Includes corrections to the snail mail version A Wool Gathering, 2005, the 7th Annual, was well attended and turned out to be a delightful time of sharing the love of natural fiber and fiber animals with old friends and new visitors. Saturday’s attendance was more than 3,000, about like last year, and Sunday’s was much larger. We actually ran out of those drawing-for-ice-cream tickets we use to estimate attendance and finally settled on 7,000 as the visitor and participant weekend total. This year our spindling and make-it take-it feature was directed by Judy Smith, filling in for Susie Smithers, who was volunteering with the Red Croiss. Judy was assisted by 4-Her from Linda Donaldson’s livestock club. They did a great job, and we hope they’ll all be back in 2006, along with Susie. Another popular activity is rope-making, led this year by Patty House and Jan Stiles. Kids can twist fibers into jump ropes and learn how the twist makes the fiber strong. Once again we enjoyed the music of Jeb Mac’s and Caroline Pearl’s Picking Band. Jeff McKinley is a wonderful entertainer, and both children and parents enjoy this activity. Eugene Haudenschield sheared sheep, brought in this year by Jim Ingling and Lori Noll, and John Allread’s Border Collies herded ducks. Both Eugene and John do a great job of explaining and answering questions, and we’re glad to have them participate in our Gathering. Members of the Weavers Guild of Miami Valley demonstrated again this year, along with vendors and other volunteers. Boyd Hastings brought his needle-felted pictures, and Susan Sivey did a program on knitting with beads. Gloria Ault gave a continuous demonstration of rug hooking, and Sherry Mummert worked steadily weaving scarves on her floor loom.. Once again members of the Society for Creative Anachronism reminded us of the importance of spinning and weaving in earlier times, and we appreciate their bringing historical dimension to what many of us do today. Even those of us who work with fiber are surprised at how many breeds and types of fiber animals exist, and we try to exhibit several sheep breeds along with Angora goats, llamas, and alpacas every year. We’ve also attracted several vendors who bring Angora rabbits. This year Marie Tuttle brought to the livestock tent her exhibit of different spinning fibers, bringing still more meanings to “wool.” Thanks, Marie Our wool sheep came from Jeremy Conklin- Kerr (Shetland), Meg Steensland (Jacob), Ric Wallace (Corriedale), Ruth Ann Rahim (Cheviot), and Marge Finnegan (Tunis). Marge also brought the American Livestock Breed Conservancy exhibit. The Conservancy works to preserve rare or endangered breeds of domestic animals, many of them sheep whose quality wool has been rediscovered by today’s spinners. The well-behaved camelids in the big tent were brought by Laurel Shouvlin (alpacas) and Janine Hickey and Dawn Lusk (Llamas). Jeff Grice brought Angora goats. We thank the Clark County Lamb Princess, Alissa Armstrong, and her brother for helping hand out those ice-cream tickets, and the Greenon FFA for assisting with take-down after the Gathering. As our Gathering has grown, we’ve needed, and received, volunteer help from many sources. We are grateful to Young’s Jersey Dairy for hosting our Wool Gathering for the 7th year. They are the ideal hosts, providing not only space, electricity, and water for the animals, but also assistance in solving dozens of minor logistical problems. We’re looking forward to the 8th Wool Gathering, at the Dairy, on September 16 and 17, 2006.. Upcoming Fiber Events...
David Tucker, Sylvania, Ohio, was the winner of this year’s raffle item, a limited edition print donated by artist Joan Arnold, Greenfield, Ohio. The print, matted and framed, can be seen on our web site, www.awoolgathering.com. Expect no big changes, only a few refinements. We’ve ordered the same size big tents, and will again place them side by side with outside vendors in front and to the side. Young’s Dairy has volunteered to make drinks and snacks available throughout the day in a location closer to the tents, and the highway construction out in front has been completed. We’re hoping to improve electricity delivery to the vendors and demonstrators who need it, and we promise to provide a bigger pen for the llamas. As always, we are open to any suggestions you may have to make A Wool Gathering better. Contact Lois at 937 325-7781 or at cgplmp@erinet.com. You may not know Mike because he is a behind-the-scenes guy. But let me assure you, Mike did everything from letting us use the office and all of its equipment to volunteering his wife to help with childre’s activities. Mike also did much to promote our event by mentioning us on his radio program and involving us in some of his programs. When we needed a secretary, Mike willingly helped out. He entertained the committee with his sense of humor in our committee minutes. Mike has retired from our committee so the next Extension Educator would feel free to take a leadership position on our committee. We may, however, twist Mike’s arm and beg him to help out during the Gathering weekend. We all would like to thank him for his many words of encouragement and his unending efforts to promote the Wool Gathering over the past 12 years. Ruth Ann Rahim, President Midwest Festival of Fibers My favorite stitch for small bags is linen stitch, from Mary Hal Davis, a wonderful art knitter. Cast on an even number of stitches–24 will make a small bag with worsted weight yarn. On row 1, K1*, with yarn in front slip 1 purlwise, with yarn in back knit 1*. Repeat between ** to end, ending sl 1 Row 2: P1,* with yarn in back slip 1 purlwise, with yarn in front p1*. Repeat between ** to end, ending slip 1. These two rows are linen stitch. It is slow knitting, but the result is very firm. It looks nice on either side, but I usually leave the purl, bumpy side out. You can vary the bag by using contrasting colors and even a contrasting stitch on the front of the bag–I’ve had success with window pane stitch in a contrasting color. Tapestry weaving on frame looms or boxes also works well for small bags. If you use wool yarn, the bags can be felted, with orna- ments and handles added later. If you cut slots in a box or in a cardboard loom, cut an uneven number and then wind your warp onto the “loom.” On the box or a folded cardboard loom you can weave around and around, adding colors as you go. These are great projects for using an assortment of yarn...but, unless the yarn is bulky, you’ll need more yarn and more time than you might have thought. Lois Pelekoudas |