Spinning Study Group at Local Cloth 2020

List of fibers and their sources

(information as of 2-3-2021)

Local Cloth Spinning Study Group Blog

Fiber farmers in the WNC Local Cloth Area

List of Fiber Samples for Spinning Study Group

Sept 21, 2020

Alpaca, Last Penny Farm

Mohair, Good Fibrations

Montadale, Windy Wool Windings

Shetland, a farm in Henderson County

Oct 20, 2020

Blue Ridge Mountains Blend #1,  Local Cloth (30% Montadale, 25% Shetland, 25% Alpaca, 20% Mohair)

Blue Ridge Fine #1, Local Cloth (60% Montadale, 40% Alpaca)

Jacob, Hobbyknob Farm

Lincoln, Hobbyknob Farm

Nov 20, 2020

Romeldale, CVM Windy Wool Windings

Tunis, Wellspring Farm, Yancey Co, NC

3/4 Blue Faced Leicester x 1/4 Leicester Longwool (first shear), Love Handle Farm, Alexander, NC

3/4 Cormo x 1/4 Corriedale, Martha Owen Woolens

Dec 28, 2020

Dorset, Brian Grimm, Blackberry Ridge, Southwest VA

Icelandic, Katie Gaddy, Hidaway Farm 

Cormo top, Sebette Hamil, Leicester, NC

Romney, Barnardsville 2019

Jan 26, 2021

Teeswater, Dry Creek Naturals, Taylorsville, GA

Llama, Peace of Eden Farm, Madison, NC

Merino, Khakalaki Farm, Trenton, SC

Black Shetland, Sourwood Fiber Farm, Scott Spell, Fletcher, NC

I have mentioned Local Cloth, an Asheville fiber group supporting artists and farmers, in a previous blog (Nov 20, 2020). Local Cloth just sent out a member survey with questions particular to this past covid year. One of the questions was “Did you acquire any new hobbies this year?” My enthusiastic answer was blogging and hand spinning wool (double exclamation points, smiley face)!

I have always loved anything to do with wool and knitting. I sometimes become bored so I tend to switch projects and work in parallel on 3-4 projects. I also take workshops (from Local Cloth) or learn by videos or books. I often lack patience to follow complicated patterns, however I love to design and make things to my specifications and preferences. Since a teenager, I have tried to make many kinds of things, but a lasting interest is working with wool. I think I speak for other knitters when I say that a display or basket full of beautiful yarns makes my heart race; I rush over to look and feel. Visual and tactile pleasures—please drag me out of the shop! Hence, the famous stashes so many of us create.

I am a newbie at spinning. After a lesson and some internet learning, I jumped in at the deep end by joining Local Cloth’s Spinning Study Group last fall. This is an opportunity to be around experienced spinners and fiber farmers (virtually on Zoom at present), to experience and learn about spinning fibers obtained from different sheep breeds and local farmers, and to enjoy spinning in the company of others. Judi Jetson gave me my first (socially distanced, outdoors) spinning lesson at her home in Weaverville. Judi, the driving force behind the creation and development of Local Cloth and the current president, is very generous with her time and talents. By the way, I’ll trade ya—something I made for something you made or taught me! Contact me!!

During the Spinning Study Group sessions, we look up only occasionally at the computer screen while spinning. I learned from leading Local Cloth’s Virtual-Handwork Circle that my screen grabs are much better when I say to the group “Look up and smile”! (Photo 1). Spinners like to spin together indoors or outdoors, at your house or mine. Spinning alone indoors on a rainy day is also wonderful. In the spinning study group, each 2 hour monthly session involves spinning, discussing, and characterizing four different yarns from local farmers. To see my photos of the fibers before spinning check out the Local Cloth blog by clicking Learn More. To see how my yarns look and how they knit up, stay tuned!

Photo 1. Spinning Study participants on 12-28-2020.

