Countdown to YarnFest - Class Preparations

Time is moving along at a fairly rapid pace, and my journey to the Interweave Yarn Fest is drawing quickly nearer. One of the big items on my to-do list involves being properly prepared for the classes that I'll be taking. During the four-day event I am enrolled in six three-hour classes and one six-hour class, which means that I need to carefully plan and prepare so that I have all of the necessary supplies and equipment for each class that I'll attend.

Item number one is a spinning wheel. Five of my seven classes are spinning-related, and all require a spinning wheel in good working order. Although my beloved Kromski Sonata folds into a carrying case and travels well, it is somewhat heavy and bulky to carry, and since I'll be having to carry not only a spinning wheel, but extra tools, supplies, equipment, a water bottle, and even a knitting bag, I decided that a more compact wheel would be helpful in this regard. I chose to purchase an Ashford Joy 2, which is lighter and more compact than the Sonata; it also sets up and folds up more quickly. (Ironically the smaller travel wheel costs more than my full-sized one did - go figure!) I had test-spun on a friend's Joy about a year ago and really liked it, and it comes with a padded travel bag, so all that remained was to save up the money for the purchase. Fortunately I was able to accomplish that by leaving my PayPal earnings from the fall craft fairs untouched until I had acquired the necessary balance, and I ordered the wheel in January, along with some other necessary tools.

The second necessary item was an assortment of extra bobbins. My first class requires four extra bobbins and the second one three; since these classes are scheduled back-to-back I don't anticipate having time to wind off yarn to free up bobbins between classes. I'll have to have additional bobbins for other classes later in the week but will be able to wind my yarn off in the evening in order to reuse these bobbins for subsequent classes. My travel wheel came with three bobbins included, and I purchased five extras at the same time for a total of eight bobbins for this wheel. I trust that should be a sufficient supply; otherwise I'll be stalking the dealers in the exhibit hall to try and purchase more.

The third item which was required for several of the classes was a Lazy Kate. For my many friends named Kate or Katie, please rest assured that the name of this item is in no way meant to cast aspersions on your varied industrious natures. I'm not certain where the name came from, but in essence the Lazy Kate is meant to hold bobbins which are being used for plying (in other words, twisting two single strands of yarn together to make a thicker, stronger yarn). I got the simplest and least expensive one I could find because it was also the lightest and easiest to carry – an important consideration on this adventure.

One plying class requires that I arrive with a bobbin mostly filled with a fine-gauge single yarn, so that's my current spinning project. Before I leave home I'll have that bobbin safely secured in its own zipper bag to keep the single from unwinding during travel. I'm guessing that I need to step up my game a bit on the spinning, as I was so tired the other afternoon that I fell asleep at the wheel and didn't get any spinning done that day.

Other items on the class “required” lists include tags for marking yarn samples, knitting needles, a cable needle, and other minor tools and supplies. I'll also be carrying a notebook, pens, pencils, and folders for class handouts, notes, and other useful information. My plan is to sort the necessary materials for each class into individual zipper top bags so that each will be readily accessible without having to dig through a bag of “stuff” to locate everything.

I'll also be taking along my yarn swift, ball winder, and niddy noddy, so that I'll have options for winding off the yarn that I'm spinning as well as any yarn that I happen to bring along or purchase for knitting in the evenings.

Last but not least, most of the classes I'm taking will have a supply fee to be paid to the instructor at the beginning of class. I'll have the cash for these supply fees sorted into labeled envelopes before I leave home, so that I don't have to spend time scrambling to find the correct change at the last minute. I'm hoping that will simplify things for the instructors as well as for me.

I'm eagerly awaiting these classes, and hope to absorb all of the knowledge that is imparted. I know that what I can bring back will be extremely beneficial as I continue my fiber arts journey.

Next up: Packing and Organizing

Countdown to YarnFest: Travel Arrangements

In just four short weeks (give or take a day; this was supposed to have been published yesterday) I'll be leaving Carlinville to drive to Loveland, Colorado, where the Interweave Yarn Fest is being held. Although I'm beyond excited at the prospect of attending such a prestigious national fiber arts event, I'm also a bit nervous as I prepare for this journey.

First of all, I've never before driven this far on my own. Because I've enrolled in several spinning classes, I have to take my spinning wheel with me; because overhead storage compartments in airplanes don't accommodate spinning wheels, I have to drive. Fortunately I'll only have to drive one way, as Mike will be taking the train to Denver over that weekend, and catching a shuttle to the motel, then he will drive home with me on Monday and Tuesday.

Among the items on my preparation timeline are: oil change, check (and replenish if needed) all fluids, replace wiper blades, and pray for an uneventful drive. I'll be swiping the emergency starter box from Mike's van and taking that with me, and we've just signed up for an introductory AAA membership. I'll have to figure out what apps I can delete on my phone to make room for the AAA app, and then plan on not needing either roadside assistance or the starter box.

If Mike were driving we could easily make the trip in two days; however, because I'm not accustomed to driving long distances, I plan to leave on Monday and spread the driving over three days, making quick overnight stops on Monday and Tuesday nights. My bags will be packed so that I'll be able to only take one small bag inside with me for the motel stops (well, yes, okay -- actually one small bag PLUS a knitting bag of indeterminate size...) in order to expedite the stopping and starting process. I'm hoping to do the bulk of the driving in daylight and planning to arrive in Loveland sometime Wednesday afternoon, to allow time to get settled in and well rested before the event starts at 9 a.m. on Thursday.

It's going to be an amazing adventure and I look forward to getting started!

Next up: class preparations

Countdown to YarnFest

Exactly six weeks from today, assuming all goes as planned (and most likely even if it doesn't), I'll arrive at the Embassy Suites in Loveland, Colorado, to check in and get settled before the Interweave YarnFest begins on Thursday March 30. I will then spend the next four days immersed in classes on knitting sideways cables, writing patterns, and several aspects of spinning different kinds of yarn.

