Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Big News!

Big news! I am going on vacation in October to Harveyville, Kansas! And what is so exciting about that, you might be asking yourself? Well, that is where twice a year Yarn School is held. A wonderfully long weekend of spinning, dyeing and hanging out with other spinner all while learning lots! I heard about it a couple of months ago and knew it was something I really wanted to go to and now (or rather in October) I am!

One of the really neat things about Yarn School is that it is part of The Harveyville Project which is located in the old high school and elementary school buildings in Harveyville. Seriously, we sleep in the old classrooms. Everything I have heard about Yarn School has been wonderful and I can't wait!

I'll also have more posts coming with Tour de Fleece starting this weekend!

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Tour de Fleece

I mentioned Tour de Fleece in an earlier post and don't think I ever really explained what it is. The Tour de Fleece stared over at Keep on Knitting in the Free World in 2006 and simply put, the cyclists spin and the spinners spin. Here are the guidelines that went along with it:
Guidelines (NOT RULES): 
1. Spin every day the Tour rides. Saturday July 1st through Sunday July 23rd. Days of rest: Monday, July 10th, Monday July 17th. (Just like the actual tour)
2. Spin something challenging on Tuesday July 18th (Gap to L'Alpe DE d'HUEZ)
3. Take a button if you want one. Then we can use the button on our blogs in show of solidarity. Link button to:
http://keeponknittinginthefreeworld.blogspot.com/2006/06/le-spin-de-tour.html
4. Wear yellow on Sunday July 23rd to announce victory. Why not wear yellow on any day you feel particularly successful?
5. Other colors if desired: Green (sprinter - think FAST), Polka-dot (climber - as in uphill), and white (rookie)
Of course the days change every year. We start on Saturday June 30th and end on  Sunday July 22nd with the rest days being on Tuesday July 10th and Tuesday July 17th. The buttons can also depend on what team(s) you have joined for the year. All of this is done on Ravelry and it looks like we have somewhere around 4800+ participants this year! As for teams, I'm not sure how many there are, but I'm on Teams Stashbusters, Sprinters (lace spinners), TARDIS, Spunky (for Spunky Eclectic fiber)  and Ashford.

Last year I kept up in the beginning (or maybe that was two years ago), but then life got in the way. This year however I am determined to spin at least 15 minutes every day. And I haven't decided on what my challenge is going to be, but I'm thinking either spinning beaded singles or spinning a chunky art batt. It would be the first time I've ever spun from a batt if I do that and spinning chunky is a challenge all in itself for me since my default seems to be lace-weight to light fingering. Or if I'm spinning silk then I'm in the cobweb weight. I'll let you know what I pick.

So there is the run down of the Tour de Fleece!