I keep busy.
Doesn’t matter how hot it gets, I’ve always got something fibery going on. The month of May is always a busy one for me, but this month has been extraordinary! It started out with MD Sheep & Wool and a full weekend of seeing all of my favorite people in fiber arts. Even with the oppressively wet weather on Sunday, it was a real joy to be there.
It also offered one of those fun challenges that you get when you are vending, especially when you have a limited amount of space: how do you effectively display everything in a charming way?
Because I am lucky enough to have a small display space in the Wild Hare Fiber Studio booth – Melissa kindly offers my wares and I assist in the booth – I get the opportunity to create a section for me during one of the biggest fiber festivals on the East Coast. It’s a unique situation for me, and I use all my experience from years of vending in all sorts of challenging environments to make the best of the space.
I recently talked at length about my experiences in the latest issue of tinyStudio Magazine, and used those experiences to put together the best advice possible for newbies attempting their first craft show or market.
tinyStudio Magazine: Building a Vibrant Community
I’ve been a contributor to tinyStudio since the beginning and I couldn’t be more pleased to watch the evolution of this comforting and inspiring digital magazine. Put together skillfully by the folks who bring you FiberyGoodness, tinyStudio has consistently featured some of the best and most interesting people in today’s fiber arts world. I find constant inspiration and community here!
This isssue – issue three – features pieces from such luminaries as Mary Egbert, Mellissa Uber-Lopez, Alannah Wilcox, Francoise Danoy, Tracy Hudson, and so many more. One really great thing about a subscription is that each month you get fun extras like tinyStudio TV, which is basically a little podcast that features all sorts of inspirational and fun content. The latest tinyStudio TV episode is one with me, talking more with Suzy Brown about my experience and advice as a vendor at many different sorts of events. It is such a value to get that regular content!
You can sign up for a subscription, readable on just about any device, right here: https://www.fiberygoodness.com/subscribe/
I’ve got some new classes happening!
Another way that I keep busy during the Summer months is to teach a lot of classes! Teaching is one of my favorite things that I do, and this year I’ve really opened up the possibilities by adding three weaving offerings to the line up. Intro to Tapestry Weaving is a great way to start off your new obsession, using a small frame loom kit to make the sort of freeform tiny tapestries that I sell on my website. It’s a fun intro to the possibilities of weaving.
Intro to Standing Loom Weaving takes tapestry weaving to a slightly bigger stage; using the Schacht School Loom or similar standing tapestry loom gives a larger “canvas” to work with traditional techniques as well as the current popular style of textured weaving. You can make a hanging tapestry or smaller projects like bags or pillows from this sort of loom, though I’ll be covering specifically the techniques for freeform and creating shapes/landscapes.
Intro to Rigid Heddle Weaving is a guide to getting started with your loom, from choosing your warp and weft to warping the loom, then covering the best way to weave evenly and how to switch colors and use a pick up stick for simple patterns. Finishing your project will also be discussed as well as some chat about color theory in weaving and other pertinent topics.
I took some time to put together a fun syllabus full of good info and links for further study, using my tried and true method for developing new classes. If you’re local I sure would love to see you at one of the upcoming class sessions! You can check out all the class listings here: https://www.threeravens.net/classes/ or sign up for the next class, Intro to Tapestry Weaving on June 8th 2019, here: https://neighborhood-fiber-co.myshopify.com/collections/classes/products/intro-to-tapestry-weaving
Get Ready For Tour de Fleece!
….aaaaaand then there’s this wacky July event to put together and host, the Tour de Fleece! Happening throughout the month of July, this is the most fun – and in the case of my group, the most low-pressure – spinning/fibery event I know. We will be taking on the challenge of our own self-determined goals to pursue, mirroring the challenge of the Tour de France. The group is a great place to get feedback, support, and companionship while working towards a fiber-based goal that you can make as challenging as you’d like. I generally try to spin every day of the Tour, but I often fail. That doesn’t bother me! I always set a lofty goal just to inspire me to achieve more than I might normally.
We always have prizes and often have fun in-group mini-challenges to get everyone excited. Some of the most talented fiber artists I know generously supply the prizes and we all chime in for motivation. If this sounds like something you’d enjoy, and you’re ready for an inclusive atmosphere with the occasional dirty joke, please join us at https://www.facebook.com/groups/nevermoreforevermore/
If you’d like to see last year’s team and prizes, you can check those out here.
What do YOU do, fiber-wise, when the weather gets HOT? Do you switch to different fibers like cotton or linen? Are youmore likely to back off of one type of skill and embrace another? [I definitely do more weaving and less spinning.] Might you eschew fiber arts altogether for some other craft? Hit that comment button and tell me all about it!
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