Unique results of ice-dyeing

Remember the Sunrise blog series, photographs, linen napkins, and cotton quilted placemats: July 4-19, 2020? The linen napkins were very popular, I only have two left!! I was asked if I could make 8 more just like those in my Etsy shop SusettesHandDyedArt. Confidently, I responded yes!

I had previously made linen Sunrise napkins and the cotton Sunrise placemats on two different days and they came out very similar in appearance. The cotton quilted placemats were more orange than pink, though, whereas the linen napkins were more pink and lighter in general (Photo 1).

Photo 1.. Ice-dyed cotton for placemats (left) and linen (right) from first Sunrise dyeing sessions.

That the colors might come out differently was not a surprise to me for several reasons. The first is that ice dyeing is a bit imprecise, and I didn’t even measure, I only approximated the amounts and positions on the ice covering the cloth.

In addition, the same dye on two different fabrics can give different results (Photo 1). I dyed two different fabrics, a stretchy rayon knit for the lower portion for the dress, and a heavier cotton knit for the top part of the dress in the same dye bath (granny apple from Dharma (PR158)). The cotton knit came out blue-green and the stretchy rayon knit more granny apple green. A reason for this difference between the two fabrics, is at least partially that I used a fold resist method for the cotton knit pattern. In this case, the dye diffused toward the center between the plexiglass squares; the turquoise dye migrated through the cloth at a faster rate (see folded method in Photo 2). I used a a tied resist method for the stretchy rayon knit, thus, the majority of the fabric was exposed directly to the dye bath. The color was uniformly taken up except where the dye was excluded at the tied portions. The rayon fabric was finished using a leaf stamp and heat set pigment. So the overall dress appearance is quite a bit more appealing because of the differences in method of resist and uptake of the dye into the fabric. Of course in this case I was surprised but delighted by the differences it being the first experiment of this kind.

Photo 2. Dress made from hand dyed fabric.

Photo 3. Preparation for dyeing rayon (tied) and cotton knit (folded).

Coming back to the linen napkins and more recent experiments on color combinations, I have dyed 5 different lots of linen since the first lot using folding resist and ice dyeing techniques.

With each new color combination and folding experiment, the joy of ice-dyeing comes from the beautiful color combinations as well as surprise and delight felt upon seeing the outcome: the unveiling! The Christmas present or birthday unwrapping feeling, particularly when you are a child. Ice dyeing can give both subtle or bright, bold results based on a number of factors. These factors determine reproducibility (the ability to precisely repeat the results). It helps to be a scientist to know the detailed recording of steps is required for in duplicating experiments, but that isn’t sufficient. To understand the dyeing process thoroughly, one should have training in physics and chemistry to understand diffusion rates and dye chemistry. I think about dyeing fabric as a playful enterprise and not necessarily striving to reproduce a previous result, although the latter requires careful note taking in order to fill an order on my Etsy shop if someone requests more of a particular color lot.

The results of a few dyeing sessions are shown in Photos 4-5.

Photo 4. A Sunrise linen napkin against linen dyed with a different dye combination.

Photo 5. A Sunrise linen napkin (Bottom), a pinker linen napkin using different dyes (Top), both against linen dyed using ice dyeing then overdying using ice dyeing but with a different set of starting colors.

Check out my Etsy shop for the latest in ice-dyed heavy linen napkins!

Sunrise: shockingly bright or subdued colors?

From our house, we see sunrises in the southeast. They can be so different. You don’t know how many pictures I have taken, running out to the deck to capture a picture of the sunset, mountains in the distance, and our trees in the foreground. I don’t know how many times, but currently on my phone I have maybe 20K photos I have taken over the last 13 years. I keep what might be called a photo journal of my processes, the things I make, and visual frames imagined as I walk down the road that drive me to grab my iPhone and capture bits of the beautiful surroundings here on the mountain.

Sunrise.

The most intense sunrise has shockingly bright oranges and reds, whereas, when sunrise is more progressed, the colors become muted. The clouds add such a different element in the image as well as the selection of trees, particularly in the fall and winter when the intricate patterns of branches can be seen.

