Knitting and Dyeing and Felt, Oh Boy!

And beading and teaching and dancing and more!

It's been a busy time at the world headquarters of Smoky Mountain Fibers. Between work deadlines, the regular end of the semester and a seriously kick ass month at the Etsy shop, I have been a busy little worker bee. But I haven't forgotten to have fun.

I led my first English Country Dance on Sunday. After nearly 20 years of calling contras, it was time to start leading English dances. Bob Dalsemer of the John C. Campbell Folk School was our scheduled leader, but allowed me to call one. Our budding English dance is very supportive to one another as we rebuild the dance in the Asheville area. It was so fun! Harder - different terminology, but great fun and good feedback. Yeah!!!

I've been dyeing some of my favorite colorways - red/purple and blue/green. I also sold my first felt flowers! Easy and sweet - with no 2 the same. At least so far... I have also been playing with beads to make stitch markers. Technique is still a bit shaky, but I'm getting better.

Dancing and Dyeing - and the day job!

Well, I've neglected this blog for entirely too long. Between Smoky Mountain Fibers, my day job, and my dance schedule, I'm afraid I have been neglectful and not only to this blog. I am a bit behind on a number of other things as well.

Work is busy and good, but developing and teaching a new undergraduate course is like being in grad school again, but you never get done with your papers. Maybe once the grades are in, I'll feel better. The it will be time to revamp the course for the summer session, but that won't be bad. My plan is to make a topical outline rather that chronological one, so that the syllabus doesn't change as much as the schedule does. A bit of work for tomorrow and some test questions to write for the final - that's about it for today.

Dancing has been lots of fun. I've been contradancing for about 25 years; calling for almost that long. But since I finished grad school, I have been English Country Dancing both in Asheville (in our fledgling group) and farther afield. I find the dancing much more challenging and I flat out love the music. So in addition to our alternate Sunday afternoons, I have been seeking out and attending English dances with well known leaders and musicians. In early March, I attended the Durham (NC) Sun Assembly's Spring DanceFest. Gene Murrow (New York) Taught afternoon workshops and led the evening dances with Mara Shea (of the Elftones) leading the band. It was quite wonderful, particularly because I was probably the least experienced dancer there.

On the weekend of March 28th, I attended the Nashville (TN) Playford Ball weekend with A Joyful Noise (Philly area) and Phillippe Callens over from Belgium. Again, I was inexperienced (though not the worst dancer in the hall!) but the music and dancing was wonderful and if I wasn't hooked before, I am now. And yes, I have started collecting dances to begin leading (calling in contra and square parlance). Pretty magical!

Smoky Mountain Fibers is sailing along. On top of the activity of the Etsy store, my LYS has given my dyed roving about double the shelf space and sales have really increased. They want sock yarn too, but I'm a wee tad behind on that (plus it keeps selling on Etsy before I get it to town - gotta love that!). The Coop at the WNC Farmer's Market wants more yarn and roving, so I think that the summer season will stay busy. I'll be tending both shops soon so I can encourage sales of my work while I earn a bit of extra cash! Not bad for off season.

You Can Tell a Dyer by the Purple Fingers

Careful as I can be, occasionally my gloves get hole in the fingers. So after a weekend of dyeing roving and sock yarn, the holes in the fingertip of my gloves have left me with 3 fingertips that are a lovely shade of red violet. I knew it was time for a bit of nail care.

On the other hand, my productive streak has kicked in with blues and greens that will be showing up in my Etsy shop. Happily everything came out beautiful and clear, so the 'Moody Blues' won't last forever.

I also started something I've wanted to do for a while: The Feltmaker's Paintbox - color-toned 'grab bags' that provide a range of colors. The first one is 'The Blues' - also in the shop. Greens are still in process with chartreuse still cooling in the dyepot.

My Sweetie and I started the garden this weekend by planting peas, radishes, beets and arugula. The overwintered greens were thinned (yum!) and the leeks and onions look good. Crocuses are blooming; daffs up but still only green.

The ColorJoy Waffle socks are coming along, with one sock completed, the other mid-gusset.

Dyeing in a Minor Key

Recently my dying work has taken on a darker tone. The bright, clear, vibrant colors have been replaced by shades that some might call murkier (?). Sounds so negative! I'm my usual energetic self - happy, feeling positive about life and love. Only a wee bit guilty about things I don't seem to get done - housework, early gardening chores, the bathroom floor. But this version of 'Plums and Berries' is definitely different.