When I first learned that I had been selected as a scholarship recipient (one of five nationally) to attend YarnFest, I was simultaneously overjoyed, incredulous, and a little bit terrified. Although I had worked very diligently to complete the scholarship application to the very best of my ability, in my heart of hearts I never really quite believed that I could possibly be chosen as a recipient.

Over the past four months I have been working on preparations for my YarnFest adventure in a more or less random manner; with six weeks remaining it is now time to approach the preparation in a much more orderly and systematic manner. I have lists of items which need to be procured, items to be packed, projects which need to be knitted (including one that I have yet to finish designing), tasks to prepare the car for safely driving on such a long trip, and even a list of the lists I need to compile.

As this is likely a once in a lifetime adventure for me, I want to prepare as well and thoroughly as possible for all eventualities, so that when I arrive my mental energy might be freed up to focus on soaking every drop of learning, networking, making of new friends, and FUN that is to be had. Consequently I'm walking a fine line between the OCD of exquisite preparation and the flexibility to relax and “let it go” when things don't turn out precisely as planned.

So, with that I'm off to tweak my preparation lists for such items as Knitting Projects, Class Preparations, Purchasing Lists, Packing Lists, Vehicle Preparation, Readiness Timeline, etc, etc. I covet your prayers for wisdom and discernment in the lists and the process, for safe travel, and for peace of mind as I continue to prepare for the adventure of a lifetime.

A New Beginning

When my husband Mike was hospitalized after a serious accident some 32 years ago, he received a small umbrella plant as a get-well gift from his cousins who at that time lived in Dallas. Despite my decidedly brown thumb, that plant somehow grew and thrived and eventually became so enormous as to be unwieldy, requiring two people and an act of Congress to move the (now much larger) pot where it resided. Mike had been moving it out to the back deck every spring, and back into our bedroom in the fall every single year, but somehow this year a hard freeze hit before he got the plant moved inside. He brought it inside anyway, placing it in its usual spot by the sliding door, and left it for a week to see whether it would recover from being frozen. Alas, the freeze had been too much for it and all of the branches remained brown and lifeless. Because by this time the weather was far too nasty to move the entire pot back outside, Mike chopped off all of the dead branches, leaving nothing but a root ball with a bunch of chopped off sticks. Several weeks later, I happened to glance at the dead base of the plant, and was amazed to notice a tiny green shoot emerging from the side of one of the very dead branches. Over the past few weeks, more shoots have emerged and grown, and it appears that the umbrella plant lives once more, albeit in a much more abbreviated form - quite the metaphor of resurrection and new beginnings!

Around this time last year, I was in a very dark place. We had been struggling for about three years with the aging and declining health of our respective parents and finally the loss of two of them while the others continued to decline. Other events occurring at this time combined to create the most challenging time of my entire life. I was sad, overwhelmed, and stressed beyond belief. (I recall commenting at one point that, on a 1 to 10 scale, my stress level was hovering around 72.) Clearly some changes had to be made; I found myself declining requests for my time and energy that I had no way to fulfill, eliminated some activities which, while worthwhile, were no longer providing the joy and fulfillment that they once had, and pruning away the heavy branches of my life which had become unsustainable. I, too, had become a dead bundle of chopped-off sticks.

Now, entering the final year of my sixth decade of life, I am seeing tiny sprouts emerging from the remains of the unsustainable heavy branches that were my life. This promises to be a year of changes; some small, and some enormous and a little bit scary. To begin with, at the end of the school year I will be concluding my 30+ year adventure in providing child care. I've been so very blessed to have a part in the raising and teaching of all the children who have come to my home, and I will deeply miss them - especially the two who currently spice up my days - but it's definitely time for me to move on and focus on other things now. 

So what will I be doing with my "spare time"? For the person who asked this question, I don't believe that such a thing actually exists, at least not in the sense of having time where there is nothing to do. First of all, I plan to devote more time and energy to my fiber arts. I'll be knitting (of course!) projects running the gamut from simple dishcloths knitted on autopilot to complex and elaborate one-of-a-kind creations; from prayer shawls, chemo hats, and other items to be given away to carefully crafted garments, accessories, and home decor to sell at craft fairs. I have many ideas for original pattern designs which I plan to work on, with a goal of eventual publication. I'll continue to refine and improve my spinning skills, and hope at some point to have handspun yarn of sufficient quality to be sold as well. And I will continue to teach knitting in various venues, as I work toward setting up a classroom in my home to provide a variety of local knitting classes. 

In addition to my fiber arts, I have a number of writing projects which have languished on the back burner for far too long. There are at least three BPWs (Books Partially Written) in word files on my computer, which deserve better than to be left unattended in a heap of dusty pixels, and a multitude of ideas, small stories, and potential projects which still need to progress beyond the concept stage.

When I'm not working on knitting, spinning, or writing - or when I AM working on them, because I'm almost always doing one or the other - Mike and I plan to spend more time together, and to travel more, and to specifically NOT have any more 5:15 a.m. alarms on a routine basis. We're looking forward to being able to travel in the off-season when things are less crowded and the weather isn't so miserably hot.

I plan to be much more diligent about blogging, and especially about documenting the variety of knitting projects that I've completed, because when the question was raised recently of how many things I had completed in the past year I had no idea.

Last but not least, I plan to enjoy every second of my upcoming adventure at the Interweave Yarn Fest next month (even going to try to enjoy driving to Colorado in March!);  to savor every moment of time I'm able to spend with my two grandchildren, the rest of my family, and all of my wonderful friends; and to revel in the blessedness of having gotten this far. I welcome your comments and feedback!