlotte's the chair of the Patrick County Tourism Advisory Council and a quilting/weaving member of Bull Mountain Arts, while I'm, well, the local crazy bunny lady. And also a member of the Tourism Advisory Council. Joe Wilson is the master of ceremonies. I play the CDs from the Crooked Road book that he wrote just to hear his wonderful voice. So he's up talking; everyone settling in to hear politicians, government officials and all that usual conference stuff that puts you straight to sleep. And he invites two Southwest Virginia musicians up to play. There they stand, surrounded by politicians and dignitaries, while everyone taps their feet and nods in time to the music. I bet New York City economic conferences don't start this way!

The whole day was quite lively, with lots of interesting information, slideshows, films and great food. Kudos to 'Round the Mountain, The Crooked Road and Appalacian Sustainable Development for their hard work in putting the conference together. And many thanks to these organizations and others like them for making such a difference in Southwest Virginia. Because dear Linda couldn't attend, I was asked to demonstrate spinning. Since I had planned to attend anyway it was no problem to do so. The Artisan's Marketplace showcased the talent of
Southwest Virginia with demonstrations of dulcimer making, spinning, weaving, basket making, wood working, stained glass and gourd art. And of course I didn't get a picture of my little display!


Barter Theater, Abingdon, Virginia

On Tuesday I headed back home, after a quick look around Abingdon. I plan to come back in a couple of weeks for a yarn shop opening! Abingdon is a beautiful town filled with lovely architecture and interesting shops. One of the nice things about these conferences is the interesting people you meet. I spoke to a lovely young lady who came through the Artisan's Marketplace and then ran into her again at Zazzy's. Donna Akers Warmuth is the author of several books on the history of Abington and the surrounding area. Check her web site for titles and events!

The rest of the week has been filled with getting ready for company and MORE bunnies, in between meetings! When we got back on Tuesday we spent the rest of the day working on replacing the bottoms of the sadly deterioriating and aged cages where the rabbits live. We managed to get a lot of them fixed up and the bunny house looks brand new again. Chris is coming this evening with new stock to replace the senior citizen rabbits that finally died over the last year or so. Looking forward to seeing her! And Jane from Fiber on the Mountain is visiting over the weekend as well to attend the Hit 'n Miss Engine Show and festival. Chris, Sally and I are heading to the Sedalia Fiber Festival on Saturday. My car is stacked full of fiber that needs to be weighed and separated into bags for sale!

How I spend a Rainy Day...

Dolls for Sale! Dolls for Sale!

My partner went to a local auction yesterday, and came back with boxes of porcelain dolls from a collection. So this morning, while the rain fell wildly and the wind blew, I washed little porcelain and bisque faces and hands and tidied ribbons and bows.

Now the sun is trying to peep out, through a haze of steam rising from wet roads and pavement. I can still hear a low rumble of faraway thunder. Green things outside are startlingly bright.


Barbara's Farm

Here's a great example of what a bit of fiber, some time and some talent will do. Barbara's second felted project, a delightful tapestry based on an old homeplace, is charming! I love it when a customer comes around with something she has made. Barbara is so enthusiastic; she has plans for lots more lovely creations!

Confession..

Sarvis against a spring sky

But first a word from our sponsor...Mountain Spring (sounds like a bottled water company). Things are sure beautiful up here in Meadows of Dan right now; with Sarvis and apple trees blooming everywhere and dogwood getting ready to burst out any minute. Tiny green and red leaves are covering the trees on the slopes and it's really looking like we might have some warm weather at last. Of course the wind is blowing wildly and there's a chance of rain. I hear that Mabry Mill is open this weekend. People will be lining up soon for buckwheat pancakes!


A Few of My Favorite Things

So here's the confession.... the mild mannered bunny lady who wore flea market finds and thrift store cast-offs with chunky black shoes and black tights with holes in the toes? She's not real. I made her up. The real woman At the Top of Squirrel Spur prefers spike heels and sparkle to drab and flat. Brilliance and flash to dog hair and mud. Or does she? Who's really here?


New Fiber!

Jane brought a lovely bag of dyed roving in this morning, sent by Miss Babs. This is wonderful stuff, Blue Faced Leicester, merino and a lovely merino/silk blend. Miss Babs is so talented with color and her roving bundles get snapped up quickly here!

Here There Be Bunnies

Great felted creations of Laveta, who learned to needlefelt here from Jane of Fiber on the Mountain. These little guys were hopping all over the shop!

Back from SAFF 2007

with lots of pictures and lovely memories. And lots of fiber to replenish my stash!


SAFF 2007


Chris and Gryffindor

First things first; friend Chris who comes down from Connecticut every year had to find some gorgeous German Angora rabbits! I had more pictures of old friends, but they're on the laptop and I can't get to them. Our motel had a collapse of their wireless and I spent the weekend lugging a useless laptop around! But that left more time for us to talk, play with Chris's new charkha wheel and for her to show me more sock knitting skills!


Wonderful Felting Booth

There were so many vendors, some old friends and some new ones. I was impressed by all the creative pieces I saw, especially the felted items.


Brooks Farm: Pure seduction!

One of our first stops was the Brooks Farm booth. Every year I'm blown away by the beauty of the selections here and this year I certainly wasn't disappointed. More colors, more yarn selection! We bought some yarn, then went back the next day and bought some more!

This is what Chris's car looked like about half-way into our excursion:



From Brooks Farm I bought:


Four Play: shimmering silk and wool yarn. In two colors that I think will be Seraphina's Shawl, instead of the yarn I was working with. And then I went back and bought:


Brooks Farm Mas Acero in wonderful shades. This skein is destined to be Spiral Rib Socks from Socks by Rota Buchanan and Deborah Robson. IF I can manage the knitting! Generous Chris helped me start them out so I'm on the way, at least.

And then we headed over to another favorite booth belonging to Rising Meadow Farm. And yes, we both bought her lovely fleece. Here's mine:


I can't wait to get my hands in this one. The colors range from cream to fawn to gray and I think it's going to make a marvelous yarn!

The best part of the festival was seeing old friends: Elaina from Avillion Farm, Cathy from Perfect Spot Farm, Mary Ellen from ISeeSpots, Connie from Delly's Delights. Jane from Fiber on the Mountain and more folks, like Lura, Diane and others that I didn't even expect to see. We caught up on the news, both good and bad, about life, families and animals. And there was still more time for shopping:


Silk Bells from Lori Flood, and a book from ISeeSpots.


Luxurious Black Shetland roving from The Rosefield


Felting Fibers (for a Friend) and gorgeous roving from Delly's Delights


and one more beautiful black fleece from the wool show. SAFF 2007 was a great time and a fun adventure. Looking forward to SAFF 2008!