Friday, August 6, 2010

Fiber Christmas In July @ Kelleyville, Oklahoma

We sure did enjoy Fiber Christmas in July last weekend! Kate Lowder did an outstanding job putting the show together - we will be going back next year! We met lots of folks in this same business and got to talk "shop" and learned a lot! Here is our booth:




Came home with lots of new stuff! Most importantly - I got a loom! It is a Kromski "Fiddle" and is 16" wide. I was pretty intimidated, but I am getting the hang of it now and will post pictures of my first project soon. Also bought some raw cashmere that I am going to dive into soon.

Speaking of projects, here is a little free advice for anyone dyeing fiber. I use acid dyes that are only SUPPOSED to react to protein when I dye fiber. That means that wool, silk, etc, will take the dye, but plant fibers such as bamboo and cotton will not. Says so right on the bottle. Well, I have now learned that unless the bottle specifically says it will not dye your favorite, irreplaceable, turquoise t-shirt from the Grand Canyon National Park, don't wear that particular shirt when you are dyeing fiber red. Or at least wear an apron. You can probably guess what happened, but just in case, here's the story, minus the howling that went along with it. As I rinsed the gorgeous deep red fiber I had just dyed, I looked down and saw a lovely splatter pattern that would have made any CSI agent's day, all across the front of my shirt. Fiber got dropped immediately, off came the shirt, and after an hour of scrubbing with every imaginable soap in the house and a two hour soak in borax laced water, I am proud to say that the shirt is back to normal. Whew.

Here are a couple of new batts that are now in the shop. We bought a Wensleydale whether while at Fiber Christmas, so be watching for locks from him soon. (No, he didn't travel home in the bathtub of the 5th wheel. We are going after him with the truck and trailer tonight!)

Blackberry Yogurt:


Leotards and Tutus:



As soon as I get the shop stocked back up, be watching for a big sweepstakes in the etsy shop!

1 comment:

  1. Lori, your booth was really cute. I really enjoyed your dyeing red story.
    Can't wait to see your new baby's picture. Especially want to hear about his wool

    Sarita

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