Hale Farm & Village's Christmas Holiday event

Hello, friends. It has been a while since my last blog. The Schoenbrunn Village show was very nice and the weather co-operated. I met quite a few wool spinners and enjoyed sharing experiences.

I have just signed on to demonstrate drop spinning at Hale Farm & Village, Bath, Ohio on Decemer 4th & 11th from 12-5 each day. I will be toting along my wool supply. The farm and village are closed for the season, but they are having this event in the museum store. Drop in if you are in the area and look me up. You can Google Hale Farm & Village for directions.

It has been a very quiet Fall here on Thistledew Farm. The sheep are still grazing the pasture. I will start giving them hay in the next week or so. They let me know when the grass is getting thin. They are pretty vocal and form a great "Sheep Glee Club". The first verse is: Give us Hay. The second verse is: And some Corn too.

Today friends of ours came out to take pictures of Percy. They are sending a hat that I made from his wool to their granddaughter in Colorado and thought she might like to see the wool donor. Percy is a very handsome lad and he obliged them with a fearsome stance. For his participation he and everyone else in the herd got a bucket of corn to share. This was a real treat for them.

Next week my friend Becky is visiting from PA. We will be doing some serious spinning and weaving and I am looking forward to her advice and help. We will be spending many hours holed-up in my workshop, away from the T.V. in the house. That will give Keith peace and quiet!

Until, the next time.

It has been a busy week. On Tuesday my rug hooking group "Lorain Rugcrafters" held a "Hook In". We have one every 2 years. We invite rug hookers from all around this area to come for a luncheon and bring their finished rugs to show and hook rugs all morning and afternoon. It was a lovely day!

I met up with a girl I was friends with in high school and had seen once years ago. We had a great time getting back together and catching up with each other. Plus I spent a day with my friend Wendy who I never seem to see enough of but we talk on the phone often.

Tomorrow is the "Autumn Harvest" show in Homerville, OH. I am sharing a booth with Pam Dugas who makes the most fun typewriter key jewelry. She is also lots of fun to be with so I am looking forward to a good day together.

The sheep are peacefully grazing in the pasture today. Yesterday it was 90 degrees, in the latter part of September even! They must think this summer will never end. I know they look forward to cooler weather and so do I. Then the wool sweaters can come out of storage. I have added a picture of the ever handsome Percy. His mother is Patty and his father is Malcom.

Well, we are sure having nice cool weather lately, just in time to get the lightweight wool clothes out. I was beginning to think the 90 degree weather would never quit. The sheep were too!

I am putting some of the final touches on my inventory to take to "Autumn Harvest" September 25. I have felted a new bag and as soon as I finish it I will put a picture of it on. I wanted it to look like a watermelon and it came out just right. With "Free Felting" there is always a surprise lurking when it goes into the washer. I remember being horrified at what had happened to one bag. It turned out long and very shallow and I made it into a knitting bag. I have had more offers than I can count to sell that bag. This new bag has similar dimensions, but much prettier.

Back from a lovely weekend at Cedarwood Cottage. It is nice to get away once in a while. My Mom is now staying with my sister Leah for a month or so. It gives her a break from the norm too.

I have spent this week scrubbing a rental clean for the new tenants who moved in the evening of the 31st. They are a Chinese family who do not speak English. It is very interesting so far. Keith went over yesterday to repair a window and before he left the lady of the house offered him a cold bottle of water. That is a universal "Thank You" on a 90+ degree day in any language!

In between scrubbing I have been running the dye pot at night to get more done for Hale Farm this weekend. Yesterday I priced and boxed up all the newly dyed fabric. I am anticipating new rug hooking customers from this show along with spinners, weavers and needle felters.

Keith is putting the finishing touches on new drop spindles. This time we will have some tiger maple ones.

Rose and Thistle Antiques in Burbank, OH will be left with a limited supply of roving and yarn, but I am making a sign for our area listing the shows we will be at.

The sheep are lazy this time of year. It is too hot to run and play so they just graze and laze. I am sure they will be glad to see cooler weather come along, just like there shepherd will. This has been an "old fashioned" Summer for sure. Will the sheep remember the cool green grass this winter when they are munching on hay?

The new image is our set up from Ft. Frederick, MD last year. It will give you an idea of what our space will look like this weekend.

I am at the beautiful Cedarwood Cottage B&B in Beaver, W.V. this weekend for a woolapalooza with my sister, Leah, and my mom. I have carted along roving, yarn, needles, drop spindles and rug hooking materials to work on. Tonight I was knitting peacfully until my sister wanted to know how to post a blog, so here I am.

Leah says I should explain better about the tickets being sold out for the Hook In. Because everyone brings along their rugs to hook, there is only so much space available, so there is a limit of 95 that can attend. This is not a craft show that is open to the public.

My sister is a beginning spinner and has brought along some drop dead beautiful roving that she bought at the Great Lakes Wool show. She had never been to a wool show before and it was fun to see her reaction. There is nothing like seeing someone fall under the spell of all that fantastic wool. I would like to see her reaction at the Maryland Sheep and Wool!

For my self, I have fallen under the spell of this little computer and think that I must sell lots of wool in September so that I can snag one of these. It is a tiny little wonder machine.

Hello, again, this has been a busy week for dyeing wool. So far I have dyed 5 batches of wool fabric, roving and uncarded clean fleece. This has been the summer of color blending on a drum carder for me. I just love it.

I am getting ready for 3 shows in September. On Sept. 4th we will be at Hale Farm and Village, 2686 Oak Hill Rd., Bath, Ohio for "Made In Ohio" 10a.m - 5 p.m. This is a first time show and the admission to the entire village is only $5.00 to get in. So far there are almost 60 vendor/artists that will be set up. Many fiber artists among the blacksmiths (Kim Thomas), potters, etc. You can see the place by Googleing: Hale Farm & Village or get information by calling 330-666-3711.

My second show is the Lorain Country Rug Crafters "Hook In", Sept. 21. Tickets for that show are all sold out. I will be selling to rug hookers. That is always a fun day.

Show #3 is Autumn Harvest in Homerville, OH Sept. 25. It is also a new show with the theme being "Primitive Decor" and will feature artists and antique dealers. It is at the old school house on Rt. 301, less than 1/4 mi. from Rt. 224 in Homerville. I seem to have given out all of my flyers, but I think it starts at 10 a.m. If that's wrong, I'll up date it.

Keith is busy making drop spindles and weaving shuttles. He is dismayed at how fast I sell them, since that means he needs to make more. I love to teach drop spinning since a person just learning can produce beautiful yarn with a simple tool and wool. If they want a spinning wheel that can come later.

So off to market I will go with hand dyed wool fabric, roving (both natural color and dyed), hand spun yarn (both natural and dyed), Cherry and Tiger Maple hand carved drop spindles, weaving shuttles, niddy noddys, nostepins, cricket hearth stools, shirred rugs, and a lovey tape loom. Oh, yes several small corner wall cupboards. It all makes for a pretty interesting booth.

If I have time I will make up some kits for small rug hooking projects, but I think it is wishfull thinking on my part.

If you like to spin wool, I'd like to meet you!

I have been encouraged by a customer to start a blog about my love of wool. I am a shepherd, spinner, dyer, felter, knitter and weaver living in Medina, Ohio.



My husband, Keith, and I have been vendors at historic sites for the last 2 years and have really enjoyed it. We have met many interesting folks.



I started spinning 14 years ago and have been a member of Medina Spinning and Weaving Guild for as long.



I became a shepherd 13 years ago and love the animals and being able to process my wool from start to finish on my own farm. It is very satisfying.