On-line shopping cart...

My latest adventure has been a trip down into the deep, dark tunnel of geek-speak. I've been trying to wrap my brain around setting up a secure on-line shopping cart for my website, PurpleFleece. I've written a bit of Html before but this has been a whole 'nother story. After several missteps, errors, and downright stupidity, I think I've got it!

After my first session of working on the cart, I could barely sleep. That wasn't from excitement but from all the gibberish running through my head. There was just too much noise. When I sat down to my second workout, I discovered all the mistakes I had made. After my third try, I discovered new mistakes from fixing the old mistakes. Many hours later, I have several pages set up with just the two big ones left. Wish me luck....

Craft fair in Belfast, ME

On July 10th and 11th, I'll have my tent set up along the Belfast waterfront for Arts in the Park. I do a few craft festivals each year and this one is one of my favorites. There is always an eclectic group of artists that attend each year and you couldn't ask for a better setting for a show than Belfast Harbor.


I'll be bringing handwoven rugs, runners, placemats, shawls, hand spun and hand painted yarns, and Purple Fleece knitting patterns. Stop by the booth and say hello...

Floozies learn to crochet!

On the third Wednesday of each month, the Fiber Floozies get together to work on projects, learn new techniques, and support each other in the trials and travails of life. We've been meeting now for about 5 or 6 years. All are welcome and members come and go but there is a core group of people who are the backbone of the Fiber Floozies. Among our group are knitters, weavers, spinners, crocheters, quilters, rug hookers, and felters.


Last evening, we had a presentation by Colleen O'Donnell on crocheted granny squares. Some of us had crocheted before and others had never touched a crochet hook. I brought an afghan that I had made almost 40 years ago for show and tell.

Here are some photos of us learning the technique and my finished square. I can't wait to try out my new mug rug!

Cindy and Karen work on their squares with help from Colleen behind the scenes.

Betty and Gay learning to crochet.

Cindy and Lin perfect their technique.

My finished mug rug.

The glow after a fair...

There's always a certain glow the day after the fair. Maybe it's the feeling of a job well done; maybe it's the memories of seeing old friends and making new ones; maybe it's the relief from unloading the van and putting everything away in its proper place; maybe it's strictly the bank account balance. At any rate, all is good with the world.

The weather this past weekend at Fiber Frolic was pretty uncooperative. Although we thought Saturday would be a total loss, the sun made an appearance, the rain stopped, and we peeled off layers of clothing and rain gear. Sunday was marked by rain and periods of slightly less rain. Fiberholics come out in any weather; it just doesn't matter. These people are determined and that's why they're called fiberholics.

I teach a lot of classes but I learned something this weekend. On Saturday morning I taught Spinning 101. Five women learned how to make yarn using a spinning wheel. This can be a frustrating experience for some as it's like nothing else you've ever tried to do previously. One woman had been watching her sister spin for years but had never tried it herself. I learned that it is possible to learn spinning by osmosis. Once I showed her the proper hand motions she was spinning terrific yarn within about 15 minutes. It was really fun to watch the transition from observer to spinner happen.


On Sunday afternoon, I taught another Drop Spindling class. I teach the park and draft method in baby steps. After about 2 hours, I invite the new spinners to finally stand up, drop their spindles, and make their yarn with what they've learned. Yesterday however, one of my students eagerly jumped up after about 20 minutes and started spinning away and making really fine and consistent yarn. It does a teacher's heart good.