The fibery side

The internet was down at the house yesterday morning, but I did write a blog post on word pad. I'll upload it later today.
I had a nice visit with the interpretation class at Arkansas Tech University in Russellville yesterday. They are a fun, creative bunch of kids. I look forward to seeing some of them as seasonal interpreters in our parks next summer.

I like to wake up and weave in the mornings. I weave standing up at my triloom in the quiet of the day, as the sky starts to lighten. I listen to the animals waking up and the birds beginning their songs. Sometimes I plan my day and work out issues, sometimes I don't think at all, I just weave.

The fall colors shawl currently on my "morning loom" my
 quiet weaving triloom.

 I like to weave on my Newcomb when I get home from work. This big loom makes a lot of noise as I pull the beater in to pack the fleece. It is a good workout after a day at work.

The Dapper Dan rug currently on my Newcomb, the big,
 loud, strong rug loom that I weave on in the afternoon.

Then, after chores in the evening, I love to sit and spin yarn on my wheel or crochet hats in my easy chair. The fiber artist segments of my day dovetail productively, peacefully and naturally with all the rest of my life.

Pogo focus

The weather is foggy soft and beautiful this morning. The crows are cawling on the hill and the garden spider on the porch is moving slow.
My brain is all over the place this morning, not an effective way to get anything accomplished.
I've thought about composing a cowboy poem for the poetry contest this weekend about riding Liya on one of our epic cattle gathers. I can feel her bouncing, mincing steps, see the steam coming from her flaring nostrils and see her tail flagging high.
I have a rug I sold on etsy that needs to be marked, packed and shipped.
I still need to finish dishes.
I am teaching an interp workshop at Arkansas Tech in Russelleville tomorrow and I need to polish off that program about crafting to make sure it will catch college students attention.
I was going to write this blog post about the chiengora yarn I just finished spinning last night that I am going o wash, set and block tonight.
I haven't done my yoga yet and it is time to do chores, shower and get to work!

Studio Tour

I read somewhere once that if you can just keep doing something for 21 days, it will become a habit. Now it is possible that I have too many habits to fit another one in, like right now, I have 5 minutes before I need to go milk the goats - and that habit has been with me for 32 years. And I really can't sleep unless I unwind in the evening by doing something fibery, the last two evenings it has been custom spinning some nice fluffy dog hair. But, I really want my writing to become a habit.

So, day one.

Erie has been hollering for 24 hours. I bred her to Footsie yesterday morning and I hope it took. She is the world's most obnoxious goat when she is in heat.
I'm headed out to milk and do chores in just a minute. The air is soft and cool this morning. We had a couple inches of rain night before last, so everything is still delightfully damp.

The east wall of my studio with shawls and my new rug rack.

The west wall of my studio, with fleeces, our farm banner, a new handspun mohair
crocheted Tillie shawl and a fall colors shawl on the loom

I spent most of the tour warping the Newcomb and talking to people about the history
of this wonderful loom, my personal history with it and the larger history.
It is now warped and has a Dapper Dan rug started on it.

Studio Tour was fun this year. More visitors than last year, many of them from the Mountain Home and Northwest Arkansas areas.

The "Not Quite Blonde" shawl has a new home, as do three of my Fleecyful rugs.

And now it's off to do chores.