Art and Science

 At Spinquest last month I learned a new technique for spinning a funky yarn from Wildhare Studios. I knitted it up to see what it would look like since she did not have a sample available. Very interesting effect - like a shag rug, but not a yarn that I will spin often. Too time consuming and not as showy as I would have expected. It did make a cute little scarf - about the size of my boas.

 At Spinquest, I realized that the easy coast fiber artists are much more traditional and that they really like the pretty packaging. I have the Shenandoah Valley Fiber Festival next weekend and I plan to take roving, batts and mohair locks in both plastic bags and the plastic containers above to see which sells better. All of the plastic containers have pretty tags and pricing in them.

 Marc and I are going to be pros at the Famancha method of determining when the goats and sheep are parasite ridden and anemic. The second vet I had come out said this goat is good. Is it not ugly? Marc and I have also taken a course on using a microscope and centrifugue to determine what kind of parasites are living in my animals. Gross subject, but I don't want to over treat and make the wormers ineffective. We have the microscope and test tubes. Just waiting on the centrifuge. This is a little too much like being a scientist for me. Marc has really taken to it.

 The chickens are now running around in a temporary pen. The grass is gone and I am supplementing them
with garden scarps and grubs and slugs. Yuck! At least the bugs are not getting a chance to reproduce!

                                   
 I am still listing yarns on my eshop and etsy. The west coast customers are mainly looking for the art yarns, so they are my focus.

I have been asked to give a presentation at the Greater Baltimore Weavers Guild on October 2, 2012 on Fiber Connections: Art and Science. The Textile Museum in Washington, D.C. saw that and has asked me to do a talk on weaving and its connection to science on November 29, 2012. As a basis for my discussion for the Textile Museum, I am weaving two all white shawls with lots of texture. One will be very traditional, while the other will be more like a tapestry weaving on a countermarch loom with a few twists - since it has elastic yarn in it. . One of the shawls will be dyed at the Baltimore meeting.

Upcoming post - we have bought a tractor. Does that make us farmers now?