Who doesn’t love a fiber festival? I look forward to the NY State Sheep and Wool Festival in Rhinebeck each October….and the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival each May! Three years ago a group of fiber loving women decided to try a small festival in Ridgewood, NJ, and it’s it’s been a success!
There were vendors with great stuff for sale; demonstrations by local guilds that include spinning, weaving, lace making, quilting, embroidery; and classes in knitting, crochet, rug hooking, felting, and natural dyeing. In hindsight, I wish I’d signed up for the workshop on rug hooking. The design for this class was a small sheep, and the beautifully dyed, lightly fulled, wool fabric was lovely. The little sheep was adorable! Although I couldn’t take the workshop (because I was too busy demonstrating for my weaving guild) I am ordering the kit from Foxview Needlepoing and Rug Hooking,and hope to figure it out on my own! This is another design that tempted me (well, the sheep anyway!).
It was great to spend the weekend with other local people who love the things I love!
This amazing handwoven panel made entirely from the Golden Orb spider’s silk has moved to Chicago, and they have done a more thorough video of what went into this stunning textile. I saw it last fall at the Museum of Natural History in NY. I can’t tell you how badly I wanted to reach out and touch it! ….not possible since it was covered by a plexi panel!
Archie enjoys looking at pears and drawing pears. He says they have such personality. A pair of pears appears to be in conversation… some of us began calling the project ‘Talking Pears.’
For a workshop quite some time ago we all brought in pears and drew them for the morning. In the afternoon we took colored paper and began tearing and cutting to make very simplified pear arrangements. I wrote about it way back then….
Yesterday I cut my long finished pears off the loom! I need that loom for our next group project. They have languished on the loom for about a year, so I no longer remember how we are supposed to mount them in order to hang them together. Some of the group did a dozen pairs of pears! I did only two. Here they are:
Two Pairs of PearsTalking pears 1Talking Pears 2
Now I can warp up for the next group project….and perhaps for one of several small ideas I’ve had over the summer….
My last few days in Maine will be spent riding out what remains of hurricane Irene when she hits these shores. Hopefully she will be spent by the time she arrives, but everyone has to be prepared for the worst!
We are in a small island harbor called Pulpit Rock in Penobscot Bay. There is a big rock formation at the mouth of this natural harbor that does look a bit like a pulpit. More than looking like a podium this rock is famous for having a 200+ year old osprey nest at the pinnacle of the pulpit.
Our preparations for the storm are almost complete. We have two anchors out to keep us from swinging when the winds increase, all the sails are furled and lashed down, loose items have all been stored below. The larder is well stocked so I intend to cook some comfort food today, perhaps an egg/veggie/cheese timbale, onion soup, and warm homemade chocolate pudding!
Chocolate Pudding from Cook's Illustrated
Thank heave there is a good internet signal because I got the chocolate pudding recipe from this month’s Cook’s Illustrated!
Also on my agenda after we have finished our storm preparations, is watching a couple of good spinning DVDs I have on board while doing some spinning! I have Margaret Stove’s “Spinning for Lace” and Judith McKenzie’s “A Spinner’s Toolbox,” both from Interweave Press!
Handpainted cotton roving "Phoenix Garden"
And in my large bin of toys I have some handpainted cotton roving fromGirl Meets Spindle in a colorway called “Phoenix Garden.” Now doesn’t this sound like a good plan for riding out a tropical storm?
So I’m hoping that wherever you are you are safe and dry, and doing something fibery on this stormy weekend.
It’s August 21 and for several days now I’ve been wearing sweaters as well as knitted wool socks. This aint Kansas! (or NJ!)….this is Maine. The fog has rolled in and out for days; when it rolls in the temperature drops quickly.We’re in Southwest Harbor, and sadly I have discovered that Lilac Lily is no longer in business.
Sailor Sweater from Debbie Bliss's "EcoBaby"
The Debbie Bliss sailor sweater is finished! I just haven’t been able to post it since we’ve been out of internet service for almost a week! My own concocted sweater made with Tess Designer ribbon yarn is waiting to be sewn together….not my favorite part of sweater making! So instead of tackling that I cast one for another sweater. This is a top down design by”Knitting Pure and Simple.” I’m holding two strands together, a 16/2 linen in a muted purple and a linen/cotton/rayon mix, also in purple. I left a good portion of this yarn in the car, thinking I’d never get started on this sweater. I knitted down to the underarms just beyond the point where the sleeves get put on holders, and now I’m out of yarn. I have several projects that I brought from home (the Interweave Knits “Beach House pullover,” Sally Melville’s Einstein coat, Marianne Kinzel’s lace curtains, and the Manos del Uruguay “Serena” that will become a shawl) so I’m not wanting for more knitting!
Some photos from the past week…
Lush undergrowth on Long Island
Heading up Penobscot Bay to Belfast under N C Wyeth clouds....now I understand where he got his skies!
finding Lichen at Holbrook Island Sanctuary
I found some treasures during a walk on Holdbrook Island Sanctuary: two kinds of lichen that I have not gathered before. I only take lichen that has fallen on the ground. I’m looking for the species that contains orchil and therefore will make a purple dye. Until I find it I’m only taking a small bit to test for color. Once I find the purple producing lichen I hope to gather more on future forages! …not tons as lichen grows so slowly….just enough to dye an ounce of precious handspun or so…. Also, I had to have the little green urchin….so pretty!
Thuya Gardens in Northeast Harbor on Mt. Desert
This is an unbelievable garden! In August there are still some flowers on the rhodies, and there are foxglove blooming along with the later summer flowers of rudbeckia, fall anemones and monk’s hood! It’s quite a steep walk up to this hidden gem from the dock, but those who visit Mt. Desert by car can drive up!
Fog Banks come and go!
Fog banks roll in without warning and lift just as quickly!
Moss and Lichen grow everywhere!
Look how much moss and lichen is growing on this building built on a dock at Islesford on Cranberry Island! This is the entrance to a lovely restaurant that draws people from Mt. Desert to visit by ferry just to enjoy a meal here! There is a gallery and a potter’s shop on this dock, and the owners told us that every winter the storms throw up all kinds of weather that raises the floor boards and sending seaweed and debris into their shops! Every spring they clean up and nail the floor boards down again!
Truly wonderful wares in this shop! Lucky for me that Kaitlyn Duggan has a website and Etsy shop so I can consider getting some of her whimsical, lovely dishes without coming all the way back here!
Button Bracelet by Kaitlyn Duggan
I couldn’t resist this fun bracelet from the pottery studio….
Bob has just returned from visiting a boat on the docks that is a floating veterinary clinic. Dr. Barbara Shively visits various islands throughout the midcoast to take care of dogs and cats, horses, cows, sheep. While she examines dogs right out on deck at the back of her trawler, she always examines the kitties down below in a closed room! What an interesting life!