As in my earlier post I talked about having all my creativity sucked into my work life and I wonder if that's not finding its way into my dyeing work as well. I like what I'm doing. It's just different. I am drying some killer blue/green/yellow roving that I dyed last evening, but it's not the clear colors I so often make. The greens are mossy, the yellow is bronze. That's the way hand dyeing is a lot of the time, so it's not scary!

In Sockworld, I finished the toes of the Knitpicks Parade and wore them to work today. I finished the first ColorJoy sock and started the second.

Plans for the weekend: Dye, spin, knit and build the quiz for Tuesday's class. Maybe read a book. Right now, I'm off to Sit 'n' Knit with the other sock!

Productivity vs. Creativity

When my mother died a few years ago, I found myself creatively stuck, but with an amazing productive energy. I knit sockaftersockaftersock. Eventually I found my creative energy and continued on my way- designing, dyeing, spinning, and knitting all kinds of different things.

This winter I find myself spinning white and beige yarn from prepared roving and again, knitting socks. I finished 2 pair that have been on the needles for a very long time, then knit another pair of KnitPicks Parade striped yarn, recently started a lovely pair in ColorJoy Creamy Seaside.

This time I see it happening and know why. I am currently building and teaching a new class - Computer applications for education - a skills and integration course for education majors. This is the class that all teacher education majors take. My job is to design and teach the class - I outline the class sessions, design the assignments and activities, make up the quizzes. The course is on the college's course management system (CSM), so I have to manage that as well. So today, a Saturday, I'm off to a workshop to manage the csm portion of the class better - and to put together next week's assignment and quiz!

So, the class gets my creativity these days. I get productivity - and warm feet.

Happily for my Etsy customers, dyeing is still hugely fun!

The answer is: Spinning!

The question is: What have I been up to lately? Watching the Superbowl, watching Super Tuesday election returns, and (I admit it) watching American Idol auditions, I have been spinning up a small storm. Last fall I sent a white Romney fleece and a Shetland lamb fleece to Zeilingers for processing, since I appeared to be in no danger of carding it myself. I had them mix the fiber and card it and it came back quite lovely and ready to spin.

I also came into a decent quantity of white roving with a lovely luster that I have begun to use for my dyeing I also purchased a really sweet fawn/beige (Corriedale blend?) roving. The fawn is really pretty. I have not dyed it yet, but that's on the short list for this weekend. I have dyed some of the lustrous white and spun a bit, but I have not washed or swatched it yet. The yarn is plied, but still on the bobbin, but it looks good.

After a healthy start on the Zeilinger's white, finishing up some roving ends of dark brown and grey, and test spinning a black/white 'beasty' roving, I have started spinning the fawn. Extremely sweet! I've plied 3 big bobbins and plan to wash it tonight, do a bit of knitting over the weekend. I think I love this yarn. Because spinning was so psychically healthy in the last days of grad school, I am using it to keep me sane in this first semester of teaching.

On the knitting front, I have finally kichenered the toes of 2 pair of socks that have been long on the needles and started another pair as 'lunch hour knitting.' I have been slipping though and have been knitting on them in the evenings. More minor cheating - I'm knitting the leg on size 3's and using 2's for the ribbing and foot. Should be fast, particularly after 2 pair on size ones!

Fun with Beads

It's been a few years since I made earrings, but that does not stop me from thinking about beads, admiring beads, even visiting bead shops. I have a nice stash, but when I am tempted to buy more, a little voice says, 'Don't buy more beads until you use the ones you already have.' Well, I guess I can buy more now.

I made stitch markers!!! Since I had not handled pliers in some time, I had to get my chops back. But I did and I had fun and I made a number of very cute little markers. My plan is to give these first ones away with skeins of yarn in my Etsy shop, but to start making sets to sell both in the online store and at the Farmers Market shop. I've ordered supplies (from Etsy, of course!) and can't wait till they come in. Fun!!

On the knitting front, I finished knitting the glitter socks. Just a few Kitchener stitches away from having them on my feet. I am also finishing the stretchy socks. I knit these from KnitPicks 'Dancing,' a cotton-Lycra blend. They have been languishing for too darn long - I think I don't love this yarn, though if I like wearing the socks, I may knit another pair. If not, the additional yarn will go to a new home on Ravelry. Just the toes left!

In the work world, teaching my undergraduate courses is exciting and fun, but a lot of work. Besides prep time and grading, I'm having trouble staying ahead. I just signed up for a Saturday workshop in February. Although I have my courses on the course management system, I need a day set aside to work on it with facilitators who can show me the shorter ways to do things. I don't have to figure out EVERYTHING myself!