Saturday, November 04, 2006

Lesson musings...

I invited Mom to join. Not that I expected her to sit and spin (which she didn't), but since she's the one who bought me my wheel, I just knew she'd be sitting on her hands all night to keep from calling, so why not bring her on in?

We had a blast! Yup, Laurie had trouble finding my house (everyone does even though they all admit later that my directions are perfect ), but once she got here, it felt like a Girls' Night Out. Someone who not only understood the allure of making something yourself, but someone who's life really depends on it. She'd never seen a Kromski wheel before and was really impressed with my cute little Prelude. She also checked my spinning (what I've actually done so far) and said I'm doing just fine. Okay, she said even better than fine. I'm doing GREAT for someone who's only been spinning for a couple weeks. I have good tension and even my little bobbin of plied yarn was wonderful. Yes, I really did do that by watching the video that came with my Prelude.

We talked roving and different breeds and how they spin differently and she gave me a little bag of natural cotton for those moments when I get too full of myself and need a challenge...

We talked about techniques like how I'd learned how to spread the roving and work from side to side (fanning it out) to keep it from bunching up and also to direct the colors once I get into the dyed rovings. I'd sort of figured that one out by default, but it seemed a logical thing to do when all the fibers were coming from one side of the roving, just fan it, tip it and let it pull in from the other side for a change.

Yes, it is kinda weird that I spin "left-handed" with my left hand guiding the roving and my right controlling the draft, but then I'd started with my Rakestraw and it seemed natural for me to add the spin with the right since my right arm is stronger and can spin longer. Then I'd park it between my knees and draft out with my left. So it seemed natural to do the same when I sat down at the wheel. OTOH, I do a lot of things with my left, like eating. So it's not unnatural for me to use my left for some things and my right for others.

Okay, I never thought about it... LOL!

Anyway, I got really excited because I told her that I wanted to stop by the farm today (she'll be there all day) and she invited me to bring my wheel and sit and spin for a while. This will be my first attempt to transport my wheel, but I'm going to try it and see if I can do it without breaking my little beauty. I mean, Wow! To get invited by your teacher to come sit and spin with her as she's demonstrating it.

So what was supposed to be an hour lesson turned into three hours in my house. We just kept talking and talking and talking some more. It was wonderful to meet someone for the first time and feel like you've known them for 100 years after just an hour or two.

So that's my plan for today. I figure I can run over to the farm in the early afternoon and then I've got my business meeting tonight. Doug and I are going to carpool. I hope that's as exciting as spinning, which I'm sure it will be, but life just seems TOO good right now. I keep waiting for something to happen. But I can't worry about that when it happens. Sooner or later, the 2 X 4 comes out of the blue to smack me between the eyes and remind me that reality isn't supposed to be this much fun or that exciting. But until then, I'm just going to ride the wave and enjoy myself.

Oh, one more thing. I'm gathering items for my swap partner. (On the Townsend Sockknitting Group, we're doing a swap. Gather some of your favorite yarn, some little odds and ends, a favorite hot drink--without the liquid -- and a favorite pattern and send it to your partner. and they do the same for you.) My partner, Tammy, is in Alabama and she's having a real rough time right now. So I'm going to put together, I hope, some really special stuff to send on down to her. Maybe I'll find something unique and different while at the farm to include in the package. I already have a bunch of yarn. One skein simply won't do it. I like too many different yarns with different colors and textures and weights. So I'm going to put a variety together and send it on down to her. I have a feeling she needs a "pick me up" and since the holidays are all coming, I want her to smile when she opens the package. I think she might need a smile right now, so I'm going to do my best to accomplish that.

More pics will come tomorrow when I have a bit more time. Okay, let's be real. I have no idea where the girls put their cameras. They're still passed out upstairs. Gotta love teenagers. I remember doing the same thing when I was their age, but now I don't want to waste time in bed when I have so many yarns and fibers calling my name. I got up at around 7AM this morning. That was already sleeping in. I don't need to waste anymore time in bed when I could be spinning.... LOL!

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I should be cleaning. But that's no FUN!

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