Last year we had a small gathering here in Mundare, well attended though the weather was awful. It snowed and left piles of slush on roadways. People thought about turning back and going home but came anyway.
This year there was a smaller group, but conversation was lovely. We talked weaving and spinning and a wee bit of knitting.
I had to compliment this really lovely Sock Arms sweater. It was the perfect thing for the sort of blustery, sunny day that it was. Very pretty. Catherine is spinning a batt of alpaca, silk and wool, I think she said BFL, but I can't really recall, and is aiming for socks for this yarn. She is going to three ply it for a tough,sturdy round yarn that will stand up to a socks wear and tear.
Another lady joined us from about 40 minutes north of Mundare and brought her lovely wheel.
Lindsay calls this her fire wheel, as in the wheel she would throw in the car if she had to evacuate for a fire. I would too. It's from 1863, and was made in Norway. It is quite an unusual wheel but there are a few around. It is a double drive wheel and Lindsay certainly made it sing. The only down side is that she only has two bobbins so spinning and moving your singles to a storage bobbin is a must. She was working on a dark coloured fleece of an indeterminate origin sheep that her sister found for her and delivered all carded and ready to spin.
I forgot to take a picture of what I was working on. Lest you wonder if I was a bystander, I was spinning.
This is from the second of two braids Falkland wool top from Colour Adventures, about halfway done. This will be a two play, nice and lofty I hope and ought to be about a double knit weight yarn. but I am looking forward to getting this done, clearing off the bobbins and starting to spin wht I have been combing all winter. Mittens? Hats? Maybe a cowl. It is such pretty blues.
We had several people stop by to chat, particularly one elderly gent who grew up in New Zealand and had sheared sheep in his youth. He said his mother used to get yarn back from the mill in return for the fleece which she would weave or knit for clothing and blankets, but he had never seen hand spinning before and was really happy to know people still did that kind of thing. Another lady stopped who was a weaver. She said she used handspun in many things over the years but she didn't do much anymore. There were kids watching too and several gentlemen who were fascinated by the way the wheel worked and what it was actually doing.
You just never know what sorts of stories you will hear when you sit and spin out in the world. There is always a lot of interest.
I really enjoy that little bit of social spinning and knitting that we do at Baba's Attic. It is such a perfect little shop and they are so kind to host us and feed us. If you are ever out and about and need a good feed of some great homemade perogies, come to Mundare. Let me know and I would pop down for coffee too.
And that was Spin in Public Day 2019. Looking forward to next year!
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