Photo 1. Sunrise with trees in Leicester, NC

Photo 2. Sunrise with clouds in Leicester, NC

Photo 3. Sunrise with trees, mountain profile, and a beautiful blue sky.

Photo 4. Sunrise with muted colors, streaks of clouds, trees, and mountain profile in the distance.

Photo 5. Late sunrise with muted blue ridge mountains and a pink and pale blue sky.

Exciting reds and oranges or muted, soft, peaceful colors. Right? You see it I am sure. I myself can’t resist capturing images of intense colors, but the photos I prefer to look at and perhaps see on the wall are the muted ones. Since I make calendars using my photos, I see each image a month at a time and have plenty of time to enjoy. This year I saw everything again as I failed to make a new calendar. More on calendars at another time.

My next piece, I decided therefore, was to create something based on sunrises, but one that I could enjoy making and that made me feel at peace. I also wanted to make something that could be used daily and enjoyed, if not by me then by others.

1 dozen linen napkins and 1 dozen quilted placemats to match.

Cutting the fabric, dyeing the fabric, stitching and fraying the napkins, silkscreening, putting together the placemats with batting in place, and more before finally quilting. FUN! Something really to look forward to in the mornings.

We have been talking about ice dyeing in our virtual handwork circle at Local Cloth and several in our group are experienced with this technique. I love it and have done pieces before for quilts and wall hangings such as the piece in the next photo which hangs in my studio. My mentor Karen Bell, a fiber artist in Canton, NC and a fellow banjo player and I enjoyed an afternoon of wax resist, otherwise known as batik. My starting material was a large piece of ice dyed fabric.

Photo 6. Batik wax resist on ice dyed muslin followed by navy over dyeing. Purple basis, natural dyed wool was used to crochet the edges and suspend the batik from a hardy hibiscus stem collected from my garden.

So jumping in with both feet, I cut yards of heavy linen and yards of cotton sheeting and proceeded to ice dye them in similar colors, I hoped. The colors on the linen napkins would be similar but not exactly the same as those on the cotton sheeting destined for the placemats. To make things more interesting, I decided to shibori fold the material prior to ice dyeing.

Photo 7. Top view of ice dyeing at the beginning of the process.

Photo 8. Side view of ice dyeing at the beginning of the process.

Brace yourself. I am happy for me (out of time) yet sorry to say for you (what happens next), this blog will be continued next week!……………………

It is all about the surprise, first seeing unfolded wet and then after washing and drying. You will see that and more. Silkscreening and whatever else I dream up.

Susette

May 20, 2020 A Blog about Textiles, Fiber, and Making Things

This will be a learning curve for me! Not only am I starting a blog on my website, I am committed to teaching a tutorial for Local Cloth for its members to help them promote their work and to contribute to the Local Cloth Blog.

From their website:

“Local Cloth is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to growing the fiber supply chain in Western North Carolina and enhancing the lives of those who make their living in fiber industries. We support a thriving community consisting of farmers, fiber artists, suppliers, designers/sewists, educators, students, and small scale fiber mills.”

Look for Local Cloth member interactions on their Facebook and Instagram page

The Covid-19 pandemic has pushed us all to move to virtual interactions while awaiting re-opening. I am socially surviving and meeting new friends on our Virtual Handwork Circle that we have been holding every Friday from 4-6 pm using the all popular Zoom! I host it from my closet office in a spare bedroom. You can sign up on the Local Cloth/Workshops page each week in order to get a Zoom invitation. We discuss our work, our lives, and love to show and tell what we are making or have already made. I pick up lots of tips about sources for materials, techniques, and inspiration. Some of us even call it cocktail hour.

Here are some new friends. During a few minutes in the middle of the handwork circle, Ellen Knoefel gave a short discussion of Project Linus. You can see my notes on the Local Cloth Blog.

This was the session May 8, 2020 when we had a presentation of Project Linus: handmade blankets for children in distress.