HTS Newsletter, February, 2010Volunteer editor: Gary Lee Phillips, tivo.overo at gmail.com
HTS Newsletter, February, 2010
Volunteer editor: Gary Lee Phillips, tivo.overo at gmail.com
Our next meeting will take place on Saturday, February 13, at 10 am at The Fold, 3316 Millstream Rd., Marengo (directions available here.) This month's meeting includes a viewing of a one hour video on drafting methods at the wheel, with discussion and practice afterward for those who are interested. As always, sit & spin, brown bag lunch optional. Dues for 2010 are payable now ($25, make check to The Fold and mark it "Hollow Tree dues." (If you joined and paid since October 1, you're covered for 2010.)
March 13 meeting reminder: Member to member workshop: Spinning cotton on the supported spindle, the charkha, the flyer wheel. Gary, Jean Vaughn, Susan Tauck, and others will share their cotton spinning expertise and advice. Hands on practice encouraged. Brown bag lunch optional.
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The deadline for the next
newsletter will be February 27, 2010. If you are submitting material for inclusion in the newsletter, I really would appreciate having it by the deadline. The newsletter continues to be delayed by late announcements and information, and I would much prefer to get it out to you several days earlier than is now possible.
It's a good thing we're watching an Abby Franquemont video at our February meeting. I'm rooting for the one about drafting. I have my reasons.
It was one of those days where one doesn't dare go outside. Not only was I stuck at home, waiting for the store to deliver our new futon. Our driveway, which curves steeply uphill, was doing its usual winter imitation of an ice-slick luge run.
Staying indoors was the safe thing to do. And besides. I had taken a workshop at 
Wisconsin Sheep and Wool about blending different rovings by pre-drafting them together. I had a boatload of rovings, all in shades of blue and green, that would go well together. As long as I was indoors, what the hey? Why not?
It quickly became apparent why not. It's one thing to predraft two rovings together. it's another to predraft ... well, here's the list.
8 oz of Rommeldale/Merino cross, with tencel and silk noils, by Three Bags Full, colorway, "Malachite." (a rich green)
4 oz Merino/Silk, by Dragonfly Fibers, colorway, "Tangled Blues" (blues, greens, browns against off-white)
4 oz Wensleydale from Spunky Eclectic, colorway something having to do with winter (deep blues with some green)
4 oz BFL from Happy Fuzzy Feet, colorway "Oxide." (off white, with spots of blue, green, and gold)
4 oz of Cormo that I bought two years ago at Midwest Sheep and Wool (blue and green)
2 oz of BFL, Silk and Sparkle, from Ogle Designs, called Blueberry. (a luscious blue)
You get the picture. It only took a little pre-drafting to convince me it was time to pull out the carder. It would take a carder to get through all that fiber, even after I'd neatly divided it all into piles.
And so I carded. And carded. And carded.
The delivery truck came and went, defeated by the luge run. And still I kept carding.
And finally ended up with, yes, you guessed it, a pound plus of carded fibers.
It's possible, in the wonderful world of fibers, to have eyes that are bigger than one's stomach.
It's possible, if you're stubborn, to card Wensleydale with Cormo.
And last, but hardly least ...
I need a bigger carder.
Now lets see if I can figure out how to spin a fat, fluffy long draw. There's just plain too much of this stuff for frog hair.
The Horseshoe Caps should all be in Colorado now, awaiting comparisons and selection. If you didn't get yours finished and mailed in time, please plan to put it in the show in October anyway. We'd like to have a display of all the variations that our group created. Those of you who sent yours off to Loveland, don't worry. I'm assured that they will be back in time for the show, whether selected for the magazine feature or not.
Our second challenge for 2010, the Yardage Challenge, is very simple: keep track of the number of yards of singles you have spun each month, and send it to us by the newsletter deadline. I will add the numbers all up, and post a running total for the year. I believe we can reach a cumulative total of 50 miles or more in twelve months, if everyone just reports their numbers. If you prefer not to have your individual total shown with your name, that's fine, just tell me so and I'll add it in anonymously. The "Scoreboard" will show the overall guild total since October 1, 2009 as well as individual totals for those who are willing to have their name appear. Every little bit helps, so don't be reluctant to report your numbers. We don't all have the same amount of skill or time, and this is not really a competition as much as it is a group effort.
As you can see in the summary information given below, we are now adding yards at a rate that would allow us to surpass the 50 mile goal by September 30. If we can maintain our present average monthly total, we'll get to almost 70 miles in that time. Quite a few members who spin regularly are not yet submitting their numbers. All I need is a note each month with the number of yards of singles you spun that month. You can go back and count everything from October 1, 2009 if you wish.
Please note that the morning spinning group that meets at Starbuck's on the Square in Woodstock has changed to TUESDAY mornings. As always, you can check with The Fold a day or two before to make sure people will be there. And a reminder: Your $25 dues for 2010 are now payable. If you joined and paid dues at the end of 2009, after the show opened in October, then you are considered paid for 2010. Otherwise, time to pay up. Your dues help to make the show possible, and also can subsidize various member activities. We are working on some exciting things for this year.
Entire Guild, October 1, 2009 to date: 40,819 yards (23.19 miles)
As promised, a detailed report with monthly averages and projected totals is now available. Click here for the details. Thanks to the fierce lead that Sharon and Barb have taken, we are now ahead of our necessary monthly quotas and have completed almost half of the year's goal in just four months. I had originally thought to set the goal at 100 miles, but cooler heads prevailed and I backed down to 50. Maybe that was too easy? I don't know if the leaders can keep up this pace, though. All of us need to keep spinning and reporting our totals each month to make sure we have enough yardage.
Programs for the new year are still in planning. Please refer questions and suggestions about events or schedule to Susan at SusanRubendall at aol.com.
There are now seven months left until all show projects for 2010 must be complete. If you didn't enter at least a skein or two in 2009, shame on you. Now is the time to start planning for next year's show.
If you know of an upcoming event, or have a press release or web link, send it to Gary (tivo.overo at gmail.com) in time for the previous month's deadline in order to make sure it gets into the newsletter in time.
Space permitting, members and their friends may submit notices and classified advertisements to appear here.
Did you miss a prior newsletter? It's still available online, right here. Past newsletters are retained online for one year before we retire them to reuse the space.
Are you receiving a monthly e-mail telling you that the newsletter is ready? If not, you need to sign up for the Hollow Tree Spinners e-mail discussion group.
We are trying a Web-based newsletter instead of e-mailing the actual document. This should mean that anyone with access to the internet will be able to see the newsletter, regardless of the kind of computer or software they are using. Most public libraries now have internet browser access as well. An e-mail will be sent to members once a month when the newsletter is ready, reminding them to look at it and print it if they wish. Please let us know what you think. E-mail the editor, Gary Phillips, or guild manager Toni Neil with your comments or suggestions.
Meetings are on the second Saturday of each month unless otherwise announced. The newsletter should be ready by the Saturday before the meeting. Please submit items, announcements, etc. to the newsletter editor, Gary, at least a full week in advance of the newsletter date (TWO weeks before the next meeting.)