Rain, Please GO AWAY!

It has rained so much that we have not had a day to mow the lawn.  It is about long enough that we could cut and bale it!  The rain started a week ago as we went to Greencastle, IN for The Fiber Event.  The Fiber Event was great!  Sales were up and I met many new friends and had such a great time talking with old friends.  Dinner at Greencastle's restaurant, Almost Home was again a treat.  A great big YUM! 

After coming home from Greencastle, I taught a felting class.  The class was using a resist in felting.  When one uses a resist, they can make an object with no seams such as a vessel, mittens, slippers, etc.  This time the student wanted to make a saddle pad for one of her horses.  By making the pad by using a resist, she will be able to add padding to the hollow inside of the pad.  This project is the largest using a resist.  I was very thankful that I have the felt rolling machine or we would have been totally exhausted!

Late Thursday, Edmundson RV called and said that the motor home would not be ready for our trip to the Fiber Arts Festival in Kendallville, IN.  (again)  We loaded the truck and were on I 69 heading north.  Since we had such a late call from Edmundson, we arrived with only about an hour to set up our booth, but we made it. 

Friday, we were greeted with more rain and a cold that was totally bone chilling.  Since my silk long johns were in the motor home, I was totally unprepared for the cold and drank more hot chocolate than I had all winter!  Surprisingly enough, the die hard fiber artists came out and shopped for supplies.  I was very pleased that our sales were as much as they were and looked forward to Saturday's sales since it was not supposed to rain before 7:00 p.m. and the show was to end at 5:00.  Saturday's sales were also good and for a first time show, I was mildly pleased with our sales.    We packed up and headed home and of course it began to rain as we approached Indianapolis.  

It has rained all day and we have had a quiet, thoughtful Easter.  Our California daughter, Jojo, sent me a picture of Joshua Tree.  They are camping there this week end.  Later, she called and we talked for a wonderfully long time.  It is so hard to have a child 2000 miles away.  Her phone call made the day wonderful! 

The rain is supposed to continue all week.  This will guarantee that I stay in the studio and get some work done.  I also need to order more pottery knitting bowls and the knitting lights.  I have sold about 50 lights in a week.  They are truly a hit with knitters, weavers, and those who do other kinds of needle work and reading! 

The end of this week we will be heading for Nashville, IN and the Brown County State Park.  John will be fishing and I will be attending a 3 day crank in for owners of antique circular sock machines.  This is going to be a great time.  I have yet to make a second sock because I keep running into a problem when I get to the increase portion of the heel!  There will be plenty of people to help this newbee cranker.  So far, I have just been a cranky cranker and I plan to leave as a happy cranker! 

Wow, this week is going to be really productive!  I'm going to felt hats and vessels in the studio and then crank some socks!  What else could I ask for other than 2 dry days to mow!  Hey, maybe we will meet some campers in Brown County! 

Till next time.....may the meaning of Easter bless your lives.....He is risen! 

Smoky Mountains

The Smoky Mountain Fiber Art Festival is over.  We have made many great, new friends.  My classes were fun to teach and students have returned home with their scarves, purses and felting materials.  Oliver joined the class for a while and eagerly helped the students as you can see on one of the photos.  Felting is not an art for the weak.  It takes tremendous energy.  What I love about teaching is seeing the creativity of each student.  You can see their personalities come out in their work.  The students give me energy and gives me the desire to return to my studio and continue with my experiments with color, fiber and design. 

Again, the knit lights were a huge success along with the hand thrown pottery knitting bowls by John Todd of Paw Paw Pottery.  I am amazed with the colors that I regularly have great sales.  It seems that black is hard to find and, of course, I have it.  Choral is the new color for 2011 and is running a close race with black for top sales.  The student that chose to make a choral purse, of course, had to leave early and I didn't get a photo of her finished product. 

Thank goodness it is time to rest.  Three days of sales and two of teaching can make a person weary.  Now we are parked next to the Little River in Townsend Tennessee and letting the sound of the rapids sooth us.  John is planning on getting his fishing rod out and I may even join him.  Last night, he saw fish jumping and it totally excited about finally getting to fish.  In seven weeks of travel, he was unable, or unwilling to pay the high price of an out of state fishing license to fish a day or two to fish. 

We will leave for home Tuesday.  John has physician appointments Tuesday and Wednesday, then we are off to Bowling Green, Ohio, for the Black Swamp Spinners Guild Market Day.  I hope to see some of you there!