Fiber Raven Soiree

Back from the Fountain of Knowledge

Over the next few days I'll be telling you much of what I learned at Gig Harbor, where I had a wonderful time and got so inundated with techniques and ideas that I am grateful that I decided not to go to Stitches West this year, which surely would have caused my death by fiber overload.

Where did the paisley come from? How long can a silkworm last if frozen? What do love letters and silk have to do with each other? What is 'scrotching'? Those questions and their answers are just a small sampling of the delightful feast of information and entertainment in which we immersed ourselves.

My new favorite person in the entire fiber world is Judith MacKenzie-McCuin, and you'll be hearing a lot that I learned from her. She opens her mouth and from it, like water over a stone, flows a mesmerizing stream of entertwined stories, history and technique, leaving you both satiated and thirsty for more.

Not only were the classes and speakers wonderful, but of course I met fellow knitters and spinners that are equally delightful, including Anne, a longtime friend of Karen's and a new friend of mine. You'll be seeing her post on Pink Tea.

Sherlock survived without his mommy, and the Happy Holler gang seemed to have thrown a wild party while I was gone, strewing yarn and miniature candy bar wrappers everywhere! Tippie Jane is nowhere to be found, and Nanny Granny isn't saying a word but she has that thin-line compressed lip look that suggests that maybe she had to take some old-fashioned disciplinary action with Tippie, and maybe I need to look in the doghouse....